Lina stared up at the very blue sky, a dark chill running down her spine. Something was coming; she could feel it.
A blanket draped around her shoulders. She looked up to see the concerned face of the Karyou no Miko, Filia Ul Copt. "You looked cold," she explained.
"Arigato," Lina murmured. "I just feel like something's going to happen."
Filia nodded. "I feel the same thing. Almost... like how I use to feel around the namagomi." Wistful wishes long gone tainted the taunting name.
"You miss Xellos too." It wasn't a question.
Five months ago, she would have grown her tail and pulled out her mace. Instead, she nodded. "I never thought I would have."
Lina changed the subject. "Are Gourry and Syphiel visiting us today?"
"I told Syphiel about your visit from the namagomi's mistress." Again, the taunt leaving Filia's mouth was not as it was in the past. "But she near Sairaag. It'll take them a while." The Karyou no Miko looked at her. "It's about lunch time. Val just had his. I came to tell you."
Lina stood up, folding the blanket over her arm. "Thanks, Filia."
The Ryuzoku smiled. "You're welcome."
"Tell me, where is Lina?"
"I'm not going to tell you!"
He smiled evilly at her. Then, he grabbed her by the throat, and slammed her against the wall. "Where is she?"
"I'm not ever, ever going to tell you!" she choked out.
"Tell me, or I'll take your life."
Reluctantly, she told him, "With Filia-san."
With a smile, he let her go, then slid his sword into her. Her green eyes widened in shock. "Thank you, Syphiel. I hope the Lord of Nightmares has a special place for you."
"Z-zelgadis-san..." she said, betrayed. "Y-you..."
The crying of a baby woke Filia up.
Rubbing her eyes, she stumbled out of her room, and looked up to see the violet tressed, blue skinned youth that had haunted Lina's nightmares for months. "Y-you!"
Zelgadis smiled at the Ryuzoku. "Ohayo, Filia! Is Lina in?"
Filia flipped up the edge of her skirt, only to remember she didn't carry her mace to bed with her. "Namagomi," she hissed instead, applying the name to the chimera.
The Karyou no Miko was clocked by a stone fist. "I am nothing like Xellos," he growled. "Now, where's Lina?"
Filia wiped her nose, and looked at the blood that smeared her hand. "I will never tell you where Lina is," she growled back, her tail swishing from side to side. "You took her innocence, and now you want to take her life?!"
Zelgadis stopped that thought with his sword in her heart. "Why don't you take that up with L-sama?" he suggested.
"Hey, Filia," Lina yawned, stepping into the hallway. "I heard you talking and..." Her ruby eyes opened wide at the sight of the chimera that haunted her nightmares impaling the Ryuzoku that had graciously taken her in after Gourry had gone to court Syphiel. "Oh... my... gods..."
Valteria started crying, but neither the sorceress nor the chimera noticed. Lina involuntarily took a step back. "Z-zel..."
Zelgadis smiled at her, yanking free his sword from the limp body of the Karyou no Miko. "It's been a while, Lina."
"Zel, onegai..." Lina closed her eyes. "Leave me alone. Go away! My life is ruined because of you!" Her ruby eyes snapped open, and glared at the chimera.
He smirked, and pulled out the dagger. "Lina, Lina... This cure is important to me. I will get it. And you won't stop me."
Her fists balled at her sides. "Zel... what kind of cure has you kill your friends?" She closed her eyes briefly, then opened them, tears building in the depths. "You're not like Xellos. You're worse than that namagomi!"
Zel tightened his grip on the enchanted dagger. "Shut up!"
"Not even he would have done this to his worse enemies!" she continued.
The chimera grabbed her by the shoulders, and shook her. "I SAID, SHUT UP!"
Lina spat in his face. Zelgadis wiped the spit off, then tightly grabbed her wrist. He then slid the dagger home, embedding it deep in both her and the unborn child. She cried out in pain, and the Ryuzoku baby echoed her. Lina turned her eyes to the sound. "V-val..."
Zel pulled out the dagger. "I'm sure Gourry will take care of him... after he buries Syphiel, of course." The sorceress slumped to the ground as he turned to leave.
"Yarou..." she whispered, placing a hand over her wound. "I-I loved you..."
The chimera stopped, then said, "What?"
Lina coughed. "Be-before you raped me, I... I was t-too afraid to tell you..."
Dropping the dagger, he walked back over to her, and dropped to his knees. "Lina... I didn't realize..." Zel lifted her head slightly, placing it into his lap. Lightly, he stroked her flame colored hair. "I didn't know..."
"D-don't leave me... like this..." She winced in pain. "I... please..."
He lifted one of her pale, blood streaked hands and placed it against his lips. "I'm sorry I never realized. And I'm sorry I had to do this, Lina." Zelgadis corrected himself, "Lina-itooshii."
Her eyes flickered at the irony. "Z-zel..."
The chimera brushed her hair off her forehead, then whispered one word: "Fireball."
Zelgadis cradled the blood filled brooch in his hand, tempted to smash it. He had hurt everyone he was close to, just for a cure that probably wouldn't even work.
Lina... the love that I never realized...
Amelia... my little sister...
Xellos... annoying Mazoku that helped us more times than I can remember...
Filia... the Ryuzoku that had the same fate as us...
Syphiel... only priestess that knew the Dragu Slave...
Zel trembled as he reviewed the list of victims. Lina... With a sudden anger, he crushed the brooch in his hand. The blood oozed from between his fingers, but didn't drip down his hand to the ground. Instead, it was absorbed into his skin.
Pain lanced through his body. Deep within, where the bonds of the three parts of his being resided, the essences of the blood were doing their jobs. The Mazoku blood instantly went to combat the golem part, and dissolved it, while the sorceress essences surrounded the human part, protecting it. The immense purity of the unborn child combated the remaining demon bit, breaking the blood up.
While this process was going on, Zelgadis passed out.
A soft pattering of rain was the first thing he noticed. Opening his sapphire eyes, Zel saw that it was drizzling. He blinked the rain away, and sat up.
His body was strangely light. Looking down at his hands, Zelgadis whooped in joy. The slender digits were smooth and pink. The cure had worked. It had worked! Oh, Lina, only if you could see me!
Zel ran his hands through his hair, relishing the soft, silky, damp locks. The skin he had touched was (oh, gods) pliable! He stood up, wiping away drops of rain.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of something dark. Almost like dark, murky hair...
Raven hair... murky rivers...
Zelgadis turned to look into the dark, empty eyes. The girl in his dreams...
"It seems you have used your cure, young one." A smirk crossed her simple features. However, her eyes remained devoid of emotion. "And thank you for giving me pieces of my cure."
Blink-blink. "Ano..."
A soft glowing ball appeared in her pale hand. Zel looked closely at it, and quelled a shudder. Inside the ball were the faces of those he had used the dagger on. Including... "L-lina!"
He looked back at her face. A smile had emerged from the smirk that had previously graced her face. In her other hand... his eyes widened in shock.
"You shouldn't just leave this anywhere. I went through a lot to make this soul stealing dagger," she explained, her eyes still dead. "For you see, my cure uses souls."
Zel felt a sharp pain in his gut. Stupidly, he looked down to see the dagger protruding from his stomach. Then, he looked up at her face to see the first emerging signs of emotion in her eyes.
"And I need a human boy's soul."
Zelgadis closed his eyes...
Epilogue won't be quite like you expect... BTW: My sister's already going to kill me for killing Syphiel. Don't try to as well.