Hello, all! Insert the normal disclaimer here- I don't own anything, I'm just a fan writing some fiction. Please do enjoy!

7-Through the Grapevine

"Hey, Zara? What are you looking at? I mean, if you're looking at anything at all, which maybe you're not; sometimes people just glance off into space while they're thinking and I know that you're someone who thinks a lot, so you might be one of those kinds of people, but I'm just curious because if you are looking at something, then I'd like to be able to look with you at whatever it is that you're looking at. Right? So… uh… what… are you looking at?"

Enrique wasn't used to having someone who was willing to listen to him until he finished talking, so he was having a hard time finding a stopping point in his speech. It didn't help that Zara's polite stare made him that much more nervous and he found himself stuttering more than usual.

"I've never seen so much snow before in my whole life." Zara finally replied once he was sure that Enrique had finished talking. "We hardly ever get snow where I live, and even though my family travels a lot, I've never seen it like this before."

"It is awfully pretty, isn't it?" Azarel asked. They had found a small place by the side of the road to set up a camp. It was rudimentary, but it was warm and cosy, providing just enough shelter from the snow for the group and their belongings. "It's because of the Great Sage. He influences weather patterns in the north, which create air currents that flow around the world. It's his way of saying that he's bored in his imprisonment and wants to get out."

"You don't think that he'll create another ice age, do you?" Zara asked curiously.

"Not if we manage to set him free." Azarel winked playfully. "You don't doubt our abilities, do you?"

"N-no, no! Not at all!" Zara replied. "I guess… what I'm really asking is… er… if he's such a 'Great Sage,' why would he be doing something that could be dangerous to humanity?"

"Zara, you don't question the actions of a sage. He's wiser than any of us- if his wisdom decides that changing the climates of the world is a good idea, who are we to argue with him?"

"I mean… I guess that's true…" Zara looked down awkwardly. He had been running a brush through his hair, but wasn't able to do much with it, and placed it on the ground again.

"Do you want me to style your hair, Zara?"

"Huh?" Zara looked up at Azarel. "Would you? I don't want to be a bother… your hair is so beautiful though…"

"My hair? Aww, thank you Zara. You're very sweet, you know. I try to keep it looking its best." Azarel replied with a smile, grabbing the brush and settling down next to the boy in order to try making sense of his unruly locks. Enrique sat a short distance away, as though trying to keep his distance from Azarel. For two children who claimed to be adopted siblings, they didn't seem to be very comfortable with one another- or maybe that was just Zara's imagination.

"Azarel, where did you get this hair clip?" Zara picked up the pink barrette that had been placed with the rest of the group's belongings when Azarel's hair had been unbraided earlier.

"Zara, don't-" Enrique tried to yell, but it was already too late.

"DON'T TOUCH THAT!" Azarel snatched the barrette away before Zara could even respond. "This… this was given to me by someone very special. It was a gift, and it's very important to me. Don't you dare even think about touching this again!"

"I'm sorry!" Zara quickly apologised. "I didn't know that you were so protective of it! I won't again, I'll know next time, I promise!"

Azarel sighed and placed the brush back down again, keeping the barrette close this time. "I think that's enough hair business for tonight."

Enrique moved close to Zara again, who was still shaking from the abruptness of the whole ordeal.

"D-don't worry, Zara. You couldn't have known…"

"It was something so small; I didn't imagine that…" Zara sniffled. "…Azarel was so… touchy about it."

"It's one of the few things Azarel actually is touchy about." Enrique began whispering in reply, seeing his sibling glancing curiously over at their conversation. "I don't know who it was a gift from, but it was obviously someone important and probably someone who's dead now."

"You think?" Zara whispered back. "Maybe it's just someone that Azarel hasn't seen in a while, and misses. We should try to reunite them."

"I'd be glad to, if I could get Az to tell me who it is." Enrique replied. "But, up until now, that has seemed… almost impossible."

"Why is that?" Zara whispered.

"I don't know. Like I said, it must be some important dead person."

"Excuse me!" Azarel suddenly appeared between the two, causing Enrique to jump back. "Could you boys perhaps speak at a volume that everyone can hear? We're one big family here, just so you know."

"Right… a family…" Enrique muttered sarcastically, rubbing his head where he'd accidentally hit it against a rock.

"Enrique."

"Y-yes, of course! We are a family, Azarel! One big happy family, that's us! There's never been a family happier!" Enrique's countenance was suddenly sincere again, with a big- though somewhat forced- smile across the boy's face.

"Good." Azarel smiled in return. "Rest up, boys. We're leaving as soon as this snow lets up a little- and you don't want to be too tired for all the fun we'll have once we get to Kunan."

"Alright, Amelia. We need to talk."

