Chapter 8

(Thank you, those of you who review loyally. It makes me feel special. P Another fluff chapter, mainly to get ready for the lots of action in a couple chapters from now. Heh.)

It was dark... Too dark. Too dark, even for the darkest of nights. It was as if the world itself had disappeared, leaving nothing behind. Nothing except her. She looked all around her, yet not even a vague outline told her of any objects nearby. She was alone... Utterly alone. She tried to cry out, yet it made no sound. She tried to move, but she was frozen to the spot. Then the voices came, unearthly and echoic. "You killed us, Sheena... You killed us all..." Then she felt a drip land on her hand. A teardrop. Then another on her arm, and on her other hand. Soon the tears were falling steadily, as if even the angels themselves were weeping. A single teardrop, icy cold in contrast to it's hundred warm kin, slid down her neck, and she gasped in surprise.

The ninja's twin hazel eyes snapped open, the voices from her dream still haunting her in awareness. Her whole body-- or at least the portion that wasn't pressed up against the Chosen-- felt damp, some areas as much as to be called 'wet'... It was raining. So the teardrops from her dream were merely raindrops? For some strange reason, Sheena felt a small relief at that realization, though how rain was any better was a mystery. She stole a glance up at the sky, her mood deflated even worse by the ominous dark clouds far above. She lifted her head from his back a moment to take in her surroundings, and noticed they had passed out of the forest as she slept. At her movement, Zelos turned to look at her, offering as bright a smile as he could muster while slogging through such weather.

"Mornin', my volu-"

"Save it. I got the point the first six times." She cut him off before he could make it even halfway through his greeting, though her own words had a slightly teasing tone.

"But why? What if I want to say it again?" Whined the redhead, but at this point he was just whining to be difficult. Sheena knew he needed no answer, so she didn't offer one. Especially considering the rainwater had found it's way down to her bandaged side and was currently proceeding to soak it. The cold didn't feel any too pleasant on her wound… 'Wow, that's an understatement.' She thought to herself, though the ninja kept her complaints inside.

"We can stop, y'know. We don't have to keep going in this weather." She offered, but he merely shook his head, sending the water from his soaked red hair in all directions.

"We have to keep going. If we stop now, he'll be gone before we get to Altamira!" Zelos argued, and Sheena left it at that. 'Why does he care so much that we make it? Zelos is usually the one complaining to stop every five minutes, and now he's gone all night and most of the day without rest. What went on between him and Kage while I was out?' She wondered, though not for long, for no answers could be reached without actually asking the Chosen, which she by no means intended to do. Especially not in this weather, when he probably had plenty enough on his mind without dealing with any questions.

As the minutes passed by, the rain grew harder and harder. Soon, the ninja could no longer stand it beating upon her face. She lowered her head to where it had laid while she was sleeping, pressing it to the redhead's back for much-needed warmth. By now, her side was searing with pain, the water having soaked through the bandage and rendered it utterly useless, and the icy frigid chill of the raindrops was soaking through right onto the open wound. She didn't say anything though. Sheena never was one to complain. She just braced herself against it and prepared for the longest day of her life. 'At least I'm not alone in it, though...' She didn't know when Zelos had shifted from an annoying nobody to an accepted if not appreciated friend, but somehow he had. Still, there were others she'd much rather get stuck with than him. 'I think...'

It wasn't long before the rainwater seeped down the Chosen's back, causing him to tense slightly in discomfort and taking away Sheena's much-needed source of warmth. She lifted her head once more, no longer bothering to attempt to shelter it. It wasn't raining anymore… it was storming. Still Zelos pushed on, however, his head turned slightly to brace against the wind and rain. 'If it's this bad for me, it's probably twice this bad for him.' She rationalized, and she knew if they stayed out any longer they'd be worse off than they started.

"Zelos, into the trees!" She cried, her voice barely audible over the pounding rain and torrential wind. Immediately the redhead averted his course and instead fought his way to the coppice of trees to their right. The intensity of the rain increased yet again, if that was even possible, and so did the pain in the summoner's side. It was all she could do not to gasp in pain, but she refused. The water fell harder and harder and harder and… it stopped. She opened her eyes, which were closed against the downpour, to notice with relief that they were beneath the trees at last. Zelos crouched down to allow Sheena off. 'He doesn't know what the rain did to my bandage and wound...' The ninja realized, and she had no intention of telling him. Unclamping her knees from his sides, she tentatively lowered her feet to the ground. 'Hey, this isn't so bad!' She realized in relief as her feet rested upon the dry dirt and the pain had not intensified. Releasing her arms from their loose hold 'round his neck, she pushed her weight onto her own too feet… Only to release that gasp she'd tried to hold in and collapse in a heap.

