It had been raining for almost half an hour when Xellos surfaced.

He opened his new eyes and rolled out of the bed where Zelgadis' friends had tucked in a droning husk the night before. This new body was quite different from his regular one: smaller, denser, heavier--and of course, it was a rock golem--but it still left much to be desired. On consulting the mirror, he was surprised to see himself in his new eyes--they had turned purple. He'd have to watch that. . . .

He brushed at the metallic forelock in distaste.

"Was anyone ever in worse need of a decent haircut?" he muttered at the mirror, and held the silvery wire back for a full look at his new face.

"You really are revoltingly grotesque, Zelgadis," Xellos remarked in his victim's voice. "--Are you paying attention?"

In the back of his shared head, Zelgadis was not paying attention; he

was still in shock, shut up in a tiny ball and almost imperceptibly whispering something about spiders. He was probably accustomed to comments on his appearance, anyway.

Someone ran down the corridor outside the room, reminding Xellos that in order to take his new body anywhere, he had to dress it first. Zelgadis' usual ensemble lay on the bedside chair, picked clean of leaves and twigs and neatly folded.

"*Tsk!* -- White!"

The sword knocked against the backs of his legs as he sauntered downstairs.

"Hey, it's Zel!" Gourry declared very clearly, waving from the breakfast table.

"Zel, are you feeling all right? What happened to you last night?"

"I'm so glad you're awake, Mr. Zelgadis--"

"What are you talking about?" Xellos began, almost sitting on the bothersome sword in his attempt to seat himself. In the mental arena, he felt his host stir slightly.

"Don't you remember? You were out in the woods--"

"What's the last thing you remember from yesterday?" Lina asked him keenly as he poured a cup of coffee--one of the few tastes he shared with the body's original owner.

"Yesterday . . . I left the inn, and went out. . . ." He frowned and shook his head. "It doesn't matter."

"DOESN'T MATTER ??" they hollered at him, attracting a good deal of attention.

"If it was important, I would have remembered it," Xellos responded mildly, raising the mug to his lips.

"Not impor--Zelgadis, what happened to you last night was hardly the sort of thing people do for recreation!" Lina interrupted herself, too concerned to notice Gourry gradually stealing her breakfast. "Who did you meet after you left the inn?"

"I told you, it doesn't matter," Xellos insisted. "I don't remember. And whatever may have occurred doesn't seem to have left any damage, so I don't see what there is to get excited about."

"Zel, you were--you were--" Lina blushed and found herself a rephrasal. "You were seriously in a bad way! Do you really think it's not--"

Xellos nodded decisively. Zelgadis seemed to awaken.

"In any case, when we get to Sailloon Capitol we can have the high priests check you out, just to be safe."

"That's a good idea, Amelia."

"Do you really think that's necessary?" Xellos asked.

"Just to be safe," Amelia repeated.

He seemed to be perfectly fine--it wasn't unlike Zelgadis to be reluctant to discuss a personal trauma.

But he wouldn't make eye contact.

Lina let the matter slide because of it; either he was lying and he remembered everything, or he only remembered . . something he didn't want discussed. In any case he would be understandably mortified at best, and would certainly want to deal with it on his own. His aura wasn't the same, and it bothered her, but she kept her mouth shut.

As they started back on the damp road, Xellos was confronted with a different kind of nagging.

~you've stolen my identity? even Gourry won't fall for that very long~

<You recovered quickly,> Xellos responded. <Back for more?> He flashed a tactile memory at his host/hostage:

--held immobile with heavy iron chain, rough bark against his back and Xellos' firm hands squeezing--

--black smoke enveloping, pouring through a kiss--

~Stop that!~ Fear, shame, revulsion radiated fresh from his victim, as well as a feeble attempt at a mental barrier. Xellos tore it away like rice paper.

Amelia frowned curiously at the dark little smile on the chimera's face. Something wasn't the same. . . .

He stumbled and clutched at his left knee with a hiss of pain. She was at his side in a moment.

"Mr. Zelgadis, is something wrong?"

"You all right, Zel?" Lina asked attentively.

"It's nothing; I just--must have twisted my knee somewhere," he winced.

"Oh, I'll heal that for you," Amelia offered.

"No! --Thank you," he declined, quickly waving her hand off. "I can take care of it myself." The touch of that white witch. . . .

And the further he walked with a limp, the more her suspicion grew.

Luckily, it did not rain that night, and when the campfire was banked and Gourry and Amelia slept beside it, Xellos opened his eyes.

