Chapter 3

(Hehe. I'm baaack! Thanks to all of you who've reviewed. If you asked any questions or stated anything I thought needed a response, I replied. The rest of you, THANKS. Heeeere's ZELOS!)

One moment, the ninja was falling in a state of semiconsciousness… The next, the falling had ceased. Sheena was vaguely aware of her descent being greatly slowed by a pair of strong arms, and when she did land, it was softly. Though she was unsure of whether this was a dream or reality, she thought she saw a familiar flash of vermillion, smelled a familiar soft scent, heard a familiar voice. 'Don't even try! The Incredible Zelos is invincible!' Had her mind not been jumbled, she would have recognized that laughing tone instantly, but in its current state it merely grasped desperately for some sense of why it seemed so familiar. All she knew was, the pain had gone. Whatever this familiar thing was, it was protecting her from the onslaught. Though crimson still flowed freely from her arm and many of the wounds on her back, the worst of the hurt no longer pained her. The wounds, in all seriousness, were not too deep, and had there not been so damn many of them, Sheena could have fended the drake horde off without a scratch. But she didn't know that, not yet. The ninja was still in a world where color exploded from nowhere, where creatures and faces from her past danced about her… And somewhere where, far off in the distance, a blurred figure and vague battle cries shielded her from the pain.

When Sheena blinked her eyes open once more, she winced. With consciousness came the pain that her dream-world had dulled, but at least she could now make sense of her surroundings. The raven-haired woman gasped slightly in surprise. Zelos! In her dream-world, a crimson-haired savior had come to dull the pain… Was it Zelos? Did he fight off all the dragons? The ninja's question was answered as Tethe'alla's Chosen plunged Excalibur into the chest of the last drake, sending it to the ground with a screech. She stared in horror at the mass of bodies on which it landed. There were at least a hundred, maybe more. For a second, she was no longer in the forest, but in Mizuho, the drake corpses turned into those of her kin. Gasping audibly in shock, she turned her head away and squeezed her eyes shut as tight as they would go. 'No! This is NOT the same! The drakes, they attacked me first! I didn't mean to slaughter them all...' But Zelos, being Zelos, took her gasp of revulsion as one of admiration.

"That was pretty good, wasn't it?" he boasted, making a show of waving his sword about triumphantly and sheathing it in the same manner. The ninja really DID roll her eyes this time, propping herself up on her elbows and, eventually, rising slowly and carefully to her feet. She brushed herself free of dirt, though the dirt was no competition to the blood already staining her ninja robe. Thank Goddesses she'd brought a spare with her hunting for drakes, else she'd have nothing to wear. Without a word at the Chosen, she turned and continued down the path. "Ah, ah, ah! Wait right there, my voluptuous hunny." She sighed in exasperation, turning to face the redhead and gazing at him expectantly. "I believe a 'thank you' kiss is in order."

"I could have done it myself, you know." She protested indignantly before whirling and continuing along the faint trail once more. Her hands were soon at her back, fumbling with the pink ribbon which had worked its way untied in the day's events. Retying it many times before she was satisfied, it was a few moments before Sheena was finished with her task. Slipping a hand in to check on her cargo, she felt the smooth paper of the letter. But wait!… Where was Conciere? As if on cue, the ninja heard steady footfalls running up the path behind her.

"Hey! You dropped thi-AUGH!" The redheaded Chosen ended his announcement with a cry of pain. The ninja whirled to see what had caused him such pain, expecting another drake at the best and another HORDE of them at the worst. Instead, she witnessed a sight that would bring a smirk of amusement to her lips for many years to come. Here was the Chosen, in all his brainless glory, leaping about and flailing one hand in the air as if something had bit it. The ninja couldn't help but snicker, shaking her head in disbelief at his idiocy before jogging back to join him.

"What bit you?" She questioned, an eyebrow raised skeptically.

"I—TOUCHED—THE—BLOODY—CARD!" He hissed through gritted teeth, having given up his flailing and now proceeded to cradle the offended arm protectively. He made a noise slightly resembling a whimper, and Sheena felt a pang of sympathy for the redhead. But, hence the word 'pang', it didn't last too long. In fact, it lasted about two seconds, until she recalled the last time he'd attempted to touch her in places he shouldn't. Half to pick up her fallen card, and half just to rub it in his face, Sheena bent down and lifted Conciere from the dirt. Zelos's eyes widened in surprise. "How did you-!"

"Corrine." One word was all Sheena had to say. It was either one word, or far too many words, for to attempt to explain would take hours, something she didn't have. Wordlessly, she stood up once more, turned, and for the third time the ninja departed down the path. Like a little lost puppy, there was Zelos coming up on her left, the shock from Conciere having worn off and his usual cocky grin hanging lazily across his face. She speeds up. "Go away, I have business to take care of."

