The next morning Lina was up early, but even so she found her mom making breakfast. "Hi my girl!" she greeted Lina cheerfully. Lina smiled and went and hugged her mom. "It's nice to be home." she said. They hugged for a long time until the cooking food demanded attention. "Luna will be hungry after her all nighter you know." the elder Inverse said.

Lina gave her mom a worried look. "Err, you know?" she said. She had tried to say nothing the evening before so as not to worry her parents. He mother nodded and replied "I knew something was wrong so I worked it out of Luna since you weren't going to talk." her mother said. "Don't forget, I'm your mother! Also, I'm a magic user too, and dear, for both those reasons I have a right to know. I don't know what, if any, help Luna will be able to give you, but you should at least know you have your family's love as you sail off to the pole or wherever you end up. And yes, your father knows too, and we are both scared, but we do have faith in you, love."

Lina smiled and snuggled back into her mother. She sighed "I should have been more passive and stayed here when I was younger, in your arms I mean, mom. Yes, your love and your blessing are very comforting, and I think they will work a good magic that no evil pledge can touch."

Luna entered just then, obviously tired. "Oh my head hurts..." she said as she flopped into a chair. "There's a reason I don't probe the mind of Ceiphied very often." Lina went to her sister and took her hand. "I'm sorry Luna, I've always been a source of pain for you haven't I?" she said with a little sob. Luna smiled and hugged Lina. "For you sis, I'd bear a lot more than this headache. And yes, you have been a pain, and not just in the head either, and I thinks that's the biggest reason I love you, it's a mark of your independance, your free spirit. And I've been a pain to you too, I doubt you have forgotten about the stick, he, he."

Lina blanched for a second then replied with a nervous smile "No, I haven't, and to be honest, I'm still afraid of it. I don't mind admitting, now, that for most of my life I've been afraid of you, afraid of making you mad at me. I know it's silly, but that's the effect it had on me. But it did me more good than I let you see at the time, and I do thank you for it."

"Well then, you are welcome, you silly." said Luna with a pained chuckle. "Oh well, anyway sis, here's what I found out. There is a power at the pole. It's at the pole so that we who are of this earth can access it, though with great diffuculty. I'm guessing that's so we don't annoy it with trivialities, but that's only my thoughts. It is equal to, but different from, the Golden Lord herself. It isn't hostile to us, but it's ways are above our ways so it may be incomprehensable. And one adresses it as the "Silver Lord". Oh, and my memories seemed to feel this old saying was important, so remember it! "Seek and ye shall find, knock and the door will be opened unto you, ask and ye shall recieve." I hope it helps sis, there isn't any more. Except that the pole is surrounded by hundreds of miles of ice, snow, and intense cold, so be prepared."

Lina took it all in with a sigh. "I hate being cold..." she said. "Oh well, we have to get going today, time is vital, we don't know if the mazoku will attack us, or even the world, in an attempt to stop this from getting out. If I can I will come back with healing for everyone, and I have no intention of dying while trying either."

Lina's mom went and hugged her again, and sat her down. "It isn't much, but perhaps a good breakfast will be a good start, my love. It's really about all I can do except give you my mother's blessing on you and what you must do. I just want you to know I'm proud of you and I love you, Lina." she said.

Lina smiled and said "Thanks mom, and yes, I will have breakfast if there's any to spare from what Luna needs." Her sister waved her hand and said "I can't eat till this headache passes." Lina looked downcast. She replied "And we can't even cast a healing spell..." "Oh don't worry about that!" was Luna's response. "I take it you never let Gourry give you a back rub! That man can almost rub old age itself right out of a person!" She smiled in anticipation.

Lina sighed. "I really, really blew it with Gourry, I see that now. Oh well, I am truely glad he found you, my sister. You have a wonderful family and beautiful children. And you sure look happy, even now with your sore head. Ah well, now that I am no longer magical, I may just have to find me a replacement, he, he. Though I don't imagine that I'll be a mother at fourty four. And in hindsight, I think I would have loved being a mother. If only I hadn't been so caught up in magic."

