"But daddy," Len whined, latched onto his father's arm. "You promised you'd continue the story."
"Yes daddy, you promised." Lacy added, latched onto Xelloss' leg, as the Annoying 'O Meter went up another notch.
"But daddy is busy tonight;" Xelloss said, then bend over and smiled at his two children. "Daddy is on official Mazoku business, why don't you ask mommy to tell you a story."
"Caaan't," the kids replied. "Mommy is on official Bandit hunting business, she said that since you're home, she's going out and enjoy herself."
Xelloss sweatdropped at his wife's idea of 'fun', but he should have know he had it coming. Really, what kind of father would leave his wife and kids alone while he disappeared for the last six years of their lives, only occasionally dropping by to visit. Xelloss made a point to be home more often, he already missed the twins first step, and their first word, there's no way he's going to miss their first destruction of a building, preferably with people still inside.
"Please, pretty please!! We'll be good forever!" The twins pleaded, making their father winced inwardly.
:If the little darlings asked so nicely Xelloss, maybe you should continue with their bedtime story. The report on the migration of hummingbirds can wait: A silky voice mind spoke to Xelloss.
:Yes Master, thank you Master: Xelloss replied, stunned.
:Just don't forget to bring my grandchildren to the island so I can meet them!: The voice replied perkily, Xelloss could just see the little heart attached to the end of that sentence.
:Yes Master: Xelloss said, trying not to let any of his current confusion of his Master's new orders leak through. As if he can keep anything from his Master, she knows all and sees all, and what she doesn't know, she can make up and no one would challenge her.
"All right children," Xelloss sighed. "I'll continue the story tonight."
"Yeah!!" The kids cheered, and they rushed through their preparation for bed, two little red hair children would get cavities if they keep that up. After they settled comfortably in their respective beds with their favourite toy in their arms, Xelloss continued with where he left off last night; where he just meet their mother.
"No!" Len said.
"Pardon?"
"No! You have to begin from where you first meet the Guardians and mom was no where to be seen, not after you meet mom. You didn't tell us anything last night, so you have to make up for it." Len demanded from their father.
"Fine, fine, fine. I'll start from where I meet the Guardians at the fork of a road in the countryside. The weather looks perfect, if not a little nippy, farmers were rushing to bring in their harvest before the rain season and I can hear a pair of voices arguing at the top of their lungs a mile away. Not that anyone else can hear those two, or what they were yelling about...."
"Yes!"
"No!"
"Yes!"
"No!"
"Yes times a million!"
"No times infinity plus one!"
"Cheater!"
"Did not!"
"Did too!"
"Excuse me."
"Did not!"
"Too!"
"Not!'
"Ahem."
"Too, too, too, too, too!"
"Not, not, not, not, not!"
"I said excuse me."
"You're such a liar Ruby-chan!"
"No! You are Flame-kun!"
"You're!"
"No, you're!"
"You're!"
"You're!"
"WILL YOU TWO SHUT UP!"
Silence.
"Thank you, now-"
"What do you want Mazoku," the Dragon Guardian demanded, fluttering right up to Xelloss' face.
"Nothing," Xelloss replied. "I was just wondering where your human," Xelloss pointed at Ruby, a chibi human with red hair and gold wings. "And your dragon," he pointed at Flame, the chibi gold dragon, "are. Cause I don't see them anywhere, do you?"
The two swivelled their heads around accompanied by cute sound affects.
"Lina!"
"Lina-chan!" The two yelled into their immediate surrounding simultaneously.
After five minutes of yelling, looking behind trees and under rocks, the two finally came to the conclusion that Lina was missing, they turned their attention to the smiling Mazoku standing in the middle of the road.
"What have you done to Lina?" Ruby asked looking at Xelloss straight in the eye.
"Should have known a Mazoku is behind the disappearance of our Lina-chan." Flame added flying next to Ruby.
Really, that must be the first time those two has ever gotten along, or at least agreed on the same thing. If looks could kill, well... I'll probably still be alive right now since evil glares have no affect on Mazoku whatsoever. The evil eye is probably the least effective of all facial expressions, human or otherwise, against a Mazoku since we're creatures of negative energies, Amelia's- ouf!
Xelloss stopped his meaningless ramble on facial expressions and it's effect or lack of on a Mazoku, to see which twin hit him with a pillow. "What? I just thought you two should learn something while I'm telling the story, after all no knowledge was ever wasted." That little bit philosophy was lost to the two who just wanted their father to get on with the story.
