Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN SLAYERS. And I don't own this song. So there. ^_^
- JUST ANOTHER AU FIC -
Chapter 7: A Night To Remember
"I can't believe I'm doing this," Filia muttered to herself almost five hours later. She sat at the vanity of her room, getting ready for her date, however reluctantly. Sighing, she ran a brush through her long blond hair, regarding her reflection on the vanity mirror.
Music poured in from somewhere in the small and comfortable two-story brick house that served as their home. For someone his age her adopted teenage son Val had the mellowest tastes in music. Not that the concert he and his friends were attending tonight was anything but mellow, she noted to herself, bemused.
/So this is who I am
And this is all I know
And I must choose to live
For all that I can give
The spark that makes the power grow/
Val. At that thought, Filia had to smile. Taking in Val had been one of the best decisions she'd ever made in her life. At thirteen, he was already quite helpful around the house, fixing things that needed fixing, even cooking and cleaning house for them whenever she was too tired and worn out from work to do so. Indeed, he was growing up to be quite a fine young man. Filia's motherly heart felt a swell of pride.
She stared at her reflection in the mirror, blue eyes searching the identical pair of eyes staring back at her. She, a mother at twenty-five. She inwardly laughed inspite of herself. Not that she found anything exactly laughable about her current situation. No, she just... felt like it. Laughter, an impulse. A whimsical, childish thing to do. She was still young, after all.
/And I will stand for my dream if I can
Symbol of my faith in who I am
But you are my only.../
Young. She felt surprised she had to constantly remind herself that, had to tell herself she was more than Karyu's great-granddaughter, more than owner of Dragon Crest Industries, more than Val's mom. Yet the face looking back at her from the looking glass was in all respects alive and youthful, not weary and haggard and wanting as she felt like, most of the time. Who was she?
/And I must follow on the road that lies ahead
And I won't let my heart control my head
But you are my only.../
Xellos. She frowned, tying back one last knot of hair in place. She had done her hair up in an elegant braid, letting two delicate bangs curl on either side of her face. Why'd he have to come back, after all this time? All those years, when Filia almost believed she'd forgotten all about him, and about most of her life before Dragon Crest?
He and his family had left Saillune without so much as a goodbye, almost a decade ago. Of course Filia's family rejoiced, happy to be rid of their mortal enemy. And she was... well, she hadn't really been sure what she really felt back then.
Not that it mattered now.
/And we don't say goodbye
We don't say goodbye
And I know I've got to be/
Filia shook her head, standing up abruptly. "Why am I thinking all these thoughts all of a sudden?" She muttered half-irritably to herself. It was just a date, just a night out with that horrible annoying namago-- oh, whatever. "And if he tries anything beyond that, I'll bash his smiling purple head off to the next city," she nodded resolutely, clenching her fists for effect.
She turned an angle to survey herself. Yes, after this night, she'll make sure she wouldn't have anything to do with him again. Hello and goodbye. That won't be too hard, would it?
/Immortality
I make my journey through eternity
I keep the memory of you and me inside.../
For the occasion she had chosen to wear a simple emerald green dress that snugly outlined the upper part of her body, skirt tapering downwards all the way to her ankles. Looking at herself now, she realized her attire revealed a little too much, and considered changing into something more conservative.
/Fulfill your destiny
Is there within the child
My storm will never end
My fate is on the wind
The king of hearts, the joker's wild/
Her eyes narrowed as a thought occurred to her. Yes, this was all a trick! Probably a joke Xellos wished to play on her expense. Don't show up? Nah, that was too simple. Take her out for the evening and humiliate her in front of everybody? Probably. She wouldn't put it past him, the dirty Mazoku.
/'Coz I found a dream that must come true
Every ounce of me must see it through
But you are my only.../
And yet... She paused, barely letting her mind admit she -had- even had that thought. And yet, she found herself hoping it would be more than that.
/I'm sorry I don't have a role for love to play
Hand over my heart I'll find my way
I will make them give to me/
A knock on the door. "Mom?"
The sound of her son's voice jerked her back to reality. She really had to stop thinking these things! "Come in, Val." She strode forward and opened the door. Val stood at the doorway, aqua-green hair spiked up as usual. Consequently, she wasn't the only one with a night out. The only difference was how enthusiastic they were about it.
/Immortality
There is a vision and a fire in me
I keep the memory of you and me inside/
He let out a low whistle as he regarded the older woman. "You look great, mom," complimented Val, grinning. "It's about time you had fun."
"Fun isn't the word I'd use," Filia filled in, adjusting her gold earrings. "Are you sure you're going to be back before ten thirty?" she asked.
Val grinned sheepishly, burying his hands in either side of his trouser pockets. "Yes'm," he assured her. "Paul and I'll just stay until halfway through the concert, then bust out."
"Good."
"Of course it would be more fun if we get to stay until after midnight..."
