A baby's cry pulled her from sleep, and Lina did her best to keep her eyes closed as she tried to get whichever twin she had with her (she was so tired she couldn't remember) to latch on by feel. Only she felt warm wet fabric. Lina opened her bleary eyes and, thanks to the moonlight streaming in through the balcony and the glow of the fire, she was able to see that Midas had soaked his garments and the blanket that she had placed under him. Lina groaned as she got up, shivering as the cold air hit her despite the fire, and picked up her son, and hoped to change him as quickly as possible so she could get back to sleep. Only the fog in her head was so thick that changing a diaper felt like an impossible task.
Somehow she managed it, and once she had put a fresh blanket on the bed she got back in and hoped she could easily get him back to sleep with a good feeding. The energy burst had vanished when the twins were born and she was starting to feel the effects of night after night without hours of sleep where she wasn't nursing an infant, or terrified of rolling over and crushing one. Fortunately he eagerly latched on and closed his eyes, and Lina grew warm under the quilt as her eyes felt heavy as she started to drift.
From behind her she felt the sheets shift, followed by the touch of Gourry's fingers grazing her body as he reached for her in his sleep. The grazing turned into a caress as he sighed, a mixture of longing and satisfaction that he'd found what he wanted as he moved closer as he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her to him before he started to snore again. She smiled as she stroked Midas's soft hair and, feeling safe and warm, drifted off to sleep.
She had just reached its blissful state when a high pitched howling cut through it, and Lina sat up, rigid and alert, as Midas shrieked while Gourry grabbed the Blast Sword as he got out of bed in one smooth motion. Lina grabbed Midas as she strained to hear over the sound of his wailing as Gourry looked out at the balcony.
"What do you see?" Lina asked, having to raise her voice to be heard. But Midas was too scared to be interested in nursing and Lina had to bounce and shush him.
"Nothing." He said as he cautiously approached the doors. "But it sounded like it was right there on the balcony."
Lina was glad that he thought so as well. Sure, plenty of wolves inhabited the woods and it wasn't uncommon to hear them howl. But this sounded so close! Lina would have sworn on everything that they owned that it had been right outside their window. Gourry continued to stare outside as Midas gradually quieted down and took to the breast. Eventually Gourry relaxed and looked at her, "I guess our nerves are on edge."
Lina smiled at him and ignored the fact that her heart was still pounding. "I guess so."
"We've never had more to lose, have we?" he asked as he walked over and stroked her hair.
"No." Lina replied as an unbearable urge to check on Aurelia rose within her as he smiled at Midas as his put his hand over his head. "Do you think she's alright?"
"Rellie?" Gourry said, and Lina saw his eyes shine with worry despite his words, "I don't see why not. I mean, it was outside our house, not inside."
"Right," Lina said, and she wished it brought more comfort. Yet she suddenly felt charged with energy and barely able to keep still, almost as though someone was digging a finger into her rib. But everyone already thought she was hysterical about keeping one of the twins with her all the time. If she burst into the nursery demanding to see Aurelia she was sure her mother would force her to leave both twins at the nursery and put her under a sleep spell for good measure. Yet the need to give herself some peace of mind and see Aurelia would not abate.
Gourry leaned forward and gave her a quick peck on the lips, "Let's get some rest."
"Right," she said as she got settled back down, but getting comfortable was a lot harder. Gourry laid behind her and wrapped an arm around her once more, and she tried to focus on the safety of having him close and the strength of his embrace and not her worries over Aurelia. Or how strange the power those babies had over her was. While she had so much in her life to live for, in such a short time they had captured a place so big in her heart that she felt as though if anything happened to either of them it would kill her.
Damn, Lina, stop being so overdramatic! She told herself as Gourry started snoring again. And if Gourry was snoring, then it had to mean that things were okay! Someone with his senses would know if there was danger!
Somehow his snores were able to drown out her worries, and she followed them back to sleep. But as soon as it embraced her, she was once more torn from its bliss as a low growl broke through the night, and though it was soft at first it gradually grew in intensity to become a full fledged throaty snarl! Lina once again sat up in bed and she at first glanced at the balcony to see what was there as Gourry jumped out of bed once more. But if there was a creature outside she couldn't see it. Midas screamed, and Lina turned to look at him, and her eyes widened as she saw that Midas was glowing gold!