In an instant, Zelos was by her side, but she pulled her arm away from his aid with a 'hmph'. Sure, he was only trying to help, but being unable to do much of anything for herself was driving Sheena insane. Well, not insane, but it was really starting to bug her. So, without aid, she pulled herself to the nearest tree, leaning her back up against it and sighing in the relaxation that hours in the rain had prevented.

The redhead had taken no offense to her refusal of his aid. He had already figured she was going to refuse it sometime or another, for it very un-Sheena-like to depend on others' help. Lowering himself to the dirt beside her, he as well leaned against the tree, somewhat surprised that she allowed him so close. Close by her standards, at least. 'Hey,' he thought brightly, 'I guess she doesn't hate me anymore!'

Meanwhile, the ninja's body and mind waged war. Her body was telling her she was cold, she was hurt, she needed to shiver for the extra heat to stay warm. Her mind was saying she refused to shiver, she had too much dignity left to shiver. Needless to say, her body won. Though not for long. Attempting to imagine the desert to keep warm, Efreet's raging inferno, she realized the completely obvious solution. A fire. Reaching above her, she broke off a few of the lower branches of the tree, though it took a bit of effort to do so, and broke them into fire-fodder-sized pieces. Piling them up down past her feet, she crawled to the edge and pulled out that same bottle. A single drip is tipped from it's Mizuho-glass edge, landing upon the branches. The ninja shielded her eyes from the flame… Yet no flame came. The branches were too wet. Zelos offered her some matches from his supplies. She eyed them a moment, having never been forced to use them before, but she took them anyways. She struck a match, dropped it to the logs, and once more waited for a fire… Yet none came. So she tried again. And again. An entire matchbook later, the ninja had grown frustrated. Very frustrated.

"EFREET!" She roared, with a ferocity that took even Zelos by surprise. Immediately the fire burst into flames, though the Chosen knew the Summon Spirit of Fire would not be pleased at his somewhat disrespectful summoning. Sheena, however, seemed either unaware or uncaring of that fact, and not particularly keen on learning. Instead, the redhead scooted close to the fire, warming his hands with it's radiant heat. Sheena as well had grown warmer… Zelos noticed that her shivering had stopped. The shivering she was trying so hard to hide.

"Hey Sheena? Why is it so bad to have emotions? To be hurt, to be cold? Even when your village was destroyed, you refused to show your sadness. The only emotion you ever seem to have is anger, and over three fourths of the time that anger is directed at me." He questioned, yet the ninja's gaze remained fixed on the fire. He sighed slightly, knowing she probably wouldn't answer such a question… But a moment later, she did.

"I am not weak. Sadness, pain, discomfort… Those are all weaknesses. Fear as well, and impatience, and love, and… lots of other things. In Mizuho, we are, or were, trained not to show weakness of any sort. Trained to be emotionless, even dispensable, willing to give up our life as if it didn't matter, if need be. Anger, hatred… They say those are the only good emotions. They don't make you weak, they make you strong. Anger and hatred fuel the fire inside you, causing you to fight better, think harder, and never give up." She replied softly, her tone almost droning, as if she didn't truly believe what she was saying. As if she was just relaying what she'd been taught. Yet she didn't intend to give any more, so Zelos didn't ask. For a while, he didn't even respond. But, as always when it comes to the Chosen, he did respond eventually.

"No… True weakness is to hide it all. To hide your emotions, your pain, your cold… For fear that, if you reveal them, others will think less of you." He replied, his voice thoughtful, as if he was figuring out how to word it as he spoke. Sheena turned to look at the redhead, somewhat surprised at his words. What surprised her more, however, was that deep down, she knew it was true. Though it contradicted everything she'd been trained and taught to believe, it was true. She couldn't admit it, not now. 'If I do, I'm betraying my people even more.' She couldn't bring herself to agree with him. So she merely turned her gaze back to the fire.

That was enough for Zelos, however. He knew he'd gotten to her, and he knew it was for the better. 'But that annoying ninja pride of hers won't let her admit it.' She would eventually, though. He somehow knew it.

"Hey Zelos?" Sheena started, her gaze upon him once more.

"Yeah?" He offered, cocking his head slightly in curiosity.

"Honestly, do you think we'll make it through this? That man, Kage… He had amazing power. I'm not sure I have the strength to fight him..." A hint of triumph raced through the Chosen, for this show of uncertainty by the ninja showed that she truly had taken his words to mind. He plastered a bright, reassuring grin on his face.

