Even in Death

by Kaimei

{ AU-ish, but not really. LG. AZ. } The gang meet up with an old Ryuuzoku who's been hiding in a cave. A cheerleader spies, and just what is with the deformed squirrel!

4. Chapter Four

~ A/N: Gomen nasai, minna, for this long wait. I had other things to do, and then I was suspended from fanfiction.net because I put up a songfic that wasn't 'really' a fanfic. I don't know the real reason, but I'm not going to do anything like that again, even though I really wish I could put the songfic back up. Those that read it, and read this too, like Lina Gabriev, thank you all anyway. I just ignored the flames, for the most part, but ones like Lina's review were welcomed. I was glad I could give my readers something they liked, and give me their opinion back, even though I'm not sure that Lina really liked it, but then again…

The whole part of that songfic was to express my feelings and others that I know have the same as me. But that's life.

I thank all the readers who reviewed to chapter five… and this is just even more fun! Not the longest, but still pretty fun! Chapter five –will- be coming sometime, as my friends and I all ready finished Role Playing it, I just have to fix it up. Again, thank you all! Now, onto the fic!

Kaimei. ~

Chapter Four.

Part one.

It had been a few weeks since school had started, and now was a lucky Friday. Surprisingly, the school had let the student's off for the fair that night, mainly because Filia wanted to spend more time annoying Val. Luna entered Lina's room quietly, having quite an evil look on her face. She had gotten off the phone with Lina's family unit teacher. And she heard what happened. And WHOM Lina stayed with. "My dear, dear sister..." She growled, and literally tackled said individual.

Lina was simply lounging on her bed lazily, seeming quite relaxed - until the sibling of doom entered the room. "Huh? W-what's with--EEP!" Lina was beginning to seem a bit terrified now. Being labeled 'Dear, dear sister', along with a growl wasn't always necessarily a good sign; at least not from Luna.

The older sibling wrapped her hands around Lina's throat and began to violently choke her. "YOU STUPID, IGNORANT CHILD! BRAT! LIAR!" She screamed, shaking her harsher. "How DARE you sleep at a MAN'S house without even telling me?! AND WITH THAT GUY! You little LIAR!" She snarled, slapping Lina repeatedly before shaking her again. And all of the sudden, she ceased, hugging Lina tightly. "You got an A plus! I'm so happy!"

Lina's head basically wobbled a little, her eyes transforming themselves into large swirlies. "Pain... it hurts..." She managed to stay in that state for a few brief moments until she finally snapped out of it, blinking repeatedly. "W-what guy...?!"

Luna slapped Lina a few times again. "Gourry Gabriev. That moron, I also spoke to his mother..." Her voice transformed into a hiss. "She said you two... shared the same ROOM together."

Lina automatically began shrinking back a little, appearing a bit flustered. "A-ah... you see... w-well... it was the teacher! She said to complete the project properly, we had to share an r-room... it wasn't my fault! We didn't do anything bad! I swear!!!"

Luna grabbed Lina's chin, and raised her fist, to smack her. "Liar!" When.... as luck would have it, the downstairs phone rang. Luna squealed and released Lina. "IT'S HIM!" And she jumped off Lina's bed, and ran down the stairs to get it.

Lina winced, rubbing her cheek gently. "Itai..." She frowned and wrinkled her nose, moving off the bed. "Who the heck's 'him'..." Out of sheer curiosity, she removed her hand from her cheek and began to silently tiptoe out of her room and made her way down the stairs. "Hm…"  Does big sissy poo of mine have a boooyfriend? Hehehe…

Luna was leaning against the wall, the phone being attached to it, and the wire was being wrapped around her finger. She had a glazed look on her eyes, staring at the ground, and her cheeks were found pink. "Of course I'll go with you tonight...! I'll just make Lina go to the Fair with that one rich friend of hers... but we'll have to be back at twelve." Whatever the man on the other end of the phone said caused her cheeks to go a deeper shade of red. "No, we can't...!"

Lina gradually seated herself onto the last step of the stair case, tilting her head to the side curiously. Oooh… interesting. Hehe, so she DOES have a certain little boyfriend, eh? And then she gets all menacing with the whole situation with Gourry…. Eesh... what's up with that?!

Luna nodded and hung the phone up, placing her hands against her chest, and released a dreamy sigh. "He's so... wonderful...!" She hadn't noticed her diminutive sister.

Lina smirked teasingly and clasped both hands together, placing them on one of her cheeks. Her eyes became quite voluminous, all sparkly also. She emitted an exceedingly phony sigh, her voice going rather high-pitched. "He's so.... wonderful...!"

Luna's entire face lit up like a Christmas light, and glared at Lina. "... You little..." She paused, and emitted a soft squeak. "H-how long have you been there?!"

Lina grinned slyly and plopped her elbow onto her thigh, placing her chin onto her palm. "So, who's the guy that has you all drooling and ga-ga-like, hm?"

Luna would normally beat Lina's brains in, but she was still feeling light headed. "Just.... m-my friend!"

Lina quirked a single brow, "Oooh? You were speaking oh so intimately with him - I heard it all. What did he offer that you said 'No, we can't!' to, hm?"

Luna glowered at Lina, her eyelid twitching. "Fine; my boyfriend." She hissed, that light-headed-ness fading.

Lina appeared emotionally 'hurt', placing her hand on her chest, putting up her infamous adorable-morose act. "And you never TOLD me? I thought what we had was SPECIAL!"

Luna huffed and stomped over to Lina, sitting beside her, and for once, didn't raise a hand to smash it into her cranium. "Well, it's the guy you're not very fond of. So I decided I'd tell you when you matured."

Lina blinked slowly, straightening herself. "Aren't I mature enough already? And here you complain about Gourry and I when you have your own little boyfriend..."

Luna snorted. "Gourry doesn't seem... right, baby sister! He'll hurt you I know it! I have a sense about these things."

Lina rolled her eyes. "No way. I know the guy... he can't hurt anyone if he tried to. He's just too dumb to do so, basically."

Luna glared at her younger sister again, before sighing. "I still don't like him. Oscar is -way- better than him..."

Lina sweat dropped. "... Oscar? Pfft, what DO you have against Gourry anyway? And the name Oscar is waaay overused these days..."

Luna slammed her fist into Lina's cranium, harshly, glowering at her. "I just don't like the guy. He'll hurt you. I'm going to go jog, I want you to call Amelia, or whoever, and go to the fair at five tonight. Be home by ten, Oscar's taking me out on a date at four."

