AN: This was the winner of the 2001 Samhain contest at Silk & Stone. ^_^

Warnings: Slash, Lime, some Violence

Disclaimer: I didn't own them then and I still don't own them now.

Spooked

by Xellas M.

"Finally! I thought we'd never make it back here!" cried Lina Inverse in delight.

"The pursuit of Justice may have called us away before, but there will be no stopping us this time!" cried out Amelia.

Both women dropped back a couple of steps on the dusty street, getting ready to charge. Their target appeared to be a nice building in the middle of a large village. A sign displaying the picture of a turkey leg swung above the doorway.

"I don't believe this." muttered Zelgadis. "All this time and travel, and THIS is where we end up?"

"Where are we?" asked Gourry.

"The elusive..." began Lina.

"Longed for…" continued Amelia.

"All-You-Can-Eat-for-a-Silverpiece Restaurant!" finished the women together.

The fifth member of the group said nothing. Xellos didn't require the kind of sustinence this particular establishment offered. However, he had the most delightful premonition that his own meal, consisting of human pain and fear, was not far away…

Lina, Amelia and Gourry wasted no further time. They marched straight into the building, ending up in a large pile when no one remembered to open the door first. Eventually they made it in, showing only minimal damage from the misadventure - most of which had been inflicted by Lina upon Gourry when, trying to right himself, his hands had wandered into dangerous territory.

The restaurant was set up buffet style. Wasting no time, Lina, Amelia and Gourry skipped finding a table entirely and simply pulled their chairs over to the buffet. Zelgadis found a quiet table in the corner, hoping no one would realize he was part of their group so he could enjoy a quiet meal. His hopes were dashed when Xellos joined him, carrying only a mug of coffee with the usual meaningless smile plastered on his face.

"You'd better hurry if you want to get some food, Zelgadis-san." Xellos indicated the buffet, which was quickly being demolished by their companions.

Zelgadis would have liked to argue; he absolutely hated agreeing with the Mazoku on any subject whatsoever, but when he looked over he realized he didn't have time. He quickly grabbed a plate, selected a couple of sandwiches from a tray his companions hadn't gotten to yet, helped himself to a nice mug of coffee and returned.

Xellos watched the chimera eat thoughtfully. Zelgadis was doing his absolute best to ignore the trickster priest, a difficult task since Xellos'

proximity always made the shaman feel things he simply didn't want to admit to.

Left uninterrupted, the two would have doubtless have eventually started one of their normal arguments, Xellos teasing Zelgadis until the chimera lashed out in anger. A gleam of mischief had already started across Xellos' cheerful face, as a matter of fact, when a stranger approached their table.

The man appeared to be in his early twenties, tall and extraordinarily well-built. His golden hair was cut fairly short around a chiseled face. Bright

copper eyes sparkled down at them as full, sensuous lips turned up in a smile.

Zelgadis gulped. Slightly more often than not his tastes ran to women, but the man standing before them was one of the most stunning individuals he had ever seen. Compared to this man, even Xellos looked ordinary…not that he was attracted to Xellos, of course. The tongue-tied shaman did not even notice when Lina and Amelia joined them at the table, looking at the newcomer with shining stars in their eyes, food forgotten (except by Gourry, who was taking full advantage of the lack of competition).

"Good evening. I hope you will pardon my interruption, but you appear to be a wandering Priest. I very much pray that this is so and that you can help me." The man addressed himself to Xellos, bowing slightly.

Zelgadis snatched his eyes away from the stranger, blushing a little bit and feeling unaccountably guilty. As usual, Xellos' expression was completely unreadable but for some reason Zelgadis had the impression that the Mazoku didn't much care for the newcomer.

"Yes, I am Xellos, the Mysterious Priest. These are my traveling companions, Lina Inverse and Amelia Wil de Seyruun." Lina played absent-mindedly with her long red hair, still smiling, while Amelia sat up a little straighter, unconsciously sticking her generous chest out. "This is Zelgadis Graywords." Xellos added, a slight edge entering his smooth voice. "Who are you and what is it you need?"

"My name is Daniel Aarchon. My family has lived in this area for centuries. My parents died when I was a young man. The only other member of the Aarchon family remaining was my Grandfather, a strange but powerful wizard who cared more for his books and studies than for his family or the people around him. So, I packed my things and moved to Atlas City to make my own life." As he spoke, Lina placed an empty chair between herself and Amelia and motioned Daniel to sit down. Zelgadis couldn't help but relate to the beautiful young man; perhaps this is what he would have been like if his choices had been different.

Daniel sat and smiled at the women, letting his gaze linger over Amelia briefly before continuing. "One week ago I received word that my Grandfather was dying. I came as quickly as I could, but was too late. Grandfather had died and I never got a chance to say good bye."

"Very touching." murmured Xellos. "What does this have to do with us?" he added quickly. Amelia appeared to be on the verge of a torrential outburst of irritating tears and Lina wasn't far behind. Even Zelgadis appeared to be deeply moved. Too much more of this and the Mazoku might choke.

"Grandfather's will was a little, well, peculiar." At the word 'will', Lina's ear twitched and she did a stunning 180 degree turnaround from her I'm-Just-A-Simple-Girl act to her natural businesslike - not to say predatory - personality.

"Peculiar…how?" she asked.

"He left everything to me: his property, his money and his enormous library of rare spell books. However, I don't get any of it if I cannot spend an entire night at his house. Since Grandfather's death, no one has been able to spend more than an hour in the place except the old curate and he…disappeared."

"Money?" Lina leapt to the salient point of the story.

