AN: Thank you for everyone who has left reviews the past few days. FFN has been buggy and not letting me reply. This seems to happen every so often and hopefully it will resolve soon, but I don't want anyone to think I'm ignoring them. :-)
Zel released the Elmekia Lance that he had powered the Sword of Absorption with at Gourry, who sliced through it with the Blast Blade. Zel had quickly gotten the handle of releasing spells, but he wouldn't be able to fully appreciate what the sword could do until he tried absorbing spells that were thrown at him. "Wow!" Clark said as he came up to them, several other kids with him. "That was incredible!"
"What is that?" Owen asked. Everyone was familiar with Gourry's sword. Zel's was another matter.
"It's called the Sword of Absorption, and it can catch and release magical spells." Zelgadis explained as Han came up.
"Where did you get that?" Han asked as a green hue shown in his eyes.
"Gourry gave it to me." Zel explained. "Hey, who wants to throw a spell at me and see if I can catch it?"
"Me!" Several of them clamored.
Meanwhile, Gourry felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end as Han sent him a frosty glare. Gourry's eyes widened as Han seemed to grow taller as he lumbered over to him, an expression of barely concealed rage on his face.
"What?" Gourry asked.
"You gave Zel a powerful magical sword and you didn't get me anything?"
"Er," Gourry said as he fidgeted with his collar as several of the kids stopped watching Zel to watch them. "I kind of forgot I had it until now."
"Well do you have another one stashed away somewhere for me?" Han asked as Ace threw a Burst Rondo at Zelgadis.
"Well, I'd have to check with Lina to be sure...but I don't think so." Gourry said as he felt the sweat form on his brow.
"Wow, this is incredible!" Zelgadis exclaimed, completely oblivious to the confrontation happening just feet away from him.
Gourry felt his stomach lurch as it sunk in just how many son-in-law points he'd lost as Han glared at him and Gourry realized that Lina got the temper equally from both parents. "But if we ever find a new one, I'll make sure that you get it!"
"One magic sword! Is that too much to ask! I mean first you wouldn't give me the Sword of Light and you were about to throw it in a river! And then there was that sword that Lina found for Luna, but did she ever give me anything? No! No one ever thinks of me when they find one so I'm left channeling my will through fishing poles! Fishing poles! And now you just happen to have another magical sword, and rather than giving it to me you give it to Zelgadis!? Why!?" Han demanded to know as several of the kids' mouths dropped.
Gourry tugged at his collar again, "Well, he can't channel his will through fishing poles, so he needed It more."
Han reached into his pocket and grabbed a cigarette and a match. He was about to light his it when he caught site of his wife on the trail and sighed regretfully and put it back and settled for chewing it unlit. He folded his arms across his chest as he admitted. "That's actually a good reason."
Gourry relaxed a little as Han continued, "Except he could do it if he took the time to train himself. And now you're just enabling him to continue to be mediocre!"
"I'm hungry!" Pippi announced, oblivious to the growing tension.
"It is dinner time, we'd better get in." Gourry said as several of the kids commented about how hungry they were as they ran towards the manor.
"Okay, but we're coming back out after dinner to put this through some more paces." Ace told Zelgadis.
"Count me in, too." Owen said as they walked with Zelgadis towards the building, leaving Gourry and Han alone on the field as Leia walked up.
Gourry ran a hand through his hair as he sighed. "Look, Zel was real shaken up after that attack. It took me ten minutes to know he was in a bad spot. You've been here all month, you had to have noticed something."
"I'll give you that." Han said, though the resentment was still heavy in his voice.
"He still getting used to be human again and he lost some strengths and with Amelia being pregnant it's just adding to his worries. It seemed like a fast way to help him feel more powerful again."
Han chewed his cigarette, "I just go crazy at the thought of seeing another sword just out of reach."
"What's going on?" Leia asked as she reached them.
"Gourry gave Zel a magic sword and he didn't give me anything." Han said sulkily.
"You're getting a new grandchild! Stop sulking. Besides, Zel's been in a bad place and needed something to get out of that funk." Leia said as she grabbed the cigarette out of his mouth and threw it on the ground, "And I'm not kissing you tonight if you reek of tobacco!"