"Val..."
"OK." The aqua-haired youth gave her a toothy smile. "'Bye, mom."
Filia smiled back. "See you, dear."
/And we don't say goodbye
(We don't say goodbye)
With all my love for you
And what else we may do
We don't say goodbye.../
Filia saw the young man off from the porch of their house, waving as the red Camaro jam-packed with teenagers drove off with her son. She was alone. Shrugging, she went back inside the house and turned the record player off. A final appraisal of her looks told her she was all set for the evening. She checked the wall clock in the living room. Almost seven...
Why did I agree to this in the first place? Filia thought to herself. I should know better than to accept that namagomi's offer!
"He'll probably show me up," she muttered to herself.
"Now why would I do that?" A smooth male voice inquired behind them. Filia whirled in surprise at Xellos, who seemingly appeared right behind her.
"EEEPP!!!!" WHACK-WHAP-WHAP-THWACK--
"Good evening too, Filia-san," Xellos greeted from a safe enough distance from where the blonde was wildly bashing the air with her handbag. Instead of the usual business suit, the purple-haired business lord had on a dark purple shirt and black slacks.
"Mazoku!!!" She shrieked. "Don't you know how to knock?!"
The purple-haired man grinned sheepishly at her, one hand behind his head. "Well, the door was open, so--"
"NamAGOMIIII!!!!!"
"Temper, temper, Filia-chan," he said, wagging a finger at her. "So early in the evening, violent already, ne?"
Nonplused, he reached one hand behind his back, retrieving a bouquet of roses and lilies. He offered it to her, smirking. Filia snatched it away, pacified somewhat, and glared at the Mazoku.
Xellos walked closer to her. "So shall we?" he asked, offering his arm.
"You don't have to sit so far away from me, you know," Xellos commented from his side of the car. Instead of the purple sports car Xellos had arrived in a stretch limousine, complete with a chauffeur, mini-tv, peanut bowls, everything. The Mazoku had style, Filia had to admit, albeit grudgingly. And he knew it.
"Let's just get this over with, alright?" Filia retorted through gritted teeth.
"Oh, Fi-chan, don't you want to enjoy yourself just a bit?" The purple-haired man grinned in amusement. "We *are* on a date, after all."
Filia stuck her nose in the air, crossing her arms haughtily. "I merely agreed to go out with you, but I didn't say I'd enjoy it."
"Do I really repulse you so much?" He asked. Xellos fought the urge to twitch. 'She is *so* impossible!' he sighed quietly to himself. It had taken him hard enough to even have her agree to their little date, and now she still regarded him frostily. 'And Zelas-sama told me to seduce her,' the Mazoku went on in his head. Orders were orders, he knew. He *will* succeed, one way or the other. Though it would be a lot easier if she wasn't so irritable...
Xellos sighed again, looking the blond woman over from a corner of his eye. She looked lovely, he had to admit to himself, the emerald green dress fitting her perfectly, her long golden hair accenting her features. He had to tell her that, to score a few.
Filia uncrossed her arms to regard him warily. His last question sounded a bit strained, and hurt. She dismissed the thought. Nah, this was Xellos, the most insensitive jerk to ever walk the face of the planet. No amount of insults could ever dampen his oh-so-genki facade.
Still, she couldn't help feeling kind of bad for the Mazoku. Filia sighed wearily to herself. 'He *is* being nice,' she reasoned. 'I might as well regard him with equal civility. Just for tonight, at least.'
"Xellos..." She began.
"Ah, forget it," the mask was back on, the purple-haired man's cheerful smile plastered on his face. He dismissed Filia's attempt at an apology with a wave of his hand. He glanced outside the window, then turned to her. "We're almost there," he informed her, shifting in his seat. "Relax, Filia-chan. I don't bite." He continued smiling at the blonde, bent on annoying her all throughout the ride.
The limo slid to a stop in front of the ornate dome-shaped building in Park Gardens, south of Saillune. Smartly-dressed attendants in uniform black coats lined with gold came over to the vehicle. A red carpet was rolled out from the wide stairway entrace. The chauffeur got out, and, bowing respectfully, opened the limo door. A blond lady in a stunning emerald number stepped out, followed by a somewhat extremely cheerful-looking purple-haired man in formal yet not-totally-formal bearing.
Filia took in the beauty of the place.
It was a well-lit cafe with glass walls overlooking an Oriental garden outside. The ceiling was high, dome-shaped, and made of glass as well, revealing the starry night sky. White marble pillars supported the building from all sides, carved angels and flowers outlining the pristine barriers for effect.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Xellos remarked beside her.
"It is," Filia agreed begrudgingly.
"Dining under the stars," the purple-haired Mazoku continued. "The place has that effect, you know. Makes for its great appeal." He paused, thoughtful. He turned to her suddenly, observing her intently. And smiled. "Filia," he finally said, "Are you aware just how enchanting you look tonight?"
