Slayers Fan Fiction ❯ Unwanted Memories ❯ Chapter 1 ( Chapter 1 )

Disclaimer: Slayers and their characters are not owned by me. They belong to Hajime Kanzaka, Rui Araizumi and any other companies which own them. I'm just borrowing them for a little bit and I promise to give them back all in perfect working order.

 

Also there are scenes involving self harm and implied bloody violence which is why it has an X rating to be on the safe side.

 

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The short brunette fiery sorceress from Zephilia looked back at the blonde swordsman from Elmekia with wide eyes that slowly started to shimmer with tears. Her gloved hands were gripped tightly on the swordsman's hands which were grasped around the sorceress's small neck. She was looking into his eyes and the familiar warmth was replaced with a vacant cold glare. Lina Inverse was being choked to death by her guardian, Gourry Gabriev.

 

She had never known Gourry to look at anyone with those eyes. Not even in the heat of battle did Gourry give those eyes to anyone. Although in those few moments as she felt her life ebbing away, she realised there was one time Gourry looked like that. That one time was when he was under the control of Hellmaster Phibrizzo.

 

Her hand suddenly move down to the side as if she was about to summon some sort of spell, only the words wouldn't come out. The fingers gripped tightly around her neck were stifling the oxygen coming in and fighting off the words she wanted to come out. The best she could muster was a slight grunt and her hand dropped to her side in frustration. Her lungs were now burning from being starved of oxygen and her vision was slowly fading, the blackness slowly eating away at the surroundings, Gourry's face and those horrific eyes

 

Then the pressure was gone. It was as simple as that. She realised she wasn't supporting her own weight as her legs gave way beneath her and she landed on her knees, slumping back into the wall. She coughed and choked as the oxygen quickly replaced the used air in her lungs. Her vision returned and she noticed Gourry in front of her, also on the ground. His eyes were missing that vacant look from before, and were replaced with panic. He was looking down at his own hands as though they were red with blood.

 

“W…w…what have I done?” Gourry stuttered as he continued to stare at his hands in shock. “I've…I've killed her!”

 

Lina looked back at the swordsman and was wondering what on earth he was blabbering about. She knew he could get confused at times, but never like this. Yes, he tried to kill her, but the important word was tried. However Gourry was saying he actually did kill her.

 

“Gourry? I'm right here.” Her voice was hoarse and raspy. She also a little nervously; after all she had just been choked by him and she wasn't sure that getting his attention would set him off again.

 

“I'm supposed to be her guardian and I've killed her!” The tall blonde man continued as though Lina hadn't uttered a word.

 

“Ok, you're really creeping me out now. I'm not dead. I'm here in front of you! Look at me!” The sorceress insisted as she moved forward onto her hands and knees, moving closer to Gourry and reaching a hand out towards him.

 

“Why wasn't I strong enough? I should have been able to fight back against him, but instead I gave in. Why was I kidding myself into thinking I could be her guardian? It was obvious she could handle herself and if anything, I was just going to get in her way. In the end I did worse!”

 

Gourry started to sob into his hands. It was something Lina had never expected to see although she had heard from Zel and Amelia that he had done something similar when he thought she died. However, this was more than that as she watching his shoulders shake.

 

“Dammit Gourry! I'm still here! Why won't you listen to me?” Her voice not so ragged as before.

 

Lina was still in shock from what happened but now she just felt confused. She couldn't work out what had happened to Gourry. They were just trying to have a quiet time in their room at an inn, when Gourry suddenly lunged towards Lina. His fingers clasped tightly around her neck and pinned her against the wall. It was as though something in his mind just snapped and it was making him think that certain things had occurred when obviously they hadn't.

 

Lina crawled slowly over to Gourry and placed her hands on his shoulders and started to shake him. She thought maybe with enough of a jolt, she could help him out of it. But it didn't seem to do anything at all as the swordsman just continued to sob into his hands.

