Sometimes

[Author's Note: This takes place right after Slayers Next, before Slayers Try.
Don't send me nasty emails if you don't like this. This is my very second fic,
and I'm not the best writer in the world. You don't like it, don't read it.
Sylphiel is not in this, so if you like her a lot, sorry. Gourry and Amelia
are, but they aren't really in here that much. Lina, Zelgadiss and Xellos are
pretty much it. If none of the above have pissed you off, enjoy!]

Cassi stood in the living room, tapping her feet. "MIKE!" she yelled.
"COMING!" he yelled back.
She sighed. "I swear, that boy takes more time to wash his hair than I do.
Jeez." she commented. She sat down on the couch and started flipping channels
on the TV. "Soap . . . soap . . . kiddie . . . soap . . . educational . . .
shit, isn't there anything on?" She looked at her watch. "Damn it! MIKE! GET
YOUR BUTT DOWN HERE! WE'RE GONNA BE LATE!"
Mike appeared at the top of the steps, hair damp and braided, wearing his
usual clothes. "I'm here. Let's go."
Cassi sighed and shook her head, trying hard to hide a smile. "Where are the
others?" she asked.
"They're supposed to meet us there, I think."
"Oh. Well, shall we?"
Mike nodded, and muttered something under his breath. A black portal
materialized at the bottom of the stairs, about two feet away from Cassi. Mike
came down the stairs and stepped through the portal, followed by Cassi.

* * * * * * *
Mizuko leaned on the wall, trying to look inconspicuous. She knew she wasn't
doing a very good job of it, so she murmured a spell under her breath. She
sighed with relief. There. she thought. Now no one will notice me. She looked
around, trying to see if either Suni or Jake were back yet.
She suddenly heard a small movement behind her. She placed a hand on the
nunchucks in her belt, getting ready in case she was attacked. She could
"smell" the magic of this person, but she was sure she could take them. She
whirled around, weapons ready, and stared in surprise. "Cassi!"
Her friend smiled. "Miz, you weren't going to attack me, were you?"
Miz put her nunchucks away. "Cassi, don't sneak up behind me, okay?"
The girl shrugged. "Whatever. Hey, where are the other two?"
Miz looked around. "Actually, I'm not sure. I sent Suni off to get some info
on this place, then I sent Jake off to find her when she didn't come back."
Cassi frowned. "Hmmm. I think we should go see what's keeping them."
Miz nodded. "I was just going to when you showed up. By the way, who'll be
diplomat this time?"
Cassi sighed. "My turn. I hate being diplomat."
Mike came up behind Cassi. "Well, I don't see anything." Both girls ignored
him and walked off. He shrugged, and followed.

* * * * * * *
"How dare you! My Dragon Slave can beat anything you can think up any day!"
Lina Inverse yelled.
Suniva smirked. "I doubt it. You just try."
Amelia shook her head. "Miss Lina, you really shouldn't do it so close to a
village. Someone could get hurt!"
Lina ignored Amelia. "Okay, you asked for it."
Jake stepped in. "Please, Suni, let's just go. Miz's waiting for us.
Please?"
Suni shook her head. "No way, Jake. I need to uphold the honor of our
group."
"STOP THIS NONSENSE!" a voice yelled. Everyone turned to see who it was. A
figure was standing on a hill nearby, their cape flapping in the wind, a
silhouette against the sun.
Lina shielded her eyes. "Who is that?" she asked.
Suni groaned. "Aww, no..."
Cassi jumped down, landing right in front of Lina, causing her to stumble
back. She bowed. "Lina Inverse, I presume?"
Lina eyed the girl, and straightened up. "Yeah, that's me. What do you
want?"
Cassi smiled. "Well, first, I want to apologize for my friend Suni. She has a
quick temper and a large ego. Please forgive her for it."
Lina smirked. "Okay, fine, I forgive her."
"Second, I want to ask for your assistance on something."
"What kind of assistance?" Lina asked cautiously.
Cassi bowed again. "An acquaintance of yours is in danger. My mission here is
to make sure he doesn't get killed."
Amelia gasped. "You mean Mister Gourry?"
Cassi shook her head. "No. Your friend Zelgadiss."
Lina laughed. "Well, We haven't seen Zel in a while, actually. And I'll bet
he can take care of himself anyway."
Cassi's face was grave. "No, if I can't find him to protect him, he will die.
It has been foreseen."
Lina was taken aback. Then she recovered, and got suspicious. "Who are you,
anyway?"
Cassi sighed. "Well, It's kind of hard to explain. You see-"
She was interrupted by a voice behind her. "Cassi!" Mike yelled.
She groaned. "Oh no."
"Why'd you leave me behind?" He asked, confused. Then he caught site of Lina.
"Woah." He said, staring.
Lina shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. "WHAT?!" she yelled at him.
He stood there, staring, not noticing when MIz came up and realized what he
was doing. She growled "Mike . . ."
"Yeah?" he said, without turning around.
Miz grabbed his arm and started to drag him off, but he wouldn't
"Miz, come on . . . OW! STOP IT! OOOOOOOWWWWWWWW!"
Miz had grabbed his hair and was dragging him away for one of their "talks."
Cassi sighed. "Those two . . . anyway, let me explain . . ."

* * * * * * *
". . . And that's how it works." Cassi finished.
Lina nodded. "Okay, so we need to go find Zel. I don't have the slightest
idea where to look!"
Cassi smiled and winked. "That's why I have this useful contraption here."
She took a small device out of her pocket.
"See, it can find people all over the world! That means, of course, we can
find him pretty quickly."
Amelia sighed. "The hard part is getting to where he is before he's
attacked."
Cassi winked again. "Not so. You may have a hard time, but I know several
spells that can take us from here to there in seconds."
Amelia gasped. "REALLY?! Wow, that's amazing!"
Cassi shrugged. "Not really. Anyway, let's turn it on."
After about 15 minutes of searching, the locator found the exact location of
Zel.
"Right! Let's go!" said Cassi.
She quickly performed the spell, and everyone disappeared, presumedly to
where Zel was.

* * * * * * *
Zel was having a bad day.
Oh sure, he thought, they gave Lina a chance to see the original Claire
Bible, but I have to find a manuscript, just like everyone else! And not one
lead has turned up! I might as well be going in circles, for all the good this
is doing me. Why can't-
His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a loud crash and people yelling.
He quickly drew his sword. The next thing he saw, however, threw him
off-balance.
Lina was running up the hill, being chased by a young man with very long,
black, and braided hair. He had pink eyes, which in and of itself was
unsettling.
But then, he was being chased by a very tall girl with short red hair and
blue eyes, who probably would've been pretty, if there hadn't been a murderous
look on her face.
She, on the other hand, was being chased herself by a very pretty girl with
long black hair and dark glasses. Zel noticed she had a sword.
Then, an even stranger sight, a short girl with shoulder-length blonde hair
and green eyes, who appeared to be riding on . . . air?
Next came another boy, with gray eyes and . . . green hair? He didn't appear
to be in a hurry, but somehow kept up anyway.
Last came Amelia and Gourry, same as ever, pretty cheerful.
Zel was getting a headache.
What the hell is going on? he thought desperately.
As he watched, the redhead caught up with the long-haired boy, and dragged
him off by his braid. Lina stopped running, and only then did she notice Zel.
She waved at him.
"Hey, Zel! Long time no see, huh?"
He smiled a little. "Lina, who are these people?" he asked suspiciously.
Lina grinned. "Oh, I just met them. They're nice, except that Mike guy is a
little wacky. He's the one who was chasing me."
Zel nodded. "Oh. And who are the rest?" he asked, in particular looking at
the long-haired girl.
"Well, the green-haired one is Jake, the redhead is Mizuko, or Miz, and the
blonde is Suniva, or Suni."
"And what about the other girl? The one with the sword?"
"Her? She's the leader. Her name's Cassi."
"Cassi . . . hmmm . . ."
Lina looked at him funny. "Anyway, how's your search going?"
Zel shrugged. "Nowhere. I can't seem to find any of the remaining Claire
Bible manuscripts."
"Aw, that's too bad. Hey, here they are."
Cassi walked up to Zel. She looked him over for a couple seconds, then smiled
and held out her hand. "Hello. My name is Cassandra, or Cassi. I'm pleased to
meet you, Zelgadiss."
He took her hand and shook it. "Hi."
Suni came up and looked at Zel. Then she looked at the space behind Zel.
"Hey, gray dude, who's that guy who's hanging around you?" she asked
bluntly.
Zel looked at her. "Are you talking to me?"
She smirked. "Yeah, I'm talking to you! Who's that guy?"
Zel shook his head. "I don't know what you're talking about. What guy?"
Cassi frowned. "Suni, what does this 'guy' look like?"
Suni shrugged. "Very tall, red robes, purple hair, and has his eyes closed."
Zel gasped. "Rezo!"
Cassi sighed. "Suni, you know it's not polite to tell people there are
spirits hanging around them!"
Suni shrugged again. "Say, who's this Rezo dude, anyway?"
Cassi told Suni about the entire first Slayers series, not missing any
points.
Suni smiled. "Oh, okay, so this guy is a relative of yours then?"
Zel growled. "Unfortunately."
Suni's eyes unfocused. "Well, he says it wasn't his fault that Shabernigdo
was living in his eyes. He didn't know!"
Cassi sighed. "Okay, Suni, you can stop rubbing it in. Anyway, Zel, I'm here
for a specific reason."
"And what would that be?"
"Well, the Council has charged us with your protection, because if we don't,
you're going to die."
Zel smirked. "Yeah, right. Why should I believe you?"
Cassi smiled. "Why shouldn't you? They can see into the future, they see your
death, and they said 'this can't be a good thing', so they gave us an
assignment to protect you. Is it really that hard to believe?"
Zel shrugged. "Well, if you feel a need to do it, I can't stop you. Just
don't get in my way, okay?"
Cassi grinned. "Fair enough."
Zel chuckled to himself. What a bunch of amateurs, he thought. Why, the
oldest can't be more than 15!
Little did he know, however, how true her words would turn out to be . . .