"Spell books?" Zelgadis did likewise.

"We MUST help you, in the name of Justice!" proclaimed the princess, staring at Daniel's broad shoulders.

"Did I miss anything?" asked Gourry, who had finished emptying the buffet and joined the group.

The group sweatdropped. "Baka! We'll try to explain later, just keep quiet for now." Lina hissed. Gourry recognized the warning signals and did as he was told.

"Er, anyway…" Daniel continued, "If you stay with me for the night and protect me, I will give you 200 gold in the morning. You are also welcome to keep any of the spell books you like; I'm no mage and there is no one in this area who would want to buy them."

"You've got a deal!" Lina said, offering her hand, which Daniel shook. "We'll go to your Grandfather's as soon as we've finished our meal." She turned and saw the empty buffet. "G-o-u-r-r-y…" she growled, fangs appearing on her face.

During the ensuing commotion, Xellos turned to Zelgadis. "Is it just me, or is this a little suspicious? It's as if he knows exactly what to say to get us to help him."

Zelgadis snorted. "It seems straightforward enough to me. You're not going to ruin this chance, Mazoku. There might even be a manuscript of the Claire Bible in that library!"

Xellos sighed. If even the distrustful chimera was under Daniel's spell, there was nothing to be done. He looked over at Daniel, who met his gaze and smiled before turning his attention to the chimera and flirting openly. No, Xellos did NOT like this situation. Daniel's tactics were too much like his own for comfort.

* * * * *

The deceased mage's house was set atop a hill a few miles outside the village. The wild countryside in the falling autumn daylight glowed a rich tapestry of warm red and golden shades. The house itself was more of a mansion, sprawled out over a large area and somehow conforming to the natural landscape yet dominating it entirely. It seemed to have been built to no particular pattern. Towers rose up in unusual places just as wings stretched along the ground at strange angles.

"Lovely. It's hard to imagine a place like that being haunted." Lina said, but a second later a sudden drop in temperature caused a chill to run down

the group's spine. A light seemed to flash from one of the upper windows, but that was surely just a reflection from the setting sun.

Almost as one, the group shook themselves and continued along the winding path to the building. After what seemed like a half hour of walking, an ornate iron gate was suddenly right before them. Heavy chains secured the gate, which Daniel silently unlocked and opened. He stepped aside, politely holding the gate open so the rest could enter. Not one for second thoughts, Lina stepped inside immediately. Gourry followed, still not sure of exactly what was going on but aware in his own vague way that he needed to protect Lina. Amelia followed closely, muttering something about Justice and fear. Zelgadis paused, and for a moment Xellos was hoping he'd rethought the situation. His hopes were dashed, however, when Zelgadis turned one of his rare smiles to Daniel and walked confidently in. Shrugging his shoulders, Xellos followed. An unusual shift in psychic pressure the minute he stepped through the entranceway confirmed his suspicion that this wasn't an ordinary type of haunting, but something with impressive power.

Daniel swung the gate to and relocked it. "Daniel-san, what did you do that for?" asked Amelia, her blue eyes very large on a slightly pale face.

"The villagers insist." Daniel replied sheepishly. "Ever since the curate disappeared. I can't say I blame them. Shall we continue?" He selected another key from the big iron key ring and opened the front door.

* * * * *

The inside of the house was even more stunning and unusual than the outside. The front hallway, walls, floor and ceiling was entirely built of pink marble with veins of gold. Lovely carvings were etched into the walls themselves at eye level every few feet around the room, mostly depicting dragons in flight. Daniel clapped his hands and soft light filled the room, coming from a sphere held by a large artistic rendition of a golden dragon hanging from the high ceiling. A large spiral staircase stood in the middle of the room, carved from what looked like a single block of the same pink marble. A lush-looking red carpet covered the stairs which led to a balcony fairly high above. Four doors were visible on the ground floor from the hallway, each a different size and created from a different material.

The group was silent for a minute, awed. Not surprisingly, Lina recovered first. "So, where is the library? There have to be some really neat books in a place like this!"

"Um, I'm not sure." replied Daniel. At their stunned looks, he stammered out "W- we weren't exactly, close, remember!"

"This is a pretty big place. Maybe we should split up to search." commented Zelgadis. After all, he wasn't given the location of Rezo's secret libraries either.

"Good idea," agreed Lina, "Amelia, you go with Daniel. You've got the strongest White magic."

"Hai!" chirped Amelia, very happy with the idea.

"Gourry and I will search the basement for an underground laboratory. Xel and Zel can look upstairs."

"Hey-" began Zelgadis.

"That will be fine, Lina-san." said Xellos before Zelgadis could finish. "You will let us know if you find something, ne?" The chimera glared, but Xellos appeared to be oblivious.

"Of course. Let's meet back here in two hours."

Daniel showed Lina and Gourry to a small oak door at the far end of the room, then guided Amelia to a larger mahogany door opposite as Xellos and Zelgadis began to climb the stairs.

* * * * *

* * * * *

Upon reaching the upper balcony, Zelgadis paused a moment to admire the dragon chandelier which was now at eye level in the middle of the room. Although small when compared to the real thing, the detail was exquisite. As he watched, the dragon appeared to wink one of it's slitted golden eyes. Zelgadis blinked, but the dragon appeared motionless. Shaking his head, he turned to the Mazoku.

To his surprise, Xellos had stopped smiling and was standing with his eyes open and face serious. "There is something -very- wrong here, Zelgadis-

san." he said quietly. "Be alert."