Lina emitted a small yelp, immediately covering her head protectively with her lithe arms. "Itai! Okay, okay..."

Luna stood up and went up the stairs, heading to her room to change into her jogging outfit. Ten minutes later, she returned, and merely headed out the door.

Lina grumbled a little and scooted off the step. "No one loves me these days... blah, I'll call Amelia later. Heck, I'm not even sure if she's going to that fair or not..." She placed a hand near her mouth, yawning lazily. "Oh, what to do..."

Three minutes later, it being about one o'clock now, when the phone had suddenly rang, a familiar voice on the other side.

Lina blinked and quickly sauntered over to the phone, picking it up boredly. "What?" She spoke in a somewhat irritated voice, scratching the back of her head.

Gourry paused, for a few moments, before clearing his throat. "Lina?"

Lina shifted her position a bit, blinking repeatedly. "Eh? Gourry?"

Gourry's voice seemed a little nervous, "Yeah.... I was, er.... wondering.... would you like... to go with me to the fair this evening?"

Lina grinned widely. Hehe, screw the idea with going to the fair with Amelia... Luna wouldn't know, right? "YEAH!! Luna was already expecting me to go anyway, she has a date with some guy."

Gourry was pretty relieved now. "Okay... I'll pick you up at five?"

Lina placed a hand on her hip. "Yup! Good time, too... that's the exact time Luna wanted me to leave. We're gonna walk, right?"

Gourry chuckled. "Just wait and see."

Lina blinked. This perked her curiosity greatly. "Huh? Why? I don't wanna wait!"

Gourry yawned. "I'll pick you up at five, so... er... bye?"

Lina huffed a little. "Fine, fine... bye."

The two hung up, and Luna returned, right as the phone was placed back. A few things happened, Luna did everything she had to, and dressed in a very fancy red evening gown. It was now fifteen before four. "Do I look good?" She asked her younger sibling, straightening the dress.

Lina nodded, holding a bowl of pudding in her grasp. She was currently licking her fingers; her lips and the corners of her mouth were entirely smeared in the chocolate substance. "Mmhm, where'd you get that dress--oooh, this pudding is so good..."

Luna snorted, and twirled around for a moment. "Mom's room..." She murmured pulling on some lace gloves and making sure the straps of her high heels were on correctly.

Lina paused for a moment, blinking slowly. "Oh... you actually went in there?"

Luna sighed, and sat beside Lina, nodding. "Mm-hm. I didn't have anything good, and mom -always- dressed better than anyone. She also had a few I'm sure you'd like, even if you dislike dresses. So, Lina..." She paused, to wrap an arm around her sister's shoulders. "Whenever you go on your first date, I don't care -who- it is, tell me, so I can help you find good clothing to wear...!" She forced a smile, shifting her gaze to the ground.

Lina blinked up at Luna with newly smeared pudding covering her cheeks a little. "I guess you're right... okay, then. I suppose I will... but I'm not sure if any of mom's dresses would fit me, anyway."

Luna laughed, smiling at Lina. "All of mom's dresses are adjustable. They fit any size, I think she was planning on having more children before... the accident..."

Lina shrugged a bit, dousing her finger into the pudding. "Ahh, well, the past is the past. Oooh, this pudding is SO good I tell you..."

She rolled her eyes at Lina. "Don't start groaning now." There was a sudden honk from outside, causing the older girl to jump. "Eeep, that's Oscar! I'll probably see you tomorrow! Remember to lock the doors when you leave!" And Luna quickly scurried out.

Lina blinked after her, sticking her finger into her mouth. "Humph... goodbye to you too, sis..." She sauntered out and went into her room, continuing to devour the pudding ravenously. "Oooh, pudding, how I adore you sooo!"

An hour passed, five minutes to five, really, when a black BMW pulled up in front of the house. The individual stepped out of the car, and walked up to the house, knocking on the door. As it was getting dark, the individual couldn't be seen clearly.

Lina blinked slowly and padded over to the door, opening it slowly. Her face was completely absent of the pudding, though she did have the urge to go make some more again. "Hello?"

Gourry had his hands in the pockets of his sweatshirt. "Hey."

Lina brightened up considerably, holding the door completely open. "Whoo, you're here! Sooo, are you gonna tell me what I had to 'wait and see' or what?"

Gourry shifted a little, and pointed over his shoulder with his thumb. "Look over there."

Lina blinked and looked around him. "Don't see why you cou--WHERE'D YOU GET THAT FROM?!"

Gourry scratched his head, blinking. "My mom bought it for me earlier this morning..."

Lina stared at the vehicle for a moment before diverting her attention back towards him. "... You're spoiled, aren't'cha?"

Gourry blinked. "I am?"

Lina placed a hand on her hip. "Gah, never mind. Anyway, ready to go?"

Gourry nodded. "Yeah."

Lina locked the door and stepped out, closing it. "Yaay. Let's get going already! I wanna see the car up close!" She hooked her arm around his and predominantly dragged him towards the automobile.

Gourry's dragged without protest, and yawned.

Lina released him once she reached the vehicle, quickly running around it, just to examine it out of curiosity. "Looks expensive..."

Gourry shrugged, putting his hands back in his pockets. "I guess, my mom said it cost a lot, but she didn't tell me exactly how much..."

Lina prodded the window. "Is it open?"

Gourry nodded. "Yeah."

Lina immediately opened the door and plopped herself down onto the seat next to the driver's. "Then get it already and let's go!"

Gourry walked around, opening his door and climbing in. "Alright."

The car started up, and they drove to the fair. By the time they get to it, people were crowding the entire area, and by the time they're finally in, it was six o'clock. The two then spotted two certain individuals.

Lina folded her arms, smirking lightly. "Oooh, look! It's Amelia and Zel!" Now, being loud as she usually is, she waved her arms in the air enthusiastically in order to gain mostly Amelia's attention. "Oiiii! AMELIAAA!"

Zelgadis visibly jumped at the familiar voice, spinning around to blink at her.  He was obviously nervous about being around so many people, staying near Amelia.

Amelia sweat dropped and turned around. Not that she needed to see who said that, she could recognize that voice anywhere. "Er, hello Lina-san...!"

A few people bumped and pushed the four, causing the gap between them to close as they were pushed until they stood in front of each other.