* * * * * * *
"So, that's how it works?" Zel asked.
Cassi nodded. "Yup. Council, elemental groups, missions . . . that's how it
works."
Lina grumbled something unintelligible as Mike tried to slide closer. Miz
growled, and he slid back.
Cassi ignored them, and continued. "Seriously, though, I don't know exactly
how you're supposed to die, so I'm not really sure how to protect you."
Zel shrugged. "Well, as I said, I'm pretty sure I could take care of myself,
but if these people said I would die, who knows? I don't care that much."
Cassi sighed. "I wish I had the luxury of not caring. See, if we don't do a
mission right, we get 20 demerits, which means they won't pay us again until
we've done 20 missions right."
Zel raised an eyebrow. "Is it really that bad?"
"Yeah. Of course, if the entire point of the thing is to change history, if
we don't, it can have pretty drastic results."
Zel looked disbelieving. "Like what?"
"Well, once there was a dimension that went into a nuclear war and destroyed
itself because of the death of one woman."
Zel was shocked. "You're joking . . . aren't you?"
Cassi shook her head. "Happens all the time. That's why it's so important
that you live, because if you don't, there'll be drastic results."
"I completely agree." said a voice behind them.
Cassi dropped the cup of tea she was holding, and just barely kept it from
shattering on the floor. She turned around.
Standing right behind her was . . .
"Xellos?" asked Cassi.
He waved cheerfully. "Hello."
Suni suddenly picked up the plate she was eating off of and threw it at
Xellos. He caught it perfectly.
"Oh, angry, are we, Miss Suniva?"
Suni growled.
Cassi narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "How do you know her name?" she asked.
"Sore wa himitsu desu, Miss Cassandra."
Zel stood up. "Why are you here?" he growled.
"I heard that you were in danger, and I came to see if you needed help."
Suni growled again.
"Be quiet, Suni." said Cassi, obviously annoyed.
Lina smiled at Xellos. "So, how are things with you, Xellos?"
He shrugged, still smiling.
Suni couldn't stand it anymore. She raced outside, gathered some rocks, came
back in, and started pelting Xellos with them.
"Take that, monster!" she shrieked.
Cassi sighed. You could almost see the sweatdrop forming on her head.
"Suni, would you PLEASE calm down? Stop throwing rocks!" Miz said.
Suni turned around and screamed to her right, "NO I DO NOT THINK I'M
OVERREACTING! SHUT UP, JESSINA!"
Cassi sat there for a second, as chaos began to ensue. Just after Miz hit
Mike with a serving platter(for once again chasing Lina), she screamed and
flared, magical energy flooding the entire restaurant.
Everyone shut up.
They were now looking at an EXTREMELY pissed Cassi.
She pointed a finger, and one wall came down.
Even Lina was scared now.
"Now," she said, in a voice that did not allow argument. "If you all do not
SHUT UP within the next few seconds, I will be forced to get nasty, okay?"
Everyone slowly nodded.
Cassi turned and slowly walked up the stairs, candles exploding as she
passed.
They all wisely decided to go to bed also.

* * * * * * *
Cassi sat in front of the mirror, brushing her hair.
"Oh, honestly, can't Suni even make an effort to control herself? She just
freaked out when Xellos came in."
She sighed and laid the brush on the nightstand.
"Why didn't I listen to the Council members and choose to become an
Independent? Why the hell did I have to be so damn loyal and tell them I
couldn't leave my group? Oh, what the hell, momentary lapse in sanity, I
guess."
She lied down on the bed face down with her feet in the air. She flipped open
the small locket she kept on a chain.
Staring back at her was a picture of when she was about 12, just before her
first mission. She closed her eyes and remembered.
My mother insisted she had to take a picture, silly as the idea was.
There was Jake, looking serious beyond his years, Miz, looking motherly (even
though she was only 14 at the time), Suni, looking pissed, and Mike, staring
off into the distance, looking like an air-head.
Then there was me, looking like I had just been given a pony for my
birthday.
I was so ecstatic that we had FINALLY been allowed to go on a mission, a REAL
one, without anyone else.
Tears came to Cassi's eyes, and splashed down on the picture.
Oh, how STUPID I was! I still thought that all the talk from my mother about
killing people was just a joke. I thought it was all like a fairy-tale come
true. A sweet fantasy, a silly dream. Little did I know how awful it all could
be.
Once again, tears splashed onto the picture (which was magically sealed, so
they didn't hurt it anyway).
Alone and lonely, Cassi succumbed to tears.

Zelgadiss tried desperately to block out the loud sobs coming from the room
next to him.
Really, if she needs to cry, can't she do it quieter? That is REALLY
beginning to get annoying, I wish she'd stop . . . I wonder why she's crying?
She seemed okay when we were talking at dinner . . . not like I care, of
course, it's just . . .
Zel shook his head, and tried to go back to sleep.

Lina shook her head.
I can't just ignore the fact that these people are strangers, even if they
ARE nice . . . I wonder what I should do? I suppose I'll just have to stay
around until they decide their "mission" is done with . . . I'm not sure I
trust that Cassi girl, she seems a little suspicious to me. And that Mike guy
. . .

Suni sat on her bed, fuming.
DAMN that Xellos! WHY is he hanging around me?! It's not like I ASKED for
some WEIRDO like him! Oooo, if he comes anywhere near me tomorrow, or says
that stupid phrase of his . . . I send a rock right through his chest!

Mike sat on his bed, planning.
If I could make a diversion for Miz, then that would leave me and Lina alone,
and I could tell her my true feelings . . .
(The author will now withdraw from this train of thought, since it is bound
to get very stupid very soon.)

* * * * * * *
The next day, Cassi and her group stood in the hallway, waiting for Lina and
Gourry to wake up.
Miz sighed. "Do they really NEED to sleep this long? It doesn't make any
sense to me!"
Cassi gave Miz a discouraged look. "Miz, ya know, some people enjoy sleeping
in, as opposed to you, who feels the need to get up at the crack of dawn.
You're the exception, NOT the rule."
Suni tapped her foot impatiently. "Yeah, well, this is a little too much, in
my opinion." She looked to her right. "No, I do not! Shut UP!"
Jake sat patiently on a chair, looking absently out the window. Mike sat next
to him, staring off into the distance.
"Hey, guys, guess what?" he said distractedly. "I think there's a Phoenix in
this dimen-"
Cassi cut him off. "OH MY GOD, YOU'RE RIGHT! DAMN, I NEED TO DO A SUMMONING
SPELL AT ONCE!"
Lina opened the door sleepily. "What's all the noise about?"
Miz quickly explained as Cassi rushed outside.
In two minutes, they were all standing in an open field, the group in a
circle, everyone else standing nearby.
Cassi quickly hushed everyone, and eagerly began.
"I summon thee, servant of the elementals. Spirits of the Earth guide the
loyal server of fire to me, it's companion. Plants of wisdom, aid the being
with your leaves. Waters of the vast oceans open the passages to me. Wind from
the heavens, aid the speed of the ally." the elemental group clasped hands and
shut their eyes in concentration. "All powerful Phoenix, come and fuse with
me! Let your power swamp all others in your presence and add to mine, to
become one. My equal, come to your comrade!" she cried with confidence, face
tilted upward and eyes closed. A beam of light focused on Cassi, then moved to
the center of the group's circle. In the light beam, a large creature
materialized, flapping it's enormous wings. All the group opened their eyes to
see the creature.
A great voice emanated from the creature. "You are not my comrade, foolish
one. I will not fuse. You have summoned me to no avail." with that, the
Phoenix disappeared.
The entire group looked at Cassi. She had a look of utter shock on her face.
She obviously had not thought of that.
"But . . . I . . ." she stammered, disbelieving. Her eyes filled with tears.
"It . . . wouldn't . . ." Suddenly, her knees buckled, and she fell into a
dead faint, Jake just catching her before she hit the ground.

