A/N: Standard disclaimer. You know, I only write that because everyone else does. I mean, this is I obviously don't own the characters if I'm calling it fanfiction, do I? Oy. Anyway, thank you for reviewing the previous chapters, and keep in mind that more reviews keeps the ol' creative juices flowing. Just so you know, I already have the ending allll worked out. Mwa ha ha ha ha. We're still a bit away from that, though. I hope to have it done in the next couple of months, but you know how that goes....

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Lina watched closely, not speaking, as Gorran and Zelgadis pored over the books, discussing what they thought Xellos had done to himself to be put in such a state. Was it stasis for his body and encapsulation of his soul on another plane? Lina wasn't sure about that. As well as she thought she knew Xellos, he had always been relatively unpredictable, and so she wasn't really sure what strategy he would have employed. "Okay, guys, I have a question," she finally said, interrupting their quiet conferencing.

"What?" Gorran asked, raising his head from the books.

"What happens if you cast a spell and it isn't the right counterspell to whatever he did?"

Zelgadis and Gorran looked at one another. "We're not sure."

Lina groaned and put her hand to her forehead, closing her eyes and rubbing her temples. She felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up at her daughter. Gods,

Lecia was growing up to be beautiful. Lina had always wanted a figure exactly like Lecia's. Thank goodness for Xellos' contribution, or Lecia might have ended up another beanpole. "Listen," she said. "I think that instead of casting a counterspell, which I know you'll never figure out, just cast spells that will make happen what you want to happen."

"You mean stuff to summon back Daddy, make him live again," Lecia clarified.

"Exactly."

Gorran looked at her, then studied his father for a while. Lina felt a twinge in her chest, wishing that her son didn't have such a momentous weight on his shoulders. "I guess we can. We don't know what any of this stuff is really going to do, anyway. The only one that knows anything about this kind of magic is him."

"Besides, Lina, we can't even read most of these books. They're written in archaic languages," Zelgadis added.

"Figures," she growled.

"But teleporting was worth it!" Gorran chimed, dark eyes sparkling. "Aunt Filia's power is soooo cool!"

"Yeah, I know," Lina grumbled, remembering all the times Xellos had whisked her to and fro, the breathlessness of the instant darkness, and the inhalation of gratitude as they rematerialized in the fresh, bright air of the living world. "Just get this show on the road, okay?"

Gorran swallowed, little face turning solemn, and nodded his head. "Okay. Please check on him through the ring. That way we'll know if we're hurting him or not."

"If we can just get him conscious, even if he's not breathing, we should be able to get him to fix himself," Zelgadis said.

"Okay, we'll try that," the child agreed, and walked over to his father, who was still lying on the bed like a stone.

"I betcha it won't be too difficult," Lina told them. "He wanted you to be able to figure it out, so I'm sure the key is something you already know."

"I don't know much, so I hope you're right," her son replied with a smile. Lina returned the smile, happy that he was carefree and flexible, just like Xellos. She watched as Gorran slowly began to draw lines in the air, occasionally adding a curve. His face was serious, full lips pursed beneath his straight nose and amethyst eyes sharp. His gestures slowed even further, then he sharply made a circle with his hand.

Lina suppressed the urge to shriek as Xellos suddenly sat up straight in bed, taking a great breath. His glossy locks quivered as Xellos greedily sucked in air, and she threw herself at him, grabbing his shoulders with her hands. He looked at her, but his eyes were flat and lifeless, and when she shook him his head merely flopped about. "Xellos!" she shouted, desperately reaching out through the rings.

"He's not here yet," Gorran panted, sweat matting his coppery curls. Lecia handed him a cloth and he wiped down his face, smiling at her.

"What did you do?" Lina demanded, clutching Xellos' body to her as tightly as possible.

"Well, you said you thought it would be simple. I think that he simply put a 'stop' spell on himself. I don't know what happened to his soul, though."

"Could he have sent it away?" Lecia asked, the skin tight around her eyes and her eyebrows plunging.

"I don't think so," Zelgadis replied. "If he cast the stop spell first then he wouldn't have been able to cast a second."

"Then were the hell is he?" Lina snarled, gripping Xellos more tightly.

Gorran looked up at her, eyes moist. "I don't know," he said, voice quavering. "I don't know how to get him back."

"Can you feel him?" Lecia asked.

Lina shook her head. "Not really. Faintly."

"May I see it?"

Lina handed the ring over, unable to look anyone in the eye. She didn't want them to see her cry, and she felt like the tears were going to start falling at any moment. Lecia took the ring and held it in the palm of her hand, closing her fingers around it. Sitting on the floor and crossing her legs, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "What's she doing?" Lina whispered.

"Sending," Gorran replied.

"What?"

Gorran shrugged. "She says it's kind of like she goes out walking on the astral plane. She can't get too far from her body, but she can send out pieces. She used to use it to cheat when we played hide-and-go-seek."

Lina felt the blood leave her face. No normal mortal should be able to do something like that, not unless they used to be a Monster, like Xellos. "Will she be okay?" she whispered.

"She's fine," he replied.

"How do you know?"

"Because I can feel her. I can't see or walk the astral plane like she can, but I can feel things there. She's going farther away."

Zelgadis pursed his lips. "Will she be able to find her way back?"

Gorran nodded. "She's done this a lot. It will be fine."

"Lina," Zelgadis breathed. "That they can do this. . . ."

"Hush," she snapped, voice breaking. She didn't want to think about the implications of her children's talents. If anyone would understand, it would be Zelgadis, with his part-golem offspring.

"There," Gorran whispered, closing his eyes and slowly drawing shapes in the air, muttering under his breath.

Lina clutched Xellos more tightly, watching his face intently for signs of consciousness since she could no longer bear to look at her children's struggles. "Please be safe," she murmured, but she wasn't sure to whom.

Xellos' eyes suddenly dilated and constricted, his mouth opening in gasping breaths. He twitched in her arms and began to struggle, his eyes aware but sightless. Lina slammed him against the bed, straddling him, as Gorran fell over and Lecia slumped to the ground. She gripped him behind the head, forcing him to look at her, and as she watched more of his dark hair turned silver, almost as if it was being painted right before her eyes. He groped at her clothes, gripping her shirt front, and blinked at her. "Lina?" he croaked, and he seemed so fragile, so frail, that she nearly burst into tears.

"Shhh," she whispered, pressing his head to her chest. "It'll be fine now. You're safe."

"Gorran? Lecia?" he wheezed.

She glanced at her children, who looked dizzy but otherwise well. "They're here, they're fine," she replied.

"Just rest," Zelgadis said, and touched him on the forehead. "Sleep."

Lina gently laid Xellos down as he slumped into slumber, then turned to assess the situation of her children. Lecia was sitting up again with Zelgadis' help, looking dazed but unharmed, and Gorran was blinking rapidly. "Dad?" the boy asked.

"Sleeping," Lina responded. "You two should rest, too. I'll fetch you when he's awake."

"Come on," Zelgadis said, and herded the children out of the room.