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Author’s notes: And here we go…this part is the beginning of the end! We are now officially in the tail end of the middle part (Okay, then again…I still have to do the part with Ruby Eye…). Whew! Amazing, I might actually end up finishing this!!! Yes, still copying RK song titles… This one is the name of one of the ending themes, currently my favorite song.^_^. As to all the Zel fans out there…I know you want to lynch me, but hold your horses! The gloomy one WILL make his appearance…ack! Don’t throw things at me!!!
Lina sighed. "No, Gourry. Like this."
Amelia shook her head in despair as Lina wobbled on the high heels, then went crashing face first into the ground after Gourry. "Doesn’t anybody know how to walk in high heels?!"
"I’ve never had to wear them!" Gourry protested, looking woefully unconvincing in a dark, richly brocaded dress with his blond hair done up in an artfully messy bun. Lina glared balefully from the floor in her almost skintight green dress that accented what figure she had nicely.
"I’ve never had to…well, I hate wearing them!"
Amelia groaned. "Well, you’ll just all have to learn. Everyone agreed that a family of girls is a lot less suspicious than a family of girls and guys that match the description of our group to a T. At this rate we’ll never be ready!"
"Don’t make it sound as if we’re going to a party or something!" Lina screeched, trying to untangle herself from Gourry’s long, dark red skirt. "We’re trying to save our lives here!"
Gourry merely suffered in silence.
Amelia shrugged. "Well, I still think we should dye Gourry-san’s hair black or brown. After all, Filia-san is doing it."
"And it looks very nice." Xelloss’s voice commented from further inside the half destroyed house. That was promptly followed by the sound of a smack and a full-fledged Xelloss-Filia war starting. "What did I say?!"
Filia stomped out into view, her normally golden hair dyed a mousy brown. It was pulled forward into two pigtails that covered her pointy ears from view. The Cepheed General was wearing a faded yellow dress with pretty leather boots. "Just shut up, Xelloss." She huffed. "You should talk."
Xelloss would have glared at her, except for the fact that his bangs were covering his eyes. "Well, you’re just jealous because I’m prettier than you." He said snidely, putting his hand on his hips. The magenta colored mandarin style dress that he was wearing didn’t leave much to the imagination, which is scary considering how he was male, but didn’t look it. It was interesting to watch the fight that took place when Amelia had first pulled out the dress. The Demon gave up after a little ‘talk’ that Amelia gave him, Lina was under the impression that the ‘talk’ involved some singing…
Lina winced. Ow, that must have hurt, she thought.
Filia popped a vein. "Whaat?!"
Xelloss brushed a long strand of dark hair behind his ear. He had somehow made it long enough to reach his waist. Magic? Amelia wondered, then decided against it. Maybe the ability to change their physical shape was something that all Demons can do. "Hm. You just don’t want to admit it."
Quickly, the red-haired sorceress interrupted before those two could get them killed. "Okay, okay. I think we’ll try the border guards tomorrow, okay?"
Amelia frowned. "Well, are you sure?" She asked, eyeing Gourry, who was trying to get up without tripping on his skirt.
"Do we have any other choice?" Lina hissed back, pointing to Filia, who was chasing a very feminine Xelloss around the house, waving around a mace. "At this rate, one of them is going to use magic, and the whole Dragon Army would be down our throats in a second!"
"Okay, you have a point…" Amelia admitted.
"Then it’s decided. Everyone remember the story? We’re the Kanan sisters, who lost our dear father in the destruction of our home. We’re now going to Callahan to find refuge with our dear aunty Maria." Lina took a deep breath, pointing to Filia and Gourry. "That’s the two eldest, Lelay and Lala." To Xelloss, she said, "You’re Lily, and Amelia, you’re Lolo. I’m Lulu, okay?"
"The names are so lame…" Filia muttered.
"You have something to say, Filia?" Lina gritted.
"Uh, nothing."
The sun shone brightly and the sky was completely clear. It was hard to believe that this quiet city had just survived a major, destructive storm. The city was once again showing signs of life, even as early as it was.
A tall, heavyset man was walking down the nearly deserted street. He wore a large orange trenchcoat and had a long sword strapped to his belt. All the people who saw him stayed out of his way, for he had the aura of a man that didn’t want to be disturbed.
"Ahem."
Garv stopped.
"Sit down, Garv."