* * * * * * *
Cassi sat at the table, numbly watching the others eat breakfast.
It's not fair, she thought bitterly. It's not fair that Claudia could get a
Phoenix, but I can't! Am I really that useless?
Mike looked over at Cassi worriedly. I'll bet she's beating herself up over
the fact that it wasn't hers. Oh, Cassi, you're so brave, and so full of
feeling. The ones who fly the highest fall the hardest, I suppose. Oh, well.
Miz sighed inwardly. Oh, now she's going to sulk all day! Cassi, why can't
you accept your life as it is? Hmm . . . I don't like the way Mike's looking
at Lina . . .

* * * * * * *
Cassi was lying in the middle of an open field, contemplating the clouds.
". . . And that one looks like a house, and that one looks like a bunny, and
that one looks like a little girl-"
"Excuse me."
She sat up quickly. "Oh, hi Zel."
He cleared his throat nervously. "Um, are you okay?"
She smiled at him. "Oh, I'm fine. That whole experience with the Phoenix was
a little, uh, unsettling, but I'm okay now."
Zel nodded and sat down. "Okay, just wondering. Was it really that important
to you?" he asked.
She drew her knees up to her chest. "Well, yes, it was. You see, Zel, an
elemental animal is a soul mate, which is with you for life. If you're born
with magic, there is an animal that is born also, just for you and you alone.
It is in whatever dimension(it doesn't really matter), and if you find it, it
will be your friend, your bodyguard, your confidante . . . your own, personal
conscience, so to speak. Oh, if it had been mine . . . well, I won't go into
that, but it was important to me."
Zel nodded again. "Oh."
Cassi looked at him and smiled. "It's okay if you don't understand, it is a
little hard to believe, I know."
Zel shook his head. "Oh, no, I didn't mean it like that, really, it's just-"
"Just what?" Cassi asked. She leaned a little closer. "Do you want to tell me
something, Zel?" she asked, a little suggestively.
He turned red. "No! I mean, uh, um, I uh, gotta go. Bye!"
He quickly high-tailed it outta there.
Cassi snapped her fingers. "Rats! I almost had 'im!" she said.

* * * * * * *
That night, Cassi sneaked out into the hallway, not making a sound.
Sometimes having were-leopard blood is helpful, especially when you need to
sneak around. she thought
She flattened herself to the wall at a sound, but realized it was just Gourry
snoring.
Jeez, she thought. He's NOISY.
Suddenly a voice from behind her made her freeze.
"Going somewhere, Cassi?"
She turned around. "It's none of your business where I go, Zelgadiss
Greywolf! Besides, I don't need help."
He raised an eyebrow. "And exactly what don't you need help with?"
She shook her head. "I'm not telling you. Follow me if you like, but DON'T
interfere, or it could mean your life."
He frowned. "Are you threatening me?"
She shook her head again. "No. What I'm going to do is highly dangerous, and
you might get killed if you interfere, not necessarily by me."
He shrugged "All right. Lead the way."

* * * * * * *
Two hours later, they stood in a clearing, next to a pool of water.
Cassi knelt next to the water. "This'll do." she said calmly, straightening
up.
Zel looked away for a second. "This is a strange place."
Cassi nodded, and began to take off her shirt.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" Zel yelled, horrified(and bright red).
"Shut up, you'll disturb him. He mustn't be disturbed." She took off her
shirt completely, which (to Zel's eminent relief) had another one under it.
She waded into the pool, until she was waist deep. She took off her
sunglasses, and her golden eyes shone through the darkness.
"Wow." Zel said under his breath.
As he watched, she gathered a handful of water and sprinkled it into her
hair. The droplets glittered in the moonlight, making her hair look like it
was strewn with diamonds.
"Oh, Mighty Ones," she began, putting her hands in a praying position level
with her chest.
"Oh Mighty Ones, Bringers of Light, of Darkness, of Sunrise, of Sunset . .
."
As she continued to chant, she brought her hands down and began to make waves
in the water, occasionally sprinkling more over her head.
". . . My Friends, My Enemies, all in one, Bring the Ender of Days . . ."
As he realized what she was doing, Zel tried to stop it, but something
prevented him from interfering.
". . . Bring the Soul-Taker, the Life-Sucker, the Mortiband . . ."
Zel began to beat his fists on the invisible force field, trying to get in,
to no avail.
". . . One Whom I Love more than My Very Life, Come to Me . . ."
Zel cried out desperately, trying to do anything that could stop her.
". . . Become One with Me, and Make Me Complete . . ."
Lina and the rest of the group appeared out of nowhere, and Zel quickly told
them what had happened. Oblivious, Cassi continued.
". . . By My Mother, By My Father, By All that Is, Fuse with Me . . ."
Mike and Miz together charged the shield, trying to get in.
". . .And Let Me Be FREE!" she screamed the last word, closing her eyes,
throwing her hands up to the sky.
The entire group watched as the shield collapsed, her with it.
"CASSI!" Jake yelled, charging into the pool and dragging her out, laying her
out on the bank.
"Oh God . . . oh God . . . oh God . . ." Mike gasped helplessly, cradling her
head on his lap, tears streaming down his cheeks. "Cassi . . . no . . . NO!"
The entire forest became silent. Not even crickets were chirping.
Mike watched as a shadow fell over them. He looked up . . .
"Who is the foolish one who disturbs my slumber?" a dragon boomed. "They must
know that it is at the cost of their life."
Cassi slowly opened her eyes and got up, ignoring the protests from Mike.
"It is I, oh great one, who disturbed you. Know this. I did not call to beg a
boon. Rather, I called . . . to avenge a death."
Miz went white. "Cassi, you're not . . . OH MY GOD! NO, CASSI!"
She ignored Miz, and continued "Four years ago I knew a young man, a
wonderful young man, who came here. I was sick, and he came to ask you to heal
me. You did, and took his life as the price. For this," and she drew her
sword. "You will be killed."
Miz's eyes went wide. "Patrick . . .?"
The other elementals slowly nodded. "So that's how he died." Mike said
quietly. "I never knew."
Cassi faced the great dragon, bigger than even a Water Dragon full grown,
without even flinching.
"Now, great one, YOU'LL GET YOURS!" she screamed, as she attacked the huge
thing.
As they all watched, Cassi's sword grew longer, blacker. What had looked like
an ordinary sword . . .
"It looks like a black Sword of Light . . ." Lina whispered.
Zel nodded. "How strange . . ."
Cassi hit the thing with her sword, and it shrieked in pain.
"What IS that sword?!" Miz cried, confused(and a little scared).
Cassi fell back as the dragon swung it's tail, wiping out about a mile of
woodland.
She grinned. "YOU SEE, GREAT ONE," she shouted at it. "THIS SWORD IS VERY
SPECIAL! IT CAN KILL EVEN THE LIKES OF YOU!"
Once again she attacked the dragon, yelling a wild battle cry, almost
animal-like. Her sword went in . . . and with a great keening wail, the dragon
fell, flattening several miles worth of trees.
Cassi jumped down as the great beast disintegrated.
She looked at all the group, who's mouths were hanging open. Only Suni
managed to say something.
"Well," she said. "That was short."
Cassi laughed. "Yes, well, it was his own fault. A little-known fact: if a
Parlidragon heals someone as a boon, that person will be able to kill it.
Obviously, this one didn't exactly expect that."
Zel's eyes narrowed. "What the HELL is in your sword?" he asked
suspiciously.
Cassi looked over at him brightly. "That's for ME to know, and YOU to find
out, Zelly-chan." she said. She kissed him on the cheek (causing him to turn
bright red), then skipped off towards the inn, giggling.

* * * * * * *
Cassi has been acting VERY strange lately. Mike thought. It was the next day,
breakfast time. Cassi was laughing and talking with Lina.
She's been having strange mood swings. She's acting like a child. I REALLY
wish she would tell me. I AM her best friend, after all. he sighed. I love her
like a sister, and I don't want her to be hurt . . .
Cassi looked at Mike, and smiled. "What's going on, Micko?"
He was shocked. She hasn't called me that since we were 14! Since . . . since
Patrick died . . .
She put her head to one side. "You okay, Mike? What's goin' on?"
He quickly shook his head. "Oh, uh, nothin', nothin' at all."
She smiled. "Okay, good."
Suni frowned. "Why the hell are you so cheerful, Cassi?"
Cassi looked at her, confused. "Why wouldn't I be?"
Suni shook her head. "YOU JUST KILLED A PARLIDRAGON! HOW CAN YOU BE SO
CHEERFUL?!"
Cassi looked shocked. "What? What are you talking about?"
Mike looked over at her with surprise. "You're kidding, right?"
Cassi clutched her head. "Wha . . . what are you . . . talking about . . ."
Miz looked alarmed. "WHAT'S GOING ON?!"
Cassi clutched her head harder. Jake suddenly tapped her neck, grabbing a
small object.
"Look!" he whispered.
Cassi looked at the thing. "A . . . a memory sucker. Who would . . ." She
shook her head. "I remember now . . ."
Cassi shoved back her chair and ran upstairs, tears streaming down her
cheeks.
Mike shoved back his chair and ran after her. "Cassi, wait!"

