Filia grumbled to herself miserably. She was cold, wet, tired and hungry, and following the raywinging group in front of her. She teleported to keep up with them, muttering curses under her breath. Her golden hair was plastered to her face, and her clothes clung to her as the rain mercilessly pounded down on them like silver bullets.
The whole group was soaked to the bone, their wet clothes weighing down upon them. They had originally set out by walking in the cold rain, but Lina, and her poor rumbling stomach, wanted to get to any place with food as quickly as possible. Filia's shoulders drooped from the weight of her clothes, and she kept what little sanity she had left by blaming everything on a certain purple haired masochist mazoku.
But of course, blaming said mazoku didn't change that fact that she was cold, wet, tired and hungry. "Lina!" The golden ryuzoku called out. "Lina, can we please stop?"
Lina paused in the air for a moment, one hand holding onto Gourry, before she silently descended, her small feet touching the wet ground. Everyone else stopped beside the sorceress as she turned to face Filia, the rain still beating down upon all of them.
"Sure," Lina said, turning back around and facing the direction they were heading. Filia sighed, feeling relieved. "After," Lina added over her shoulder, "we find some food!" And the redhead quickly took off again, laughing.
"Why me?" Filia muttered, and followed after the group once again. Amelia and Zelgadis had been quiet ever since they left the cave, and they always avoided the other's gaze. No one in the group seemed to notice this, though. Zelgadis was normally on the quiet side, and so they shrugged off his silence as brooding, and Amelia had already been through a lot, and they knew she was probably worried about Saillune and her father.
Lina's laughter died out quickly; and no one in the group had joined her in her laughter. And it hadn't been a happy laugh; it was just something Lina longed to hear her friends do. The redhead could never stand a melancholy mood while travelling, and so she always tried to make light of anything she possibly could to lift the mood. But the mood never lightened, no matter how hard she tried. She had tried before, to hide her real feeling's by laughing and acting as if nothing was wrong, and she was trying it yet again. But the fact that they were heading towards a crumbling Saillune, to fight creatures they couldn't seem to beat, made everyone feel quite gloomy. And with Amelia no longer her optimistic and energetic self, Lina felt the need to have something to laugh about. To see some other emotion other than worry and sadness flit across their faces, and hers.
A heavy silence fell, filled with only the sounds of the harsh wind against their bodies and the pounding of rain. Filia, in the middle of thinking malicious thoughts about a certain trickster priest, suddenly felt a cold shiver run down her back. She stopped in her tracks and looked around. Trees surrounded the path they were following, and just beyond the first row of trees lay darkness. Nothing looked out of the ordinary; nothing moving in the shadows, no sounds of feet following or of something up above. And yet…
She turned back around, pushing her suspicions out of her mind. Just concentrate on what to do once we all reach Saillune…and how to tear the filthy namagomi's limbs from his body…no, no, just think of Saillune and the bad guys…
She teleported again; everything passing her in a whirl of dark colours and shapes. The group was just above her, and she continued to teleport after them to keep up. It wouldn't be long now until they reached Saillune…
She stopped again and scanned her surrounding's once more. Just think…She glanced to her left, about…She glanced to her right, what we should do…She glanced behind her, her eyes becoming mere slits in her face, once we get to…Saillune…
She whipped herself around to her left again, and stared into the darkness behind the first row of trees. There! She thought to herself, staring harder into the gloom. I know I saw something move…
"Oi! Filia!!!"
Filia turned back around, and saw in the distance the shapes of her friends, all hovering in the air.
"Stop lagging behind!" Lina called out, her one arm outstretched and holding onto Gourry. "The sooner I get my food, the better!!"
With one last glare at the trees, Filia teleported right underneath Lina and Co.
"Sorry Lina…I could've sworn -"he golden haired ryuzoku started, as Lina took off again, yelling something incoherently and dragging behind her a bewildered Gourry- "- I saw something," Filia finished to herself, beginning to feel listless.
But Filia couldn't shake off that nagging, insistent feeling…she could sense someone…or something…She shook her head, trying to get rid of the ever-growing feeling of being watched, and continued to teleport to keep up with the rest of the group.
-----------------------------------------
Zelgadis had been watching Filia curiously, wondering at what it was that was making her hesitate. Maybe she doesn't want to go back to Saillune, he thought for a moment. No…no, she keeps looking around. Maybe she's seen something…
As the blue chimera flew above the path, his eyes darted to the canopy of trees below. He looked for something unusual…anything just a little out of the ordinary. He even tried to use his sharp hearing to hear something prowling around in the shadows below. But he could only hear the wind breeze past him and the rain pound against his body and the ground below. He glanced back at Amelia, and a worried expression flitted across his face for a moment.
Amelia looked…horrible.
There were black circles under her eyes. She flew at the end of the group, ignoring everything around her except for the rain that continued to bear down upon them and the brown blanket she clutched around herself protectively. The raven-haired Princess had the strong urge to stop; a part of her didn't want to see Saillune. It was the same part that was afraid, and wanted to find a hole to hide in. It was the same part that wanted to curl up into a pathetic ball and cry. It was the same part of her that felt like an injured animal that had just lost all rays of any hope for living.