Gooseflesh rose as Gourry fell into a defensive stance as the growling and snarling continued, loud enough to be heard over Midas and growing louder by the minute until it swelled into a sharp bark that vibrated ominously through the air and rattled Lina's bones. And then it was gone, the only sound puncturing the air being Midas's wails. Lina froze as she watched her son and wondered if it was safe to pick him up when he was glowing as Gourry continued to stare out the window.
Midas reached his arms out for her as he screeched, and then pierced her with a gaze that seemed to ask, "why aren't you holding me?" Instinct pushed Lina to grab him and hold him close, and though her heart was fluttering, there was no pain. It quickly became apparent that whatever Midas had done to harm Xellos he wasn't doing now, and the more Lina thought of it the more it made sense. They would glow when she was carrying them afterall, and it had not hurt her any. As Midas calmed down Lina looked at Gourry, "What's out there?"
"I couldn't see anything."
"That didn't sound like nothing!"
"I know." He said haltingly, "A wolf, maybe? But whatever it is, it's gone."
"I have to see Aurelia!" Lina exclaimed as she jumped out of bed and looked for her robe. The poke in her ribs had become unbearable. She wouldn't be able to calm down until she'd seen her!
"Me too." Gourry said as he grabbed his armor and started to put it on over his pajamas, and Lina felt a small measure of relief that he had the same need. Once he'd put his armor on he held his arms out, "Let me."
Lina handed Midas to him as she put her dressing robe on, and then they grabbed a blanket to bundle Midas up in and headed off to the nursery. The halls were cold and quiet, and if anyone else had been disturbed by the creature there was no sign of it. Either that, or they were dead. Lina closed her eyes and shook her head and pushed the disquieting thought aside. "I'd feel better if these hallways were milling with activity."
Gourry's lips thinned as he nodded, "But then, our rooms are in a different wing than everyone else's. And these walls are thick and the sound doesn't travel that well. If it was outside our balcony I'm not sure they would hear it."
"They heard your mother." Lina shot back.
"She was inside Maninstit." Gourry replied.
"Hm." Lina said, unconvinced.
"I'm going to check with the kids guarding the doors, see if they saw anything." Gourry said quietly.
"Good idea." Lina replied, and part of her felt as though she needed to go down with him, the other part felt she needed to be with the babies. It was as though her heart had been split among three people but then, of the three of them, Gourry was the one best capable of taking care of himself.
Both of them grew quiet as the door to the nursery came within view, each of them listening for signs of life within. But the night was silent and still. Lina opened the door and walked over to Aurelia's crib and felt the tension ease as she saw that Aurelia lay within, swaddled and sleeping peacefully. But not completely. Lina picked her up and held her, just to be sure, not even caring as she stirred. Karina came out from her room, and her eyes widened and she paled as she saw Lina standing there. "Oh, Dame Inverse. I'm so sorry, I only now heard her."
"No worries, I woke her." Lina said as she cradled Aurelia to her and Gourry put a hand over her as both of them assured themselves that she was safe.
"Oh," Karina said as confusion settled over her features, "Were you wanting to leave Midas with us?"
Lina shook her head, "No, there was something outside our room and we just had to make sure she was safe."
"What?" Karina asked as the other wet nurses came out of their rooms.
"You didn't hear anything?" Lina asked.
"No." Karina said as the other women shook their heads.
"What's going on?" Moe asked as he came out of his room.
"We heard a wolf or something, right outside our balcony." Lina said, feeling silly even as she said it. How would a wolf even get on their balcony? "Something was outside, and whatever it was didn't sound friendly."
"I'm going to check in with the kids who are guarding the front doors." Gourry announced as he handed Midas to Karina, "I'll be back once we've checked the grounds."
Lina had been worried that Moe and the wet nurses would think they were overreacting, but everyone looked pale with concern. "Be careful out there, love." Lina said.
"You too." Gourry said as he took a moment to give her a quick kiss before he headed to the door.
"We'll take good care of them." Karina said.
But as Gourry left Lina itched to be going out there with him, to see for herself. While she knew that the twins were being targeted by the Mazoku race and were in the most danger and, as the strongest person in Maninstit she needed to stay with them, sitting and waiting was not something she liked to do or was particularly good at. It made her feel weak, helpless and pathetic.