* * * * * * *
Cassi sat on her bed, clutching her knees and rocking back and forth.
Mike opened her door. "Cassi . . ."
She looked up at him, her eyes full of pain and loss. To Mike, she looked
like a small, lost child.
"Oh, Cassi . . ." He sat down on the bed next to her, and hugged her,
stroking her hair. "You know, you act like you're all together, and yet you're
not always . . ."
". . . And you act like an airhead, but your not in any way." she whispered.
"You know, I always thought I would be the one comforting you, but now . .
."
"Well, you know, I am older than you. You know, when I first met you, I felt
like you were the only touchstone I had, the only solid thing I could hold on
to . . ."
". . . And now I'm the one holding on by a thread . . . oh, Mike, what am I
gonna do?"
"Well, first I think you should rest a little, calm down, mourn, then come
and help me summon my animal."
Cassi's eyes went wide and she looked up at him. "You don't mean . . .?" she
asked desperately.
He nodded, smiling.
"Well, let's go!" she cried, taking his hand and dragging him across the room
and out the door.

* * * * * * *
Mike smiled calmly, not at all nervous. He began the spell. "I summon thee,
servant of the elementals. Spirits of the Earth guide the loyal server of air
and lightning to me, it's companion. Plants of wisdom, aid the being with your
leaves. Waters of the vast oceans open the passages to me. Fires of the hells,
protect the being with your heat." Again, the elemental group clasped hands
and shut their eyes in concentration. "All powerful Thunder Horse, come and
fuse with me. Let your power swamp all others in your presence and add to
mine, to become one. My equal, come to your comrade." he said with confidence,
face tilted upward and eyes closed.
A bright light bore down on him, then moved to the circle's center. A
silhouette of an enormous hoofed animal appeared. It moved towards Mike, and
there was an explosion.
The entire group was thrown back by the blast. When the dust cleared, there
was a small horse sitting on Mike's shoulder. He put his head to one side and
smiled. The horse mimicked him.
Cassi rubbed her rear end. "Yeowch."
Miz echoed her sentiments, followed by Suni.
Jake went up to Mike and gave him a high-five. The horse imitated the motion,
but it looked stranger, since there wasn't anyone for it to give a high-five
to.
Cassi looked at the horse and smiled. Mike grinned back at her. Once again,
the horse imitated him.
Suni looked at it funny. "Mike, that's kinda creepy. Can you get it to
stop?"
Mike shrugged, the horse imitated him. "What're you talking about?"
Suni sighed and shook her head.
"Congratulations, Mr. Mikael."
Mike turned around. "Oh, hi Xellos!"
Suni grabbed a rock and hurled it at him. "DIE, CHURLISH EVIL-EYED
MISCREANT!" she screamed.
Xellos calmly caught the rock in one hand. "What is wrong, Miss Suniva?"
"YOU EXIST, YOU PERNICIOUS ONION-EYED RABBIT-SUCKER!" she cried, hurling more
rocks.
Xellos smiled, while dodging the rocks. "I can't help the fact that I exist,
Miss Suniva."
Suni growled. "And why do you exist, you whoreson rug-headed snipe?" she
asked quietly.
"Ah, sore wa himitsu desu, Miss Suniva."
She screamed in rage, and started to hurl rocks faster than anyone could see
(with the exceptions of Cassi and Xellos himself).
Cassi raised her arm, and a shield sprang up between Suni and Xellos. She
looked at him. "Maybe you'd better leave." she said seriously.
Xellos smiled again. "Yes, that would be a good idea. Goodbye, Miss
Cassandra."
Cassi sighed as he disappeared, then dissipated the shield, which Suni had
been throwing rocks at the entire time. She neatly dodged a rock and sighed
again, shaking her head. I'm going to have to do something about this. she
thought.

* * * * * * *
Cassi was sitting on a hill near the inn, thinking. What am I gonna do?
There's some person in this dimension who has it in for me, but I don't know
who! And then there's the problem with Zel . . . how in the world am I
supposed to protect him when I can't even manage myself?! How-
Her thoughts were suddenly cut off by a voice behind her. "Hello, Cassi. How
are things?" Zel asked, sitting next to her.
Cassi sighed. "Oh, things are just peachy. My best friend got an Animal and I
didn't, I just killed a Parlidragon, and I can't seem to take care of myself,
let alone the person I'm here to protect."
"Cheer up, things could be worse. Like, you could be stuck in a stone body
with no way out in sight."
Cassi looked shocked. "Oh, I'm sorry, Zel, I didn't mean-"
"That's okay. I'm not offended." he smiled at her; a rather sad smile, she
thought.
" 'Oh, I am fortune's fool.' " Cassi quoted.
He looked at her. "No, you aren't. At least you're not dead."
She shook her head. "It's a line from a play, Romeo and Juliet, from my
dimension. It's about two young people from rival families and their doomed
love."
Zel sighed. "That's all love ever is. Doomed."
Cassi nodded. "I've never been in love before, but I have had quite a few
relationships, all ending in disaster."
He looked at her again. "Oh? How so?"
She laughed bitterly. "Well, most of them died. The ones who didn't were the
ones who broke my heart then left, not caring what happened to me."
"I'm sorry. Why'd they all die?"
"Oh, on my very first mission I went to a kingdom in another dimension. They
were having dragon troubles, you see."
Zel nodded. "Go on . . ."
"At the same time, the princess of the kingdom was looking to get married."
Cassi sighed and shook her head. "Her name was Mydia. She was a sorceress, not
a very skilled one, but a sorceress all the same. There was a young man she
wanted to marry, but he would have none of it."
"You see, he was just there to slay the dragon, not get married. But when he
saw me slay the dragon single-handedly, he fell in love with me. He asked me
to marry him, even though he was about 21 and I was about 12 (the princess was
17). Naturally, I refused, but he wouldn't leave me alone."
"Now, you can see why this would make the princess mad, especially since she
was so used to getting her way with everything. How dare a peasant sorceress
like me get her prince!"
"Anyway, she decided that I had to be punished. She performed a spell that
simply stated: anyone who fell in love with me would be killed."
She stopped, and a single tear slid down her cheek. She quickly wiped it away
and continued.
"Well, the spell worked, marvelously well. Except for the prince, every
boyfriend I've had since then has died, one way or another. Of course, by our
laws of magic, the only way a spell can be dissolved is a) the original caster
ends it, or b) the original caster dies or is killed."
"You can imagine this girl would NOT dissolve it on her own, so the only
choice was to kill her. And we did. She's dead now, so I'm safe and my
boyfriends are safe."
Zel frowned. "But who would get the throne?"
Cassi smiled. "She eventually did marry her prince after I left, and they
did have 2 children before I killed her, so there isn't really any problem."
He nodded. "Okay. I suppose that makes sense."
She clenched her fists. "She was such a spoiled brat! If she had paid any
attention at all, she would've seen I didn't even like him back, and she
didn't have to do that spell. Then I never would have had to kill her."
Zel shook his head. "I know the type. You know Martina? She's exactly like
that." He coughed. "of course, Lina actually did do something to her, but-"
"But it doesn't justify her actions." Cassi finished for him.
Zel nodded. Then he smiled at her. "Well, either way, she's gone, so you
don't have to worry anymore, do you?"
She nodded halfheartedly. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
Zel put his head to one side. "What's wrong? You still sound depressed."
Cassi sighed. "I have this strange feeling I'm going to fail this mission."
she said.
He shook his head, smiling. "I doubt it. You strike me as a capable person,
even if you tend to be a little moody."
She half-smiled. "Thanks. Trouble just follows me around, I guess that's why
I'm so moody."
Zel opened his mouth to say more, but before he could, Cassi felt herself
falling . . .

Everything was on fire. Cassi stood in the middle of it all, not affected.
"What is happening?" she said out loud. there was nothing and no one around,
as far as she could tell.
She turned around, and saw . . .
"NO! IT CAN'T BE TRUE!" she screamed. Strewn about on the empty field were
the corpses of her entire group, plus Lina, Gourry, Amelia . . .
"Oh my Goddess! Zel!" she shrieked. The chimera was stretched out on the
ground, a sword driven through his body. Cassi backed away, tears in her eyes,
her hands on her cheeks.
"NOOOOOOO!" she screamed, flaring out, burning everything . . .

"Cassi!" Zel said.
She sat bolt upright. "Zel! You're alive!" she said.
He looked puzzled. "What do you mean, I'm alive? Of course I'm alive!"
She put a hand on her forehead. "Oh, dear goddess no . . ." she whispered
desperately.
Zel looked at her with concern. "Cassi, maybe you should lie down, you look a
little faint-"
"I'm fine!" she snapped at him. She stood up shakily. "Or, maybe I'm not . .
." she said, just before fainting.

