It took them almost a week to get back there. The reason for the delay was pretty simple:
One, they got attacked at least once a day, which forced them to stop for an hour or two to recover.
And the most damning: Lina couldn't remember exactly where the town, let alone the library, actually was. If she tried to backtrack from the city that sold Salmon Delight, it would just waste time.
Finally, she decided to try and make her way back to the city, hoping that they would stumble upon the library or its town on the way. It wasn't a great solution, but it was the only one that looked somewhat decent, so they others had to agree.
It was a tedious way to do it, and it took far longer than she had anticipated, or liked, but eventually, once they passed though the city and went backwards from it, Lina started to recognise a few things, and with it, the way to go from there. Hopefully.
"Gourry," she said, looking over at him. "I know you don't really remember, but do you have any kind of inkling as to where you went to find the healers?"
Gourry frowned, scratching his chin slowly in thought. Lina waited, hoping that this was an actual sign and not a preparation for teasing.
"Lina-san!" Amelia called, sounding far off. She turned, and saw that both the princess and Zelgadis were barely within eyesight. "Is this the library you wanted?"
Lina felt a sudden clench in her gut, one that she hadn't been expecting, but when she spoke, her voice was calm, "How should I know if I can't see if from here?" she demanded.
She turned to catch up, but felt Gourry's big hand slap down on her shoulder and pull her back. She turned, and saw that he looked worried.
"Are you sure you want to go back?" he wondered. "What if whatever hit you is still there?"
Lina smiled and nodded. "But this time, I won't be so stupid as to try a spell that was banned for a reason," she replied.
He still looked worried, so gently, Lina cupped his cheek into her hand, smiling. "And besides, you're here."
"I was there last time and you still got hurt," he snapped, his eyes wavering with anger. Lina knew he wasn't mad at her, but it still upset her just the same.
"What are you, an idiot?" she demanded, tapping on his cheek. "If you hadn't gotten me away from there, I wouldn't be here to lecture you!"
Gourry still looked doubtful, so she softened a little. She moved in closer, closed the distance, and hugged him, tightly. He hugged her back, almost hard enough to take her breath away. He buried his face into her hair, and she sighed, mostly from pleasure, but also from worrying about him.
"It's okay," she said softly into his ear. He nodded, slowly, as if trying to get rid of the images he could see, or perhaps memories, and then pulled away from her. He looked worried still, but not as much as before.
"Lina-san!" Amelia shouted, her voice irritated and louder.
Lina rolled her eyes. With a wave of her hand, she turned towards the voice. Gourry followed, swallowing hard. He was going to make sure his eyes stayed glued to her the whole time.
X X X
The library, if possible, looked worse than it had the last time they had been there. Lina wasn't exactly surprised, since she was pretty sure that she and Gourry were the only ones who knew of it (except now Amelia and Zelgadis knew too), but it still sort of surprised her.
Zelgadis got a faraway look in his eyes. "How old is this place?" he wondered. From beside him, Amelia scowled, but made no comment.
Lina decided to answer the question anyway, even though she, too, was annoyed by it, since she and Amelia both knew where it was going. "Old," she answered. "The townspeople we met had some recollection of it, but not alot."
Zelgadis licked his lips slowly and started towards it, but Lina grabbed a fistful of his mantle and dragged him back. He staggered and sputtered. "What are you doing?" he demanded.
"Are you forgetting something?" Lina snapped. "That place is dangerous. Even if you don't actually read the book I did, something still hit me when I was there. I'm not letting you risk it."
Zelgadis's eyes blazed with anger, and he gritted his teeth. He yanked his mantle out of her grasp and turned away from her. When he made as if to go anyway, Amelia blocked him, her own face twisted in fury. He glared back, but she didn't move, nor did she say a word.
They stood like that for a long moment, long enough to make Lina start chewing on her hair and Gourry shift from foot to foot uneasily.
When she felt it had gone on too long, Lina broke in with, "We're here to use this as a landmark, Zel. We don't have time to waste on it."
Zelgadis turned away from Amelia and instead got into Lina's face. "You have no idea what it's like," he said, his voice shaking.
"No, I don't," she answered curtly. "But I know what it's like watching you get your hopes up each time only to have them dashed like this. It can't be done, Zelgadis!"