 

Gourry abruptly got to his feet, surprising Lina who stayed on her knees and looked up at him.

 

“If I killed Lina, then it's only fair that I take my own life as punishment…”

 

He then took a hold of his sword and swiftly positioned it so he would drive the blade through his chest.

 

“NOOOO!!!” Lina screamed as she fought against the tiredness she felt and got to her feet. She then shoved the sword from his hands and embraced Gourry tightly before he could do anything to harm himself.

 

“L…Lina?”

 

She blinked up at him in surprise as it seemed he was registering her existence unexpectedly.

 

“What happened?” He added.

 

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Three weeks earlier, the sorceress and swordsman had not been back on their home continent for long after their battle with Darkstar. Lina and Gourry separated from the others, who all had their own things to deal with.

 

Zel after all his time searching was still no closer to his cure, but he was determined as ever. Amelia had to finally settle down into her duties as a royal after being able to live the life as an adventurer although only for a short while. Filia was now caretaker of the newly reborn Valgaav, but was also working on her new antique store after giving up her role as priestess under Flarelord Valbazard.

 

In fact, it was the recently reborn Valgaav that was the current subject of discussion between Lina and Gourry. At the same time, they were enjoying the delights of the latest restaurant to under go the torturous duty of filling their bottomless stomachs.

 

“So it's going to be just a few months before Valgaav breaks out then?” Gourry mumbled through a mouth filled with a scrumptious steak.

“What!?” Lina shrieked in response. “He's an Ancient Dragon! They must take like hundreds of years before they're properly born.”

“Then won't he die before he breaks out? A hundred years is a pretty long time Lina.”

“I know that, stupid! You don't seem to realise that a hundred years for a dragon is nothing. They live for thousands of years.”

“I guess that means we won't get to see him born then.”

“No. We probably won't. Not unless we find a way to live for a really long time!” Lina grinned as she stole a couple of bread rolls from Gourry's side of the table.

“Hey! Stop it!” Gourry growled in reply and his reaction was to slam his fork into the steak on Lina's plate and promptly stuff it into his mouth.

“Right! That does it!”

 

Lina leapt from the chair and over the table and landed into Gourry, forcing his chair to fall back and so he hit the ground. The landing seemed to have the swordsman pretty dazed which was what Lina was hoping for. She giggled to herself and took advantage of his dazed state to steal food from his plate.

 

“Now that's not fair…You've never done that before.” Gourry sighed in defeat as he picked himself up and sat back down on the chair.

“Well you never stole a WHOLE steak from my plate.”

 

After enjoying their meal and avoiding most of the stares which were sent their way due to the commotion they caused, they headed up to their separate rooms. Lina went to hers and decided to take a nice long relaxing bath whilst Gourry used his time to maintain his sword before he would get a wash.

 

As he rubbed the pumice stone against the blade to remove all the nicks and scratches, he thought about all the things he had been through. He realised he had come a long way since the low point he had after fighting in the war. Things at the time seemed so bad, that he wondered if there was much point to his life anymore. The horrors of the war had affected him pretty badly and his desire for sword fighting had disappeared.

 

He returned home in the hope of regaining some sort of normality but his home seemed to be just as bad as the battlefield he had just finished fighting on. Arguments and backstabbing seemed to be the order of the day then, and it was all over that stupid heirloom. The Sword of Light had been in his family for several generations, but now it was tearing his family apart.

 

Having enough of the fighting, he decided that maybe if he got rid of the cause of the arguments, then they would stop. So one night he took the Sword of Light from the mantelpiece and left without warning. He kept contact of what was going on, hoping to hear that the fighting had died down. Instead he found that the fighting had only intensified and it only sent him spiralling further into depression.

 

He had decided that it was all too much and his plan was to get rid of the Sword of Light by throwing it into the sea. If someone really wanted it badly enough, then they would do all they could to get it, and they would deserve it by taking it from the watery grave. Then after getting rid of the sword, well, he hadn't thought that far yet. The swordsman never got to think about it as the first part of his plan failed when a strange fisherman made him realise he could do something with his life by holding onto the sword. Not long after that, he met Lina and the rest as they say was history.