Lina closed the door behind her, making her way over to where Amelia had already dived under the blankets on the bed across the room.

"No, we don't." the princess murmured, her voice muffled by the blankets.

"Yes, we do." Lina insisted, sitting down on the bed beside the lump of blankets and pillows that contained Amelia in it somewhere.

"Amelia isn't here right now. Please try again later." the lump responded.

Lina sighed.

"Okay, fine. We won't talk. I'll talk, and you'll listen, alright?"

Amelia peeked curiously out of the blankets, though she said nothing in response.

"I realise that today's events haven't exactly been easy to deal with. That being said, I can see how this might aggravate any already-established arguments that two people might have. However, from the way you spoke to me a few days ago, it gave me the impression that Zelgadis was the one harassing you, and that you were the victim in this whole fiasco. From what I have seen today, it turns out that the opposite is true. If anyone is antagonizing this altercation, it's you, Amelia."

Amelia sat up, pulling the blankets closely around her. "You don't understand, Miss Lina…"

"What don't I understand?" Lina's tone softened and she leaned over toward her friend. "Please talk to me, Amelia. I want to understand what's going on between you guys. I've never seen you picking fights with anyone like this. Please tell me- and not just as a friend."

"…not as a friend? What do you mean?"

"I can't stand seeing you this miserable, Amelia. Sometimes I may be too busy fawning over Zara or Gourry which causes me to forget about you, and for that I'm sorry. You're more than just my best friend, Amelia- you're family. And, yes, right now I have a little boy who's out in the freezing cold, and I hate that I can't do a damn thing about it. But you're here. If nothing else, I can at least help you. Will you allow a worried mother to bring at least some peace to her family?"

Amelia looked light she might cry. "Oh, Miss Lina…" She stopped and carefully dried her eyes before continuing. "I can't tell you how much this means to me-"

"Good. Let's focus on your problems instead."

Lina watched as Amelia slid out of the blankets and made herself comfortable on the other side of the bed before finally gathering the courage to speak again.

"…I… messed up… big time." Amelia finally sighed.

"Messed up? Messed up what?"

Amelia didn't say anything, simply pulling the blankets closer around her mouth.

"What, you don't want to tell me? If you don't tell me, then how am I going to be able to help you?"

"What I did doesn't matter." Amelia responded. "What matters is Zelgadis' reaction to it."

"Which is…?"

Amelia shifted and then leaned closer to Lina as though she were whispering some dreadful secret that she had to keep quiet.

"…the thing about Zelgadis is… he… has trust issues."

Lina made a big show of gasping. "Z-Zel? Trust issues? No way! That's so shocking, I just can't deal with how shocking it really is! I think I may up and die from the shock of what you've just said; that's how shocking it is-"

"Miss Lina. I was being serious."

"Of course, of course. The thing is, we all know that about Zelgadis. It's what makes him himself." Lina sighed.

"But, the thing is, now he doesn't trust me with this anymore."

"With what? Whatever it was that you did to make him upset?"

Amelia just nodded in response.

"And you're responding to that by being so mean to him?" Lina continued questioning. "Call me crazy, but I don't think that's the way to win back his heart."

"B-but Miss Lina! I specifically asked him for a second chance, and he refused! I know that he's been hurt in his past, and I know that I really messed up, but he knows me! He should know that I won't make the same mistake twice!"

Lina massaged her temples in frustration. "I get that, Amelia. I know you and I know you're sincere about this, but you can't even tell me what happened to get you two mad at each other? I don't understand how it could be something that you couldn't trust me with…" She stopped and looked back up at Amelia, raising an eyebrow. "Or… is it maybe something dirty and you don't want me to know what goes on behind closed doors-"

"It's nothing like that at all! Get your mind out of the gutter, Miss Lina!" Amelia's face had turned red at the very thought. "This is a serious matter!"

"Okay, okay, but you do realise that not telling me what happened means that you're leaving me no choice but to fill in the blanks with my perverted fantasies, right?" Lina shrugged.

Amelia crossed her arms indignantly. "You're so mean, Miss Lina! I thought you were trying to be helpful!"

"I am!" Lina held up her hands. "Amelia, if you don't want to tell me, it's none of my business. I won't ask again, I promise. But… would you be willing to accept some advice?"

"Of course." Amelia nodded.

"If you really want Zel to trust you again, you need to actually be nice to him. All you're doing by being mean to him is making the situation worse."

"But… what if he still won't trust me? He's so stubborn…"

"You've just got to do the best you can." Lina placed a hand on Amelia's shoulder. "Zel is a smart guy- I'm sure that he'll eventually see that you're trying to prove yourself to him. I hate to see you two so upset with one another- it's not like you guys."

