Chapter nine

O.o WOW!!! So many reviews! You guys are the best! Now, I'm not going to say whom the voice belonged to, because I think most of you already know. But I will say this: A congratulations is in order for Yun Fei as he/she was the first to review, and get the answer right. Actually, Yun Fei reviewed about a half an hour after I posted the chapter So, congrats Yun Fei!

Important!!! I finally have a website up! The address is in my Profile, and it will feature not only this story, but some of my Original stories as well, when I get them up. Check it out regularly for updates!

Lina woke up as she felt something like a raindrop fall on her face. It took a moment, but her vision cleared, revealing Sylphiel leaning over her, crying. Lina was a bit surprised at the sudden vision of a face before her, and let out a startled cry, scurrying into a sitting position.

"Lina!!" Sylphiel cried, looking at her with a mixture of happiness and relief. Then, with out a passing second, she tackled Lina into a gentle hug. "I was so worried! You stopped moving and got so pale! And your body felt so cold! I tried to heal you but it didn't work and-" she stopped when she noticed she was blabbering. "What in L-sama's name happened?!"

Lina coughed slightly, struggling for air in Sylphiel's hug. After a moment, Sylphiel released her and Lina sighed. "I'm not sure. I—"

She broke off and shook her head; it was too soon to tell Sylphiel about the voice. She didn't even know who it was! Lina closed her eyes for a moment and concentrated on clearing her mind. She still had fuzzy images from the "dream" lingering on her thoughts. A sudden cold sensation traveled through out her body and filled her senses. A fragrance filled the air and Lina calmed a bit. Roses, she thought. Her eyes flew open.

The voice from before came to her, and sudden realization struck.

"Wake up Lina, follow the roses,"

She tried to stand, which ended up with her back on the ground. She let out a frustrated growl, as her head seemed to spin. Sylphiel gently placed a hand on her forehead and brushed away a few of her bangs.

"You shouldn't stand," Lina looked to the side and caught sight of Zelgadis, standing a few feet away. She released an embarrassed and slightly relieved smile.

"Well then, who's going to carry me?"

Lina sighed as she sat up in her bed. It was late, and Sylphiel had literally demanded that Lina go straight to bed. In a way, it made her happy to know that she still had friends who cared enough to make sure she was taken care of. But having a guard outside her room 24/7 was a little heavy.

And there was still the matter of that voice, and the dream. How were they connected? And the message, "Follow the roses". What did roses have to do with anything? Lina sighed. The only thing she had gotten from her little "dream" was more questions.

Lina closed her eyes and fell back onto her bed. She really was feeling better, and she felt so… trapped in the tiny room she was in. She needed air. She really needed air.

She also wanted to talk with Zel about the dream she had been having. Actually, it was more of a memory. But she still couldn't figure what it had to do with Amelia.

"That's it," she thought aloud, kicking aside the blankets and standing up. "Zel should be able to help. And if not, I'll find something to Fireball."

She slowly snuck down the hallway, hurrying towards Zel's room. From what she could tell, he stayed pretty much at the exact opposite side of the castle as she did. How he managed to get around so easily and so fast she couldn't figure. Of course, it could have something to do with the fact that he was a Chimera…

After several trial-and-error attempts, she finally found his room. She couldn't believe how hard it was. She had already gone down almost fourteen different halls before finding. She mentally swore that she would get even somehow as she slowly knocked.

After a moment, he answered, opening the door just enough to see whom it was. He looked at her surprised and said, "Lina? I thought you were resting…"

Lina rolled her eyes and cocked her head. "You're joking, right? After what happened today do you really think I want to go back to sleep?"

He shook his head tiredly and muttered something about how her logic made no sense, "What do you need?"

She smiled slightly. "I want to talk to you about…something personal."

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "If it has anything to do with complaining about Sylphiel or tomorrow's banquet, then forget it."

Lina looked at him. "Come on Zel. Wait… what banquet?"

Zelgadis sighed and began to shut the door. "Goodnight Lina,"

She stopped it with her foot and pushed it back open. "No, I'm serious Zel. I really need to talk with you…"

He looked her directly in the eye, and saw how her expression didn't change. He slowly opened the door and allowed her in. Lina didn't bother to look around, and instead went straight to his bed and sat down on it. He sat next to her. "Okay, what is it?"

"Well… lately I've been having this… weird dream…"

"A dream?"

She nodded. "Well, it's more like a memory… an old one."

"When did it start?"

She paused, thinking. "About the time I fell off the balcony…"

He nodded. She looked down at the bed, catching sight of a stray string from the blanket. She focused on that as she listened to him speak. "What happens in this… erm… memory?"

She hesitated slowly, and then began telling him what happened. She explained everything. She told him how she remembered about the chant, but couldn't remember the words. He listened attentively and waited for her to finish.

After she had told the story, he opened his mouth to say something when the sound of glass shattering erupted into an echoing call through out the hall.

There we go! Sorry it took a while… Please review!!!

Yun Fei Congrats on being the first to get the right answer! And thanks a lot! As farfetched as it may be, my stories will almost always have a twist!!! MUWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

Lina-Marie Metallium Lol, yep, I am an L/Z supporter! I do like the L/X pairing as well, though, but I prefer L/Z!

:) I'm sorry about the length! But the chapters are short because I like keeping you guys waiting for more! Lol, I'm so evil And you got the answer right!

Knight of L-sama Just ignore the length! I'm going to try and make the chapters longer for the Sequel, but for the moment just leave it be And by the way, you got the answer right as well.

Irusta I'm so glad you're enjoying this! So am I, and I'm working hard to get it done as I can start the sequel! How was this chapter?