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Chapter Eleven Filia was seriously contemplating figuring how to blend a stronger tea. The bells at the nearby shrine had chimed out the eleventh hour, and already she was considering how nice sleep sounded. Instead, she forced herself to remain on her feet, smile for the customers, and help them with their purchases. Sleep had not been very easy to obtain, and she finally drifted off just a mere hour before her day was scheduled to begin as the air outside her window began to lighten under the gray glow of false dawn, which heralded the impending arrival of the sun. Her mind was restless, turning over and examining the details of the kiss, the reactions it evoked, and her feelings for Valgaav. She knew she cared for him, that much was dead certain. Filia could even admit to herself that it was love, even if she wasn't certain how to define it. Was it a romantic love, or something less complicated? Thinking back over her reactions to him, she supposed that she was in fact attracted to him, the way a mere smile could leave her breathless and do odd little things to her heart. No, she wasn't all that confused about her own feelings, and she was even reasonably certain that Valgaav cared for her in return, as unreal as logic would have it seem. What bothered her the most was the uncertainty over whether or not it was a mistake. Filia had never played the game herself, but neither was she completely without a clue as to the risks. The more Filia thought about it, the more positive she was that Valgaav was the closest thing she had to a best friend. The risks of jeopardizing that friendship with something more terrified her. Everything kept replaying over in her mind, and that along with her own tumultuous emotions had not served to be conductive to a good night's rest. Of course, now that she was supposed to be awake and coherent, exhaustion was taking its toll and making her bed look more appealing by the minute. She wondered if Valgaav was faring any better, and a tiny, petulant voice inside hoped he was at least as distracted as she. Not only would it mean she wasn't suffering through her fatigue alone, but it would also mean it affected him just as much. A tug at her sleeve snapped her out of her thoughts. "Oneesan? Hello?" Filia looked down at Jillas, realizing a customer was standing there, and he was holding a set. "What is it, Jillas?" she asked, trying not to blush. "Are you okay, oneesan?" She gave up trying not to blush. "Oh, um, yes, I am, I'm sorry. I didn't sleep very well last night. What may I help you with?" "She'd like to know if you could make this set in rose pink instead," Jillas said, holding up the display tray. Filia blinked, picking up one of the delicate, floral-patterned teacups, inspecting it. "I believe I may already have a set like what you're looking for in stock, miss, unless it's already been sold." She glanced to Jillas. He shook his head. "If we still have it, it's not on the floor." "Okay, I'll go in the storeroom and look. Jillas, could you take down the details for a special order in case we don't have it?" "Sure thing, oneesan. Right this way, miss." While the young woman followed Jillas, Filia headed for the back room to look for the set in question. Lighting a lamp, she ducked into the room, which was really more of a large, walk-in closet with shelves, and started checking in various boxes. Although the lamp provided some measure of light, she frowned in annoyance when someone stood in the doorway, cutting back even more on her visibility. "Might I ask how much this lovely vase costs?" Filia stood up so quickly that she hit her head on a higher shelf, and almost dropped the lamp. "Oh, dear! Miss Filia, are you quite all right? That sounded as if it must have hurt." "What are you doing here?" she gasped. "I had a bit of free time, so I thought I'd drop by to see how things were going, perhaps do a bit of shopping." Xellos smiled cheerfully, and held up the vase. "Lord Beastmaster would appreciate this. She broke her last one." "Just take it and get out, namagomi," Filia said, backing away from him. She switched hands with the lamp to reach under her skirts for her mace. Xellos frowned. "Oh, no, my dear Miss Filia, I couldn't possibly do that. You worked so hard on this vase, indeed, on everything in this little shop. It would be such a shame if they were to be broken." His lips curled into a cheerful smile, but his eyes opened slightly. "Such as by a dragon on a rampage. It wouldn't be very good for business, now, would it?" Filia gritted her teeth, forcing herself to let go of the mace's handle. The room was so narrow the shelves on the opposite sides almost touched her shoulders. There was no way she could hit him without destroying anything. "What do you want?" "How wonderful! You're learning how to be reasonable." He stepped