Here we are, chapter 3! (hands out Naga plushie) Now, let's get on with the fic!
Before we do, however, I wanted to note that in chapter one (not the prologue) I forgot to delete the "Zeila" bit on the disclaimer: I haven't added her in yet! (sweatdrop) Ehe, anyways, onward and upward!
Chapter 3: Masquerade!
Zelgadis, now 14, tugged nervously at his bounty hunter costume. "Mom, I'm a bit scared. What if someone takes off my 'mask'?" he asked Zellia, pointing to his scarf which covered his face up to the eyes. This was the first time he'd mingled with anyone aside from his family and fellow students since his transformation into a Chimera. The "Greywords Masquerade Ball" had been created just for Zelgadis. His mother, dressed as a swan, said calmly "Don't worry dear. Look, Xellos is dressed up too!" Turning, the Chimera nearly burst out laughing at his friend, who was dressed as Naga. "OHOHOHO! Look at me, I'm Naga, the bustiest girl in the world! OHOHOHO! I dress like a bimbo!" Xellos mocked, using magic to make his "breasts" bounce up and down overzealously. Naga, meanwhile, had dressed as Xellos. "Ha-ha-ha! I am Xellos! Now THAT is a secret! I love tea (?) and weird sticks! Ha-ha-ha!" she mocked in return, waving her index finger wildly while talking. Amelia walked up to the gang in a (rather skimpy for her) justice fighting costume. "Hi, guys! How do I look?" she asked, swaying from side to side. Zelgadis blushed. "Th-that skirt…it reaches your hips, if not less!" he stammered, pointing to the dark- blue fabric. "Well, it's supposed too! Consider yourself lucky, Zel: I nearly picked the pink 'bikini-bottom' style." Amelia retorted, straightening her light-blue tank-top with a bell dangling from it. Shrugging, Zelgadis turned back to Xellos and Naga. "Oh, my GOD…Amelia, come look at this…it's priceless…!" the Chimera gasped with laughter.
The two "rivals" had begun throwing minor spells at each other: Xellos had only one "breast" left, and Naga's pants were a little worse for wear. "Uh…guys?" Zelgadis asked tentatively. No answer, save for growls from both ends. "Guys?" Again, no answer. Finally, Zelgadis and Amelia dragged them both outside, where no one would hear them. The Chimera sucked in his breath, and hollered:
"GUUUUYYYYYYYYYYS!" The entire Greywords Mansion shook. Xellos and Naga turned around at last, saying "Yeah, we can hear you." Amelia clapped a hand to her forehead. "Took you long enough!" she groaned. However, no one was listening, the other three had already gone back inside.
Lina Inverse grinned at the crowd before her. There were costumes of all varieties: goats, ballerinas, were-wolves, swordsman, kings, pirates, and the like. She was dressed as a waitress, on Hellmaster Phibrizzo's orders. She scowled. Phibrizzo. Even the mere mention of him, and Lina would tense up. The evil Mazoku had enraptured her family with his innocent looks, and turned them all into slaves. Her parents hadn't lasted the first few months, they were not meant for slave work. Only her sister, Luna, and herself were left. However, Phibrizzo had decided to give Lina a non-existent choice: marry him, or marry him—the Sorceress got the dry heaves. Glancing around, she saw him: that evil smirk, that boyish look. Yes, even Hellmaster himself decided to attend. Winking at her, the Mazoku slipped on a devil mask, and strutted into the throng. With a sudden burst of inspiration, Lina followed him, her eyes burning with rage and cunning.
Zelgadis suddenly stopped chatting with Xellos, and straightened up. 'What's up, Zel?" Xellos asked. "Oh, c'mon, I know you can sense it too. There's an old enemy abroad." The Chimera whispered. Nodding knowingly, the two friends slid into the crowd, fingering their knives hidden in their gloves in case of danger.
Lina was now inches away from her master. Closer…closer…with a triumphant smirk, Lina prepared a fireball…
And was hit with a pain beyond imagination. Squinting from the pain, she found herself staring into Phibrizzo's face. "Hmm. Looks as if I have to put an anti-magic bind on you from now on. You're far too smart in the ways of spells." He tutted, raising a finger. Lina blanched, and lifted her arms to protect herself. She saw black.