Yet Penelope offered her a chair, and she dutifully took it as she held Aurelia close to her as she stared out the window and watched.
"Sir Gourry!" Bruce and Ripley exclaimed as Gourry stepped outside.
Gourry scanned the grounds, but he could not see nor sense anything that shouldn't be there. "Report." He said.
"We heard a wolf awhile back ago." Bruce replied, "It sounded close. It never came into view though."
Gourry was thankful that someone else had heard it. "It sounded like it was right outside our room."
"I keep telling Bruce, that's not typical behavior for a wolf." Ripley said. "It's not as if we have sheep or other livestock they'd be interested it, and they are generally too scared of us to approach us."
"I know." Gourry said as he continued to scan the grounds. But there was so much he couldn't see from the doorway, especially at night. He suddenly wished he'd woken Zel or Han and asked them to come down with him as doing it on his own seemed like a recipe for trouble. He could take Ripley. Her sorcery skills were solid. But he didn't like the idea of leaving Bruce alone. If someone was trying to lure him from the house, it would be a good time to attack. "Bruce, go wake Owen. Tell him I asked for him."
"Right." Bruce said as he ran off.
"We need to check the grounds." Gourry announced to Ripley.
"Right." She said stoically as she watched the grounds with him as they waited in silence.
"Sir?" Owen said as he approached.
"We heard something outside." Gourry explained, "Ripley and I will search the grounds. You guard the entrance with Bruce. If you notice any signs of trouble you are to signal for help immediately."
"Understood." Owen said.
Gourry took a moment to stare him in the eye, and then Bruce, "I'm serious, I'd much rather wake everyone up for a false alarm than the opposite."
Owen and Bruce looked at each other. "We understand."
Gourry nodded, and then walked off with Ripley. "Should I cast a light spell?" she whispered.
"No," Gourry said. He'd explain later that it would alert the wolf or whatever it was that had disturbed them, and that they could search for footprints better in the daylight. After that exchange, the night was eerily quiet, but laden with an expectancy, as though it was just a matter of time before it changed.
So it was anticlimactic when they found nothing. If there was another presence on the grounds, Gourry could find no hide nor hair of it even though they walked the whole perimeter of Maninstit. Still, once they ended up back where Lina's room was, Gourry had one more thing to ask of Ripley, but hated to do it. While he'd been on the receiving end of such orders and had never thought twice of it, it was harder to order someone else to put their life on the line. Still, there were plenty of places on the roof a creature could hide, and they needed to check it out. "Could you do a fly over of Maninstit?"
"Right." She said, "Levitation!"
Gourry walked away from the house so he could look up and track her, though there were times that she went out of view and it was agony until she returned. Eventually she came back to where he was and landed safely and announced, "All clear."
"Thank you." Gourry said as he took one last look at the grounds, "Let's get back to the house."
"Ripley and Bruce heard it." Gourry reported as he returned to the nursery. "Ripley and I searched the grounds, couldn't find it though."
"It was probably a stray that broke lose from the pack." Karina said.
"But why would Midas glow gold for a wolf?" Lina asked as Gourry sat beside her and wrapped an arm around her. "And why would a wolf even approach our home anyway?"
"What if it was rabid?" Penelope asked.
"Well, we'd definitely need to know if there are rabid animals running around." Moe said.
"If it was rabid it wouldn't have disappeared like it did." Lina pointed out as she leaned against her husband and tried to fight the swarming fog that was nesting in her mind. "It would still be stumbling around the grounds."
"Maybe you should get some rest." Moe said gently, and Lina nodded.
"Come on." Lina said as she handed Aurelia to Gourry and grabbed Midas. "We can still get a few hours sleep tonight."
"Don't you want to leave them with us?" Karina asked. "You look dead on your feet!"
"No." Lina said, "Enjoy the night off."
Gourry and Lina walked in silence for a moment before Lina said, "I think it may be a good idea to sleep in your room tonight."
"Well, there's no balcony in my room." Gourry said, even if the idea of a wolf being on the balcony still seemed too fantastical to be real. And even if there was no balcony, there were still plenty of windows. "Sounds good."