The Demon Lord sweatdropped. So much for trying to be inconspicuous. "Ice cream so early in the morning?"
Zira took a bite. "What’s wrong with ice cream?" She asked mildly. Garv plopped himself in a white chair, sighing. The woman regarded him with detached interest, a bowl of what looked like strawberry ice cream in her hands. He wasn’t even sure where she got that ice cream. Heaven knows she isn’t sitting in an ice cream shop.
"Well, well, well." Garv finally said. "I would have never imagined that after one thousand years in hiding, I would encounter you on the first morning of my return. Eating ice cream, no less."
Zira licked her spoon. "Oh? Why not?"
"The Knight of Chaos was a rather elusive character, last time I checked. What are you doing, Zira, meddling in this world’s affairs? I thought you washed your hands of us annoying mortals a long time ago."
"I never said mortals were annoying." Zira replied, then she changed the topic. "So, where are you headed now? The Dragon Army has the city surrounded and they’re going to comb the place to make sure they find who they were looking for. I’m pretty sure you’re one of those people."
Garv shrugged. "I have my ways. You remember that the Water Dragon King sealed me in this body, right? That was the main reason why I had to run. But I’m human in this body so the Dragons won’t be able to detect me if I don’t use my powers."
"Ah." Zira said, her tone speaking volumes. "Mind if I accompany you? Lina and company are leaving today, I want to keep an eye on them."
"Oh??" Garv raised one spiky eyebrow. "Really? And just who is this Lina Inverse anyway? She knows the Laguna Blade, a spell that only L-sama’s chosen are allowed to use. And she claims that you’ve been giving her ‘lessons’."
"So?"
Garv frowned at the impassive woman, who was still eating her ice cream. "Don’t play dumb, Zira. We all know what those ‘lessons’ are for."
"Someone’s been meddling in things that are none of their business." Zira admonished, finishing her ice cream and getting up. "Yes, Lina might be the one. But I’m not supposed to tell anyone that."
"So why’d you tell me?"
"Because I felt like it." Zira replied flippantly. "The Knight of Cepheed will be here today. I want Lina, Filia and Xelloss out of here as soon as possible because they should be avoiding showdowns for as long as they possibly can. Xellas wants to meet up with them, so I guess you’d want to come along."
"Why do you say that?"
Zira shrugged. "Whim. Shall we go?"
Garv studied the Knight’s back for a few seconds more before he decided to hurry to follow. He’d never quite figure her out, the Knight. He had seen her on occasion before and during the last war, sometimes with Dragons, sometimes with Demons, but this was the first time he had seen her with humans. Perhaps it was a move that was long overdue. Then again, Zira always knew exactly what she was doing.
"An-and…oh, my poor father!" Xelloss sobbed. Lina fought to contain a sweatdrop as the human guard fell all over himself trying to comfort the ‘distraught’ Lily. She had to admit his acting was flawless, but wasn’t this overdoing it a little?
Filia dabbed at her eyes, although in reality she was hiding a smirk. "And- and so that’s why we have to get to Callahan." She finished. Amelia gave her a hug and told her ‘big sis’ that everything will be okay.
"Oh, Lala-onee-san," Lina said, elbowing Gourry. "Are you all right?"
Gourry took the hint. "My poor father!" He tried to sniffle. It didn’t come out quite the way he wanted, but the effect was there. Now the guards had five sniveling females on hand. And they were beginning to look desperate.
"Are you sure we need to search everything, Sergeant?" One asked. The head officer looked indecisive. Lina hurried to remedy the situation. She never thought that the guards would be human. The Dragons weren’t as careful as she thought.
"We…we don’t have much baggage, just some clothes!" Lina said, eyes welling up with tears. She can throw up with disgust later.
"We should just let them go." The sergeant decided. "You can-"
Lucky!
"Officer! Officer! Hold on!!"
Lina cursed mentally as the runner came in, looking winded. Oh, that was too good to be true anyway.
"The Dragons are coming!"
Xelloss raised an eyebrow, although no one can see it under his bangs. They almost made it too…
"I’m sorry, ma’am. You’ll have to stay a little longer." The sergeant apologized. Lina chuckled nervously.
"Oh, that’s all right." She lied. "We have nothing to hide."
Filia pasted a brainless smile on her face, wondering how Xelloss always managed to do that without cramping his face muscles. It was beginning to hurt her face. She desperately hoped that whoever came in to check on them wouldn’t be someone that would recognize her.