* * * * * * *
Miz shook her head and sighed. What IS it with this girl and visions? she
thought, annoyed. She's like a magnet for them.
She shook her head again. "She'll be fine, she's just a little drained,
that's all. Visions can do that to you."
Zel frowned. "Visions?" he asked suspiciously.
Miz nodded. "Visions. Now, tell me, did you hear her say anything strange?"
Zel nodded. "She was screaming, just 'no, no, it can't be true'." he said.
Miz sighed. "Wonderful. So, something really bad is going to happen. Just
wonderful"
Mike peeked in. "Is everything okay?" he asked worriedly.
Zel nodded. "Miz says she's fine, she had a vision and is a little drained."
Mike sighed with relief. "Oh, good. I'll just do an Energy-Transfer spell."
He walked up to the bed and placed his palm on Cassi's. He murmured the spell
under his breath, then dropped his hand. She slowly opened her eyes.
"Oh, Mike, you're all right!" she cried, and hugged him. She then saw Miz.
"Oh, Miz!" she cried again, hugging her.
Mike was shocked. "Cassi, the vision wasn't that bad, was it?"
"You were all dead! You, Miz, Jake, Suni, Lina, Gourry, Amelia, and . . . and
. . ."
"And me?" said Zel.
She nodded. "And everything was burning! There wasn't anything alive in the
entire place! Not even a blade of grass. It was all dead . . . it was so awful
. . ." she burst into tears.
Zel shifted uncomfortably. Mike nodded at him, and he practically fled out
the door. Mike sat down on the bed and held Cassi while she cried. Miz quietly
walked out, closing the door behind her.

* * * * * * *
"Hey, waitress, we could use some more food over here!" Lina yelled.
Cassi smiled sadly. She could almost see the sweatdrop on Zel's head.
Lina grinned widely as the waiter brought more food over. "This is MINE,
Gourry!" she yelled as he tried to grab some.
Cassi watched them and sighed. When was the last time I was that care-free?
she thought. I remember, on my eighth birthday! Just before I got the ring . .
. she suddenly stared at the ring on her finger. It's all because 2,000 years
ago this stupid ring decided to take my ancestor as it's owner . . . I want to
get rid of it! she grabbed the ring and pulled it off, flinging into a far
corner of the room. There. That oughta . . . wait, it's back in my hand! I
forgot, it has a mind of it's own . . . And it obviously doesn't want to
leave. she thought desperately. What am I gonna do . . . oh, who am I kidding?
I'm not going to suddenly become a happy, carefree little girl again if I
throw it away! Oh, my goddess, give me an answer! I need to do something, or
I'll go insane . . .
"Hey, are you gonna eat that?" Lina suddenly asked, leering at Cassi's
plate.
Cassi stared at the girl, then suddenly screamed and ran up the stairs.
Lina smiled sheepishly. "I just wanted to know if she was done . . . sheesh .
. ."

* * * * * * *
Once again, Cassi was sitting alone, this time on her bed.
Oh, I was just horrible! I wasn't even thinking, I just did that . . . I hope
Lina's not mad at me . . .
Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. "Come in." she said. To
her surprise, Jake opened the door. She had been expecting Mike or Zel.
He glanced at her shyly.
What the hell is wrong with him?! He's acting like a silly teenager!
He sat down on the bed next to her. "Hey, Cass, you okay?" he asked.
She nodded. "Yeah. I'm sorry about what happened. It was-"
"Lina's not mad. A little surprised, but not mad."
Cassi sighed with relief. "Oh, thank the goddess. What's going on down
there?"
"Nothing much. Mike's a little worried, but that's it."
"That's good. Not that he's worried, but-"
"Cassi," Jake said suddenly, grabbing her hand. "Cassi, what's wrong? You can
tell me, you know. I wouldn't tell. Really I wouldn't."
Cassi stared at her hand that was in his grip, too stunned to answer.
"I could help. You know I would do anything to help, Cassi." he said
desperately.
Cassi now looked at him. His eyes were soft, and he was smiling at her.
"Jake, I . . . I don't-" she stammered.
He suddenly put a finger to her lips. "Don't say it." he said.
Cassi's eyes flew wide as he kissed her. Thoughts flew through her head. Dear
goddess, he's kissing me! Oh Kami-sama above, why is he kissing me?!
She jerked away, slapping him as hard as she could. "AAAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHH!"
she screamed, running out of her room.
Jake frowned. That wasn't the reaction he had been looking for.

* * * * * * *
Cassi came barreling down the stairs, babbling incoherently. Thankfully,
there wasn't anyone there besides the group, so she was saved some
embarrassment.
Mike got up and walked over to her. Cassi babbled at him, something about
Jake, and kissing.
"What're you trying to tell me? Huh? What is it, girl? What is it? Is Timmy
stuck in the well?" Mike asked. Cassi gave him a cold look and smacked him.
Before she could say anything else, her eyes went wide. "Jake!" she shrieked,
pointing at him. He was sitting at the table staring at her, like everyone
else. She began babbling again. "But you're - you're not - you were - I mean
-" she stammered.
Jake looked at her funny. "What's wrong, Cassi?" he asked.
She took a deep breath, and yelled, "IF YOU'RE DOWN HERE, THEN WHO THE HELL
IS IN MY ROOM?!"
Mike's eyes went wide. "What do you mean, who's in your room?!" he cried.
Cassi shook her head. "THERE IS SOMEONE IN MY ROOM WHO LOOKS EXACTLY LIKE
JAKE! HE JUST KISSED ME!" she yelled again.
Mike rushed upstairs, followed closely by Jake, Lina, Gourry, and Zel.
Cassi put a hand on her forehead. "Oh, shimatta." she gasped, right before
collapsing.

* * * * * * *
Mike surveyed the scene.
"Who are you, and where did you come from?" he asked menacingly.
The false Jake laughed. "Oh, I suspect you know me."
Mike swore under his breath, then pulled his hair band off, letting his black
hair free in the sudden wind. He brought his hands up to his chest, forming a
triangle with them. "LIGHTNING!" he screamed.
A flash of lightning came through the ceiling, making a huge hole and letting
in all the dying light from the setting sun. Mike's rainbow tints shone
brightly, so bright it was hard to look at them. He brought one hand up above
his head. "LIGHTNING STRIKE!" he screamed, energy swirling and forming above
his hand. He threw the enormous disc of lightning energy at the person.
Unfortunately . . .
"What in HELL do you think you're doing?!" cried the innkeeper. The entire
room was in ruins, since the person had disappeared at the last minute.
Mike looked at his feet. "Um, well, I . . ." he stammered, turning red and
digging his foot into the floor. His horse (which he had recently named Uparu,
Upa for short) imitated him.
Cassi appeared at the door. "Don't worry, it'll be fine in a second."
The innkeeper turned purple. "NO IT WON'T BE FINE-"
He was cut off by Cassi. "Not a scratch." she said, smiling innocently at
him. He looked around. The room that had just been trashed a second ago was
now as good as new (which was a better condition than it had been in before).
Cassi put a hand on his forehead. "You will now remember none of this. This
never happened. Go away."
The innkeeper nodded slowly, like he was in a dream. He turned around and
walked out the door, also very slowly.
Zel turned to Cassi. "So, do you have any idea who that person was?"
Cassi nodded slowly. "Pretty sure. I know I've kissed him before, and he was
the only one I've met that kissed like that."
Mike looked confused. "Who would that be?" he asked.
Cassi grimaced like she had a bad taste in her mouth. "Ex-Councilor Gaired."
she said grimly.
Miz gasped. "You're not . . . serious, are you?" she asked anxiously.
Cassi nodded. "It had to be him."
Jake shook his head. "The NERVE of that guy, imitating me! Why, I should-"
"You should do nothing, Jake. He just wants to cause me trouble, that's all.
If I ignore him, he'll leave me alone . . . for now, anyway."
Jake clenched his fists. "But we can't just let him off! I mean, why-"
Cassi shook her head. "NO, Jake. I refuse to let him have the satisfaction of
knowing he pissed me off."
Jake hung his head. "Oh, all right." he said sulkily.
Cassi smiled. "Good. Now, we need a plan."
Mike put his head to one side, imitated by Upa. "A plan for what?"
"A plan to stop what I saw in my vision. It WON'T happen, not if I have
anything to do with it."
Miz sighed and shook her head. "Oh no . . ."

* * * * * * *
The next morning, they all sat at a table downstairs, Cassi at the head of
it.
"Okay, now, from my extensive knowledge of this dimension, I have determined
that the location of the slaughter was right outside of Seyruun."
Amelia stood up. "How can you know that? You said everything was dead!"
Cassi waggled a finger at Amelia. "Yes, it was, but buildings aren't alive,
remember? And I saw buildings, specifically the towers of Seyruun. Now," Cassi
raised a hand as Amelia began to protest. "We won't involve anyone, not your
father, not the guards, no one. This is MY battle, and I'M the one who must
fight it."
Mike frowned. "You're not going alone, are you?"
She smiled. "No, I'm not going alone. Rest assured, I'm not THAT stupid.
Anyway, we need to be there by sunset, so I'll do a transportation spell, just
so we can get there unscathed, and quickly."
Lina nodded. "Right! Let's go!"
Cassi reached out and caught the back of her cape, causing her to sit down
again, rather forcefully.
"Wait just a second, Lina. I'm not done yet. Now, I don't know if this sunset
is TODAY'S, or TOMORROW'S. That means, we could be there early. Now, I know
there's SOMETHING that's working against us, so if something happens, you guys
need to tell me. Remember, they might pull a stunt like the memory-sucker, so
keep on your guard. Make SURE, if I start acting strange, that you try and
find out why. I just KNOW, if I leave you guys, there'll be trouble, so TRY
and watch me, cause it's me they want."
Lina nodded. "Right. Are we going now?"
Cassi shook her head. "Not yet. I need to . . . say goodbye."

