Chapter 18
Filia wasn't exactly sure how she ended up in the situation she was in, standing on a step stool, with two maids bustling over her, fitting her into a new dress for a ball she was to attend apparently. From what she could recall sometime during lunch Oceus had asked if they would like to stick around for a gathering that he was planning that afternoon. Xellos had said something about 'being a polite guest' and not refusing, and Oceus had been quite insistent on the whole idea. Filia could not help but think that something seemed a little off about all of this, she couldn't explain why, but something just didn't seem to fit. Filia thought back on the events that had happened over the day. First Xellos wakes her up early in the morning, and then he is secretive about their destination. Not to mention they just coincidentally came here on the same day as a royal ball. Then there was how she somehow managed to drop her bag in front of the royal carriage, and Oceus just happened to be a kind ruler and offer her a new dress, two in fact! Now how often did that happen nowadays without some ulterior motive backing each and every act of kindness, not that she thinks that Oceus isn't being truthful about whom he is, but to her something just doesn't seem to add up as coincidence.
Thinking to interrogate Xellos the next chance she got, knowing by instinct that he was behind all this somehow, Filia yelped when one of the maids pricked her again with one of the fitting needles. "Sorry Miss, but you need to be more still," The maid who pricked her commented, taking another pin from the cushion she had around her wrist and fastening it in place.
"Sorry, I guess I'm just not cut out for this type of thing," Filia apologised as the maids buzzed around her.
"Not to worry Miss, with some practise you would be an elegant Queen," the maid chirped as she placed another pin on Filia's hip.
"What? Oh no you must be mistaken. I'm not going to be a queen. His majesty has just invited me to attend the gathering with him for some company," Filia hurriedly replied, a slight blush making its way across her features.
"Oh, of course Miss, my apologies," the maid replied before continuing on with her work.
The rest of the fitting passed in general silence, Filia's mind running a mile a minute trying to decipher her current situation and what the maid had implied.
"Alright Miss, it's finished. Is it to your liking?" One of the maids asked as she directed Filia's attention away from her jumbled thoughts and onto the mirror standing before her.
The dress was a strapless one and a deep blue. A green weaving vine pattern adorned the dress from the start of her cleavage to twist around her slim waist and flow down the skirt of the dress until it reached the bottom, an assortment of pink flowers varying from buds to new blooms following the twisted path of the vines. The waist of the dress was lined with a silver material that seemed to sparkle every time she moved slightly.
"It's beautiful," Filia said in awe as she took in her appearance, twisting her body slightly to get a better look at the dress from all angles.
"Simply marvellous!" One of the maids exclaimed as she clasped her hands over her heart.
"Yes, well now come along we still have a lot of work to do to get the Miss ready for the party," The other maid snapped. You could almost see the vein throbbing in her temple and her tense shoulders shaking slightly. The first maid instantly fell silent at her colleague's outburst and gave a submissive nod as she went back to her work. Filia could not help but feel as if this particular woman had some sort of grudge against her, but for the life of her she couldn't figure out why.
'I haven't done or said anything to her, why would she have such distaste for me?' Filia pondered to herself. 'Hmm,' Filia closed her eyes in deep thought, 'Maybe she just doesn't like blondes,' Filia thought as she spied the black hair of the maid in question as she hemmed the bottom of the dress. The maid noticed Filia's eyes on her and gave a definite "Hmph!" and turned back to her work.
/
"My my, this is turning out to be quite the gathering," Xellos said as he watched the grand hall steadily fill up with aristocrats from the surrounding lands.
"Of course, it's supposed to be a greeting for the Lord Trogen and his company's arrival," Said Layla from her spot beside Xellos as she slipped her arm through his own. "Look there he is over there," Layla gestured towards a group of men, all dressed in black suites, circled around a young noble with greasy black hair, a nose that looked like it had been broken three times too many, dressed in a flowing red overcoat with a white puffy top and white puffy pants.
"Aha, well what do you know, that is him," Xellos replied. 'Good, the stage is set and nearly all the players are present. All I need now is for my gold to get here and the show may begin.' Xellos mused to himself as he watched the prince sampling some of the food from the banquet table.
"I must say you look simply delectable in a suite," Layla she eyed Xellos's form, bringing his attention back to her. For the night he had chosen a white dress suite with matching pants, accessorised with a red bow around his collar and a red rose on his breast pocket. He kept his usual white gloves and a pair of black shoes, however his staff was no where in sight.
