Chapter Eight

"I saw you make a sword fighting move to keep from tripping.. Do you know swordsmanship?"

"Oh ye did, did ye? Aye, I do.. Me Da taught me.. I practice with me brother's sword everyday. Ye are a swordsman too, aren't ye?"

He nodded his head as he took a sip of milk. "And I'm Lina's bodyguard," he said seriously.

"Oh ye are..? I didn't know Lina was in need of a bodyguard?" There was a look in Medb's eyes that Gourry found odd. He nodded his head in reply and she giggled. She bent down to put something back underneath the bar, and he received a good look down her bodice.

He looked down into his milk glass, and when she was standing straight again, turned his gaze to her. "Lina needs my protection, although she won't admit it.."

She looked at him with a laugh. "Aye, she is a bit stubborn, isn't she?"

He grinned big, and sipped his milk. This Medb girl wasn't so bad after all.

"So, Gourry.. 'ow guude are ye with a sword..?" She asked as she poured the man next to him a drink.

"I'm good enough to win," he replied proudly.

"Aye? We should spar sometime then.."

Before he could answer, she was called down to the other end of the bar to serve someone. He watched as she scurried off to serve the man, then he turned his attention to his glass of milk. Sparring with her did sound a bit interesting; maybe he'd take her up on that offer. His brow furrowed in thought and he sipped at his milk. Yep, that really did sound like a good idea.

~*~Y~*~

Medb held back a sigh as she poured the man behind her a glass of wine. She closed the bottle, placed it on the shelf, and turned around. Setting the glass of red wine on the bar in front of the man, she took the silver coins he used as payment and placed them in the safe underneath the bear.

No one else at the moment needed her service so she sank gratefully onto the stool provided for the barkeeps to rest their weary feet when business was slow. She hated tending the bar but at it was better than serving food to the people at tables and getting her ass slapped by some man she had no interest in.

Thinking of men brought Zelgadiss to mind, and she blushed crimson. Her head bowed and she ran a hand over her slender stomach. Her experience with him had been so amazing, she still wondered if it were real. To assure herself it wasn't a dream, she slid the sleeve of her dress up, revealing a 5 fingered bruise given to her by him during some point of the time they spent together.

A shiver ran down her spine, her blush deepened. She was anxious to see Zelgadiss again, but scared of how he would react to her presence today. If he did act different, would he greet her eagerly, or would he just brush her off? She prayed the latter would not happen, as that would crush her spirit. She felt Zel and she now shared a deep bond together that was forever binding. Would he feel the same?

A soft cough brought her back out of her mind, and she looked up. Zelgadiss stood in front of her, and she stood quickly. Although he had his facemask on, she could sense the smile he wore of his lips. She rushed towards him and was cruelly stopped as the bar's edge and her stomach came in contact. She had forgot that the bar was separating her from Zelgadiss.

Making a painful face, she rubbed her stomach, and looked up at him. An amused and worried look shone in his icy blue eyes as he watched her. His eyes seemed to bore into her soul, gently probing, searching for her emotions. She bowed her head to hide the blush that colored her cheeks. She wondered what she should say to him as they stood there in silence, his hand resting on top of hers.

"Medb.." he whispered as he gently tapped her chin up.

They stared into each others eyes, reading each others mixed emotions. Finally, she stepped back, and gestured for him to come to where she was. She watched as he slowly rose to his feet, and elegantly walked down the length of the bar to the small swinging door. Her heart fluttered as he approached her in what she liked to call his hidden glory.

She reached out to take his hand and, after scanning the patrons seated at the bar to make sure no one was watching, she got down on the floor, pulling him with her. They crawled into a rather large space underneath the bar, and settled down into each others embrace. He whispered in her ear, asking if being here was safe. She smiled and nodded her head then pulled his facemask down for him. And he kissed her.

He ran one hand through the wild locks of her red hair as she gripped his arm tightly. His other arm snaked around her waist, and he laid her down on the wooden floor of the old inn. They kissed again, as his hand explored the soft curves of her body that he could not feel. Their legs became tangled together.

She pulled away, and smiled softly at him. He leaned forward and placed a kiss on her smooth forehead. He gently swept the wild locks of her hair away from her face, and gazed down at her. She hit one of the many shards of his hair, and listened as they collided, making the beautiful sound of rain. She loved that sound.

He whispered her name as he gently rubbed her cheek with his thumb, gazing into the swirl green of her eyes. Then they kissed again, each gently exploring the other's mouth. His hand slid down to her leg then up again and over her stomach.

As they broke the kiss, he fumbled with the thin laces of her bodice, his stone fingers unable to really grasp them. She stifled a giggle, and after gently pushing his fumbling hands away, began to untie the laces herself.

Suddenly a loud pounding echoed in their ears. After a moment, it came again. She sighed in frustration. She had a customer.

"Follow me," she whispered to Zelgadiss, and began crawling down the empty space towards the wall. Behind her, Zelgadiss made a face of anger and confusion, but he followed her. His eyes grew wide when she pushed the wall aside, and went on. He continued after her, and the wall closed after he went through. They turned a corner and encountered another wall. He sighed. Another dead end. But Medb pushed that wall aside too, and crawled out of the little tunnel into the kitchen. He pulled his facemask and hood on before he exited the tunnel as well.

A servant girl Medb's age looked in their direction, and the girl giggled. "I see you use the space underneath the bar too, eh Medb?" She blushed prettily, and shrugged in defense. "It's useful.."

"Aye.." the girl said, pushing back a strand of her midnight black hair. "That it is."

Medb turned to Zelgadiss, and smiled at him. "Well We'll exit together, but" She looked about, then grabbed a roll off of a tray. "Take this."