* * * * * * *
Cassi sat at the head of the gravestone with a bouquet of flowers in her
hand.
"You know, Pat, I really wished you hadn't gone and asked that Parlidragon
for me to live . . . I would have rather died than to see you dead . . . oh,
I miss you . . . Mike is a great lightning elemental, but you were so much
better . . . I mean, summoning it without even a spell, that was cool . . . I
suppose it's goodbye now. I'll see you again, I promise . . . and I will
always keep your necklace close to my heart . . . goodbye, my friend."
As she laid the flowers on the grave, two tears fell, leaving two small damp
spots. Cassi quickly got up and moved away from the grave, standing there for
a second, just looking.
"Hey Cassi, come on!" yelled Mike from the gate.
Cassi turned her head. As she did, a phantom wind blew her hair around her
face, pushing it into her eyes, blinding her momentarily. When she could see
again, she saw that she was holding a small flower in one hand.
Oh Patrick, you're just the same as you used to be . . . she thought, smiling
at the small gift. I will always remember you . . . always.

* * * * * * *
When they reappeared from Cassi's transportation spell, they found that they
were on a hill overlooking Seyruun.
Cassi smiled. "What a beautiful city. Amelia, you should be proud."
Amelia blushed. "Well, it isn't mine to rule yet . . ."
Cassi shrugged. "That's a good thing. You need to learn a little more about
life before you actually become the ruler."
"I'll say she does." Lina muttered under her breath.
Cassi smiled. "I see no reason why we can't go down and enjoy ourselves for
the day. After all, it's not until sunset we need to be back here."
Mike grinned. "Okay! Let's go have fun!"
Cassi grinned back. "Let's!"

That afternoon, after getting a grand welcome from Amelia's father, Prince
Philionel, and having a full day, they carefully snuck out of the castle.
Cassi led the way, going so silently that Lina was amazed. After they were
outside of the city, she began asking questions. "How come you are so quiet?
And how come you're always wearing those funny glasses?" she asked
suspiciously.
Cassi shrugged. "I have the blood of a were-leopard." she said simply.
Lina wasn't satisfied. "What's that?"
Cassi smiled. "A were-leopard is like a were-wolf, except instead of a wolf,
you can turn into a leopard."
Lina stepped backwards. "You mean you can turn into a LEOPARD?!"
Cassi shook her head. "No, I can't. I have the BLOOD, but I don't have the
POWER. You see," she said, taking off her glasses and showing her golden eyes.
"The blood gives me a few cat-like qualities, like being able to sneak around,
and these eyes, but I'm not an actual were-leopard myself."
Lina nodded. "Oh, I see now. Thanks for clearing that up."
Cassi smiled and put on her glasses. "No problem."
Zel looked around, his sword drawn. "Exactly what are we waiting for, Cassi?"
he asked uncertainly.
"You're waiting for me." a deep voice said.
Cassi hissed, baring her teeth (not like she had fangs, but she did it
anyway). "YOU!" she screeched.
The dark-clothed man smiled. "My dear, you shouldn't do that, it REALLY ruins
your voice." he said smoothly.
Cassi hissed again. "What do you care, you hentai?!" she hissed fiercely.
He smiled again. 'Now, there's no need for name-calling, my sweet child. I
only want one thing."
"And what is that?"
"Oh, just this : That stone man must die. You must fail, so they'll cast you
out of the entire society. Then you'll be a rogue like me, and we can be
together."
Mike stepped in front of Cassi. "As long as we live, Cassi will never be a
rogue!" he cried.
The man frowned. "I guess that means I'll have to kill you then."
Miz stood in front of Mike, flanked by Jake and Suni. "You'll do no such
thing!" she screamed, hurling a beam of ice at him.
Cassi watched as the ice bounced off harmlessly. "Shimatta. Okay, guys, I
have a plan. Now, the armor-"
Miz nodded. "Good plan. We all do it, okay?" They all nodded.
The man watched with amusement as all five of them placed a hand on the
ground. "Now what are you doing? You know it will be completely pointless, so
why bother?"
Cassi looked up at him. "Because it is human nature to fight, even when every
odd is against us, we'll still fight. It is my nature, Mike's nature, Jake's
nature, hell, it's ALL of Suni's nature. Even Miz has a will to fight when she
knows she'll lose. It's just nature. And let me tell you what else is nature .
. ." As Gaired watched, they all began chanting.
"Element of Spirit . . ." began Suni.
". . . Element of Water . . ." Miz continued.
". . . Element of Air . . ." Mike repeated.
". . . Element of Earth . . ." Jake said desperately.
". . . Element of Fire . . ." Cassi joined in.
All together, they screamed, "ALL ELEMENTS, HEED OUR CALLS AND BECOME ONE
WITH US!"
First, Suni became covered with a dull gray mist . . .
. . . Next, Miz became enveloped by water . . .
. . . Then Mike became covered by lightning . . .
. . . Then Jake followed with a covering of rock . . .
. . . And lastly, Cassi became engulfed in flames.
Gaired gasped and stumbled. "You . . . you did . . ." he stammered.
The form of fire answered. "We did the ancient summoning spells, the first
created by the first sorcerers . . ."
The form of spirit continued. ". . . It is now your time to die, Gaired . .
."
The form of water took up the answer. ". . . For you have tried to destroy
the children of the elements . . ."
The form of lightning now spoke. ". . . the chosen ones, the ones of legend .
. ."
Last, the form of rock finished. ". . . And that is the gravest sacrilege."
Gaired stumbled back, and disappeared, too frightened to do anything else.
Abruptly, all the spells ended at once, and the entire group simultaneously
fell to their knees.
Lina ran forward. "Hey, are you guys okay?"
Cassi nodded. "Yeah. That was extremely draining, but that's easily
remedied."
Lina nodded cheerfully. "A feast!" she cried enthusiastically.
Jake leaned over and puked.
"Or . . . maybe not." Lina said, wrinkling her nose.
Jake smiled weakly. "Sorry. That's a side affect of extreme magically-caused
fatigue." he explained.
Miz nodded. "Now, let's drag ourselves back to the city, shall we?"
Cassi nodded back. "I'll do a spell." Before anyone could protest about her
state, she did the transportation spell . . . and promptly fainted once they
were there.

* * * * * * *
Prince Philionel frowned at his daughter. "Amelia, I trust you. But can't you
tell me?" he asked, pleading.
Amelia solemnly shook her head. "No, daddy. Cassi has sworn me to secrecy. I
must uphold my honor by not telling you."
Phil's shoulders drooped. "I couldn't have you not upholding your honor."
Cassi slumped across the doorway. "Yeah, that would be bad." she mumbled.
Amelia frowned at her. "Cassi, you're supposed to be resting. Get back in
bed!"
Cassi shook her head. "But-"
"No buts! Get back in there!"
Cassi tried to step past the doorway, but fell. Zel ran out, picked her up,
and ran back into the room.
When she was lying on her bed again, she opened her eyes. "Zel, you're . . .
too . . . nice." she whispered, grimacing in pain.
"Shh. Don't talk, you're too weak." he answered, applying a cold cloth to her
head. He had noticed she had a fever, and it worried him.
She looked up at him. "Oh . . . I'm . . . fine . . ." she said, obviously
using a lot of her strength.
"No, you're not. Hush."
Cassi gave up trying to argue and lay back, sweat forming on her forehead.
Miz leaned against the doorway. She can't still be drained, can she?
Something is horribly wrong . . .

Cassi struggled to open her eyes. I feel so . . . weak . . . she thought.
What's wrong with me? I don't understand! She opened her eyes, using a great
effort. She gasped. "Me . . . Metem . . ." she gasped out.
He grinned at her. "Callahandra . . ."
"Mittu . . ."
"Mittu."
"Allandra . . ."
"Allandra."
"Bataku . . ."
"Bataku."
"Amel . . ."
"Amel."
"NOOOOOOOOOO!"

