Sapphires And Sakura Blossoms

Chapter One: The Curse Of Lina Inverse

Disclaimer: While I love Slayers unfortunately I do not own it or any of it's characters.

Lina Inverse, The Bandit Killer, Dra-mata and the greatest sorceress in the world was behaving rather strangely. In one word, Lina seemed to be depressed.

Her chin rested on her arms as she looked up at the stars. Her crimson eyes seemed rather sad as they stared out into the sparkling sky above her. Her red hair hung loose down her back as her normal headband was thrown carelessly in her pack. Her back was to the camp her group had chosen that night.

A light snore sounded from behind her. Ladies, especially princesses, were not supposed to snore. Amelia seemed to be going easy on them tonight and the group thanked their lucky stars, well except for one.

Lina wasn't counting her blessings. Normally things always seemed to go her way but lately it had gone haywire. Her mouth twisted as she remembered why the group had a purpose now.

Lina Inverse had been cursed.

Stupid Amelia, she thought wearily.

Flashback:

A handsome silver haired man approached Lina, Gourry, Zel, Amelia and Sylphiel while dining at The Maraka Inn. He waited patiently and expressionlessly until Lina was done eating before speaking.

"Are you Lina Inverse?" He asked in a smoky voice.

"Yes I am." Lina said arrogantly.

Lina looked up at him. He had the most unusual eyes, a silvery green, she thought irreverently.

"May I speak to you privately?" He asked.

"Here is fine for me," Lina told him.

His eyes narrowed. "Please. At least let me tell you why over there."

Zelgadis watched warily as the other man motioned to an empty corner a few feet away. Lina eyed it then agreed. They seated themselves and he talked earnestly for a few minutes. Lina turned red then looked outraged. Zel sighed as he heard. "Fireball!"

"What did he want, Miss Lina?" Amelia asked.

Lina blushed. "He wanted me to bear his child."

"How dare he ask that?" Amelia went into Justice Mode.

Lina stood. "I don't know but I want to leave early tomorrow morning. I'm turning in now."

"I'm coming with you, Miss Lina. Girls should stick together in situations like this." Amelia scurried after her with Sylphiel behind at a more sedate pace.

"She's just a kid." Gourry scratched his head. "I wonder what he's thinking."

Zel sighed again. "Gourry, Lina will have powerful children and some men would like to know that their child could rule the world."

"Little Lina's." Gourry shuddered.

"I know."

The next day:

They were walking to the next town when the man showed up again. He caught up to them mid morning still wearing last evening's burnt clothes.

"Have you changed your mind?" He asked Lina.

She and the others were standing ten feet away from him. She eyed him warily as Gourry gripped his sword. Zel hadn't drawn his sword but still looked fierce while Syphiel and Amelia simply looked defenseless.

"No." Lina said. "I'm too young to get married. I'm only seventeen."

"I am a powerful sorcerer," He warned her.

Lina smirked. "I'm the most powerful sorceress in the world. Don't mess with me."

"I am Botan. Prepare to face my wrath." He persisted again and Lina snapped.

"Befis Bring!" Lina yelled, pointing to the ground underneath him.

The ground collapsed and he fell into the waiting hole. There was a second of silence.

"Levitation!" Botan's smooth voice was faint.

He floated up out of the hole and landed on the ground again. He smirked at her.

"Stop bothering me." Lina growled.

Botan smiled. "Never. I will have you, Lina Inverse. I think it's time I show you an example of my magic."

"Let me get him for you, Miss Lina," Amelia pleaded eagerly.

The man looked her up and down. "You might be young but you're very cute. Maybe you will do."

Amelia was incensed. "Visfarank!"

Her hands started to glow as magical energy surrounded them. She charged towards Botan attempting to hit him with her first swing. He dodged her and laughed.

"Windy Shield!" He called.

Amelia tired herself out swinging at the shield and stood there panting. She moved backwards towards the others, ending up at Lina's side.

"Gourry!" Lina yelled.

"I'm on it," He ran towards Botan with his sword at the ready.

Botan pointed his finger at Amelia. "Fertile Silence!"

Amelia's eyes widened with terror and she ducked behind Lina rather quickly. Botan followed her with his finger and fired the spell. Gourry cut him down two seconds later as he smirked evilly in Lina's general direction.

Botan's smirk turned into shock. "But I can't-"

He never finished his sentence as Gourry smoothly pivoted and decapitated him.