 

The things he did in those intervening years made him realise how happy he was to take that man's advice. After everything that happened, he knew that he wouldn't change a thing because if he could, then maybe things wouldn't turn out as good as they had done.

 

What if things had turned out differently? How would things be different to the way they were now? He remembered the time he spent with Grize on the battlefield and saw what happened to him after the war was over. If things played out a little differently he could have ended up like his old fighting buddy. Washing down his sorrows in alcohol and losing his life in some senseless battle.

 

As Gourry rubbed some oil onto the blade to strengthen it, the light from a candle reflected off the blade and into his eyes. The swordsman felt a little annoyed at himself for wallowing in his past. He knew there was nothing he could do about it now, so what was the point in thinking about it and worrying about it. He didn't concern himself with things that happened in the past as what was happening right now was all that matter. He was nothing like the man he was after the war, and he wasn't going to try and turn into him now.

 

A knock at the door shook Gourry from his thoughts, and it was only then he realised that he was squeezing on the blade of his sword tightly. He winced as he pulled his hand away and looked at the wounds on his palm and fingers. Dark red blood trickled down the flat side of the blade just as a knock at the door occurred once more.

 

“Hey Gourry? Are you awake?” Lina asked from behind the door.

“Dammit…” Gourry cursed quietly to himself.

 

Quickly he grabbed onto the rag he used the rub the oil into the blade and wrapped it quickly around his hand to cut off the bleeding. He then held it behind his back and swiftly answered the door before Lina got too impatient.

 

“What were you up to?” Lina spoke with a raised eyebrow, looking rather inquisitive.

 

Her hair was damp as she was wrapped in several towels to cover her modesty. It appeared as though she had just left her bath.

 

“Oh, nothing. Just cleaning my sword.” He replied a little awkwardly.

“So that's why I can smell that oil. Hey! What's up with your hand?”

 

Gourry rolled his eyes and realised that trying to hide his hand behind his back was just a little too obvious. He brought his hand forward slowly as though he was a child being scolded by his mother for hiding sweets and was forced to own up.

 

“Yikes Gourry! What were you cleaning the blade with? Your hand!?”

“I guess I got a little carried away and I just caught my hand on the blade.”

“Sit down…I'll heal it.”

 

Lina dragged him over to the bed and sat down. She removed the rag from his hand and grimaced at the sight of the wounds. She glanced up at him with a look as though she didn't believe him but decided she would just heal it anyway. Lina then placed his hand on her lap and after a few moments she began healing him.

 

Gourry glanced to Lina and watched her concentrating on the spell. He blushed a little with the way she was treating him. Then he took in the situation. Lina was wrapped in towels with damp hair, and hand his hand on her lap. He turned his head away quickly and tried to calm himself down a little as impure thoughts started to run through his mind.

 

Once Lina was finished with the healing spell, she looked down to inspect her work and was happy to see that his hand was completely recovered. Now she wanted to know the real reason his hand was cut like that. Only when she looked up towards the swordsman, she noticed the rosy tint to his cheeks. She gave him a curious look, wondering what it was he was embarrassed about until only moments later she realised her state, and couldn't help a blush herself. Suddenly all thoughts of getting to the bottom of Gourry's hand injury had fluttered away.

 

“I ran out of shampoo and was hoping I could borrow some of yours.” Lina spoke quietly as she quickly distanced herself from Gourry.

“Umm…sure. Go help yourself.” He replied, not making eye contact with the sorceress.

“Thanks…”

 

Lina quickly made her way into the bathroom and took the shampoo and quickly made her way to the door, only for the hand injury to come back to her mind. Something like that wasn't going to be so easy for her to push out of her head. She stopped by the doorway and turned back to Gourry who still looked a little flushed.