Of course, the Gods didn’t listen, as usual.
Lina gulped as a familiar, purple haired woman entered the makeshift tent. Oh, gods no! She thought, already panicking.
The Cepheed Knight looked over the motley group. Then tried very hard not to laugh. She wasn’t sure which was funnier, their outfits or their expressions. The human guards were looking at her with confused expressions. Obviously they didn’t know who she is, or who their charges are, either. "At ease, people." She said with a smile, more to Lina and her group than to the guards. "Who do we have here?"
Lina wanted to crawl under a table and hide. Or die, whichever one works better in getting away from her sister. The sergeant got the papers and began reading it off. Lina could tell her sister was on the edge of bursting out laughing. "Lala, Lelay, Lily, Lolo and Lulu Kanan. They’re going to Callahan to visit their aunt, Maria. And you are?"
"Luna Inverse. Cepheed Knight." Luna’s eyes were hidden by her long bangs, but her smile seemed sincere. "We’re looking for a few suspicious characters that might be trying to get out of Atlas City." The Cepheed Knight’s smile widened a bit. "Have you seen a red haired sorceress with a bad temper," She looked at Lina, who seethed. "A young girl who follows her, a dumb swordsman of Light, a General of Cepheed and," She gave Xelloss a meaningful look. "A mazoku?"
"MAZOKU?!" The human guards cried. "A demon!? A creature of darkness and evil!? Here in Atlas City???"
"Thank you." Amelia heard Xelloss mutter under his breath.
Luna shrugged. "Obviously, these people don’t fit those descriptions. Let them go, don’t hold up the line."
"Y-Yes, Knight-sama!"
Lina caught sight of her sister’s eyes as they passed each other on the way out. Luna winked. "Good luck, sis." The Knight whispered.
"Thanks."
"That was too close!" Amelia exhaled silently. Gourry frowned.
"Wasn’t that Lina’s big sister?"
"Yes." Xelloss nodded, "And that was probably why we were allowed to go." Not to mention that Luna knows what’s going on, more so than the Dragons or their Elders… "The thing now is to keep low for a while. I think the uproar we caused in Atlas City will need time to die down."
Filia nodded. "The fact that they were able to send the Army shows that the Dragons are aware of us now. We can’t hope to work without their knowledge, so caution must be the first and foremost consideration."
Lina rubbed her head. "Gods, this is so confusing and complicated. Why don’t the Dragons understand that we’re trying to do this for their own good?!"
Xelloss shrugged. "They’re stubborn." He replied, giving Filia a meaningful glance. She glared at him. "Anyway, now that we’re out, can we change? These shoes are killing me."
Lina and Gourry immediately agreed. "YEAH! And let’s get some food while we’re at it!" Lina suggested.
"Don’t you two ever think about anything else?!" Filia yelled.
"I can’t help it if I can’t think when I’m hungry!" Lina replied, already running with Gourry, who didn’t seem to be impeded at all by his high heels or long skirts. Filia fumed silently as Xelloss chuckled, then moved to follow.
"Come on, Filia-chan. We won’t be able to follow them if we don’t hurry."
"Don’t call me Filia-chan, Namagomi."
Twitch.
"You two…" Amelia sighed as they glared at each other again. "Let’s go."
They caught up to the hungry duo by about sundown. Lina and Gourry had already changed back into their normal clothes and were digging into the table full of food with gusto. Amelia shook her head, then sat down and ordered some more. Filia excused herself, wanting to wash out the dye from her hair as soon as possible.
Lina looked up when she was almost full. Xelloss had come down a few minutes ago, wearing his normal clothes and smiling. Filia was still nowhere to be seen, probably still trying to wash her hair. Amelia was on her third plate and Lina noticed Gourry taking her chicken again. "MY CHICKEN!"
And so started another food fight.
Xelloss raised an eyebrow, eyes once more visible since his hair was back to normal length. "Spirited, aren’t they?"
"Yes." Amelia said between mouthfuls. Xelloss sweatdropped.
"I think I was talking about you too?"
"Oh."
"Where’s Filia?" A calm voice asked from behind them. Xelloss turned his head, smiling. Amelia also turned, chewing. Zira and Xellas entered the restaurant, Zira pulling a chair over so she could sit at their table. Xellas waved.
