Slayers Fan Fiction ❯ Birth Rite ❯ 10 ( Chapter 10 )

Title: Birth Rite 10/?

Author: Tsutsuji

Date written: 7/2/06 EDITED 7/05/06

Warnings: Yaoi. Original characters. UST between an irritable chimera and a clueless mazoku.

Disclaimer: I do not own the copyright to these characters and I'm making no profit from this fic and intend no copyright infringement.

Spell-checked and self-beta'd. Anyone who reads this is welcome to consider him or herself a beta reader - please inform me of any errors you find and offer any constructive criticism you may have. Thanks!

 

Summary: Zelgadis and Xelloss learn a forgotten bit of ancient lore when they meet Kemara's little brother. (A relatively short but significant chapter!) (Edited: significant changes made to Myona's introduction scene from the earlier posted version.)

 

 

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Birth Rite Chapter 10

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Kemara may have been only acting as High Priestess in place of her mother, but it was clear to Zelgadis that the people of the Temple held her in high esteem. In spite of their obvious curiosity, they watched her rather than staring at him and Xelloss, and waited respectfully for her to speak.

 

"My friends, I can see that you're wondering about our latest arrivals," she began. "I expect many of you have already guessed their names, which are well known to most of us here. You all know it's our custom to introduce our guests at the evening meal, but since some of you obviously can't wait for that, I'll do so now. I'll be brief; after all, I know many of you have duties to attend to before dinner!"

 

Several people in the small crowd grinned sheepishly and shuffled their feet. Her eyes twinkled with good humor as her gaze swept over them. However, for a second, Zel saw her scan the crowd again quickly with her lips pursed. Evidently she still didn't see someone she hoped to see, since she gave a little shrug and stopped searching. He wondered if it was her mother that was missing, or perhaps the brother she'd mentioned. He certainly didn't see anyone in the group who resembled her in any way.

 

"Now, then, if our honored guests will excuse the informality," Kemara said, turning to him and Xelloss. "As acting High Priestess, it is my duty and pleasure to welcome you, Zelgadis Greywords and Xelloss of the Mazoku, to the Temple of the Golden Lord!"

 

Her gold and black robes rustled as she bowed formally to them. Xelloss looked startled at being introduced so openly, but after a moment he returned her bow with priestly dignity, and then lowered his head to the watching residents as well. Zelgadis bowed more stiffly, hoping his embarrassed blush was not too noticeable. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw some of those watching nod as formally as Xelloss did, while several others grinned as if their suspicions had been conformed. As far as he could see, no one looked surprised.

 

"Zelgadis-san and Xelloss-sama have come to Wyndcliff to study ancient magic," Kemara continued. "They'll be staying with us as guests and students for a while, and I'm sure you will all honor them with the same respect that we give to all of our seekers here. In return, I hope they will honor us with some stories of their own adventures."

 

There were general murmurs of interest at that, and several faces lit up at the mention of stories.

 

"Zelgadis-san has a particular interest in the origin stories of the Seven Tribes. I ask those of you who have special knowledge of the lore of the Tribes to assist him in his search. Marcus-san has already agreed to act as scribe for them while they're here with us."

 

Marcus beamed, but Kervan's eyebrows shot upwards again and he looked at Marcus as if he'd just done something perfectly bizarre. Zelgadis' sharp ears heard him mutter sarcastically to Marcus: "That sounds suspiciously like work; are you sure you're up for it?"

 

There were murmurs of interest, smiles and nods of sympathy within the crowd. Zelgadis supposed that if they had heard Kemara's story of his quest in Shimeria, many of them could guess what he was seeking here as well. The hawk man gave him a sharp look from under his heavy brows; he didn't appear to be smiling - then again, it would be hard to tell if he was with that mean-looking hooked beak. But he dipped his head as if to acknowledge Kemara's request. Zelgadis noticed that she hadn't mentioned Skye by name.

 

He found it a little disturbing to have his quest so well known to so many strangers, and apparently he wasn't the only one. Xelloss shuffled at his side.

 

"They know you better than I do, it appears," he murmured with a frown. "I should have understood your interest in the Beast Tribes and their connection with Skye from the start, but these people seem to understand it already."