Lina was beginning to get somewhat annoyed because of the gargantuan throng, but she decided to ignore it briefly. "Heh, what are you two doing here--and together?"

Gourry wasn't paying much attention and gazed around boredly, it didn't really involve him.

Zelgadis had a blush go over the bridge of his nose, his eyes widening slightly as he began to stutter.  "A-ah, well.  A-amelia asked me to go... and, ehnnn..." 

Amelia crossed her arms and blushed. "What do you expect people to do at a fair? Play the games and get on the rides! I didn't want to go by myself so I asked Zelgadis-san to come with me..."

The people finally separated and went about to doing other things.

Lina examined them lazily, quirking a brow. "... Then why blush?"

Zelgadis' blush simply grew as he became more flustered at what Lina said.  "T-the way you put it sounded like you were suspecting something else!!!" 

Amelia looked off to the side for a distraction. She spotted a game with a large kiddy pool that had rubber duckies floating around in it. "Oh, I love that game!"

It got a little crowded, and then spaced out again, a few people buying some candy and other items.

Lina sweat dropped, folding her arms. "O... Kay. Whatever you two saaaay..."

Gourry tugged on Lina's sleeve. "Can we go and do something? I'm bored."

Zelgadis sighed heavily as he calmed down, his blush fading. 

Amelia waved before grabbing Zel's arm and dragging him towards the game she had pointed at earlier. "Bye Lina-san, Gourry-san!" She yelled as she ran off.

To the opposite side of the water game, was a painter, who had finished with a child, who looked like a clown. "Boooo!" He squealed as he chased a sibling. The woman then waited for more children or people to come.

Lina blinked. "They sure seemed in a hurry... anyway, you're right, Gourry." She yawned a little and began scanning the area for anything interesting that caught her attention. "Hm. Let's see... ooohhh..." She grinned upon noticing the painter, and then grabbed his arm. "Let's go get our faces paaainted!"

Gourry blinked, shrugging. "Er... alright, better than just standing."

Lina grinned and immediately dragged him towards the painter. "Yay!"

Gourry was dragged, again.

The painter perked up at their arrival, smiling politely. "Good evening." She paused, staring at Lina intently. "Aren't you that girl? Fiery Chaos? My daughter said you beat up these boys that were picking on everyone in grade school."

Lina chuckled nervously, scratching the back of her head. "Ehehe... yeah, that was me... ehehe. ... They deserved it Anyway! What kind of designs do you make?"

Gourry yawned, rubbing his eye a little.

The woman smiled, and shook her head. "I make anything, just tell me what you want."

Lina tapped her chin, wrinkling her nose. "I want--hm. Er... let's see. Wait a minute, I know this... hm... uh..."

Gourry simply stood there, blinking at them.

She blinked. "Is there a certain design you want?"

Lina frowned. "Not really... I just want something simple... got any examples?"

She started to pull out a few pieces of paper that have multiple shapes and animals, along with a flame and a jellyfish on the same piece of paper. "We have these, but I could make something up."

Lina grinned, eyeing the jellyfish one. "Hehe, I'll haaave... the jellyfish! On my cheek, too."

She nodded, and gazed to Gourry. "And what about him?"

Lina shrugged, nudging him lightly. "You gettin' something?"

Gourry blinked, shrugging. "Er... I dunno, what should I get?"

The lady eyed them, before looking down at the pieces of papers, scanning them.

Lina scratched the back of her head. "Whichever you like. Or just come up with one your own so she could draw it."

The woman tapped the flame. "Well, what about this?"

Lina blinked, yawning. "Hm, what'cha think, Gourry?"

Gourry nodded. "Er... yeah, sure."

The woman nodded. "All right, please, sit down." She said to Lina, getting out various colors of blue.

Lina plopped herself down, smiling widely like some excited little kid. "Yay, I haven't had this stuff done to me ever since I was little!"

The woman moved a hand to Lina's chin, and turned her head to the side, and dabbed her paintbrush into the darkest blue. "Hold still." And she traced the outline of the jellyfish on her cheek.

Lina remained still as the woman informed, closing an eye.  Hm. That tickles…

The woman then began to color it in.

Lina wiggled her nose boredly, eyeing her surroundings a bit.

The woman finished, and smiled, handing Lina a mirror. "Here you go, your Jellyfish is done."

Lina smirked. "This design reminds me perfectly of you, Gourry!"

Gourry blinked, "It does?"

The woman set that brush into a cup of water, taking a clean one. "His turn."

Lina moved off the seat, nodding. "Yuuup. You ARE practically -the- jellyfish brains, after all…"

Gourry sat down where she was, blinking. "Oh, yeah..."

The woman giggled slightly, wetting the brush and took a dark crimson color, tracing the flame on his cheek, and began speaking to Lina. "You two should try a few rides after this. Either that or go to one of the contests."

Lina nodded and watched as she drew the design, folding her arms. "Yeah... and, contests? What kind?"

The woman began putting on a different coat of red. "Well, in about fifteen minutes there will be an eating contest down this way."

Lina quirked a brow; the mention of the contest catching her interest, "What's the prize?"

She paused in her work, thinking back, before adding orange. "I think it's a TV. You know how it is, they can't get their hands on anything better."

Lina frowned, slumping. "Don't tell me. Is it another sucky thirteen-inch television?"

She shook her head. "No, I think it's a little bigger this year."

Lina blinked. "Oh? How many inches?"

She shrugged, finishing. "Not sure, you'll have to go and see for yourself."

Gourry stood up and stretched, yawning.

Lina nodded slowly, tilting her head to the side. "Yeah, I will! Hehe… I COULD use a television in my room, though. Thanks lady!" She immediately grasped Gourry's arm, giving the woman toothy grin. "Buh-bai!" And so, Lina quickly dragged him towards the direction of the contest.

Upon reaching, nine fat men were there, waiting. "We need one more person! Just one more person, and then we'll get this contest on! The rules are simple, eat as much as you can for twenty minutes, and whoever eats the most, wins!" Announced the man standing on the stage in front of the elongated table. "A seventy two inch TV, free of charge!"

Lina immediately emitted a squeal and released his arm, waving her arm above her head enthusiastically. "Ooh, oh! Pick me!"

Everyone's head turned, to stare at the diminutive girl. "Y-you, miss?" The announcer choked, how could -she- even eat half of what they're serving? "A-all right, if you want..."