"Why thank you your highness, and you don't look so bad yourself," Xellos said through his smile as he regarded the princess's choice in fashion. She had selected a sunflower yellow dress with sleeves that reached her elbows and dipped low enough to show a hint of cleavage, but leaving just enough covered so as to not give anything away. It then went down to her slim waist where it slightly exaggerated her hips and backside, where a group of large yellow feathers protruded, giving the illusion of a birds tail. The bottom flowed all the way down to her ankles where she was wearing a pair of yellow shoes with a little tuff of matching yellow feathers on the toes, all accessorised with a yellow shawl made of, you guessed it, feathers.
Layla giggled behind her feather fan as she tugged on his arm towards the crowd. "Come on master Xellos, let us entertain the company," she said with enthusiasm as they made their way over to the nearest group of finely dressed nobles.
'I have every intention of entertaining the company,' Xellos smiled to himself as he let himself be dragged by the young princess.
It was only after a couple more minutes and a few nobles later that Filia was at last seen entering the hall. As she walked through the large double doors the nobles closest to her stopped their conversations dead and just stared at her as she passed, followed by the two maids who then left her to go and stand by the walls in case they where called. Filia could feel most of the eyes in the room starting to focus on her. She started to fiddle with her gloved hands as she scanned the many guests, looking for a familiar face, at this point she really didn't mind who it was as long as she had someone to talk to, rather than just standing in the middle of the room by herself.
She soon spotted Xellos in his white tux, accompanied by the princess and a few other unfamiliar people. They all seemed to be having a good time, Xellos must have said something funny because after he finished talking the other members of the group broke out into bursts of laughter, the princess Layla slipping her arm in his own and resting her head against his shoulder.
Filia barely suppressed the growl threatening to rise from her throat, "I hope you get sick after this," Filia cursed under her breath that all that exposure to positive emotions would make him want to vomit on the princesses dress, 'honestly what's with all the feathers? Is she planning on trying to fly away with him or something?' Filia gasped and quickly brought her hands to her mouth, 'since when did I start thinking all these awful thoughts, this is not how a priestess of the fire dragon king is supposed to act. Well, ex-priestess technically, but that doesn't change the fact that a descendant of the dragon race should not lower themselves to the point of common jealousy. Wait, stop right there. I am not jealous! I just… don't want the minds of these poor humans to be tainted by the monster race, that's it! That's why I'm acting this way. Knowing Xellos they're probably all just pawns in some elaborate game of his. That must be it,' Filia gave a definite nod at her own conclusions. 'That's what it is. This means I'm going to have to keep on eye on them, just to make sure he doesn't try anything sneaky,' After deciding her plan of action Filia started to wonder towards another familiar face, close to the group with Xellos.
"Ah Miss Filia, you look simply beautiful," Oceus beamed as she walked up to him, giving a small curtsey as she reached him.
"Thank you your highness. You really didn't have to do this you know," Filia started as she rose to her full height.
"Oh nonsense, it was no trouble, beside the dress looks like it was practically made for you," Oceus replied as he extended his arm out to her as they began to walk near the banquet table. As they neared Oceus picked up a crystal glass with what looked like red wine. "Refreshment my dear?" Oceus said as he held the glass out to her.
"Oh I shouldn't. You see alcohol doesn't really agree with me," Filia said as she shook her head in a negative.
"Come on Fi-chan, one small drink can't possibly hurt," Oceus probed as he offered her the drink again.
Filia felt the corner of her mouth twitch as Oceus said her nickname. She couldn't explain it but it somehow seemed wrong for him, or anyone else, to call her that name. With Xellos it was still annoying, but it didn't feel this awkward. In an attempt to hide her thoughts from her face she took the glass and took a quick swig of the beverage, swallowing with a very audible gulp.
"Haha easy Filia, no need to skull it, you'll make yourself sick," Oceus lightly scolded. The musicians then started to play a different tune. "Ah I love this song, may I have this dance my lady?" Oceus said as he bowed and extended his hand to her. Filia glanced up and saw Xellos was already on the dance floor with Layla, who couldn't have gotten any closer to him even if she tried.
"Of course, your majesty. I would be delighted," Filia replied through her forced smile as she took his hand and followed him onto the floor. The song wasn't a fast one, but it did have an energetic beat to it as the couples danced and twirled around each other. Filia felt as if her head was doing summersaults inside her skull, she could feel her cheeks start to darken from the alcohol and could not have been more relieved when the song ended as dancers paused and applauded the musicians as they readied themselves for the next song.
