Hello everyone! As per usual, I don't own anything- I'm just a fan writing some fiction! Please enjoy! ^_^
6- Snowed In
Azarel learned all of Phibrizzo's tricks and perfected them..."
"Even the playing-an-innocent-child trick?" Amelia ventured.
"Especially the playing-an-innocent-child-trick."
"Dammit!" Lina cursed, clenching her fists as though she were ready to fight the Mazoku this very moment. She shut her eyes tightly to prevent an inevitable stream of tears and sighed several times in frustration. "And that little monster has my son!"
"Then it's kidnapping?" Gourry asked. "If they took Zara against his will, then maybe-"
"That's can't be it, though." Lina's voice cracked as she tried to reason with him. "Zara's too strong for that- plus you said that no one around the depot noticed anything strange… But I don't understand why he would leave with them of his own accord..."
"Azarel is more skilled in deception than almost any other Mazoku I've ever met." Pestis spoke up. "There must be some sort of deceit going on here. Even if the kidnapper tempts a child with candy, it's still kidnapping."
"And you told me not to take candy from strangers." Gourry huffed at Lina.
"There was probably no candy involved, Gourry." Zelgadis corrected. "I'm thinking it might have been more of a peer-pressure scenario. Zara is at that age..."
"It seems to me..." Amelia began, sheepishly tugging on Zelgadis' sleeve. "...that we all owe you an apology."
The rest of the group shifted uncomfortably.
"...yeah." Lina sighed in frustration once again. "But even if we do owe Zel an apology, it's not going to do us any good now."
"Lina's right." Zelgadis agreed. "This is one thing I'd rather be wrong about, besides."
"You were suspicious of Azarel to begin with?" Pestis asked. "That's my Zelgadis! He knows what's up!"
"THIS IS NOT SOMETHING TO CELEBRATE, PESTIS!"
Amelia placed a hand on Zelgadis' shoulder, and he calmed down. "...sorry. Lina's right, though- it's not going to change anything. I'm not exactly pleased to be right about this sort of thing, y'know."
"But what are we going to do about it? We can't just leave Zara-chan. Who knows that those Mazoku might do to him?!" Amelia seemed as though she were beginning to panic.
"Knowing Azarel, there's definitely a purpose for kidnapping Zara. Hellmaster's fondness for complicated plans was not lost on his general. I just wish I knew what it was..." Pestis murmured. "Y-you said that they were going to Kunan, right? Where in Kunan? Ti Toh?"
"Yes. That's the capital, isn't it?" Zelgadis nodded.
"It's also where the Church of the Aqualord is located." Lina interrupted. "If what Pestis said about Azarel searching for the Key of the Aqualord is true, then Azarel and Enrique must be planning to seek out the information that's held by the church in Ti Toh."
"So this means you'll have to go all the way to Kunan, then?" Mrs. Inverse asked. "That's an awfully long way."
"It's not any farther from home than it was to come here." Lina defended. "Besides, Gourry, Amelia, and I have been there before. We know the area. We should be able to navigate it just fine-"
"Wait, wait, wait! Who said that you were going?"Gourry quickly broke in.
"Who said that I wasn't?"
"Nobody did- but I don't think that you should-"
"I wouldn't dare leave Zara all alone! Even if I can't battle any Mazoku, there are other ways to fight!"
"I'm interested in this 'Enrique' fellow. I've never heard that name before." Pestis broke in, stepping between Lina and Gourry- which was a particularly dangerous place to be, especially at this point in time.
"So he's not an old lackey of Azarel's?" Amelia inquired.
"Not that I can remember. I wonder if he's even a Mazoku... if Azarel has taken to kidnapping humans, then maybe..."
"Well... Zara is a half-Mazoku..." Lina spoke.
"Huh?! What?!"
Pestis spent a few seconds just glancing back and forth between Lina and Gourry.
"But... you..."
"He's adopted." Lina quickly broke in.
"Huh?! What?!"
"Is that your answer to everything?" Lina snapped.
"I-I was just surprised! That's all! H-he looked so much like Gourry that I just assumed…"
"Didn't you only see him for two seconds…?" Zelgadis muttered, but Pestis didn't hear him.
"…so my guess would be that this 'Enrique' fellow is a Mazoku, and is working with Azarel for some reason. But whether he's a rogue Mazoku or Azarel has become affiliated with another Mazoku Lord, I can't tell without meeting them." Pestis continued to reason.
"Well, you'll come with us to Ti Toh, won't you?" Lina questioned.
Gourry placed a hand on her shoulder quickly. "Sure, he's going, but you're not."
"I am!"
"No, you're not."
"Yes, I am!"
"Lina!"
