My Bloody Valentine
Chapter Six
By: Dove the Unoriginal
Slayers (c) TV Tokyo and some other people. The title comes from a WeiB song, which belongs to Koyasu and Project Weib. This story takes place after Slayers TRY.
I'm happy, I'm feelin' glad
I got sunshine, in a bag
I'm useless, but not for long
The future is comin' on
~~ Clint Eastwood (Gorillaz)
I Felt an Itch,
And you walked in,
It made me wish for more.
~~ Interlude (little snippet by Dove)
The sun broke smoothly across the horizon, creating a soft haze of
pale orange, the most delicate gold, and a pink so creamy it could be
seen as a peach. The day dawned with a smattering of bright blood
across its brow as well, but the calm, wispy clouds and the heat,
which glazed over all it touched, made the morning gentler than it
might have normally been. The clouds serenely floated by on a high
wind. The warm light of the sky made the birds sing in a mixed chorus
with their praises for all to hear.
"Everything that is happening and has happened goes back to some
interaction you've had with someone else or the rest of the world,"
Xelloss said with a slow, contemplative seriousness that was the
first thing to break the gentle silence in hours. He was met with
another, more eager silence that spoke of fear, contentment,
patience, and a soothing appreciation for the words of someone else
in Val's ears.
"Whether it was good or bad, it all goes back to that," Xelloss
continued with the same soft, contemplative air. "Some things are
like links on a chain, all of them connected. You must remember what
that interaction was, to solve the problem, but all of it is still in
the past. You have to remember the past, to be alive, but you must
also let it go because all you really have is the present. Fix your
problems and then move on. A wise old woman once told me that."
Valgarv looked up and asked with mild curiosity, "And who was that?
Zelas-sama?"
"Well, no. Lina Inverse actually."
"You're kidding. … Really?" Val questioned his companion with a
little surprise and belated amusement upon hearing him mention this
particular mutual acquaintance.
"No, I'm not kidding. Usually I don't talk to humans when it comes to
philosophy, as most of them wouldn't understand where I'm coming
from, but somehow we ended up in a discussion once and it went there.
Quite amusing, really," Xelloss said contentedly.
"Hmmm… I can only imagine. I can definitely see her becoming a wise
old woman, though. A weird one but still a wise old woman, if only
because she'd label herself as one and use it to get spare change,"
Valgarv said as he grinned.
Xelloss smiled back comfortably in return, "Yes."
"The kind that kicks your ass if you don't believe her or just so
happen to disagree with what she says, then throws you out of her
temple after she makes sure you paid her first."
"You could say as much," Xelloss chuckled softly while leaning his
body up against the wall, stretching tiredly first and then relaxing
against it without too much of a slouch and tucking his arms behind
his head for a pillow.
The silence settled around them again, like a downy layer of
glistening feathers as the light made it's tedious way into the sole
set of windows, creeping on quiet little feet across the floor and
over the two surprisingly relaxed individuals sharing the room.
After awhile, Val started to fidget, the grass, moss, and weeds
underneath him rustling in a soft, silky rhythm as he moved. Xelloss
opened one eye halfway, giving Val a surprisingly pleasant and
obvious squint, before closing it again. The rustling got a little
louder and he frowned. Finally, he murmured his lazy sentiments with
a seriousness that didn't speak very well of his patience.
"If you don't stop that racket, I'm going to personally shove my arm
down your throat and tear out your ribcage. Go outside if you can't
stay still."
Val raised one eyebrow; his eyes wide open despite his wishes, "Damn.
You've gotten kind of hot-headed over the years, haven't you?"
"No," Xell said seriously, "I just don't suffer fools very well."
"That's hard to believe. You seemed to do most of the work Zelas had
that dealt with humanity, after all."
Xelloss chuckled softly, "And that's why I've come to such a state.
But seriously, if you just can't lie there, then go outside and walk
around or something."
Val fidgeted more, "But I don't want to go outside. I want stay here
and… be comfortable, but I just can't find a good …position right
now."
"Then go and get something to eat. You are hungry, aren't you?"
Val paused and then sighed, forlorn and irritable as he spoke, "I… I
can't. I'm waiting for Filia. …You said she would be back today."
When there came no reply, Val continued, "She is coming, right?"
A soft rustle of cloth and a hmmm was all he received so Val
asked, "When do you think she'll show up?"
"It's early. She doesn't usually come here until noon but I couldn't
tell you for sure. She seems to really like the place. I can't
imagine why, though."
Val was silent before whispering as loudly as a whisper gets in the
quiet of a new day, like a shy but hopeful child, "Do you think… she
remembers me? Knows about me? … Knows that I'm here?"
Xelloss shrugged, "I don't know. I doubt it though."
Val's shoulders sank with sadness at those words and then perked up a
little as he heard the call of a particular bird. Twitching like a
cat peering at such feathery things from behind a pane of glass,
Valgarv was lost in thoughts of rarely made but well-cooked
delicacies he'd enjoyed as a small child. With a flash, he was gone,
and Xell was left to watch the empty clay walls and ceiling alone.