"The golden dragon bothering you?" Zelgadis said, more harshly than he intended because suddenly the situation did seem creepier than it had a few minutes ago. "Anyway, if we keep going to the right we won't miss anything."

They walked along the edge of the balcony, turned right against the wall and approached the first door. This one appeared to be made of brass and was only wide enough for one to enter at a time. Gingerly, Zelgadis pushed it open. "After you."

Xellos walked through, staff readied. Zelgadis followed. On the other side of the door was a long corridor. The floor was made of hardwood and at least ten doors lined each side. Xellos sweatdropped. "This is going to take awhile."

* * * * *

Gourry walked through the small oak door, ducking his head a little. The open door let enough light through for him to discern that he was standing at the top of a rickety-looking stairway, but he couldn't see any further. He moved forward cautiously, just enough to allow Lina to enter.

He felt Lina's warmth behind him and heard her whisper softly "Lightening!"

The stairs were in even worse condition than they had originally appeared. About halfway down, two of the steps were missing entirely. Had they attempted to find their way down in the dark, they would never have made it. Fortunately, for Lina Inverse there were other options. "Levitation!" she called out, grabbing Gourry.

Finally they reached the bottom. They were in what appeared to be a perfectly ordinary storage room. Gardening equipment and basic household tools lined the walls. In one corner stood a very tacky bar sporting various mirrored signs advertising local mead and ale manufacturers. Years of traveling together had eliminated the need for discussion - both Lina and Gourry saw clearly that it was their duty to investigate immediately. After all, the man hadn't been dead for very long. It would be criminal to let good beer go to waste.

Lina reached over to gently test a tap labeled 'Hard Cider'. To the utter shock of both herself and Gourry, the entire bar and the corner it sat on began to turn into the wall. When the furniture finally finished it's rotation, she gasped. "I don't believe this!" she muttered.

* * * * *

Amelia followed Daniel through the mahogany doorway and into a narrow corridor that turned at sharp angles every few feet. Large cobwebs hung from every corner and she nervously made a mental note to bring a few of the palace cleaning people along when she came to visit.

A large spider, approximately the size of her fist, scurried around the next corner and directly into Amelia's path. She shrieked and clutched at Daniel in a total state of panic. "Sp- spider! Kill it, please! Kill it!" She buried her face in her guide's strong chest, refusing to look up until he reassured her that it was dead.

"You're the one they sent to protect me?" he said, teasing gently. Still, the comment struck the justice-loving Princess in a rather tender spot.

"Listen, Daniel-san. Some people don't like slugs. Others don't like spiders. You wouldn't either if you'd been caught once by one that was 20 feet tall! There's nothing funny about it!" She looked up at him, big blue eyes brimming with tears and he put his arm around her protectively.

"You're right. I apologize." he said sincerely.

'What a nice change he is from Zelgadis-san,' she thought to herself. 'Zelgadis wouldn't be nearly so nice about this.' She nestled closer into Daniel's arm, blushing slightly.

Had she looked up, she would have seen a very nasty smile briefly cross the blond man's face.

* * * * *

"This just doesn't make sense." protested Zelgadis as they searched yet another empty guest room. How many had they gone through so far? Nine? Ten? The entire time he'd felt like they were being watched. "The old man was supposed to have been a hermit. How could he have been expecting this many guests?"

"At least the beds are comfortable, Zelgadis-san. Care to try one out?" Xellos leered as he bounced on what did appear to be a comfy, springy mattress.

"Not with you, damn Fruitcake."

"Oh? I suppose you wouldn't mind so much if it were with Daniel-san." Xellos intended to tease, but there was an undercurrent of something else Zelgadis didn't exactly want to identify.

"Shut up!" snapped the chimera, blushing. "Don't be ridiculous."

"You're blushing, Zelgadis-san. It must be true. You want to cuddle that scrumptious looking blond man."

"Xellos, I'm warning you…"

"I wonder, would you want to be on top or on the bottom?" Xellos continued blithely.

That was about all the chimera could take. Snarling, he leapt at the Mazoku and placed his fingers around his neck. Pinning him down to the

bed, he began squeezing that lovely white throat, shaking the trickster and banging his head into the wooden headboard.

"Definitely on top, then." Xellos gasped out.

Zelgadis released his hold. There never was any point in beating up the Mazoku, he simply enjoyed it. He brought his face to within a scant couple of inches from Xellos' lips and whispered, "You'll never know, will you?"

He climbed off and resumed his search. Although he realized he'd gotten the better of the exchange for once, it somehow didn't make him very happy. Xellos was unusually quiet and Zelgadis was just about to give in and say something to re-establish their relative peace when they were interrupted by piercing female screams.

* * * * *

The tacky bar had swiveled around to what was unmistakably a dungeon. A large, filthy dungeon with almost every conceivable torture device displayed openly in the center. The walls were lined with shallow cells separated by iron bars that would ensure any prisoner kept there would have no choice but to see and hear whatever was being done to the poor soul in the middle. The place was completely deserted and a thick layer of dust had settled over all the equipment. As Lina and Gourry slowly approached a large chair near the entrance, they saw that rust had begun to form on the device.

"Charming place." Lina commented, going to great lengths not to think of what must have gone on here at one point in time. "For some reason it reminds me of Oneechan."

Gourry, not blessed with an overabundance of imagination, simply started looking around carefully. He didn't really remember what it was he was looking for, but supposed that didn't matter very much. He ended up standing before, of all things, a large ornate mirror with a gilt frame.

"Oi! Lina! Look at this!" The swordsman called out, pleased that he had discovered something all on his own.