 

“If something was wrong, then you would tell me. Right?” Lina questioned.

“I would Lina. I'm fine. It was just an accident. You know how my mind can wander.” He grinned and rubbed the back of his head.

“Sure I do!” She smiled and headed off back to her room. “Good night!”

 

Only something didn't seem right to the brunette. Yes, Gourry was partial to thinking about other things when the current subject of conversation was considered boring to him. What didn't sit right with Lina was that Gourry said he was cleaning his sword at the time. Dealing with swords was probably the one thing that Gourry didn't find boring and for his mind to drift off whilst doing that just seemed plain wrong to her.

 

She shook her head a little as she removed her towels and sunk back into the luke warm bath. She grumbled at that fact. If only she hadn't run out of shampoo to wash her hair, she would be enjoying a nice hot bath. Although it was nothing a well prepared fireball couldn't handle and she sighed in satisfaction as the heat from the dissipating fireball she just conjured warmed up the bath.

 

Maybe she was just overanalysing the situation and Gourry was just a little clumsy. Even she was prone to her own bouts of clumsiness on occasion so if it could happen to her, then surely it would happen to anyone else. So he probably was speaking the truth. Only her instinct was screaming something else in her mind and that she should follow it up. Her body just wanted to enjoy the nice hot bath. In the end it was no contest and her body won as she sunk lower into the delightfully hot water.

 

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Lina and Gourry spent the next few days travelling through the old continent on the trail of a new magical sword. Since Gourry relinquished the Sword of Light and thus the name of Swordsman of Light, he was without a decent sword to match his skill. At least that's what Lina said and Gourry seemed to just be happy enough to travel with Lina. He didn't take in the fact that Lina would be co-owner of such a new sword, since that was the terms Lina made when she decided on using her precious time to look for one. She was going to get a piece of the pie this time, nothing like what happened with the Sword of Light!

 

Lina couldn't help but think about what happened to Gourry's hand that night and no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't settle on the fact that maybe it was just an accident. Sure he was a real jellyfish at times, but to say he cut his hand like that was really insulting towards him. However, bringing up the subject to him wouldn't be the easiest thing to do.

 

Gourry on the other hand had pretty much forgotten what had happen since no harm was really done. He didn't really take in what happened to him and the way he was feeling as he cleaned the blade. Instead he was enjoying just travelling with Lina, and hoping that maybe this lead they were following would result in finding a sword which could rival the Sword of Light.

 

As the swordsman and sorceress walked side by side, something had just jumped in their minds at the same time. The surroundings were somehow familiar, and the feeling of déjà vu was strong, however the reasons for those feelings were particularly different. Lina cursed slightly under her breath as she came across the realisation that they weren't too far from Sairaag.

 

She thought how foolish she was to not pay attention to something like that, but she thought maybe if she just ignored it, then maybe it would be ok. Only she hadn't planned on walking through this particular area.

 

To anyone else, it would be what the typical countryside looked like. A brown dirt path with an expanse of grass surrounded them, whilst a few trees were spread out sparsely along the edge of the area. To Lina this was the site of a battle that took place between herself and Gourry when he was controlled by Phibrizzo. She stood frozen in one spot as the images of the battle ran rapidly through her mind and hadn't even notice Gourry collapse to his knees.

 

Gourry didn't remember his time under Phibrizzo's spell and his reasons for remembering this place, although similar to Lina's, was through different circumstances. The whole area had been host to a much larger battleground, but the particular spot where he was now on his knees was pretty specific.

 

The swordsman was now going through certain memories he had spent a long amount of time trying to bury away deeply in his mind. Now they were flooding back and he seemed to have no control over them. The main colour in all those memories was the bright, vivid red of freshly spilt blood. It was on the ground, it was on his sword, his clothes, in his hair and on his face. It was also on the fallen bodies of his fallen comrades who had been slain mercilessly, gutted or decapitated

 

Gourry collapsed to his knees in those memories like he was in the present and started to vomit violently. He had been to busy fighting off the hordes of enemies. He didn't know who they were, and he didn't know what the reasons were for this war. All he knew was that he was being paid to fight, and at the moment in time, he was fighting to survive.

