Part 3


"Like I said." Lina gestured towards the store in front of them. "A stuffy, exotic furnishings store."

Zel gave her a look, then shook his head. He had been to this chain a few times and it seemed all right. Except for the snooty salesclerks he could currently see through the display window.

Catching what his reaction conveyed, Lina proceeded ahead of him. "Figures." She muttered.

Annoyed, Zel just watched her.


"May I achem help you?" Some guy who could pass for a butler or a stiff board looked at Lina from down his nose.

"Just looking. We're OK." Lina continued eyeing the statue in her hand.

"Oh, but is there anything specific you're looking for?" The clerk grabbed away the statue and replaced it perfectly on the endtable.

Lina huffed. "No. We're fine." Lina burned a hole into him with her eyes until he scooted away.

A few feet across from her, Zel shook his head, then continued rummaging through the disorganized display cases. Lina glanced his way.

"Yeah, Zel, I know." Lina glanced around the trinket-covered store, that made sense only to the clerks who "organized" it. "But you saw!"

Zelgadis only shook his head in agreement.

"Geeze!" Lina turned to another display case. "This place is like some tacky neuvourich living room!" Glass and wood statues clincked from her movement, and into other staues, tightly packed beside them. "Find anything yet?"

"Not yet." Zel's voice came from behind the downy-feathered sofa with a tiger skin draped over it.

Lina let out a sigh and continued rummaging into the glass case.

"Finally!"

"What?" Zel looked her way.

Lina sat there on the floor tiled with Indian tapistry designs, holding 2 statues. She held them up towards him as he came to stand above her.

"Now we can start the spell!" She grinned.

Zel looked down curiously at what Lina had shoved in his face. A wooden figure of a man with a falcon's head and a porcelin figure of a scarab.


"Alright. Make sure you pronounce the names correctly."

"I've memorized it."

"And try to stay in control."

"Lina - "

"...and that goes there... OK. I'm getting a cup of coffee. You want any?"

"Lina!"

"What?"

"I'm not wearing this."

"Zel. It'll help. I've been practicing the spell, you haven't, and you need to preform it. So deal. And don't roll your eyes!"

Zel resigned himself and knelt at their make-shift altar as Lina drew a circle in the sand around him.

"Actually, you look kind of good in that headdress."

"Shut up!" Zel glared from under the white sheet, kept to his crown with a headband.

Lina giggled and walked over to the swings where she left her notes and an extra night lantern. Zel fidgeted with the recently-purchased statues on the altar before him. He was tense, but managed to settle into his spot in the middle of the deserted park, and focused nervously on the representatives of Horus and Khepri. Lina didn't turn, trying to make it seem she hadn't seen from the corner of her eye how afraid he was that this spell, so important to him, may go wrong.

"Zel..."

"Yeah?"

Lina struggled quietly for a moment. "The spell's pretty easy. It'll work." She added a little more quietly, "For whatever you need it for." Lina smiled again. "In fact, I don't think you even have to wear the headdress."

"Thanks." Zel smiled at her and removed his Egyptian cowl.

"Alright. Ready?"

Zel's face went straight. "Ready."

Lina found a quiet spot on the monkey bars. She watched as Zel went into a meditative stare at the statues. And for a moment, it seemed as if the area of the circle became brighter. Naww... It was just the other lantern beside the altar.

"Let my heart be with me in the House of Hearts." Zel began. "Let my heart-case be with me in the House of heart-cases. Let my heart be with me, and let it rest in me or I shall not eat the cakes of Osiris..."

Lina mouthed the words with him, and suddenly stopped. It was foolish to think that would help ensure his perfection in the recital. And that was key on 2 counts: 1, so the spell would work, and 2, so Zel wouldn't become possessed by the gods he called on for help. Then, as he neared the end, her eyes grew wide while he chanted. So it wasn't the lantern!

"I know how to use my heart. I am master of my heart-case. I am master of my hands and arms. I am master of my legs. I have the power to do that which my KA desireth to do. My Heart-soul shall not be kept a prisoner in my body at the gates of Amentet when I would go in peace and come forth in peace."

The light streamed down from the night sky. It enveloped the statues first, then the circle with Zel still in it.


"What the hell was that?!?"

Zel dusted himself off and stood up, averting Lina's angry gaze.

"We went through all that memorizing, and practice, and even that annoying store, with the annoying clerks - AND NOTHING'S CHANGED!!!"

"Actually," Zel squeezed his other forearm, "It has."

"Why do you say that!?"

Then for the first time, she saw him smile - and at her!

"What? Huh? urk!" Lina said all at once when Zel squeezed her. "Alright. You can stop now. urk"

"Oh." He blushed releasing her. "Sorry."

"Hey...um..." Lina blushed herself, watching him avert his eyes. "'Sokay." She said softly. "So, um, what happened? We called the gods of shape-shifting and transformation...and they obviously came." Lina looked up at the now dark sky. "And the spell was for syncronization between your astral and physical body...so..." She nudged towards him. "What did your psyche control your body to do?"

"My astral side mimiced Horus and Khepri..." Zel watched his hand flex slowly, with awe. "...their ability to control tranformations..." Zel faced her, glowing with happiness. "I'm human."

Lina watched him warily. He was certainly acting strange. ...But that's what made him genuine. So she went along with it. "Then what were you before?"

Zel's smile instantly vanished. "Don't be afraid." He raised his hand. "This is just a glamour." Zel waved his hand in front of himself and turned blue, pebbley, and metallic all at once.

Lina stared more in surprise then fear. She stepped closer to Zel, and upon further inspection, he seemed to be a golem-like chimera.

"Um," Zel blushed, "Could you stop that?"

"Oh, sorry." Lina recoiled from his face. He obviously wasn't born this way if he wanted to change so badly... She took a step back to look at him again, and asked softly, "Wow...What happened?"

Zel looked at the stars and reminiced on old scars. "My grandfather...He cursed me."

Lina just stared at that look in his eyes. It looked like he could stay like that forever.

"C'mon." She tugged on his arm, and held their bag of things with the other.

"W-What?" He inadvertently broke his glamour.

"We're going to celebrate!" She smiled brightly. "There's an all-night pizza place I know."

"Lina, thanks, but... I don't know..."

"Then I'll know for you. C'mon! I'm starved!"

Slowly smiling, he let her pull him along.

"By the way," Lina looked up at him as they walked side-by-side out of the park. "Do you think you can put a glamour on me?"

"Hm? You can't do glamours?"

"Well..." Lina looked angrily at the tree branches overhead. "For some reason, I can't hold them for very long on myself. And...you've probably already noticed, but...well... - I could use a new look too!"

"Why?"

Lina stopped in her tracks and stared up at Zel. Staring at her confused expression focused on him, he began to walk on before he started to blush.

"So where is this pizza restaurant of yours?"

Lina's eyes lit up at food and she skipped ahead to catch up with Zel. "That's not as important as what you prefer on your pizza." She smiled, not so much at the thought of food, but with a gratefulness...she smiled up at Zel.

He didn't notice, of course, staring ahead, and all. But he gave his reply as they exited the park...leaving the circle in the sand...


Part 4   |   Fanfiction