But she had to stay strong. She would be stronger than her sister had ever been—and she would not let anyone else see how much she was really hurting inside. She didn't want anyone to ever see that other side of her—the doubting side--ever again. She wouldn't let her fear control her, and she wanted everyone around her to see it. She wasn't just some small, annoying child.
She chanced a glance over at Zelgadis, her face deceiving her and showing everyone what it was she was thinking. But the chimera wasn't looking; and as she watched his sharp profile, she felt a tingling sensation pass through her. She turned away quickly, dismissing the feeling. She was sure it was because she knew that they were so close to Saillune.
Although Amelia knew she had to be strong, she still felt despair, fear and frustration flow through her veins. But her heart pumped loudly in her chest, reminding her that she was still alive, as it pumped courage and strength through her. She breathed in deeply, willing herself to be calm—If not for myself, than for father, she told herself.
-----------------------------------
"I hate the rain," Filia grumbled to herself, the cold chilling her to the bone.
"Oh, I rather like it."
Filia cringed, and the rest of the group overhead stopped silently. The golden ex-priestess could feel her blood boil, as her hands clenched at her sides, longing to grab her mace. Stay cool and collected…don't let someone like HIM get to you, she told herself, as she forced her body to turn and look at the owner of the cheery voice she had just heard.
He stood there, a grin on his face; his eyes closed in that annoying expression of his. His purple hair didn't look wet at all, and in his white-gloved hands he held a staff, a blood red stone set into it. His black cloak flew behind him in the breeze as he continued to grin at her.
"If I wanted your opinion, which I wouldn't have wanted anyways, I would've given it to you," Filia said calmly, though on the inside she felt that smashing his head open would give her true peace of mind.
"Now, Fi-chan…don't act like the selfish, undignified dragon you are. Everyone is entitled to my opinion," he said, smiling even wider than before. Filia dug her nails into the palm of her hand to stop from turning into a dragon to blast him into smithereens. Well, two can play at this game…
"I don't think the opinion of a filthy, pig-headed namagomi counts as much," the golden haired ryuzoku said airily, grinning at him. Her grin turned into a smile when she saw his eye twitch, and his smile falter.
But Lina didn't want to waste time. She was hungry, and she did want to get to Saillune as soon as possible. Was it just a mere coincidence that they were stalled by Xellos when they were already so close to Saillune? They were only minutes away from the white, holy city…
"Xellos!" The redhead called out somewhat cheerily, interrupting the wave of insults and cynicism flying from the mouths of both the mazoku and the ryuzoku. She flew down with Gourry following (seeing as he was holding onto Lina). The rest of the group dropped down to the ground also, Amelia almost reluctantly. She wasn't sure if she would be able to continue towards Saillune again if she stopped now, when she was already so close…even the trees looked familiar to her already.
"Why Lina! How've you been lately?" Xellos chirped up cheerfully, completely ignoring the fuming dragon standing only a few feet away. He sounded as if he just happened to walk past her and was surprised to see her.
"Not bad…" came her reply as she walked up to the trickster priest. "But I was wondering…what are you doing here?"
"Lina! You sound so suspicious. I only came by to see my Fi-chan…"
"I'M NOT YOUR'S AND DON'T CALL ME FI-CHAN!!!!" Filia cried, lifting up her pink dress to get her beloved mace-sama. She swung hard at him and missed...again… What happened to the good old days when I could ACTUALLY HIT HIM!? She thought, feeling completely frustrated.
"Oi…Lina," Gourry began, nudging the sorceress' side a bit, eyeing the mace in Filia's hand warily. He had…met it up close, once before, and he didn't seem in any hurry to relive that experience. "Maybe we shouldn't get TOO close to Filia…"
Zelgadis sighed, putting a hand to his face. Xellos was the last person he wanted to see…and he seemed to have the worst timing in the world…either that, or the best…
Amelia was too immersed in her thoughts to really notice that Xellos was there; she had seen him, but the fact that he was there didn't really register in her mind. She hugged her middle, the blue dress she still wore ripped, dirty and wet, and her brown blanket was held fast by one hand. She lifted her gaze to look down the road, in the direction of Saillune.
She could see images in her mind; the beautiful, tall white walls surrounding the city, all crumbled and destroyed, its rubble lying in the no-longer busy streets. The streets themselves were cracked, the building's missing walls…destruction everywhere…
Amelia closed her azure eyes, and shook her head of the images. Did she really want to see Saillune? Were people…dead? Because of her? Do I really want to find out? But something inside her told her that she knew she had to get to Saillune…had to save whoever and whatever she could. She had to do the smart thing—the right thing—the Just thing…But she didn't want to. She didn't want to see her home, destroyed. It didn't seem real to her yet, and if she were to never see it, then it wouldn't really be real…it wouldn't seem real, because she wouldn't have seen it with her own eyes.
Maybe she could just forget it all…forget how much pain she was in, and how lonely she would feel if she did see Saillune destroyed. She knew what was the right thing—the Just thing to do, but she didn't have to do it. She could turn her back…but what would that do? It would mean spending the rest of her life never knowing for certain. She would be hiding. She would be in terror every day of her life because someone would still be out there, trying to kill her…and one of her friends…but that would be better than the way she was living now, wouldn't it?
