Zelas started, sure she had sensed Phibrizo for a second...but no...no, he was gone...utterly destroyed by the mother of all...She shook her head and got back to the task at hand.
Moaning slightly in her sleep, Lina woke Zel, who snuggled her protectively closer to him, looking around with a wary sense of unease...but no, his senses could pick up nothing but the last ripples of a faint astral disturbance. He settled back down, rubbing gently at her until her breathing was slow and calm again.
"Miss Amelia, you DIDN'T!!" Sylphiel looked stunned
"Didn't what?" Amelia, still slightly flustered from Xell's kiss, wasn't catching on as fast as she might have.
"No, no, they couldn't have...they were much too quiet for that." Gracia stated authoritatively.
Now everyone was staring at her.
"Gracia 'Neesan, you were LISTENING?!" Amelia was outraged, "How COULD you?!"
"You're my imouto, Ameli-li, it's my job to protect you...and Sailune's honour.
"I know but..." Amelia shook her head wildly, "I STILL can't believe you would DO that!"
"But Ameli-li, what would Daddy say if on the first day I have you back under my wing I let you ruin yourself?"
Amelia blushed bright red. "NOTHING HAPPENED!!" she shouted.
Xellos just chuckled and kissed her again to sience her. "My my, what DID you think I was talking about?" he asked innocently, "all I meant was that each of us has seen into the depths of the other's heart." He grinned and wagged his finger at them, "You should be ashamed of yourselves for thinking such naughty things."
Sylphiel and Gracia both blushed a shade of red never before achieved without an artist's brush, but Gourry, being Gourry, sinply said "I still don't get it."
A beautiful young woman with long golden hair and pointed eartips sighed. "But Mother..."
Her mother shook her head firmly, setting her ash-blonde floor-length braid swinging. "You're the one who lost track of your brother, so you're the one who has to bring him back."
"But Mother, my wedding's in two months!"
"All the more reason for you to find him and return quickly then." her mother insisted.
She sighed. "I suppose you are right Mother."
Her mother smiled. "Of course I am Fi, now get going and pack what you'll need."
With another sigh, Fi headed off to her room to pack.
Just before dawn, Lina woke, feeling strangely disconnected. Something seemed different, but she couldn't place what. she lay quietly, enjoying the sounds of the world waking up, and the feeling of Zel's warm body behind her rising and falling with the slow rythm of his sleeping breath. She felt taht slow rythm change as he woke and nuzzled a kiss into her neck.
"Good morning Zel." she whispered.
"Good morning Lina." he whispered back as he kissed her ear.
They snuggled for a bit until true dawn broke, the Zel sighed.
"Alright. We can get there today if we hurry...much though I'd love to just lie here with you all day."
Lina smiled and sighed as well. "I guess we should get going then." she said as she rolled over and sat up, "So, what's for breakfast?"
"You're hungry? Hmm..."
Zel reached into his cloak with a smile and pulled out a bag full of pemmican, "Here, you can eat and run...and it should fill you up nicely." he offered.
Lina bit tentatively into one of the bars, then swallowed it with gusto. "That's pretty good! Where'd you get it?" she asked.
"Oh, I made it. It keeps forever, and one or two bars can keep me going for days at a time if I have to."
"Mmmm..." Lina mumbled through another bar, then swallowed, "Well, you're not getting this bag back...they're too good!" she said, clutching the bag close to her.
Zel schooled his features not to show his amusement. "That's fine." he said calmly as he pulled out an identical bag, "I've plenty more where that came from."
"Zeeeellll...." Lina whined, but he could hear the laughter in her voice as well, "That's no fair! You're supposed to chase me until I give teh bag back to you!"
"Oh I am, am I?" Zel got a predatory gleam in his eyes, "Well then, I guess I'll just have to do...THIS!" he leanted over and started tickling her. Lina collapsed in hopeless giggles, still vainly clutching the bag of pemmican.
With a grin, Zelgadis leaned down and kissed her, and she dropped the bag in order to hold him instead, and with just as much ferocious refusal to let go.
When the kiss broke off, Lina smiled at him. "You know what Zel? In all that's been going on...everything that's changed...the one thing I'm most glad about is that you're smiling and laughing more now. Your few chuckles used to make me SO happy when I heard them, and your rare true smiles...well, they still send a thrill right through me. Gods Zel, your smile makes you irrisitable, I would do almost anything to see it...It makes me just melt." Lina finished in a whisper as his face slowly slid into a grin.
"You'd do anything,would you?" he asked, "So would you marry me then?" He reached into his pocket and pulled out a ring he had been carrying around intending to someday give her.
Lina was completely stunned for a couple of seconds, then she hugged him tightly. "I would marry you a thousand times over just to see you smile like that each time." she said and kissed him.