(Well, this use to be part of another story, but since no one is reading
it, I'm attaching it on to the end of my last one (which people did read).
Please review when you're done reading. Reviews help make the writing
process go faster.)
Xaina's bell rang as she skipped down to the stream. Lina had sent her to get a little water for drinking. They were right on the other side of the bushes, sitting around the fire and eying the new woman. The white bird had followed her and sat patiently beside the winged child. Destiny had joined them only that afternoon, and no one trusted her. The girl couldn't blame them; she didn't like Destiny either. The woman had something dark around her. It wasn't quite evil, but something about it didn't feel right. It was like she didn't have a soul or something.
"Creepy lady," she mumbled to herself, dunking the bucket in to the water. ~Blurp~ Xaina's feline ears perked up. What was that noise? She was sure she had heard something. After several moments of nothing, she shrugged and pulled the heavy bucket out. ~Blurp~ There it was again! She set down her bucket and glared at the darkness around her. Now, where is it, she wondered. ~Blurp blurp~ Twice! It was mocking her, she was sure! How dare it mock her! She was the apprentice of the great Xellos! No one it their right mind mocked her! ~Blurp~ Try as she may, she couldn't see anything. Her tail puffed up. The bird rustled its feathers, not liking this either.
"You hear it too, don't you?" she asked the bird. It didn't respond. Its black eyes watched the water. ~Blurp blurp~ "This had better not be a joke," she growled low.
"Who are you talking to?" Xaina's heart nearly leapt out her throat. She spun around to see Filia standing there watching her.
"Don't do that!" she snapped. "Between you and Xellos, I'm gonna die of fright!"
"I didn't mean to startle you," the ex-priestess stated. "I was just wondering where you were. You were taking a long time to just get some water."
"I heard something," the girl replied, brushing some of her raven hair back behind her ears. She glanced back, her tail waving nervously, though the bell made no sound.
"A noise?" She reached down and scooped the child up in her arms, blue eyes trying to penetrate the darkness. "What kind of noise."
"A blerp kinda noise. It was weird, an' I think it was making fun of me!" Filia glared at the night. She grabbed the bucket with her free hand and slowly started backing away from the stream. "We should get back to the others." Xaina nodded in agreement. The white bird followed them. ~Blurp blurp blurp~
~*~*~
Lina kept one eye on Destiny and her birds. The strange pale woman was pouring some birdseed in a bowl, setting it on the ground. The second her hand let go of the bowl, three birds pounced on it. The Prince pecked at the gold bird, trying to drive it away from the food. This seemed to anger the black bird who attack the blue one. Prince cawed and flapped at the black one, who did the same back. While the two fought, the gold one took advantage of the situation and gobbled up some of the seed in peace. It was soon joined by the white bird as Filia came back carrying Xaina and the bucket full of water. Needless to say, the birds' eating habits looked a bit Lina and Gourry's.
After a few minutes of watching the birds fight and devour the food, the group went back to their normal evening activities. Lina, Amelia, and Filia were busy making food while Gourry and Zelgadiss kept the fire going and watched for night time invaders. Xellos sat in a tree watching with Xaina resting against his chest. The girl was beginning to nod of to sleep and he kept having to poke her awake. The monster was still trying to teach her she didn't really require sleep anymore, if she'd just learn to feed on negative emotions.
Destiny was doing something odd, however. No one was quite sure what she was doing. She had gotten up and started walking around the camp, dragging her staff behind her. After she had made a complete circle around the camp, she went around it again, carefully sprinkling a white powder in the grove her staff had made in the dirt. No one said anything to interrupt her. She stepped in to the middle of the circle and uttered a few words. A soft, blue light spilled out from her staff and flowed out to the edges of the circle she had made. It climbed up and made a faint blue bubble around them before disappearing from sight. Then, she took her former place and sat crossed legged with her eyes closed, the staff across her lap.