 

Zelgadis couldn't tell if he was being facetious or not.

 

"I won't try to introduce all of you by name just now," Kemara said, "but I'm sure you'll have a chance to speak with Xelloss-sama and Zelgadis-san while they're here. I'll ask you all once again to respect the privacy of our guests, and try not to overwhelm them by all introducing yourselves at once and asking for stories! And now, as I said, many of us have duties to attend to."

 

She waved her hand. Most of them took the hint immediately, and turned away with hardly another glance, now that their initial curiosity was satisfied. Kervan, however, did not appear to have any other duties at the moment. With poorly concealed interest, he remained behind with Marcus, who stood nearby waiting to begin his new job. The tall hawk man walked past them toward the steps they'd climbed, and once again nodded his head, not so much at them as to Kemara. The bat woman followed him, flashing a brilliant, very un-bat-like smile as she passed.

 

"That's Spearos-sama, the temple's head archivist," Kemara said after he'd left the porch. "Formidable scholar, rather intimidating to students and residents alike, but he's a font of knowledge about the Tribes, and also about Skye in spite of his skepticism. He's actually quite susceptible to flattery, by the way," she added with a grin.

 

"That's helpful to know," Xelloss said cheerfully. "Is the woman with him a scholar also?"

 

"His assistant and personal scribe, Druvilla," Kemara answered. "She's much more open-minded than he is, but they work well together. Between them, I think they know every story concerning the Seven Tribes that's ever been told! I'm sure you'll find them both very helpful. Spearos doesn't live here on the temple grounds, though; he's probably leaving for the night, but he's here early every morning. I'll introduce you properly tomorrow. We don't stand on ceremony much here, but Spearos is quite old fashioned about these things. For now, Marcus can bring you to your house where you can wash up before you join us at the evening meal, if you like," she said.

 

Marcus fairly bounced over to them, eager to do his duty. Zelgadis tried not to scowl at him too threateningly, if only for Kemara's sake. Just as Marcus turned to lead them toward another flight of stairs at the far end of the veranda, Zelgadis heard a pair of footsteps hurrying, almost running toward them from the other direction. Xelloss cocked his head as if he was listening for some other sound, or catching an interesting scent on the wind.

 

Kemara turned quickly. Zelgadis couldn't tell if her sigh was one of relief or impatience, or a mixture of both, but she smiled as two boys emerged from the columned walkway onto the veranda. The first was the lizard boy he'd seen her speak to earlier, who also looked relieved when he saw their group still standing there. Out of breath from running, he shrugged and threw up his hands to Kemara.

 

A dark haired boy in fine but bedraggled clothes came into view behind him. Zelgadis' first impression of him was of huge, deep eyes staring up at them from a pale face. He slowed his steps, and then stopped completely, with his eyes growing perfectly round as he looked from them to Kemara and back again.

 

"Finally," she said under her breath. She turned to them with a smile, but Zelgadis noticed her twisting her hands together. He'd never seen her fidget like that before. "Zelgadis-san, Xelloss-sama, I'd like you to meet my little brother, Myona."

 

"Oh?" Xelloss said with new interest.

 

Surprised, Zelgadis took another look at the boy. He looked about fifteen, some ten years younger than Kemara, he guessed - tall enough to be a year or two older than that but awkward looking enough to be even younger. Even besides the age difference, though, Myona could hardly have been any more unlike his sister. He was as thin as she was buxom, as pale as she was rosy cheeked, and instead of her bright bouncy halo of golden hair, dark curls framed his delicate face. But most striking of all was the difference in their eyes. Kemara's sparkling eyes nearly disappeared when her face crinkled up in a smile, which was often, but Myona's deep blue eyes seemed shadowed, as if a smile had never touched them.

 

Myona took a few more cautious steps towards them, his bare feet hardly making a sound on the wooden floor. He stared as if he was awestruck.

 

"Myona, honey, come and see who's here to stay with us for a while!" Kemara said. She sounded like she was trying to coax a shy animal out of its den.