"Of course we will! He's a wimp, you should've seen how he ran away when he saw me. And if he lays a finger on my voluptuous hunny, I'll lop off his head then and there!" His voice was lighthearted, slightly joking at the last part, yet a hint of truth rang through. Still the summoner seemed unconvinced. "We'll be fine. I'm the Chosen of Tethe'alla, and I have more angel in me than human at this point, and you're the best ninja in the two worlds combined!"

"I'm the only ninja in the two worlds combined." She corrected wryly, and he shrugged innocently.

"So? That automatically makes you the best." He teased, and the ninja couldn't help but smile slightly. Suddenly, a look of concern swept over the redhead's face. After a moment of confusion, Sheena's face mirrored his look, though she was still unsure of what had caused it.

"Zelos?" She inquired, looking around her in case something was coming up behind her.

"Your wound." He observed, and the ninja looked to her side. Where the water had weakened it, the bandage had given up, and now blood flowed straight from the wound and through the cloth of her robe. She was running out of the ninja blood-removal mixture she'd brought with her, having used it to clean her robes on the numerous occasions she'd bloodied them. There was still nearly a half a bottle though, and she was using it as sparingly as she could… 'By the time I bleed enough to use it up, I'll be dead. Heh.' She slid her fingers under her ribbon at the small of her back, pulling out the bottle and dripping a few drops of the liquid on her fingers. Placing those fingers to her side, she paused a moment, as if feeling for blood. Acting as if she'd found no blood, she lifted her hand away from the now stainless robe.

"What do you mean, my wound? It's fine." She stated, hoping he didn't notice as she slid the bottle back into her ribbon.

"But… I saw-… There was-… I don't know how you got rid of it, but there was blood there a minute ago." He mused, brow furrowed in confusion. "I think you need your bandage changed."

"Not by you, I don't." Argued the ninja, her hand flying to her side on reflex.

"You didn't mind much last time." He teased.

"That's cause I had bigger issues on my mind. Like STAYING ALIVE, maybe?"

"Good point." He turned and rummaged once more through his stuff, soon coming up with the remainder of a roll of bandages. He tossed the roll to Sheena, then turned his back. "Do it yourself, then."

"Are you kidding me? You'll peek!" She objected indignantly. Zelos opened his mouth to deny it, but closed it once he realized he may not be able to resist. "Go off that way! Sit on the other side of that tree way over there!" She demanded, and Zelos turned around and gave her a look that said 'You've GOT to be kidding me.' Upon reading the absolutely serious look on Sheena's face, he sighed and trotted off to the specified tree. He settled down with his back to the tree, already missing the warmth of the fire. 'If she doesn't hurry up, I might freeze out here. Stupid cold...' He thought, rubbing his arms for warmth.

Meanwhile, Sheena somewhat warily untied the pink ribbon that held her robe shut and exposed her undergarments once more, her gaze fixed on the useless scraps of what once was a tightly wound bandage clinging to her middle. The majority of which was red with blood by now. Carefully picking it off, she winced at the sight of her wound, for this was the first time she'd actually seen it. 'No wonder it hurts so bad...' Carefully winding the new bandage around her middle, she covered the wound back up, making the bandages a little thicker than Zelos had. 'In case it rains again.' She decided. At last, the job was done. The ninja hastily re-fastened her robe and turned left and right a bit, testing the bandages' flexibility. Satisfied, she decided it was time to call Zelos back.

"Okay, come on back." She called to the tree, since the Chosen was completely out of sight behind it. Soon the redhead was seated by the fire again, warming his hands once more. Sheena chuckled… Obviously the pampered Chosen wasn't too acclimated to cold. Oh well, though. They were cold mainly because they were wet, and they hopefully weren't going to spend many more nights wet.

Surprisingly, there was no more discussion that night. Though occasionally a word or two was exchanged, nothing was said that truly mattered. After a while, Zelos leaned back away from the fire, his hands behind his head as a pillow.

"I'm going to sleep now." He announced, followed by a "Nighty-night."

"Goodnight, Zelos." She replied, and it wasn't long before she heard a soft snoring coming from the redhead. The ninja smiled softly to herself… 'He's kinda okay, when he's not being a pervert.' She decided, her gaze resting a moment on his sleeping form.

The fire died down, but Sheena didn't attempt to rekindle the blaze. By that time, she too had drifted into a sound sleep. And, slowly, the rain ceased to fall.

(Dunno if that's the best chappie, but it was okay. Read, review, etc. Ciao!)