A/N: Chapter 5! There's only 2 more left to this fic, so savor what you can ^_^ and this fic should be complete by Sunday…
The Narrator: Zel does lend himself to being abused a lot. Notice how in the series that he as the 'angsty guy' of the team is often the butt of most jokes ^_^ I figured that Ame was really worried about Zel for her last words to be "It's okay…it's okay…" Awww…
Ichiban Victory: Hint, is all I'll say ^_^ Zelgadis'll take a bit of time to get the message, cause he's a stubborn rockhead. -_- As for taking it to heart…^_~ Heck, even Rodimus is gonna wish that he'd whacked Zel when he had the chance. ^_^
Earth Star: Here's the meeting, and things get weird O_O
Mossygirl: Ooh, another Harvest Moon player ^_^ Yes, the colors do indicate stuff, as explained later…
Deep Sea Dolphin: Well, if Mme. Seyruun had been like Zel, it'd probably explain Ame's preferences…but then again, who knows? ^_^ Credit for the hooters goes to Sunoko, my cool beta.
J. Rhaye: Congrats on writing the thickest review I've had yet XD Yup, Zel needed that talk, and although it doesn't seem to have much effect yet, it's pretty important for upcoming…stuff… ^_^ I like Hammerspace. Anyway, I think that Zolf and Rodimus were quite close to Zel considering they'd betray a powerful guy like Rezo to help him ^_^ Thanks so much for your comments (now I know I'm doing something right ^_^) and yes, the two naked people find each other…hehehe. ^_^
A/N On The Story: In which the two protoganists find each other, some embarassing stuff happens, and a weird mental thing occurs.
So what will you do, once you go back to the real world?
What else is there? Search once again for a cure. I doubt that this current humanity, while wonderful, will last when I'm revived.
Is the cure really worth everything? Look at yourself now; human, yes, but in exchange for everything else. Your companions, your magic, your very life itself.
But it's not forever! I'm returning, aren't I?
That's right, but it means returning back to the way things were before. It means the loss of your human body, and a return to that which you call a monstrosity. The question is, why do you still seek a cure, knowing what you might have to do in exchange someday?
You don't know what it will take to turn my body back to normal. It's out there, somewhere, and there's no way you can tell right now what I'll need to do. You can't see the future; you're me, damn it!
And yet… surely you yourself cannot tell if there is a cure at all. For if I am you, and you are I, neither of us knows for certain. And should the day come when you do find your chance for a cure… what will you give up for it? Is it really worth the price?
…I can't believe this. Rodimus is taking over my mind.
He knows you well enough, and he knows the world well enough to give true advice. His words are not so preposterous as you think they are.
If you're me, can't you see that this cure means everything to me?! I have no life to give up! What chance I had at having one was taken away from me when Rezo changed me into the freak I am! It's because I want a life, a normal, human life, that I'm looking for a damned cure in the first place!
What is humanity? Is it having human skin, human hair, human looks?
Yes! What humanity lies in stone skin and wire hair? In being unable to touch, to feel? Unable to walk among men without receiving cries of horror and disgust?
Then that would mean Xelloss is more human than you, would it not?
…N-no, of course not!
But it does. He has skin, and hair, and looks. If your definition of humanity is such, then even the Chaos Dragon Gaav, or Hellmaster Phibrizzo, are more human than you.
I…
What is humanity? To be truly human?
I…
Is it only the outside that matters? Look inside yourself, within your heart, and say truly; what makes one human?
…I don't know. I really don't know.
…Then we shall find out together…
The second voice fell silent, but the question still rang through my mind with the clarity—and persistence—of a bell.
I thwacked myself over the head.
I was having an argument with me. Right. What's next, the lunatic's asylum? Or maybe Limbo has an effect of turning people insane—wait a minute. There's something ahead…
In the darkness, a distinct glow was slowly approaching.
Instinct set me on the alert; this was who the thread was leading me to, but it could be anyone. Or anything. But the voice within whispered that it was alright, and that I should go without fear, because nothing bad would happen.
The distance between us closed, and I could see what was illuminated by the glow.
Familiar black hair, petite figure, blue eyes…
Gods, it's Amelia!
And you're both naked!
Oh, crapper. Breathe, Zelly-boy, breathe. Inhale, exhale. Think neutral thoughts. Think good thoughts. And whatever you do, DON'T LOOK!
Whoo! She's naked! Look at those assets, boy! See 'em jiggle?
NOT good thoughts! Brain seizing up… too much information…
"Mr. Zelgadis? Is that you— yikes!"
Ack. Brain shutdown immediate.
While the spectacle of Zelgadis without his usual attire---and human, on top of that— was… err, shocking enough, it was even more amazing to see him turn an unusual shade of magenta before falling to the floor with a loud thud.
Whoops.
Something was patting me on the cheek.
I had a bad dream. I dreamt that I met a naked Amelia. And I was naked too. Well, maybe it's not so bad… arrgh, what am I thinking?!
