Chapter 3: Crap! There has to be a morning after. unfortunately.
Gourry, Silphiel, Zel, and to some extent Amelia, stayed far far away from Lina as they traveled that next day. Amelia, only to some extent, because she was still unconscious and being carried by Gourry, and if she were awake, doubtless she would attempt to cheer Lina up. Which is why they were glad she was still asleep. Gourry frowned at Zel.
"So, why's Lina so upset?" he asked. Zel sighed.
"Wouldn't you be upset if you saw yourself in bed with another guy?" he asked. Gourry pondered that for a moment, nodded, shrugged, and kept walking, Amelia in his arms. Silphiel smiled sweetly. Suddenly, a noise from behind them alerted them. Lina growled.
"LOOK, If there's anyone out there, I'm in a REALLY bad mood, so don't come any closer!" she shouted. The sound got closer, "I'm warning you!" she shouted. The sound came closer still, "Oh, that's it, FIRE-BALL!" she shouted, and the reddish fireball blazed through the trees, clearing the way to reveal. Xelloss? Zel growled.
"YOU!" he shouted. Xelloss smiled, and floated by them, hovering near the tops of the trees.
"Why, yes, It is me! How did you ever guess, Zelgadis?" he said smugly. Zel stared at him suspiciously.
"Xelloss, what do you want?" Lina asked. Xelloss shrugged.
"Oh, do I have to want something? What if I just wanted to see how my favorite sorceress and her motley crew were doing?" he said innocently. Lina rolled her eyes.
"Please, Xelloss." She said. Silphiel frowned.
"Miss Lina," she said, "who is this Mazoku? Do you know him, are you in league with him?" Lina sighed.
"Don't worry, Silphiel, he's just a friend of ours, I suppose." She said.
"He was there, when Phibrizzo was killed, remember?" Zel said. Silphiel thought, then nodded. Gourry set Amelia down on the ground.
"So, Xelloss, what are you up to?" he asked companionably, sitting cross-legged on a stone. Everyone sweatdropped. Suddenly, Amelia sat up.
"What is going on?" she murmured. Her eyes widened, "Miss Lina! I had the strangest dream!" she shouted.
"Look, Amelia, I really don't want to have to explain that, here." She said. Amelia looked around.
"You mean it wasn't a dream? Oh, hello, Xelloss-san." She said to Xelloss, who waved. Then she turned back to him, "Xelloss-san?" she asked, jerking a finger towards him. The rest nodded. Just then,
"At last I have caught up with you, Lina, you won't escape me now!" Nahga called. Behind her was Lana and Gracia. Lina smacked her forehead and growled.
"Great, just great, now we have to pull the rest of them. I knew we shouldn't have stopped, they've caught up to us!" she shouted. She whirled to face Xelloss, who was, needless to say, a little confused. Though most of the time he knew more than they did, he was clueless about the appearance of these twins. Of course, being Xelloss, you couldn't see all this on his face. He was cool, calm, and collected. He smiled.
"Uh!" he said, brightly. Lina growled.
"I'm assuming you know what's going on Xelloss, and I'm even thinking that maybe you facilitated all this.." she said. Xelloss smiled.
"That's a secret, but I know I didn't set this one up." He said, shrugging. It was no secret to Xelloss that these twins were the exact opposite of the originals. He smiled, sincerely this time.
"Ah, The shadow reflector." He said under his breath. He studied the twins. He warped away from the real Lina, to Lana. He reached forward in his Xelloss way, and Lana flinched. He put his fingers on her chin, then abruptly pulled back, cradling his hand. Lina frowned.
"What's the matter, Xelloss?" she asked. Xelloss' mask was momentarily gone, as he cradled his hand in open confusion. Gourry scratched his head.
"It hurts you to touch Lana?" he asked. Xelloss looked up, noticed the stares, and regained his composure.
"No, Gourry." He said shortly. Lina raised an eyebrow. She glanced at Zel.
"What could be the big deal?" she asked him. He shrugged. She walked up to Lana, "Give me your hand." She ordered. With wide eyes, Lana stretched her hand out. Lina's eyes widened.