This time they decided to play the waltz, as Filia composed herself and the world stopped spinning for a bit, her and Oceus where reaching towards each other someone came up from behind and tapped Oceus on the shoulder. He turned around to see Xellos standing behind him, his usual closed-eye smile displayed as he regarded the royal. "May I cut in your majesty?" He said in a smooth voice as he gave a small nod towards the stunned Filia.
Oceus glanced between the two, a look of what appeared to be disappointment on his features as he gave his consent and stepped out of the way and went to dance with his sister. It was now Xellos's turn to offer his hand in a bow to Filia as she nearly glared daggers at him. "Come on Fi-chan, I promise I wont bite," Xellos said with a smirk as Filia huffed, angrily taking his hand as she looked to the side, anywhere but his smug face. She was caught off guard when he pulled on her arm and quickly wrapped his other arm around her waist, probably a bit tighter than what he needed to. Filia gave a punch to his arm as he smiled down at her, leading them both into the dance.
"Not so tight you-hiccup- stupid filth," Filia spat as they danced with perfect timing to the rhythm of the music, even with alcohol in her system Filia never missed a beat when it came to dancing, it was one of the things that came to her naturally, that along with her knack for making pottery.
"Oh come now I thought we where passed the name calling stage by this point," Xellos said as he led Filia in to a twirl and back into his waiting arms. For a moment the spinning caught Filia off guard and she leant heavily against Xellos until she composed herself again. Xellos furrowed his brow slightly and leaned in close to her face. Filia's eyes widened dramatically as his face came within inches of her own, he stopped barely a hairs breadth away from her lips and pulled away just as suddenly as he swooped in. "Filia, have you been drinking?" He asked, one eyebrow slowly creeping up behind his fringe as he regarded her.
"Hmph, it was one glass, so what? I do –hiccup- not need to be parented by the likes of you monster," Filia managed to say between the odd hiccups, 'I wonder how strong that wine was'.
"I'm not parenting anybody. I just didn't think that you would give in to such trivial peer pressure so easily," Xellos said. Filia began to wonder if it was just her slightly tipsy mind, or was Xellos actually chastising her like she was a child who was caught sneaking off with the muffins that just come from the oven.
"Who said I -hiccup- was pressured into it. And besides even if I was persuaded to, -hiccup-it's none of your concern. And at least I wasn't dancing with an overgrown canary," The last part was mumbled more to herself than to Xellos, but he still heard it, and frankly he thought it was rather funny. But he kept his feature neutral as they continued to dance.
"Maybe not, but at least my dance partner didn't look like they where a descendant of a mountain troll," He retorted as he gestured to the royal in question, who was apparently having a serious discussion with his sister judging from their straight faces.
"How –hiccup- dare you poke insults at someone so gentle –hiccup- and, and…consa…consey…considerate," Filia growled as they continued to dance, never missing a step.
"He didn't seem so considerate when he was sneaking peaks at you attributes," Xellos said harshly.
"Hmph, I highly doubt that. And even if he –hiccup- was, I don't see how that would –hiccup- concern you. It doesn't bother you does it?" Filia replied with dark humour.
"Of course it's going to bother me Fi-chan. I'm a monster remember, you shouldn't expect me to share," Xellos replied with a smile. The remark seemed so casual you'd of thought he just commented on the fine weather we'd been having.
It took Filia a while to register what Xellos had just confessed, and even longer for her to get her thoughts back in line. "Well then if you have such a problem –hiccup- with the king then why are we even here in –hiccup- the first place, you're the one that dragged us here…" Filia paused as her mind started to pull itself together. "Wait, first the early start, then the accident, the pushing me into coming here," Filia looked up and glared at Xellos, a cold fire burning behind her eyes. "Xellos Metallium did you drag me into one of your horrible monster assignments!"
"Now now, calm down. Does this seem so horrible to you?" Xellos replied calmly, gesturing his head at the hall full of pleasant people enjoying a night out.
"Well, no. But I'm sure –hiccup- whatever you and your mistress –hiccup- have planned it cannot be –hiccup- good".
"Actually I think you'll find this particular mission extremely worth while. It's got a noble cause and everything," Xellos replied, his grin widening as he watched Filia absorb the information.
"I still don't think I –hiccup- trust you," Filia said as she gave him a stern look. 'Great, now he's going blurry on me, I just hope this night finishes soon'.
"Aww come on Filia, you're going to have to trust me sometimes, what better time to start than now. Listen, this is the basic plan," Xellos said as they continued dancing.
/
"Well brother? It's up to you now, both of our happiness is in your hands," Layla said to her brother as she finished revealing her wishes to the King.