Amelia smiled in return. "That's true… unlike you and Mister Gourry…"

"Yes!" Lina clapped her hands together. "Seeing you and Zelgadis fighting means that something is wrong. Likewise, if you didn't see Gourry and me fighting, then you'd know that something was wrong with us!"

Amelia giggled. "Everyone is different."

"Exactly!"

Amelia crawled under the blankets again, making herself comfortable as though she were ready to sleep. "Speaking of everyone," she began again. "how are the twins doing?"

"Oh, them?" Lina seemed surprised that Amelia had asked. "They're restless. They know something's wrong, that's for sure. I think they can tell that I'm worried about their brother, and they don't like it."

Amelia nodded slowly. "I've learned that unborn babies are very in-tune to their mother's emotions. I'd be surprised if they weren't upset by all that's going on now."

"Yeah, but they don't have to kick around so much; the little devils." Lina huffed. "These two are going to be a handful, I can already tell."

"But you'll have Mister Gourry and Zara-chan to help you care for them." Amelia pointed out.

"That's true." Lina got up and moved toward the other bed, sitting down on top of the blankets. "It'll be two-against-three… and my side will have the advantage, obviously."

"Miss Lina, you're not fighting them." Amelia giggled.

"No, of course not. It's more like a game- a battle of wills, I suppose." Lina replied. "And our disadvantage will be that we're completely and utterly inexperienced. Zara was three- almost four years old when we found him. He could walk and talk and do all kinds of things that I'm sure we took for granted back then. Now we're starting with a pair of kids who know absolutely nothing."

"But the emotional part is the same- bringing someone new into your family and giving them all the love and support that they deserve… that's important too, and you've done that." Amelia mentioned. "Isn't that right?"

Lina smiled as she lay back on one of the pillows. "That's… true. I can already tell that they're a pair of troublemakers, and yet… I love them so much…"

"You're a good mother, Miss Lina." Amelia smiled. "And a wonderful friend."

Lina smiled in response, and paused for a moment before continuing.

"…Lina."

"Huh?" Amelia questioned.

"My name is Lina."

"I-I don't understand-"

"My name is Lina." she repeated. "Just Lina."

"O-oh!" Amelia finally understood. "A-alright, then… Lina."

Lina smiled. "Good. Now go to sleep and maybe plan to be a little nicer to your husband tomorrow, alright?"

"Yes ma'am. I'll try."

Gourry collapsed face-first onto one of the beds almost as soon as he'd entered the room. Zelgadis and Pestis drew closer in concern, but it seemed like the swordsman was still conscious, so they didn't have too much to worry about.

Zelgadis placed his belongings down in one corner and looked to see if Pestis needed any help with anything, but the professor seemed to be transfixed by their friend's long blond hair. He stood over Gourry with a curious expression on his face.

"Excuse me, Mister Gabriev, but did I tell you that you have such lovely hair…?"

Gourry made an unintelligible noise of acknowledgement; whether it was a 'yes' or a 'no,' neither Pestis or Zelgadis could tell.

Seeing no movement from Gourry, Pestis reached forward and grabbed a handful of hair. "H-hey! What are you doing?" Zelgadis demanded, running back across the room.

"Oh wow! It's so soft too! It's like petting a puppy!"

"Let go of his hair! Gourry is not a puppy!"

"But Zelgadis-"

"I don't really care." Gourry muttered, his voice muffled by the pillows. "He's not bothering me."

"But, Gourry… Pestis is, uh…"

"Really- it's just like a puppy! Oh, I haven't seen a puppy in so long…" Pestis sighed, rubbing a lock of blond hair against one cheek. "…one of those little fluffy ones… the Pomeranian kind that's half dog and half fur… that's my favourite…"

"Pestis," Zelgadis took the professor's hand and gently wrenched Gourry's hair from it. "my friend's hair is not a toy. He needs to rest- and clearly so do you."

Pestis simply smiled and leaned on Zelgadis' shoulder. "You're so thoughtful, Zelgadis- especially about your friends." he cooed sweetly. "I love that about you..."

"Uh… what?"

The professor giggled, tapping the tip of Zelgadis' nose with one finger. "You're so adorable when you're confused, you know that? Oh! Has anyone ever told you that your eyes sparkle like -"

"Alright, that's it." Zelgadis grabbed Pestis by his wrists and dragged him across the room. "We need to get you in bed, now."

"Wh-wha?" This time Pestis feigned shocked innocence. "Th-that's so forward of you, Zelgadis! We haven't even kissed yet!"

"I DIDN'T MEAN THAT, YOU MORON!"

"Um…" Gourry had finally managed to pull himself back into consciousness, sitting up on the bed and staring with a mix of curiosity and horror. "…do you guys… need me to… give you some space, or something…?"

