Xellos finished his story and looked up to see that Sylphiel had rolled over in bed again and was staring at him with tears glistening in her eyes, and was surprised to realize that he was crying as well.
Downstairs, Amelia was introducing Gracia to Gourry. He mad a few...comments...about her generous figure, and, of course, she started to laugh.
"OHOHOHOHO! What an observant man!!" she said gleefully.
Gourry and Amelia cringed.
"Gracia 'Neesan, do you have to laugh so loudly? It's not ladylike, and certainly not modest... What's happened to you? You used to be a paragon of decorum and grace!"
Gracia smiled and chuckled softly. "Life happened." she said, "when you travel the roads alone, you can't be ladylike and demure, or you'll be dead. I don't think I'll ever again be that child I was before mother died, but I can at least try to be more like her."
Amelia smiled. "Estor will be happy to hear that." she said.
"Estor?!" Gracia went pale, then flushed a quite becoming shad of pink, "H...he's...not married? He waited for me?"
Amelia nodded and Gracia buried her head in her sister's shoulder and wept.
After they had run in companionable silence for the rest of the afternoon, passing three more small villages on their way, Zelgadis insisted it was time they stopped and made camp for the night.
Lina laughed. "This is new." she said, Usually it's me telling you to stop for the night, not the other way around."
Zel laughed and hugged her from behind, letting his chin rest on the crown of her head. "I love you." he said simply and kissed her forehead as she settled against him.
"Oh Zel..." she sighed, "Every time I hear that it's like a little miracle!" She leaned her head back and their lips met, and for a little while nothing else mattered.
Later, after Lina had fallen asleep, Zelgadis pulled out the little pouch where he had hidden her hair and dream tears. As he watched her sleep, he twisted the wire strands of hair around each other to for two intricate braids, then looped them around one of the dream tears, winding them around each other to hold fast the rest of the little crystal chips. Finally he cast a small, concentrated fire spell to bind the ends together, and slipped it on his finger. Satisfied, he lay down and curled himself up, spooning against Lina, who rooted back toward him, into the comfort of his embrace. He kissed her head gently and laid one arm down over her abdomen, as though to hold her to him, before drifting off to sleep.
Hours after Xellos had gone upstairs, he and Sylphiel came down together, just in time for dinner. Gourry watched Sylphiel carefully until he was sure she was alright, and when she sat down beside him he casually laid his arm across her shoulders.
"Is everything okay, Sylli-chan?" he asked, looking sternly at Xellos.
"Everything's fine, Gourry-sama, Xellos explained everything to me." She smiled a little hesitantly over at Xellos, who had sat down next to Amelia, and he smiled back.
"The story's a bit too long to retell to you all completely, but suffice it to say that about thirty years ago I created a daughter, and my daughter fell in love with Sylphiel's father, and she was the result." Xellos said shortly.
"And your daughter...?" Amelia asked
"Was killed about the time Sylphiel was born." he said with finality. "Oh Xellos-san, how sad." Amelia said, with a tear glimmering in her eye, and caught and squeezed his hand in her own.
He smiled at her and thumbed the tear away. "Yes, but it's in the past now, and her daughter survived, so she will never truly be gone."
Everyone but Gracia and Amelia looked at Xellos strangely and he laughed, breaking the mood.
"What! Is it so surprising that I might have feelings?" he protested.
"Not to me it's not," Amelia said sweetly and hugged him, "but the others are probably a little surprised. After all, they don't know you the way I do."
"The way you do?" Gourry was confused.
Xellos smiled. "Well, it'll be obvious soon enough, so there's not much point keeping it a secret." he muttered, then drew Amelia into a deep kiss. After a couple of minutes he turned to Gourry. "The way she knows me, and the way I know her." he said with a contented smile.
At that, all hell broke loose