"In Sheena-speak, that means 'Oh please come with me, Zelos! You're incredibly sexy and I couldn't live without you!'" The redhead sped up to come up on her right this time, putting on a falsetto tone when acting as Sheena. The ninja snorted in a mix of amusement and skepticism, and Zelos took that as a yes. At least, until she made herself clear.

"No. In Sheena-speak, that's a nice way of saying 'Go the hell away if you value your ability to use your lower half.'" Having successfully threatened the most prominent man in all of Tethe'alla, she continued on her way, hastening her walk to leave him behind once more.

"Come on, Sheena, don't be like that…" Zelos whined, and the ninja sighed heavily, resigning herself to the fact that Zelos would end up coming along, whether she liked it or not.

"Since it seems you'll come no matter what my answer is… Just don't get in my way." She mumbled. Sheena could hardly believe she was giving in, but it seemed much more trouble to fight him than to let him come along. He let out a whoop of triumph before catching up for a third time, this time back on her left. It couldn't be THAT bad, could it? Adventuring with Zelos? The ninja could think of plenty of things worse than that… Getting assaulted by a hive of killer bees, for example. Or jumping off a cliff and landing in a pit of sharp rocks. Or being eaten alive by a pack of wolverines. Or ever eating Raine's 'I swear, this REALLY IS soup!' Surprise ever again. Though she could think of plenty of things better, too. Like... Not having witnessed the mangled carcasses of her family and her people, the ruins of her home, and nearly her own demise all in the same day.

Zelos let the pair travel in silence for a while, which was quite out of character for the loudmouth Chosen. Sheena got to wondering, had she gone a bit overboard with the threats? 'If it got him this quiet, perhaps I should threaten him more often.' In this newfound peace, a realization came to her. Where were they going? All she knew was to find those who massacred her village and return the favor. She knew not where, when, or even how to find them. The ninja wondered if Zelos would stay quiet long enough to let her establish some semblance of a plan. Again, as if on cue, he opened his mouth once more. 'Heh. I should quit doing that, shouldn't I?'

"You really DID need me back there, don't deny it." The redhead grinned cockily. Sheena guessed he was trying to heal his bruised ego. The ninja didn't intend to let that happen.

"Yeah, about as much as I needed a sword in my back." She retorted, making a point to keep her gaze on the forest opposite the Chosen. For a moment, she thought he looked hurt, though if he did it was probably just an act.

"So you'd rather I'd let you die there? That's what you seemed to be trying for when I got there." His voice, this time, was a bit less lighthearted. It could even be described as somewhat chilly, though only slightly. The ninja opened her mouth on reflex to retort, but no words would come. As much as she refused to admit it, he'd struck a nerve. The truth. As usual, he took her silence as the answer he was looking for. A no. An admit of defeat. An ego boost. "I thought so."

The two continued on in silence for a while. Names, places, events, anything that could prove useful to locating those responsible was running through the ninja's head. Who would wish such a fate on Mizuho? Did they have any enemies? The Pope, but he was long gone. When the Pope was killed was when Kuchiniwa returned. The Chief welcomed him openly, much to most people's dismay. After a while, however, he became accepted once more. They actually BELIEVED his bullshit about wanting to make up for his wrongdoings and being a faithful member of Mizuho. Sheena always suspected him… And, in turn, he always hated her. Subtle things he did, like push her aside on his way by. Unless they were alone. "If YOU hadn't have shown up, I would be the chief of Mizuho, and we would be true ninjas once more. No weaklings like Igaguri would even be let live, and Mizuho would be a force to be reckoned with! These days, they let ANY trash in. Take you, for example... You should never have been born, Sheena Fujibayashi. Your life should never have existed. And trust me, I'll make sure it doesn't exist much longer." His words rang through her head, and she squeezed her eyes shut to block out the memories. Kuchiniwa had changed so much while he was gone... Had he not seemed so different, even at first, she may have accepted him. And the massacre would never have happened. 'No, use common sense. He was killed long before this, and if he was a spy or in cahoots with the murderers, they would have attacked far sooner.' One thing was for sure; Sheena was careful not to be alone with him ever again.

The ninja was suddenly aware of a pair of cerulean eyes upon her. She turned to the Chosen, meeting his gaze with her own. How long had he been staring? Better question yet, why? That one was obvious… Because he was Zelos, Idiot Chosen and Prince of Perverts. Though he wasn't staring anywhere he shouldn't, was he? At last, curiosity got the better of her.

"What?" Sheena demanded.

"I dunno, something seemed… wrong. You okay?" His voice was quiet, no longer arrogant in any sense. Ah, so that curious look was his version of concern. Sheena gazed steadily into his deep sapphire eyes, still slightly skeptical of his motives. Yet the Chosen, for once, showed no signs of perversion or conceit. But she couldn't tell Zelos; for some reason, she felt that if she told, he would gain advantage over her. The ninja was slightly ashamed that, even though he was likely purely concerned, she still refused to give him any ammo for further antagonizing. "It's about your village, isn't it? Sheena, that wasn't your fault."