"White magic!" she shouted, very loudly, dropping the hand, "White magic?" she said, "But the shadow reflector was said to give,"
"The exact power of the original." Zel finished, "Not the exact kind of power." Lina frowned.
"So, that means, that my copy, has.." she trailed off.
"The exact amount of Lina's power, in white magic!" Xelloss cried, slamming his fist into one hand. He winced.
"But what about MY shadow twin, she had to have been given some power along with her good looks!" Nahga shouted. Xelloss glanced over to Nahga. Lina sweatdropped.
"Xelloss, this is-"
"We've met." Xelloss interrupted. Lina did a double take.
"Met? But-" Nahga laughed.
"OH-HO HO HO HO! You are that man who came after me! I remember you! The one who asked me if I knew Lina Inverse!" She smiled, then jerked her thumb at Xelloss, "I told him I didn't know where you were, then I left, he looked like too much of a fruitcake for me to bother with." She said. Lina nodded.
"That's true." She remarked. Xelloss facefaulted. Then he smiled again.
"Well, I have to be off for now, see you!" he said brightly. Lina looked to the space where he used to be.
"Hey! Come back, help me!" she screamed. But he was already gone, into the astral plane. As he blasted the rest of the way to his mistress' mansion, he thought.
*That much white magic, must mean protection from a Dragon Lord, but it's too much for that. And, she's the opposite of Lina, so that means.* he paused, confused. He hovered in the astral plane for a moment.
"That means, that Shadow Lina must be protected by the same amount of power, but with white magic. But there are no White magic Lords above Cepheid! And Both the monster and dragon races stem from LON. So that means." His eyes lit up, "That means that both of them are protected by LON! But how could it be white magic, rather than the mother of all things' special brand of black?" Xelloss decided that this was something better pondered in company, and went back to his mistress' mansion, with more news of the golden knight.
"Well, what about my twin?" Nahga shouted, "I bet she has hidden power as well!" Nahga finished, crossing her arms like a spoiled child.
"Well, it all depends, onee-sama. What kind of magic do you specialize in?" Amelia asked. Nahga's face went blank.
"Well, I kind of don't. But, I can make golems!" she said. Lina rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, maybe her shadow double can make them decently." She said. They all turned to Gracia.
"Do you know what your magical abilities are?" Amelia asked her sweetly. Gracia looked back at them with wide eyes.
"Yes." She said softly. She closed her eyes in concentration, "Creatures of another plane, of another force, of another frame, come forward to our world, Power of another place, Light of another life, allow this transference. Divine Summon!" She shouted. A bright portal opened, and something stepped out. It blinked at the creatures in front of it, and smiled.
"Ohayo!" it said sweetly. Lina stared.
"It's a fairy!" Zel shouted. Lina frowned at him.
"Well, obviously!" she shouted. The fairy was little longer than Lina's face, and slender. Its wings were large and dragon-fly like. Its hair was long and silver, and it was wearing a long twisting dress. It flew over to Gracia, and smiled at her.
"You summoned me to this world?" she asked. Gracia nodded. The fairy smiled, "Arigatou!" it said, jumping into flight, and disappearing from view. Lina blinked at where it had been, and then turned to stare at Gracia. She blushed.
"Please, minna, don't look at me." she said shyly. Lina turned to Zel.
"You ever heard that spell before?" she asked. Zel shook his head.
"No, I think maybe she made it up herself." He said. Amelia frowned.
"How is summoning the exact opposite of golem-making?" she asked. Lina pondered that one for a moment.
"Well, it seems like maybe she can summon kawaii things like fairies, and such, and golems are anything but kawaii, especially when Nahga makes them, so, bringing things to life is very different from summoning them. I can see how that would be the exact opposite." Lina finished. Zel shrugged.
"Well, whatever this means, I think we've made a breakthrough today." He said, "We know the magic of the copies, and we know how to get rid of Xelloss!" he said. Lina looked at him.
"How's that?" she asked.
"Make him touch your clone." Zel stated. Lina growled.
"Now look here!" she said. Zel smiled. Gracia and Lana looked at each other, and smiled. If only for a while, they were accepted into this odd group.