"Who would hang a mirror -here-?" asked Lina, running a finger along the frame. "Look, there's no dust! This must be the way to the next room…good job, Gourry!" the redhead gave Gourry a good hard pat on the back to show her appreciation. "Now stand aside while I figure out how to activate it."

Gourry stood aside while Lina figured out the control mechanism, which turned out to be unexpectedly simple. Lina pressed a button and looked into the mirror's depths…

…and began screaming.

* * * * *

Amelia and Daniel had reached the end of the twisted corridor. Several more spiders had appeared, some even larger than the first, but Daniel had kept a comforting arm around Amelia while squashing them. She had actually been so relaxed she had been in the middle of a lovely daydream planning her Royal Wedding, complete with beaming Father and gorgeous, blond groom when they reached a mahogany door identical to the one they had first entered.

She stopped abruptly, causing Daniel to stumble. He grabbed at her for support, but somehow it didn't seem to bother her like it should have. She simply helped him upright. When he moved toward the door, she stopped him. "As a champion of Justice and your protector, I must go first!" she declared, approaching boldly.

The door swung open silently. Amelia leapt into the room, striking Champion of Justice Pose #27, which would have had the creators of Sailor Moon busy filing lawsuits had any been there to see it. As usual, the heroics fell flat. The door had opened onto a cozy looking study. Nonplussed, Amelia stood quietly while Daniel lit the lamps.

It was a beautiful room, complete with leather couches and walls lined floor to ceiling with books. An enormous mahogany desk stood at one corner and a large fireplace took up an entire wall.

"We found the library!" cheered Amelia. "Zelgadis-san will be so happy!"

Just at that moment, they heard the screaming. Amelia instantly turned to rush back through the corridor, but Daniel stepped in front, blocking her way. "You're not going anywhere, Princess." he said in a cold, hard voice.

* * * * *

Zelgadis sprang from the room and ran toward the door that led to the balcony. Xellos simply watched him go. 'Serve him right if he gets into trouble rushing around like that,' he thought to himself, still a little peeved at the chimera. 'Yare, yare, I suppose I'd better check on Lina-san. It would mean big trouble for me if anything were to happen to her.' Quietly, he teleported himself out of the room.

Zelgadis frowned as he ran. Surely, given his demonic speed, he should have reached the exit by now? Yet no matter how fast he ran, the door at the far end of the corridor never seemed to come any closer. He began to count the doors on the side as he passed. When he got to twenty, he gave up and stopped dead in his tracks. Something was obviously going on. He turned around and let out a brief exclamation of shock. He was standing right in front of a bright red doorway, close enough to touch the gleaming metal handle. He turned around again and saw the corridor stretching endlessly behind him. "Xellos?" he whispered, completely unnerved.

There was no answer, but the sensation of being watched, the prickling at the back of his neck intensified until it was almost unbearable. Drawing his sword, he stood to one side and quickly flung the red door open.

* * * * *

Gourry had not hesitated when Lina began screaming. He had dragged the sorceress from the mirror as gently as he could, given that she began striking him over and over, completely unaware that he was trying to help her. Finally, Gourry covered her eyes. Almost immediately, the sorceress lost consciousness and Gourry had settled her in a corner, cradling her head in his lap and gently stroking her hair.

Within a few heartbeats, Xellos appeared. Glancing around the room, he snorted in disgust. He ran a gloved finger alongside the Iron Maiden, muttering about the general lack of originality and horrible upkeep of the place. He reached Gourry and knelt down to check Lina's pulse, relieved that the sorceress would be just fine. He could still get a faint aftertaste of what Lina had gone through and it puzzled him. Somehow, it seemed a little too refined for this type of torture room.

"What happened?" he asked Gourry. With difficulty, the swordsman looked away from Lina. His simple face looked extremely concerned. Xellos indulged a moment in the exquisite taste of his fear for the sorceress before adding, "She'll be alright, Gourry-san. She's just sleeping."

Relief flooded across Gourry's face like sunshine. "She was standing in front of that mirror over there. She thought it was the way to the next room, even though it is a mirror, not a door. Then she started screaming and couldn't seem to stop."

Xellos went over to investigate. "It's a good thing you were here, Gourry-san. This is one of a kind, quite possibly the most ingenious torture device ever created by human hands. Whoever looks into this mirror will be faced with his or her deepest, darkest fear. Place an average human here for an hour and they end up catatonic for the rest of their lives. What's worse, like all magical mirrors it's addictive. Pull a person from it's influence and sooner or later he or she will return if possible, convinced they are ready to overcome their fear. Of course, the Mirror simply adjusts to the new fear of fear itself. Simply ingenious. What can it possibly be doing in a place like this? I think it's time we asked a few more specific questions about Daniel's dear dead Grandpa."

Xellos looked over at Gourry and facefaulted. Although the big dumb blond was nodding, it was obvious he hadn't understood a single word. Oh well, it didn't really matter. Xellos touched his staff to the frame of the mirror, sending it home to Wolfpack Island. At last, he'd found the perfect Halloween present for the Beastmaster who had everything. He then settled down to wait for Lina to wake up; an explanation would greatly speed her recovery.

* * * * *

"Daniel-san, Lina may be in danger!" exclaimed Amelia. "We've got to help her right away!"

"I'm sure your friend is going to be just fine." Daniel replied calmly. His coppery eyes gazed directly into Amelia's blue ones. "You need to stay here, to protect me, remember?"

Something about this was wrong, but Amelia couldn't seem to figure out what it was. Her mind was cloudy and she was starting to feel the strangest sensations all over her body. She felt like she was flying and drowning all at the same time, drawn in irresistibly to Daniel's warm eyes. "Yes, that's right. I need to protect you." She heard the sound of her own voice as if from very far away.

