This story started out as a story to go ahead of 'Daddy's Girl', but it developed a peronality of it's own......
navy = Nightmare
"I'm nothing without you, please don't go......." Lina sat up in her bed, looking all around her room. Everything was the way it should be.
"Why do I keep having that dream?" Lina whispered this softly, so not to disturb the person sleeping next to her.
"Lina? Are you feeling ok?" Lina looked down into her lover's blue eyes.
"I'm fine, I just had a bad dream, that's all."
"Come lay back down, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow. The others will be expecting a bright and cheery Lina."
"You're right. Will you hold me so that the dream won't come back?" Her voice sounded like a frightend child's as he wrapped his arms around her and fell asleep.
THE NEXT DAY
"Hey guys, how have you been?" A very cheerful, and very pregnant Lina walked through the door of the tavern where she was to meet her friends.
It had been over a year since she had seen most of them, so her being pregnant was some of a shock.
"Miss Lina, when did you get married?" Amelia's voice had a hurt sound to it as she looked up at her mentor.
"I didn't, we decided to wait until all of us were together again, and now that we are, we can get married."
"Lina, Zelgadis isn't here yet, aren't you going to wait for him?" Gourry asked this as he gingerly picked Lina up in a hug, then passed her over to Shyphiel so she could hug her.
"He is here."
"Where is he?" Amelia was practically bouncing off the walls.
"He is putting our luggage in our room. Look here he comes. We are over here Zel!" Lina waved an arm, and Zel came walking over to the group. After warm hugs from Amelia and Shyphiel and a hearty handshake from Gourry, Zel stood behind Lina and wrapped his arms around her waist, giving his body for support. He knew how much it hurt her to stand around, but she disn't want the others to think her weak.
"So....Lina...um...who is the lucky guy you are going to marry?" Amelia barely got all of the words out of her mouth.
"It's Zel that I am going to marry."
"When did al this come about?" Shyphiel asked this and nudged Gourry closer to Amelia so he could be there to catch the princess if she fainted.
"About a month after we all split up. I was in a bit of a rough spot, and he saved my bony hide. After that things just seemed to go the way it was always meant to be. The most surprising thing of all though was finding out that I was pregnant, most users of even the slightest level of Nightmare Magic can never have children, so I have been blessed in a lot of ways."
"I am so happy for you, Lina."
"Congratulations, Zel, she is a good girl."
"We would love to talk more, but we have been traveling all day, and I don't want Lina to over exert herself. We will see you guys at dinner." Zel and Lina walked out of the room, once in the hall Lina fell to her knees in pain.
"We are the last room down the hall." Zel easily picked her up and carried her the rest of the way to their room.
"Thank you for the support back there, Zel. I didn't want them to know how hard this was for me."
"I know, you can be so stubborn at times."
"You are one to talk, I am so tired. Wake me up when we have to meet the others." Zel placed her in the bad, covering her up with the blanket, then laid down next to her as she fell asleep.
"Lina, stay with us, we need you. You can't leave us like this, how will we go on without you?" The haunting sound of Zel's voice in her dream and the sound of a baby crying woke her up. Sweat covered her from head to toe, as she looked around the room wide eyed.
"No!" She had been having the dream ever since she got pergnant, she had ignored it until now. The classic signs were all there. As a mage you could learn future events through dreams, and if she was right, then she wasn't going to live to see her child grow.
"Lina, Lina what's wrong?" Zel sat up and saw Lina shivering with a frightened look on her face. "Lina you are scaring me. Talk to me, Lina."
"It's nothing Zel, just a bad dream." Inwardly she cringed at the lie she just told him, but she didn't want him to worry more than he already did. She was already advancing in her pregnancy at a rate that was far from normal, that and the fact that their magic forces together might affect the child. The last thing he needed was another thing to worry about.
"Why don't you wash up before dinner, Lina. I'll meet you downstairs. we can talk about wedding plans then ok?"
"That sounds good, Zel. Make sure Gourry saves me some food. I am eating for two now." She gave Zel a kiss before going off to wash up. When she left the room, Zel pulled out one of his old books of the Astral Plane and read on how to share dreams.....
AFTER DINNER, BACK AT LINA AND ZEL'S ROOM
"Dinner went well." Zel made this comment as he walked out of the shower.