"Gourry!"
They were silent again for a long moment, and them both of them sighed, suddenly speaking at the same time.
"-well, if you're so set on going, then-" "-I suppose, if you really want me to stay home-"
Realizing that they'd both somewhat conceded to the other, the two chuckled and took a step away from one another to figure out what they were going to do.
"Well, I, for one, am on Lina's side." Mrs. Inverse stood up and joined her daughter.
"Are you sure about this, Mrs. Inverse?" Zelgadis asked. "I mean, considering that-"
"Listen, you." Mrs. Inverse interrupted him mid-sentence, jabbing a finger in his direction. "My daughter is a powerful warrior, and if you mess with her babies, there'll be Hell to pay. It's not Lina you have to be worried about, it's the pathetic excuse for a Mazoku that dared to mess with my grandson instead. Got that?"
"Y-yes!" Zelgadis held up his hands in surrender. Mrs. Inverse was like her daughter- short, but intimidating nonetheless.
"Might I offer a suggestion as well?" Pestis questioned softly. Mrs. Inverse turned, looking ready to pounce on him.
"If you're going to come up with some reason as to why my daughter shouldn't be allowed to accompany your group, you can go ahead and shut your mouth now-"
"No, no! I wasn't going to say anything of the sort! I quite desire your daughter's company on this trip, Mrs. Inverse!" The professor waved his hands back and forth. "I just… I wanted to give Lina something that I thought might be useful…"
Pestis dug through the deep pockets of his robe, clearly having a hard time locating whatever he was searching for. "Well… I knew that I put it here somewhere… I don't understand where it might have… oh, oops! Found it!"
As the group stared curiously, he produced a small object, no larger than the palm of his hand, that was wrapped tightly in a white handkerchief. As he unwrapped the object, Lina could feel a strong aura of Black Magical power emanating from it, and she wasn't alone. Zelgadis also stiffened at the sight of the object, and reached for Pestis' shoulder.
"H-hey! That's-"
Pestis shook off the chimera's grip, and handed the deep red stone to Lina instead.
"This is a powerful Black Magic vessel, created to mimic the power of the Demon King Shabranigdo. It's no replacement for magical knowledge and technique, but it can be used as a substitute for magical capacity when the user is unable to cast spells for whatever reason. I keep it under a strong White Magic spell for safekeeping," Pestis motioned to the handkerchief. "but I've been saving it to use if there was ever a need for it."
Lina delicately picked up the vessel, regarding it curiously. Mrs. Inverse was also curious, and grabbed the stone from her daughter's hands before Lina even had the chance to protest.
"Wow! This is an incredible magical item!" the woman enthused. "Can I have it?"
"Mom! He was giving it to me! My little boy is in danger- we don't have time for this!" Lina growled, reaching for the vessel. "Give it back!"
"Oh, come on, Lina! At least give me a chance to look at it!"
"You can look at it while I hold it, Mom!"
"Don't be so rude!"
"Don't be so stingy!"
"Don't talk to your mother that way!"
"Don't talk to the mother of your grandchildren that way!"
Pestis held up a hand timidly. "Uh… ladies…?"
Both sorceresses turned to him at the same time. "What?"
The professor quickly jumped behind Gourry. "Wh-while I'm flattered that you're so taken with the vessel I worked so hard on, I really did intend for it to be used to help Lina… I was just letting her borrow it, is all. It's still mine…"
"That's right, Lina! He was only letting you borrow it. Show some respect!"
"Don't pretend you weren't fighting me for it just now!"
"Will you two be mature adults for just one minute, please?!" Zelgadis walked up and snatched the stone away from both of them. "Pestis, take this back, will you? It's too dangerous- you can't give it to Lina!"
"I'm just letting her borrow it…" Pestis murmured. "I'm sure that she'll be responsible with it and not delve into manic insanity like the last person who got his hands on it."
"Okay, whoa- hold on a second. Suddenly I don't like the sound of this." Gourry interrupted. "Manic insanity?"
Zelgadis nodded gravely. "You don't want to know."
"But Lina is much more responsible. I'm sure of it." Pestis broke in, handing the stone back to Lina. "As long as the power is not overused, it's perfectly safe."
"C'mon, c'mon! We're wasting time! Are you telling me that I can cast spells with this thing?" Lina asked.
"Well, yes, but you're limited to Black Magic. No Fireballs or Recovery spells, or anything like that. Just spells that draw power from Demon Lords."
"Like a Dragon Slave?"
"Well… yes. I wouldn't use more than one in rapid succession, considering how much power that spell uses, but, yes, you can use the vessel to cast a Dragon Slave."
"Yes! Oh, can I try it out? Please, please?"