"You're very beautiful, Princess." he said as he began to move closer. A warm blush began to spread across her cheeks as she felt parts of her young body stirring, waking. A very distant voice inside her mind wondered why he was calling her Princess - surely no one had mentioned her title in Daniel's presence.

Daniel stepped even closer and placed his hand on Amelia's face. Unable to control her breathing, Amelia let her eyes flutter shut as Daniel leaned in to kiss her. The kiss was long and sweet and by the time it ended, Amelia was leaning fully against the man's solid body. "I love you." he whispered as he began trailing kisses from her earlobe to her neck. She could only whimper in response. Her entire body was trembling for him, overwhelmed with feelings she'd never experienced before in her life.

Suddenly, the nature of the fire his kisses were awakening on her neck changed abruptly as her skin was pierced by two very sharp fangs. Briefly she struggled, but it wasn't nearly enough. A different but no less intense pleasure swept through her as her life as she had known it thus far ended.

* * * * *

Zelgadis cautiously walked through the red door, sword drawn and ready. He found himself in a very large, pentagon-shaped room. The walls, floor and ceiling were all painted in a flat black that, combined with the residual energies of countless spellcastings, lent itself to a sense of disorientation. The room was completely empty aside from a large rectangular mirror resting on an easel in the exact center of the room and a sigil carved in silver on the floor beneath it. Keeping his senses open for magical traps, Zelgadis approached carefully. When he was close enough to read the silver symbol, he gasped.

It couldn't be! It was the sign of Elian, contemporary of Rezo and another of the Seven Wise Men of the Age. If Elian was Daniel's Grandfather, they had even more in common than Zelgadis had initially suspected. Attraction aside, Zelgadis was very glad they had met.

Zelgadis stood and inspected the mirror. For the second time in as many minutes he was completely astonished. The mirror was nothing less than the famous Mirror of Iresed! Looking into the mirror would show the viewer his or her heart's desire. Simply by looking into the mirror Zelgadis might see himself finding his cure. At last he would know where to look!

Trembling with excitement, Zelgadis activated the mirror. His reflection dimmed, then faded out altogether as another scene took it's place…

Zelgadis lay on the bed, enjoying the sensation of the soft purple

satin sheets against his sensitive, though stony, skin. He didn't

bother to cover his nakedness or his arousal, glancing often at the

door as though waiting for a lover.

This isn't what he had expected at all! His mind reeled as he continued to watch the silent images progress. His heart was racing with the truth of this innermost desire, so very different from what his mind had expected.

He didn't have long to wait. With an expectant smile he greeted the

purple-haired Mazoku who had come for him. Xellos set down

his staff and cloak quickly before taking Zelgadis in his arms and

kissing him passionately. When they parted, with eyes open and

serious, Xellos' silent lips formed the words 'Ai Shiteru, Zelgadis'

as his hands began to caress Zelgadis' body tenderly.

Zelgadis couldn't look away. Even as his body was reacting to the images of Xellos making love to him, he was filled with the longing and sadness he had so carefully hidden from himself until now.

They were both naked now, Xellos' eyes once again closed

as he leaned into Zelgadis' eager touch. Zelgadis guided his partner

into his body, calling out his lover's name over and over as

they were joined.

'So much for my having to be on top.' Zelgadis thought with a glimmer of dry humor even as a tear ran down his face. He continued watching as that scene ended with him and Xellos sleeping in each other's arms and another scenario began.

* * * * *

"Fireball!" was the first thing out of Lina's mouth when she finally came to. Xellos, who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time (or the right place at the right time if one happened to be a masochistic Mazoku), was inadvertently crisped.

"Lina! You're awake!" called out Gourry happily. Gently, he lifted her a little bit out of his lap to hug her tightly. She relaxed into the embrace for a few minutes, still very shaken from her ordeal. Eventually, however, she recovered herself and slapped the swordsman across the face.

"Hentai! Taking advantage of a girl while she's unconscious!"

"It's good to see you are feeling better, Lina-san." said the singed Priest. "However, we don't really have time for that right now. I suspect the others, particularly Amelia, are in grave danger."

"What happened to me?" asked Lina. "The last thing I remember is finding this room and then everything goes all dark."

Xellos explained about the mirror and it's effects. Lina's crimson eyes grew wide like saucers as she started to remember the images she'd briefly seen before her rescue. Thousands and thousands of big-busted, scantily-clad women…millions of them, possibly…all laughing and laughing and laughing… She shuddered.

"It's gone now, Lina-san." He concluded. "Just remember to never, EVER play with a strange mirror again. Mirror magic is a strange and very powerful thing."

Still shaken, Lina didn't have the heart to argue or to resent Xellos' superior tone. "What's this about Amelia?" she asked instead.

"She is alone with Daniel-san. I do not trust him at all. This whole setup is highly suspicious."

"I thought you liked suspicious." Gourry chimed in, innocently.

Xellos was about to respond, but stopped abruptly. "It's Zelgadis," he said, "He's in trouble. It's almost time to regroup anyway. Let's meet back in the main hall." Without further explanation, the Mazoku vanished.

* * * * *

Slowly, Amelia opened her eyes. She was lying comfortably on a leather couch in front of a fire. She felt fine, but incredibly thirsty. 'I must have dozed off,' she thought 'I hope I haven't made the others worry!'

She looked around, but she was alone. A pang of fear assailed her as she wondered what had happened to Daniel-san. She was mortified that she had fallen asleep when she was supposed to be protecting him!