Gourry, Silphiel, Zel, and to some extent Amelia, stayed far far away from Lina as they traveled that next day. Amelia, only to some extent, because she was still unconscious and being carried by Gourry, and if she were awake, doubtless she would attempt to cheer Lina up. Which is why they were glad she was still asleep. Gourry frowned at Zel.
"So, why's Lina so upset?" he asked. Zel sighed.
"Wouldn't you be upset if you saw yourself in bed with another guy?" he asked. Gourry pondered that for a moment, nodded, shrugged, and kept walking, Amelia in his arms. Silphiel smiled sweetly. Suddenly, a noise from behind them alerted them. Lina growled.
"LOOK, If there's anyone out there, I'm in a REALLY bad mood, so don't come any closer!" she shouted. The sound got closer, "I'm warning you!" she shouted. The sound came closer still, "Oh, that's it, FIRE-BALL!" she shouted, and the reddish fireball blazed through the trees, clearing the way to reveal. Xelloss? Zel growled.
"YOU!" he shouted. Xelloss smiled, and floated by them, hovering near the tops of the trees.
"Why, yes, It is me! How did you ever guess, Zelgadis?" he said smugly. Zel stared at him suspiciously.
"Xelloss, what do you want?" Lina asked. Xelloss shrugged.
"Oh, do I have to want something? What if I just wanted to see how my favorite sorceress and her motley crew were doing?" he said innocently. Lina rolled her eyes.
"Please, Xelloss." She said. Silphiel frowned.
"Miss Lina," she said, "who is this Mazoku? Do you know him, are you in league with him?" Lina sighed.
"Don't worry, Silphiel, he's just a friend of ours, I suppose." She said.
"He was there, when Phibrizzo was killed, remember?" Zel said. Silphiel thought, then nodded. Gourry set Amelia down on the ground.
"So, Xelloss, what are you up to?" he asked companionably, sitting cross-legged on a stone. Everyone sweatdropped. Suddenly, Amelia sat up.
"What is going on?" she murmured. Her eyes widened, "Miss Lina! I had the strangest dream!" she shouted.
"Look, Amelia, I really don't want to have to explain that, here." She said. Amelia looked around.
"You mean it wasn't a dream? Oh, hello, Xelloss-san." She said to Xelloss, who waved. Then she turned back to him, "Xelloss-san?" she asked, jerking a finger towards him. The rest nodded. Just then,
"At last I have caught up with you, Lina, you won't escape me now!" Nahga called. Behind her was Lana and Gracia. Lina smacked her forehead and growled.
"Great, just great, now we have to pull the rest of them. I knew we shouldn't have stopped, they've caught up to us!" she shouted. She whirled to face Xelloss, who was, needless to say, a little confused. Though most of the time he knew more than they did, he was clueless about the appearance of these twins. Of course, being Xelloss, you couldn't see all this on his face. He was cool, calm, and collected. He smiled.
"Uh!" he said, brightly. Lina growled.
"I'm assuming you know what's going on Xelloss, and I'm even thinking that maybe you facilitated all this.." she said. Xelloss smiled.
"That's a secret, but I know I didn't set this one up." He said, shrugging. It was no secret to Xelloss that these twins were the exact opposite of the originals. He smiled, sincerely this time.
"Ah, The shadow reflector." He said under his breath. He studied the twins. He warped away from the real Lina, to Lana. He reached forward in his Xelloss way, and Lana flinched. He put his fingers on her chin, then abruptly pulled back, cradling his hand. Lina frowned.
"What's the matter, Xelloss?" she asked. Xelloss' mask was momentarily gone, as he cradled his hand in open confusion. Gourry scratched his head.
"It hurts you to touch Lana?" he asked. Xelloss looked up, noticed the stares, and regained his composure.
"No, Gourry." He said shortly. Lina raised an eyebrow. She glanced at Zel.
"What could be the big deal?" she asked him. He shrugged. She walked up to Lana, "Give me your hand." She ordered. With wide eyes, Lana stretched her hand out. Lina's eyes widened.
