"So...he didn't take it well at all, Zelgadis-san?" Amelia asked lightly. He was trying to be careful around the chimera, he had been rater touchy ever since his powers were stolen from him. All he told her last night after they delt with Xelloss was: "He's not in a good mood."
"No...in fact he punched Lina." He said back quietly, trying to keep it away from Lina. She was rather irked, having her powers taken away also then punch in the face by a man who is a lot stonger than he looks.
"Oh my!" Amelia held once hand delicatly to her mouth. "You let Xelloss-san do that?"
"Well, he was a little on the quick side, we didn't expect it. At first I was mad at him...but now that I think about it..." Zelgadis frowned, looking at her intently. "I think I understand where he is comming from. It's almost like what happened to me. I asked for more power, to be stonger. This is not what I expected, and I am bitter and hateful for it. I wanted to do more than just hit Rezo." He sighed.
"Oh...and he wanted to remember who he was...but didn't expect that he was that kind of person. You both got what you wanted, but it wasn't what you had in mind. And even though Shyphiel is the one who is doing it, she is relu" Amelia deducted.
Zelgadis looked at her in surprise. She has grown up quite a bit since the first time I met her. He nodded, and contiued. "Exactly. I am wondering now if we should do as he asked. He wants us to not tell Filia, or let her remember."
"But that isn't right!" Amelia stared at him. "It isn't right to deny her the chance of remembering who she really is."
"Yes, but what would happen to them if she remembered? And Tsunami?"
Amelia was silent. "I...honestly don't know."
Zelgadis sighed. "Exactly."
Lina suddenly stood and brushed off her hands in an action that stated "I'm Finished". "I am going to get Filia, I think it's time you did you stuff on her, Shyphiel."
Shyphiel frowned. "Lina-san, I think we should wait until Xelloss-san feels better. I'm positive he is still upset. I think you should leave him alone."
"I agree." Gourry said, taking Shyphiel's side. "I think that it might be a bad idea. He was pretty mad at you Lina."
"I don't care, our powers are missing except for Amelia's and Shyphiel's, and I want to get them back. The only way I see is making those two remember, because those are the same balls of light that took them in the first place that stole our powers, I'm positive." She marched off into the lower decks.
"What did ye do to my boy?" Marner asked. He was afraid for his family, these people seemed to just storm into their lives like casualties were not a concern. And he was afraid of how much of his family they were going to hurt.
Speaking of storms...
"Looks like we're gonna 'ave us a biggin'." He looked at the large, dark looming clouds. "I hope it ain't too bad."
Lina walked up to Filia and Xelloss' bedroom door and knocked. No answer. She knocked again, still no answer. She tapped her foot impatiently and looked to the side, down the hall, and noticed Tsunami headed her way.
Tsunami smiled at her and looked at her parents door. She knocked lightly. Still no answer. She opened the door slightly and peeked in for a moment, then pulled out and closed the door again.
"Are they in there?" Lina asked.
Tsunami nodded.
"Then why are they not answering the door. Hey you two..." She went to open the door despite the frantic gestures made by the little girl not to.
She opened it, then turned red head to toe.
The parts of their body did not cover revealed to her that they were completely nude, and kissing quite passionatly. Lina pulled out of the room quickly, closing the door and stood there, totally shocked, while Tsunami shook her head at her.
"Wrong..." Lina whispered to herself. "Wrong..."
She walked out of the hall an to the upperdeck whispering "Wrong.."
Tsunami followed her as she walked up to the others, sat down next to Gourry, and repeated "Wrong..."
"What's wrong, Lina?" Zelgadis was the first to ask.
Tsunami looked at him and made a bunch of signs with her hands. "What?" He asked.
Tsunami sighed and faced Marner and did the same signs. Marner busted up into laughter.
"What's so funny, Marner-san?" Ameila asked, curious.
"Seems Lina here walked in on me boy and his wife."
Everyone blushed except Marner, Tsunami and Gourry. Gourry looked at Tsunami.
"How do you know that?"
She signed at Marner. "Because I did too. Only I can take it, she can't." Marner pointed to Lina as the "she". "I tried to tell her not to go in there, but she seems to have a problem with listening."