"I never lit it once, Leia!" he shot back.
"He didn't." Gourry confirmed, hoping to win back some points.
She clicked her tongue as she said sharply, "That's a poor example, letting the kids see you walk around with that nasty thing in your mouth."
"Let's just go on to supper already." Han said in exasperation.
"Humph." Leia said, but she walked towards the manor nonetheless.
They were silent for a moment, and then Gourry asked Han tepidly, "We're good, right?"
"Fine," Han said. "I'll get over it. I'm serious about what you need to do if you do find another sword, though!"
"Right." Gourry said nervously, "Let's go eat."
"And, when you have a chance I want to take you and Zel fishing."
"Oh?" Gourry said.
"Well if you're both going to be fathers, then I've got a lot of advice to give!" Han explained.
Sensing another opportunity to get points back, Gourry said, "That sounds like fun."
"You're especially going to need it. Raising a child who is more powerful than you is hard work." Han said knowingly as they reached the manor. "Right now I'm hoping that little tyke will give you hell, though. One magic sword! Just one! Is that really too much to ask?"
The conversation stopped as they reached the dining room. Gourry was surprised to see that Jean-Luc was there, along with Lina, Zel, and Amelia. But he quickly figured out why as Lina said, "Your information on the current situation in the Elmekian Empire really helped us out, and you're going to get some extra credit points."
"Really?" he said.
"Yup." Lina said, "I'm just need to know some more about your source."
"My dad is from the Elmekian Empire." He explained, "And my uncle is a court sorcerer. He uses he vision spell to talk to my dad. So I had Indy use it to talk to my folks and get information that way."
"Your uncle doesn't mind that we used it to undermine the emperor?" Lina asked.
Jean-Luc shrugged, "He wasn't too fond of that emperor and wanted to see him taken down."
"What does he think of Gregory?" Lina asked.
"Huh?"
"There's been some changes since you last talked to him." Lina explained, "I think I'm going to talk to the Eternal Queen. How would you feel about continuing to gather information on the current activities in the Elmekian court?"
"I can do that!" Jean-Luc said eagerly.
"Good. Keep me updated. I'm sure we can find a little something to compensate you with." Lina said.
"Thank you, miss!" he said.
"Now get going." Lina said playfully as she ruffled his hair.
Jean-Luc ran out of the room. As the door shut behind him, Han walked up to her, and once again his expression was thunderous. "Lina." He said sternly. "I'm very mad and disappointed in you."
Lina looked at him, confused. "Dad?"
"How could you forget?"
Lina's brow furrowed. "Forget what?"
"All my life I've wanted a powerful sword! And here you had the Sword of Absorption since you got back and you never thought to give it to me!?" he yelled.
"Oh, I guess we did recover that, didn't we?" Lina said in the cutesy manner that she did when she was trying to get out of trouble. Gourry folded his arms across his chest and wondered if he should step in. Han was so mad it looked like it would take a lot more than a cute act to get out of it.
"Lina!" he cried. "First you forget, and then your husband gives it to Zel! When am I going to get a magic sword?"
Lina laughed nervously as she clapped her hands together, "Well, you know, I'll just have to add it to that long To Do list I have!"
"Lina!"
"Daddy!" she repeated as she let her eyes grow wide and tear filled as her voice went up an octave. "Daddy! I will find you a sword one day. And it will be better than all of the other swords I've found! You wouldn't want the Sword of Absorption. It's a good sword for someone with a background in magic like Zel, but for someone like you, well, I thought you deserved something that suited your talents better."
Amazingly, Han started to melt. Gourry sighed incredulity as he shook his head. So that was why she developed the cute act. Lina grabbed Han's hands as she pouted a little as her eyes shimmered, "Please just give me a bit more time. I want to make sure that I find the best that there is! You're always telling me I have to be patient, and now I need you to be patient with me."
"So you have been paying attention!" he said proudly.
"Of course." She said with a giggle, "I always listen to my very wise daddy!"