He glared at her, his mouth open, and she stared back. This time it was the two of them locked in a gaze.
In a gentler tone, she continued. "You've been looking and looking for years. Everytime you think you've come close, it's not there. You're chasing a ghost, Zel. You're chasing Rezo--"
Zelgadis held up a hand, lowering his head and shutting his eyes, and she shut up. She knew she had gone too far, but she also knew that she was right. He pulled away from her, looking away from the three of them. There was a silence, one that pained everyone involved in it.
It was only broken when Amelia stood next to him and touched his shoulder. He flinched, but she said, softly, "Once we take care of this problem and we know it's safe, maybe we can come back, Zelgadis-san. Otherwise, we're just inviting them to trap us."
Lina blinked, gaping. She noticed Gourry doing the same. Instantly she regretted ever making fun of Amelia's diplomacy. That was the best answer she could have given.
Zelgadis sighed, big time, but he nodded. He reached up and touched her hand, giving it a pat, and she smiled before pulling it away. When he turned to Lina, his eyes were dark, but they were set. "Can you find your way from here?" he asked.
Lina reached forward and gave him a hearty punch on his shoulder. He squawked, but managed to smile a little. "Let's get going!" she crowed. She turned to Gourry. "You can lead the way!"
Gourry paled, but nodded.
X X X
It took even longer for them to find the town in question. Gourry managed to get them lost twice, and each time they were attacked. It took them almost two days to get there, which seriously pissed Lina off, but there was nothing to be done about it.
When Gourry stopped in front of a modest little hut, he frowned, narrowing his eyes. When Lina caught up to him and looked as well, she knew it was the place. She felt relieved. "This is it," she declared, and Gourry sagged, grateful that his spot in the lead was finally over.
Lina jumped up and knocked, and was soon greeted by the very same priestess who had treated her all of those months ago. She felt a little bit of a lurch in her stomach, from the memory of it, but she bit it back.
"Oh! Lina-san!" the priestess exclaimed, looking very happy. "It's great to see you! And looking so robust, too!"
Lina titled her head at this, but decided not to address it. (She did, however, hear Amelia snort behind her.) "Thanks. Listen, do you know where Sylphiel is?"
The priestess blinked, then shook her head. "No, she left not too long after you were discharged," her face brightened. "Before she left, she made sure that I knew Resurrection!" She flexed her arms and grinned. "Do you need me to use it on you?"
Lina sighed, her expression poisonous. "Does it look like I need it? Considering how 'robust' I look?"
The priestess looked embarrassed. "Er, no, certainly not like last time," she admitted.
Lina twitched, and Gourry instantly knew that it meant she was close to punching the priestess, so he stepped in. "Do you know where Sylphiel was headed?" he wondered.
The priestess paused, chewing on her lip. "She did say something about going further south, but she was kind of vague about it."
Lina wanted to scream. This was getting them nowhere. "Didn't she leave some sort of itinerary or something? So you knew where she was?"
The priestess shook her head slowly.
"Gah," Lina groaned. They had come so far, wasted so much time, and for what? Nothing; just another wall thrown up in their faces. The frustration was too much. Lina could feel herself shaking from it, and without another word, she turned on her heel and marched away, muttering something that vaguely sounded like "bandits" and "asses".
Her three comrades, as well as the priestess, stared after her in a small silence. Finally, Amelia forced a smile and said gently, "We're trying to find a solution to a little problem we're having, and Sylphiel-san was our last chance. I assure you, it's not your fault."
The priestess blew her bangs out of her face. "I figured," she agreed. "Well, sorry I couldn't be of much help." Her tone was conclusion, and they knew they were being dismissed.
"Thank you very much," Amelia said. The preistess nodded and closed the door behind her. Gourry wasn't sure, but there was something odd about her, something he couldn't quite place...
"Well," Zelgadis broke in suddenly, staring off in the direction that Lina had stomped off. "Now what? Follow the sound of explosions?"
Amelia jolted suddenly. "Wait a second!" she cried. "Lina-san's alone!"
Zelgadis blinked, but Gourry tensed, nodding. About a moment later, Zelgadis's eyes narrowed. "Dammit," he muttered.
Within a moment, they were chasing after her, shouting out her name to get her to stop, before the next attack came.
But they would be too late.