Zelgadis choked on his coffee trying to hold back his laugh (Lina was too close to do something like that). Amelia looked up into the dark sky and whistled to herself, trying to do the same. Shyphiel was still blushing from the thought of Xelloss and Filia, and Gourry scratched the back of his head as the red head continued to mutter to herself.
After everyone had settled down again, Xelloss and Filia came up. Lina glared at Xelloss. "Felling better, I hope?"
"A little. But it won't last."
"Why?" Amelia asked.
"Shyphiel-san, could you help me to remember too? I'm curious." Filia pleaded the shy maiden.
"Oh..." Amelia stated.
"I don't know if that is a good idea..." Shyphiel said quietly, looking into her cup of tea. "Your....husband probably agrees."
Xelloss said nothing, he just studied the wood on the deck very closely.
"We talked about it last night. He's alright with it."
"Correction." Xelloss looked at her. "I am far from alright with it. I'm afraid of it. But you deserve to know if you really want to." He folded his arms across his chest and glared at her. "Like I can argue with a loud mouthed stubbron brat like yourself."
Filia gave him the "look". "Watch it, namagomi."
Marner sighed, Tsunami put her head in her hands, and everyone else groaned.
"Namagomi? Oh, so we are going to start that again, are we?"
"Namagomi, namagomi, NA-MA-GO-MI!" Filia stuck out her tounge at him.
"Men, clear out, it's another big one!" Marner yelled out.
"Yah, we know captin'. We see the clouds!"
"No, I mean Xel and Fil!"
Muttering and "oh my gods" erupted from all over the deck as men cleared the general area. Tsunami walked between them as they glared at eachother, making frantic motions trying to make them stop.
The group continued to moan.
"You are so ill mannered! You have no respect for me!" He yelled.
"Whatever! You are just a whinny little baka! You don't appreciate me!"
"Grr....what is there to appreciate?"
"Excuse me? And what is there about you to respect?" She pulled her fist back to punch him.
"I don't have to stick around for this!" He tried to teleport....
and forgot he couldn't.
Tsunami ran up to her father as he slide across the moist deck from the impact, stopping close to Zelgadis.
"Itteeeee....forgot I can't teleport..." Xelloss rubbed his cheek. "Damn...she's not even a dragon anymore and still hit's harder that any MAN I know..."
Tsunami put her hands on her hips for a second before signing to her dad.
"Tsu-chan, I wasn't trying to provoke your mother...yes I know she has a short fuse....Your grandfather is used to it I assure you we are not trying to humiliate you...no you are NOT the adult in the situation, Tsu-chan....Tsu-chan I swear!" Xelloss sat up and looked at his daughter in frustraition. "You need to relax more than anyone else I know."
Tsunami glared at him for emphasis for a moment before hugging him. She let go and walked behind him while he still was on the ground and wrapped her arms around his neck. He stood up, holding her legs so she was piggy-back on him.
Filia had calmed down at this point. "Well, at least this time there were no fires...." She looked to Shyphiel. "So, hw about it?"
Shyphiel thought for a moment and nodded. "Sit here." She pointed to a pile of rope in front of her. Filia did as she was told and folded her hands on her lap.
After a while, Shyphiel managed to place Filia under the same trance as she placed Xelloss in the day before. Everyone was staying for this one, and Xelloss continued to hold Tsunami.
"What's your first name?"
"Filia."
"Who are you married to?"
"Xelloss."
"What is your daughter's name?"
"Tsunami."
"What do you do for a living? What are your hobbies?"
"I paint...I make pottery...I help my husband run an Inn and Tavern. I like to study magic, and making clothes."
"Who taught you to use magic?"
"Xelloss and I had a teacher...named Terrama."
Marner's face grew darker and Xelloss choked.
Shyphiel looked at Xelloss and then back at Filia.
"What was she like?"
"She was mean. She didn't like me, but it was like she hated Xelloss. She hit him all the time when we were kids. She would get mad over little things and liked it when we cried. We were afraid of her..."
"What happened to her."
"I hit her after she attacked Xelloss in a market. She went down and passed out. At least that's what it seemed."
Shyphiel noticed the braclet. "Where did you get your braclet?"
"Xelloss gave it to me the same day he admitted he loved me."
Shyphiel smiled. "That must be important to you."