 

When the fighting was over, Gourry had time to take in the devastation and the reality that war gave. For a long time the lessons he learnt from that time had affected him badly. Grize was right when he said that he had become useless. He no longer wanted to fight with a sword, and in some ways he didn't really want to live anymore as he thought those memories would torture him for the rest of his life.

 

“GOURRY! GOURRY!” Lina screamed with horror in her voice.

 

She ran to the side of her guardian as he was down on the ground, having some sort of fit or spasms. A pool of vomit lay beside him. It was only the lurching of Gourry throwing up which shook her from her own thoughts of what happened in this area.

 

Somehow, Lina's voiced seemed to be a lifeline which dragged him away from the memories he had fought off for so long. He opened the eyes he didn't realise were closed and saw the look of fear in Lina's face.

 

“What happened to you?” Lina asked, her voice a little shaken due to what she had just seen.

“I think there is something I should talk to you about.” Gourry replied weakly.

 

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When Gourry had recovered enough, the pair had made their way to an inn that was close by. They paid for one room and headed there straight away to settle down and clean up before Gourry decided to open up a little of his past to Lina. He recounted to her the days he spent as a mercenary, and lead up to the war he fought in. He explained the after effects of that event and revealed that the area they were just in was where that war took place.

 

Lina remained strong when Gourry detailed his past but inside she wanted to just cry and hug the swordsman. She couldn't really believe they had spent so long together and had never found out about what happened to him. She realised he had spent the whole time keeping that part of his history not only secret from her, but in a way himself. So it was hard for her to tell him that there something else significant about that place. As far as she knew, he still didn't know what happened to him and she was going to make sure it stayed that way until she believed he could take it.

 

Gourry was sat on the side of the bed with dark rings around his eyes as the retelling seemed to have truly worn him out.

 

“You should get some rest.” Lina said as she stood up from the chair she was sat on and walked over to the swordsman.

“It's still early. I'm not really that tired either.”

“Well I don't care. It's an order from me.”

“Are you my superior or something?” Gourry smiled slightly, wanting to lighten the mood somewhat.

“Well I'm smarter than you so that's one thing I'm superior to you in. So I know you're tired and you need to get some sleep.” Lina crossed her arms as she stood in front of him.

“Fine…fine. Ok then…since you insist.”

“I do…”

 

Gourry rubbed the back of his head and when he realised Lina wasn't going to play around in the end, he leaned back into the bed and rolled onto his side.

 

“I'm not going to insist you tell me anything about your past just because I did…” Gourry said with a yawn to follow it up.

“Thanks” Lina replied as she lay down on the bed beside Gourry.

 

Gourry was surprised to feel the sorceress join him and although she wasn't right up against him, her hand was running through his long blonde hair. He appreciated the gesture and it did help him calm down and realise he was more tired than he initially thought. After a few moments of that, he dropped off into a much needed sleep.

 

Lina sighed as she slowly sat up from the bed, careful not to wake Gourry. She looked down at the swordsman and her heart pounded a little quicker. Despite the recent revelations she couldn't help but feel for him as she watched him sleep. She found herself getting like that often when she looked at him in that state.

 

She stood up from the bed and moved around to the opposite side of the bed and knelt down beside the sleeping blonde. She ran her fingers through his bangs, parting them slightly to show off a little more of her face and couldn't help but place a gentle kiss on his forehead. It was easy to be affectionate when no one was around and he wasn't aware. Then her stomach grumbled and she blushed. Her hands landed over her stomach quickly in an attempt to block out the noise.

 

Fortunately it seemed Gourry wasn't disturbed. So Lina decided it was time to take her leave and do something about it before her stomach decided to growl any louder which would wake him from his sleep. She left the room quietly, taking one last glance at the slumbering swordsman before leaving.