"What was that?" Lina inquired but received no response. Curious, Xellos, who had been outside of the bubble, floated down and touched where the top would have been. A faint light surrounded his hand but nothing else happened. Completely baffled, he dropped down inside and scratched his head. Filia reached out and poked where the walls had been as well. A faint light surround her hand. She twiddled her fingers, the light covering every movement. Zelgadiss tried it as well, but nothing happened for him. "So, uh...anyone got any ideas what it is?"
"A priest spell," the dragon supplied. "It must react to anyone who has priestly magic."
"It's a protection spell," the rigid woman spoke. Everyone glanced over at her. "It keeps out any who wish harm to come to any of the people or land inside. It is a spell that can only be used by high level priests. It will keep danger out."
Lina sighed and shrugged. "It works, I guess."
"No need for us to keep watch then," Gourry smiled. He was looking forward to a good nights sleep.
Xaina moaned as Xellos poked her again. Filia glared at him and snatched the child from his grasp. "Let her sleep," the dragon scolded.
Xellos grabbed her back. "She's not suppose to sleep," he retorted.
"She's a little girl and she's tired! She needs sleep!" Filia snapped, snagging the child once more.
Xellos puffed slightly before seizing the girl again. "And what would a silly little golden dragon know about what a monster needs?"
Filia took Xaina again. (Surprisingly, the little monster hadn't been hurt by all of this harsh grabbing.) "She is half human and obviously favors that side. She is sweet and innocent and she needs sleep!" she hissed.
"She is my student, and I think I know what's best for her," he replied in a forced calm voice.
Xaina moaned again and snapped her fingers, teleporting. She reappeared lying in Lina's arms. She snuggled against the red head, trying to get some sleep. Lina smiled and cuddled the child. Xellos and Filiastared in shock and disappointment. Lina glared at them, daring each of them to just try and take the girl. Feeling safe at last, the girl yawned and settled in to sleep.
As the night progressed, Lina set Xaina down among some blankets near the fire for warmth. She smiled as she tucked the child in to sleep, feeling tired herself, even though they hadn't even eaten. When dinner finally was ready, everyone, except Xellos and Destiny, were too tired to even fight over their meal. No one had the heart to wake the child for food. She would be hungry later, but for the moment all she needed was sleep. They turned in earlier then usual, Filia agreeing to share her bed roll with the girl for the night. When everyone had slipped off in to sleep, only Destiny and Xellos remained. The cold woman seemed to be meditating.
"Don't require sleep either, I see," the purple haired monster commented. Destiny didn't respond. "I know you're not human." Still, she made no response. He couldn't read any emotions off of her so he wasn't ever sure she was awake, let alone listening. "Humans give off emotions, even when they sleep. Your birds have more emotions coming off of them then you do." He gestured to the four birds who had made themselves comfortable among the group of sleeping people. Prince slept by Amelia on the other side of the fire from the black bird sleeping on top of Lina and Gourry. The white and gold birds where huddled near Xaina and Filia. "Why, even monsters have emotions coming off of them."
"Is there a point to your ramblings?" Destiny demanded. Her body didn't move as she spoke. She remained as still as a stone.
"What are you?"
"That is information I am not at liberty to give you."
"Yes, you've said that before. There certainly is a lot of things you can't tell us. Why?"
"That's a secret," she mocked. Xellos frowned. "I am no more at liberty to tell you my purpose then you are to give me yours. It is the order of things. All shall reveal itself in time, no doubt."
'Time is the one thing we don't have,' Xellos thought. 'But you already know that, don't you?' He looked her up and down. Her power was strong, perhaps even grater then his. He knew better then to challenge her to a fight...for now. "Very well. Keep your secrets. But don't forget I'm watching you..."
"I would expect no less from you, Xellos." An almost vicious smile curved up on her lips. It sent a shiver down his spine. He could read nothing off of her. The white bird flustered its feathers slightly, a feeling a slight fear radiating off of it, before fading off to passive indifference.