"Hello, Zira." He said. "I think Filia-chan’s upstairs, washing her hair. Xellas-sama, I thought you were on Wolf Pack Island?"
"Hey, Zira!" Lina greeted, drinking a large cup of water. "Long time no see, where have you been?"
"Oh, here and there." She answered vaguely.
Xelloss got up to let Xellas sit, and she smiled. "Such a polite boy." She murmured. Xelloss grinned.
"Whatever you say, Xellas-sama."
"Isn’t it sickening?" Zira said mildly. "And Lina, when are you going to finish eating? Xellas has something that she needs to tell all of you."
"Oh?" Lina leaned forward in her seat, interested. The effect was somewhat ruined by the large slab of ham she had on her fork. "That’s good, someone that is actually volunteering information? A rare occurrence."
Xelloss pouted. "Are you trying to say something, Lina?"
"What do you think?" Lina snorted. "Gourry, hurry up, Xellas has to tell us something and you should hear it too."
"Xellas?" Gourry said, mouth full. "Who’s Xellas?"
Lina resisted the urge to smack him. "SHE’S XELLAS!" She yelled, waving a finger in the Demon Lord’s face. "REMEMBER?!"
Gourry thought, and one could almost see the smoke coming out of his ears. "No."
It was only by a supreme effort made by Amelia, Xelloss and Xellas that Gourry was spared the fate of death and the inn spared the fate of destruction by Fireball.
"Just tell us." Lina muttered after they finally released her, sitting back in her seat and crossing her arms.
Xellas sweatdropped. "Well…" the petite woman stuttered. "Um…"
"You were looking for Dolphin-dono?" Xelloss suggested helpfully.
"Oh, that’s right. Where would I be without you, Xel?"
"Still stuck in that crystal cave, probably." Filia commented dryly as she descended from upstairs. Her hair was still a shade darker than its normal golden blond, but at least it wasn’t brown now. "I’m glad I didn’t miss anything." She followed up, sarcasm dripping from her voice.
Amelia flushed. "I’m sorry, Filia-san, I forgot to get you-"
"It’s okay, Amelia." Filia pulled up a chair, ignoring Xelloss’s glare. "So, please continue, Xellas."
The Demon Lord shrugged. "I found Dolphin, pretty much where I expected her to be. There isn’t any way for me to break the Seal though, just as Zira said. I’m here to propose a plan of action."
"And what might that be?"
"You know that the Dragons are mobilizing now against the Demons. That’s not really all that horribly important right now because there are no Demons for them to fight, except for Xelloss and I. Garv doesn’t count because he won’t fight for our race." Xellas tapped a delicately manicured fingernail against the wooden table. "And so the outcome of the fight will be obvious, we will lose. So that brings up my point. We need Dynast and Dolphin, and we need them as soon as possible. Dolphin might be insane, but her power is nothing to sneeze at. And Dynast’s power is just a hair less than that of Phibrizo’s." Her golden eyes were serious as she regarded Lina. "I’m not asking you to fight the war for us, Lina Inverse. But L-sama has chosen you to restore the balance, and the balance cannot be restored if the Demons don’t even have a fighting chance in the war that will come."
"So what do you want me to do about it?" Lina asked.
"I propose this: Split the group. Xelloss and Filia go after Dynast Grausheela together. I’ll take the humans to Deep Sea Dolphin."
"What?!" Lina yelled, then lowered her voice in a hurry when the patrons of the inn all turned to look at her. "You want Xelloss and Filia, together?! They’ll kill each other!"
Xelloss and Filia fell out of their chairs.
"LINA!" Filia hissed, "Okay, I don’t agree with this arrangement either, but do you really think I’m that childish?!"
"Yes!"
Xelloss was looking at his master with a hurt expression. "Xellas-sama, you wouldn’t!"
"Yes, Xel. I would. You know why I made that arrangement, and you know I made the decision with the full intention of backing it up."
"But I thought that all of us had to be present to break the Seal." Lina protested.
Xellas and Zira shook their heads. "Not necessarily. The Seals are all different. In this case, Dolphin’s Seal can only be broken by humans. Dynast’s Seal, well…" The Demon Lord exchanged a look with her servant. Xelloss nodded. "Filia-san can break Dynast’s Seal."
Filia frowned. "Then why does he have to come?" She complained, pointing at Xelloss, who stuck his tongue out at her.