The hunting was apparently good in the area around Zelas' house. The
morning was bright, the surrounding field that was part of the yard
was full of tall, yellow-green weeds, the trees were taller than
redwoods and a sweeter shade couldn't be found elsewhere as far as
Valgarv was concerned.
He had given up stalking the little birds that had tried to make
their home under the eaves of the roof or in the trees directly
behind the large, dilapidated stone house. He'd done his best to
remain quiet and still but his timing was off and even though he was
no longer feeling cramp and numb from having stayed in the same
position for several centuries, he was still not entirely used to
moving around yet.
As it was, Val had finally caught a juicy rabbit. He'd startled it
out of a hollow in the thick clumps of grass, that mingled with
exotic foliage he had no name for, and was right on the little
beast's tail for ten yards and fifteen minutes, until he'd chased it
into the bushes near a worn out, uneven part of an old picket fence
that was splintered and dull with age. He'd been about ready to burst
through the ancient wood, using his horn to tear it apart at the
seams if need be, when the poor thing had fallen over and died of an
understandable heart attack.
Valgarv was stunned when the animal went limp. He waited a moment and
then prodded it with a wary finger to see if it was going to leap up
and bite his nose off. The poor rabbit remained still and it's fear
lingered in the air so he ate it. Mazoku normally didn't eat the
emotions of animals, as they weren't nearly as delicious as the ones
humans gave off, but Val was hungry and desperate. He didn't care how
often Xelloss might mock him for doing somewhat taboo culinary
actions. Val had a strange new urge to live, at least long enough to
see Filia, and he was taking every opportunity to make that happen.
A little boy noticed something grunting and moving in the grass near
an old fence by one of the many well-worn paths that went towards the
ancient ruins. He tugged on his mother's dress and pointed the
shaking foliage out to his mother. Shaking her head, she scolded him
lightly in their native language and told him not to bother with it,
it was probably some flea-bitten old mongrel that might give him some
sort of hideous disease.
The boy waited a little while, considering the nature of what the
disease might be and then wandered across the road with his trusty
stick in hand. Peering around the fence carefully, he realized a bush
was in the way and frowned.
Feeling bold, the boy walked all the way around it, brandishing his
stick and a little bit of gallant bravado as well, "Yahah!"
Instead of a dog, there was a man in strange clothing, a pair of
billowing white pants, strips of cloth used for socks, and a lavender
shirt with an embroidered blue collar and short sleeves. The boy
blinked and waited for the stranger to turn around. When he didn't,
the boy poked him in the back with his stick.
The chewing, faintly growled out sounds stopped and the boy waited
again. He was about to poke the young man with the fluffy aqua-hair
again when the man in question tilted his head to the side curiously,
trying to peer over his shoulder at what had been nudging him.
The boy gasped as he saw such a pale pretty face… with blood on its
lips, which were pulled back in a questioning snarl to reveal sharper
than usual canines, a slender, golden eye with slit-shaped pupils
regarding him coolly, and a short, dark spiral horn protruding from
the forehead, between two clumps of soft hair.
Valgarv blinked as he finally focused on the child gaping at him.
When the boy said nothing, Val ignored him and lifted the rabbit's
body up to his face, sinking his sharp teeth into the side of it,
ripping out muscle tissue and rib bones alike as he crunched
contentedly, tasting meat and marrow in one mouthful.
The boy gritted his teeth at the gory sight and then screamed,
turning around and running back to his mother, gibbering and
gesturing wildly towards the `monster' behind the fence. His mother
grabbed his hand and dragged him home. She was finished talking to
the now worried mailman who gazed curiously at the fence while the
she started scolding her son for inventing wild stories again.
Xelloss knew him well.
Filia sighed as she took her morning walk down the road. The bus stop
wasn't far away but she still had a long way to go before she reached
the ruins. Fortunately she had bought a bicycle recently, but she
always left it in a little shelter that was beside a few houses that
people still lived in.
The mailman, still leaning on the woman's mailbox and wondering if he
should have a look himself, smiled at the golden-haired real estate
agent. Many of the locals tried to warn her away from the house now
and then but only the mailman actually talked to her about anything
other than that.
"Hello, Filia-san!"
"Good morning… or would that be afternoon now?" Filia greeted him a
bit hastily, heading towards the shed to get her bike.
The sun was high and the day was hot. She was sweating already, even
though her sundress was made of light material, with white fabric
that had pale golden orange tiger lilies sprinkled with curling pink
ribbon in an interesting pattern. She had a blue-green belt on and
blue-green shoes, and a more professional blue-green jacket slung
over her shoulder, with gilded trim to match them.
"Don't know. I take it Mr. Stuart didn't like the old ruins nearly as
much as you do?" the mailman asked with mild curiosity as he let go
of the mailbox and pulled his own bike out of a nearby patch of
clover and prickly weeds with little white flowers.
Filia frowned as she unlocked the door and wheeled hers onto the
golden grass, placing her jacket in the basket as she answered, "No,
I'm afraid he didn't. You know, I'm really getting tired of how
easily some people are frightened by their own imagination."
The mailman chuckled congenially, "Well, you never know.