Her eyes widened in surprise. How did he know? Perhaps the redhead was smarter than she'd given him credit for. Still, Sheena turned away. Was she that easy to read? And… was it possible that the Chosen understood her? For the very first time since… well, since ever, Zelos seemed to be showing function above the brain stem. A heavy sigh heaved from the ninja's lungs, along with a weary, "I know…"

"Good, because blaming yourself never helps anything." He paused, suddenly turning to look searchingly behind him. The ninja whirled as well, prepared for whatever had caused his sudden interruption, but nothing met her eyes, no matter how she searched. Just forest, calm and pure.

"Zelos? What is it?" she questioned, straining her own eyes to catch whatever it was that distracted him. His eyes gazed around searchingly for another moment or two before he returned his attention to the ninja, putting on a bright smile.

"Oh, I just thought I heard something, that's all." He reassured in an overly cheerful tone. Sheena had to fight to keep from groaning; the idiotic Zelos was back, she could tell as much from his tone. Though she was glad there was no true danger… Having re-established her sense of safety, the ninja relaxed once more and continued down her path. Zelos lingered a moment, a wary glance stolen over his shoulder before jogging to catch up. "Y'know, I might should heal your back. It's not a pretty sight for those of us who don't walk as fast as you." 'Yeah, thanks so much for reminding me,' the raven-haired ninja thought sarcastically, the sharp pain taking this moment of acknowledgement to make itself known once more. Still, Sheena shook her head.

"I'm fine. It's a shallow wound; they bleed like hell, but never do any damage." She reassured hastily, but suddenly felt a sharp jab right in the epicenter of the wound. Gasping in pain and surprise, she whirled on the redhead, who was quickly withdrawing his finger as if expecting her to bite it off. "What the hell was that for?" She raged, glaring daggars at Zelos.

"Told ya you were hurt." Zelos observed triumphantly, though his glory was short-lived as he recalled that the statement he proved wasn't one to be proud of. Sheena opened her mouth to make a comeback, but just sighed in what appeared to be disgust and turned her back on the redhead to continue on her way. "Sheena, wait." But the ninja didn't turn, didn't respond. Right now, she was furious. She was sick of being the object of the Chosen's twisted amusement. He goes and jabs her in the back, just to laugh and prove himself right? Idiot Chosen… "Sheena! Wait up!" Even at his second call, her step didn't falter. Zelos knew he'd screwed up somehow, but he was still unsure exactly how. 'Perhaps the poke was a bit too hard? But I had to make her realize she needed help…I had to remind her that she was hurt. Maybe it was the fact that I was right? Stubborn chicks like Sheena just HATE it when I'm right. I'm just too perfect for them, so they get all pissy and run off. Yeah, that's probably it.' But Zelos couldn't let her just storm off like that. It was against his nature to let a hunny go without a fight. Sure enough, the ninja heard heavy footfalls running up behind her once more. This time, she pointedly turned her head the other way, refusing to acknowledge his presence. He paused, coming up on her other side, and the ninja turned her head the opposite way once more. He tried this maneuver twice more before declaring it futile. Time to bring out the big guns… Zelos stepped straight in the ninja's path. She went to go around him, but he moved with her, refusing to let her pass.

"Get out of my wa-" The ninja started, but was cut off when the Chosen raised his hand, brought his forefinger and his middle finger to rest at her brow.

"First Aid!" He exclaimed, though his exclamation was slightly hushed. From the point where his fingers rested, a warm, tingly sensation began to spread throughout her body. Despite herself, the ninja closed her eyes to soak in the warmth. As the wave of bliss reached her back, it felt as if a heavy load was lifted from her shoulders, the pain easing out of her many cuts and slashes and the wounds themselves closing over. When her hazel eyes opened once more, they were met once more with the deep cerulean ones of the Chosen.

"Thanks, I guess." She murmured grudgingly, for it was the last thing she intended to do, to be aided yet again by the idiot Chosen. He immediately plastered a look of exaggerated shock on his face.

"Oh, what an honor! The Great Sheena, thanking me!" Returning his expressions to normal, the redhead chuckled slightly, and to his surprise, so did the ninja.

"How does that work, anyways? The First Aid thing?" Though the subject was changed, it was not intentional, merely an innocent question from the ninja. Pausing a moment to assess whether or not she was in a joking mood, the Chosen decided to take a chance.

"The forces of nature itself recognize the Great Zelos and bow at his feet!" He declared in a booming voice. Sheena gave a short laugh of amusement, her retort almost instantaneous.