 

She didn't introduce them by name, but from the look of wonder that spread across Myona's face, it wasn't necessary. Evidently he could smile, after all, but if anything it only made his eyes look sadder.

 

"Oohhh," Myona breathed. He gave a jerky little bow in Zel's direction. "Zelgadis-sama!"

 

Awkwardly, Zelgadis bent toward him in return, uncertain if he should smile or be on his most serious behavior with this serious looking young man.

 

Then Myona focused on Xelloss. He stopped moving as if he was frozen in place.

 

"And," he said slowly in a near whisper, "Xelloss-dono!"

 

"Eh?" Xelloss blinked in surprise.

 

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow at him " ' Xelloss-dono'?" he echoed skeptically. "Lord Xelloss?"

 

To his delight, Xelloss was completely flustered. Not only was the form of the title odd and old fashioned; apparently it was beyond even Xelloss' pretended dignity. Even Kemara seemed to think so.

 

"Myona, hon, that's not - oh, dear!"

 

She broke off in dismay as Myona dropped to his knees. His smile vanished; he lowered his head and spread his arms out toward Xelloss like a supplicant before a master.

 

"Now, now, this is not..." Xelloss began, taking a step toward him with an embarrassed glance at Kemara. He stopped suddenly; a look of surprise crossed his face, growing into a smile of bliss as if he suddenly felt or sensed something wonderful.

 

Zelgadis stared down at Myona. He couldn't see the boy's face; Myona had drawn in his arms and hunched over with his forehead nearly touching the floor. But he heard a soft whimper that sounded like fear, and saw the thin shoulders trembling. Zel realized he must have suddenly remembered what Xelloss actually was. However accepting of Mazoku Kemara might be, her younger brother was obviously terrified of them.

 

Xelloss stood looking at Myona with a crooked, pained expression, as if he was torn between bliss and distress. Bliss quickly won: Xelloss closed his eyes and smiled. As far as Zelgadis could tell, Xelloss hadn't done anything to cause the boy's reaction, but it was clear enough that he was enjoying it just the same.

 

Zelgadis scowled and hissed his name but the Mazoku took no notice of him. He stepped between the two of them, even though he knew that wouldn't do anything to block the miasma flowing from the young human.

 

Kemara rushed over to kneel beside her brother. "Myona, no! It's okay, hon... Oh, not again, please!" she begged, panic edging her voice. "It's all right Myona, they're friends! They're not going to hurt us, you should know that - "

 

Suddenly, Myona's shoulders stopped shaking and drooped instead. He sighed as he turned his head to peer up at her.

 

"Kemara!" he hissed, barely loud enough for Zelgadis to hear. "You're ruining it!"

 

She drew back, startled. "What?"

 

He rolled his eyes. "You're supposed to be a High Priestess! Don't you even know the proper ritual greeting for a high-ranking Mazoku?"

 

Her jaw fell open. He pursed his lips and sighed again.

 

"You're embarrassing, sis!" he muttered softly.

 

Zelgadis' jaw had dropped as well; he snapped it shut and turned to Xelloss. The Mazoku priest's smile had spread all across his face, and his violet eyes gleamed darkly, but his eyebrows shot up as if he was just as surprised as Kemara. He barely glanced at Zel with a hint of a shrug, before stepping past him to crouch in front of Myona. The boy looked up at him anxiously. He seemed worried now, but certainly not terrified.

 

"My, my," Xelloss said, "You needn't worry, Myona-san! That was quite the most splendid greeting I've ever received in all of my years among humans!"

 

He took Myona's hand and coaxed him to sit up. Myona's eyes grew even wider, but he allowed Xelloss to help him to his feet.

 

Zelgadis realized what Myona's "ritual greeting" must have been: a deliberate blast of dark emotion, pure terror by the look of it, which he'd called up within himself and offered to Xelloss as a gift, just as the host of the house might offer a delicacy to a visiting nobleman. Apparently, Myona's greeting had indeed been splendid. Zelgadis was suddenly aware of Xelloss' spirit pulsing with pleasure, swelling with the sudden influx of dark emotional energy.