Lina smirked, placing a hand on her hip. This'll be SO easy... that TV is as good as mine... "Alright!" She quickly sauntered towards the table, quite mirthfully also. "Hehe..."

All nine fat men stared at her, and laughed, 'this will be easy' they changed aloud, and waited. The announcer had some women set food on their platters, and quickly shouted 'Start!' immediately.

Lina Inverse simply began devouring the food in front of her ravenously, and quite quickly too. Yup, her usual pig-routine was taking place.

The audience stared at Lina, as another course was set in front of them, etc, etc. The fat men never seen, as they were too busy eating their own, twenty minutes passed, and half of the men stopped. While the other's looked like they couldn't take another bite, but still continued. "Time's up!" The man yelled, after he ceased staring at Lina.

Lina did eat quite a lot, maybe a bit too much for someone with such a diminutive stature. She blinked, swallowing the remaining food that was in her mouth. "Already?"

The ladies returned, and took their platters to calculate, while the man walked over to Lina. "Say, little girl, how can you eat so much? Or are you really a boy?" That's definitely not a good thing to say...

Lina huffed, pounding her fists on the table. "Oi, I'm a GIRL! It's pretty obvious, y'know..." She huffed rather furiously, folding her arms. "And I'm just talented like that."

The man chuckled, and sat on the table. "Was your daddy a pig?" The audience laughed. "Sure seems like it!" More laughter. The girl's returned, giving the man a glare. "She won." One had said, her hands on her hips. "O-oh? S-she did?" He seemed shocked.

Lina closed an eye, her fingers beginning to twitch. She was attempting to hold back from casting one of her infamous spells, since she didn't want to cause severe panic. She just put up her 'adorable' little act, smiling a bit too sweetly. "Mister... shut the hell up."

The man ignored her completely. "Right! Let's give this -girl- her prize!" He handed Lina a piece of paper. "Write your address and name on it, and your TV will be sent tomorrow!"

Lina gave the man a rather menacing glare, snorting. "Give me a pen, you moron."

The man went about to talking about random stuff to the audience, while one of the girls's handed her a pen. "Here you go."

Lina grumbled and took the pen, muttering a quick thanks. She began to scribble the needed requirements, huffing. "That guy's gonna get shot...."

"We can only hope." Another girl murmured, taking the pen and paper when Lina was done. "You can go now, thank you."

Lina nodded and shot the man another venomous glower before sauntering back over to Gourry, muttering.

Gourry blinked at her. "At least you won?"

The man continued to ramble, and the audience laughed more, like morons.

Lina wrinkled her nose. "Yeah, but that guys a moron... pfft... he's lucky I ain't letting loose a fireball..."

Gourry nodded, yawning. "So... what now?"

Lina blinked repeatedly, gazing around. "Uh... I don't know... lessee..."

Just then... something big and yellow pads down the path. "Join in charity! Buy things! Party! Have fun!" It was a giant noodle, to be more precise, a noodle -mascot-.

Gourry twitched.

Lina sweat dropped massively, scratching her cheek. "Whoa... will you look at that..."

The noodle 'danced' over and glomped Lina. "Have fun! Buy things! Go on rides!" He then began to dance with Lina. "Eat! Buy more things! Join in Charity!"

Gourry twitched more.

Lina emitted a small yelped, her eyes reducing themselves to diminutive ruby dots. "You've gotta be kidding me...."

The noodle danced with her more. "Marry me! Have fun! I know a great place to go! Buy things! Join in Charity!"

Gourry just twitched, growling.

Lina just sweat dropped. This was too weird. "You can let me go now."

The noodle merely danced around with her more.

Gourry went over, grabbed Lina's hand, and dragged her away, twitching quite a lot.

Lina's dragged away for once.

To get his mind off the recent noodle events, Gourry took Lina on multiple rides, until it was getting late. Gourry drove her home, and stopped in front of her house. All was dark, so Luna's date must be going good.

Gourry sighed a little, slumping. "Well... er... we're back."

Lina leaned back against the seat, nodding. "Yuuup. We had a good time, though."

Gourry twitched. "Could've done without the noodle…"

Lina yawned a bit. "I have to admit that it was just plain creepy..."

Gourry grumbled. "Everything's against me... or at least noodles are."

Lina smirked, poking his arm. "Yup. I have to agree with you there."

Gourry blinked over at her, and whined a little. "They're trying to steal you…"

Lina rolled her eyes, placing her arms behind her head. "Oh yeah, they're trying to steal me to make me their beloved and worshipped queen... right."

Gourry twitched. "That's their plan..."

Lina snickered. "You actually believe that?"

Gourry just whined. "It's true..."

Lina patted his head, "Right, right. Whatever you say..."

Gourry slumped, grumbling. "They've been planning this for a long time…"

Lina shifted a little, resting the side of her head against his arm. "How long do you think, eh?"

Gourry sighed. "Since you started dreaming about them, way back then."

Lina smirked. "Ooh, I remember that... but it's nothing important. They're just noodles."

Gourry whined. "Noodles that will take over and make you their queen..."

Lina smacked her forehead. "You have such an imagination…"

Gourry slumped more. "Blah..."

Lina straightened herself, and opened the door. "I should get going..."

Gourry shifted a little, nodding.

Lina had leaned over, and gave his lips a kiss, which he returned, and then she stepped out. Giving him a diminutive nod, she retreated to the house, unlocked it, and walked in, shutting the door behind her. Gourry remained there for a moment, before sighing and leaving.

Part Two.

It had been a few weeks since school had started, and now was a lucky Friday. Surprisingly, the school had let the student's off for the fair that night, mainly because Filia wanted to spend more time annoying Val. Rezo knocked on Zel's door, and entered the dimly lit room. "Zel?" He muttered, his voice cracking slightly; Rezo wasn't getting better at all, perhaps worse, even. "Are you awake or asleep?"

Zelgadis was sitting up on his bed as he leaned against the wall, staring in front of himself boredly.  He noted Rezo's voice and frowned slightly, thinking to himself.  Is he still worried about if I hate him? I was hoping he would forget about that, but I guess that's hoping too much.  "I'm awake." 

Rezo limped over to the bed, and sat down. He had tripped once again on the stairs coming down from the shrine, and his ankle had swollen quite badly. Yet Rezo hadn't went to the doctors for months now, merely having his medication re-filled. "I see..." He sighed, and gazed off for a moment, his brown eyes glazing over. "Well, now... why don't you go out and have fun with your friends? The fair is starting at five..."