 

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When Gourry was aware of the situation he knew something was definitely wrong. For starters the Sword of Light was in his hands when he knew it should have been taken away. Also his vision seemed to be impeded by some sort of mask. The thing that struck him the most was the intense amount of power he felt running through his body. It was exhilarating and exciting. He was battling several people it seemed but he couldn't really make out who they were.

 

It didn't seem to matter as the feeling he had when he was fighting felt great. Whoever he was fighting didn't seem to be making much of a challenge because what he was doing seemed to be so easy. Fighting several opponents had never been this simple. He noticed the Sword of Light reacting in a way he had never noticed before. It seemed so much more powerful and stronger than ever. The sword was reacting much like it did when it was amplified by a magic spell much like in the fight against Rezo. Only this time he knew there was no magical amplification. This time it was all his doing. Was this how strong the Sword of Light could truly be?

 

The fight continued on and Gourry felt like he had barely broken a sweat. He also noticed that the group he was fighting were all magic users. Again he had never fought so easily against one sorcerer, never mind a group of them. He was even using the magic spells they sent at him back against them. Even the Dragon Slave was no match for him and it felt enjoyable.

 

Clearly having the upper hand in the battle, one of his foes was down on the ground and out for the count. He stepped close to the person and looked down only to see that it was Lina. Worse still he found he was about to strike her down with a finishing blow. Suddenly he realised that he didn't really have control of his body anymore. He started to wonder if he actually had much control of his body to begin with. But now that he knew that he didn't have control and he was about to unwillingly finish Lina off, he had to try and fight back against whatever it was that was controlling him.

 

He fought with all that he had and at one point he thought he succeeded as he seemed to back away from Lina. The look in Lina's eyes sent shivers through his spine, more so because it was him that was putting the fear in those eyes.

 

He thought that he had won over whatever was controlling him, but within a few moments it washed back over. Some sort of cold darkness which threatened to swallow his entire being consumed him and suddenly he found himself attacking Lina.

 

“NO! LINA!” He screamed to stop but it was only in his mind.

 

Then something changed and Lina was gone. However it was not just Lina who was gone but everything. The power and whatever was controlling him was gone. Wherever he was before, it was no longer there and it just seemed to be darkness. He was now aware that it wasn't long since he was taken away by that kid Phibrizzo, or at least that's what he thought he was. Now he was pretty sure he wasn't some normal kid.

 

“I took you because you seem to be someone dearly precious to Lina Inverse. You shall be the bait who will bring me the destruction that I desire.” A familiar but disembodied voice echoed in the oblivion.

“What makes you think I'll willingly be bait to you!?” Gourry replied defiantly, quickly gripping onto the Sword of Light, knowing it was something that he would need against such a strange foe.

“Is that the Sword of Light!?” The voice spoke in surprise. “If you possess that sword, then surely you must have great ability.”

 

Gourry was unsure how to reply. He didn't even know where he was. All he knew was he wanted to find a way out fast and get back to Lina before anything bad happened.

 

“Maybe there is more use from you than I initially thought…Yes…You can make this a lot more interesting.” The eerie voice continued.

 

Gourry then sensed an impending dark energy. Obviously in the darkness it was impossible to see, but the senses he honed in his training were acutely aware of something wrong.

 

Then it wrapped around his body like a serpent wraps tightly around its prey to kill it off. Gourry gasped in shock and pain, as this dark mass seemed to be deathly cold and excruciatingly hot to his body. It was all too much and he screamed as the agony took a hold of his body. He strained and fought against the darkness but it seemed to easily keep hold. It seemed to freeze and burn his skin at the same time and then he felt it seeping into his skin.

 

He roared and howled as he felt the darkness force its way into his skin, then the muscle and right into his blood. He felt it inside him as it took control of his body and fought against his mind till he lost consciousness.

