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

54- A Lot to Answer For

"I hope Pestis and the others are having fun in Zoana, because all this rain is making it hard to have fun here." Lina groaned, tossing a glance out the window at the night sky- or lack thereof, considering all the clouds. She folded the shirt she was holding and put it away in a drawer.

"What's so bad about a little rain?" Gourry was lounging in bed on the other side of the room, busily sketching something in a notebook. "I know you don't really like it, but-"

"I've wanted to show Zel and Amelia around! We never have much time to do things around town with them when they visit, and I thought this could be our chance… y'know, go fishing, check out the shops, spend some time by the lake…"

"You'll have a chance later. Just enjoy them being around."

"Wouldn't be nice if they could come live here?" Lina let herself collapse on the other side of the bed with a sigh. "I mean, not here, here, but in Craighouse."

"It sure would be nice." Gourry shrugged. "But we can't take them away from their jobs in Seyruun City."

"That's true. It's not feasible to have fun all the time."

Gourry stopped drawing to close his eyes and think for a moment. "Weren't you and I planning to have some fun tonight?"

"I'm not really in the mood." Lina buried her head in her pillow.

"That's fine." He returned his attention to his paper. "Hey, do you think this flower has too many petals?"

Lina pulled her head up and looked over his shoulder. "Why are you drawing flowers?"

"I was just doodling."

"I think it looks really good."

"I've been doodling flowers on the margins of papers all my life. I've gotten pretty good." Gourry beamed.

Lina turned away again and lowered her head back onto the pillow. She closed her eyes and gave another sigh.

"What are we doing?"

"I'm drawing flowers. I don't know about you."

"N-no, I mean…" Lina opened her eyes again and stared at the ceiling. "What next?"

"We… go to sleep? You said you didn't feel like-"

"Tomorrow. Next week. Next month. What are we doing?"

"I don't know. I hadn't thought that far ahead."

"Exactly." Lina sat up. "We've agreed to meet the others when they return to Seyruun, and I guess our next move will depend on what they've found. We still don't understand what Xellos or Azarel's motives are. And… we don't know if Luke and Enrico are still in danger."

Gourry was silent. He put the pen down. "I suppose we don't."

"I don't want anything else to happen to them. I don't think I could take it. I'm thinking that it might… might… be better if I stay with them. I need to protect them."

"As long as we keep them with us wherever we go, what's the problem?" Gourry asked.

"That's not it. That's not enough." Lina put her face in her hands. "We left them with Filia, someone we trust to keep them safe just as much as we would. And still they got hurt. I can't let that happen again. I want to stay with them here."

Gourry stared at her for a moment. "Stay here? Stay home? You? Tell me you're joking."

"I'm not."

"Why?"

"Because… because I'm a mother first. My children are important to me. Aren't they important to you?"

"Of course they are." Gourry replied. "But you are important to me too. And I know this is not what you want."

"Are you saying that I don't want to protect my children?!"

"No, no! I'm saying that you don't want to spend all your time at home while there's a danger to the world. You're the world's most powerful sorceress. You can protect your children and save the world. Someone like you doesn't have to choose."

"But what if I do?" Lina looked at him in concern. "What if I fail- on either account?"

"You won't."

"How can you be sure?"

Gourry gave her a serious look. "Lina, I've been married to you for three years now. I know more about you than probably anybody. If I thought you weren't strong enough, I'd tell you."

"But that's just it!" Lina yelled. "I'm not strong enough!"

"Wha-"

"I'm not strong enough to handle it if… if… we lost one of them."

The room was suddenly quiet. Gourry knew better than to respond right away. He took a deep breath and avoided looked at her as he continued.

"If staying here is what you really want to do, then I'll support you completely. But when you get cooped up for too long, you start to get frustrated. You anger easily, and are irritated almost all the time. Kids catch on easily to that sort of thing. Filia's parenting book says that kids are like sponges, and they soak up the kind of attention they're given- that's how they learn. In trying to keep them safe, what will you be teaching them?"

He braced himself for an argument of some kind. Once Lina had made up her mind about something, there wasn't any changing it, but he could at least try-

She hugged him tightly. He wasn't sure how to respond, and gently placed a hand on her head.

"I knew I could count on you to give me a reason not to stay." she whispered.

"Wha? That's all you wanted? You really had me worried for a little while there. I thought you'd actually made up your mind to quit fighting."

"Me? Quit fighting? Lina Inverse doesn't know the meaning of the word quit!"

She waited for him to correct her with her married name the way he usually did. But, to her surprise, he just smiled.

"I thought Lina Inverse knew everything."

Lina laughed. "That is the right answer!" she exclaimed, tugging playfully on his cheek. "Always remember that!"

"I'll try."

"…it's been an hour, and the egg hasn't done anything yet. Maybe it's not hatching after all."