She had to blush inspite of herself. Did he just pay her a compliment? "Uh... Thank you..." she replied, not meeting his eyes.
"I am truly flattered you made the effort to make yourself look convincingly lady-like for a night out with me," he went on.
"What?!!!" Dangerous glare.
"Ah, haha, I think it's about time we proceed to our table, ne?" Xellos placated cheerily. Inwardly he chuckled to himself. He just had to put that in. 'Oh, but she does look exquisitely more attractive when she's mad,' he thought, smiling as chi fires burst from her clear blue eyes. She turned away and stalked ahead of him, struggling to compose herself.
"Whatever," Filia retorted, as the waiters guided them to their table.
'He had to go and ruin that!' Filia fumed silently in her seat. She took a sip off the champagne glass on the elegantly set table, the light from the candles casting an assortment of starlight shapes on the cloth.
Xellos grinned from where he sat right across her. "So Filia, how have you been?"
"I'm alive," she replied sarcastically, warily eyeing the Mazoku. "Only got debts from all directions, a couple of loans to pay up in weeks, and the establishment my family had entrusted me to take care of is going bankrupt, but aside from that, I'm quite fine. Why do you ask?"
"Just wanted to know how you've gotten along all these years," Xellos replied, ignoring the bitterness in her voice. "It's been, what, nine years?" He took an elegant sip of his champagne, watching the blonde in amusement.
"Ten," she corrected.
"Oh? So you've kept count? Did you miss me that much, Filia?"
She controlled another blush, seriously considering dousing the remaining contents of her champagne on his obnoxious purple head. "Why would I ever miss you?"
"I don't know, Filia-chan. Why would you?" He asked innocently.
"Namagomi," she muttered under her breath.
Xellos studied her intently, wooden smile affixed on his face. "You do remember when we first met, don't you?"
At this, Filia had to narrow her eyes. "Do I ever," she replied, trying hard not to fume and give him the satisfaction, the annoying, obnoxious, dis-- no, temper, temper, must keep her temper... She took another sip of the wine to calm herself. There. "Oh, do I ever," she repeated, remembering...
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~
It was a sunny day. A seven-year-old Filia sat contentedly underneath the shade of her favorite oak tree at the back of the family mansion. She had brought her pink flowery china tea set with her and was sipping a cup of hot tea. A large book of fairy tales lay open in her lap, and the girl was engrossed in the story of a frog prince and a beautiful young princess. So involved the seven-year-old was in the tale, she lost track of thought and time until an amused and decidedly annoying voice startled her back to reality.
"Hello."
Filia looked up to see a boy about her age sitting on an oak branch quite a good eight feet above her. He had long purple hair and bangs that framed a grinning young face. A worn-looking brown bag was slung over his shoulder, slightly out-of-place in his generally dark attire of black pants and cream-colored sweater. How he got there the blond girl couldn't imagine, and she was just as curious as to who he was as to what he was doing here in her grandfather's backyard. "Who are you?" She asked him.
The boy simply smiled back, and wagged one finger beside his face. "Sorewa himitsu desu!"
Filia sweatdropped. "What? What's your name?"
The purple-haired boy ignored the question, opting instead to jump off the branch he was sitting on and landing, cat-like, on his feet beside her. "What are you reading?" he inquired, reaching for the book the blonde still held in her lap.
"Princess Elena and the Frog Prince," Filia told the boy, observing him turn the pages over curiously, not opening his eyes.
"The Frog Prince, eh?" the mysterious boy repeated. "This is about the frog who turns into a handsome prince, right?"
"Uh-huh," Filia nodded, blonde locks swaying slightly over her young face. "You've read it, too?"
"You could say that," the boy answered dismissively, still grinning that cat-like, close-eyed grin.
"Do you think it's true?" Filia asked him, genuinely interested. "That a frog could turn into a prince, I mean."
The purple-haired boy looked taken aback and confused for a moment at the question. Then smiled again, a mischievious but still strangely pleasant and innocent grin spreading on his face. "Well," he said, gazing intently at her, "We could find out." Filia watched, curious, as he reached for his brown bag and began rummaging through its contents. He came up not three seconds later with a frog in one outstretched hand. He held it out to her, smiling cheerfully. "Here."
Filia stared dubiously at the frog. It was a greenish mottled brown, slit eyes bulging on either side of a flat, wide head. It blinked in the sunlight, wide mouth bent in an eternal amphibian grimace. It was unbearably ugly. The blond girl's brows furrowed, and she looked back up at the mysterious boy, a question in her eyes. "Um--?"
"You're going to be the princess," he explained to her. "I'll hold the frog, while you bend over and kiss it."
The blonde girl wrinkled her nose. "But I'm not a princess," she replied. "How can I--"
The boy dismissed the question with a wave of his free hand. "As long as it's a pretty girl, it'll work fine," he assured her.