"It really did, I almost forgot how much I missed fighting over the last piece of chicken." The both laughed, and Lina sat down in front of the vanity to brush out her hair.
"Let me do that." Lina passed him the brush over her shoulder.
"So are you happy with the set date?" Zel asked this as he brushed her hair in long strokes.
"I think we can pull it off in two days time." Lina closed her eyes and started to relax as he brushed her hair.
"When the Slayers are involved there is no stopping us. Let's get you to bed now." As both of them laid down, Zel chanted a small spell and fell asleep next to Lina, waiting for her dream to begin.....
LINA'S DREAM
"It's a healthy baby girl, Mr. Greywers. Congratulations, but I am afraid there is some
bad news. Your wife sufferd sever complications. We don't know what else to do."
"None of the spells have worked?" Zel began pacing.
"We have tried everything, from cure light wounds to a full blown recovery. It is as if
something is blocking it."
"Not my Lina. Why?"
"She doesn't have long. You can go and see her now, she is holding the baby."
"I'll go there now." Zel walked down a long white hallway until he reached the door of
her room. Taking a deep breath he opened up the door.
"Lina...." Tears threatened to spill over as he spoke.
"I know Zel. Please hold me." Zel looked at his wife and daughter, then joined them on
the narrow hospital bed.
"She is beautiful, Lina." Both of them looked down at their sleeping daughter.
"I never thought that I would be able to have children, maybe this was a sign that I
really wasn't supposed to. I guess L-Sama deemed it was time for her Little Chaos Child to
go." Tears fell freely down her face as Zel held her closer.
"Don't say that Lina....Lina!"
"I am getting so sleepy, Zel. Hold me tighter."
"Lina, please don't go. I am nothing without you. Lina, stay with us, we need you. You
can't leave us like this, how will we go on without you?"
"You are everything. It is up to you now. I love you....." Lina closed her eyes and
took her last breath. Instinctively Amythyst knew her mother had just died, and began to
cry.
Zel picked up his daughter and gave his wife one last kiss goodbye as he left the
room......
BACK IN THE WAKING WORLD
Both people in the bed sat up, then looked at eachother. Without saying a word Zel enveloped Lina in a hug as she cried her heart out.
"I am so scared, Zel."
"Why didn't you tell me about these dreams sooner Lina?"
"I didn't want you to have anything else to worry about."
"You should have told me anyway. I am sorry I invaded your dreams without permission, but it needed to be done."
"I know why you did it, Zel. I love you so much. All I ever wanted to do was give you a stable family life that you never had while growing up."
"I know Lina, I know." The two fell asleep in eachothers arms again.
FOUR MONTHS LATER
"It's a healthy baby girl, Mr. Greywers. Congratulations, but I am afraid there is some bad news. Your wife sufferd sever complications. We don't know what else to do."
"None of the spells have worked?" Zel began pacing.
"We have tried everything, from cure light wounds to a full blown recovery. It is as if something is blocking it."
"Not my Lina. Why?"
"She doesn't have long. You can go and see her now, she is holding the baby."
"I'll go there now." Zel walked down a long white hallway until he reached the door of her room. Taking a deep breath he opened up the door.
"Lina...." Tears threatened to spill over as he spoke.
"I know Zel. Please hold me." Zel looked at his wife and daughter, then joined them on the narrow hospital bed.
"She is beautiful, Lina." Both of them looked down at their sleeping daughter.
"I never thought that I would be able to have children, maybe this was a sign that I really wasn't supposed to. I guess L-Sama deemed it was time for her Little Chaos Child to go." Tears fell freely down her face as Zel held her closer.
"Don't say that Lina....Lina!"
"I am getting so sleepy, Zel. Hold me tighter. We knew this day would come."
"I was hoping we could avoid it. Lina, please don't go. I am nothing without you. Lina, stay with us, we need you. You can't leave us like this, how will we go on without you?"
"You are everything. It is up to you now. I love you....." Lina closed her eyes and took her last breath. Instinctively Amythyst knew her mother had just died, and began to cry.
Zel picked up his daughter and gave his wife one last kiss goodbye as he left the room......
Sorry about the sad stuff. I guess this story could be a story before 'Daddy's Girl'. Let me know what you think.