 

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Gourry shot up from the bed and quickly looked around his surroundings, finding himself in a sudden panic. His brow was soaked in cold sweat with his breathing as rapid as his pulse. The images and memories from the dream remained fresh and strong in his mind, only they felt more like memories from his life rather than something from a dream.

 

Lina was missing but he found himself not so worried about that. Instead he found himself fearing the darkness was still inside him after what that creepy kid put him through. Those things that happened weren't dreams. He realised that they were actual events, and that meant he had fought against Lina and almost succeeded in trying to kill her.

 

He looked down at his arm and was sure that whatever was put into him was still in there. He began scratching at his arm as though it would force its way out but it wouldn't satisfy his need for the darkness to leave. He looked around the room once more a little more carefully and noticed his sword. He moved himself slowly off the bed and moved to the table where the sword was laid against.

 

He took the sword and unsheathed it, looking at the blade. He looked back at his arm and was satisfied that it would do the job. He knew the best way to get that darkness out was to drain it away. He had to do it so he could protect Lina from himself since he knew if he nearly killed Lina before, then he was capable of doing it again as long as that stuff was inside him.

 

He pressed the sharp edge of the blade against the skin of his upper arm and felt it cut in. It was like there was some sort of built up pressure and he just released it. He looked down at the blood dripping slowly out of the wound, feeling great relief that he wouldn't be causing any harm to Lina.

 

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A couple of weeks later, Lina and Gourry were in another inn as they quickly moved away from the Sairaag area hoping that the bad events they remembered would disappear. They were back in their room after enjoying a good meal with the usual fighting and bickering over stolen food. Gourry grinned as he slumped down in a chair and put both his hands behind his back.

 

Gourry had succeeded in stealing a decent amount of food from Lina's plate when she was busy arguing with another customer who spilt a drink on her. The guy seemed pretty drunk and was very apologetic but it wasn't enough for Lina. It wasn't Gourry's problem, and in their somewhat unwritten rule, if you didn't pay attention to your food, then it meant you weren't interested and so it was up for grabs. The swordsman did exactly that and Lina found out much too late to be able to retaliate

 

The sorceress glared at Gourry after she closed the door behind her. She was going to make sure that Gourry would regret taking so much of her food. So she sat down at the dresser and brushed the tangles out of her hair as she worked on her plan. Meanwhile Gourry headed off into the bathroom with his sword still at his side.

 

Lina looked to the closed bathroom door with a confused look etched on her face. She had to admit that Gourry was acting pretty strange after she found out about what he went through in his past. He seemed to be very secretive and spent more time alone than he used to. It was weird to Lina since she was used to him being around her all the time but now it was different.

 

She stood up from the dresser and slowly walked over to the bathroom door. Things recently had been weird with Gourry. The cut on his hand, his past and the way he was acting. She decided that now she was going to get to the bottom of it.

 

She forced the door opened and her eyes widened at what she saw. Gourry had his arm over the wash basin as blood dripped down. She noticed that beside the wound were several scars as though he had been cutting himself before. Gourry turned suddenly, realising the door had opened and Lina was standing there with a shocked look on her face.

 

“Lina…I…”

 

Lina simply turned away and sat back down by the dresser. She didn't know what to say to him. She didn't even know what she was feeling. Anger? Fear? Sickness?

 

Meanwhile Gourry followed her out the bathroom with a towel covering his arm. He wanted to explain what he was doing but the words wouldn't come to his mouth. It was mainly Lina's reaction that had confused him. Why wasn't she reacting to him? She should have been shouting or something.

 

He sat down on a chair and looked down at the ground. He kept trying to find the right words so that maybe they would come out, but no matter what he thought, nothing came through. He looked over to Lina who just sat there with a blank expression. The silence was excruciating to him and wished there was something he could do to make it stop. Only instead he blanked out.

 

When he was aware again, Lina was holding him tightly and he could feel the remnants of tears in his eyes and on his cheeks.

 

“L…Lina?”

 

She blinked up at him in surprise.

 

“What happened?” He added.