My Bloody Valentine
Chapter Seven
By: Firia
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.
In the blooming daybreak
Sadness ceaselessly rains
We're drunk in nightmares
Without dreams or hope for the future
~~ Epitaph, (WeiB kreuz)
The midday sunlight poured through the sliding glass doors built into one of the walls of her new bedroom. It was quite lovely, and she would have had half a mind to open the doors and sit on the attached balcony, if it weren't for the unbearable heat. As it was, the air conditioner was of little help. After years of disuse, it was in need of repairs. She turned the fan she had sat on her nightstand on full blast and scooted closer to it.
Her mind turned to her newest investment.
"Now that I have the ruins, what am I going to do with them?" She wondered aloud. Of course, she could do nothing at all. She had bought the ruins for the sole purpose of protecting them from being torn down. But perhaps she could at least clean them up a little? It sounded ridiculous. She still wasn't sure what came over her on that day when she insisted she would purchase the land for herself.
No matter. Since she was so busy thinking about it, she figured she may as well go pay a visit to her new investment. She dug around in a box of clothes she had yet to unpack, and unearthed a wide brimmed straw hat with a cute blue ribbon around it that matched the blue sleeveless shirt she had decided to wear for the day. She straightened her jean cut offs, and located a pair of sandals. Satisfied, she put on the hat and headed downstairs.
--
The ruins weren't exactly "ruins". It had occurred to her as she pulled the heavy door to the master bedroom open. More like a palace in a state of decay. She inspected the remains of a dais thoughtfully.
"I do wonder what this place looked like, so long ago."
There was no reply to her statement, and she knew there wouldn't be. However, she couldn't help but squeak in surprise when the wall she had been standing beside creaked and began to move.
"W-wha?" She gasped. "A... secret passage?"
A set of concrete stairs curved downwards from her view, into pitch black darkness. Curious, she edged slowly down the steps, and stopped on the third one. It looked quite dark down there...
"Perhaps a flashlight?" She smiled wryly and turned to climb up the stairs.
And in an instant, the wall suddenly slammed shut, leaving her trapped in total darkness. Her reaction was perfectly natural. She screamed.
---
Xelloss' lips curved into a twisted smile as he felt waves of fear radiate from beyond the wall. It had been too tempting, really. Poor little Filia. Curiosity killed the dragon. He chuckled and leaned against the wall. Of course, there was no real reason for this hostility towards her. But he felt compelled to play with her, and so he did.
A giggle escaped his lips when he began hearing muffled cries.
"SOMEONE! HELP ME! LET ME OUT!" Filia screamed and pounded on the wall. She had been certain she had heard something on the other side. She pressed her ear to the wall and listened. No, maybe she hadn't. A sob escaped her and her legs gave out. She plopped down on the step and held her face in her hands.
"Calm down, calm down." She whispered "There's noone to help you. You'll have to save yourself. Surely these steps lead to another exit..." She scooted further down the staircase.
When a large furry ... something (most likely a rat, she thought in panic) scurried past her, her attempts to calm down were thrown out the window. She raced up to the top step and resumed screaming and pounding on the wall.
---
"Xelloss. What the hell..?" Valgarv asked as he entered the room. The trickster priest was leaning against the wall behind the dais, with the expression of a cat that had caught the canary, so to speak.
"Welcome home, Val-kun." Xelloss smirked and returned his attention to the wall. He suddenly was aware of muffled sobbing and fear coming from the other side of the wall. He snarled, and with a speed he was surprised he still had, rushed to Xelloss and grabbed him by the neck.
"Let her go." He growled.
"It's not my fault. She brought it on herself." Xelloss smiled cheerfully. Valgarv tightened his grip. The smile faded and purple eyes slid open.
"Why did you do this?" Valgarv's own golden eyes bore into amethyst.
"Because I was bored. I'm not averse to killing you, by the way." Xelloss said icily. Valgarv cursed and slammed Xelloss against the wall.
"Get out." He glared at the former priest.
"I have no reason to obey you." Xelloss replied in a dangerous tone. Valgarv sighed. There was no use in being angry. It would only make Xelloss more stubborn.
"Please, Xelloss. Just leave." He felt so tired at that instant. He wanted to return to the hidden basement and sleep away the rest of his immortal life. Xelloss regarded him with an unreadable look.
And surprisingly, he faded into the shadows and disappeared.
"Is someone out there? Please help..." A soft voice sniffled from behind the wall. Valgarv whirled around. He groped for the lever that would open the wall.
---
Filia huddled up against the wall, her voice growing hoarse from screaming. She was trapped down here forever with the rats and spiders and darkness. It was an irrational thought, but at that moment, she was to frantic to be rational.
And then, the wall creaked and began to move. She jumped up, heart racing again. Sweet, blessed light poured in from the crack that was slowly widening.
"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you." She whispered and waited for the wall to fully open for her escape. Just as the wall clicked into place fully, she raced towards the sunlight.
For a split second, she was sure there was a silhouette of a person standing before her. She blinked, and the vision was gone. A mystery for another time. She raced out of the passage, and then ran as fast as her legs could carry her out of the ruins and to her house.
~~
TBC...
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