Zelgadis watched Rezo limp to the bed, frowning more.  Why does he have to be so STUBBORN!?  He knows he should go to the doctor or at least not walk around as much. Perhaps I can just...  "I don't like fairs that much, Rezo. It's too crowded." He said this slowly since he was watching Rezo's ankle.  

The old man waved his hand slightly, smiling. "I bet there's a certain someone who wouldn't mind going -with- you." He chuckled slightly, and reached over to pat Zel's shoulder. "But, first, let's go and clean up the shrine? It's been a week."

Zelgadis quickly snapped out of his thoughts and looked up at Rezo as the bridge of his nose turned a light pink color.  "Ehnnn, ahh. Er, okay." He looked away and coughed behind his hand slightly before he got off the bed quickly.

Rezo stood up, and limped out. "Hurry up." Rezo took one of their usual brooms and went outside, heading to the stairs towards the Graywords' shrine.

Zelgadis noticed the limping again but didn't say anything, grabbing a broom and dustpan then following close behind him.

And the sweeping began! Three hours later, now being twelve eighteen, Rezo got up from resting on a bench. "Zel?" He murmured, looking quite tired. "Go to the house and get us another bag; I forgot how many leaves fall."

Zelgadis nodded slowly.  "Alright." He leaned his broom on the wall and put down the dustpan, walking out of shrine and back to the house, putting his hands behind his head.

But the time Zel got there, there was no bag's in sight. After ten minutes of searching, he finally found one, and before he was about to leave... the phone rang.

Zelgadis stopped and sweat dropped slightly, turning around and running back to the phone to pick it up.  "Graywords' residence, hello?" 

Amelia giggled about something, "Hello, Zelgadis-san?"

Zelgadis blushed slightly, straightening a bit.  What was she giggling about?!  Better have not been him. "Eh, hello Amelia."

Amelia didn't giggle for that long. "You know the fair is in town, right, Zelgadis-san? Its always lots of fun, but I don't want to go by myself and I'm sure Lina-san would rather go with Gourry san... So would you like to come to the fair with me?"

Zelgadis' face turned red, grabbing onto the counter so he didn't fall down.  "A-ah, the fair?! But, uhm, w-well..."

Amelia rambled on, maybe from nervousness. "I usually go with daddy, but he's too busy to go this time. Besides, I'd rather go with you!"

Zelgadis turned an even deeper red as his mouth dropped slightly.  "W-with me?!"  His voice had gone a pitch higher, still hanging onto the counter. 

"Is something wrong Zelgadis-san? Your voice sounds a little odd... are you sick!?"

Zelgadis pulled himself to a better standing position, his voice remaining high.  "NO!  N-no I'm not sick!  I-it's just a-ah, um, Er... I..." 

Amelia paused, now she was just waiting for an answer to her question, since she hadn't received one yet.

Zelgadis swallowed and stared at the floor as he recovered his composure slightly.  "I... Er... I guess I can come..."

"Great! The limo will be outside your house to pick you up at five, okay?"

Zelgadis nodded even though he was on the phone.  "Alright."

Amelia replied as cheerful as ever, with a hint of excitement, "Bye!" Then hung up.

Rezo stumbled into the house, looking exceedingly worried, and out of breath, having ran down the stairs and to the house when Zel hadn't returned for a while. "Zel? A-are you all right?"

Zelgadis was still blushing slightly as he looked over at Rezo while hanging up the phone.  "Huh? OH!  Ah, I'm sorry!  The phone rang right before I had a chance to leave... I... er, didn't mean to worry you at all..." He looked away for a moment before he picked up the bag from the counter.

Rezo emitted a sigh of relief, and limped to the couch. "Who was that?" He asked, sitting onto the couch, lifting his foot to rub the swollen ankle.

Zelgadis glanced to the ankle before he scratched his cheek with an index finger.  "It was Amelia.  She... asked me to go to the fair with her."

Rezo chuckled, hiding the pain the ankle was causing from his face. "What time?"

Zelgadis blushed furiously at the fact Rezo was assuming he said yes even though he HAD said yes.  "She's picking me up at five..."

Rezo sighed deeply, gazing over at Zel. "Seems pretty bad, doesn't it? The girlfriend picking up the boyfriend." He shook his head, and chuckled. "If you go out and start cleaning, you should have two hours of free-time before she comes, if you don't go slow. I think I'm going to take a nap."

Zelgadis Graywords blushed more, waving his hands in front of him quickly.  "S-she isn't my -girlfriend-, Rezo!  S-she...just wanted someone to go with..."

Rezo shook his head, and leaned back on the couch. "Right, whatever you say, Zelgadis. Go on out and start work. Tell me before you leave."

Zelgadis put his arms back to his sides, sighing heavily.  "Right, right..." He picked up the bag and began to go to the door before he stopped, glancing behind him back to Rezo.  "Uhm, Rezo? " 

Rezo lifted his head, curiously. "Yes?"

Zelgadis bit his lip for a second before continuing.  "Your ankle, you are going to go see a doctor about it, right?  Or perhaps something else to help it?"

He chuckled, smiling. "I'll soak it in some water when I take my nap."

Zelgadis nodded.  "Alright. " He turned and started back to the shrine with his bag. 

Two hours later, Zel finally finished, and upon returning, Rezo was asleep on the couch, his ankle set in a bowl of water, and as Rezo said, he had two hours left to himself before she'd come.

Zelgadis smiled slightly seeing Rezo had done as he said he would.  "Now what to do..." He muttered quietly, looking around.  He looked at his clothes and frowned, they -were- a bit dirty after he had done that work outside. He went into his room and changed his clothes to cleaner ones, then going to the mirror to brush his hair a bit.  It wasn't going to hurt if he at least tried to look a bit nice...

And through Zel's open window was the one dog. She barked a few times, bouncing on her hind feet.

Zelgadis sweat dropped and sighed. "Be a bit more quiet, Rezo is sleeping." He put the brush down and went over to the window to pet her head.  "What do you want?  Some food? "

She barked more, attempting to climb through. She looked rather plump, a bit... too plump for a stray dog.

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow.  "Have you been being fed by the other neighbors too?  Or is Rezo just feeding you a lot. " He sighed and watched her for a bit, crossing his arms.  "I'm not going to help you get through the window so you better find out a way to get through yourself."