*****
A hungry, growling tummy was what pulled the little winged neko monster out of her sleep. She squirmed out of Filia's grasp and crawled out around the camp. The two birds who had been sleeping right by her yawned and stretched their wings. She reached down (which was not far for one as small as her) and gave both birds a soft pat. Destiny was sitting near by with her legs crossed and her hands on her knees. The staff was laid across her lap. Curiosity, being stronger then her fear, pulled her forward and she reached out to grab the plain yet hauntingly beautiful staff...
"I would hate to have to harm you, Miss Xaina," Destiny spoke in her frozen tone, "But if you touch that staff, I will be forced to." Xaina jumped back, hands quivering. "Go get water."
Deciding it was best to obey, she grabbed the bucket. She backed out of the small clearing, not once turning her back on the black robed woman. When she was out of sight, Xaina dashed over to the water. The white and gold birds followed her. She reached the water and stopped when she saw something bubbling up in the middle of it. ~Blurp blurp blurp~ Realization dawned on her as she watched the bubbles and listened to the sound they made as they popped on the surface. OIt must have been the bubbles,' she mentally reasoned. Setting the bucket down, she floated out over the water to were the bubbles were coming up from. The early morning light didn't let her see anything in the water. Something dark and brown started floating up to the surface of the water and she leaned in closer for a better look. It surfaced without much sound. The little girl reached down and poked the small brown thing that was attached to something else much bigger still submerged in the water. It was squishy and slimy. It moved! The brown thing moved back to reveal two large black eyes. They stared up at her. She stared back with great interest. It was a being of some sort. She could even feel emotions coming off of it, though she still couldn't tell the difference of one emotion form another. Suddenly, it leaped out of the water. Xaina squealed and dashed back to the banks. The creature landed on a rock in the stream and stared at her, smiling. He had two bulging eyes that sat on the top of his head and a large mouth. He sat back on it's four legs. His two front legs were short while his back ones were long, muscled, and webbed, made for swimming. His brown splotched skin was wet and oozed with slime. Xaina blinked as she watched it.
(Ten points to anyone who can guess what it is!)
Xaina's bell rang as she skipped down to the stream. Lina had sent her to get a little water for drinking. They were right on the other side of the bushes, sitting around the fire and eying the new woman. The white bird had followed her and sat patiently beside the winged child. Destiny had joined them only that afternoon, and no one trusted her. The girl couldn't blame them; she didn't like Destiny either. The woman had something dark around her. It wasn't quite evil, but something about it didn't feel right. It was like she didn't have a soul or something.
"Creepy lady," she mumbled to herself, dunking the bucket in to the water. ~Blurp~ Xaina's feline ears perked up. What was that noise? She was sure she had heard something. After several moments of nothing, she shrugged and pulled the heavy bucket out. ~Blurp~ There it was again! She set down her bucket and glared at the darkness around her. Now, where is it, she wondered. ~Blurp blurp~ Twice! It was mocking her, she was sure! How dare it mock her! She was the apprentice of the great Xellos! No one it their right mind mocked her! ~Blurp~ Try as she may, she couldn't see anything. Her tail puffed up. The bird rustled its feathers, not liking this either.
"You hear it too, don't you?" she asked the bird. It didn't respond. Its black eyes watched the water. ~Blurp blurp~ "This had better not be a joke," she growled low.
"Who are you talking to?" Xaina's heart nearly leapt out her throat. She spun around to see Filia standing there watching her.
"Don't do that!" she snapped. "Between you and Xellos, I'm gonna die of fright!"
"I didn't mean to startle you," the ex-priestess stated. "I was just wondering where you were. You were taking a long time to just get some water."
"I heard something," the girl replied, brushing some of her raven hair back behind her ears. She glanced back, her tail waving nervously, though the bell made no sound.
"A noise?" She reached down and scooped the child up in her arms, blue eyes trying to penetrate the darkness. "What kind of noise."
