Wow, three reviews!  Better than last time!
     Thanks, Ludacris.  The plot's got a little more thickening to go, 
though...  The past is quite important to what is happening, and what 
will happen.  The Sherra bit was a throwaway, and a bit of an in-joke; 
I'm somewhat surprised at how many people seem to have found it funny.
     Lauren, I _had_ been wondering -- you've reviewed every single 
chapter so far with the exception of the one I suspect FF.net doesn't 
let people review.
     I had been unsure on how the charas interacted in the 9th 
chapter...  It's very nice to hear that it _did_ work, after all, even 
though things happened to it.  Dynast, for instance, just turned up, and
 his Sherra story wasn't quite my idea to include, because of its 
in-joke nature.  (Though, Dynast's there for more reason than just wine 
and entertainment...)
     Much of this story's background is actually not as much thought-out
 as simply accepted as they turn up.  It's somewhat like putting 
together a puzzle which somebody else lost in a couch you got 
second-hand...  You just hope all the puzzle's pieces are there, and 
that they only lost _one_ puzzle in the couch.
     There's going to be more of young Xelloss, since Xelloss's not 
finished telling his story yet.  Phibrizo will be involved in this story
 a bit more, too, though he's not going to directly appear again.  At 
least, I don't _think_ he'll directly appear again...
     Oh, and I'm writing this so quickly because I actually know _where_
 this story is going (in a general way), so it's much easier for me to 
actually get it written...and I'm keeping this away from certain 
parties' hands in RL, so I don't end up spending an eternity typing in 
endless revisions...  The wish for luck is _very_ much appreciated.

     Slayers is the creation of Hajime Kanzanka and Rui Araizumi.  I 
don't own it; they and a lot of other people do.  I'm not making any 
profit off of this story.
     All lyrics used in this story are from the songs of This Mortal 
Coil.  The original version of _'Til I Gain Control Again_ was performed
 by Emmylou Harris and is copyright R. Crowell & Tessa Publishing.

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Mr Somewhere
+=== A Slayers Fanfic by Ryo Hoshi
11 +===+ (Nothing but) Blood

                     What you see is what I've been
                 There is nothing I could hide from you
                      You see me better than I can
                Out on the roads that lies before me now
                 There are some turns where I will spin
                  I only hope that you can hold me now
                     'til I can gain control again
                              -- 'Til I Gain Control

     Xelloss gave the teapot a _look_ as only a few drops fell from its 
spout into his cup.  "We're out of tea already...?  Oh, dear.  I suppose
 I best make more."  He put the kettle back on, moving bit more quickly 
than Filia could track his movements, and opened up the cabinet that 
Filia kept her teas inside.  "Hmmm...what should be good..." he 
muttered, and Filia found herself somehow feeling compelled to stifle a 
giggle.  There was just _something_ about seeing _Xelloss_ muttering 
over teas like he was making the most important choice he would ever 
need to make.
     The fact that she often was the same way over teas escaped her 
completely.  However, the fact that she had not had anything _other_ 
than the tea Xelloss had made for her did not escape her.  "Xelloss, 
shouldn't we have more than just tea for breakfast?"
     Xelloss paused in his muttered critique of the pros and cons of 
particular teas in the morning.  "Zelas-sama ordered me not to cook for 
you."
     Filia looked at him, curious.  "Why would she order you not to cook
 for me...?"
     Xelloss sweatdropped.  "Lina-san didn't tell you...?"  Filia shook 
her head.  "I'm not very good at cooking."  He pulled a canister out of 
the cabinet and carefully measured out the proper amount of tea into the
 teapot just in time for the kettle to whistle.
     "Oh.  Well, I got something at the bakery yesterday, when I got 
lunch..."  Xelloss watched curiously as Filia, with a faint blush, 
pulled a bag out of her bread box and placed the contents on a plate.  
"I had thought it might be polite to offer you something this morning to
 go with your tea..."
     Xelloss smiled, amused, as he poured the water into the pot.  "How 
thoughtful of you, Filia!"  Xelloss carried the teapot to the table, 
followed by Filia with the plate.  "Thank you very much, Filia-chan."
     She smiled, and watched the tea brew.  "So, which tea did you 
choose?"
     "The Keemun.  You have an impressive selection of teas, Filia, and 
quite good taste."  He had learned to appreciate good taste in tea 
selection, after having once visited an inn with Lina that had only 
peach tea and mango herbal brew -- and both were quite stale, and 
overbrewed.  (He had taken the time that night to have a little 'talk' 
with the inn's owner, though Zelgadiss, who had managed to visit the 
innkeeper before him, had not left much else to 'explain.'  The next 
morning, there was a very nice pot of green tea for them, on the house.)
     Filia smiled, enjoying the complement.  "Thank you, Xelloss."  She 
picked up a scone and nibbled delicately on it as she waited for the tea
 to finish brewing.  "So, Zelas-sama had ordered you guard them...?"
     Xelloss smiled in private amusement at hearing _Filia_, a golden 
dragon, refer to his mother as 'Zelas-sama.'  "Yes, she had..."