 

In fact, he was all too aware of Xelloss' presence, in a way that triggered a wave of warmth in his own body. Sensing Xelloss so strongly like this was even more distracting than the thought of that bath had been, and considering the circumstances, much more disturbing. But it was also nearly irresistible - suddenly, it was all he could do not to reach out to Xelloss and draw closer to that dark energy.

 

Kemara, however, did not appreciate Myona's ritual greeting as much as Xelloss did. She pressed her hand over her heart as she stood up.

 

"Myona, you scared the life out of me! I thought you were - " She paused to catch her breath, but when she began again, sisterly concern turned to equally sisterly irritation over being made to worry. "Must you get so carried away with things all the time, Myona? And can you please try to have a little more dignity?"

 

Relieved of her fear for him, she seemed to notice the state of his clothing for the first time. She huffed impatiently as she brushed at the dirt and grass stains on his shirt, and plucked at his tousled hair. Zelgadis saw that Myona's bare feet were brown with mud, and one of the sleeves of his fine linen shirt was torn. Compared to her robed dignity, he looked like a street urchin.

 

Myona ignored her attempt to clean him up, and instead he looked up at Xelloss.

 

"But it's true, isn't it?" he asked, shy but eager. "That's how people used to greet Mazoku in the old days, before they knew magic? Grandmother told us it was."

 

Kemara stopped fussing over him and raised her eyebrows.

 

"I don't really know," Xelloss answered. "It may have been, but that was long before my day! Certainly no one offers us a welcome like that in these times."

 

Zelgadis remembered what Xelloss had said a few days before, when he'd suggested that primitive humans might have offered dark emotions to Mazoku in their rituals, before they learned to harness that energy into spells such as Summoning. At the time, Zelgadis thought he was only speculating and repeating a Mazoku legend, but now it seemed that Myona had heard the same tales. Zelgadis frowned. He found that disturbing, not only because it shed more doubt on the existence of Skye, but for other reasons as well.

 

The family resemblance became clearer when Myona caught his lower lip in his teeth in a familiar gesture, looking as if he wanted to say something more but couldn't bring himself to do it. After a few seconds, Kemara spoke instead.

 

"Myona is a very enthusiastic collector of the ancient legends, especially any stories that concern the Mazoku before the War of the Dark Lord's Resurrection. Our grandmother indulged his interest, and now he lets his imagination run away with him sometimes, I'm afraid!"

 

"That's quite all right, Kemara-sama," Xelloss said. "I'd like to hear more of these ancient tales myself! But I'm also quite surprised. Did your grandmother really know many stories about Mazoku?"

 

Myona glanced up at his sister eagerly, as if he was ready to begin reciting all that he knew right then and there. Kemara's expression softened, and for a moment, Zelgadis thought she was going to indulge him, but she shook her head.

 

"As a matter of fact, Myona knows many, many such tales," she said dramatically, causing her brother to grin and blush a little. "Many of which even our own sages don't fully understand, and many which are not to be believed. But they will all have to wait, for now, Xelloss-sama! It's nearly dinner time, and I'm sure you'd like some time to refresh yourselves before the meal."

 

"Yes," Xelloss agreed immediately, smiling at Myona. "Zel-san and I should wash up after our day of travel - Zel-san, especially!"

 

Zelgadis glared at Xelloss; he did not need to be reminded of that bath at the moment. The grin on Xelloss' face was even wider than it usually was when he was teasing; Zel was afraid the Mazoku was a little bit giddy from Myona's greeting.

 

Myona sighed, rather dramatically. Kemara stepped back from him but pinned him with her gaze.

 

"Since you've been lured down from your usual perch, little brother, you can attend to your duties for once and help out in the kitchen for a little while. After you wash up, that is! Later, perhaps you can politely ask Xelloss-sama and Zelgadis-san to hear some of your stories, and you can hear some of theirs."

 

"But, sis!" he protested softly. He looked to Xelloss, but whether it was from respect for the High Priestess or for some other reason, the priest shook his head.

 

"Zelgadis-san and I will be staying here for some time, so we'll have plenty of opportunities to share our stories, Myona-san," he said. "For the moment, it's best we all obey the word of the High Priestess!"