"Beg pardon for the trouble, Misters and Misses. Please go on about your business." Came a child-like voice. Zelgadis and Xellos glanced at each other, shrugged, and moved towards the voice. The crowds parted to reveal a young boy in a devil costume squatting beside a red-haired girl in a waitress costume. The boy turned towards the two teenagers, and gave a small bow. "Ah, sirs, pleasant evening. My name is Phibrizzo, and this"—he touched the girl's head lightly—"is my maid, and future wife, Lina Inverse. Ah…have a little trouble with a family curse, I take it?" the boy grinned. Zelgadis suddenly stepped back. "You…" he gasped in horror. Phibrizzo smiled benignly. "Yes, me. The one who cursed you. I'm pleased it's going very well. In my part, anyway." He chuckled, lifting off his mask, and showing the Chimera his face in full. It looked like a child's, but had a evil, cunning look on it. Leaning forward, Phibrizzo whispered to Zelgadis "I command you to journey to my temple a month from now. I will be waiting…" Returning to normal speech, he said with a smile "You'll find that the bind put on your great-grandfather works on you as well, to a certain extent. Oh, and before I go"—the Hellmaster ripped off Zelgadis' scarf with a overly-dramatic flourish—"I wish to see what my curse has accomplished."
Luckily, Zelgadis, Phibrizzo, and Xellos (not counting Lina) were in a shadowy spot; the crowd didn't pay any attention to them. However, Zelgadis' wounded howl was heard by many. "My scarf! GIVE IT BACK!" he screamed in horror, and snatched the mask out of Phibrizzo's hand. Tying it back around his mouth, the Chimera growled "Get out. Now." The Hellmaster smiled cheekily up at him, mouthed "I had fun" and teleported from view, taking Lina with him.
Minutes later, the crowd was laughing and singing along to Xellos and Zelgadis' extremely speedy dance called "Masquerading", with the two friends singing alternate verses to each other, going faster as the song picked up speed:
Oh! Sing a song of joy, m'boy,
There's a masquerade to see!
I'll dress as a grump of a grandma,
You can dress as a bumbling bee!
Oh! Look here comes a sly old fox,
And beside him croaks a toad!
Oh, for the love of ye, what a sight to see!
Here comes John as a lump of mold!
Oh! Look all about you, my young son!
There's so much to enjoy!
Look! Here comes a lady dressed as a old father,
And a old 'un playing a boy!
Oh! "Is it possible," you ask,
"That these people are slightly mad?"
Why sure, son, it's possible,
You can take it from your old dad! (Xellos did his impersonation of a crazy man after this verse)
Oh! Masquerades are like inhuman parades!
The get weirder every way you turn!
Just you tell your mother boy,
Your dad brought you here to learn!
Oh! Oh! Oh!
…Masquerade!
Xellos and Zelgadis bowed deeply to the laughing crowd, and silently took their leave. When they got out of earshot, the companions asked each other at the same time "Are you up for it? A journey like this could be…" Zelgadis smiled dreamily. "…Full of battles…" he muttered, miming swinging a sword.
"Fantastic swords…" Xellos added.
"…And new food…"
"No chores…"
"Or homework…"
"New people to see and pester…"
"Exotic lands…"
"Festivals…"
"Mazoku…"
"Sorcerors and sorceresses…"
"Bounty hunters…"
"Tournaments…"
"SOLDIERS OF JUSTICE!" came a voice.
"Yeah…hey!" Xellos and Zelgadis whipped around to face Amelia and Naga. "We heard everything. And we're coming with you." They chorused. The Chimera shook his head. "It's too dangerous—" he began, and was clobbered with a fireball. "ARE YOU CRAZY!" Amelia yowled, another fireball at the ready. "THESE ARE THE SAME PRINCESSES WHO BEAT BOTH OF YOU AT OUR PRACTICE FIGHT LAST YEAR!" Naga and Amelia yelled. Hands raised in defense, the two young men muttered some pleas desperately. The two princesses then leaned toward them seductively. "If you let us come with you…we'll do all your homework and ours when we get ba-ack!" they cooed in sing-song voices. Zelgadis and Xellos' ears perked up at once. "Really!" they asked, grins on their faces. "Really." Replied the two girls. "Then SURE you can come! Welcome aboard!" Xellos cried, entwining one arm around Naga's stomach. "Hey, pervert! Let go!" Naga blushed hotly. While Xellos and Naga were fighting, Zelgadis was counting out what they would need. "Hmm, we need at least 3 weeks worth of provisions, four sleeping bags, a canteen each…" he tapped his fingers once as he talked. "Is this all we need, Zel?" came Amelia's voice as she dragged the afore-mentioned objects into view. "Uh…yeah." The Chimera replied, blinking confusedly. Amelia cocked an eyebrow at her friend, and separated the other two. "Okay, guys, shoulder one of everything each. We're heading out!" Zelgadis said with a grin as the four companions walked out of the Greywords Mansion, and into the moonlit path ahead of them. They didn't know that the curse wouldn't just end there…
What do you think? R&R! The song is MINE, as the Disclaimer mentions. NO TAKEY! Anyway, if you review, I'll give you Phibrizzo's demon mask! (holds up mask) It's kinda ugly, but whatever. (pokes mask) Hmm…