"I don't know Layla, Filia is nice and I do think I have feelings for her, but she could never replace Veronica, and I don't like the idea of using her so you can get what you want…again," Oceus replied to his sister, a small amount of annoyance creeping into his voice.
"Then use her to get what you want. You're the King, you could have both if you would just use your authority for once and take the chance. This is more for your benefit anyway. It just happens that I manage to get something out of this deal," Layla said confidently to her brother. When she wanted something she wouldn't stop until she got it, if there was one trait you had to admire about her it was her determination.
"Look, you need a Queen and an heir, that's where Filia comes in. We just pretend she's a noble from another land, teach her a few customs, and bam, instant Queen. And who says you can't have a mistress on the side, many Kings from the past have had at least three, even grandfather had a few staying in the castle, it's normal," she pushed as the song was about to reach its end.
When the dance was over the couples stopped and applauded the musicians. "I still don't like it, but you have a point," Oceus sighed to himself as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'll go and break the news to Lord Trogen, let's just hope he takes the news well," he said as he left his sister to find the young lord.
/
"So you want me to do…nothing?" Filia said slightly bewildered as Xellos finished going over the basics of the mission.
"Now I wouldn't say that, you already played your part, and now you can just sit back and enjoy the show, but most importantly, just be yourself," Xellos said as he gave her his signature wink and finger wag.
"What? What is that supposed to mean?" Filia started when Xellos silenced her by putting his finger against her lips.
"Shhh, look it's about to start," Xellos whispered as he motioned to Oceus who was approaching the Lord Trogen with a serious look on his features. Filia felt her heart sink into her stomach as she realised what he was about to do, and couldn't help the wave of guilt that washed over her from the knowledge that it was because of her. 'This is not over Xellos. I will confront you with this-'
"WHAT!" An ear splitting screech was heard from the Lord Trogen, breaking Filia's thoughts as Oceus broke the news of the recent development.
"Now calm down sonny, let's just sit down and talk this out," Oceus tried to reason, but Trogen was not in the mood for reasoning.
"It can't be, my beautiful princess," Trogen glared at the gathered crowed. "This is a monsters doing, I can sense it! They have manipulated and tainted my fiancé's beautiful heart. Show yourself monster, come out and fight me!" Trogen shouted as he pulled his decorative sword from his sheath and charged at the crowd. The guests started screaming as people scattered and headed for the exits, un-noticed in the commotion where two figures standing by a wall, both with devilish grins on their faces as they watched the chaos that ensued.
Filia was astounded that the prince would actually take a weapon and charge at an unsuspecting crowd. She hadn't been expecting that outcome when Xellos had filled her in on the plan. Speaking of which, where on earth did that monster go? Filia looked all around her hoping to spot the beast priest, but no such luck. "Xellos? Xellos where are you?" Filia called into the panic stricken crowd, taking no notice of her surroundings.
As Trogen paused for breath after chasing a suspicious screaming woman in a green dress he looked to his side and spotted Filia wandering the crowd looking rather lost, as he looked down he spotted something, on closer inspection it was proven to be a little pointed tail with a pink bow on the tip. Trogen growled as he lifted his sword once again. "DIE MONSTER!" He screamed a battle cry as he charged at Filia.
"Monster? Where?" Filia said puzzled as she looked around trying to spot what the voice was shouting at. Her only warning was a loud shout just before she spotted a blade coming straight at her head. Filia barely managed to duck in time to avoid being decapitated, rolling to the side and grabbing for her mace as she righted herself. When she managed to get back on her feet she held her head as her world continued to spin around her. She vaguely made out a second frustrated battle cry as the young lord righted himself and tried to charge her again. However before his blade could make contact Filia brought her mace up and blocked his attack to her shoulder. Filia could feel herself beginning to lose her focus as the Lord Trogen put his own weight into the blow in an attempt to overwhelm her. She knew her tail was clearly showing and she could feel her magic keeping her in her human form slipping ever so slowly.
'This is definitely NOT good,' Filia thought in panic as she was having more trouble than what she should at keeping Trogen from completely overpowering her. Filia gathered up all her strength in one large breath and put her full power into pushing back on the lord, successfully throwing him to the far side of the hall, unconscious, but unharmed.
Now all that was left was an unconscious royal and a furiously panting Filia, her tail sticking rigidly straight out behind her as she tried her best to calm down. As the tension slowly started to ebb out of Filia's shoulders it came roaring back as she finally started to notice the whispers amongst the other nobles still in the hall.
