Rated: R
Language:English
Categories: Action/Adventure/Romance
Title: My Obsession
Summary: "I'll see to it personally he has a better life this time." "'But- Gaav?! That's impossible! He's dead!'" ""Who the Hell am I?!"" 'You're mine, Valgaav.'
My Obsession
Yeah. It's kind of a filler. But at least it shows I've still been working on the story, right? There've been a lot of things going on that've made it hard to update--my school's tests, for one, and relationship-related issues, for two. Not only that but, between you and me, I've been severely dreading the fight scenes that're coming up later on in the story because I'm bad at describing them when the characters being used aren't the ones I invented. Anyway, here's chapter twenty, and I hope it's at least a bit enjoyable and not too redundant. I have to go back and read over the last few chapters I sent in, but I couldn't before typing this up because I was away from any possible access to a computer when I wrote it. I really do appreciate your patience. I do know, however, how to end this story now!
Chapter Twenty: Once a Sneak, Always a Sneak
"How much longer until we finally get there?" Lina whined, stretching.
"I don't know." responded Zelgadiss, sighing. How many more times would the redhead ask that?
"How much longer now?"
"I don't know, Miss Lina." Amelia said wearily, forcing a strained smile.
"Okay, well, how about now?"
Gourry blinked, looking towards his wife and replied, "How about now, what?"
"You're no use, Gourry--how long?"
Xelloss paused for a moment before continuing as he said, "Oh, at this rate? Not much longer."
Lina's eyes lit up as she grinned, leaping forward. "How much longer, Xelloss?"
"Oh, about three days."
At this, Lina stared at the trickster priest, a twitch forming at her eye. "What the hell? You haven't changed much, I see! Come on, we're on a press for time here!"
The priest turned his head slightly to glance back at the sorceress, allowing one eye to crack open. As he spoke, his face remained expressionless and voice cheerless, saying, "If, indeed, we are too late, Lina, you may have wished we had taken longer when we get there."
The group paused in their steps as Xelloss continued on for a few more paces as if unaware they had stopped. After a few seconds, the Mazoku stopped as well and turned towards everyone. With a brow lifted, he asked, "Do you remember, perhaps, Gaav's strength alone?" At the grim nod in response, he continued, "And Valgaav, with his own strength as a mixed blood? He is, at the moment, a full-blooded Ancient--the last of his kind. At least, we can only hope he's still that way. But, if he does happen to have changed him back, then just think for a moment on the idea of both he and his master coming after everyone. Does that prospect sound inviting?"
"No, of course not." replied Lina in a serious tone of voice. Her arms crossed over her chest, brows knitting. "I don't even really want to fight just one of them, let alone both. I mean, think of it: Val is one thing, but Valgaav is a whole different story. Especially if Gaav's there with him. Filia would never forgive any of us if we had to hurt Valgaav if he's still in the form of Val, and maybe not even if he did look like the guy we first met all those years ago; she's kind of self-righteous like that. 'Oh, don't go hurting my baby! Be careful with my baby! Don't you remember how hard it was on him before? How can you be so hard on him when he has every right to be so hurt at us for everything?' And all that jazz."
The group went on its way again at this. "It is, really, not completely surprising this came up." put in Zelgadiss thoughtfully.
Amelia glanced up at the stoney man beside her, blinking. "What?"
"Well, Amelia, think about it. Filia promised to take Valgaav in when he was reborn as an egg and raise him properly. She feels guilty for what her people did to his, so she feels obligated to make that up to him. It makes sense, then, that she'd be unconsciously sending signals to him that she's doing it at least partly out of the feeling of guilt. Unknowingly, she's probably been sending signals to him from the beginning that she's trying to make something up to him, even if he doesn't really know what that is. It would give him reason to wonder what she knows that he doesn't, and to question her on those reasons--reasons better left forgotten."
"Better forgotten, that is," Xelloss piped up, tone somber again, "For us, if we indeed are given no other choice than to ultimately kill him again."
"I hadn't thought about it that way." Gourry mumbled, sounding a little perplexed.
"We're not gonna kill him, Xelloss. We're just gonna make sure Gaav hasn't gotten there. When we prove the reasons you're giving us for whatever sneaky purpose you have going there are unfounded, we're going to get him and Filia, take them somewhere safe, and then take care of this whole Demon Dragon King situation just like last time."
"Oh, do remember Lina Gabriev..." Xelloss trailed off for a moment or so, facing straight ahead though his eyes remained closed as per usual. At length, he finished with a glance thrown over his shoulder at the sorceress, saying, "That last time, it was not you who defeated him. It was Hellmaster Phibrizzo."
"You sound really happy about that." The princess stated nervously, frowning wider.
"And remember, you were in league with that guy from the start." Lina put in.
"Of course; Gaav was trying to destroy the Monster race. He was an enemy to the Lord Beastmaster's eventual plans, and since he was also a threat to the human race with his love of war and chaos, it was natural that your kind would also find him a neusance. So, we simply enlisted your aid to take care of the remaining scattered garbage from the last big fight."
"We aren't your personal garbage collectors, Xelloss!" growled Zelgadiss, fists clenching tightly. "And we're not here for your amusement, either!"