Filia blinked, flattered and perplexed at the same time. "You think I'm pretty?"
"Well, yes," he put in. "Now are you going to kiss the frog or not? My arm's getting tired."
"So when the frog turns into a handsome prince, does that mean I get to marry him?" The blonde inquired, hesitating.
"I would assume so," the purple-haired boy replied.
"Well, alright," Filia finally agreed, bending over to kiss the mottled brown frog. Her lips were but a few inches from it when the boy suddenly interrupted her.
"Wait."
"What now?" she asked, looking up.
He wagged a chiding finger at her. "You need to close your eyes first. It wouldn't work if you don't close your eyes." The boy grinned, opening one eye at her.
The blond girl blinked again. "Right." She did indeed read that the princess closed her eyes as she kissed the frog who turned into a prince. "Thanks," she said, as she resumed her position, leaning blindly forward until she could feel the cold, slightly slimy thing that would be the frog's face on her pink lips...
.......... .
"Haha! Tricked you!"
Filia opened her eyes just in time to see the frog hopping away, and the purple-haired boy who had held it to her running and climbing up and over the high wall of the garden. It took her mind two seconds to register just what exactly had occurred.
.............................
"Baka!!! Hentai!!!! Henatai no Baka!!!!!!!!" Filia screamed, red in the face. "Cockroach!!!! NAMAGOMI!!!!!!!"
At the last insult, the young trickster stopped in mid-climb, a twitch inadvertently making its way on his shoulders. He turned around to look at Filia. "N-namagomi?!?" he repeated, cheek twitching as he tried to keep his genki smile.
"NAMAGOMI!!! NAMAGOMI!!!! NAMAGOMI!!!!!!!!" Filia screamed, as she ran towards the wall, invariably throwing a variety of objects at the boy's twitching form.
The purple-haired boy was alert enough to successfully dodge the teapot, teacup, saucer, serving tray, coloring book, and crayons that went flying in his direction. When the heavy Britannica volume came whizzing past, however, he wasn't so lucky.
The book hit him square in the face, and the boy was thrown facefirst down in the other side of the wall, out of the family grounds. "Itaii..." he groaned, picking himself off the ground.
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~
Filia closed her eyes, the memory too painful and embarrassing to recall, and she took a healthy swig of her wine to calm herself. At the sound of her wails her parents, as well as Grandfather Saichuro came running to her in alarm. A 'crazy young thief' had broken into their house and had stolen her grandfather's prized teeth dentures. He had escaped through the second floor window and came down via the oak, where they found Filia flushed with anger and screaming raw garbage to someone on the other side of the ivy-covered wall.
At least that was what Xellos surmised she'd found out, he thought, smirking. Zelas had been quite proud of him when he came home with his prize.
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~
In another mansion, in another street, a boy with a brown bag slung over his shoulder cheerily faced an older blond woman.
"So what have you been up to today, Xellos?" his mother inquired as she lounged on her favorite armchair, tired after a day of dealing with other pesky business associates. "Tormenting some grumpy old coot, I presume?"
Grinning cheerily, the purple-haired boy took out a pair of gleaming and quite over-used dentures to the older woman. "Better, mistress," he replied. "I got into Old Saichuro's place today, and guess what I took as a parting gesture!"
Zelas beamed approvingly at her son, taking a whiff of her afternoon cigarette. "Good work."
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~
Xellos just continued smiling serenely at her, while mentally chuckling fondly at the memory. "I didn't think we'd meet like this after ten years. Things do change much, do they?"
"Oh, they do," the blonde retorted. "Though I have to say you haven't changed a bit, namagomi."
"As do you," he replied smoothly. "Still as violent and selfish as ever, I see."
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SELFISH?!?!" Filia stood up abruptly, nearly knocking over her seat as she glared down at her date. Then sweatdropped as she saw that not a few of the restaurant patrons and attendants' eyes were upon her. She kept a blush as she recovered, sitting back down to glare at Xellos properly. Said Mazoku was chuckling at her all through her little scene, causing Filia to blush even harder. "I don't know why I ever agreed to go out with you," she finally said through gritted teeth.
"My charming good looks and pleasing personality?" He suggested.
"You wish."
Xellos set down his wine glass contentedly, not flustered in the least by the death glares Filia kept directing at him. "More wine?" He offered, motioning for the waiter.
Author's Rants: Yes, I'm still alive. (You may all groan now.) My muse just went on vacation to Tahiti with Juuou-sama before she decided her tan was nice enough and returned. ^_^ So what do you think? My first songfic!!! I just thought it would be nice to put in a little theme song because, well, just for the heck of it... Eh, hehe. Oh yeah, please send your comments, suggestions, Valgaav, Filia and Xellos plushies to monicats2002@yahoo.com.