Quickly she ran through the door and along the twisted corridor that had brought them there. Absently, she crushed any spiders in her path, thinking how silly she had been to be so afraid of them earlier.

* * * * *

"Do you like the mirror?" a voice asked softly in Zelgadis' ear. "What does it show you?"

Startled, Zelgadis whirled around to see Daniel standing behind him with an open and friendly smile. He tried very hard to force the intimate images the mirror had shown him out of his mind, not confident that he would be able to hide the desire in his voice as easily as his cloak hid the evidence of it on his body. He quickly wiped away the tears that had spilled down his face. Eventually, his thoughts regrouped themselves.

"Not the cure I'd hoped for." Zelgadis evaded the question. "Daniel, that sigil…was your Grandfather the Sage Elian?"

"That's what some people called the bastard, yes. You wouldn't believe me if I told you what he was like as a person."

Zelgadis laughed bitterly and indicated his stone body. "Yes, I would. Rezo, my Grandfather, was the one who did this to me."

"Then maybe you -can- understand." Daniel's face became suddenly speculative. "Of course, you were lucky."

"Lucky? Just how do you figure becoming a stone freak is lucky? All I wanted was power, and this is what he did to me!" Zelgadis was in shock.

"Your changes only went skin deep, Zelgadis. It seems the Seven so-called Wise Men of the Age weren't overly concerned with originality. I too asked my Grandfather for power, one hundred years before you were even born. Do you want to see what he did to me?"

"What?" whispered Zelgadis.

"Look into my eyes." Daniel said and Zelgadis complied. "My grandmother was a golden dragon, captured by my grandfather and bound to him by sorcery. She gave birth to my mother, giving up her own immortality to do so. My mother was never very strong physically, not at all suited for my grandfather's purposes, so he traded her to an associate of his for a couple of spell books. She died shortly after I was born. I grew up cursing her weakness, which I had inherited. Finally, I approached my grandfather and asked him for power. Do you know what he did?"

By now, Zelgadis was ensnared in the glowing copper of Daniel's eyes, unable to break away. His heart went out to the blond man whose story was in so many ways similar to his own. He was unable to move even when Daniel opened his mouth in a cruel smile, revealing wicked fangs.

"He gave me to a very powerful vampire for an evening. I lost my innocence, my humanity, everything. But I am powerful, even more so than you, my beautiful chimera. Ever since I heard of your existence, I knew you were the one person who might understand me. I've planned and planned and now you are going to be mine. Don't worry, your friends will join us as well. Power like that shouldn't be wasted after all!" Daniel leaned in and kissed Zelgadis gently, almost lovingly.

Zelgadis couldn't move, still trapped by the vampire's gaze. His body, still heated from his experience at the mirror, was reacting once again whether he wanted it to or not. Daniel wrapped his arms around his victim. "There won't be any pain, little one." He promised.

"Xellos!" Zelgadis' internal cry actually made it to his lips in a whispered prayer. He hated himself for not being able to move while the wrong monster was touching him, claiming him.

"That silly priest?" Daniel stopped caressing Zelgadis long enough to laugh. "I expect your friend Amelia has already taken care of him. Such a sweet girl." The vampire laughed mockingly and ran his tongue over his eyeteeth suggestively.

"Bastard!" hissed Zelgadis. Daniel shrugged and resumed touching the shaman, savoring his taste as over and over again he kissed the spot above the throbbing vein in Zelgadis' neck, an area entirely unprotected from the stonelike scales that covered most of his body. Zelgadis closed his eyes and forced himself to concentrate on Xellos. If only he'd been more honest with himself! The distraction almost kept his mind off things until he felt the sharp points of teeth ready to violate his skin.

Then, suddenly, they were gone and Zelgadis was free to move. Opening his eyes, he saw Xellos, his slitted violet eyes open and promising death to the squirming undead creature pinned beneath his staff. How could he ever have thought Daniel was the more beautiful of the two?

"Mazoku!" hissed Daniel in surprise. "How? This changes everything!" Lashing out, he knocked Xellos' staff aside long enough to roll out of the way and vanish.

* * * * *

* * * * *

Lina and Gourry stood at the base of the spiral staircase in the hall, waiting nervously to see if any of their friends would make it back. Within a few short minutes they heard the sound of running feet and the mahogany door slammed open. Lina barely had time to put her shortsword away safely when Amelia crashed into her arms, face unusually pale.

"Lina-san! Gourry-san! I am so glad to see you! I'm worried about Daniel-san. I know I was supposed to be protecting him, but I- I must have fallen asleep and I don't know where he is!"

"Its OK, Amelia, we will find him." said Gourry cheerfully.

"We're just glad to see you are alright. We were worried!" Lina added, then embarrassed at the display of sentiment, bonked the younger girl over the head.

'That didn't even hurt!' thought Amelia to herself smugly. Wisely, she decided not to tempt the fates by mentioning the fact and rubbed her head as though injured. "Lina-san, do you have anything to drink? I'm horribly thirsty."

Lina shrugged and grabbed a small bottle from her belt. "Here you go."

"Arigato, Lina-san." Amelia practically snatched the bottle from Lina's hands and downed it's contents in a single draught. Within two minutes, she was kneeling on the marble floor, the clear water pooling in front of her.

"Amelia! Are you alright?" asked Lina, rubbing the girl's back. "Don't worry, we'll get you more. Do you have a fever?" Lina reached over to touch the Princess' forehead. "Hmmm…she said, puzzled. It feels like ice."