Enrique and the Mazoku girl were still standing around the egg, staring intently in a search for any sign of life inside. The egg had been a silver colour when they'd began, but it had then turned copper, and then bright ruby, and then darkened to a dull rusty colour, where it had stayed. Neither of them knew anything about Ancient Dragons, much less about Ancient Dragon eggs, and they couldn't figure out what the egg was doing. If it wasn't hatching… what was going on?

"I don't understand." Enrique shook his head. "There must be something wrong."

"It's kind of a bloody colour, now that I think about it." the Mazoku girl observed. "Do you think… something happened to the chick inside the egg?"

"Something bad?" Enrique flinched. "It can't be! There's gotta be another explanation! I'm sure that-that-that-" He cut off as he saw the girl reaching out toward the egg. "Don't touch it! What do you think is going to happen?!"

"I don't know, but I'm sick of standing around and staring at an inanimate object."

"Filia's gonna be so angry… Filia's gonna be so angry…" Enrique was repeating to himself over and over.

The Mazoku girl poked the egg's surface, and when that didn't produce any effect, she began to stroke the shell gently. There was no response to any of her touch, but she didn't know whether that was a good or bad thing.

"It's still warm." she observed. "Whatever is inside of it must still be alive."

"But it's not hatching. Do you think it's trying and has gotten stuck?"

"If it is, we shouldn't bother it. Nature knows what it's doing in most cases like this."

"But…" Enrique's voice trailed off. He sat down in the chair he had been using earlier and buried his face in his hands. "This is all my fault. If I'd done a better job of taking care of things, maybe it would have-"

"This probably isn't your fault, Enrique."

"How do you know?"

The girl approached him and took his hands in hers. "I know because I know how much you've worried about this egg. You've worked so hard to keep it safe, I can't see how you could have done anything wrong."

Enrique looked down at the floor. "Sometimes caring too much can be just as dangerous as not caring enough."

"Says who?"

"Well…"

The girl perched on the arm of the chair and placed a hand on Enrique's shoulder. "You're doing fine. Don't beat yourself up over every little thing."

Enrique looked away.

"Though, that's what you're used to, isn't it? Getting scolded for everything you do? I heard that was how Azarel kept a grip on you and the other minions. Some leader."

"I don't wanna talk about Azarel." Enrique replied.

"I can understand. I've served a terrible master before."

"Beastmaster?"

"No, no! I once ended up in the service of a rogue, former lieutenant of Lord Dynast, and that went about as well as you'd think…" She shrugged. "Life in the Mazoku world is eat-or-be-eaten."

"Well, that's one thing I actually have to thank Azarel." Enrique responded. "If it wasn't for Azarel, I probably would have been eaten."

"And that's not preferable to what you actually went through?"

"Of course not! I want to live!"

The Mazoku girl laughed. "Good, good! Keep that perspective! That's something you'll need in the future!" She sat still for a few minutes, leaning on Enrique's shoulder, but then suddenly stood up.

"Something wrong?"

"I have to go."

"All of a sudden?"

"Xellos told me to meet him after he finished with dinner, and now he's signalling for me. I'm sorry- I wish I could stay longer. I enjoy talking to you."

"I… enjoy talking to you too." Enrique hoped his face wasn't red. "I hope… you'll come around again sometime… I mean, not that I… er, well…"

"Of course I'll be back around." She grinned. "I still haven't gotten an answer from Pathosmaster about Lord Beastmaster's offer."

"Ah! Right! I'll have that answer soon, I promise- uh… I'm sorry, I don't think I ever caught your name…"

"I don't think I ever said my name." The girl offered her hand to shake. "It's Lorelei."

Enrique froze. "Huh?"

"Lo-re-lei. It's a little difficult to get the hang of, I know."

"You…" Enrique's voice trailed off as he stared at her. He was still struggling to wrap his head around what was going on. Lorelei shot a glance out the window and then back at her friend.

"I'm sorry. I really do have to leave."

She disappeared, leaving Enrique in mid-sentence. "Lorelei!" he exclaimed, but it was too late to get her attention. He leaned his head back and squeezed his eyes shut. "What have I gotten myself into?"

He wasn't sure how long he had sat there, dazed, but it must have been a long time. The rest of the group finally returned to the room, and Enrique jumped up with a start. "H-hey! I, uh-" He ran to the desk where the egg was still sitting in its basket. It was still a rusty colour, and Enrique was dreading Filia's reaction when she saw it.

"Enrique? Is something wrong?" Pestis asked in concern. "You sound nervous."

"Did something happen to the egg?" Filia demanded, running to look at it. Enrique hovered over it protectively.

"W-well, it, uh… um…" There was nothing else to do but beg for forgiveness, it seemed. "I'M SORRY! It's not my fault! I was just watching it- I didn't do anything- and all of a sudden it started changing colours, and we were super scared that something had happened, but we didn't know what to do, so we just sort of stood around, and-"

"Oh, the colour's finally changed!" Filia picked up the egg. Her face had lit up in a big smile. "I've been waiting for that to happen."