Superstitions usually have some sort of basis, no matter how silly
they might seem."
"I am a modern woman and there is no basis strong enough to excuse
such things," Filia said in a bit of a huff as she tried to pull some
blades of grass out of the chain and locked the shed again.
"You'd be surprised how superstitious you actually are. Many people
believe in superstitions without even realizing it until they're
faced with one," answered simply as he aimed his bike in the opposite
direction, facing towards the road the bus had left on. The mother
and her son were the last people on the small dirt road that lead to
through the woods and into the large empty field that people
whispered about.
"Then I'm one of the few people can do completely without it," Filia
said with a somewhat smug smile, feeling quite safe in the belief
that she was right.
The mailman chuckled, giving the fence a cursory glance as he
spoke, "I'll take your word on that, Ma'm. See you later!"
"Oh! I'll probably be moving into that house at the end of the road.
I'm not sure exactly when but it will be sometime shortly after I
have it confirmed that I the ruins are mine."
"What?!" The mailman sputtered, "You're not serious, are you?"
Despite the mailman's concerned look and hope of hearing a negative
out of her, Filia nodded, confirming his fears even more with her
words, "Yes! I'm dead serious. How can I notify when I'm properly
moved in? I know it's such a long distance, I'd hate to have you
check daily just to see if I'm there."
The mailman was solemn, with a mildly cynical humor in his
unintentionally menacing tone, "No need. I imagine everyone will know
when you move in. If Mrs. Hen here doesn't tell me the gossip first
when I give her the daily mail, that is."
"Okay. Well, good day! I'll… see you around," Filia said, a little
taken aback at the response she was given.
"Yes, I certainly will," the mailman said before cycling off down the
road.
Filia watched him check the road before turning into it and then
shook herself back into reality. There was no need to worry about any
potential insinuations. She just imagined those. After all, there was
nothing but wild animals, none of them really dangerous, and wild
grass living in that field. She would be perfectly fine, she told
herself as she started riding down the road, grumbling at the heat
and reminding herself to make sure the air conditioner worked in that
house she was planning on living in.
Valgarv stared through a gap in the fence, where a ragged chunk of
wood had fallen out and many little leaves had sprouted. He had found
it after shrugging at the boy's reaction and making use of the tasty
fear the boy had left behind. Noticing the hole, he looked for the
boy and watched with mild amusement as the mother tugged him along
beside her. His eyes went wide and his expression went deadly still
as he saw her. His thoughts shuddered and wandered in a million
directions until he noticed her moving away at a relatively quick
pace. He paid little attention to the conversation when he realized
one was going on, mostly in shock at seeing her again. While hiding
behind a large chunk of wood again, though in this case he hadn't
intended to remain hidden.
His mind screamed at him to stumble out there, to wander into the
sandy road and grab onto the strange thing she was by then sitting
on. To stop her from using it the way the man had used his and to…
well, look at her closer, to see if she had changed much, for him to
babble about something, anything!
But his legs still retained their usual 'common sense' when his mind
did not and they refused to do what was suggested, arguing with his
mind, keeping his cross-legged position and pleading for a new one
that still involved sitting and not going after anyone who was moving
away from them.
Valgarv's legs won the battle in the end. He watched her until she
was a shimmering speckle amongst the dappled leaves, body frozen and
heart pounding through his soul.
Minutes passed and all he did was tug at the collar of his Mandarin
style shirt until a soft rustling in the grass woke him from his
daze. He looked around and then fell over on his side in the grass,
feeling suddenly irritable and not wanting to talk to anyone. What
was left of the dead rabbit was in front of him and he no longer
wanted it.
He closed his eyes, hoping whoever it was wouldn't see him and would
pass him by when he felt warm, nervous breath on his face. He opened
his eyes to see a matching pair of golden, more natural looking ones
in a furry red face over a cold black nose. He blinked and pulled
away, lifting himself up on one arm to find he was looking at a fox.
The fox watched Valgarv, trying to gauge whether this particular
humanoid thing was going to hurt him or not. Val had noticed that
many animals were wary though not exceptionally afraid, though still
a bit skittish, when mazoku were around, especially Zelas' minions,
unless the mazoku made some sort of sudden move and attacked them. It
was this thought that reminded Val he could not only change his
scent, to some degree, but also his temperature.
The heat was high, the sun was white, and his body was barely
protected by the meager shade given by the fence. While making full
use of his ability to cool himself off by force, Valgarv was
attempting to steel his nerves for the eventual confrontation he was
certain he would have today.
"You can have the rabbit," Valgarv said as he slowly and carefully
stood upon the soles of his dark blue slippers, not wanting to
frighten the fox or fall over by accident.
"I … have something I need to do."
A shimmer in the air made the curious fox run around the other side
of the fence. A little brownish red face peered around it again.
Secure in the knowledge that everything was safe again as he saw
nothing but empty space where Val had been standing, the little fox
nuzzled the rabbit before dragging off for dinner, holding it in its
mouth by one hind leg and trotting towards a nicer place in the
pleasantly shaded woods.
~~
To Be Continued…
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