"Gee, Filia-chan. I wonder if you can find Dynast by yourself?" he replied snidely.
"You two, quit it." Zira said. "Xelloss is going because he knows where Dynast is Sealed. He can also help you deal with any problems that might come up."
"And what might those problems be?" Filia asked.
Xellas sipped her wine that she had gotten from somewhere, Lina wasn’t sure where exactly. "I’ve been out for a thousand years, so I’m not up to date on the Demons that are still loose. But Xel tells me that Dynast’s General, Sheela is still in the North Pole, looking for her Master. I’m sure she won’t take any intrusion into her territory kindly."
"Not to mention that Sheela hates my guts." Xelloss noted cheerfully.
"Oh? I wonder why?" Filia replied scathingly. "You have such a charming personality."
"Why, thank you, Filia-chan. You’re too kind." He retorted, voice dripping with syrupy venom.
Lina poked Xellas. "Are you sure this is a good idea?" She whispered. Xellas sweatdropped.
"No." She whispered back. "But it’s the best and only way."
"Don’t we get some say in this?!" Xelloss and Filia yelled.
The morning found the band of travelers at the door of the inn, ready to depart in their separate directions. Xelloss and Filia stood in front of Lina like children who were being scolded.
"Xelloss, don’t even think of teasing Filia and starting a fight." Lina said sternly. "And Filia, control your temper. I don’t want to hear about how you two got into a fight and accidentally destroyed the North Pole, okay?"
They grumbled a bit, but nodded.
"Gods, I’m so worried." Lina threw up her hands and gave her teacher an appealing look. "Can’t you go with them, Zira? Please?"
Zira crossed her legs, sitting on a railing. "No. " She answered simply. "They have to learn to get along sooner or later. It’s later already."
They glared at her.
"Don’t glare at me. Concentrate on not messing up."
Xellas rolled her eyes. "Zira-san, you can try to be a little nicer about it."
"Why?" The woman raised an eyebrow. "Gourry and Amelia might need a hand with the packing up. Why don’t you go help them?"
Xelloss and Filia watched as they headed off. Lina waved and they waved back half-heartedly. Soon, the other group was out of sight.
Wind whooshed past the two.
"Well…we might as well get started." Filia said reluctantly.
"Okay."
Wind whooshed again. This time the author even remembered to include tumbleweed.
"We’re going to the North Pole, right?"
"Uh-huh."
Filia took out a map. "That’s really far away."
"Okay?"
"SO HOW ARE WE GOING TO GET THERE?!"
Silence.
"You’re a dragon, aren’t you? Just transform and fly there. It shouldn’t take you more than a few days." Xelloss commented. Filia raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, and how do you plan to keep up with me, Na-I mean, Xelloss?" She caught herself just in time. Lina had made it clear that there would be no name calling on this trip. Or else.
She’ll just wait until they were out of hearing range.
He flashed her a grin. "That is a secret."
She glared at him. "Fine, be that way."
"We should get started," He noted. "Shall we find you a more secluded place to transform? Somewhere out of town, maybe?"
"That’s none of your business."
"Aw, a little shy?"
"Shut up."
Lina sneezed. "I’m worried about those two…" She muttered, blowing her nose. Amelia chuckled ruefully.
"Zira-san is right, Lina-san. You can’t be the referee for them forever." The young girl noted. "Besides, I’m sure they understand the seriousness of the situation."
"Right. Those two? They’re probably going to kill each other before this whole thing is over…" Lina sighed. "But you’re right. This is out of our hands now." The redhead hurried so she was walking next to Xellas. "So, where are we going now? Are we going to go the Demon Sea?"
The Demon Lord shook her head. "Not yet. There are a few things I need from Wolf Pack Island. We’re going there first. Besides, it’s closer to Dolphin’s palace from there and I think Xelloss and Filia need at least a week to get to the North Pole, since it’s farther away. We have plenty of time."
"I thought we were out of time?" Gourry observed.
"Yeah, isn’t that what you said?"
"Relatively speaking, we’ve got plenty of time to Unseal Dolphin because no matter what, Xel and Filia are going to take longer than us. It’s just simple mathematics." Xellas explained. "A stop at Wolf Pack Island will make sure that we are more prepared for what we might have to deal with at Dolphin’s place."