 

"Quite right," Kemara said briskly. But she smiled indulgently as she nudged Myona by the shoulder, pushing him gently but firmly toward the building before them. He slumped the few steps toward the door, but then he turned and peered up at Xelloss with his sad-eyed smile.

 

"Dream Master-sama said you'd like hate and anger best, but I can't do those as well," he said softly. "I'm sorry."

 

Before anyone could respond, he disappeared through the door.

 

Kemara bit her lip as she watched him go. Her irritation had completely disappeared, but so had her smile. For a moment, Zelgadis glimpsed some of Myona's sad look in the worry in her eyes, but she forced it aside and turned back to them with a smile.

 

"I'm very sorry, Xelloss-sama," she said again. "I had no idea Myona would do that when he saw you! Our grandmother gave him some rather strange ideas, but she meant well."

 

"Do you mean to say that she made up the stories about a ritual greeting?" Zelgadis asked.

 

"I don't know if she made them up or not," Kemara answered. "Myona was ill with nightmares when he was younger, always terrified that monsters were chasing him. She told him he should turn around and offer the monster his fear, and it would become his protector instead. True or not, he took it to heart. At least, it stopped him from having any more nightmares," she added, although she sounded doubtful about the method of the cure just the same.

 

"Who is this Dream Master Myona spoke of?" Xelloss asked.

 

She hesitated for a moment before she answered. "No one. It's something he made up out of the stories he's heard."

 

"The monster he made friends with in his nightmares?" Zelgadis suggested.

 

"I suppose so," she nodded.

 

"Like Princess Martina and her personal demon lord, Zoalmagustave!" Xelloss said with a grin.

 

Kemara twisted her hands together again, looking at both of them anxiously.

 

"I shouldn't ask this of you, but if you wouldn't mind listening to his stories - he makes a lot of them up out of things he's heard, so they aren't proper lore, but - the truth is, he hardly ever talks to anyone but this Dream Master, and to me."

 

"Indeed," Kervan said. "That's the most I've heard him speak since I've been here!"

 

Zelgadis had forgotten about the others on the porch. Marcus and the lizard boy stood nearby, shuffling their feet nervously, but the lizard boy also nodded, agreeing with Kervan's comment. Unlike them, though, Kervan seemed intrigued by what they'd just seen, and watched Xelloss with an odd smile.

 

"I certainly don't mind listening to Myona's tales," Xelloss said to Kemara. He caught Zel's eye with a questioning look.

 

"Yes, I'd be interested as well," Zelgadis found himself saying. He wasn't really interested in stories about yet another imaginary demon lord, but he supposed there might be something else of interest, especially in the parts of the stories that came from Kemara's grandmother, the former High Priestess of the Temple. At any rate, he could not easily ignore Kemara's concern for her brother.

 

She smiled gratefully at both of them. Then all at once she became the Acting High Priestess again as she stepped back and looked around at the others.

 

"Well, then," she said. "Marcus, you are officially relieved of your duties as midday gatekeeper as of this moment. Gekki, you may take Marcus' place starting tomorrow, if you would. Run down to the gate now and see if Envis has any instructions for you, please."

 

The lizard boy's face lit up. "Thank you, Kemara-sama!" he said in a soft, accented voice. With a flick of his forked tongue, he bowed to her and then headed down the stairs.

 

Kemara gestured Marcus to come over to them.

 

"Now, finally, Zelgadis-san, Xelloss-sama!" she said. "If there are no further interruptions, Marcus-san can finally show you to your lodgings!"

 

---

 

Zelgadis could hardly pay enough attention to follow the way Marcus led them, up and down stairs and along covered walkways, toward what Marcus called the students' lodgings. He was not only distracted by the confused thoughts of all he'd seen and heard since finding Marcus at the temple gate, but by his awareness of Xelloss, which increased with every step. The Mazoku priest walked along the covered walkways beside him with his head slightly bowed and a small smile on his lips. From the look of that smile, Zelgadis guessed that Xelloss was still pleased and amused by Myona's greeting.