Zel woke up suddenly. Cassi was tossing and turning, screaming silently. He
rushed over to her, trying to figure out what was happening. She screamed
again, this time out loud.
Miz appeared at the door. "Cassi! CASSI!"
Mike appeared behind her. "Cassi? CASSI!"
Zel stood next to the bed, helpless.
Cassi opened her eyes, but she was still stuck in her nightmare. She screamed
again. And again.
Jake smashed into the door frame in his haste to get into the room. "CASSI!
CAAAAASSIIIIIIII!" He grabbed her shoulders and shook her, hard, but all he
got was screaming, and more screaming.
Suni walked into the room. "What's wrong?" She looked over at Cassi. "Eh.
Simple Exorcism spell should work." She chanted the spell, a smug look on her
face. "Release This Person, the One So Dear, from All Harm, and Take Out This
Malignant Spirit."
Cassi screamed horribly . . . and nothing else happened.
Suni frowned. "What the-"
Miz pushed her out of the way. "Let me try!"
Zel shook his head. "I don't think-"
Miz turned on him. "DO YOU THINK I'M GOING TO JUST SIT HERE WHILE MY BEST
FRIEND AND LEADER DIES?! YOU'VE GOTTA BE KIDDING ME! I'M A HEALER! I'M NOT
GOING TO LET HER DIE!" She turned to Cassi, tears in her eyes. "I WON'T LET
YOU DIE! CASSI!" Cassi screamed. Miz placed a hand on her chest, just above
her heart. "LET ALL THAT LIVE, GIVE ME STRENGTH, GIVE ME POWER, POWER TO HEAL,
TO HEAL . . . TO HEAL!"
Cassi screamed a last time, and . . . lay still, her eyes closed. Miz checked
Cassi's pulse, a sighed with relief. "Either I healed her, or . . . whatever
was attacking her stopped."
Zel sighed with relief. "Thank Kami-sama she's all right." he said.
Miz sighed. "Thank Kami-sama . . ." she whispered. She fell to her knees next
to the bed. "Cassi . . ."
Jake grabbed her hand, placing it on his cheek. "Gott sei dank."
Mike grabbed her other hand. "Chriiana mi han."
"Ahh, I knew she'd be okay." said Suni, more confidently than she felt. She
turned to her right. "NO I WASN'T CRYING, JESSINA, SHUT UP!" she turned to her
left. "AND THAT GOES FOR YOU TOO, TETSUYA!"
Cassi opened her eyes again. "Oh, my head."
They all crowded around her bed. "Cassi!" yelled Jake, instantly embracing
her.
Mike grinned mischievously. "DOGPILE ON CASSI!!!!!!"
Instantly, Cassi was covered with three bodies. "HELP!" she cried, trying to
get away.
Zel forced his way through. "Cassi, don't do that again. EVER again."
Cassi smiled. "Why, Zel, I didn't know you cared."
Mike gripped her hand. "I agree. NEVER do that again."
"What happened? I can't remember. Tell me!" Cassi said, disturbed.
"You were . . . screaming . . ." Jake said.
Zel frowned. "All I remember is waking up and seeing you screaming, silently
at first, then actually out loud. Everyone appeared pretty fast after that."
Cassi shook her head. "But, why . . . I don't remember . . ."
Jake leaned over and examined her neck. "I can't see a memory-sucker." he
said.
"I have no idea what happened, but-" Miz started, before getting cut off.
"WHAT HAPPENED HERE?!" Lina yelled, angry at being left out.
Miz looked at her coldly. "Well, if you hadn't been snoring so loud, you
would have heard Cassi screaming and wouldn't have to ask."
"You're just mad because your boyfriend is fawning all over me." Lina
said, smirking.
Miz clenched her fists. "You little . . . " Jake just caught Miz before she
jumped on Lina.
"MIZ! CALM DOWN!" Jake yelled.
Miz instantly did. "Oh, that little ironing board isn't worth it."
"What did you call me?" Lina asked dangerously.
Miz grinned. "Little ironing board."
"THAT'S IT! DRAGON - "
Zel caught Lina's hand, restraining her. "Normally I wouldn't do this, but
you two are fighting like children." he said calmly.
Miz hung her head. "Yeah, I guess you're right. Sorry."
Lina looked away, her nose n the air, but Miz didn't notice. She turned to
Cassi. "Cassi, are you sure you're okay?"
Cassi smiled. "I'm fine. It was a bad dream, that's all."
Mike shook his head. "There's something VERY strange about this 'bad dream'.
I'm not normally a vision magnet, but I can tell there's something wrong about
this."
Everyone nodded. "Yeah, this just can't be right." said Zel.
Lina shook her head. "CAN SOMEONE TELL ME WHAT'S GOING ON?!"
Suni calmly explained what had happened. "And I tried to do something, but I
was distracted by some pests."
"That has to be bad." Lina agreed.
Cassi frowned. "Well fine, if you're gonna make a mountain out of a molehill,
than I guess it's bad. I don't really know how the hell I'm supposed to know
what happened, 'cause I'm totally blank on it."
Zel frowned. "Totally? Not even a feeling, a hint?"
Cassi shook her head. "Nope. Not even a feeling or a hint."
"Cassi, I REALLY don't like this." Miz said, worried.
Cassi shrugged. "Eh. Hey, it's near sunset."
Jake's eyes almost bugged out of his head. "YOU'RE NOT SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING
GOING, ARE YOU?" he yelled.
Cassi nodded. "Of course I'm going. I'm fine now."
"Cassi, you can't-"
"I can do whatever I want, and I'm fine! Now, let's go!" Before anyone could
protest, Cassi was up and out the door.

* * * * * * *
They all stood at the edge of the foreboding field for the second time in 48
hours.
Cassi looked around at the place, seemingly unaffected. "They're not here
yet."
Jake was still upset how. "WHO'S NOT HERE YET?! CASSI, WHAT IN ALL NINE HELLS
IS GOING ON?!"
Cassi put a finger to her lips. "Shh. Don't want to wake them up, do we?"
Mike sighed inwardly. Sometimes even I can't understand her. he thought.
What is going on? She doesn't usually-
His train of thought was interrupted, however, by a low laugh. "Oh, you've
been waiting? How kind of you, Callahandra."
Cassi gritted her teeth. "Why do you call me that?! I am Cassi, not
Callahandra!"
"It doesn't matter. To me, you are always Callahandra."
Cassi shook her head. "No! I'm not! NO!"
Jake watched in astonishment as tears began to run down Cassi cheeks. What
the-
"My love, you're crying! Don't do that. We'll be good together,
Callahandra."
"I'M NOT CALLAHANDRA!" Cassi screamed. She brought out her sword, the black
blade flashing in the moonlight. "YOU WILL DIE!" She began to slash the sword
this way and that, sending blasts of pure energy in every direction. Her
friends watched in horror as Cassi lost control, sinning around in circles,
screaming in rage at the insane laughter. "SHUT UP! SHUT UP!" she screamed.
Mike stepped forward, but Miz grabbed his arm, stopping him. "There's nothing
we can do now. She either comes back or she doesn't."
Mike shook his head. "No! Cassi'll come back! She'll come back . . ."
Cassi continued to scream and slash, and Miz was forced to make a shield to
protect the group. "Cassi, don't go insane . . ."
The voice stopped laughing suddenly. "What . . ." it cried. As they watched,
a person materialized, sliced almost in half by one of Cassi's beams.
Cassi started to sob harder. "I'm . . . not . . . Calla . . . handra . . ."
she whispered through gritted teeth. "And . . . you're . . . not . . . Metem .
. ."
The person coughed up some blood. He reached out with is hand. "Calla . . ."
Cassi went into a convulsion. "I'M NOT HER! I'LL NEVER BE HER! NOOOO!!!!!!"
She threw herself at the person, and her sword went right through his chest.
His eyes widened, he gasped, and then he was dead.
Cassi threw off his body, then just stood there, covered in blood and gore.
Her sunglasses were gone, and her usually beautiful eyes had lost their light.
"I'm not her . . . I can never be her . . ." she whispered, looking at her
hands, the ones covered with his blood. "You never . . . could've . . . been
him . . ."
Jake ran over just as Cassi fell to her knees. "Cassi-"
"DON'T TOUCH ME! I'M EVIL, DON'T YOU REALIZE THAT?!" She got up and spun in a
little circle. "I'M EVIL! EVIL, EVIL, EVIL, EVIL, EVIL, EVIL!!!!!" She
suddenly gripped Jake's arm. "Any moment, I could kill any one of you. I'm
evil! I'm not right! I should be an outcast! The Council should outlaw me! I'm
evil! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!" She broke down into hysterical
laughter, and Jake and the others could only watch, their hearts breaking for
her.

* * * * * * *
Miz sat outside of Cassi cell, trying to get her to talk.
"Cassi, come on, you can tell me, I'm your friend, remember?" No response.
"See, Suni brought this pretty flower for you to see. Isn't it nice?" No
response. "Cassi, come on, Suni was being nice. Can't you even thank her?"
Still no response. "Cassi, I'll flood your cell and drown you if you don't
talk to me!" Even then, no response. Miz sighed and gave up. "Fine. I'll go."
She turned to the guard. "Make sure she doesn't try anything, okay?" The guard
saluted her, and she left.
Mike sighed at Miz's report. "She'll be okay. I know Cassi. She'd never do
something stupid like this, not by herself, and not on purpose."
Jake shook his head. "This's bad. REALLY bad."
Mike turned to him. "She'll be fine! I swear it!"
Zel sighed inwardly. They could all tell how hard he was trying to be
hopeful, trying to be convincing, but no one believed him. He didn't even
believe him. How did this happen? Why did she go off like that?
Suni was looking around at the solemn faces. She sighed. Eh, at least Xellos
isn't here.
As if on cue, Xellos popped up behind them. "Hello!"
Suni saw red. She rounded on Xellos. "HOW DARE YOU BE SO CHEERFUL! KISAMA!
AHO! BAKA! BITSUYO! HOW DARE YOU! MY BEST FRIEND AND LEADER IS INSANE, AND YOU
DARE TO BE CHEERFUL?!?! HOW IN HELL CAN YOU BE SO FRICKIN' CHEERFUL?!"
Xellos wagged his finger at Suni. "Ah, sore wa-"
Suni screamed in rage and threw a rock at him. It hit him in the chest,
sending him through a wall.
He picked himself up. "Now now, Miss Suniva, we can't go and lose our temper,
can we?"
Suni ran outside. There was no one there but Xellos and herself. She picked
out a rock from her bag. "I swear, Xellos, if you say it one more time . . ."
"Say what? Oh, Miss Suniva, I've been meaning to give this to you." Suni was
about to retort with a snide comment, but she found herself holding a small
Zomaelgoustar charm in her hand. She stared at it. Xellos smiled. "It's a
gift. Use it wisely." With no warning, He kissed her on the cheek, then
disappeared. Suni turned red and touched her cheek. "He . . . I . . . it . .
." she stammered. She stuffed the charm into her pocket and went back inside,
resolving to never tell what had just happened to anybody.