She whined, and gave a 'snort', and moved back, before literally jumping through the window, and onto Zel. She gained quite a lot of weight, which made herself exceedingly heavy. She began to give Zel multiple kisses, breathing right on his nose.

Zelgadis irked and coughed a few times since he got most of the breath knocked out of him, moving his hands up to guard his face from her 'kisses'.  "Off!  OFF! You're HEAVY!" 

She whined and moved off him, her very large stomach shaking as she went. Zelgadis sat up and muttered about 'stupid dog slobbering all over him' as he wiped his face with his sleeve.

Rezo stumbled in, blinking. "What was th-... Oh, she's back."

Zelgadis put his arm down and blinked at Rezo blankly before he seemed to panic slightly.  "AH!  I'm sorry I woke you up, Rezo!" 

Rezo shook his head as the fat dog walked over to him. He knelt and patted her on the head. "Oh, I see you've gained weight... or could you be pregnant?" He mused, smiling as she licked his cheek.

Zelgadis blinked then paled, his eye twitching slightly.  "You don't mean I'm going to have PUPPIES to jump on me TOO?!"

Rezo chuckled. "You can name the girl, I'm going to go finish my nap. I'll go to the doctor's later today, and then I'll pick up a collar for her. We'll get her license tomorrow, with her name. I'll pick you up at eleven thirty tonight, all right?"

Zelgadis blinked, "Where will she stay?"

Rezo smiled. "In your room, my room has too many valuable items. Hurry up and name her, so when I pick you up, you can tell me." He then departed.

Zelgadis got up and brushed himself off before glancing to the dog.  "A name, a name.  What should I call you..." He placed his thumb and index finger against his chin, thinking.

She pranced around, her large tummy swaying from side to side as she did so. She sat, barked a few times, and repeated this process.

Zelgadis sat on his bed and watched, raising an eyebrow.  "I know what I should call you, -annoyance-. "  Sighed and leaned back slightly, using his elbows to prop himself up.  "Never had a pet before, need a name..."

She padded over to him, and sat her dark chocolate cranium on his knee, looking rather adorable.

Zelgadis smiled a bit and rubbed her head a bit, massaging her behind the ears. She yawned, and closed an eye, staring at him with one ear perked.

Zelgadis whined, shaking his head.  "I can't think of a name..." He smacked his forehead over and over again as he tried to think. She jumped onto his chest and sat on him again, barking. Her fur seemed to be swirling, some light brown was on her stomach, as if it were caramel.

Zelgadis twitched a bit but let her this time.  "I can always call you Chocolate... but that's a common name for brown dogs I bet. What about Candy?  Gah, I have to stop thinking of food names, I'll make myself hungry..." She barked, and licked his face a few times, lying on him and staring at him with large brown eyes, once more.

Zelgadis rubbed his face with his sleeve, muttering about dog slobber under his breath before looking at her again as he tried to think of a name.  "Snickers! Wait."  He shook his head growling a bit.  "Stupid, stupid candy names." She barked, and jumped up and down on his bed, until she collapsed onto her side and stretched, lounging.

Zelgadis blinked, raising an eyebrow.  "What, you like the name Snickers?" She nodded from her lying state, and yawned, her tail tapping against the blankets.

Zelgadis blinked then shrugged.  "Okay then, I'll get hungry but oh well."  He got off the bed and brushed himself off before he glanced at the clock in his room. It was only three, and the newly named Snickers fell asleep. An hour passed, and then more, until Zel heard the honk from a certain limo. Rezo was also asleep, but moved into his room this time.

Zelgadis had been reading a fiction book and was quite absorbed in it until he heard the honk, jumping and quickly putting the book down on the bed.  He went out of his room and opened the door, blinking outside.

Amelia hopped out of the limo, then began climbing the stairs that led towards Zel's house.  This took a while since there were quite a lot of stairs. When she got there she waved energetically, "Hi, Zelgadis-san! Are you ready to go?"

Zelgadis closed the door behind him quietly and blushed slightly.  "Yeah, I'm ready..." A few birds were in the small fountain, and the driver honked again, they were running a little late.

Amelia blinked at the fountain. She wondered if the birds were drowning or if it was just a birdbath. She was alerted out of her thoughts when she heard the driver honk. "We better go if we don't want to be late!" She began running down the stairs by two's. Zelgadis sweat dropped and followed her, not as fast as she was going though.

When the two reached the fair, it wasn't crowded at all, until they reached the middle of it where they were caught up in a group. The two then heard Lina, Amelia sweat dropped and turned around. Not that she needed to see who said that, she could recognize that voice anywhere. "Er, hello Lina-san...!"

A few people bumped and pushed the four, causing the gap between them to close as they were pushed until they stood in front of each other.

"Heh, what are you two doing here--and together?"

Zelgadis had a blush go over the bridge of his nose, his eyes widening slightly as he began to stutter.  "A-ah, well. A-amelia asked me to go, and, ehnnn..." 

Amelia crossed her arms and blushed. "What do you expect people to do at a fair? Play the games and get on the rides! I didn't want to go by myself so I asked Zelgadis-san to come with me..." The people finally separated and went about to doing other things.

Lina quirked a brow, "... Then why blush?"

Zelgadis' blush simply grew as he became more flustered at what Lina said.  "T-the way you put it sounded like you were suspecting something else!!!" 

Amelia looked off to the side for a distraction. She spotted a game with a large kiddy pool that had rubber duckies floating around in it. "Oh, I love that game!"

It got a little crowded, and then spaced out again, a few people buying some candy and other items.

Lina sweat dropped, folding her arms. "O... kay. Whatever you two saaaay..."

Gourry tugged on Lina's sleeve. "Can we go and do something? I'm bored."

Zelgadis sighed heavily as he calmed down, his blush fading. 

Amelia waved before grabbing Zel's arm and dragging him towards the game she had pointed at earlier. "Bye Lina-san, Gourry-san!" She yelled as she ran off.

Amelia stopped in front of the kiddy pool full of rubber ducks. She reached in her purse and gave the person that was working the game a dollar. She looked around at the pool, then plucked a rubber duck and turned it over to look at the bottom of it.

The man reached up and took a peanut, and handed it to Amelia. "Here you go!"

Zelgadis sighed heavily as he watched Amelia.  Did Lina HAVE to bring up that him and Amelia had gone to the fair together?  She just wanted someone to go with, it wasn't anything special. He pushed the thought out of his mind and looked around boredly at all the other games.