"Where did Zira-san go?" Amelia asked, looking around. Xellas shrugged.
"I doubt she’s coming with us on this one. Who knows, maybe she took your advice, Lina, and went to keep an eye on Xel and Filia."
"So we’re going to Wolf Pack Island first, huh? How long will it take for us to get there?" Lina wondered, looking at the scenery. So far, it seemed that they were still in the forests surrounding Atlas City.
"About a day. The island is inaccessible to normal people, but I know a shortcut that lets us in without having to go into the Sea." Xellas answered.
"That’s nice." Lina said, making a face. "I don’t like the ocean very much."
"Oh? Why?"
"I don’t like water."
Gourry gave her a quizzical look. "Why ever not?"
"I just don’t like it, okay?" Too many ‘fond’ memories of her sister’s favorite punishment, besides a good butt kicking, that is.
"Oh. I like water." Gourry announced. "I used to live by the sea."
"Huh?"
He grinned. "The ocean is a great place to practice. My dad taught me how to run in the water. It was supposed to.." He frowned, trying to remember the words. "Um..it was supposed to do something…"
"Strengthen your legs." Xellas finished. "Running in water is a rather tiring task, especially if you’re not used to it. If you can run in it for any amount of time, then it helps your endurance and speed tremendously." She caught herself before she went on further. "Ah, hehe. Sorry, I’m kinda a hunting fanatic. Um…"
Lina rolled her eyes. Well, they don’t have Xelloss with them, but now they have his master along. Somehow, she had the feeling that she could give him a run for his money in the weirdness department. She just hoped Xellas didn’t have a thing for keeping secrets too… "Great, so when are we eating lunch?"
"Lina-san, we just ate breakfast a half an hour ago." Amelia said, giving her a weird look. Lina glowered.
"So I haven’t eaten in half an hour and I’m hungry! Is there anything wrong with that?!" There were dangerous glints in her eyes that warned Amelia that the answer better be a negative.
"No, not at all!" Amelia yelped. Xellas chuckled.
"Well, do you want to stop and eat?"
"Yes!"
Amelia watched as Lina and Gourry ran ahead to set up some sort of camp for lunch. "At this rate, we won’t get anywhere."
Xellas still looked amused. "Oh, don’t worry about it."
She hadn’t flown in such a long time.
Cares, worries, anger, hate. All those seemed to melt away when the cool air rushed past her in flight. She loved flying. Her wings removed all inhibitions and limitations. She remembered when she was young, and had flown too high, until the air was too thin to breathe. There was a sort of light-headed exhilaration in that flight. A knowledge of danger, mixed in with the excitement and the thrill. She could do anything in the sky.
Filia, enjoying yourself? His voice came through the sound of the air passing by her ears.
She was in too much of a good mood for his voice to bother her. Yes, she answered mentally.
Try to not dally too long, she could almost hear the smile in those words, that annoying, secretive smile. We’re going to have to hustle if we want to get there sometime soon.
Don’t try to ruin my fun, she retorted. I’m hurrying. Where are you anyway?
Look down.
She looked down. And saw nothing but trees. Where? She asked, straining to see through the thick canopies.
His laughter echoed in her mind. It’s okay, Filia. You’ll see. See those mountains ahead of us? We’ll stop there for the night, okay? There’s a town over there.
I’ll race you. She challenged.
You sure? His amusement was apparent. What does the winner get?
I don’t know.
The winner gets the satisfaction of having beaten the other person, right?
Right. And the loser has to pay for food and lodgings.
You’re on, Filia.
"Ah! That hit the spot!" Lina sighed happily, leaning back against the tree while patting her stomach. "Xellas, how in the world did you get that deer so fast?" She asked the Demon Lord, who was delicately cleaning her fingernails.
"Oh. I needed some exercise." Xellas answered distantly. Amelia shrugged, not really wanting to know more. "Well, everyone. I’m glad to say that our journey is almost at an end. We should be able to reach the gate by nightfall, on Wolf Pack Island immediately after that. Then we can all get a good night’s rest and start planning our next step tomorrow."
"Wow, that soon?" Lina gapped. "I thought you said it would take a little while."
"Oh, it’s close." Xellas assured her. "And besides, it’s better to not dally. Xel tells me that they’re making good progress over on their end."
"Wait, Xelloss talked to you? When?"