"No, you cannot try it out!" Zelgadis interjected before Pestis had a chance to respond. Mrs. Inverse nodded in agreement.
"He's right! There will be no Dragon Slaves in my house, young lady. You need to take that outside."
"Mrs. Inverse!"
"What?" The woman turned to Zelgadis questioningly. "I don't care what she does so long as she doesn't do it in the house. Besides, shooting off spells is stress-relieving, and Lina could definitely use some of that."
"Does this mean that I get that Black Magic demonstration after all?" Pestis clapped his hands together in excitement. "Oh, joy! This is one of the most exciting moments of my life!"
"Can we… at least figure out what we're doing before we run off and start destroying things?" Zelgadis groaned.
"It's getting dark. I wouldn't leave the city tonight if I were you." Mrs. Inverse looked out the window in concern. "Plus the snow is starting to pick up. Visibility will be bad. You don't want to be travelling through that at night. As worried as I am, I'd be even more worried if you all left now."
"W-we have to stay in Zephiel City tonight?" Lina whined. "How do you expect me to sleep when I know that my son is moving farther and farther away from me every minute?!"
"Well, if the visibility is bad for us, it must be bad for them." Amelia suggested. "They're probably detained too."
"That's even worse! I can't sleep in a nice warm bed, knowing that my little boy is spending the night in the cold!"
"Miss Lina…" Amelia sighed. "We can't go anywhere tonight. The least we could do is get some rest.
"But you-"
"There's only so much we can do, Lina." Zelgadis agreed.
"How could you-"
"I do hate to admit it, but until it gets light again, our hands are tied." Pestis sighed.
"I thought you were on my side, Professor Nisery!" Lina whined.
"I am on your side, Lina." Pestis stated firmly, grabbing her by the shoulders. "And that's why I don't want you to end up frozen on the side of the road. We need you, Lina- your son needs you! You have to make wise decisions for him. Azarel isn't one to expend energy on something for no reason- there is some motive behind kidnapping Zara, I'm sure of it. It's likely that Zara isn't going to come to any harm in the near future, if that's the case. Trust me…" Pestis gave a melancholy sigh. "Azarel and I were once… er, well, we were very close. There's no one in the world who knows Azarel as well as I do. You've got to trust me when I say that your son won't come to any harm."
Lina bit her lip. She could read the professor's expression and tell that he was being sincere. But she still wasn't completely sure whether or not she wanted to leave the safety of her son in the hands of a simple assumption, however educated that assumption might be.
"…alright." the sorceress finally answered after some deliberation. "We'll stay the night here, then we can travel to Kunan and track down Azarel and Zara."
There was a tangible feeling of relief once Lina was calmed down. When she was tense, it made the entire room tense as well.
"I hate to say it, but you can't exactly stay here, here." Mrs. Inverse finally spoke. "I can't accommodate 5 adults in this tiny apartment, much less be expected to cook for all of you… especially you two." She pointed at Lina and Gourry. "You'll have to find somewhere else to stay."
"That can easily be arranged." Pestis interjected. "I've found that many people are staying home in this weather, and that most of the inns around here are fairly vacant. We could have our pick of places to stay." He scratched his head and continued as though he was finishing the thought, though it was completely off-topic. "What really confuses me is why Azarel was travelling physically. A Mazoku that powerful could easily just hop through the astral plane to Kunan. If that's not happening, it must be either for the benefit of Zara or this 'Enrique' person that I'm still not sure about…"
"Pestis! Come on! We haven't the time to be worrying over this tonight!" Lina quickly quieted him. "The sooner we all get to sleep, the sooner we can be up in the morning, ready to leave! Let's not waste any time!"
"Okay, okay, Lina!" Mrs. Inverse embraced her daughter affectionately. "Please be careful. Let me know when you're leaving; I can't go with you, but I want to see you off."
"There probably won't be time for that, Mom. We'll be leaving very early."
"H-hey now!" Pestis waved his hands frantically. "Please don't involve me in any plans that take place before the hours of 6:00 AM-"
Lina grabbed the professor by the collar of his shirt. "Listen up, Nisery. We're leaving this place as soon as it gets daylight tomorrow, you got that?!"
Pestis gulped. "Y-yes Lina. Whatever you say."
The inn that Lina's mother had recommended was just down the street from the main marketplace. It was homely, well-furnished, and- most importantly- warm.
Zelgadis had been the one sent to negotiate for rooms while the others began eating dinner. Despite the tumult of recent events, Lina's appetite wasn't dampened- in fact, the frustration of it all made her eat even more than usual. Gourry, on the other hand, mostly picked at his food, sorting the individual ingredients in his obsessive-compulsive manner, and then sliding it over to Lina, who happily consumed it and added the plate to her growing pile. The sorceress was grateful for the extra food, but worried that Gourry might be more bothered by the whole ordeal than he let on.