"F-Filia?" Filia whipped her head around and pinpointed the origin of the familiar voice. Oceus was looking at her, or rather her tail, as if it was one of the most horrifying sights he has ever been subject to.
"Y-Your Majesty, I…I…" Filia stuttered.
"You're a monster," Oceus said, Filia almost flinched at the tone of betrayal in his voice and on his face.
"No, I'm not a monster, I'm a…"
"Enough! I should have known better than to trust an outsider, GUARDS!" Oceus bellowed, in the next instant the hall was being flooded with the palace guards, at least 50 of them circling Filia, all of them raising their swards at the young dragoness.
"Orders your Highness? One of the guards asked as they all raised their swords a bit higher. A dark haired woman, Filia recognised her as one of the maids that attended her, walked up to Oceus and stepped behind him, clutching onto his arm as she peered fearfully out from around her protective barrier. Oceus turned his attention to the maid and grasped the hand clutching his arm with his free hand as he sought her eyes, a single tear making its way into one of his green eyes as he gave the command, not breaking the eye contact he held with the woman.
"Execute her".
Filia gasped as the soldiers all lunged towards her. She brought her mace up defensively, prepared to fight for her very life, but before the first blade could make contact with either flesh or mace, Filia disappeared. The guards looked around in confusion, wondering where she went, when suddenly laughter was herd from above where Filia was last standing. There floating in mid-air, one arm holding a red orb tipped staff, the other wrapped around the waist of a very disorientated and slightly irritated Filia, was Xellos, his usual cheshire smile in place as he surveyed the humans beneath them.
"Now is that any way to treat your guests Majesty? Invite them to dinner and execute them before bedtime?" Xellos chided as though he where speaking to a child.
Oceus began to turn red with rage as his fisted hands shook by his sides. "Get the flaming arrows, I wont them both executed for crimes against the city!" Oceus bellowed as a group of archers ran to the sides of the hall where the torches burned, lighting their specially made arrows and taking aim at the pair hovering in the centre of the room.
"Well now, this could get messy," Xellos pondered out loud as the archers made a circle around them, each drawing their bows and taking aim.
"XELLOS! What are you waiting for! We have to do something before someone gets hurt!" Filia squeaked in panic when she saw that Xellos wasn't making a single move to stop them or to evade the arrows.
"Ready! Aim! FIRE!" As the voice spoke the archers released their arrows, and for a split second just before the first volley reached its target Xellos's eyes flashed a ghostly blue, his grin turned wicked as the arrows came up to a shield of wind, blowing them away from himself and Filia and into the surrounding walls and furniture. Some of the arrows struck nearby curtains and tables, quickly setting them alight. The flames were quick to spread, and soon half the hall was aflame. Within seconds the hall was in chaos. People were running and screaming and pushing their way over each other trying to make it to the exits. Layla found herself being pushed towards the exit by a few of the guards that were able to separate themselves from the rest of the panic-stricken crowd. She managed to get one last look behind her into the burning building and at the man, no, the monster floating in the centre of the burning room, a smile on his face as he watched the people beneath him running in shear terror. A choked sob escaped her throat as she turned away from the sight of the being she could have fallen in love with, willing herself not to shed a tear, she followed the rest of the guests out into the castle grounds and out of harms way.
Oceus however was having a difficult time working his way to the exit, especially since he still had the hand of the maid that came up to him, clinging to her hand as if his very life depended on it. "Come on Veronica, we're almost there, just stay with me," Oceus yelled over the screams of the guests, all the while keeping the main exit doors in sight.
"My Lord, I don't think I can keep hold," Veronica cried as the congestion of people became too much and began to pull them apart. She could feel his hand slowly being torn away from her own. She tried desperately to keep up, but there were just too many people and she could hardly breath. She felt her foot catch on something and lost her balance, hitting her head on the unforgiving tiles below, leaving her helpless to the stampede of nobles rushing over her, barely batting an eye as the stepped over her still form.
"Veronica!" Oceus called as he used his brute force to power his way back to the maids form. Bending down he scooped her up in his arms and cradled her to his chest as he made his way out the doors.
By now the hall, or what was left of it, was nearly empty save for the two figures still floating in the centre of the burning building. One of the roof beams finally gave way and collapsed, narrowly missing the pair. Filia shrieked as the burning beam crashed to the floor, taking with it a portion of the roof. "Xellos! Are you listening to me you stupid monster, we have to get out of here or we'll be burned alive!"