"Yes."
The shy maiden sighed and looked at Xelloss. "I am going to give you a choice Xelloss."
"Nani?"
"We can pretend that she couldn't remember, and bring her out now. Or go on with it."
Xelloss was shocked. She really doesn't want to do this... "No...let her remember. But thank you. She would find out that we tricked her in no time."
"Why?"
Xelloss shrugged. "It's kind of wierd. We can read eachothers thoughts sometimes."
Shypheil blinked. "Well, I've heard of that before. It's a rare thing. Then I need your help."
"Why?"
"Because I do not know much about her past life. I know more of her new life just from these previous questions. Tell me a few things about her other self."
Xelloss set Tsunami down. "Her whole name is Filia Ul Copt. She was a gold dragon priestess. She carried a mace around with her every where...I can't honestly tell you how many times this woman chased me with that thing." Filia was twitching the whole time she talked, taking everything in even though he did not realize it. "Filia's human form was imperfect, her ears were pointed and she had a dragon tail that she hid under her skirt. She helped fight against a mazoku named Valgarv, who was an ancient dragon that was turned to the mazoku race, after the gold dragons had killed off their kind. She is around...oh, I dont know...she has to be over 500 years old, she was around for the war of the Monster's Fall. In that war, many golden dragons were killed...by my hand."
Tsunami stared at her father, not comprehending everything.
Xelloss looked at Shyphiel. "Is that enough? Because Honestly I don't know that much about her either."
"My...name is Filia Ul Copt." She whispered. "I am a gold dragon."
"Plenty, thank you." Shyphiel murmered.
"Are you about to bring her out?" Xelloss asked.
"Hai."
"Give me a moment." He knelt to look at Tsunami. "Tsu-chan. I want you to understand something."
She nodded.
"Papa and Mama were once different people. We were...reborn, I suppose. Do you understand that much?"
Tsunami made a skeptical face but nodded.
"Alrught. Well, I know you are very smart for your age so try and keep up with this. Your Mama did not like Papa at all. So when she comes out of this trance, she is probably going to hurt Papa really bad."
Tsunami frowned and made a gesture.
"No sweetie, don't get involved. That's the last thing I want because I don't know how much in her right mind she will be." He thought back to yesterday and his own reaction. "Let her hurt me, it'll make her feel better. But I want you to stay with Zelgaids-san and Amelia-chan, alright?"
She nodded. He walked her over to the two said people. "Watch her, would you?"
"Sure, Xelloss-san." Amelia agreed.
"What's going on?" Marner asked.
"Um...just don't get in her way if she comes after me...dad..." He is my father...but it's so weird...
"Ok, bring her out, Shyphiel."
She nodded. "Wake up." She snapped her fingers.
Filia's eyes came into focus as she stared off into space. Her mind with the biggest clutter in the world. Who am I...? She looked down at her hand and noticed the wedding ring.
I'm married.... she looked up at Xelloss. To that filthy...mazoku.... She started to cry. But he's not a monster! Another part of her mind cried. Once a monster, always a monster...he tricked you... she put her hands in her head, trying to think clearly. It didn't work, the thought of Xelloss, everything they did together...made her feel defiled, betrayed...hurt most of all. She looked up at Xelloss, who stood off to the side of everyone, starring at her with no visible emotions playing on his face. Just cool and collect.
Her eyes narrowed at she looked at him. "So. How much of this is your dirty little plan you jerk? Are you happy with yourself? Are you satisfied with what you've done? You've corrupted me!" She screamed.
Xelloss continued to look at her. He knew in this hysterical state there would be no reasoning with her. He just gathered his barrings and got ready to take what he knew was comming to him.
Filia walked towards him slowly, throwing accusation after accusation. "You are such a slime! I hate myself! I can't believe I fell for this trick! This has been a trick all along, I just know it!"She grew closer and closer, her tears streaming down her face.
Xelloss decided his voice would probably make her mad, so settled with just shaking his head in denial.
"I HATE YOU!" She picked up a hammer from the deck that a sailor was using to repair some of the boards, and swung it at his head.
Xelloss knew she was going to hit him, and was bracing for it, but the hammer was unexpected. He tried to dodge when he realized that it would hurt to brace that kind of blow. He side stepped, but the hammer still clipped him on the side of his head. His eyes rolled back and he crumpled to the ground.