Zelgadis interrupted before she was able to ask, however, as he rejoined the group and tossed a key toward Amelia.
"Here- that's for you and Lina."
The princess didn't question it, or even look up from her food, for that matter, simply nodding in reply. She'd piled all her belongings in the chair next to her, so Zelgadis took the empty one across from the table instead.
"Whoa, whoa!" Lina had finally managed to swallow her mouthful of food in order to protest. "Excuse me; who am I rooming with?"
"Amelia." Zelgadis answered curtly. "We're travelling in an odd-numbered group; it's better to separate that way."
"Um, no." Lina argued. "I don't think it's better for you to separate me from my bodyguard. What if we get attacked or something? I'd feel a bit safer if we were in the same space, thank-you-very-much."
"Don't worry, Miss Lina. You'll be safe with me." Amelia smiled at her. "And Mister Gourry will be safe with Zelgadis and Mister Pestis. It all works out."
"Oh, you guys… I hate to be an awkward fifth wheel…" Pestis wrung his hands fitfully.
"Nonsense, Pestis. You're fine." Zelgadis comforted. "We're happy to have you here with us."
Lina sighed and rested her head in one hand. "Alright, but you guys need to take good care of my Gourry, got it?"
"What exactly does that entail?" Pestis enquired.
"Oh, you know- make sure that he doesn't eat too many sweets before bed… he likes a good bedtime story too; preferably one with no ghosts or monsters in it. Also make sure that he brushes his teeth and that he's in bed no later than 11:00 because he's not a morning person and I don't want him to be too cranky tomorrow when we leave."
"Aww, Lina~" Gourry whined. "Can't I stay up until at least 11:30?"
"No. 11:00."
"How about 11:20?"
"11:10."
"11:15…?"
Lina thought about it for a moment. "…okay, done. But that's in bed, lights out, got it?"
"Yes ma'am!"
The pair gave each other pained smiles and tried to force a laugh or two, but it seemed as though the whole exchange had not been as fun as they'd expected it to be. No one else at the table was laughing either, so they looked down and cleared their throats, trying to change the subject.
Zelgadis downed the last of the tea that was in his mug and then slid it to the middle of the table, getting up from his chair.
"Well, it's late. I think I'm going to bed now. Good night everyone."
"B-but you haven't eaten anything!" Pestis protested.
"I'm not hungry. Everyone else is finished, besides."
"Give us a minute! We're coming with you!" Lina called, pushing her plates aside and jumping up from the table.
Zelgadis sighed, but he leaned against the doorway of the restaurant, waiting for his friends to finish up and join him. The group walked silently down the hallway, as no one really wanted to say anything. Lina and Gourry kept close to one another while Amelia and Zelgadis made sure to stand on opposite sides of the group. Poor Pestis walked behind all of them, feeling much like an uninvited guest, despite Lina's excited invitation to him just hours before.
No one was really paying attention to where they were going, so it was a bit of a surprise when Amelia grabbed onto Lina's cloak. "Miss Lina, our room is right here."
"Oh!" Lina jerked to a stop and looked over at the room number. "…I suppose it is."
Gourry put a hand on her head affectionately. "Just remember that the rest of us are across the hall if you need anything."
"Don't worry so much about us. We'll be fine." Lina replied. She grabbed a handful of his hair and pulled him down to her level so that she could kiss the tip of his nose. "G'night, you guys."
"Good night, Lina! It's been a pleasure meeting you, and I look forward to working with you in the fu-" Pestis began eagerly, but Amelia pulled Lina into their room and closed the door behind them before he could finish. "…ture. Alright, then."
"Don't worry so much about her. She's being immature, is all." Zelgadis sighed. "Let's just get some rest- hey!"
He reached out in time to steady Gourry, who'd taken a step and began to fall over. "Gourry! Hey! Are you alright?"
"Huh…? Oh, I… I'm fine. I guess I just… need some sleep. That's all."
Pestis and Zelgadis watched in concern as their swordsman friend entered the room ahead of them.
"He looks so pale… do you really think he's alright? Is he maybe upset about his son?"
Zelgadis frowned. "I think… that this is something only a parent would understand."
No more words were needed. The two exchanged one last glance, and then followed, closing the door behind them.
(A/N: …I… I just… When Mrs. Inverse was shooing the group away, I couldn't think of anything but Soos' grandmother from Gravity Falls, and the line "This is not good. I cannot feed such a big family." …ah… ahah… ah… I'm done here. Sorry.)