"White magic!" she shouted, very loudly, dropping the hand, "White magic?" she said, "But the shadow reflector was said to give,"
"The exact power of the original." Zel finished, "Not the exact kind of power." Lina frowned.
"So, that means, that my copy, has.." she trailed off.
"The exact amount of Lina's power, in white magic!" Xelloss cried, slamming his fist into one hand. He winced.
"But what about MY shadow twin, she had to have been given some power along with her good looks!" Nahga shouted. Xelloss glanced over to Nahga. Lina sweatdropped.
"Xelloss, this is-"
"We've met." Xelloss interrupted. Lina did a double take.
"Met? But-" Nahga laughed.
"OH-HO HO HO HO! You are that man who came after me! I remember you! The one who asked me if I knew Lina Inverse!" She smiled, then jerked her thumb at Xelloss, "I told him I didn't know where you were, then I left, he looked like too much of a fruitcake for me to bother with." She said. Lina nodded.
"That's true." She remarked. Xelloss facefaulted. Then he smiled again.
"Well, I have to be off for now, see you!" he said brightly. Lina looked to the space where he used to be.
"Hey! Come back, help me!" she screamed. But he was already gone, into the astral plane. As he blasted the rest of the way to his mistress' mansion, he thought.
*That much white magic, must mean protection from a Dragon Lord, but it's too much for that. And, she's the opposite of Lina, so that means.* he paused, confused. He hovered in the astral plane for a moment.
"That means, that Shadow Lina must be protected by the same amount of power, but with white magic. But there are no White magic Lords above Cepheid! And Both the monster and dragon races stem from LON. So that means." His eyes lit up, "That means that both of them are protected by LON! But how could it be white magic, rather than the mother of all things' special brand of black?" Xelloss decided that this was something better pondered in company, and went back to his mistress' mansion, with more news of the golden knight.
"Well, what about my twin?" Nahga shouted, "I bet she has hidden power as well!" Nahga finished, crossing her arms like a spoiled child.
"Well, it all depends, onee-sama. What kind of magic do you specialize in?" Amelia asked. Nahga's face went blank.
"Well, I kind of don't. But, I can make golems!" she said. Lina rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, maybe her shadow double can make them decently." She said. They all turned to Gracia.
"Do you know what your magical abilities are?" Amelia asked her sweetly. Gracia looked back at them with wide eyes.
"Yes." She said softly. She closed her eyes in concentration, "Creatures of another plane, of another force, of another frame, come forward to our world, Power of another place, Light of another life, allow this transference. Divine Summon!" She shouted. A bright portal opened, and something stepped out. It blinked at the creatures in front of it, and smiled.
"Ohayo!" it said sweetly. Lina stared.
"It's a fairy!" Zel shouted. Lina frowned at him.
"Well, obviously!" she shouted. The fairy was little longer than Lina's face, and slender. Its wings were large and dragon-fly like. Its hair was long and silver, and it was wearing a long twisting dress. It flew over to Gracia, and smiled at her.
"You summoned me to this world?" she asked. Gracia nodded. The fairy smiled, "Arigatou!" it said, jumping into flight, and disappearing from view. Lina blinked at where it had been, and then turned to stare at Gracia. She blushed.
"Please, minna, don't look at me." she said shyly. Lina turned to Zel.
"You ever heard that spell before?" she asked. Zel shook his head.
"No, I think maybe she made it up herself." He said. Amelia frowned.
"How is summoning the exact opposite of golem-making?" she asked. Lina pondered that one for a moment.
"Well, it seems like maybe she can summon kawaii things like fairies, and such, and golems are anything but kawaii, especially when Nahga makes them, so, bringing things to life is very different from summoning them. I can see how that would be the exact opposite." Lina finished. Zel shrugged.
"Well, whatever this means, I think we've made a breakthrough today." He said, "We know the magic of the copies, and we know how to get rid of Xelloss!" he said. Lina looked at him.
"How's that?" she asked.
"Make him touch your clone." Zel stated. Lina growled.
"Now look here!" she said. Zel smiled. Gracia and Lana looked at each other, and smiled. If only for a while, they were accepted into this odd group.