- JUST ANOTHER AU FIC -
Chapter 7: A Night To Remember
"I can't believe I'm doing this," Filia muttered to herself almost five hours later. She sat at the vanity of her room, getting ready for her date, however reluctantly. Sighing, she ran a brush through her long blond hair, regarding her reflection on the vanity mirror.
Music poured in from somewhere in the small and comfortable two-story brick house that served as their home. For someone his age her adopted teenage son Val had the mellowest tastes in music. Not that the concert he and his friends were attending tonight was anything but mellow, she noted to herself, bemused.
/So this is who I am
And this is all I know
And I must choose to live
For all that I can give
The spark that makes the power grow/
Val. At that thought, Filia had to smile. Taking in Val had been one of the best decisions she'd ever made in her life. At thirteen, he was already quite helpful around the house, fixing things that needed fixing, even cooking and cleaning house for them whenever she was too tired and worn out from work to do so. Indeed, he was growing up to be quite a fine young man. Filia's motherly heart felt a swell of pride.
She stared at her reflection in the mirror, blue eyes searching the identical pair of eyes staring back at her. She, a mother at twenty-five. She inwardly laughed inspite of herself. Not that she found anything exactly laughable about her current situation. No, she just... felt like it. Laughter, an impulse. A whimsical, childish thing to do. She was still young, after all.
/And I will stand for my dream if I can
Symbol of my faith in who I am
But you are my only.../
Young. She felt surprised she had to constantly remind herself that, had to tell herself she was more than Karyu's great-granddaughter, more than owner of Dragon Crest Industries, more than Val's mom. Yet the face looking back at her from the looking glass was in all respects alive and youthful, not weary and haggard and wanting as she felt like, most of the time. Who was she?
/And I must follow on the road that lies ahead
And I won't let my heart control my head
But you are my only.../
Xellos. She frowned, tying back one last knot of hair in place. She had done her hair up in an elegant braid, letting two delicate bangs curl on either side of her face. Why'd he have to come back, after all this time? All those years, when Filia almost believed she'd forgotten all about him, and about most of her life before Dragon Crest?
He and his family had left Saillune without so much as a goodbye, almost a decade ago. Of course Filia's family rejoiced, happy to be rid of their mortal enemy. And she was... well, she hadn't really been sure what she really felt back then.
Not that it mattered now.
/And we don't say goodbye
We don't say goodbye
And I know I've got to be/
Filia shook her head, standing up abruptly. "Why am I thinking all these thoughts all of a sudden?" She muttered half-irritably to herself. It was just a date, just a night out with that horrible annoying namago-- oh, whatever. "And if he tries anything beyond that, I'll bash his smiling purple head off to the next city," she nodded resolutely, clenching her fists for effect.
She turned an angle to survey herself. Yes, after this night, she'll make sure she wouldn't have anything to do with him again. Hello and goodbye. That won't be too hard, would it?
/Immortality
I make my journey through eternity
I keep the memory of you and me inside.../
For the occasion she had chosen to wear a simple emerald green dress that snugly outlined the upper part of her body, skirt tapering downwards all the way to her ankles. Looking at herself now, she realized her attire revealed a little too much, and considered changing into something more conservative.
/Fulfill your destiny
Is there within the child
My storm will never end
My fate is on the wind
The king of hearts, the joker's wild/
Her eyes narrowed as a thought occurred to her. Yes, this was all a trick! Probably a joke Xellos wished to play on her expense. Don't show up? Nah, that was too simple. Take her out for the evening and humiliate her in front of everybody? Probably. She wouldn't put it past him, the dirty Mazoku.
/'Coz I found a dream that must come true
Every ounce of me must see it through
But you are my only.../
And yet... She paused, barely letting her mind admit she -had- even had that thought. And yet, she found herself hoping it would be more than that.
/I'm sorry I don't have a role for love to play
Hand over my heart I'll find my way
I will make them give to me/
A knock on the door. "Mom?"
The sound of her son's voice jerked her back to reality. She really had to stop thinking these things! "Come in, Val." She strode forward and opened the door. Val stood at the doorway, aqua-green hair spiked up as usual. Consequently, she wasn't the only one with a night out. The only difference was how enthusiastic they were about it.
/Immortality
There is a vision and a fire in me
I keep the memory of you and me inside/
He let out a low whistle as he regarded the older woman. "You look great, mom," complimented Val, grinning. "It's about time you had fun."
"Fun isn't the word I'd use," Filia filled in, adjusting her gold earrings. "Are you sure you're going to be back before ten thirty?" she asked.
Val grinned sheepishly, burying his hands in either side of his trouser pockets. "Yes'm," he assured her. "Paul and I'll just stay until halfway through the concert, then bust out."
"Good."
"Of course it would be more fun if we get to stay until after midnight..."
"Val..."