"A blerp kinda noise. It was weird, an' I think it was making fun of me!" Filia glared at the night. She grabbed the bucket with her free hand and slowly started backing away from the stream. "We should get back to the others." Xaina nodded in agreement. The white bird followed them. ~Blurp blurp blurp~
~*~*~
Lina kept one eye on Destiny and her birds. The strange pale woman was pouring some birdseed in a bowl, setting it on the ground. The second her hand let go of the bowl, three birds pounced on it. The Prince pecked at the gold bird, trying to drive it away from the food. This seemed to anger the black bird who attack the blue one. Prince cawed and flapped at the black one, who did the same back. While the two fought, the gold one took advantage of the situation and gobbled up some of the seed in peace. It was soon joined by the white bird as Filia came back carrying Xaina and the bucket full of water. Needless to say, the birds' eating habits looked a bit Lina and Gourry's.
After a few minutes of watching the birds fight and devour the food, the group went back to their normal evening activities. Lina, Amelia, and Filia were busy making food while Gourry and Zelgadiss kept the fire going and watched for night time invaders. Xellos sat in a tree watching with Xaina resting against his chest. The girl was beginning to nod of to sleep and he kept having to poke her awake. The monster was still trying to teach her she didn't really require sleep anymore, if she'd just learn to feed on negative emotions.
Destiny was doing something odd, however. No one was quite sure what she was doing. She had gotten up and started walking around the camp, dragging her staff behind her. After she had made a complete circle around the camp, she went around it again, carefully sprinkling a white powder in the grove her staff had made in the dirt. No one said anything to interrupt her. She stepped in to the middle of the circle and uttered a few words. A soft, blue light spilled out from her staff and flowed out to the edges of the circle she had made. It climbed up and made a faint blue bubble around them before disappearing from sight. Then, she took her former place and sat crossed legged with her eyes closed, the staff across her lap.
"What was that?" Lina inquired but received no response. Curious, Xellos, who had been outside of the bubble, floated down and touched where the top would have been. A faint light surrounded his hand but nothing else happened. Completely baffled, he dropped down inside and scratched his head. Filia reached out and poked where the walls had been as well. A faint light surround her hand. She twiddled her fingers, the light covering every movement. Zelgadiss tried it as well, but nothing happened for him. "So, uh...anyone got any ideas what it is?"
"A priest spell," the dragon supplied. "It must react to anyone who has priestly magic."
"It's a protection spell," the rigid woman spoke. Everyone glanced over at her. "It keeps out any who wish harm to come to any of the people or land inside. It is a spell that can only be used by high level priests. It will keep danger out."
Lina sighed and shrugged. "It works, I guess."
"No need for us to keep watch then," Gourry smiled. He was looking forward to a good nights sleep.
Xaina moaned as Xellos poked her again. Filia glared at him and snatched the child from his grasp. "Let her sleep," the dragon scolded.
Xellos grabbed her back. "She's not suppose to sleep," he retorted.
"She's a little girl and she's tired! She needs sleep!" Filia snapped, snagging the child once more.
Xellos puffed slightly before seizing the girl again. "And what would a silly little golden dragon know about what a monster needs?"
Filia took Xaina again. (Surprisingly, the little monster hadn't been hurt by all of this harsh grabbing.) "She is half human and obviously favors that side. She is sweet and innocent and she needs sleep!" she hissed.
"She is my student, and I think I know what's best for her," he replied in a forced calm voice.
Xaina moaned again and snapped her fingers, teleporting. She reappeared lying in Lina's arms. She snuggled against the red head, trying to get some sleep. Lina smiled and cuddled the child. Xellos and Filiastared in shock and disappointment. Lina glared at them, daring each of them to just try and take the girl. Feeling safe at last, the girl yawned and settled in to sleep.