"Calm down Fi-chan, it's not like the fire can honestly harm me," Xellos replied, not showing any signs of discomfort or worry.
"That's all well and good for you but incase you've forgotten I'm not exactly fire proof!" Filia nearly screamed at him, panic slowly but surely creeping into her voice.
"Nonsense, I'm not going to allow you to die over something so small as a few burns," Xellos replied as he opened one playfully serious eye at her.
Filia felt like ripping her hair out by this point. "Xellos we have to do something! We need to stop this fire before it spreads to the rest of the castle! Xellos please!" Filia cried out, desperation clearly herd in her tone.
Xellos sighed as he closed his eye again. "Oh very well, since you said please," was the only reply she got before Xellos descended to the ground, gently setting Filia down in a space of floor clear from fire and debris. With his staff held in one hand he brought his hands together in front of his face, his lips moving in a silent spell. After a few seconds he snapped his eyes open as he held his arms out wide with a cry "Yaaaaaaaahhhhh," at his cry what could only be described as a strong red wind whirled around himself and quickly expanded to accommodate the entire hall. The wind seemed to suck in the flames as it came into contact. Within seconds the entire hall was free of flames, all that was remaining were the charred remains of the furniture and portions of the roof, the late afternoon light filtering its way through the remains of the shattered glass windows, highlighting the blackened walls of the once pristine ballroom.
Filia surveyed the damage in despair, bringing a hand to her mouth to muffle the sob that was threatening to escape her. "This is all my fault, if only I hadn't agreed to attend this stupid ball none of this would have happened," Filia said as she covered her face with both hands, not wanting to see the sight anymore.
"There's really no point in blaming all this on yourself. You're not the one who decided that shooting flaming arrows indoors was a good idea," Xellos replied casually, shrugging his shoulders.
"You're right! I should really be blaming you for all of this!" Filia snapped, turning furious eyes to his emotionless face. "This was your stupid filthy mission, and you dragged me right into it!" Filia shouted at Xellos, she felt herself shake with the intensity of her anger as she let herself blow. "If I had known the reason why you were bringing me here I would never have left the bedroom! How dare you manipulate me, lie to me to help fulfil one of your monstrous assignments!" By this point she had the beginnings of tears building up in the corners of her eyes. "Now because of you and your selfishness my reputation is completely ruined, I have a whole kingdom of people who would probably love to see me stoned to death, and I now have to live with the guilt of possibly causing serious harm to a member of a royal family, not to mention completely destroying any possible future negotiations between these two kingdoms, and it's all because I was foolish enough to trust you!" Filia shrieked as she brought her mace up, aiming to strike him in his blank face, tears making their way down her cheeks.
Inches before the mace made contact Xellos's hand shot up, catching the mace and halting it mid swing. Filia's eyes widened in shock for a split second before they hardened into a glare as she struggled to free her weapon from his grasp. "Let…go you…stupid...ugh…I said let-" Filia was cut off when Xellos suddenly twisted his arm that held her mace around, spinning her with it, next thing she knew her arms were crossed in front of her with his arms pinning them to her sides and wrapping around her middle, completely restraining her. "Let me go you filthy piece of trash, I said let me go!" Filia struggled with everything she could, she writhed and kicked and even tried smashing her head back into him, but nothing seemed to even remotely loosen his hold, if anything his grip seemed to tighten the more she struggled. The tears were flowing freely from her by now, it was not much longer before she stopped struggling and let herself go limp, relying on Xellos to keep her upright as she cried her eyes out in his grasp.
Xellos then rested his chin onto her shoulder, "Are you done yet?" he inquired, Filia could feel his chin moving on her shoulder as he spoke.
"Why! Are you going to try and make up some pathetic excuse to justify your actions you piece of garbage!" Filia snapped, turning her head away from him.
"No I'm not, and even if I did try and justify myself you would never listen to me would you?" He didn't wait for an answer before he continued. "I was merely going to say that you're blowing this a little out of proportion. The fire's out, no one was seriously injured, and since when did you start caring about what others think of you again?"
"What are you talking about?" Filia asked in confusion, still not turning to face him.
Xellos brought his face closer to her neck, nuzzling her slightly. "You've disobeyed your elders, resigned your position as priestess, taken in a fugitive to your race as your own and you associate with the same monster who is responsible for the destruction of half your race, and you're worried about one small city that will now never have you over for lunch again? Is it just me or does that sound a little ridiculous?" Xellos spoke into her neck, a slight shiver going down her spine at the sensation.