in, walking toward her, and the door swung shut behind him. The lamp in her hand was the only source of light now, and Filia mentally pleaded that Gravos or Jillas had seen Xellos. But if they had, they likely ran out to find Valgaav, and if he showed up... Filia changed her tune quickly, hoping no one noticed them. "I did say I would be back, Miss Filia." He turned his attention from her, appearing to study the merchandise on the shelves. "So, tell me, has that Mazoku half-breed been around to bother you?" "No," Filia stammered, then bit her tongue. "No, I haven't seen him." Xellos looked at her out of the corner of his eye, his lips curling into a smirk. "I am quite pleased to hear that." Turning to face her, he walked toward her slowly. "You do know that I would not wish to see harm come to my little dragon." Filia fought down a growl. "I'm not your little dragon. I'm not your little anything." He gave her a cryptic smile that turned her blood to ice, and wrapped his hand over hers, holding the lamp. The flame flickered and died, plunging them both into darkness. Xellos withdrew his hand, taking the lamp from her, and she could feel him. He wasn't close enough to touch her, but she could sense he was there, watching her. The darkness was thick, oppressive, and it grew so hard to breathe from the fear and uncertainty of what would come next. "Okay, namagomi," she said, hoping her voice didn't sound as quivery as it felt. "I've had enough of your games." There was no response, no sound at all save for the occasional voice from the shop beyond the door. Filia wasn't even certain as the minutes passed if he was really still there, or if her mind was playing tricks on her. She tried to work up the nerve to reach out, to step forward, but couldn't. She felt paralyzed in fear, and couldn't shake what her intuition was telling her, that to move forward now would be bad. Filia couldn't pin down why, she just had the impression it would be. "Stop it. Just leave me alone." There was a definite tremor in her voice that even she could hear now. The darkness was deep enough to hurt her eyes as she tried vainly to see something, anything. Nothing but darkness. More minutes ticked by. Filia's heart lodged in her throat, suffocating her as she jumped, suddenly feeling his gloved hand against her cheek, his touch whisper-soft, and then it was gone. The next thing she knew, she was squinting against a light that now seemed blinding as the door was jerked open quickly. Forms of beings, backlit and not immediately identifiable, crowded in the doorway. On reflex, Filia skittered back even further, pressing up against the wall. "Filia! What happened?" Valgaav demanded, grabbing her by the shoulders. Recognizing his voice did nothing to calm her as she started looking around frantically, expecting Xellos to attack at any minute. "Don't worry about him!" He gave her shoulders a little shake. "Talk to me. Are you all right?" "I'm...fine," she managed weakly. "I saw that Mazoku come in here," Jillas said, as Valgaav started checking her quickly for any injuries, "and sent Boss to find Lord Valgaav." The fox-man growled. "Did he hurt you, oneesan?" "N-no, he didn't do anything. Can we get out of here, please?" Valgaav paused. "Where do you want to go?" "Kitchen maybe? Just want out of here." "Oh! You mean the closet. Come on. Jillas, Gravos, tend to the shop." "Sure thing, Lord Valgaav." Filia ignored the curious stares as Valgaav led her from the shop and to a chair at the table in the kitchen. Immediately, he set about putting some water on to boil and preparing some tea for her while Filia tried to relax, resting her head in her hands. There was a scrape of wood on wood as Valgaav dragged a chair out in front of her and sat down while the water boiled, and took her hands. "Filia, what happened in there?" "Nothing much, really," she admitted. "He startled me, asked me how much a vase cost, asked if you'd been around--" "What did you tell him?" "That I hadn't seen you, of course," Filia replied, looking at him. Valgaav frowned, but nodded slightly. "Go on." "He called me his little dragon, and I reminded him I wasn't his little anything. All he did then was give me a creepy little smile, his eyes were open then, and oh, the door was shut by that point, and he took the lamp from me and put it out." Valgaav growled; a low, incensed sound that made Filia jittery. "What then?" he pressed, gritting out the question, his teeth clenched. "Um, nothing." "Filia." "I mean it! He didn't do anything! I was pretty sure he was still there, but he didn't say anything and he wasn't standing close enough to touch, I don't know. I didn't try feeling around in the dark to find out, and just before you showed up, he touched my face." Filia reached a quivering hand out to Valgaav to demonstrate. Valgaav stared at her for a long moment, his expression unreadable, growling