"OK." The aqua-haired youth gave her a toothy smile. "'Bye, mom."
Filia smiled back. "See you, dear."
/And we don't say goodbye
(We don't say goodbye)
With all my love for you
And what else we may do
We don't say goodbye.../
Filia saw the young man off from the porch of their house, waving as the red Camaro jam-packed with teenagers drove off with her son. She was alone. Shrugging, she went back inside the house and turned the record player off. A final appraisal of her looks told her she was all set for the evening. She checked the wall clock in the living room. Almost seven...
Why did I agree to this in the first place? Filia thought to herself. I should know better than to accept that namagomi's offer!
"He'll probably show me up," she muttered to herself.
"Now why would I do that?" A smooth male voice inquired behind them. Filia whirled in surprise at Xellos, who seemingly appeared right behind her.
"EEEPP!!!!" WHACK-WHAP-WHAP-THWACK--
"Good evening too, Filia-san," Xellos greeted from a safe enough distance from where the blonde was wildly bashing the air with her handbag. Instead of the usual business suit, the purple-haired business lord had on a dark purple shirt and black slacks.
"Mazoku!!!" She shrieked. "Don't you know how to knock?!"
The purple-haired man grinned sheepishly at her, one hand behind his head. "Well, the door was open, so--"
"NamAGOMIIII!!!!!"
"Temper, temper, Filia-chan," he said, wagging a finger at her. "So early in the evening, violent already, ne?"
Nonplused, he reached one hand behind his back, retrieving a bouquet of roses and lilies. He offered it to her, smirking. Filia snatched it away, pacified somewhat, and glared at the Mazoku.
Xellos walked closer to her. "So shall we?" he asked, offering his arm.
"You don't have to sit so far away from me, you know," Xellos commented from his side of the car. Instead of the purple sports car Xellos had arrived in a stretch limousine, complete with a chauffeur, mini-tv, peanut bowls, everything. The Mazoku had style, Filia had to admit, albeit grudgingly. And he knew it.
"Let's just get this over with, alright?" Filia retorted through gritted teeth.
"Oh, Fi-chan, don't you want to enjoy yourself just a bit?" The purple-haired man grinned in amusement. "We *are* on a date, after all."
Filia stuck her nose in the air, crossing her arms haughtily. "I merely agreed to go out with you, but I didn't say I'd enjoy it."
"Do I really repulse you so much?" He asked. Xellos fought the urge to twitch. 'She is *so* impossible!' he sighed quietly to himself. It had taken him hard enough to even have her agree to their little date, and now she still regarded him frostily. 'And Zelas-sama told me to seduce her,' the Mazoku went on in his head. Orders were orders, he knew. He *will* succeed, one way or the other. Though it would be a lot easier if she wasn't so irritable...
Xellos sighed again, looking the blond woman over from a corner of his eye. She looked lovely, he had to admit to himself, the emerald green dress fitting her perfectly, her long golden hair accenting her features. He had to tell her that, to score a few.
Filia uncrossed her arms to regard him warily. His last question sounded a bit strained, and hurt. She dismissed the thought. Nah, this was Xellos, the most insensitive jerk to ever walk the face of the planet. No amount of insults could ever dampen his oh-so-genki facade.
Still, she couldn't help feeling kind of bad for the Mazoku. Filia sighed wearily to herself. 'He *is* being nice,' she reasoned. 'I might as well regard him with equal civility. Just for tonight, at least.'
"Xellos..." She began.
"Ah, forget it," the mask was back on, the purple-haired man's cheerful smile plastered on his face. He dismissed Filia's attempt at an apology with a wave of his hand. He glanced outside the window, then turned to her. "We're almost there," he informed her, shifting in his seat. "Relax, Filia-chan. I don't bite." He continued smiling at the blonde, bent on annoying her all throughout the ride.
The limo slid to a stop in front of the ornate dome-shaped building in Park Gardens, south of Saillune. Smartly-dressed attendants in uniform black coats lined with gold came over to the vehicle. A red carpet was rolled out from the wide stairway entrace. The chauffeur got out, and, bowing respectfully, opened the limo door. A blond lady in a stunning emerald number stepped out, followed by a somewhat extremely cheerful-looking purple-haired man in formal yet not-totally-formal bearing.
Filia took in the beauty of the place.
It was a well-lit cafe with glass walls overlooking an Oriental garden outside. The ceiling was high, dome-shaped, and made of glass as well, revealing the starry night sky. White marble pillars supported the building from all sides, carved angels and flowers outlining the pristine barriers for effect.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Xellos remarked beside her.
"It is," Filia agreed begrudgingly.
"Dining under the stars," the purple-haired Mazoku continued. "The place has that effect, you know. Makes for its great appeal." He paused, thoughtful. He turned to her suddenly, observing her intently. And smiled. "Filia," he finally said, "Are you aware just how enchanting you look tonight?"