"The point isn't whether or not I care what people think of me, the point is that you lied to me, I trusted you and you lied to me, after you swore to me that you wouldn't," her heart clenched at her own words. She didn't know why but the fact that Xellos had actually betrayed her trust seemed to sting a lot more than she thought it should.
Xellos opened his eyes slightly, staring into the space in front of him. "And when exactly Fi-chan, did I lie to you? I may not have told you everything in regards to why we came here, but how does that equate to lying?"
"I don't know! It just does!" Filia began to squirm again, "Would you let me go already! I don't want you touching me."
"You're not going anywhere until we sort this out, so until then you might as well calm down or we'll be here for a very long time," Xellos replied calmly, no use letting his temper get the better of him, but L-sama she could be irritating, and stubbornly so.
"Grrr….trashy monster!" Filia exclaimed, all the while trying to get her rage in check. "Do you really expect me to just relax and take anything you say seriously?" Filia remarked snidely.
"Whether or not you take me seriously is your provocative, but I do expect you to listen, and listen well," Xellos replied. Filia didn't reply, but he knew she was listening from the slight tilt of her head back in his direction. "When a being such as myself is given an order by their master, it is our duty and obligation to follow said order, whether or not we agree with it doesn't matter. If I am ordered by my mistress to serve another lord, then I will grant my services to whomever she wishes, if I am ordered to kill every first born male, then I will have it done before the next sunrise, and if I am ordered to withhold information from someone, then not a whisper of a secret will leave my lips, no matter how much I may wish otherwise," Xellos said, letting no emotion enter his voice, keeping it as neutral as possible.
It was a short while before Filia answered. "And, did you wish it otherwise, this time?" Filia asked almost timidly, still keeping her eyes on the ground.
Xellos wore a thoughtful look as he considered her question. "Perhaps, understand that I would never disobey my mistress, even if I don't fully comprehend the reasons behind the decisions she makes. But it is not my place to question her motives, just as it is not your place to think that you have the right to know every little detail of what we do and why," Xellos finished on a stern note, hoping to get the message across to her.
"Who says it's not my place!" obviously they lost the connection somewhere along the line. "If you're gonna be dragging me into these situations then I think it is well within my right to know why! I know the Beastmaster is your mistress, but she is not mine. Meaning that it is she and you who are outside of your rights, giving me orders and expecting me to follow them without question. I am through with those days of doing what I'm told without being able to think for myself," Filia exclaimed, stomping her foot for good measure.
"I never said that you had to obey orders without thinking for yourself," Xellos interrupted her little rant. "In fact I want you to use that head of yours more often. I didn't spend all that time getting you to question your elder's beliefs for nothing you know," 'Well really I was doing it because it was funny to see her so confused and conflicted about her whole upbringing, but she doesn't have to know that'. "All I'm saying is that you're trying to contend with forces far more superior to your own, and sometimes it's in everyone's best interest to know as little as possible and to reveal as little as possible," Xellos said as he closed his eyes again.
There was a deathly silence before she finally spoke. "Xellos, could you please let me go now?" Filia said with a resigned sigh.
"Hmm, I don't know, are you going to stop trying to run off if I do?" Xellos replied, some of his usual humour creeping back into his voice.
"I wont run," Filia said earnestly. Xellos felt for her emotions and felt no dishonesty in her and so relinquished his hold on her slowly, ready to act incase she decided to change her mind. When she was finally free from his arms she took a step back, putting him just outside his arms reach and just stood there facing him. "Out of curiosity, what would you have done if I did run?" Filia asked, fiddling with the ends of her long hair.
At her question Xellos gave his usual trickster smile, "Let's just say you wouldn't have lasted long before you regretted ever turning your back to me and leave it at that," Xellos said with a smirk as he watched the dragoness fidget before him.
"So, I guess this means that no matter what there will always be secrets between us," Filia said as she turned her face down and away from him, hiding her eyes behind her bangs.
Xellos face turned serious again. "Welcome to reality Filia, the world isn't perfect, and you should never expect the people in it to be perfect either. Yes, there will be secrets, but neither you nor I, or anyone else can change that," Xellos tilted his head to the side. "Idealism is a funny thing, it can be the driving force behind the world to try and make it a better place, but at other times it can only lead to disappointment," Xellos stepped closer to the blonde in front of him, bringing a finger under her chin and tilting her face up to him. He looked into her tear stained face, using his thumb to brush away the remaining trail of tears from her cheeks.
"You do realise that I can't stop myself from hoping, there's nothing wrong with having high ideals," Filia said barely above a whisper as Xellos cleaned her face.
