Author's Note: So far I haven't been getting many review (if at all) on my stories… But since I'm writing this for me, I'm not going to worry about it too much. I would like to know what I could do to make my stories better, though. I'm not too sure on which parings I'll use for this one, any suggestions? My personal favorites are listed in my profile if you're interested in looking. Aradia (a.k.a. Dia) and any others that you don't recognize are mine.

Disclaimer: The Slayers and all the characters that are connected to the series, movies, and mangas do not belong to me. If it did I would hire the writers and have them keep writing. I would also re-dub the first half of the first series using Crispin Freeman.

"It is complete now

two ends of time are neatly tied

a one-way street

she's walking to the end of the line

and there she meets

the faces she keeps in her heart and mind

they say goodbye"

Tomorrow, Wendy by Concrete Blonde

Slayers: Hope

Chapter 1: Neither Here Nor There

"Ooooooh! Books! And where there are books, there's probably old, long-forgotten spells!" Lina Inverse took up a pose, her right hand on her hip and her left stretched out in front with two fingers held up, "VICTORY!"

Zelgadis smirked as he surveyed their latest find, this one deep inside some old ruins away from the bustling cities of Outworld.

'Maybe I'll find my cure here…' The Chimera pondered hopefully as he stepped into the room.

Amelia stepped into the room just after him, then glancing behind her quickly sidestepped the opening.

"BAKA NAMAGOMI!" A blur of gold streaked past trailing just behind a blur of purple.

"Filia-chan," Xellos' voice lingering just behind where he actually was, "It's not my fault you never act like a lady, always swinging mace-sama around like that!" prompting even more anger, and more swings, from the golden dragon.

"You take that back, you… you.." Filia's mace flew from her hands as her foot caught on a protruding piece of rock, "Eeeeeeeeeeee…"

Xellos disappeared and reappeared, catching the falling dragon and placing her mace back into her hands.

Filia blushed as she righted herself then took a swing at Xellos who promptly ducked.

And the chase started again.

The white room shone brightly as the rays of the morning light flitted through the blinds of the window. The door opened quietly as a middle-aged man in light blue scrubs walked in and looked sadly at the woman wearing a disheveled business suit sitting next to the bed of the young girl.

"Ms. Faeron," the doctor said, "Can I talk to you for a moment?"

The brunette woman turned bloodshot eyes his way and nodded.

'She's been crying again,' the man thought wearily to himself.

Together they walked out into the hallway, stopping to shut the door after themselves.

"What can I do for you Dr. Crellin?" Ms. Faeron asked, her voice tired and empty.

'No use in beating around the bush, just get this over with already,' he told himself. "I think it's time that you considered moving her to Shady Brook. There's not much more that we can do for her here that we haven't already done."

Her eyes widened for a moment and he could see the pain flash in her eyes.

"You want me to have her moved to a mental institution?" she asked, hardly believing it.

"Yes," he said simply, "I know that you know it would be for the best. She's not in a coma anymore, but she still won't respond to the outside world. It's like she's dreaming. We're equipped to handle trauma to the body, not the mind."

"But…" her retort dying on her lips.

"But," the doctor continued, "they are."

The frail-seeming woman lowered her head in resignation, barely nodding.

"Thank you, Dr. Crellin, you've been very patient and helpful," she said finally.

The man nodded and placed his hand on her shoulder for just a moment before turning and walking down the hall.

Ms. Faeron sighed and walked back into the room taking her accustomed seat.

Looking at her daughter, she felt hollow and tears threatened again.

"Why won't you wake up, Aradia?" she murmured, "Please… wake up…"

Zelgadis surveyed the site, 'Nothing so far… and there's not many more places here to look.'

Lina was busy looking at a wall with old writing on it while trying to explain to a sleeping Gourry a bit of the lore on this particular ruin.

Xellos and Filia were both on opposite sides of the room pointedly ignoring each other, and Amelia was starting dinner.

He smirked slightly and sighed, 'Some things never change.'

"Hmm?" Zelgadis look at the ground, 'I thought I saw green… A weed, perhaps?'

Figuring nothing better to do he reached down and moved the slightly upturned rock he had just passed.

'Well, well, what do we have here?' reaching down he retrieved a small jade sphere about the size of a plum.

"FIREBALL!" followed by the faint smell of burnt hair, "Damn it, Gourry, why do you always have to fall asleep when I'm talking about something important?"

Lina crossed her arms and looked over her traveling companions.

"Alright, there doesn't seem to be any more rooms. Did any of you find anything?" the fiery haired sorceress asked the group looking at each of them in turn as they answered.

"Nope," said Xellos.

Filia just shook her head.

"Sorry, Miss Lina," came Amelia's response.

Everyone turned and looked at the now smiling chimera wondering just what was up with him. Zelgadis raised his hand, deftly balancing the orb on the tip of his index finger. Transfixed by the small stone the group slowly made their way over to him.

'Uh-oh,' Xellos thought to himself, 'I've got a bad feeling about this'

The glint in Lina's eyes, the priest recognized, but the identical ones in both Filia's and Amelia's had him not only confused, but worried.

Xellos realized his mistake of watching her eyes when he noticed that Filia's hand was inching towards the leaf-colored sphere. In a moment of panic he tried to snatch the ball from Zelgadis' hand and away from Filia just as the golden dragon touched it.

The orb suddenly shattered and both mazoku and ryuuzoku felt as if a hand had reached into their very being and snatched at their essence. The jade pieces, instead of falling down, flew up into the air and spiraled out around the Slayers engulfing them in a pale green light.

"Wha?" Lina blinked, still looking where the sphere had been.

"Huh?" Amelia shook her head in confusion, "W-what's going on?"

"Shit," was all the chimera had to say.

Filia and Xellos didn't move, couldn't move. Both were floating six inches off of the ground, arms out to either side, and their eyes were wide open staring directly at each other. Pain and terror were evident on both set of faces, their mouths open in soundless unbelief.

At first everything was green, then with a jolt priest and priestess seemed to snap and their screams began. Raw energy poured out from the two of them, his dark and forbidding, hers light and airy. Power met and clashed forming a yin-yang within the half circle. Then, just as sudden, everything became translucent. The waves of energy creating an almost surreal, underwater appearance. Abruptly it all stopped.

The ruin was quiet. Nothing stirred and nothing moved. The Slayers were no where to be seen, the only traces that they had even been there were the beginnings of the dinner that Amelia had been preparing.

AN: If you're reading this then that means you've read my first chapter! (Aren't I the master of the obvious!) Anyways, please let me know what you think by clicking that little button on the bottom left-hand side of your screen! It's really important if you like to read fanfiction that you feed the authors… even the ones that suck, like me. How else are we supposed to learn and grow? JoyCrux