Right now, she was scared, afraid, terrified, sad, depressed, worried, cold, hungry, wet, lost, alone, confused, and uncertain…Anything would be better than what she was living through now, right? She sighed inwardly, her chest heaving with suppressed sobs.
She opened her eyes, and glanced around her, taking everything in. The dirt path she was standing on, the surrounding trees, the rain falling lightly now, the harsh wind causing her hair to fly past her face, and the people standing before her…her friends. She studied each one of them closely for a moment, almost hesitating when her gaze fell upon Zelgadis. Her dark eyebrows knotted, as she thought hard for a moment about him.
She then turned back to look down the road again, towards the white city, and just as she did, the wind rolled past her from behind, causing her blue skirt to ripple ahead of her, trying to follow the wind, her ebony black hair flying into her face and in front of her. It was like a wave had hit; even the trees and the grass bent towards Saillune, the strong gust of wind forcing the pebbles around her feet to roll past her. Ahead…she would follow the wind, she could feel it push against her back, and whisper as it moved past her.
She felt herself shiver involuntarily. The voices of her friends became clearer as the sound of the wind roaring in her ears died down. Her black hair now only fluttered in front of her face as the wind became a gentle breeze; still insisting for her to move forwards, but soft enough so that it gently tickled her olive skin.
Amelia glanced towards her friends for a moment, and then began to move forward. Nothing was going to stop her from reaching Saillune. A quiet thought at the back of her mind told her she was going home.
"Amelia? Amelia! Where are you going?" Lina called out when she turned to see her friend walking with her jaw set towards Saillune. Zelgadis was trying to catch up to Amelia, and he was soon followed by the rest of the group.
"I'm going home, Lina. I'm going to Saillune." And with that, Amelia raywinged into the air, and the rest of the group followed. Filia and Xellos, however, stayed on the path.
"What a cute tail, Fi-chan! Oooh! And you even wear a pink and white garter!" Xellos commented happily. Filia shrieked as she turned to see Xellos peeking under her skirt, her tail sticking out behind her. "NAMAGOMI!!!!!!!!" She screeched, flailing her mace around her wildly. Xellos jumped back, winked at her, and disappeared. Filia made a noise of frustration, and, turning back around to see the group ahead of her, teleported to catch up to them.
-------------------------------------
"We should stop now," Lina said, landing quietly on the path just as Filia appeared right before them. Everyone else had landed quietly beside the sorceress as well, curiosity and confusion etched across their features. "We don't want to be seen."
Nobody had to ask the question, "Seen by whom". Even Gourry had understood. They quietly walked up a very small hill, and hesitated for a moment, making sure there were no shadows in front of them, or sounds. The five stood at the top of the small hill, a row or two of trees right in front of them, keeping them all from view of the city, and the view of the city from them.
Everyone turned to look at Amelia, who had taken a deep breath. She looked at Lina, who whispered, "There's no turning back now." Nodding, the Crown Princess emerged from the shelter of the trees to see the white city of Saillune in front of her, no longer shining in brilliance, but crumbled and broken, the remains of a gate in front of her not too far away. Not everything was collapsed; most of the city's walls still stood, and there were still buildings standing. In the heart of the once magnificent holy city, her castle still stood, though it's windows were shattered and the walls were cracked. The group followed her out into the open to see the city in front of them.
Amelia breathed in a ragged breath, and tears spilled from her eyes, sliding silently down her olive cheeks and off her chin onto the ground beneath them. Her home. Destroyed. Her home. It was real. It did happen. She couldn't run now. But small voice in her head, so small she almost missed it, gave her strength, and with it, anger. It was a tiny thought, soft and hardly there. It was a thought that came and went, but left behind strength and anger.
She was home.
-------------------------------------
*A/N: Hi again everyone! I've been missing for a while again! I'm so sorry! But…well, what did you think of the latest chapter. I'm actually quite pleased, although I didn't read through it, so there might be a few mistakes. It also happens to be the longest chapter I've ever written! *grins* But I'm sorry that its still a bit short, though, cause it is…
Anyways, thanks to everyone who reads this fic, and thank you all for reviewing! Pretty much everyone who reviewed this chapter were all new! So thanks to Jellybe (I'm not sure if L and G will really get together), Allie (I'm glad Amelia's maturity is still believable), Ironic Paradise (Sorry this chap took a while!), Menequilda Baggins (Thnx for the support! Love your name, too ^^), NeoChaosCrystal (trickster priest showed up, and he will again very, very soon!), Mu Mao (thnx so much for your review, I hope I get to read some of your work once you get it up. Has your sister left a review? If not, tell her I say thanx for reading. If she has, well, she's already been in the spotlight ^^) and last, but definitely not least, one of my faithful reviewers, Faith! (Heheh…oops? Sorry about being slow these days…^^)
Thank you all for reviewing! You're all the best! And thanks to the people who don't review, but still read. I'm sure there's a few of you! Till next time! –Vivi Laney