I opened one eye and saw Amelia's concerned face (and more besides) looming over me.
"Um… are you all right, Mr. Zelgadis?"
I shut the eye. "Amelia? Could you turn away, please?" Curse the confounded squeak in my voice!
Giving her several seconds, I opened my eyes again and found myself gazing at her back. Her ears were faintly pink, confirming the suspicion that yes, the 15-year-old princess had gotten a good look at my gonads. Or at least, most of my body. I hastily turned around.
Oh Gods. Of all the possible ways to meet again… Sometimes I wonder what exactly Ceiphied has against me.
Somewhere, the spirit of the dragon god was cackling. I was sure of it.
Um… that was… interesting. No, wait, that doesn't sound right. Enlightening? I had no idea that guys had… those weird things—
Stopstopstop!!! I hit myself on the head. Do NOT go there! Think about something else!
Silence.
I twiddled my thumbs.
More silence. Just as I was about to say something—
"Amelia?"
"…Yes?"
"I'm…glad you're okay, at least. I thought I'd--" I could hear the rustle of his hair as he shook his head abruptly in the total silence. "--never mind. We're both in the same boat, anyway."
"But we're going back, aren't we? So…so we're not really gone. I bet Mr. Gourry and the others are too, somewhere out there, and we'll all meet again and go back, so there's nothing to worry about…" Warning: Rambling Alert. I stopped the flow of words, blushing. He'd admitted that he was concerned about me…
"Yeah, we are."
Silence.
"The red thread…" I whispered, gazing at the scarlet cord of light around my finger. "It's tied to you too, isn't it?"
A pause. "Mmm." Longer pause. "Do you think it means anything?"
"I don't really know… maybe it means our souls are tied together! Like the physical manifestation of the bond of friendship, or…something." Scepticism radiated off him. "Well, I was told that each of these led to one of my friends…"
"It seems that much is true. It does look as though we're all tied together, somehow."
"So… what do we do now?"
The other threads, I noticed, were slowly converging in a single direction. The pull grew stronger, as though the force of the four threads were combined into one.
"…I suppose we follow the path where it leads us. Out of here, I hope."
"Me too… And by the way, Mr. Zelgadis… I noticed that you're human."
"Mmm. Too bad this isn't going to last." A tinge of bitterness. "I was told so myself."
I scooted closer, back to him, and tentatively patted his shoulder. He flinched and tensed.
"It's okay, Mr. Zelgadis… your real body isn't bad."
Quick as lightning, he grasped my hand, eliciting a squeak from me. He gave me a look of such pure anguish, such sadness, that it hurt my heart to see him that way.
I felt my face heat up as his fingers gently ran over mine, caressing them.
"Do you know what this feels like to me?" His hand was soft as a new-born's; was it because his real human skin never had the chance to harden? "To be able to feel your fingers? To actually distinguish--"
He closed his eyes, touching the tip of the finger encircled by the glowing red circle.
"--between your skin and your nails? To touch something and feel every nuance of hard or soft, coarse or smooth? For five long years, Amelia, I've been living each day having everything I touch dulled by a layer of stone. And the loss of feeling and pressure…"
His grip tightened slightly.
"…it took me months before I could grip a cup without cracking it within my hands. Do you know what that feels like? You, who for your whole life have been able to feel anything, whether you chose to or not? You never had to watch whatever you touched for fear of breaking it. You couldn't. Your hands wouldn't leave tears in fabric if you held too tightly. Your fingers wouldn't bruise people if you poked them. People wouldn't get themselves a bloody nose if they bumped into you."
There was an increasingly hysterical note in his voice which was starting to scare me. His voice grew frantic as he opened his dull blue eyes and stared into mine.
"Hell, why do you think everything I wear is made of burlap? It's the only thing that doesn't shred itself to bits by rubbing against my skin. Burlap, burlap, nothing but bloody BURLAP for five years." He giggled. "And now I'm not wearing anything, and when we go back it'll be back to that freak of a body again, wearing burlap again… gods, Amelia," He jerked his hand free from mine and turned away, huddling and shivering. "What's happening to me? I'm going insane…"
Oh, Zelgadis…Not knowing what else to do, I knelt behind him and gave the biggest hug I could, resting my chin on his shoulder and closing my eyes.
"You're not going insane. I won't let you," I said firmly into his ear. "You're right; I don't know how you feel, and that's because you've never told us how you felt in the first place. And now that you have…" I hugged tighter. "Don't worry, Mr. Zelgadis. We'll help you find your cure. I promise."
He held my arms in his hands, not saying a word. Just sitting together in silence, being comforted and feeling…
~TBC
A/N: O_O I didn't quite expect this to happen, but it just poured out all of a sudden… And Zel goes loony. Whoo. No worries, he's gonna forget everything that happened here. Which is a good thing, and a bad thing too… Reviews and flames about any OOCness are welcome. ^_^