Slayers: Alive

Alive 73

xoxox xox xoxox

After the tidal wave had come and Filia realized she was being blamed for it, though she was fairly certain that it wasn't her fault, the upset golden dragon had hastily flown away from the beach. Eventually, she had stopped rushing endlessly away and allowed Xellos to teleport her. He had thought it was kind of funny how she went from chasing him with violent intentions to flying away in an emotional outburst of offense at the crowds' unfair accusations.

Once in Seyruun, Filia insisted on waiting for Xellos to go away before hiding herself and changing back into her elf form. Xellos perceived that there was an additional layer of worry beyond her usual modesty. It made him wonder what that was about. He waited for a while, floating above the shop, then let himself into her room via the window. Filia was laying on her bed, resting but awake with a swirl of emotions going through her.

Filia felt many things very intensely at the same time. Uncertainty, worry, confusion, frustration, heartbreak and even hope, yet it was all somehow so unknown, so fluctuating. What in the world could be going through her head? Very quiet and sneaky, Xellos made his way closer to Filia, standing behind her as she lay on her side, her eyes closed. She could sense him behind her, but she didn't show any signs of it right away. The seconds ticked away and finally, Filia rolled over so that she lay on her back, looking up at Xellos who was leaning over her with perplexed curiosity. "What do you want, raw garbage?" She fought to keep her voice steady. She needed to talk to someone who knew how to inform her, yet she was so tired, she didn't have the will to do it right away.

"Just curious, stupid dragon," Xellos admitted. "To what do I owe this feast of mostly negative emotions?" He waited for an answer that never came. Instead she sat up and with the motion she removed the hand that had been lightly resting on her stomach subconsciously. She didn't notice it right away, but he did. "That..." he pointed, unsure of if his eyes were playing a trick on him. The sun had set, shrouding the room in darkness, making even the faintest light more noticeable.

Filia looked down at her stomach. The fabric of the robe-like nightgown she had changed into was pretty thin. She had been careless. She immediately turned away and got up, her back to Xellos. "What?" Her voice cracked.

"Is that? Are you?" He walked around her, but she kept turning, refusing to face him. "Stay still!" Xellos grabbed the waist band that held the pale pink nightgown closed and pulled it off.

"Xellos!" Filia screeched, holding the thin pink garment closed with her hands. "Give that back, you piece of raw garbage!" She snatched the waist band back with one hand, still holding her clothing closed with the other.

"Answer me!" Xellos demanded with his eyes open, piercing... Angry?

Filia shuddered at the mix of disapproval and anger in his voice. Then she resolved to be firm. "This is none of your business! So what if I am?" Admitting it aloud for the first time shook Filia to her very core. Her arms fell motionless on her sides, as if her strength left her with the direct acknowledgement of the truth. The pink waistband slipped out of her fingers and fell to the floor. "So what if I am?" Her voice had lost the forced fire it held seconds prior. "So what?" She sobbed quietly, almost imperceptibly. "It's none of your business."

Xellos looked at Filia's exposed abdomen, placing his hand on the faint glow of light. "Your belly is still flat, your dragon hide won't permit the light to be visible and in this form if you wear thick fabric, no one will notice, he observed." He remembered her little outburst at the beach and her necessity to cover her midsection. Yet there it was, the unmistakable glow of a growing egg inside her body. He removed his hand as if it had been burned, not even bothering to take note of the fact that she had not immediately slapped it away. "You're right, this is none of my business." There was a bitterness that seemed very unfitting for a creature so cheerful as Xellos as he faded away to the astral side.