"I'm sure I'll be fine, really." Amelia insisted. "I just drank too quickly, that's all."

"If you say so," Lina said doubtfully, "Xellos has gone to get Zelgadis. I've never seen that fruitcake so worked up before. He genuinely seems to hate Daniel!"

"He's just worried Zelgadis-san will like Daniel-san more than him." snapped Amelia irritably.

Lina and Gourry gaped openly. While even Gourry had had his suspicions about the nature of Xel and Zel's relationship, to hear the petite sorceress

say as much, so bluntly, about the chimera she had seemed to have such a crush on herself was beyond their ability to assimilate.

"It's OK, though," Amelia continued, misinterpreting the stunned looks on her friend's faces, "Daniel-san loves me. He said so."

"Did I hear my name?" Daniel said cheerfully as he emerged from a fairly large door made of cherry wood and entered the main hallway.

* * * * *

"Xellos!" It was all Zelgadis could do to keep himself from running into the arms of his rescuer. Quickly he reminded himself that what he had seen in the Mirror of Erised was not reality. Only his own feelings had been reflected to him, not those of the still angry-looking Mazoku before him.

"I'm sorry, Zelgadis-san. Was I interrupting something? Should we call your lover back?"

"It wasn't like that!" Zelgadis protested hotly. "I was looking in the mirror, and that- that vampire walked in!"

Xellos walked over to the mirror and examined it carefully. "I see. You humans really ought to know better. This is the second time today. I expect this sort of thing from Lina, but I thought you had more sense." Sighing, he again tapped his staff to the mirror's frame and made it disappear. "So you were looking for your cure, I take it. Did you find it?"

"Not exactly." Zelgadis mumbled, blushing. Hurriedly, trying to change the subject, he related their entire conversation to Xellos. "I don't want

him hurt, if possible," the chimera finished, "It's not his fault he acts this way."

"Even vampires have choices, Zelgadis-san. If he has turned Amelia-san into a vampire, she will be completely under his control until he is destroyed. It's how they keep their population down, by killing their makers." He paused for a moment, then asked "But how did you manage to call me?"

"Nani?" Zelgadis had hoped they were safely away from the dangerous subject. He desperately needed time to sort through his newly discovered feelings.

"A vampire's direct gaze is a very powerful thing. Especially one like Daniel who came from powerful magical stock on both sides before he was bitten. You know what I think, Zel-kun?" The Mazoku's face grew playful once again. He floated until he came to rest directly behind the startled chimera, folded his black cloak around the smaller man's shoulders and whispered into a delicately pointed ear, "I think you like me a great deal more than you'd care to admit." Not waiting for a response, Xellos quickly teleported them to join the others.

* * * * *

"Daniel-san! You're alright!" Amelia shouted for joy and ran to embrace him.

"Of course I'm alright." Daniel smiled. "I was just trying to find some medicine for you. You looked like you were feeling very ill."

The Princess blushed. "I'm fine, just very thirsty. Have you got anything to drink?"

Leaning down, the blond man whispered into Amelia's ear so the others wouldn't hear him. "I have what you need, Amelia. But you have to be brave and do as I say." He continued to whisper instructions to the Princess, who was nodding eagerly.

Lina glanced over at Gourry, Xellos' warning replaying itself in her mind. Although she was a very affectionate and tactile girl, it still wasn't quite like Amelia to drape herself on a man this way.

"Amelia, where is your jewelry?" Trust Gourry to pick up on the non-essentials.

Lina frowned. Perhaps Gourry had a point - the protective pentagrams that had hung from Amelia's neck, wrists and waist were gone. "I don't like this." she muttered.

Daniel released Amelia and the couple walked over to join their friends. Amelia took Lina's hands in her own. Puzzled, Lina did not move until the blue-eyed sorceress took two steps forward and kissed her on the lips. Lina, now extremely worried about her friend, tried to break Amelia's grip and was shocked at the younger girl's unbelievable strength.

A wicked smile crossed Amelia's face, looking extremely out of place. "O-HO-HO-HO-HO!" she laughed, causing Lina to freeze, remembering her terror at the mirror. "I'm sorry, Lina-san, you just looked SO surprised. I hate to do this to you, but Daniel-san insists that I have to or I won't feel any better. You understand, ne?" Tiny fangs appeared in Amelia's mouth as she leaned in close to Lina's neck.

Gourry tried to lunge in between them, but Daniel was much faster. Soon the blond giant was trapped under the smaller man, sword pinned uselessly at his side.

* * * * *

Fortunately for our heroes, it was at that moment Xellos and Zelgadis appeared. Taking in the situation at a glance, Zelgadis ran to pull Amelia away from Lina while Xellos flickered behind Daniel.

Surprise and momentum enabled Zelgadis to pull Amelia away from Lina, but he soon found himself in a very tight pinch. He didn't want to hurt Amelia; she was like the sister he had never had. She drew a dagger and lunged at him much more quickly than she had ever been able to move. Zelgadis mistimed, and the dagger sliced through the clothing on his shoulder, bouncing harmlessly off the embedded stones of his skin. Spinning around, he barely had time to dodge a fireball that came blasting his way.

Lina was not idle. "Sleeping!" she cried out, but the spell seemed to have no affect other than to re-direct the vampire Amelia's attention to herself. She spent the next few seconds dodging Amelia's spell attacks, trying to keep her busy as she heard Zelgadis chanting in the background…

* * * * *

Gourry and Xellos faced off against Daniel. The dragon half-breed's face had changed: the sculpted human features were gone, replaced by the

bestial face and leatherlike skin of the Nosferatu. His copper eyes were no longer those of a human but were slitted and shaped like his Ryzozuku

grandmother's. Xellos felt a thrill run through him at that; there was little he enjoyed more than extinguishing the light from the eyes of his natural prey.