Xellas frowned, thinking. "When I was hunting, I think. He said they were racing or something silly like that, so they would probably reach the North Pole in less than a week."
"Less than a week?! Geez, those two are inhuman…"
Gourry made his brilliant observation of the day. "Those two aren’t human, are they?"
Amelia laughed. "No, but they sure act immature sometimes."
Xellas sighed. "And I was so hoping they’d take me seriously…Anyway, shall we go? There’s still a good half-day’s walk waiting for us."
"All right! Let’s get the show on the road!" Lina cheered. Gourry cheered with her and Xellas sweatdropped.
"Humans are so weird…" She murmured.
Meanwhile, at a quiet little town square about a hundred miles from our heroes’ starting point…
"I…got…here…first…" Filia rasped, trying to catch her breath. She collapsed against the fountain ungracefully while he sat down on the stone cobbled street. He glared at her, brilliant eyes hard as amethyst.
"No…you…didn’t…" He panted.
"Did too!"
"DID NOT!"
Filia finally caught her breath and looked around at the people giving them weird looks. "Lower your voice!"
He grumbled something.
"What was that?"
"Nothing. Are we staying here for the night then?"
Every muscle and bone screamed ‘YES!’, but she ignored them. Damned be the day that she show him any weakness. She narrowed her eyes. "Not unless you’re paying for it."
"I’m not going to pay for it." Was the short answer.
With a self-assured air, she pointed out, "You lost."
He smiled, even though it was looking a bit strained. "No, I didn’t. You lost."
"You know where this is headed, right?" She asked. He shrugged.
"We can just keep racing until one of us wins or we both die from exhaustion." He mused. "Either way, it’s going to get us to the North Pole a lot quicker than if we walked."
"That’s a good thing, I suppose." She shrugged. "So, where’s the next meeting point? We’d better get started."
"Are you crazy? You’re going to kill yourself at this pace!"
She sniffed. "I’m not going to lose to a namagomi mazoku like you."
Veins began popping on both of their heads as Xelloss stood up, eyebrows twitching. "Well, then, Filia-chan. There’s another town a hundred miles from here. Sound good?"
She nodded, standing up also. "You’re on. I refuse to believe that I can’t beat you."
"Haha. I’ve never lost."
"Right." She retorted. "Well, then. There’s a first time for everything."
Xellas giggled in a very un-Demon Lord manner as she danced forward, pushing a few branches out of her way. The sun was low in the sky, and the shadows long and sinister. Lina felt a bit nervous. "And here it is! Right where I left it!"
The group walked into a small clearing, surrounded by trees. Amelia raised an eyebrow. "Um…where is it?"
The Demon Lord looked up, surprised. "You didn’t see it?" She asked, gesturing to the small clearing that they were in.
Amelia shook her head. "All I see is trees."
Xellas frowned a little. "How odd. I was sure…Oh, I know. Xel must have tweaked it in the past century! That’s why you guys didn’t notice the teleportation!"
Lina sweatdropped. "Whaat?!"
Xellas waved a hand toward the forest. "We’re on Wolf Pack Island now, isn’t that nice?"
"ON WOLF PACK ISLAND? WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN!?" Lina screeched. Her eyes were telling her that they hadn’t moved since Xellas had first led them into the clearing.
Gourry looked around. "It all looks the same."
Amelia had to agree. "Xellas-san, are you sure?"
Xellas nodded. "See? My wolves are coming." As if on cue, wolves began padding into the clearing, most of them barking and a few even jumping on Xellas with joy. "Darlings!" She cooed. "I’ve missed you all so much! I’m sorry I couldn’t stay long last time…"
Lina tuned out the Demon Lord and tried to figure out what happened. To say that she was confused and confounded would be an understatement…but now that she looked upon the forest, it seemed to be thicker and darker than the forest that they were just in. But she could have sworn that the two looked identical… "Some sort of illusion spell?" She wondered out loud.
"Yes." Xellas answered, a wolf in her lap. "I think that’s it. Xel was always fond of illusions. He was probably sealing off all the entrances and exits to Wolf Pack Island when he fiddled with this gate. The Dragons would just love to be able to wreck this place."
Amelia sighed. "All right. Do you have a house of some kind on this island? Or should we start making camp?"
Xellas stood up, accidentally spilling the wolf that was in her lap. "Oh, where are my manners? I’m so sorry! Please, follow me."