"I'm very aware of that, my dear Zelgadiss. It is simply convenient that you do pick up after us occasionally, and that you are quite often rather amusing to me. A three-for-one deal, if you will."
"You-"
"Relax, Zel. We still have to have him and Edna to get us there. If something pops up and it's bad, we can count on Xelloss to leave. Then we'll know exactly how bad whatever we're facing is." Lina smirked as she spoke, hands raising to rest on her hips as she walked. "Isn't that right? You usually do, after all."
"Oh, dear; is it just me, or did the temperature suddenly drop?"
"I can't keep walking any further!" cried Edna in exhaustion suddenly. "Please, go on without me--just avenge my grandbaby!"
Looking down to the old woman, Gourry grinned as an idea entered his head. He plucked her from the ground with ease, setting her gently ontop of Zelgadiss' shoulders.
After a few moments of silence, during which she tried to find a comfortable position in which to sit and Zel stared at the horizon in aggravation with his luck, Edna proclaimed, "This is too hard."
Leaving Zel with a twitching eye, Gourry placed her upon Amelia's shoulders next. At this, the woman almost instantly stated, "This is too soft."
The princess blinked, and Gourry placed her on Lina's shoulders. The sorceress gave a nervous smile. "What is this--Sherlilocks and the Three Mazoku?" she muttered, ignoring Xelloss' indignant 'hmph.'
"Oh, I couldn't possibly let mysef be a burden to this poor little child!" Edna exclaimed.
Xelloss gave a splutter of a snort as sudden laughter tried to burst forth at this, shoulders shaking from the silent cackles. Her eye twitching madly, Lina turned to death glare Amelia, Zelgadiss, and Edna, who were glancing in any direction but hers. Gourry nodded at Edna's statement, saying, "And she could pass for a little girl, since her-"
"Gourry, I dare you to finish that sentence." threatened the redhead. Though this silenced the swordsman, it only served to spur on another round of aughter for the Mazoku priest, who was already near what would, for any human, have been tears. Seeing this, Lina growled and plucked Edna up, setting her instead onto Xelloss' shoulders.
Edna instantly settled down there, grinning happily as she stated, "Oh, now that's just right."
Xelloss immediately stopped his laughter, instead adopting a nervous frown as the old woman grinned from ear to ear, hands resting on the priest's collar bone.
As a green shade made an appearance on Xelloss' face, Zel gave a smug smirk. "Don't like being the butt of Ms. Edna's joke, Xelloss?" he asked mockingly.
"Ah, I think I should be on my way now, don't you?" Xelloss said with a smile, a brow knitted in annoyance at the chimera's words. "Lord Beastmaster will be expecting to hear back from me soon on how things are progressing."
With this said, Xelloss made his swiftly-phazed exit, leaving Gourry to catch Edna and place her on his own shoulders before she fell to the ground.
"Coward." Lina mumbled, shrugging as she continued walking.
"Ah, yes, by the way!" Xelloss' voice chimed from behind Zelgadiss, causing the stoney man to jump in surprise and glare at him, "I've a message for someone in this group, and if you would be so kind as to deliver it to its owner, I'd be indebted to you."
Zel gave him a suspicious look as he took the letter extended to him. "I don't trust you, Xelloss." he stated pointedly.
"What a pity. Well, open it."
As Zel did so, the others leaned over the letter to read what it said."
"Litte girl, little breasts;
scared the spiders from their nests.(1)
Ooooh ho ho ho ho ho:P
xoxo, Naga & Xelloss"
Edna, Gourry, Amilia, and Zel's eyes slowly turned to Lina as the chimera placed the letter in her hands. "To its owner." they chorused.
Amelia blinked as she noticed a sparkle from the other side of the letter, taking it curiously as Lina thrust it at her angrily.
"FIREBALL!" shouted the enraged sorceress, as good as throwing it at Xelloss.
The plum-haired Mazoku quickly pulled Zel up to him, smiling as ever as the spell made contact with his chosen shield.
After the dust cleared, Xelloss placed the unfortunate soul back where he had been before, smiling smugly at him. Before the chimera had time to say anything, the trickster priest tilted his chin up with one finger, his head leaning down close to the lilac-haired man's and his tongue flicking out and over one cheek.
Zel bristled at the quite unwelcomed contact, a deep red flush of embarrassment and anger filling his cheeks quickly.
Xelloss smirked, tapping his index finger on Zel's nose as he chuckled out in a quiet voice, "Angry chimera a flambe; delicious."
Lina's rage continued to build as Xelloss floated off, not returning this time, though she continued to mutter a few explicatives for quite a few moments after. At ength, the woman sighed. "Well, at least he owes us now. Right?" she asked rhetorically.
"Uhhm, Misses Lina?" came Amelia's nervous voice.
"Yeah, Amelia?"
The aforementioned princess placed the letter back into Lina's hands, reversed-side first. Taped to it were five gold coins, one of their names beneath a coin each. At the bottom of this, in Xelloss' handwriting, were the words,
Debt paid.
Xelloss
To Be Continued..
(1) I, ah, changed that one bit because I wanted to torment one of my friends. XD XD That was for Dejah.