* * * * * * *
The guard looked into Cassi's cell. "I don't know why ya went crazy, lady,
but sometin' about you jus' gives me the creeps . . ." He shivered. "I shore
hope tha next guard gets here soon."
Cassi looked at the guard, her eyes empty. He turned away. As soon as he did,
a small light went on in them. The light got brighter, and brighter . . .
He screamed horribly as the huge blast of fire hit him in the back. He didn't
have time to scream again before he was slammed into the wall. As he slowly
slid back down, Cassi rushed out of the cell, making for the stairs. Her eyes
were frenzied, like a wild animal's. She didn't even notice as she killed
another guard who was just coming down to investigate. All she could think of
was out.

* * * * * * *
Zel quickly put his cup down as a guard came rushing up to their table. "The
prisoner is escaping!" he cried. Instantly everyone was on their feet. Miz
rushed to the stairs, followed by the whole group.
"I have a bad feeling about this . . ." Zel whispered to himself. Before they
got 3 steps down, a horrible howling noise came up at them, making them
retreat in fear.
"Ca . . ." Jake murmured. This wasn't the Cassi they knew. This was a wild
animal, with no restrictions. They could see blood all over her clothing,
obviously not from herself.
The creature howled again, a mournful, lonely sound. It rushed up the stairs
and past them, straight out the door.
Mike looked around at their stunned faces. "WELL?! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!
LET'S GO!" He led the way out the door. After a second, everyone followed.

* * * * * * *
Out in an open field, the Cassi-animal stopped. It dropped to it's knees,
it's sides heaving. It regained it's breath just as the others came into the
clearing.
Mike stepped froward. "Ca-"
"Stay away." The voice was harsh, rasping. Cassi looked back at them, her
eyes bloodshot and full of tears. "Stay away from me. I have to die."
"NO! Cassi! Don't try it!" cried Jake desperately.
Cassi looked at him sorrowfully. "I must. It must be. To save all of you, I
must die. My blood must run over the grass." She stood up, raising a hand to
the sky. She started to chant. "My Goddess . . . Megami-sama . . . Kajisa . .
. Accept my life as an offering. Drink my blood and be satisfied." So saying,
she drew a knife out of her boot (which no one had had any idea she had), and
stabbed herself.
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!" Surprisingly, the first one to say it was Suni. She
ran forward and cushioned Cassi's fall with her small body. "DON'T YOU DARE
DIE ON ME, BITSUYO! I'LL KILL YOU IF YOU DIE!" She cradled Cassi's head in her
lap, tears running down her cheeks. "DON'T DIE ON ME!!!!!"
Cassi opened her eyes and looked at Suni. "It's . . . better . . . this . . .
way . . . I was . . . always . . . a nuisance . . . to you . . . wasn't I?"
Suni shook her head, tears going everywhere. "NO! YOU HAVE TO LIVE!"
Miz grabbed the knife and renched it out, then quickly started a healing
spell. "Don't . . . die . . . don't . . . die . . ." she chanted.
Jake chanted a protection spell. Mike joined him. Zel, Amelia, Lina and
Gourry just watched, not knowing what to do.
Miz finished the spell. "Don't . . . die . . ." she said desperately.
Cassi shook her head. "If the Goddess wills it-"
Jake stopped his spell. "TO HELL WITH THE GODDESS! I WANT TO KEEP YOU!"
Cassi smiled. "I don't deserve you."
Miz smacked her. "WELL YOU'RE GETTING US ANYWAY!" she shrieked. Cassi gasped,
and went limp. Miz stared at her for a second. "OH MY GOD! I THINK I KILLED
HER!"
Cassi opened her eyes again. "I'm . . . alive . . ." she gasped.
Suni smacked her this time. "DON'T YOU DARE TRY THAT AGAIN! I'LL KILL YOU IF
YOU TRY TO COMMIT SUICIDE AGAIN!"
Cassi sat up. "I don't deserve you guys."
Jake sat down and hugged her. "Too bad. You got us anyway."
Miz and Mike both joined into the hug, followed (after a moment of
hesitation) by Suni.
Cassi shook her head. "I don't at all."
Miz shook her gently. "Like Jake said, too bad. You'll have to live with us
anyway. We're your group!"
They sat that way for a long time, in total silence.

* * * * * * *
After all of the sappiness was over with, the group sat in the clearing and
tried to think of what to do.
"Hey, couldn't we just go back to the castle?" asked Jake, once again
demonstrating his extreme naivete.
"I don't know if going back to the castle is such a good idea, Jake." said
Cassi hesitantly.
Lina nodded. "They don't take kindly to being attacked. They'll try to take
you prisoner."
Cassi sighed. "That's what I mean."
Amelia looked shocked. "But aren't you going to go back and take your
punishment? You killed those poor guards!"
Cassi rounded on Amelia. "Yeah?! Do you know what was going on in my head?!
Do you know what was happening to me?! How can you talk?!" She dropped her
head. Her shoulders started shaking violently. She brought her head back up,
tears in her eyes. "I DIDN'T MEAN TO KILL THEM! IT WASN'T MY FAULT!" She shook
her head violently, as if trying to rid herself of the memories.
Amelia stepped back. "I . . . I . . ." she stammered.
Lina shushed her as Cassi calmed down. "It's not your fault." she whispered.
"You have too many notions of good and evil, Amelia. I'm sorry, but you're
much too naive to know anything about death, or killing, or justice. And I
hope you never come to know as much as me." She looked at Amelia. "Being me is
a curse I wouldn't wish on my most hated enemy."
Miz shivered. "Well, that still doesn't help us with our dilemma."
Cassi shrugged. "Why not just start walking and see where we end up?"
Not surprisingly, the unanimous vote on this was yes.

* * * * * * *
Cassi looked back one last time at the brilliant city called Seyruun. "It's
so beautiful . . . Goodbye, city." she said wistfully. She turned to Mike.
"What now?" she said, almost to herself.
Mike shrugged. "I dunno. Whatever." Cassi nodded and looked forward.
Jake looked back at her. She changes so rapidly. he thought to himself. It's
almost like she's schizophrenic. Or has multiple personalities. But in some
strange way, she's always Cassi through it all. All those personalities are
hers. He shook his head. I can't explain it. She's . . . So important to me .
. . MUCH more than just as a group member.
Cassi whistled a tune, then began to sing. "Vivo per lei la musica . . ."
Miz shook her head and sighed. "There she goes."
Cassi switched songs. "Con Te Partiro . . . Se no ce luce se . . . La luce
che . . . Time to say goodbye . . . "
Zel looked at her. "Why?"
She blinked and stopped. "Why what?"
"Why is it time to say goodbye?"
Cassi shook her head and smiled. "It's a song, baka. I'm not saying that
seriously. It's just a beautiful song I like to sing."
Zel nodded. "It's beautiful when you sing it."
He turned around, and Cassi blushed. "Thank you . . ." she whispered, not
loud enough for anyone to hear. At least, she thought so.
Suddenly, a small globe appeared in front of Cassi, causing her to stop
rather quickly. "Cassi." a voice said.
"Yeah, who's this?"
"It's me, your mother! Listen, your mission has ended."
Cassi's eyes almost bugged out of her head. "It HAS?!"
"Yes! You have to come back."
"But . . ." Cassi looked at Zel, and Lina, and Gourry. "But, how . . ."
"It's an interesting paradox. We saw that he would be killed by Gaired. What
we didn't see until after was that the only reason Gaired would be there was
because you would be. So we actually endangered his life by sending you. We're
incredibly lucky you handled Gaired, because if you hadn't, well . . ."
Cassi placed her hands on her forehead. "THIS DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE! If you
hadn't sent me, he would've died, but since you did, it put him in danger?!"
Zel narrowed his eyes. "And who gave you permission to mess with a person's
life like this? You're acting like gods!"
Cassi's mother didn't answer, but dissapated the spell. Cassi shook her head.
"I guess this means we have to go. I'm sorry, Zel. I don't make the decisions.
I just abide by them." She whispered a spell under her breath, and her ring
glowed. A portal opened, and the group started through. Just as she was about
to go, Cassi turned around. "See ya around, Zelly-chan." She planted a kiss on
his lips, then left. Zel blushed, and whispered. "See you around, Cassi."

The End