Enrique felt himself relax a little. "Y-you have?"

"Yes. Several days before they hatch, Ancient Dragon eggs undergo a chemical change as the chicks within the eggs are prepared to survive in the environment outside. The change in the shell's colour from silver to orange is an indicator of this chemical change, and means that the chick is developing healthily. Another colour might indicate a health problem, but this looks perfect." Filia had finished scrutinizing the egg for any sign of illness. She seemed satisfied and held it close. "I'm sorry. I should have told you this might happen. I'm sure you were very worried."

"You have no idea." Enrique drooped. "I'm just glad it isn't hurt."

"I'm grateful to you for being such a good egg-sitter." Filia smiled, placing the egg back in the basket. Shizuri helped her to wrap it up the way she did at night. Lyos had collapsed on one of the beds, but Pestis was standing next to Enrique. He tapped the boy on the shoulder.

"Enrique, when you said we, who were you referring to?"

"Huh?" Enrique blinked.

"You said 'we didn't know what to do.' Who is we?"

"Th-that's right! I did!" Enrique stiffened again. "I've been meaning to tell you about that! There's this girl who's been following me around, and she-"

"You make it sound like that's a problem." Lyos commented.

"Oh, how exciting! Is she cute?" Pestis exclaimed.

"No, no, no-" Enrique shook his head. "-I mean, yeah, she's cu- WHY DOES THAT MATTER? She's Xellos' assistant and a spy for Beastmaster!"

Pestis' expression darkened. "What?"

"Xellos' assistant?" Filia asked. "You mean Lorelei?"

"You know Lorelei?" Enrique responded.

"Of course. She spends a lot of time with Xellos, so that means she and I… well, we see each other a lot. Xellos and I aren't on very good terms right now. I wonder if she could help."

"Wait, wait, wait!" Pestis waved his hands. "Didn't you say she was spying on us? Is that how Xellos knew that we were searching for him? Is that why he had that invitation sent to you?"

Enrique nodded mutely.

"Why didn't you say anything about that?" Shizuri demanded. "If you knew we were being spied on, why'd you keep it a secret?"

"It's not like I didn't try to tell you!" Enrique defended. "But you reacted so strongly when I gave you the invitation, there wasn't a chance for me to explain why I had it!"

"How long has Lorelei been spying on us?" Filia asked.

"I don't know. The first time she approached me was the night Luke was kidnapped."

"What?!" Pestis grabbed Enrique by the arm. "Why didn't you tell us? If we'd known that Xellos' assistant was present at the estate that night, there'd have been no reason to blame Azarel! It could've saved us time and worry!"

Enrique looked like he was about to cry. "E-everyone was so upset that night, I couldn't get a word in edgewise." he sniffled. "It's not so easy to stand up and tell the truth when all your life you've been told to sit down and shut up."

Professor Nisery realized how harsh he was being, and let go of Enrique. "I'm sorry- I didn't mean to yell. What did Lorelei want when she approached you?"

"She was bringing a message to you from Beastmaster. She said that Beastmaster wants to form an alliance with Pathosmaster."

"An alliance?" Shizuri gasped. "Why?"

"A competition." Pestis replied. "Mazoku don't make alliances to make friends, but to make common enemies. Beastmaster wants me to take sides against Azarel."

"And Azarel wanted you to take sides against Beastmaster, right?" Filia asked.

"That's right."

"Wait… I thought Azarel was working with Xellos before. Why would Azarel have asked you to go against Beastmaster?" Lyos spoke up.

Pestis stiffened and Filia's hands flew to her mouth. "Oops." she murmured.

"Have you been in contact with Azarel since the battle?" Shizuri asked. "Is that how you knew that Xellos was really Luke's kidnapper?"

"Er, well…" Pestis shrunk back.

"And when you stayed in the laboratory in Seyruun, you were tracking Azarel, weren't you?" Lyos accused. "You said you wouldn't touch anything!"

"I told you that I didn't know Azarel's data!"

"You did. Were you lying?"

Pestis fidgeted for a minute as the others stared at him. "I…I… didn't want everyone going after Azarel with the intent to kill. It's not like it would have made a difference-"

"It sounds to me like you've already chosen a side." Lyos spat. "And it's not ours."

"No, no, no!" Pestis waved his hands. "Please, listen to me! All I want is to resolve this peacefully! I just need to get everyone else to see that there's another way besides senseless violence!"

"So where's Azarel?" Shizuri asked pointedly.

"What?"

"You tracked them, right?" Lyos agreed. "What'd you find?"

"I…" Pestis stammered. "…my math must have been wrong. I came up with something weird."

"What is it?" Filia questioned.

"According to my math… which is assuredly wrong, I know…" Pestis sighed. "Azarel was in Seyruun City."