Hello, everyone. As usual, I don't own anything. I'm just a fan writing some fiction. Please enjoy.

49- Foul-Weather Friends

"Did she take him?"

"Yes; in fact, she was very amicable for a woman who'd been woken up at two o'clock in the morning." Xellos lowered the hood of his cloak as he walked out onto the pier. Lorelei was sitting at the end, dipping her feet into the frigid lake water. "And how did the situation at the Lin Estate go?"

"Perfect. They fell for the bait, no questions asked."

"That's a relief." Xellos sighed. "At least one of our plans is going smoothly."

"Are you as afraid as I am that Azarel will get in our way somehow now that we've let them go?"

Xellos sat down beside Lorelei, keeping his boots just above the water's edge. "Not really. Lord Beastmaster has everything under control."

Lorelei laid back on the dock, resting her head on her hands. "Being here at the lake makes me miss Zara. He was really upset after what happened today. He and Lina were the first ones to walk into the room, and he screamed so loudly… it hurt my ears."

"Unfortunately, our duties to Lord Beastmaster force us to harm those whom we love. That is a pain that we Mazoku must bear."

Lorelei sat up a little and glared at him. "You enjoyed stabbing Filia, didn't you?"

"What would give you that impression?"

"…"

"I enjoyed," Xellos began with an air of indignance. "dispelling her notion that I am inherently a good guy."

"You are a good guy, Xellos." Lorelei rolled her eyes.

Xellos pouted. "Don't say things like that. You're hurting my feelings."

"Case in point."

The two were silent for a moment, listening to the sounds of the water against the dock.

"Why can't we just give the baby back to his family?" Lorelei asked quietly.

"We've been over this. We can't risk them learning prematurely that we are-"

"I know why. I'm sure that he'll be safe with Imia- she treats Zara like her own son."

"It was obvious that she was already fond of Luke. She assured me that she knows Miss Lina's routine and that she'll take the utmost care with the child." Xellos answered.

"She didn't recognize you, did she?"

"Not that I could tell. I told her I was an agent of Miss Lina, and she seemed to accept it."

"She didn't ask you any questions?"

"No. I had Luke with me- I think that was proof enough."

"Too bad. I was hoping your extensive knowledge of Lina Inverse trivia would come in handy."

"As was I."

The two were silent again. It was beginning to rain, and the sound of raindrops hitting the lake's surface was enough to lull any creature, even a Mazoku, into a calm stupor.

"I'm sorry that your plan with the twins didn't work out." Lorelei whispered. "I know you did a lot of calculations and planning for it."

"It doesn't matter. That would've been too easy." Xellos shrugged. "Besides, we don't know what would've happened even if the plan had succeeded. There were too many variables that we hadn't been able to test."

"That's true. It all comes down to calculated risks. Lord Beastmaster is good at working those."

"She's a skilled gambler, alright." Xellos agreed. "That's what it takes to make it in this business."

Lorelei looked up at the thick clouds covering the sky. "So, what now? Should we get out of the rain?"

"Let's stay here for a while. With all we have planned, who knows when we'll get a chance to rest again?"

Lina was inconsolable and Gourry was not much better. No one really knew what happened to Zara: he hid himself away in some corner of the estate where only Enrique could find him. Enrique assured everyone that the boy was safe, but he wasn't allowed to reveal his location as per the "friend code." Poor Enrico was the only one who didn't seem to understand what was going on. He knew his brother was missing- it was hard not to notice the absence of a partner who'd been with him since birth- but with his mother and father doting on him almost all the time, he had no reason to be upset.

Pestis had mixed feelings. He felt both guilt and frustration that Azarel would do such a thing without talking to him first. It didn't make much sense, and he hated it.

The rain that had begun the night before seemed like it was there to stay, and though everyone else stayed inside, away from the weather, Pestis preferred to be outside on the porch most of the time. Something about the rain comforted him and helped to quell his displeasure. The rest of the group had spent the day interviewing all of Miss Lin's employees to find out if anyone has seen anything suspicious. After hours and hours of interrogation, they had come up empty, and that left a lot of people dissatisfied.

Pestis couldn't understand it. This wasn't what was supposed to happen when a protagonist spared and antagonist's life. It was supposed to go more along the lines of "oh, Pestis, you really are a good person at heart! I see the error of my violent ways- let's be friends again!" and then everyone could skip happily into the sunset while flowers bloomed and the end credits played. Or something like that.

But Azarel didn't seem to be at all affected by Pestis' act of kindness. If anything it had lowered Azarel's opinion of Pestis. The professor had hoped that Azarel would reconsider, but this gift seemed to be proof that Azarel was rejecting everything that had ever connected them.