"Oh! Poor Gourry!" Pestis cried before Zelgadis could get a word in edgewise. "I don't want you to feel left out! I know- we'll make it a threesome! That should work, right?"

Gourry was already halfway out the door.

"GOURRY! DON'T LEAVE ME HERE WITH THIS LUNATIC!" Zelgadis begged.

"Lunatic? You're the one who's yelling, silly!" Pestis giggled, hugging Zelgadis' arm rather tightly.

"Pestis, stop this nonsense! I don't know what the hell you think you're even doing!" Zelgadis struggled to free his arm, though the professor had a tighter grip than he would've given the man credit for.

"I just thought," Pestis began innocently. "that if you and Amelia were splitting up, then you would-"

"WHAT?!"

Pestis let go of Zelgadis' arm, and the chimera jumped back a few feet in horror- not at the professor's actions, but at his words.

"We are not doing anything of the sort! I know that sometimes we don't always see eye-to-eye, but I would never leave her, and I know that she feels the same about me! Give us some credit, would you?!"

Pestis blinked and then sighed with a smile- a far different smile than he'd had just a few seconds ago.

"Thank you." The professor walked toward the other side of the room, settling down in a large armchair and beginning to untie his bowtie. "My sincerest apologies for invading your personal space there, Zelgadis, but I was just curious as to the state of things between you and Amelia. I thought that might be the best way to figure it out."

"Wh- wh- wha-?" Zelgadis was not amused. "You little… couldn't you have just asked me? Were all those theatrics really necessary?!"

"H-huh?" Gourry looked awfully lost amongst all this. "Does that mean… he's not really attracted to you…?"

"On the contrary, my dear Gourry," Pestis replied with a playful wink. "I am very much attracted to Zelgadis."

"He's lying." Zelgadis interrupted. "He does this constantly. I've forgotten what a pain it was…"

"I just want to make sure that my favourite couple in the whole world was intact! I put in way too much work getting you guys together for you to fall apart now! What in the world is going on between you guys anyway?"

"It's none of your business."

"Oh, but it is my business!" Pestis responded again, unbuttoning his vest and tossing it over one of the arms of the chair. "You do realise that I'm a lonely old codger with no social life to speak of, right?"

"That doesn't justify sticking your nose where it doesn't belong." Zelgadis responded.

"Um…"

"It does belong here, and you know it! I had a hand in helping this marriage along; shouldn't I be the first one to know if there's trouble brewing?"

"…you guys…?"

"You're not entitled to anything." Zelgadis crossed his arms indignantly.

"…I… have a question…"

Both Zelgadis and Pestis turned to Gourry. "What is it?"

"Uh… what's a codger? Is it, like, some sort of magical creature, or…?"

Zelgadis placed his face in his hand and groaned. "No, no, no… it's just an eccentric old man…"

"Like me!" Pestis smiled brightly. "I'm an eccentric old man!"

Zelgadis sat down on the edge of one bed with a sigh. "Look, Pestis… if it'll get you off my back, I can at least tell you-"

Pestis had already sat down eagerly at Zelgadis' feet. "Storytime!"

"No! Not storytime!" Zelgadis hissed. "Listen to me, okay?! Amelia got into some serious trouble recently, and it's all my fault. She's mad at me, and maybe with good reason, but I just… I can't let her get hurt again because of me. That's what is going on between us. Alright? Are you satisfied now?"

"Well… I suppose…" Pestis nodded his head. "But what did you did you do exactly?"

"That's not important." Zelgadis replied sternly.

"Ah, so it's that kinky, huh?"

"What?! No, I didn't mean that! Go to sleep, you perverted old man!"

Pestis giggled and snatched one of the blankets off the bed, running back over to the armchair. "You can take the second bed- the chair is fine with me for the night."

"Are you sure?" Zelgadis questioned, sending a quick glance over to the first bed, where Gourry had buried his head under the pillows and sprawled out with only one leg underneath the blankets.

"Yes; I'll be fine. You need the rest more than I do." Pestis removed his glasses and set them down on top of his vest and cloak. "Don't worry- I'm sure that you and Amelia will come to terms with one another soon enough. In all seriousness, you two have been through so much together… something like this can't come between you. Just remember how far the two of you have made it, alright?"

This allowed Zelgadis to smile, even if just a little bit.

"Thank you, Pestis. Even if I don't approve of the way you do things sometimes… you're not a half-bad friend."

Pestis smiled in reply.

"You're not a half-bad friend either, Zelgadis."

(A/N: This whole chapter… was pretty much all the characters gossiping about one another. Geez! These guys just don't know when to stop talking! …or maybe it's just the fact that I like writing dialogue the best… hmm...)