 

He certainly hoped that there weren't many others at the Temple who knew the same stories Myona had heard. It would be distracting, to say the least, to have people greeting Xelloss with a rush of emotional energy like that at every turn. He knew - or at least, he hoped - that Xelloss' pleasure was simply due to the rush of energy Myona's offering had given him, like getting a burst of energy from a sugar treat. Unfortunately, Xelloss surging reaction to his sugar rush hit Zelgadis like a candy laced with aphrodisiac.

 

For some reason, he was irritated with Xelloss for enjoying what was obviously meant to be enjoyed, even now that he knew Myona hadn't suffered any harm from it. He didn't know why he should be. The fact that it had made him so intensely aware of Xelloss now that he hardly knew where he was going - that wasn't really Xelloss' fault any more than it was Myona's.

 

They finally left the covered walks and passed through a hedge that separated the main temple grounds from a miniature village. A dozen tiny, two-room houses of wood and stone encircled a green with a pond. The soft trickle and gurgle of several streams that poured down from the mountains behind Wyndcliff village added to the soft patter of the rain on grass and trees. It all seemed to increase the peaceful aura of the place, but it wasn't enough to settle Zelgadis' mind at the moment. He tried to follow Marcus' chatter as he pointed out the house that would be theirs, an ancient but well-kept cottage with a thatched roof and mystic runes carved on the door posts.

 

The runes finally caught Zelgadis' attention for a moment. He paused to study them with Xelloss reading over his shoulder. They were an archaic style of writing, once part of a common language but now used only by scholars and priests. Uncertainly, he read them off aloud.

 

"Soul and mind may meet, within the void, where mystery becomes the source of wisdom." He turned to Xelloss. "Is that how you read it?"

 

"Nearly so," Xelloss said. "I would have said 'unknowing' rather than mystery. Or perhaps, unknowable."

 

"What good is unknowable wisdom?" Zelgadis wondered.

 

"Is that what it says?" Marcus said curiously, peering between them at the door post. "I thought it was just 'Welcome home!'"

 

Zelgadis glared at him. "Aren't you a scribe?"

 

"In training!" Marcus said defensively. "And I'm not being trained to write in a language hardly anyone can read, anyway; I mean, why bother?"

 

He had a point, much as Zelgadis hated to admit it. "Just show us our lodgings, will you?" he muttered.

 

The main room in the cottage was furnished only with a table, a desk, a lamp, and two chairs - all that was needed to study and perhaps to eat a meal now and then, Zelgadis thought. Through a door to the side he glimpsed the second of their two rooms, which held a chest and a single, wide bed. He turned away quickly, trying not to notice Xelloss' quick grin.

 

"You can have more furniture brought in if you need it," Marcus chattered on, fortunately oblivious to both Xelloss' grin and Zel's blush. "Kervan's lined our walls with bookshelves and has a couch by the fire. There's a pump out back, although the streams are fresh enough. Oh, and the bath is back this way."

 

He led them out a back door and across a little yard to a wooden bathhouse. It was probably meant to be shared with the house next to theirs, Zelgadis noted, but that one seemed to be unoccupied. Rather than a pump or well, the bath was filled by a trough that could be moved to redirect water from one of the streams. The fire pit beneath the bath was ready to be lit, but Zelgadis barely glanced at it. He didn't need to wait for that to heat the bathwater to his liking when a simple fire spell would do the job much more quickly.

 

Behind the bath, there was a sort of alcove carved into the rock wall, with a smooth stone floor and a reed screen that could be unfolded across the opening. Marcus pulled on a rope that hung just inside the alcove. Another spout like the one that filled the bath swung out overhead to create a miniature waterfall.

 

"Convenient, eh?" Marcus said. "The water from the stream is cold, but you can heat it by casting a spell to heat the rocks where it enters the sluice. Kervan designed these for all the lodgings; he says bathing is much more efficient this way. Very big on efficiency, Kervan is. Personally, I prefer a nice, long soak in a tub myself!"

 

Xelloss smiled and caught Zelgadis' eye.

 

"I can see the benefits of both methods," he said. "And to make this even more efficient, there's just room enough for two under the waterfall!"

 

Zelgadis had already noticed that, as a matter of fact. He swallowed hard and bit the inside of his cheek to try to stop the picture that was forming in his mind already.