Amelia sweat dropped, holding the peanut in front of her face. She wondered if it was even fresh. "Oh well..." She pouted a little, and then turned around. "Do you see any games you like, Zelgadis-san?"

A large bunny that was similar to the costume Zel had worn for that mansion was up on a rack on the game where you'd throw a ball and try to hit all the bottles down.

Zelgadis shook his head slowly.  "Not really..."

Amelia glanced around for another game until she spotted the bunny. "Oh, its so cute!" She practically squealed.

The man behind the counter chuckled at Amelia. "Just hit all the bottles and you can have the bunny for yourself. And it's not even ripped. I just got it today."

Zelgadis looked surprised for a minute looking from Amelia to the bunny before a small smirk appeared on his face.  He went over to the counter and took out a dollar.  "I'll try for it."

Amelia was looking at the bunny from in front of the counter with a small pout on her face. Amelia had bad coordination, so she wouldn't be able to hit all of them. It was about that time that Zel volunteered, "Oh, Thank you Zelgadis-san!"

The man gave Zel three balls, and stepped to the side. "If you hit them all with a single ball, we'll give you the bunny, and your dollar back. If you use more than one, we'll give you another prize."

Zelgadis nodded, still smirking a bit.  He put the other two down and squinted a bit, aiming before he drew his arm back and threw the ball at the bottles. Crash! Zel hit them all, gasp. The man clapped and gave Zel his dollar back, and reached up, taking the bunny from the rack and handed it to Amelia. "Good job! I bet your little lady will be very pleased." He laughed, winking at Amelia.

Amelia raised her fist into the air when the crash was heard. "Yatta!" She gratefully took the bunny, but blushed at the 'little lady' comment. She changed the subject, "I should name it..." She was suddenly reminded of the misadventure at the doll maker's mansion, which caused her to grin. "... Zelgabunny!"

Zelgadis had been smirking, his arms crossed after he took the dollar from the man.  He was feeling quite proud of himself even ignoring what the man said.  However, he quickly blushed and stared at Amelia, his eye twitching slightly when she announced her name for it.  "W-what?!" 

Amelia continued grinning to herself. "It reminded me of how you were dressed when we were in the doll maker's mansion!" She raised the bunny in front of Zel so he could get a better look at it. "Don't you see the resemblance?"

Zelgadis' face went deep red, turning his back to it.  "There is NO resemblance, what so ever!"

A child that went to Amelia's knees tugged on her pant leg, having large eyes. She sniffled and lifted up the ducky. "What is me supposed to do wit' this, miss?" She asked politely, her big sister had nothing to do with the game she just paid for it.

Amelia giggled, "Whatever you say, Zelgadis-san..." She looked down at the child, then at the ducky. "Oh! It's very simple. You show the number on the ducky to the person that runs the game. The number determines what kind of prize you get!"

Zelgadis looked behind him and blinked at the child.  He was bored again now; there wasn't much that he wanted to do at the fair.

The child stared at the ducky. "Oh." She turned and gave the number five duck to the owner, who gave her a large dragon plushy. Over on the other side was the face painter, looking bored after she had finished with the other two.

Amelia smiled to herself, glad she had done some sort of good deed. She spotted the face painter, "Oh look Zelgadis-san! We can get our faces painted."

Zelgadis looked up at the face painter, frowning.  "Er, I don't really want my face painted but you can go ahead."

Amelia held the bunny in one arm then used the other to drag Zel towards the face painter. "Oh, come on! It'll be fun!"

Zelgadis yelped slightly, walking quickly to avoid tripping.  "B-but I!"

When they reached her, she was finishing up a child, and blinked at them. "Why, hello there."

Amelia stopped dragging him when they reached the face painter. She blinked up at him, "But what?"

Zelgadis sweat dropped as he straightened himself, glancing from the painter to Amelia.  "Ah, nothing."

She pulled out the three pieces of paper once more. "Which kind of design do you want, and who wants one?"

Amelia tapped her chin, "Hmm, I think I'll have.... a star!" She glanced at Zel, "What about you, Zelgadis-san?"

Zelgadis shook his head.  "I don't really want a face painting." 

She shook her head and took Zel's hand, pulling him onto the seat. "Nonsense! Everyone likes a face painting! We'll give you the bunny!" She giggled, and set to painting a bunny, that looked just like the one in Amelia's arms, on his cheek.

Amelia giggled as well, "And we can name it Zelgabunny too!"

Zelgadis irked, blinking quickly but letting her, trying not to frown when Amelia said Zelgabunny so he wouldn't ruin it. 

When she finished it, she pulled Amelia onto the seat lightly, and began to paint a star on her cheek. "You're Mayor Philionel's daughter, aren't you?"

Amelia nodded, "Yes! How could you tell?"

Zelgadis was busy looking at the bunny on his cheek by a mirror, muttering softly to himself.

She chuckled. "You look just like your daddy, cuter, though." She paused her work when Amelia nodded, then continued. "How is he? Still caught up in work?"

Amelia replied, sadly, "Yes he's been pretty busy lately. Do you know him?"

Zelgadis ignored the conversation and looked around the fair, seeing if there was any things that he should get ready to be 'dragged to' next.

She smiled faintly. "I used to be his painter until I broke a vase, then I was fired, but not by him." She finished the star and cleaned the brush.

Amelia looked at the star in the mirror. "That's awful! Who fired you?"

Zelgadis glanced behind him at the two.  It seemed awkward to him that someone besides the mayor fired her if she was the -mayor's- painter. But, then again he wasn't that knowledgeable in those types of matters.

She waved a hand. "It doesn't matter. Just go have fun now!" She laughed, smiling.

Amelia waved to the painter lady. She glanced around the fair then at Zel, "Are there any rides you like, Zelgadis-san?"

Zelgadis rubbed the back of his head while he started to look around for a clock of some kind.  "No. Any that you like?" 

A ways down could be seen the exceedingly large Ferris wheel, turning around as the colors on it flashed and made designs. It looked exceedingly tempting, and many couples were lining up. "This is the most romance-filled ride here! Bring your girlfriend and boyfriend!"

Amelia didn't hear whoever said that. She pointed towards the Ferris wheel, "We could ride that. It's slow, but you get a pretty view of the whole fair!"

Zelgadis blinked at the Ferris wheel, blushing slightly at what the guy said.  "Uhm, if you really want to..." The two got in line, and took about fifteen minutes for their turn. They got in one, and it slowly started to go, and right on the second turn, as they reached the top... the wheel stopped, as it usually does, but this time it remained there, longer than usual. The people began to yell about a malfunction.