"Sheena thinks the forces of nature would rather nail their tongue to the table each morning at breakfast than bow down at the Great Zelos's feet, and that the Great Zelos needs to get his head out of the clouds for a while." Choosing to ignore the look of feigned hurt on the face of Zelos, she returned her gaze to the path ahead.

"In complete and total honesty I have no idea. I think it just speeds up the natural healing process, drawing the energy that would be needed for it to heal naturally from the caster of the spell." The ninja soaked in his words, though it took a moment to process what he said. That means, the worse her wounds are… 'The worse I'm hurt, the more energy it takes Zelos to heal me. Heh, I'd better not get it through the neck any time soon, he'd likely kill himself trying to fix that one...' But wait. Sheena realized what she'd said. Err, thought. 'Wait, no, of course not. In all truthfulness, I doubt he'd truly care if I died, and he'd sure as hell not kill himself to revive me.' Sheena looked to the redhead, who was currently gazing at the path ahead with interest. 'Y'know, he's not all that bad when he's not running his big mouth.' The ninja braced herself, expecting her unlucky streak to continue and for him to start blabbering right then and there, yet he remained silent. Slowly, she relaxed. Maybe her right-on-cue streak was coming to an end? Sheena sure hoped so.

The sun slowly fell in the sky, though the pair wandered well into the night. When ten 'o' clock came, it found the ninja striding wearily out into the open field, the redhead following close behind with his hands clasped behind his head and his elbows out to each side.

"Sheenaaaa…" Zelos whined, stopping in his tracks and yawning audibly, "It's, like, one in the morning. Can we please stop here? I don't know about ninjas, but us mortals have to sleep about fifteen hours a day."

"I don't know about idiot Chosens, but us humans only have to sleep ten hours a night."

"Fifteen, ten... Whatever, same thing. If I have to walk any more, my legs might fall off." He whimpered, collapsing into a cross-legged position on the grass.

"That WOULD be amusing…" The ninja replied with feigned thoughtfulness, though she knew she'd end up stopping here anyways.

"You're such a banshee, Sheena…" Though his tone was still whining, Zelos slowly heaved himself to his feet again, plodding over to the ninja and gazing at her expectantly.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to stop for the night anyways." Sheena admitted, and within moments the redhead was on his back on the turf once more.

"Sweet relaxation!" The Chosen sighed contentedly, closing his eyes in bliss. Chuckling in amusement, the raven-haired ninja paced back into the woods. Her hazel eyes searched her surroundings, though the dark made it hard to catch even the largest of objects. Firewood, firewood, firewood…. AHA! A glow of satisfaction lit in her eyes as she picked up three fair-sized branches from beneath an oval-leafed tree. Hauling her find back to camp, she piled the branches up and took a bottle of clear, syrupy liquid from her bag. She dropped a single drop on the logs, and the combustion was immediate. Within seconds, a fire had roared to life before her, causing Zelos to leap back, wide-eyed, to 'safety'. "What IS that stuff!" He questioned in amazement, watching the radiant fire with interest. The ninja smirked.

"I could tell you… But then I'd have to kill you." She taunted, turning her attention back toward the fire.

"My hunnies would have your head if you tried." He bantered, attempting at nonchalance.

"I'd like to see them try." Sheena was unable to contain her snort of amusement as she made her comeback.

"Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups, my voluptuous hunny." He replied with a wink. The ninja chose to ignore her lengthy and irritating nickname, for to call him on it would be to rekindle an age-old battle between them, something neither of them had the energy for that night. Sheena drew closer to the fire, curling her knees in to her chest, resting her arms on her knees, and resting her head on her arms. For a moment, silence enveloped the pair. For a moment, the only sound was the crackling of the fire as it cast it's glow across the ninja's face. Then that moment was over. The ninja's soft voice broke the silence.

"Hey Zelos? How did you know? About Mizuho?" She questioned, recalling how he had diagnosed her sadness earlier with such accuracy. She hadn't told him about it, that she knew for a fact.

"I passed by it on my way through the woods. Not a pretty sight, if I do say so myself." Though his voice was as carefree as usual, the redhead's reply had been rushed, starting promptly after her own words had finished. Something seemed… strange. About Zelos's reply. But at the moment, Sheena was far too tired to put her finger on it. She scooted away from the blaze a bit, stretching out on the grass. The ninja gazed up at the stars… 'There are so many of them… I wonder if I can count them.' But by the time she got to fourty-two, she had lost track and given up.

"Hey Zelos?" Her soft voice broke the silence.

"Hmm?" Came his groggy reply. Obviously he was much closer to sleep than she was.

"…. Goodnight."

(Hehe. There's your Zelos. Tell me, how did I get his character? Any spots I missed? Odds are, I did it on purpose, but I'm not perfect. Heh.)