Pestis stepped out from under the cover of the porch, feeling led to vent his frustrations. He yelled loudly, keeping his feet planted firmly on the muddy ground. He was hesitant to run around, knowing that he was likely to slip and fall, but he wasn't averse to screaming out loud. When all the air had run out of his lungs, he took a deep breath in again and sat down on the second step of the porch stairs. The step was just under the cover of the roof, and kept his head dry.

"What am I doing?" he wondered out loud.

"You're making a lot of noise, if that's what you're wondering. Some people may be trying to sleep."

Pestis flinched. He recognized that voice. It took him a moment to get on his feet and steady himself enough to look around. "Azarel?"

"I'm sorry it's been so long. A lot has happened since we last met."

"WHY YOU-"

Azarel was not expecting an attack, which let Pestis get close and grab ahold of them more easily. The Mazoku yelped in surprise.

"Wh-what are you-?"

"Tell me right now what you've done with Luke!" Pestis growled. "I swear, if you've done anything to hurt him, I'll-"

"Wh-who is Luke?"

"Don't ask questions like that! If you're going to resort to kidnapping to get our attention, you should at least know the name of the child-"

"Kidnapping? What are you talking about? I didn't-"

"AZAREL!"

There was a pause, and Pestis suddenly noticed the look of pure confusion on his friend's face. He began gently "…you… really don't know what I'm talking about, do you?"

"Finally, you understand." Azarel sighed.

"But, but, but… I don't understand. Luke couldn't have disappeared on his own. Why did you attack Filia? Why did you leave this?" He held up the pink barrette curiously. Azarel jumped at the sight of it.

"Wh-wh-where did you get that?!"

Pestis glanced at it and ten back at Azarel. "…didn't you give it to me?"

"It was stolen from me weeks ago. I haven't seen it since then. Why would I have given it back to you?"

"Because… you… well… I thought that…" Pestis spluttered. His voice trailed off and he examined Azarel a little closer. "…how do I know that you're really Azarel?"

"Wha-? Of course I'm Azarel!"

"Oh yeah? What's my last name?"

"Nisery."

"Favourite food?"

"Coffee."

"Best friend's name?"

"Probably Zelgadis."

"Eye colour?"

"Silver, not grey."

"Mm… shoe size?"

Azarel raised one eyebrow. "Pestis, how would I know your shoe size?"

"You bought me shoes once before."

"Ah, I remember. You have really big feet for someone of your stature. It took me forever to find a store that carried shoes large enough."

"That's exactly what you said back then!" Pestis clapped his hands. "Oh, you really are Azarel!" He pulled his friend into an affectionate embrace, and, for once, Azarel returned the gesture. It was unexpected, and Pestis held the hug for as long as he could before Azarel started to squirm, and he pulled away. Reaching back into his pocket, he pulled out the barrette and gently passed it off. "What happened to you, Azarel?"

"I was taken prisoner by Beastmaster and her stupid priest."

"Xellos?" Pestis gasped. "He confided something to us about not being on your side, but I didn't think he'd actually betray you… was he the one who stole the barrette?"

"Yes." Azarel nodded.

"Then… he must be the one who took Luke and hurt Filia…" Pestis murmured, trying to make sense of the situation. "…but that doesn't make sense. Filia is his…"

"That's his pet dragon, right? What happened to her?"

"She was stabbed- by what looked like your dagger."

"Those were stolen from me too. Beastmaster ordered me stripped of everything that I might use to escape."

"Why? What did Lord Beastmaster want from you?"

"I was interrogated." Azarel admitted. "They forced me to tell them everything I knew about the Key of the Aqualord. Then they kept me locked up in a cell for what seemed like months… and all of a sudden, last night, Xellos released me. He didn't give a reason, he just told me to leave."

"Last night…" Pestis murmured. "That's when… AH! A setup! They were trying to frame you to distract us, and it worked!"

"A distraction. Of course." Azarel's eyes closed tightly. "But who is Luke? Why would Xellos have taken him?"

"We don't know. Luke is only eleven weeks old. I can't imagine what use he'd be to anyone besides as a hostage."

"Then he's… Lina's…?"

"Yes. The baby." Pestis nodded. "But if this was all a setup to distract our attention, he can't be a hostage. Maybe he was taken as an attempt to draw our attention away from whatever Beastmaster is doing, but that still seems extreme when they just could have attacked Filia and left the barrette. Azarel, do you know what Lord Beastmaster is planning to do with the knowledge of the Key of the Aqualord?"

"No, I don't know a thing." Azarel replied with a shake of the head. "Lina must be ready to murder me."

"We'd better not let her know you're here. She's got her full magical strength back, and she won't pull any punches if she finds you."

"I was going to ask you to come with me anyway." Azarel stepped back and extended a hand to Pestis. "With Beastmaster plotting something big, I don't have any time to lose. I have to awaken the Demon King of the North before Beastmaster can get to him- who knows what she's going to do?"