"That takes care of him," Gourry said with satisfaction as he looked over where Lina was.

Lina lay at the base of a huge tree, unconscious after smashing the back of her head against the tree itself. Even though Amelia had been behind her, she had fared better. She was sitting up and rubbing her head as she looked at Lina with concern and in her face.

"Is Lina going to be okay?" Gourry asked Syphiel who was currently healing her.

"Yes, Gourry-dear. Miss Lina will be fine." Sylphiel said after she was done.

"Amelia, you better hope Lina doesn't remember that this is your fault," Zel's cool voice was heard as he stood near the group yet apart.

"But I-" Amelia looked scared.

"You better apologize when she wakes up," Gourry nodded.

Zel had a hint of a smile on his face. "I didn't think anyone could have a harder head than Lina but Amelia has disproved that theory."

Amelia was on the verge of tears as she latched onto his arm. "Oh no. Please don't let her kill me, Mister Zelgaddis."

An expression of distaste passed quickly over his face but went unseen since everyone was busy with Lina who was waking up. Everyone backed up as Lina sat up and looked around.

"She looks mad," Gourry remarked.

Lina's head swung around and she stared at him with the most unquieting look anyone of them had ever seen. She stood up and opened her mouth to yell the fireball spell at Gourry but a strange look crossed her face. She closed her mouth then tried again but no words would cross her lips.

The others watched in dumbfounded silence as Lina opened and closed her mouth several times like a fish without saying anything.

"Oh my goodness. Miss Lina, are you all right?" Syphiel asked her in concern.

Lina had the strange look on her face again. She shook her head in response to Syphiel's inquiry. She pointed to her throat and then shook her head.

You can't speak?" Zel asked her.

Lina again shook her head. A sigh of relief could be heard from Amelia and Gourry.

"Now she won't fireball me," Gourry was happy.

Amelia's eyes lost their terror. "And she won't hurt me for hiding behind her or accidentally kicking her into unconsciousness."

Lina's eyes lit up with fire and she marched up to the other two. Gourry received one good bonk and Amelia got two.

"Ow!" They said in unision.

Zel and Syphiel just shook their heads in wise silence.

The rest of the day was spent in trying to lift the spell on their angry leader who was getting more and more impatient as the day went on.

Zel asked Syphiel. "Can you tell what kind of spell it is?"

Syphiel checked the impatient Lina out magically and looked startled then puzzled. She checked her again to make sure then sat back.

"Strange," She murmured to herself then looked at Lina. "It seems that there are two spells on you. One is a fertility spell but it seems to have been perverted but I am not sure how. The second is a curse of some kind obviously ending in the subject not being able to speak."

Lina wrote on a piece of paper. "Get this spell off of me!"

"I cannot," Syphiel looked sad. "It is out of my realm of expertise. We must look for someone who knows the cure."

Zel looked down sympathetically at a hopping mad Lina Inverse. She was already walking down the road to the next town. He sighed and followed her while everyone else followed him.

Flashback ended.

Lina sighed and closed her sleepless eyes. She was tired of being mute and relying on the others for protection. She wanted her voice back.

Lina had not cultivated any other talents except for her magic. Magic was the one thing that she was good. Without her magic she was lost. Lina had always hated feeling like that as a child because she had been dependent on her sister who often left her alone and unprotected from the taunts of the other children.

Well now I know how Zel feels, she mused to herself as she opened her eyes.

She had always treated Zel like an equal because to her there was no difference between them. Under his cursed appearance he was a human being with all the feelings that humans have. He isolated himself from others because he felt that he was a freak. He preferred loneliness to hurt.

Lina knew those feelings all too well and she respected them as well as him. She was glad that he was her friend. That he knew what she was going through in losing the one thing she defined herself by was worth a small amount of comfort.

While Lina mused on feelings and occurrences as she stared up at the night sky a pair of worried sapphire eyes watched her from the peaceful camp.

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I do have a vague plotline in mind for this fic but I am still in need of the actual words for the spell that will curse Lina.

If anyone has any suggestions please email me with them at [email protected]. It will probably end up as a Zel/Lina

coupling because I adore them together. You may request other couplings for Amelia, Syphiel and Gourry. Also Xellos

will make cameo appearances in the next chapter as well as future ones. Please review, I beg of you. The next chapter

will not get put up unless I have three reviews so you know what you have to do.