 

"Is there anything else we should know, Marcus?" he ground out. "Any temple rules or taboos we shouldn't break?"

 

Marcus thought for a second, then shook his head.

 

"Can't think of any, except the one about not disturbing students when they're studying. And you're expected not to insult anyone else's deities or beliefs - just general politeness, as you'd expect in a place like this. Other than that, we really don't stand on ceremony here, as Kemara said. There's a bell before meals - which are wonderful, by the way - and that rings three times a day. You can always get a bite from the kitchens, though, any time of day or night. Lots of Beast Folk are nocturnal, you know. The dining hall is the next large one past the one we stopped at earlier, where Kemara introduced you."

 

"We'll find it, I'm sure," Xelloss said cheerfully.

 

Zelgadis wasn't sure he remembered the way back, but at the moment he didn't care, even if he hadn't eaten since morning. He just wanted Marcus to go away and leave them alone, which for some reason he wasn't ready to do.

 

"I'll see you after dinner; I can show you 'round the place more later, or wait until tomorrow if you'd rather," Marcus said. "It gets dark early on these stormy days, so tomorrow might be better..."

 

"I'll let you know," Zelgadis growled, cutting him off.

 

Marcus took the hint and left them quickly after that. As soon as he disappeared around the corner of the little house, Xelloss turned to Zelgadis.

 

"Well, Zel-san," he said, in a voice soft enough to just be heard over the gurgling of the stream, "Which shall it be? The bath? Or shall we try the shower first?"

 

Zelgadis felt a flood of warmth rise up through his body in response to the suggestive tone of Xelloss' voice. He glared at the grinning Mazoku, and suddenly realized two things. The first was that Xelloss had been perfectly well aware all along that Zelgadis could sense his pleasure; in fact, he'd probably made sure of it, and obviously knew the effect it was having on him. The second was the reason he was irritated with Xelloss over his reaction to Myona. It was a very good reason to be irritated, now that he thought about it. He clenched his fists and glared.

 

"You damn, stupid Mazoku!" he growled.

 

Rather than looking pleased, Xelloss took half a step back from him in surprise.

 

"Zel-san?" he asked cautiously.

 

Even more irritated, Zelgadis grinned, or rather bared his teeth, and took two steps forward to more than close the distance again. Xelloss' eyes widened when Zel grabbed the front of his shirt in his fists and yanked him to the side, shaking him a little. He was too startled to resist when Zelgadis, with his full rock golem weight, shoved him back into the alcove, then jumped in after him and pinned him against the stone wall under the sluice. Xelloss looked baffled, but his eyes grew dark again as Zel's anger hit him.

 

"Zelgadis?" he asked, eyeing Zel uncertainly, and foolishly trying to hold back on the arousal Zel's anger was inspiring in him. "Are you still so angry because I stopped you from killing Marcus-san? Or is it because I teased you earlier about the bath? Or..." he trailed off helplessly.

 

Zelgadis laughed. "You're as dense as Gourry sometimes, Xelloss!" he said, forcing himself to sneer. He gathered the Mazoku's shirt in his fists again, and leaned into him until their faces were almost touching. "I'm only giving you the proper greeting for a Mazoku 'Lord,' - especially for the one who shares my bed and my bath. The kind of greeting 'no one' ever gives you anymore, you ungrateful little bastard!"

 

"Oh?" Xelloss actually flinched, but then a look of understanding spread across his face, quickly followed by a flush of embarrassment as he realized his mistake earlier: Myona may have learned his ritual greeting from some ancient story, but he certainly wasn't the only one who had ever offered Xelloss dark emotions as a freely-given gift. "Oh! I see! But, Zel-san, I didn't mean... You mustn't think... That is, you...."

 

That was all the apology Zelgadis let him make, because, right at that moment, he had something else in mind for Xelloss' mouth that did not involve talking.

 

---

to be continued, as Xelloss and Zelgadis learn more about Myona and the other residents of the Temple of the Golden Lord and begin the difficult task of sorting fact from legend and myth from practical magic, and also try to decide which really is more practical: the shower, or a good old fashioned bath? (Should I put it to a vote, perhaps?)