     Xelloss had not been given any significant tasks by Zelas before in
 his entire life.  Zelas had been quite clear that she did not want to 
risk him until she felt relatively certain that he would survive.  He 
understood that, knowing that his creation had been quite draining for 
his mother, and didn't mind that she gave him tasks that would otherwise
 be carried out by much lesser mazoku.  He enjoyed taking care of her 
library, wines, and wolves, and took pride in doing a much better job 
with them than anybody other than Zelas herself.
     However, he did not feel that checking on the cave was a task 
particularly requiring him for various reasons.  The primary one was 
that, though Zelas had been the one to give him the order, the task 
itself was (in his opinion) from Phibrizo.  Instead of actually watching
 from the top of the cliff and checking within the cave daily, he simply
 walked to its entrance daily, cursing the wards that made it unwise to 
either teleport or fly there.
     If it had not been something so important, such measures would have
 been enough.

     Xelloss carefully picked his way through the stones, trying to not 
loose his balance on the slick, wet rock.  As he neared the cave's 
mouth, he saw something white tangled among the jagged rocks in front of
 it.  As he neared it, he realized that it was a length of cloth.
     Carefully, he speeded up.  The cloth shouldn't be there.  If it was
 there, _really_ there, then...
     Then he had failed, and it really didn't _matter *whom*_ he had 
failed.  If he had failed Phibrizo...  Phibrizo would punish him, 
Xelloss had no illusions that the Hellmaster could and _would_ punish 
him, and he didn't want to discover just how Phibrizo would do that.  
Even if he was told that he was forgiven...
     If he had failed Zelas, though, it would be just as bad.  She 
wouldn't punish him as badly as he knew Phibrizo would, but simply 
knowing that he had failed her, his mother...  That would be punishment 
all by itself.
     He knelt down carefully, all too aware that the rock was slippery 
and he could quite easily slip into the water on the _wrong_ side of the
 beach.  The course feel of soaked cheap linen under his fingertips 
confirmed the reality of the cloth.  He had _failed_.
     _Damn.  This is *not* good._  He knew that if he wanted to make 
things at least a bit better, he needed to get it back and kill those 
who had taken it.
     The wind shifted direction for a moment, blowing to his ears a 
snippet of conversation, somebody talking about how close they had come 
to being caught. Xelloss stood up quickly to try to see the speakers, 
and lost his balance.  As he fell into the ocean, he had a quick glimpse
 of a small, strange boat with five passengers, well out to sea before 
he was submerged.
     The waters grabbed him instantly, pulling him swiftly towards even 
darker depths.  He tried to break free from them, but both his 
inexperience at swimming and the strength of the current kept him from 
succeeding at escaping it.
     He had a vague impression of a large, black tentacle wrapping 
itself around him.  There was a much less vague impression of a painful 
_dullness_ spreading through his form from where it touched.  Quite 
distinctly and _very_ definitely, Xelloss was aware of a mouthful of 
long, sharp fangs, each and every single one as long as he was tall.
     The mouth started to close, and he _knew_ that he wasn't going to 
be completely inside before the teeth reached him...

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     Hm.  I really _don't_ have much to note here.  Still, I should have
 _something_, so...
     There's actually a good reason for Zelgadiss having gotten to the 
innkeeper before Xelloss.  Zelgadiss is a lot less experienced with 
performing such explanations than Xelloss, and thus chose the earlier 
(but much riskier) time to conduct his explanation while Xelloss knew to
 wait a little longer.  Zelgadiss was really rather lucky to have not 
gotten caught mid-'explanation'.

     Anyway, reviews and dark chocolate are quite welcome and will be 
considered encouragement.