softly. Filia swallowed hard, pressing up against the back of the chair. "Um, Valgaav, the water's boiling..." He ignored it. "How long?" "Huh? What do you mean, how long?" "How long between when he touched you from when I opened the door?" "I'm not sure. It felt like less than a minute. A few seconds at the most." Valgaav's gaze turned furious, and she shivered involuntarily. Nothing happened for several heartbeats, then he moved so abruptly she flinched. Valgaav rose from the chair and wheeled about in a single, smooth motion, and there was something distinctly predatory in his manner as he stalked over to the fireplace, fetching the water to pour into the teapot. Filia swallowed hard, chewing her bottom lip nervously. "I'm sorry..?" "Don't." The curtness in his tone made her wince. Filia didn't look up as he set the tea beside her on the table. "I'm gonna go speak with Jillas and Gravos. Stay here. If he comes back, let us know. I don't care if you have to go dragon and rip through the roof, just do something." Filia gave him a small nod, staring at her tightly clasped hands. Valgaav stalked out of the kitchen, focusing on keeping his rage in check. He had always been territorial, but since regaining his draconian nature in full, territorial was putting it mildly. The house was his cave, and there was an intruder. Gravos, Jillas and Filia were his family, and they were threatened. As he entered the shop, the few customers who were still there froze, staring at him wide-eyed as he approached, then immediately cleared out as soon as he continued past. The only reason they were still able to move while he was in sight was because he wasn't in dragon form; otherwise, the dragon fear from the predatory aggression he was radiating would have caused all rational thought to disperse. Jillas and Gravos stared at him, and Jillas' motions were jittery. They were used to his temper, but the effects of a draconian rage was enough to make them nervous. Gripping the countertop, Valgaav forced himself to rein it in a bit. "Well, he's tipped his hand," Valgaav growled. "At least, I think he has." "What do you mean, Lord Valgaav?" Gravos asked quietly. He snarled. "I suspect he still plans to try and get to me, but the route he's going to take is through her." Gravos and Jillas exchanged looks. "Oneesan's in danger?" Jillas asked. "More than she realizes, I'd wager. He's toying with her. I know enough about Mazoku to recognize what he's doing. He's got some kind of interest in her, and that's never a good thing where a Mazoku's involved." Gravos swore under his breath. "So what're we gonna do about it?" Valgaav hesitated. "Right now? All we can do is for one of us to be with her at all times. Twice now he's gotten to her. Each time she was alone." "Err, not to mince details, but, isn't she alone right now?" Jillas asked. "I didn't want her to hear this. Besides, I'm pretty certain he's not coming back immediately." Valgaav frowned, starting to pace. "He can't use his powers without Beastmaster's approval. His orders were to either get me to throw in my lot with the other Mazoku, and failing that, to kill me. I'm no longer Mazoku, and he's no longer trying to kill me. I'm guessing his orders may have changed." "Maybe he don't know where ya are?" Gravos suggested. Valgaav just looked at him. "He left just a few moments before I reached the closet. He knows damn good and well where I am, but he's avoiding confrontation." "And instead, he's messing with oneesan," Jillas growled. "Right." Valgaav snarled and clenched his fists, trying not to go on a rampage and break everything in sight. "So, here's the game plan. At least one of us will either keep her in sight, or otherwise close tabs on her whereabouts as much as possible at all times." Jillas blinked, his ears going back in a meek expression. "But...what about...certain times, you know?" he stammered. "Like...well, privacy-oriented times?" Valgaav pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing. "Naturally, we wouldn't actually keep her in sight then. Just have a reasonable knowledge of her whereabouts." "Should we take turns keeping watch at night?" Gravos asked. "I was thinking that too. I'll figure out a reasonable schedule. Do we want to take full nights in rotation, or all of us keeping watch few hours a night?" "Better to break up the nights into individual watches," Jillas said, "that way there's less chance of us being overtired, or falling asleep on watch." "Yeah. I'll take the first watch of the night, who wants the second?" "Jillas can have that, I'm an early riser anyway," Gravos said, "so I'll take third, and get breakfast started for Filia." "Lord Valgaav?" "Yeah, Jillas?" "What do we do if he shows up?" Valgaav paused. "Get me. But I'm banking on the possibility that he won't, not as long as someone's keeping an eye on her." |
to be continued...
Chapter Twelve