She had to blush inspite of herself. Did he just pay her a compliment? "Uh... Thank you..." she replied, not meeting his eyes.
"I am truly flattered you made the effort to make yourself look convincingly lady-like for a night out with me," he went on.
"What?!!!" Dangerous glare.
"Ah, haha, I think it's about time we proceed to our table, ne?" Xellos placated cheerily. Inwardly he chuckled to himself. He just had to put that in. 'Oh, but she does look exquisitely more attractive when she's mad,' he thought, smiling as chi fires burst from her clear blue eyes. She turned away and stalked ahead of him, struggling to compose herself.
"Whatever," Filia retorted, as the waiters guided them to their table.
'He had to go and ruin that!' Filia fumed silently in her seat. She took a sip off the champagne glass on the elegantly set table, the light from the candles casting an assortment of starlight shapes on the cloth.
Xellos grinned from where he sat right across her. "So Filia, how have you been?"
"I'm alive," she replied sarcastically, warily eyeing the Mazoku. "Only got debts from all directions, a couple of loans to pay up in weeks, and the establishment my family had entrusted me to take care of is going bankrupt, but aside from that, I'm quite fine. Why do you ask?"
"Just wanted to know how you've gotten along all these years," Xellos replied, ignoring the bitterness in her voice. "It's been, what, nine years?" He took an elegant sip of his champagne, watching the blonde in amusement.
"Ten," she corrected.
"Oh? So you've kept count? Did you miss me that much, Filia?"
She controlled another blush, seriously considering dousing the remaining contents of her champagne on his obnoxious purple head. "Why would I ever miss you?"
"I don't know, Filia-chan. Why would you?" He asked innocently.
"Namagomi," she muttered under her breath.
Xellos studied her intently, wooden smile affixed on his face. "You do remember when we first met, don't you?"
At this, Filia had to narrow her eyes. "Do I ever," she replied, trying hard not to fume and give him the satisfaction, the annoying, obnoxious, dis-- no, temper, temper, must keep her temper... She took another sip of the wine to calm herself. There. "Oh, do I ever," she repeated, remembering...
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~
It was a sunny day. A seven-year-old Filia sat contentedly underneath the shade of her favorite oak tree at the back of the family mansion. She had brought her pink flowery china tea set with her and was sipping a cup of hot tea. A large book of fairy tales lay open in her lap, and the girl was engrossed in the story of a frog prince and a beautiful young princess. So involved the seven-year-old was in the tale, she lost track of thought and time until an amused and decidedly annoying voice startled her back to reality.
"Hello."
Filia looked up to see a boy about her age sitting on an oak branch quite a good eight feet above her. He had long purple hair and bangs that framed a grinning young face. A worn-looking brown bag was slung over his shoulder, slightly out-of-place in his generally dark attire of black pants and cream-colored sweater. How he got there the blond girl couldn't imagine, and she was just as curious as to who he was as to what he was doing here in her grandfather's backyard. "Who are you?" She asked him.
The boy simply smiled back, and wagged one finger beside his face. "Sorewa himitsu desu!"
Filia sweatdropped. "What? What's your name?"
The purple-haired boy ignored the question, opting instead to jump off the branch he was sitting on and landing, cat-like, on his feet beside her. "What are you reading?" he inquired, reaching for the book the blonde still held in her lap.
"Princess Elena and the Frog Prince," Filia told the boy, observing him turn the pages over curiously, not opening his eyes.
"The Frog Prince, eh?" the mysterious boy repeated. "This is about the frog who turns into a handsome prince, right?"
"Uh-huh," Filia nodded, blonde locks swaying slightly over her young face. "You've read it, too?"
"You could say that," the boy answered dismissively, still grinning that cat-like, close-eyed grin.
"Do you think it's true?" Filia asked him, genuinely interested. "That a frog could turn into a prince, I mean."
The purple-haired boy looked taken aback and confused for a moment at the question. Then smiled again, a mischievious but still strangely pleasant and innocent grin spreading on his face. "Well," he said, gazing intently at her, "We could find out." Filia watched, curious, as he reached for his brown bag and began rummaging through its contents. He came up not three seconds later with a frog in one outstretched hand. He held it out to her, smiling cheerfully. "Here."
Filia stared dubiously at the frog. It was a greenish mottled brown, slit eyes bulging on either side of a flat, wide head. It blinked in the sunlight, wide mouth bent in an eternal amphibian grimace. It was unbearably ugly. The blond girl's brows furrowed, and she looked back up at the mysterious boy, a question in her eyes. "Um--?"
"You're going to be the princess," he explained to her. "I'll hold the frog, while you bend over and kiss it."
The blonde girl wrinkled her nose. "But I'm not a princess," she replied. "How can I--"
The boy dismissed the question with a wave of his free hand. "As long as it's a pretty girl, it'll work fine," he assured her.