He tried the 'disapproving parent face' on the two, but they only stared at him with their wide innocent eyes. Xelloss sighed to himself, he taught them too well it seems, but those two still have years to go before they even know a fraction of what he does.
The twins glared at their father, itchy fingers poised above their respective weapons of choice. Just what kind of kids sleep with weapons anyway? Lina was dead set against their children learning magic and the likes at such an early age. Her exacts words has been. "They're only children, let them have fun first, let them grow up and then we can talk about magic." But 'growing up' proved to be a little difficult when almost every fanatics, Demon Hunters, Ryuzoku and a few Mazoku want the twins dead. It was getting rather tedious, those would be murder would set up traps, get found out, then get seriously dead.
Thwap. As another pillow connected with Xelloss' head.
"Okay, okay. I'll continue with the story."
"Me?" Xelloss asked in an innocent voice that just oozes insincerity. "What could I possibly want with your Lina-chan?"
"I don't know." Flame said sarcastically. "Maybe because our Lina-chan is- ermf." Tiny hands clamped dragon jaws together to prevent a certain Dragon Guardian to leak important information to an untrustworthy Mazoku.
"Shhhh, you want that thing to know about our Lina-chan's secret?" Ruby asked the Dragon Guardian.
"Hummrfffummf!!!" Flame managed to say through the muzzle. "Heerrmmf... grrfff... ouffff... meee..."
"Huh? What did you say Flame-kun?" Ruby asked letting go of his jaws.
"I said, let go of me!" Flame yelled at Ruby, and before long the two was reduced to a pair of screaming children.
Xelloss rolled his eyes in disgust, and genially wished they aren't his mission's Guardians. He would throw himself in front of a love and justice speech by a member of that crazy royal family in Saillune first.
"Ahem," Xelloss interrupted the two. "I really hate to break up this little argument, but shouldn't you two go find your charge before she blows up the world."
The two stopped their argument midway. "Right," Ruby said, "Flame-kun, go find Lina-chan," she ordered her fellow Guardian.
"What?! Me?!" Flame spazzed. "Why should I have to do it? You do it cause you were with her since she was born."
"That's right," Ruby confirmed. "That also means I have seniority over you, so you have to do what I say."
"But- but- but-" Flame spluttered as he tried to think up a good excuse not to go look for Lina-chan by his lonesome. "Hey wait a minute!" He suddenly cried out and twirled himself around to face Xelloss. "How could someone like you know that our Lina-chan can blow up the world?"
Three things happened simultaneously after that little question. No, L-sama did not smite the stupid Dragon Guardian; though I still think... -an ominous silence filled the room- that was a very wise decision. Xelloss finished in a rush, and the room brightened considerably. Anyway, before we get too off track here.
Ruby smacked her on the forehead with her hand, making a loud audible sound; Flame froze on the spot as he realized what he let slipped and Xelloss' eyes popped opened in surprise. He seriously did not think that the world's fate is in the hands of... these two... Watching the two as Ruby tried very hard to strangle Flame and beating him within an inch of his life at the same time.
By that time however, Xelloss was rather tired of their little acts, in the fifteen minutes since they met, those two has done nothing but fight. He found his mission, well... his mission's Guardians and they'll just lead him to her; provided that they don't just float there and fight for the rest of eternity. Something he would take care of right- as soon as he could get a word in.
Thwap.
Whap, and downy feathers flew everywhere.
"Dadddddy..." A voice whined.
Wait a minute... that's not part of the story.
"What now you two?" Xelloss asked in a tired voice. "Don't you two want to listen to the story? I can always end it here."
"Dadddddy... Len hit me with a pillow." Lacy complained, her own pillow was missing.
"That's because you hit me first Lacy." Her twin shot back, in a poor attempt to push the blame back to his sister.
"No, you did."
"Dadddy... Lacy is lyyyying."
"Dadddy... tell Len to stop hitting me with his pillow."
"That's because she started it." Len addressed more to his sister then their father.
"Did not Len, and you're the one who's lying."
"Daddy..."
"Daddy..." The two whined in an increasingly annoying voice, the sort of voice that would make a mad dog run away with tail tucked between its legs, convinced of it impending doom.
"Daddy?" The twin asked in unison when they found their father has disappeared from where he was sitting a moment before.
"Look what you did Lacy." Len told his sister after the shock of their father's umm... 'disappearance' wore off.
Instead of replying, Lacy slipped out of bed and headed purposefully toward the door.
"Where're you going Lacy?" Len asked his sister, and hurriedly jumped out off bed to follow.
"Going to find daddy stupid." Then she disappeared into the shadows.