Lina was so tired that as soon as she got the twins settled in she was convinced she would fall asleep easily even with the scare. And she did not disappoint. Yet once more, as soon as she drifted off, something barked from outside the window, and when she woke it was not to one, but two glowing babies. And by the time they got them settled down dawn was starting to break over the horizon.
So much for getting a few hours of sleep.
Owen and Nerys walked in right as Lina started slapping her face. "Whoa!" Nerys exclaimed, "Are you okay?"
"Don't worry about it," Gourry's voice was slowed as he yawned while he waved his hand dismissively, "It's just what she does to wake herself up."
"The ghost wolf didn't let us get a lot of sleep last night." Lina added as she set Midas down in a basket that was set on her desk. He cuddled up to his sister and wrapped an arm around her as he sighed and closed his eyes and went back to sleep. If her head wasn't buzzing so badly she would have appreciated their sweetness.
"Ghost wolf?" Nerys asked as Sylphiel walked in, and Lina instantly resented how rested and composed she looked.
"Every time we fell asleep last night a wolf started howling and growling outside our window." Lina explained, "Bruce and Ripley heard it. None of us have seen it though."
"Han took Cuchulain out this morning to see if they could pick up any tracks." Gourry said as he rested his chin on his hand as though it was the only thing keeping him awake. "No sign of it whatsoever. No footprints, nothing."
"Wow." Nerys said, "Is this why you're wanting to see us?"
"No, actually." Lina said, and then she felt her mind draw a blank. Why had she wanted to see them?
Fortunately Sylphiel picked up and started to explain about Gertrude merging with the Garm coat. "So you're wanting us to go back to the Elmekian Empire?" Owen asked.
"Exactly." Lina said as she struggled to keep her eyes open. She stood up, but as it was she felt as though she could fall asleep on her feet!
Nerys slowly shook her head, "Should I send for some coffee?"
Lina lifted her cup and took a drink. Gourry murmured, "Can't stand the stuff. But it might be worth it."
"He has the taste buds of a child." Lina said.
"Dame Lina," Sylphiel said quietly, "I'll brief them on some finer details. But I'm wondering, could Empress Gertrude be behind the sounds that you head last night?"
"What!?" Lina asked as Sylphiel's question jolted her brain awake a little.
"She's been using the Vision spell to talk with you. If she's merging with the Garm coat, then it's possible she's using the Vision spell to project those sounds outside your balcony, and then…"
"It would make sense that there'd be no trace of her." Lina finished for her.
"But why would Empress Gertrude do that?" Owen asked.
Before Lina could think better of it she blurted out, "She wants us to move to the Elmekian Empire. And if we see Maninstit is unsafe…"
"But you can't move!" Nerys exclaimed.
"Huh?" Lina bristled. Dammit, Lina! You're so tired you made an idiot move worthy of Gourry!
"The work you're doing here is incredible."
Lina exhaled, "It's not a discussion."
"You're thinking about it?" Owen asked.
"No! Of course not! And I'm saying it's not a discussion!" Lina snapped. "And this isn't to leave this room either!"
"Well, forgive me if I'm overstepping my bounds," Nerys said, "But all of this unravels without you. I don't know why you'd want to betray your country…"
"You're overstepping your bounds." Lina said, "And unless you want someone else to go in your place you'll stop right there."
Sylphiel put a hand on Nerys's arm, "Let's focus on the mission."
"Right." Nerys said as she sent Lina a sharp gaze.
Lina tried to focus as Sylphiel took over from there, discussing things to try and specifics of the mission. Lina tried to focus on what she was saying, but it all sounded like a buzz and a hum as she paced to try to keep herself awake. But her body felt so heavy that she had to sit down beside Gourry and close her eyes, just for a second…
"Do you have any questions?" Sylphiel asked.
"No," Nerys said.
"We'd best pack." Owen said, and then he looked at Lina and Gourry. "Um, what should we do about them?"
Sylphiel smiled, "I'll take care of it."
"Right." Owen said, and then he walked out with Nerys.
Sylphiel sighed as she stared at the small family and wondered if it would be better to send for Leia or for one of the wet nurses. Eventually she settled on getting Karina to sit with them in case one of the twins woke up. Leia would disregard Lina's desire to have one of the twins with her at all times. And considering that Sylphiel felt that she needed to tell Leia about Gertrude's offer, she didn't need another reason for Lina to be furious with her.