Filia blinked, flattered and perplexed at the same time. "You think I'm pretty?"
"Well, yes," he put in. "Now are you going to kiss the frog or not? My arm's getting tired."
"So when the frog turns into a handsome prince, does that mean I get to marry him?" The blonde inquired, hesitating.
"I would assume so," the purple-haired boy replied.
"Well, alright," Filia finally agreed, bending over to kiss the mottled brown frog. Her lips were but a few inches from it when the boy suddenly interrupted her.
"Wait."
"What now?" she asked, looking up.
He wagged a chiding finger at her. "You need to close your eyes first. It wouldn't work if you don't close your eyes." The boy grinned, opening one eye at her.
The blond girl blinked again. "Right." She did indeed read that the princess closed her eyes as she kissed the frog who turned into a prince. "Thanks," she said, as she resumed her position, leaning blindly forward until she could feel the cold, slightly slimy thing that would be the frog's face on her pink lips...
.......... .
"Haha! Tricked you!"
Filia opened her eyes just in time to see the frog hopping away, and the purple-haired boy who had held it to her running and climbing up and over the high wall of the garden. It took her mind two seconds to register just what exactly had occurred.
.............................
"Baka!!! Hentai!!!! Henatai no Baka!!!!!!!!" Filia screamed, red in the face. "Cockroach!!!! NAMAGOMI!!!!!!!"
At the last insult, the young trickster stopped in mid-climb, a twitch inadvertently making its way on his shoulders. He turned around to look at Filia. "N-namagomi?!?" he repeated, cheek twitching as he tried to keep his genki smile.
"NAMAGOMI!!! NAMAGOMI!!!! NAMAGOMI!!!!!!!!" Filia screamed, as she ran towards the wall, invariably throwing a variety of objects at the boy's twitching form.
The purple-haired boy was alert enough to successfully dodge the teapot, teacup, saucer, serving tray, coloring book, and crayons that went flying in his direction. When the heavy Britannica volume came whizzing past, however, he wasn't so lucky.
The book hit him square in the face, and the boy was thrown facefirst down in the other side of the wall, out of the family grounds. "Itaii..." he groaned, picking himself off the ground.
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~
Filia closed her eyes, the memory too painful and embarrassing to recall, and she took a healthy swig of her wine to calm herself. At the sound of her wails her parents, as well as Grandfather Saichuro came running to her in alarm. A 'crazy young thief' had broken into their house and had stolen her grandfather's prized teeth dentures. He had escaped through the second floor window and came down via the oak, where they found Filia flushed with anger and screaming raw garbage to someone on the other side of the ivy-covered wall.
At least that was what Xellos surmised she'd found out, he thought, smirking. Zelas had been quite proud of him when he came home with his prize.
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~
In another mansion, in another street, a boy with a brown bag slung over his shoulder cheerily faced an older blond woman.
"So what have you been up to today, Xellos?" his mother inquired as she lounged on her favorite armchair, tired after a day of dealing with other pesky business associates. "Tormenting some grumpy old coot, I presume?"
Grinning cheerily, the purple-haired boy took out a pair of gleaming and quite over-used dentures to the older woman. "Better, mistress," he replied. "I got into Old Saichuro's place today, and guess what I took as a parting gesture!"
Zelas beamed approvingly at her son, taking a whiff of her afternoon cigarette. "Good work."
~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~~*~*~*~*~
Xellos just continued smiling serenely at her, while mentally chuckling fondly at the memory. "I didn't think we'd meet like this after ten years. Things do change much, do they?"
"Oh, they do," the blonde retorted. "Though I have to say you haven't changed a bit, namagomi."
"As do you," he replied smoothly. "Still as violent and selfish as ever, I see."
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SELFISH?!?!" Filia stood up abruptly, nearly knocking over her seat as she glared down at her date. Then sweatdropped as she saw that not a few of the restaurant patrons and attendants' eyes were upon her. She kept a blush as she recovered, sitting back down to glare at Xellos properly. Said Mazoku was chuckling at her all through her little scene, causing Filia to blush even harder. "I don't know why I ever agreed to go out with you," she finally said through gritted teeth.
"My charming good looks and pleasing personality?" He suggested.
"You wish."
Xellos set down his wine glass contentedly, not flustered in the least by the death glares Filia kept directing at him. "More wine?" He offered, motioning for the waiter.
Author's Rants: Yes, I'm still alive. (You may all groan now.) My muse just went on vacation to Tahiti with Juuou-sama before she decided her tan was nice enough and returned. ^_^ So what do you think? My first songfic!!! I just thought it would be nice to put in a little theme song because, well, just for the heck of it... Eh, hehe. Oh yeah, please send your comments, suggestions, Valgaav, Filia and Xellos plushies to monicats2002@yahoo.com.