Protector
Chapter 21
The Next Step Begins
Sorry it took so long but I was busy most of my spring break. Now back to writing fan fiction.
Amelia yawned and stretched as she made her way up the steps towards her room. After finishing her yawn she looked up to see a figure staring out the window. As she drew closer she recognized the figure of Zelgadis leaned against the window casement while looking out on the land in somewhat of a trance. She got to the top of the steps and then looked at him for a moment before asking, "Mister Zelgaids...shouldn't you be with Miss Lina?"
It hurt to let that sentence come out. For the longest time she had had a crush on Zelgadis and she still wasn't fully ready to let go. But, she could see now that Zelgadis loved and cared for Lina more than he would for anyone else. 'That and it wouldn't be a good idea for a princess of Sailoon to marry and mazuko. I mean daddy wouldn't mind but all of other kingdoms would be in an uproar,' she thought as she watched Zelgadis turn around to look at her.
His eyes seemed half-lidded like he was tired and wanted sleep. Whatever the cause she knew it was not because of lack of sleep; if anything the last thing a mazuko needed was sleep. She waited for him to reply as his blue eyes looked at her for a moment. "Lina is tired and needs her rest. Besides there are some mazuko lurking around the area so I need to be on watch," Zel replied in that monotone voice he was know for as a chimera.
She looked at him for a moment in confusion. Zel had spoken like that for about a month and now he had reverted back to using it. Ever since Lina and Zel had gotten together he had seemed much happier than normal. In fact he had seemed like he was on cloud nine for Zelgadis. This quick change seemed a bit odd but then an idea hit Amelia. 'Wait, he's on guard duty...he preparing himself for a fight if one comes,' Amelia thought and nodded with her satisfactory answer.
She smiled at him and then asked, "Well wouldn't it be better to stand watch in Lina's room? So if they come for her you will be right there when it happens?"
Zel smirked slightly before he replied, "There are some complications with that. Mainly being a mazuko has given me certain senses that I didn't have before hand. Besides I can sense mazuko coming from a mile away."
Amelia looked at Zelgadis for a moment before asking, "What kind of other senses? I mean I don't see what kind of senses would keep you away from the person you love."
Zel smiled at the naiveté Amelia still held onto after all this time. It was endearing in a way; like that of an older brother watching out for his little sister that wasn't too street wise at the time. He walked up to Amelia and ruffled her hair before saying, "It's not that they keep me away. It's the total opposite in regard that if I stayed in there I would want to get closer to Lina. In fact it would probably distract me from protecting her."
Amelia blushed slightly at the idea Zel had just given her. She turned away from Zel to hide her blush and then asked, "So it's something about Lina that draws you near like a moth to a flame? What is it? Her form, her attitude, her power or her voice what could it be?"
Zel frowned slightly as he could feel Amelia's mood drop. She had seemed to have taken most of it in stride, but now it seemed that she had hit a point in her defense. She was trying to figure out why he had chosen Lina over her and the only way to help her pain was to tell her the truth. He moved in front of her and kneeled down so he was looking right into her teary eyes before replying, "I was all of those things. Lina is a one in a million that you will not find again if you let her go. She is confident, yet insecure in some ways. She is lithe, yet still has some form to her. She is powerful, yet at times becomes vulnerable. She is a beautiful person no matter how I look at it. But, you shouldn't let this hold you down. I know you had feelings for me but you will find another. Life will hand you some things that you don't like but if you allow yourself to dwell on it too much then live will pass you by. You have to move on and find something that can make you stronger and happier. Don't allow this to hurt you too much."
She smiled at what Zel was saying to her. It's just like he always was when it came to the groups feelings. He was always there for support if she needed someone to talk to. He was even there for Lina when she needed someone to lean on even if she didn't like to admit that fact. Amelia felt better for letting some of her emotions out to someone and wanted to thank Zelgadis for listening. She moved closer and hugged him while whispering, "Thank you," in his ear.
Zel smiled and hugged Amelia back as he patted her on her back. "And, thank you for understanding. Both Lina and I love each other but at the same time we didn't want to hurt you."
"It's okay Zelgadis," Amelia replied as she turned away from Zel and fought to not tear up for a moment.
"I on the other hand," came a voice that didn't belong to Zel, "I have no inclination whatsoever."
Before Amelia could turn around a cloth was placed over her mouth and nose. She could smell the chemical and started feeling drowsy. She tried to fight her attacker off but it was no use. The man that held her still was unnaturally strong and wouldn't remove the cloth. After a few moments everything began going black as she whispered, "Help me, Zelgadis."
Vladimir eased Amelia's body down to the floor slowly. 'Even after he breaks your heart you still call for you knight in shinning armor,' he thought as he picked the young girl up and turned to look out the window.
He watched as Illianna finished off Gourry and took him to the holding area. He smiled behind his mask as his plans began to fall into place. He moved Amelia's bangs out of her eyes and spoke softly, "Don't worry my dear you will be all right as long as your friends move as they are supposed to."
Vladimir waited for a few minutes before he phased out the the holding area. He appeared back in the mountain and laid Amelia up against the opposite wall from Gourry. He then formed ice around her as well so that both of the companions were on trapped on the walls and waiting for when everything came into place.
"You know they are going to be angry about this Vladimir," came the voice from the middle of the ice encampment.
"I know but to get things done sometimes you have to break what alliances you might've gathered. One way or another this will play out as it should," Vladimir replied as he looked towards the wall of ice.
The voice laughed and asked, "Well, then are you ready to face the ire of two Inverses and Zelgadis at the same time?"
"Yes, my sisters will be an interesting fight. But, Zelgadis will be no challenge at all. When I created him I put in one fail-safe and I will use it soon enough," Vladimir smirked as he began to walk away.
"So I take it everything is ready," the voice asked to Vladimir's back.
"Just have to take care of a few loose ends and then we will have everything we need," with that Vladimir phased out and back to the Inverse estate.
The voice laughed before thinking, 'Be careful Vladimir even with the fail-safe Zelgadis is stronger than you think.'