Amelia looked out the window and enjoyed the view.  When the wheel stopped at first she didn't worry about it, since the Ferris wheel always stops at the top for a minute or two. That is, until she heard what the people were yelling. "Uh-Oh... how long do you think we'll be stuck up here?"

Zelgadis moaned and smacked his forehead.  "I don't know it could be a while.  They should make these stupid things better." He glanced out the window and sighed lightly.

Amelia sighed as she tried to find a bright side to the situation. "Well, at least the scenery is nice..." She pointed at the window where all the flashing lights of rides and all the people could be seen.

Zelgadis leaned against the seat, staring at the ceiling.  "I should take a nap..."

Amelia pouted, but decided to let him sleep. Of course after about a few minutes of silence she got bored with it, "Zelgadis-san... Why do you think we were all brought back to life?"

Zelgadis looked over to her before he thought about it, putting his index finger and thumb against his chin again.  "I dunno.  People get reincarnated.  It could just be that we were reincarnated, and got our memories back by sheer luck." 

Amelia sighed, "I guess so. But it's just strange that we all got reincarnated... Even Sylphiel-san! We all got reincarnated at the same time, most of us regained our memories and are even still able to cast magic! It's just... strange." She decided to move on to another question, "What do you plan to do in this life, now that you're a human?"

Zelgadis had been pondering over what she said before she asked the next question, his eyes widening slightly.  "I... Well, I don't know.  I can't do too much, since I'm still in school and all. I'll think about it more when I'm done with high school."

Amelia shifted the bunny so that she was holding it, but using it as pillow at the same time. "Even though things are easy now with all the technology, I miss the way things were before... We didn't have to wake up and do the same thing every day, with school I mean. And we could use magic freely. Even with all the mazoku and injustices, I still miss it." She sighed wistfully.

Zelgadis watched her, leaning against the seat more.  "It was a bit nicer back then, none of this nonsense homework and projects. I'm thinking of asking Rezo if I can go back to home schooling, but I don't want to bother him with it anymore." He looked away from her and up at the ceiling.  "However, I do not want it to go back to the way it was since I would probably be a chimera again if it ever did."

Amelia glanced out the window. "I'm not so sure if I would want to go back to being a princess. I mean, I love daddy and I would pretty much do anything for Seyruun, the duties were boring a lot of the time and traveling with you, Lina-san and Gourry-san was much more fun. I didn't have to worry about arranged marriages or anything."

Zelgadis blushed slightly at the comment about the marriages, looking back at her.  "I suppose it would be."

"... How is Rezo-san? He seemed to think that you hated him when I last saw him.  He's very different from the Rezo we fought. -Do- you hate him?"

Zelgadis tensed and looked away from her to the window.  "I don't really want to talk about Rezo..."

Amelia looked up and blinked at him, "What do you want to talk about then?"

Zelgadis blinked in surprised and looked back at her, he wasn't used to hearing that kind of question.  "What do I want to talk about?" 

Amelia nodded, "Yes. You usually don't talk much so what do you like to talk about?"

Zelgadis stared at her blankly, still confused.  "Uhm, nothing? Normally I just answer questions from people and point out observations, there isn't really anything I -like- to talk about..." 

"But wasn't that because you were a chimera, so you didn't want to be noticed and got used to not talking to people? That's what I always thought."

"I never talked much period, there was never a lot of people for me to really talk TO."

Suddenly, it started moving. Amelia jerked since the movement of the Ferris wheel was sudden to her. She looked out the window to see how close to the ground they were, then back at Zel. "Well, now that you're human you have no reason to be anti-social. So... I'm going to make sure you talk more!" As she said this she pointed one of her fingers and winked.

Zelgadis made a sound, surprised by the sudden movement then blushed when Amelia winked at him.  "Er..." It didn't take them long to reach the ground, and the people let them out, apologizing for how long it took.

Amelia climbed out of the cart, holding the bunny in one hand and stretching with the other. Her legs or arms had no doubt fallen asleep from that entire sitting.

Zelgadis got out after her, suddenly worried.  "Amelia, do you know what time it is?"

Amelia looked at her watch, "Eight, we still have a lot of time!"

Zelgadis sighed.  "Only eight?  What else -is- there to do?"

Amelia caught a few rides to go on, such as the teacup ride, and after letting Zel go to the bathroom; they grabbed a few snacks, and went on a few more rides until eleven. Zel and Amelia, now holding hands, and the entire place was pretty empty, headed back to the front where the limo was waiting.

Amelia swung her hand cheerfully at her side, which also caused her to swing Zel's hand. This seemed to make her happy. She pouted when she saw the limo in the distance, "Well, bye Zelgadis-san... I'll see you at school?"

Zelgadis was smiling slightly, watching her out of the corner of his eye and ignoring the fact she was swinging his arm.  "Yes, I'll see you Monday. Ah, Amelia?  B-before you go." A small blush crept over the bridge of his nose, his smile not leaving. The limo merely waited, and a few people passed, but only a few, which simply went into their cars and drove off.

Amelia blinked up at Zel, still holding his hand. "Hmm?"

Zelgadis tensed for a second before he drew her closer to him by her hand for a second, kissing her on the cheek lightly.  After he had done this he moved away from her, not letting go of her hand however as his blush grew noticeably.  "Ah, Goodnight." 

Amelia blushed, taking on a noticeably shocked expression. After the initial shock and embarrassment was over she let go of Zel's hand so she could grab his face and pull it closer since she couldn't reach it. She returned to kiss on the cheek, "Good night to you too, Zelgadis-san!" 

Zelgadis' whole face turned red, blinking quickly.  "Ahh..." 

Amelia waved, beaming as she did, then scurried off to the limo. When she entered, the limo drove off. Seven minutes later, Rezo pulled up in their old, dark blue van. Zelgadis, by that time he had recovered from the kiss, going to the van and opening the front door to get in.

Rezo looked slightly out of it, in the back of the van was Snickers, who was eating some snacks. "I brought her with me. I got her some food and things for you to brush her and give her a bath... also took her to a vet. They said she's pregnant, due next month; day before Halloween." He chuckled. "Her name is?"

Zelgadis looked behind him at the dog after closing the door.  "I named her Snickers." 

Rezo nodded, "Good name." He chuckled, and started the car again, driving off.