1. Chapter 1 (1/2)

a/n: i recently completed a (drawn-out, mind) rewatch of the slayers tv anime (a first-complete-watch, in the case of revolution-r's case, to my shock), and it should be no surprise to anyone that this means i'm back on my teenaged bullshit and writing slayers fic again after nearly fifteen freaking years.. all i wanted was something light and fluffy, so this happened.

1454 words; takes place vaguely in the beginning of revolution, before pokota actually becomes a member of the group, in a lull between explosions and wizer's antics; i likely have more up my sleeve but i have other active projects and wanted to slam something out real quick there

sometimes, all it takes is a song.

it was late and the group had long made camp and eaten dinner. despite the fact she was being hunted via an arrest warrant, lina was already asleep, snoring on the other side of the clearing, while gourry was off finding firewood, amelia was writing, and zelgadis was cleaning and tuning his guitar. he enjoyed the instrument enough—it was one he had picked up during their adventures a while ago now—and it too needed a bit of care. taking a worn string off, he tucked it in a pocket and produced a different one; he didn't want it to snap prematurely while playing, after all. even if his skin was stone, it wasn't as though it didn't hurt when it happened…

"what are you doing, mister zelgadis?" not even lifting his head, he glanced over at amelia, seeing she was watching him. "i thought you replaced the strings not that long ago now…"

"i did, but," he held up his right hand and wiggled his fingers before getting back to work, "i tend to wear them out quickly."

"ah… that makes sense."

it was quiet for a short while after that, the only noise between them being the popping in the fire. he finished the repair job and examined it in the wan light—looked good enough. plucking a couple notes proved his theory correct and the clear tones reverberated through the night air.

"i don't think i ever asked where you learned to play."

zelgadis looked at amelia and found she her attention was still on him, her letter seemingly discarded. he shrugged nonchalantly and went back to idly playing a long-learned melody.

"who are you writing?" good, a change in subject; a decent enough distraction.

"oh, just uncle christopher; my father's letter is already done."

he blinked. "what are you writing him?"

"he wanted to know about ruvinagald separately from daddy—if anything happens, he'd be the one to be sent, after all. i don't think uncle christopher has been here since he was my age."

"then it's been a bit," he nodded. "he probably didn't have to deal with exploding magic tanks and magic-casting stuffed animals."

"i think he would have preferred that—he was here for a ball before he met my aunt, and because he was single, a ruvinagalder noblewoman was a bit too friendly, if i remember the story correctly."

"sounds like a horror story."

they both chuckled, then silence.

"you still didn't answer my question, mister zelgadis."

damn.

"a long time ago." he continued playing and tried to ignore the fact that she was beginning to move about the camp now. "it was rodimus, if you'll believe me."

"of course i believe you, mister zelgadis. i just didn't know." she put away her letters and pen in her pack and went to sit down next to him. "you play well."

"i wouldn't say well…"

"…well enough for me. were you little when you first started learning? i can imagine how big the guitar was next to you."

he let out a real laugh—not a chuckle or a smirk, but a genuine laugh—and stopped playing. "no… rodimus thought i needed another outlet besides magic and swordsmanship and he was right. i was what… thirteen…? fourteen? he said it would be relaxing for me."

"was it?"

"in a way." zelgadis went back to his song, feeling the weight of amelia resting on his shoulder as he did so. using her cape as a blanket, she was curled up against him, sharing warmth that the campfire could not entirely provide. he raised an eye

ow at her, anticipating her response. "it was how i got my first kiss."

"what…?!" amelia snapped to attention, sitting straight up as she stared at the chimera with wide eyes gone even wider. lina snorted from the other side of camp and tossed inside her bedroll, which caused amelia to lower her voice. "i didn't know you've been kissed before."