Her mother said "Now Lina, we can't see all ends, and maybe it was meant for you to get so caught up, so that you could make this discovery. And you are the only one able to effect a rescue I think, so maybe you'll be the mother of us all as you save us from the afterlife we have accidentally made for ourselves. Anyway, it isn't over yet Lina dear, and there are things like adoption too don't forget. You may have a new chance at life yet."

Lina smiled. "Thanks mommy, I do appreciate that. It's like the way you always smile, somehow you manage to make me realise that there is always hope"

With that she set to with a will on her breakfast, and was pleasantly surprised to remember all the good times she had as a girl eating with her mother. Which was good, because as she finished she heard a lot of yelling outside and went out to investigate with her sister. It was the kids. Rowdy was being teased mercilessly by his older sister who had something in her hand that he obviously didn't like. "You bring that over here right now young lady!" barked mother Luna in a no nonsense voice, wincing from her painful head.

"Aw mom..." her daughter replied, sulking over like it was all her brother's fault and she was just an innocent bystander about to be executed.

"Well? What have you got there? Open your hand." commanded Luna. "It's disgusting!" said Rowdy, coming up with the agony of the world on his face. "Yeah and it suit you!" he was tormented back. "Silence!" commanded Luna. "Open your hand." The girl reluctantly obeyed.

It might have not been so bad if Lina hadn't been right beside Luna when her niece did so, for the girl had a big, wet slug...

Lina's scream just about shattered the windows and every eardrum in the immediate range. She fell on the ground quivering and saying "Mommy! Daddy! Make it go away! Please! Sister, get rid of it, Gourry, anyone!" The others looked at her, stunned. Zel came out from somewhere on the run, sword in hand. Filia, with mace, wasn't far behind. When they found out what was going on Filia stood there, uncertain of what to make of it, and Zel dropped to the ground laughing. As did Gourry and Lina's dad a few seconds later when they caught up to the rest of the gang and realised what had happened.

Luna laughed too, but also took the slug and returned it to the lawn where it wasn't visible. She made a point to wipe her hands and came over and helped Lina up. "I had forgotten about the slugs Lina, I am so sorry. That was my fault!" Lina shivered in her sister's arms for a long time.

"I... can't... help... it..." she sobbed. Eventually she got her breath and added "Ever since... that night... I've been afraid to death of slugs and snails."

Luna sighed. "I really did a number on you with them didn't I. Far more than I ever meant to. I am sorry for that too Lina, I really am. What a childhood we had..."

Lina was eventually persuaded to return to the table and the whole family had another breakfast. The children, evil brutes that they were, coaxed some of the stories of their mother and their aunt as children out of the reluctand adults. It might have helped if Grandma and Grandpa had taken a little more coaxing, one would think they enjoyed the way their daughters squirmed.

"Hey!" demanded Rowdy at one point. "How come you got away with that stuff and don't let us when we do it?"

Luna looked him in the eye with one of her dragon stopping glares and said "And who says we got away with it, just because we did it?" She turned to her parents and whined "Honestly mom, dad, do you have to encourage them so?"

Her mother looked innocent as she said "Mother's curse, dear." Her dad had a gleeful look and replied "Vengance is best served up cold after all." Then they laughed, leaving Luna feeling a little wilted.

She rounded on her kids. "There! You see whay I had to put up with? Compared to me, you two are absolutely spoiled! So don't ever let me hear you complaining about how hard your lot is! Now, get outside and play, but leave the slugs and snails alone. We might want them for an escargot special later and they need to be undamaged, got it?"

There was a crash as Lina fell off her chair.

Later, after being persuaded to have a last lunch with her folks, no snails, Lina left on the return journey. After they were out of earshot Zel said "I think I begin to understand why you were never in a hurry to go home Lina"

"I don't want to talk about it..." muttered Lina.

"But at least you made peace with your family, Lina." put in Filia.

Lina smiled. "Yeah and I am very grateful for that, I really am. I just wish now that I had done it a long time ago, and under less desperate circumstance. But, atleast it's done. And I will be back to see them. You mark my words, I WILL be!"

With that the three of them rode on to Seirune and the departure.