"Wait. You're still… plotting to release the Demon King?"

"The Knight of the Aqualord won't let the Key out of his sight. I thought I could convince him to give it to me by telling him that using its power would release the Demon King, but that didn't work."

"Yeah. Filia told us all about how power sinks work."

"Then you understand that there must be another way!" Azarel smiled. "C'mon, Pestis-"

"Slow down." Pestis interrupted. "You're making the assumption that we're allies all of a sudden."

Azarel's face fell. "Assumption? I don't understand."

"Just because I spared your life doesn't mean that I think your goals are right, or that I'm willing to work with you. It just means that I didn't want you to die. Can't you tell the difference?"

"…I suppose I misjudged your intentions. Still, I'm asking you to-"

"To what?" Pestis was livid now. "To blindly follow you just because of our past relationship? Look at what you're asking, Azarel! I will not be joining you as long as you keep up this futile fight!"

"Futile?" Azarel scowled. "You don't know anything about this fight. Lord Phibrizzo worked so hard to-"

"I don't give a damn about Phibrizzo!"

The statement was hard-hitting. Azarel had to pause a moment to catch Pestis' eye.

"…but you do give a damn about me."

There was another pause. Pestis cringed. "Azarel-"

"I know that I put more into my relationship with Phibrizzo than I was ever going to get out of it. I adored him with more fervour than he would ever reciprocate. Do you know why? Because he made to do that. I was his perfect subordinate, hand-designed to hang onto his every word and fulfil his slightest wishes. But with you… I didn't have to do anything. My relationship with you is real."

Pestis scowled. "This isn't about our relationship, Azarel. It's about your actions. You tried to murder a little boy for goodness' sakes-"

"Get off that soapbox before you hurt yourself." Azarel interrupted curtly. "I can tell you think Zara is pretty special. That's not a problem. But you have to remember, I've killed thousands before, and every single one of them was someone's son or daughter. To start lecturing me now that I've committed the unforgivable sin or hurting someone you actually care about is hypocritical."

Pestis clenched his teeth. "How foolish of me to forget. What is it that you really want from me?"

"Help me." Azarel replied. "Help me or stay out of my way."

"Right. Got it." Pestis murmured. "I'm sorry, but I don't think we can come to a compromise."

Azarel's face took on a pained expression. "You can't really feel that way. We were so close… we can be like that again-"

"No. We can't. Not like this."

Azarel seemed to droop, and the Mazoku took a step back out into the rain. "I'm sorry that you feel that way. I thought perhaps we could come to an understanding, but it seems that I've only made things worse. My apologies for bothering you."

"Apology accepted." Pestis nodded. "Leave."

"Leaving."

The Mazoku disappeared slowly into the darker part of the garden where the rain was falling even harder now than it had been just moments before. Pestis sneered into the darkness and ran out into the rain.

"AND DON'T COME BACK!"

It took a few moments for him to realize how cliché and cheesy that line probably was, but even once he realize it, he didn't care. His shoes were drenched and muddy, and he was cold all over, but something about this meeting felt almost satisfying. He had been unsure of where he and Azarel stood, and now he knew. He no longer had the cloud of uncertainty hanging over him, and he could yell into the darkness out of anger instead of frustration.

"Hey! What are you yelling about? People are trying to sleep, you know."

Pestis turned to see Zelgadis' silhouette against the lighted doorway. "Can't a man yell into the dark void once in a while without being criticized about it?"

Zelgadis rolled his eyes. "Sorry I asked. Can you keep your shenanigans to a minimum for the sake of those asleep right now?"

"I can try."

Zelgadis turned back around to go inside, but Pestis suddenly remembered the conversation he'd had and stopped him.

"Zelgadis! Wait, wait!" Pestis ran up to him and grabbed him by the shoulders. Zelgadis flinched.

"H-hey! How long have you been standing in the rain?"

"Zelgadis, I figured out who kidnapped Luke!"

"What are you talking about?"

"It wasn't Azarel!"

"Wha-"

"It was Xellos and I can prove it! He's the one who hurt Filia and he must have stolen the barrette in order to frame Azarel! It all makes sense!"

Zelgadis' mouth hung open for a moment and then he shook his head. "…and just how did you come to this conclusion?"

"It's a long story, but I was thinking really hard, and it all started to make sense! The way Filia was attacked confirms it. It couldn't have been Azarel! I can explain it all- just give me a chance!"

By this time Pestis had his arms around Zelgadis' neck, and he looked very, very confused. "This sounds suspicious, but… if you're sure…"

"I'm sure! I'm totally sure! Absolutely-positively-one-hundred-percent sure!"

"Right… that's really reassuring." Zelgadis murmured.

(Due to unforeseen schedule changes, updates will now be on Fridays. Thank you for understanding.)