"So, where are we going now?" Ameria rolled her eyes as Lina reached out and hit Gourry, without stopping or even turning her head. Gourry rubbed his head and moved to walk next to Zel, out of Lina's reach. He leaned over and quietly repeated his question while keeping an eye on Lina's back for any sign of movement.
"Terrigor," was the response." I had a vague tip on my curse, remember?"
Suddenly Lina stopped, and the big swordsman crashed into her.
"That's right," she said.
She turned and smiled.
"And for your sake, Zel, I hope it's considerably more than just vague!"
Xellos put on the smile that he was best known for as the trickster priest. He had succeded in making sure that at least one of the members of Lina's travelling band had picked up on the tip for stone boy. Having nothing better to do, she had decided to go along, with, of course, the girl and the idiot. That was exactly what he had expected. He turned away from watching them. He had to pay a visit to his master.
When he appeared at Beast Master's lair, she was lounging in an overstuffed chair, cigarette in one hand, cyrstal ball in the other. Xellos cursed mentally. He had a sinking feeling that his little himitsu was one no longer.
As if in response, she looked up at him and smiled. "So, how long do you plan to be in Terrigor?" she asked. She watched the poorly disguised look of disappointment and anger spread across his face, then give way into his usual smirk. She was enjoying this greatly. Did he really think he could hide his little escapade from me? she wondered.
Xellos shrugged. "However long it takes," he said.
Whether or not the dark lord knew his true plans, he didn't know, but he somehow doubted it. If she did, she said not a thing about it. She merely took a long drag on her cigarette before telling him to have fun, and closed her eyes.
"And annoy the crap out of that chimera for me."
Xellos figured that was as obvious a dismissal as any. He left without a word.
As the town came into sight, Zel's spirits began to lift. He frowned and shook his head. Why get his hopes up? Nothing had worked this far. (Or he wouldn't still be stone.) Why would this time be any different? His bad luck was opressive; it followed him like a hungry young child follows its mother, demanding food in any way possible. He scowled at the ground, cursing Rezo for the billionth time.
Gourry's spirits however, had not only risen, but remained risen. He noticed Zel giving deadly looks to the path they were walking on, but he didn't say anything. He looked at Lina, who also seemed in a good mood. He smiled a little broader. Maybe, if he tried real hard to not say anything stupid, she'd be nice to him. Real nice.