LOST MEMORIES by lu-chan
This story is set 6 months after Slayers Try.
Attention: The Slayers series to which this fanfiction is inspired not belongs to me…so don't sue me!
(I'm back! Happy new year! how are you? hope you'll enjoy this new chapter, stay tuned for updates!)
Chapter 4 : Meeting each other
Once wide awake she was alone. The first and only thing that she remembered were the hopeless screams of that man with long blond hair. The young girl had made a silent signal to some guards and they had carried him outside, followed by that strange man that seemed made of stone.
They had treated her like if they knew her for a long time, like if seeing her they saw a loved face.
She raised herself slowly from the bed, freezing to the contact with the cold floor, approaching the great mirror on the other side of the room. Even those few steps were painful and it took a lot to cross the room and at the same time not tumbling against something. Arrived to destination her head was spinning and it took more seconds before that the vortex stopped allowing her to see herself clearly.
It would have had to seem familiar.
She would have been able to recognize someone. Nothing.
The only thing she saw was a lean and shaking body, covered with bandages under a light white nightgown. Hair of a shoking red color came down to cover her face. She bring a hand to the forehead to move away the strainds that prevented to watch herself in the eyes.
Red eyes, the eyes of a monster. She thought.
Suddenly the door opened and the same girl of little ago entered, with a small basin full of clean water and towels. For some moment the girl was scared seeing nobody in the bed then her face lightened noticing her friend to the other side of the room :
-"Lina! Thank Godness you're ok!" she said smiling brightly.
She watched her with the same hesitation of the first time, remaining still in front of the mirror, uncertain about what to answer her. She didn't want to hurt the girl again saying that she didn't remember at all.
The girl seemed to understand it and maintaining her smile she rested the stuff on the bedside table, then approached, slowly to not scare her, taking a wounded and shaking hand and making her sit on the bed. Always slowly she began to clean up the face and hair, removing the bandages where they weren't needed. She was calm, smiling, patient, reassuring.
They remained therefore, seated on the bed for some minute. When the washing ended the young girl took her hands tightening them sweetly in hers. Againg smiling she said:
-"It's just that I introduce myself. I am Amelia... Amelia" she repeated the name to help her better memorizing it.
-"Amelia... " she repeated, hoping to remember it. Then the Question:
-"And me?" to that question the eyes of the girl called Amelia seemed to dampen a little, but the smile didn't leave them.
-"Lina. You are Lina".
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He fixed the ceiling.
He was exacly in the same position from when he had been dragged in, lying on the bed. Neither the Sleeping spell had worked and they had surrendered leaving him alone. Before exiting Zel had said in a low voice:
-"It will be ok."
Funny, he thought. Zel that consoled him. Now the Sulk of the group was him, not more his stoned friend.
-"There is no group" said a voice, a different, cold one, but always his.
It was the cynical, pityless, the mercenary that knew the horrors of the war.
-"She doesn't exist anymore" continued Gourry the Mercenary;
-"Shut up" murmured Gourry the Dreamer, raising himself sitting on the bed;
-"You saw her eyes. She feared you";
-"Shut up" repeated with more strength the Dreamer, taking the head between his hands;
-"The woman you loved is dead" said the other sneering;
-"SHUT UP!!!" he screamed, making the other keep quiet finally. He fell back, exausted because of the inner fight, beads of sweat stood out on his forehead, an arm to cover the eyes.
Then there were other voices, shrill and warm, far voices.
-"Shut up" he murmured.
The other Gourry did not answer, then there were the voices again and he understood that wasn't himself. They came from the outside. The window was opened and he saw three people take a walk in the garden below, one of these walked slowly supported by another, another one followed them to little steps of distance.
A moment after the door of the room was opened and fast steps were heard.
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It had been Amelia's idea to go out, the sun, the fresh air on the skin, walking a little.