"Well, as long as you find it soon." He said as he wrapped her in a hug.
"I will. Well, once I get this kid out."
"No need to rush, sweetheart. This can wait. You need to rest and take care of my grandbaby now that I think of it."
"If you say insist." Lina said as she pulled away and rubbed her belly, "Speaking of, I'm craving ice cream really bad and Nellie is making some lame ass excuse about how we're out. But I know I saw some in the ice box!"
"Of course sweetie. I'll be right back."
Lina smiled smugly as he left while Gourry shook his head incredulously. Someone she had gotten out of trouble and scored some ice cream in the process! "How did you do that?"
"Do what?" Lina asked as she took a seat.
"He's always been a sucker for her big eye routine." Leia said as she cut her meat. "It didn't work with me. Or Luna. But Han was always a sucker for it."
"I didn't know you had it in you, Lina!" Amelia said, who had pushed her plate away distastefully. "Really, you have him wrapped around your finger."
"Of course! Being cute is the most potent weapon younger daughters have!" Lina said, "Of course I know how to use it. It saved me from a lot of punishment growing up. If only it worked as well with Sis…"
"Well it won't work on me." Gourry said as he started loading his plate.
"Or me." Zelgadis echoed as he looked at Amelia.
"Look what I found!" Han said as he walked in with a tub of ice cream. "Do you want chocolate or vanilla?"
It was nice to fall back into the school routine. And fortunately Lina had no glowing episodes while teaching her classes and she continued to feel well and was able to keep her pregnancy a secret. The following weekend Lina and Gourry went to brief the Eternal Queen on what had happened in the Elmekian Empire and to let her know about their upcoming arrival, even if they weren't ready to make an official announcement. The Eternal Queen congratulated them and started talking about her plans to find them a nanny. But for Lina, such events were so far into the future it wasn't worth thinking about.
"I don't want to jinx it, but things seem quiet for once." Gourry commented as they left.
"Then why did you say anything?" Lina asked in alarm, "Once you say stuff like that out loud you're inviting trouble in!"
As if on cue, Luna walked up to them and proclaimed. "You're babysitting for me tonight."
"Well hello to you too!" Lina said.
"Since Mom and Dad moved to Maninstit, Harold and I haven't had an evening to ourselves. And we're dying to get away from the kids for a night."
"Well whose fault is that?" Lina asked.
Luna reddened, "And you need to practice your parenting skills! My boys will break you in."
"Parenting skills?" Guloisa asked as she walked by. "Does that mean…?"
"Nothing!" Lina screeched as she glared at Luna. "Sis is just getting ahead of herself."
Guloisa looked at Gourry. "It wouldn't be fair if Lina's family knew of any impending arrivals and yours didn't!"
"Nothing exciting is happening, Mom." He said, "Hey, aren't you going to be going back to the Elmekian Empire now that Gregory is Emperor?"
"I don't know. I like it better here. There's plenty of water for one thing."
"We'll pay your travel expenses!" Lina offered.
Guloisa remained unmoved, and the brief hope that she would return to the Elmekian Empire petered out. "And if there's going to be a grandbaby then I would like to be here."
Oh no. Oh hell no! Lina thought to herself. "Grandbaby or no, you're not allowed in Maninstit after what you pulled last time!"
"But it wouldn't be fair if your parents got to see the baby and I didn't!" Guloisa said.
"Well my parents didn't try to kill us!" Lina shot back.
"How dare you!" Guloisa stammered.
Gourry put a hand on Lina's arm as he sighed, "Come on. We've got to our nephews. Good evening."
Gourry walked away with Lina and Luna as Lina sent her sister a thunderous look. "I told you I don't want this getting out! And that's a good example of why!"
"She was going to find out eventually." Luna said. "But I guess it was too much to hope she would return to the Elmekian Empire."
"Why would she?" Gourry asked. "It is nicer here. And it means Gregory has a spy well placed in your court."
Luna exhaled, "It appears that I have some more damage control to do."
Lina then turned and glared at her husband, "And you'd better watch your mouth before you even think about bragging about things getting too quiet again!"
He smiled nervously, "Right."