"What the hell are you doing Filia?!" Lina yelled, running up to grab the blond woman's arm, immediatly helping her was Zelgadis and Gourry.
Tsunami's mouth dropped open as she ran to her father. Her hands inspected the side of his head, but it was hard for anyone to tell how bad he was hurt with all the blood. Tsunami started to cry as she looked at her mother. She signed at her in an angry manner. Even though Filia said nothing, everyone caught the gist of what she was saying.
"Why? Why did you do this?"
Filia starred in horror, full realization hitting her. "He's....human....he's....not mazoku..."
Lina rolled her eyes in frustraition. "Of course! Did you think he would shake that off? What's wrong with you? You know he isn't behind all this, he's as much as a victim as you are!"
"Oh, L-Sama, please..." Filia held her face in her hands. "Please..."
Shyphiel kneeled next to Xelloss, whispering a healing spell and trying to clean up the mess with a hankerchief. Tsunami sat by her father, looking at him to her mother and back again.
After about ten minutes, Shyphiel finished. "Well, there is a problem."
"What?" Lina asked. Filia was completely tunned out at this point, starring off as she sat in the pile of ropes again.
"Well, his wounds are healed, and that is the good news. But, there seems to have been a little brain damage, and a healing spell can't heal this sort of thing. I tried, at least, but it's not working."
"What? What's wrong with him?" Amelia asked worriedly.
"Coma."
"Nani?" Everyone with the exception of Filia asked.
"He's in a coma. There's no telling when he'll wake up."
"What the hell is goin' on with me family! I demand you people explain a few things to me." Marner was ticked. This was his last straw. Watching his family going totally bezerk was a little too much.
Lina sighed. "Sit down captain, this is a long story. Gourry, Zelgadis, could you take Xelloss to his room and lay him down. Shyphiel, take Filia into another room AWAY from him, and Amelia..." Lina let her gaze fall on the little girl, then looked into the princess' eyes. Amelia nodded and walked up to Tsunami and whispered something to her. The girl nodded and followed her to a further part of the deck. Everyone did as they were told and got to work, until there was only Marner and Lina.
"Allright. I might as well start at the beginning, before we even met Xelloss or Filia for the First time. It will give you a better understanding of things. I'll start by telling you how I met Gourry..." Lina's story continued until the early hours of the next morning.
"You can talk with me..." A tall, young handsome man approached Tsunami. They were in a room, the walls made of marble, a huge black crushed velvet couch being the main sight in the decorative room. They were sitting on it, as the girl traced her fingers over the small ripples in the fabric.
"I know."
"What's the matter, my little Tsu-chan? You seem preoccupied."
She told him briefly about what happened. He noded his head sadly. "Yes it was bound to happen."
"It makes me sad. All this makes me sad."
"You can get away from that saddness, remember. You have that power, Tsu-chan."
Tsunami looked into his ice blue eys for a moment and nodded. "I know. But I don't want to. I can live with the saddness."
"For now, maybe..."
"Me head hurts..." Marner murmered. This whole thing was just mind boggling. This son has lived two lives? He used to be a higher level mazoku? His little Filia a dragon? What what what?
The rain was pelting on them now, the waves churning rather badly. The men were keeping the Sea Blossom as steady as possible though.
Shyphiel came up, looking tired and worn.
Lina walked up to her friends and put a hand on her arm, not sure if the shy woman could keep herself steady. "Are you alright?"
"Filia-san is like her her own coma, but it's self inflicted and her eyes are wide open. Xelloss-san's condition is not changed." She sighed. "I can't do anything for either of them, Lina-san. It terrible. What about Tsu-chan? Both of her parents are completely out of it, and it's our fault."
Lina sighed also, letting her go and looking at her feet as the rain formed minurature puddles around her feet. "I know. We are even more helpless than ever. This stinks."
"Oi! What are you two doing in the rain, get in here before you get sick!" Gourry stood in the doorway to the lower decks, motioning for them to come in.
"Hai, Gourry-sama." Shyphiel went immediatly. Lina stood where she was for a moment and looked at the looming sky.
"What are we going to do?"