Quicker than human sight could follow, Daniel swept down and grabbed Gourry from behind, but Xellos was quicker. He popped into existence behind Daniel just as he reached his target and struck out with his staff. Barely in time, Daniel dodged and it was Gourry that took most of the impact of the blow, ending up unconscious on the floor.

Now that Gourry was no longer a factor, Xellos was able to fight freely. Dodging in and out through subspace, he slashed at Daniel. Numerous small cuts and injuries appeared all over the vampire's body, knitting themselves rapidly but not quite fast enough to keep up with the angry Mazoku's onslaught.

"Who the hell ARE you?" gasped Daniel.

* * * * *

"Van Rail!" shouted Zelgadis just as Lina was becoming exhausted. Twin streams of ice shot from the shaman's hands. Intertwining themselves around Amelia's body, they stopped just short of her face, holding her completely motionless.

"Good job, Zelgadis!" cried out Lina as she turned to the other battle. Gourry lay on the floor, injured. Her breath caught until she saw the slight rise and fall of his chest that assured her he was still alive.

She and Zelgadis walked to either side of Daniel. Xellos phased in between them, looking like he was having the time of his life. "It's over, Daniel." Zelgadis spoke quietly. "There's no need for this to go any further."

As he spoke, Daniel straightened up. In a few short moments, all his injuries had disappeared and he had a small, knowing smile on his face. "Do you really think it's over, chimera? For either of us?" he asked, bitterly.

In spite of everything, Zelgadis found himself empathizing with the vampire. "It can be, if you want it. Are you going to let the past control your future?"

Daniel's shoulders sagged in defeat. "What else is there?" he asked quietly. "You don't understand, after all. You still have friends and a life to live. I have nothing. You will never know what it's like until you are left alone, too."

Suddenly, a purple streak shot past Zelgadis to burn a gaping hole in the vampire's chest. Sparks flew around Daniel's dying body until finally it exploded in a gristly rain of gore.

Zelgadis was absolutely furious. "Xellos, damn you! What did you do that for? How could you!!!" His feeling of betrayal cut him to his core.

"Look behind you, Zelgadis." was Xellos' only reply. Zelgadis turned around and saw Amelia, holding a dagger high at his back, pupils dilated. Shuddering, the dagger slipped from her fingers and she collapsed into Zelgadis' arms.

"He was only stalling for time." Lina shook her head. "What the hell is going on here?"

As if in answer to her question, the house began to shake around them. Huge chunks of marble fell from the ceiling as the golden dragon chained above broke free of it's ensorcelment. Quickly Zelgadis formed a protective bubble around the group. Lina reinforced the barrier while they Ray Winged past the gates to safety. They watched as the enormous mansion seemed to sink into the earth around it, leaving no trace of it's existence.

* * * * *

A fair distance away, they made camp. A full autumn moon shone down on them in the chilly night. While they were building a fire and tending to their friends' injuries, Xellos and Zelgadis filled Lina in on everything she had missed. When they had finished, a lovely older blond woman materialized in the camp.

"Thank you for freeing me." she said, simply. "I deeply regret the actions of my Grandson. There is no cure for what he has done to your friend," she indicated Amelia, who stirred uneasily in her sleep, "but give her this. It will enable her to live among you." A beautiful platinum necklace with a deep red bloodstone materialized in front of Lina. "My body died long ago but I have been unable to rest. Again, I thank you for my freedom." Slowly, the figure faded into the night.

"So the house WAS haunted!" exclaimed Gourry. The group facefaulted.

Gently, Lina knelt next to Amelia and fastened the chain around her neck. "She's going to be even harder to cope with now…a Justice-loving Vampire Princess? Whoever heard of such a thing?"

"It worked for Miyu." replied Zelgadis, shrugging. "Pity about the house, though. I would have really liked to find those spell books."

"And what about my 200 gold pieces!" shrieked Lina into the night. Gourry held her back as she pulled a shovel from nowhere and began trying to run mindlessly to the submerged house. "Lemme go!!!"

* * * * *

The following evening the group checked into an inn for the night. Zelgadis lay naked on the rough sheets of a cheap mattress, staring at the room's doorway and hoping he had made the right decision. It wasn't too late to sneak back into his own room…

Then the door began to open and it was too late. Terror thudded in the chimera's chest as the purple-haired Mazoku entered and froze upon finding him there. "Aren't you in the wrong room, Zelgadis-san?" Xellos teased gently.

"Am I?" Zelgadis blinked innocently. What the hell, he had nothing to lose now. He wiggled enticingly, making the cheap springs of the mattress squeak in protest under his weight. "But I'm so comfortable. Do you- would you rather I left?"

For a long moment, Xellos simply looked at the chimera, face unreadable. "I'll have to think about that." he said, finally. Zelgadis' heart seemed to stop beating, but barely a second passed before Xellos continued, "OK. I've thought about it. You're not going anywhere - ever." A big, open smile lit across the Mazoku's face as he pounced.

A few minutes later, Xellos pulled away. Looking down at Zelgadis through mussed purple hair, he reached down and gently stroked various bits of the chimera's body while wondering out loud, "There's one thing I still want to know, Zel-kun…"

"YES!?" squeaked Zelgadis as the trickster happened to hit a -very- sensitive spot.

"Do you want to be on the top or the bottom?"

~Owari