That strange stone person had offered himself to accompany them, the one called Zedilgas... no no no... Zeldagis... maybe... just Zel, simple and fast. He followed behind at distance, but keeping himself close enough to take her immediately when she fell and this happened at least every 15-20 steps.
The air was filled by the young and shining voice of Amelia, than was overwhelming her with words and names and places and dates... forgetting that her mind had with difficulty seized even their names... and not even completely. Every now and then Zel joined to the conversation, correcting the princess while she remembered or saying her to slow down a little, making to notice that her friend couldn't remember everything in that little time.
She had listened for the first ten minutes, then her attention had begun to decrease, concentrating herself on the contemplation of the nature that encircled them. It was a beautyful place, where plants of every kind were mixed in a kaleidoscope of shapes and colors. She felf light-headed and for the first time since she was awake it didn't matter to her.
After the umpteenth fall they stopped to let her rest. Raising her eyes she found again the man of that morning, his blond hair in a mess and lightly out of breath.
The sword hung to his belt of course... did he sleep with it?
He was tall, well built, a giant compared to her, but it wasn't his massive shape to frighten her. No.
His eyes. Deep and clear eyes, that seemed to penetrate her soul.
The silence was interrupted by Amelia's intimidated voice, so different from that lively one heared before.
-"Lina is feeling better. We are helping her to remember, why don't we walk together?" she asked, the tone was that of a scolded child.
His breath was returned to normal, but his body was stiff, the face tense.
-"May you leave us alone ?" asked the swordsman, that during the entire time had fixed her in the eyes.
Hearing that her hand on Amelia's arm began to shake. The princess looked her then Zel, that in the meantime had approached placing himself between them and the swordsman, ready for everything.
The chimera spoke while fixing his friend, his body only in appearance relaxed.
-"Come on Amelia"
Amelia tightened her hand sweetly and went away, the chimera fixed her nodding like reassuring her that he wouldn't had been far then followed the other girl.
Now they were alone.
She lowered her head feeling that the man was still fixing her. Seeing him again had awaken in her mind the confusion and uncertainty. How would you behave with someone that obviously knows you very well but which you don't at all?
She heard steps and suddenly he was next to her, holding out his arm to her. She found the courage to watch his face and was astonished to see a new one, not dark and completely stiff, but relaxed and smiling.
His eyes were clear as the sky above them.
-"Shall we?"
She studied his arm then after some seconds she took it. The grip, shaking first, then surer.
They began to walk. The pace of the swordsman was stabler and slower than the princess', making simpler for her to follow. He was looking to the ground, she was watching him with the eye's tail, hiding her worries under locks of red hair.
There was the problem of how calling him, but he solved it:
-"My name's Gourry... "
-"Gourry" she repeated the name between herself, like she had made with the others, to not forget it never more.
Again there was someone telling her about her own life. But this time she listened to every word with attention, because if Amelia's tales were passionate but too rich of details, Gourry's were equally full of passion but simpler, since he admitted himself to not remember many things. For the first time Lina Inverse was appreciating Gourry's lack of memory.
-"... and in the end we succeeded to defeat this Dark...I don't know the name... the monster from an other world... " she said trying to get her ideas clearer.
-"Yep... very good... and very lucky " he said emphasizing the last word.
They stopped under a large tree to make her rest. Her head ached because of the tons of informations. She bring both her hands to the head to massage the temples.
-"Enough for today" he said understanding her fatigue. Delicately one of his hands went through her hair and began caressing her neck.
-"mmmmm... " it was the only sound that exited her mouth to that instant relief. The contact of his hand seemed absolutely right, reassuring and she held her eyes closed. He put both the hands on her shoulders and began massage, moving them down along the back then back up with slow circular movements. Through the touch he could feel the scars, the wounds, he perceived the presence of the bandages through her light gown.
After a little he felt her relaxing then she fell sleeping in his arms. They stayed this way, he watching her sleeping, kissing the top of her head lightly every now and then, the eyes fixed up to the clear sky.