As the night progressed, Lina set Xaina down among some blankets near the fire for warmth. She smiled as she tucked the child in to sleep, feeling tired herself, even though they hadn't even eaten. When dinner finally was ready, everyone, except Xellos and Destiny, were too tired to even fight over their meal. No one had the heart to wake the child for food. She would be hungry later, but for the moment all she needed was sleep. They turned in earlier then usual, Filia agreeing to share her bed roll with the girl for the night. When everyone had slipped off in to sleep, only Destiny and Xellos remained. The cold woman seemed to be meditating.
"Don't require sleep either, I see," the purple haired monster commented. Destiny didn't respond. "I know you're not human." Still, she made no response. He couldn't read any emotions off of her so he wasn't ever sure she was awake, let alone listening. "Humans give off emotions, even when they sleep. Your birds have more emotions coming off of them then you do." He gestured to the four birds who had made themselves comfortable among the group of sleeping people. Prince slept by Amelia on the other side of the fire from the black bird sleeping on top of Lina and Gourry. The white and gold birds where huddled near Xaina and Filia. "Why, even monsters have emotions coming off of them."
"Is there a point to your ramblings?" Destiny demanded. Her body didn't move as she spoke. She remained as still as a stone.
"What are you?"
"That is information I am not at liberty to give you."
"Yes, you've said that before. There certainly is a lot of things you can't tell us. Why?"
"That's a secret," she mocked. Xellos frowned. "I am no more at liberty to tell you my purpose then you are to give me yours. It is the order of things. All shall reveal itself in time, no doubt."
'Time is the one thing we don't have,' Xellos thought. 'But you already know that, don't you?' He looked her up and down. Her power was strong, perhaps even grater then his. He knew better then to challenge her to a fight...for now. "Very well. Keep your secrets. But don't forget I'm watching you..."
"I would expect no less from you, Xellos." An almost vicious smile curved up on her lips. It sent a shiver down his spine. He could read nothing off of her. The white bird flustered its feathers slightly, a feeling a slight fear radiating off of it, before fading off to passive indifference.
*****
A hungry, growling tummy was what pulled the little winged neko monster out of her sleep. She squirmed out of Filia's grasp and crawled out around the camp. The two birds who had been sleeping right by her yawned and stretched their wings. She reached down (which was not far for one as small as her) and gave both birds a soft pat. Destiny was sitting near by with her legs crossed and her hands on her knees. The staff was laid across her lap. Curiosity, being stronger then her fear, pulled her forward and she reached out to grab the plain yet hauntingly beautiful staff...
"I would hate to have to harm you, Miss Xaina," Destiny spoke in her frozen tone, "But if you touch that staff, I will be forced to." Xaina jumped back, hands quivering. "Go get water."
Deciding it was best to obey, she grabbed the bucket. She backed out of the small clearing, not once turning her back on the black robed woman. When she was out of sight, Xaina dashed over to the water. The white and gold birds followed her. She reached the water and stopped when she saw something bubbling up in the middle of it. ~Blurp blurp blurp~ Realization dawned on her as she watched the bubbles and listened to the sound they made as they popped on the surface. OIt must have been the bubbles,' she mentally reasoned. Setting the bucket down, she floated out over the water to were the bubbles were coming up from. The early morning light didn't let her see anything in the water. Something dark and brown started floating up to the surface of the water and she leaned in closer for a better look. It surfaced without much sound. The little girl reached down and poked the small brown thing that was attached to something else much bigger still submerged in the water. It was squishy and slimy. It moved! The brown thing moved back to reveal two large black eyes. They stared up at her. She stared back with great interest. It was a being of some sort. She could even feel emotions coming off of it, though she still couldn't tell the difference of one emotion form another. Suddenly, it leaped out of the water. Xaina squealed and dashed back to the banks. The creature landed on a rock in the stream and stared at her, smiling. He had two bulging eyes that sat on the top of his head and a large mouth. He sat back on it's four legs. His two front legs were short while his back ones were long, muscled, and webbed, made for swimming. His brown splotched skin was wet and oozed with slime. Xaina blinked as she watched it.
(Ten points to anyone who can guess what it is!)