"I know, and I wont stop you. Just be warned that it probably will only lead to disappointment, and try not to let yourself be too affected by it, you're no fun if you're depressed all the time, that's what Zelgadis is for," Xellos replied with a smile.
Filia felt her lip twitch just a fraction before she managed to stop herself from smiling. No matter the situation the mention of her old friends always brought a smile to her face.
Sensing that her emotions had lightened somewhat, Xellos removed his hand. "We should probably head back. If you like we can finish this conversation later, when-" Xellos paused, his face took on a look of concentration before his eyes snapped open, he stepped forward and grabbed Filia's hand. "Come one, we have to go back now," Xellos said, his voice deadly serious.
Filia, who was slightly startled but his rather drastic mood change, could only stumble forward as Xellos pulled on her hand. "Xellos? What's wro-" Xellos teleported before she could finish.
/
Layla knocked the brass knocker the wooden door. After a moment of silence a gruff voice from the other side of the door replied "Enter," With a moments hesitation Layla timidly opened the door, revealing her brother seated behind a large desk, papers strewn all along it's surface along with countless envelopes and a couple of empty coffee mugs, one mug was still half full as Oceus brought it up to his lips and skulled the whole lot in one swig. The princess observed that her brother, who always took great pride in how he looked, was a mess. He had dark circles under his eyes, his hair looked like it hadn't been washed in weeks and his clothing was worn and wrinkled, large patches of sweat covering the area around his arms and neck. Oceus put down his mug and looked at his little sister, "Oh, it's you," Oceus said, Layla could hear the disdain in his voice when he addressed her, ever since the incident that's all he's ever called her, 'you'.
She stepped through the door and closed it behind her quietly as her brother turned his eyes back to the documents in front of him. "Oceus, big brother please will you just look at me and listen?" Layla pleaded, taking a step closer to the desk.
"And why should I? Every time I listen to you, disaster happens! First it was the fishing boat incident when you where 5, then the time with the thousand kittens at the harvest festival when you where 14, and now this!" Oceus exclaimed, motioning to his desk full of paper and documents.
Layla visibly twitched at her brothers harsh words. "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry. I never meant for any of this to happen," Layla said, choking back a sob as she faced her brother, willing him to see that she was serious this time.
"Whether you meant for it to happen or not doesn't matter. What matters is that because you put your wants before everyone's needs, you have cost us our pride, our dignity, part of our home and our kingdom's future, not to mention the trust of half the population. Now most of the people think that we are in the habit of entertaining wild beasts and letting them in to destroy our homes. It's a miracle that Thure hasn't declared war on us for the attempted assassination of their crowned prince. We barely managed to get out of that with a declaration that any contact with Thure will be henceforth obsolete," Oceus dropped the official letter from the royal advisers stating this fact on the table in clear view for Layla to see.
"Is the prince ok?" Layla asked, her voice barely coming out above a whisper.
"He's fine, his personal guards and advisers managed to get him out before the monsters set the place on fire. Although he is undergoing extensive psychological treatments from the ordeal. His advisers have taken over his royal duties until he is deemed fit to rule again," Oceus replied tiredly as he rested his head against his hand supported by his elbow on the table, paying no mind to the papers he was leaning on.
"You should really try getting some sleep brother, you look terrible," Layla said as she saw him try to stifle a yawn.
"I would love to, but right now I can't. I've got papers to sign, builders to organise, trade agreements to revise, not to mention all the complaints from the general public to deal with," Oceus said, his voice sounding more worn and tired the longer the list got.
"You really shouldn't push yourself so much, just please take the rest of the night off and relax for a little while. Have you even been to see Veronica yet?" Layla asked, trying desperately to get her brother to forget his duties for a while, lord knows he needed the break.
Oceus finally looked into his sisters eyes since the incident, however there was no anger in his gaze, merely tired relief. "I've seen her once, the doctors say she will be fine, nothing more than a few bad bruises and a rather hard hit to the head, he's suggested bed rest and ice, and that she not strain herself for a couple of weeks, but otherwise she should be up and walking around in about a week," Oceus finished as he rose from his chair. "But I would still like to go and see her I guess, make sure she's comfortable and taken care of," he said as he made his way past Layla and towards the door.
"Wait for me, I want to come too," She said as she went to catch him before he left. "I want to see what is so special about this woman who managed to get the great proud Oceus break generations of traditions and take a maid as his first wife and queen," She said with a small but sincere smile as she walked with her brother down the hall.