He quirked an eyebrow, but nodded. Resisting the urge to take her hand, they walked out of the kitchen, gazing at each other. He gently held the roll in his hand, and raised it to his lips to take a bite. But as she looked upon him with love in her eyes, his hand dropped to his side, and he reached out to take her in his arms.

Suddenly, the annoying, angry voice of Amelia broke into their trance. "Mr. Zelgadiss..?"

~*~E~*~

Sometime later, Amelia sat sulking at a table with Gourry and Lina, gripping a glass in her hand. Gourry and Lina were shoveling food in their mouths at an alarming rate, but Amelia had barely touched the food on the plate that sat before her. She was in deep turmoil, reality colliding with the beautiful fantasy she had created. Oh how she hated reality! Such a cruel mistress reality was.

Lina paused in her eating as she noticed that Amelia's plate was still full. A look of concern and pity came over her features, and she leaned towards Amelia, poking her with her fork.

"Ouch! Miss Lina!"

"Just checking what's up?"

"Nothing" Amelia muttered as she stared down at her plate. Her stomach growled in hunger, but she just couldn't eat.

Lina shrugged and went back to eating. Gourry, having noticed the full plate, reached out to take it from Amelia. "Ya gonna eat that..?" She shook her head no, and he took it, licking his lips.

Amelia sighed heavily. She was in utter dispair. "Her Zelgadiss" was interested in someone else and he still saw her, Amelia, as a child and a friend; noting more. She wanted to cry, but resisted the tears that threatened to fall.

"What could Zelgadiss possibly see in Medb?" she wondered. "She's.. just a barmaid.. And.. she's got that accent.. And. And.. according to Lina she and Xelloss has a thing Does Mr. Zelgadiss know about that? OH! What does he see in her? True.. she's got that long red hair and those eyes"

Her shoulders slumped, her bottom lip quivered. The tears threatened to come out. Her hands clenched into fists. She wouldn't cry. Not here. Not yet.

"You know? Gourry said between bites. "Medb is really nice.. and.. she knows swordsman ship!"

"Oh really..?" Lina commented.

"I don't care what she knows! Or how nice she is!!" Amelia snapped. Lina and Gourry blinked at her as she stood and stalked off, her white cloak floating behind her.

"Wonder what's up with her..?" Gourry muttered as he tore into a chicken leg.

"Me too.." Lina replied, her eyes narrowed in thought.

Amelia ran up to her room, slammed the door behind her, and fell upon her bed, tears flowing freely. Reality. How she hated it. Covering her head with a pillow to muffle her cries, she thought of the way Zelgadiss had looked down at Medb, as if she where an angel..

Fresh tears began to fall. She brought her knees up to her chest and curled up in a ball. She had to talk to them. Yes that would help end the pain.

~*~*~*~

"And so you see I.. am in love with Zelgadiss.." Amelia managed to tell the young redheaded woman that sat on the edge of her bed. Medb's eyes were narrowed in a friendly way, and were filled with tears. She leaned towards Amelia, placing a slender hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Amelia. Ye 'ave loved him for a long time, aye?" When Amelia nodded, she continued on. "Reality sometimes I wish it would go away."

Amelia looked up, a surprised look on her face. What did Medb mean by that? Did she understand what she was going through?

"I understand but.. only ta a certain point You see. I thought Rezo was." Medb's bottom lip quivered, and Amelia saw the look in those shocking green eyes. "But that's different.. " Medb sighed heavily, then allowed a small smile to form on her lips.

"Amelia ye should.. talk to him.."

Seeing the friendly look shining in Medb's eyes, Amelia burst into fresh tears. Medb was so kind. She had become used to Lina and her attitude. Lina wasn't exactly the friendliest person..

Suddenly, Medb's arms were around Amelia, holding her rocking her back and forth. Medb ran a hand over Amelia's head, telling her it was okay. Amelia buried her face in Medb's shoulder, letting all her pain loose in wild tears. She understood now understood what Zelgadiss had seen in Medb.

Medb had looked past the stone skin and down into the human he was inside. Medb made him forget that his hands were rough stone and that his hair was just shards. Medb made him feel wanted, loved. Medb was not of this world. Medb was unselfish, forgiving. Medb, Amelia came to believe, was a misplaced angel.

~*~X~*~

Xelloss leaned back against the trunk of his tree, one leg lazily hanging off of the branch he was sitting on. His purple eyes stared up at the sky through the empty branches of the tree, watching as a bird of some sort flew to home. Then he looked forward in the direction of Medb's house, which was not too far away from where he was in the forest. The last time he had seen Medb he had received a black eye and a beating with a pillow. As he thought of that incident, he giggled. That girl had spirit. She really did. He enjoyed messing with her. She was fun to tease.

But he had a feeling deep within that his perfect plan had somehow fell through. No doubt Lina and Zelgadiss had figured him out by now, and then Medb would know. That was fine though, if everything had been screwed. He would compromise. He was good at that.

Cracking his knuckles, he imagined Medb's unearthly face as she woke up with screams in the middle of the night from a frightening dream. Then he yawned. The last few nights had been sleepless for him. But he didn't want to sleep in this tree, not during the day.

Remembering Medb's house was empty while she was at work, he smirked, and used teleportation to get there. He then found himself in Medb's kitchen. Giggling, he decided to make himself at home, and began to raid her pantry.

Zelgadiss stared at the two young women that sat on his bed. They had come in here to talk about something with him, and he had been curious as to what, as he had no clue.

"Mr. Zelgadiss.." Amelia began shakely. "I.. asked Miss Medb to come in here with me, because.. she.." Amelia frowned, searching for the right word. Medb sat there, eyes on Amelia. ".. she understands. Mr. Zelgadiss.. I I'm in love with you!" She blurted out, her face bright red. "I have been, since we first met!"