<Ohhh, lucky you, Zelgadis.>

~what?~

<You're going to seduce Lina Inverse.>

~I what?~

<You might even survive it when she learns you just used her for a one-night stand--though not by much, I imagine. Do you think she'll ever forgive you?>

Zelgadis was utterly speechless with disbelief.

<Now, alternatively,> Xellos considered <if you were to rape Amelia, you'd be the most wanted man in Sailloon and all its allies, and Lina would hunt you down herself. Most poignant! But I'd rather not make that kind of scene.>

~you incredible bastard~

Xellos sat up, got up very quietly, and came around behind where Lina drowsed next to Gourry.

"Lina, can I have a word with you? Alone?"

She blinked. "Uh--all right. . . ."

She got up and followed him away from the road, into the forest. He slowed, stopped on arrival at a dense stand of trees.

"Now, what's this about?" she asked with hands on hips.

Xellos assumed the posture of the tragic actor, leaning on a nearby tree trunk and turning on the pathos.

"It's about . . . whatever happened last night."

~why don't you tell her the TRUTH, Xellos~

"Have you remembered something?"

"Uh . . . not much--but . . I'm going to need your help--"

~i don't know which is more sickening, your intent or your acting~

<Shut up and watch a master at work.>

"Hey." She was standing right behind him. "You know that whatever you need, we're all right behind you, Zel. --Ha ha, whether you want us or not!" She put her hand on his shoulder.

Xellos put his hand on hers.

~DON'T YOU TOUCH HER!!~

"You're so good, Lina," he responded in Zelgadis' voice--a weary, cracked voice. "But I want--but what I need--I need you."

Zelgadis flung out mental images of snakes, frogs, lizards, mudsucking amphibians and belly-crawling, cold-blooded reptiles, in a frenzy of loathing. Xellos stifled a smile and rolled his back against the tree, to face her.

"I--I need you, Lina," he appealed, and put her hand over Zelgadis' heart.

~LINA RUN, NOW!~

Almost by miracle, she jerked her head up suddenly and looked Xellos right in the eye. A tiny twitch--

"Well, I'm here for you, Zel," she offered in puzzlement--or feigned puzzlement-- "What exactly do you need?"

Xellos was not entirely comfortable with this level of innocence, real or not. He took her hand off his chest and brought it to his lips.

"Lina, you of all people," he murmured "know me best for who I am, and not what I . . look like. It's an immeasurable comfort, but . . . there are other--comforts--"

~LINA GET AWAY!!~

She slipped her hand out of his very quickly.

"You're right, I do know you for who you are. Xellos."

~YES! NOW RUN!~

"Wh--what?"

"Don't play dumb; I know it's you in there!" Lina insisted sharply. "Zelgadis isn't stupid enough to walk a whole day on a wrenched knee--and he certainly doesn't go around trying to seduce people!"

Zelgadis could have wept.

Xellos shrugged.

"Well, one way or another," he said mildly, and lunged. He caught Lina's wrist, spun her back up against the tree and tore out the front of her yellow halter. Her free hand went for his eyes, but he caught it and pinned both arms above her head with one hand. His other hand slipped inside her shirt and cupped one small round breast. His lips brushed her jawline in a parody of affection, and he chuckled. It was Xellos' laugh. . . .

Lina twisted hard and drove her knee up into his crotch.

Xellos winced. That was always more painful in a mortal body. . . . He wedged his leg between her thighs and trapped her hips against the tree as well, before he unclasped her belt. Lina squirmed like a cat; finally she screamed:

"GOURRYY!!"

"Gourry's asleeep," Xellos sang softly, peeling the shirt back from her famous bosom. They weren't really that small. . . . They heaved before his eyes as she screamed again.

"GOUURRYYYY!!"

Xellos pressed her up against the tree, much as he had done to his host twenty-four hours earlier. "Gourry can't help you here," he assured her. "Why don't you just enjoy the ride?" Lina dove forward and snapped at his nose; one of her wrists slipped free when he recoiled. She drew Zelgadis' sword--Xellos had worn it to bed, another slip in character--

"ASTRAL--VINE!"

And she ran him through.

Xellos let go; she put her free hand on the grip and forced the enchanted blade deeper, rode it up and whipped the sword free with a flourish.

Despicably, Xellos traded places with Zelgadis and dumped him in the driver's seat.

The body slumped before her and fell on his face. Lina made herself drop the bloody sword. Gourry finally ran up.

"Lina, what's wrong?" he called. "Did you--ohhh. . . ."

With a fierce blush, Lina clapped her shirt closed. Amelia came up behind Gourry.

"Oh, no . . . oh, no . . . oh, no. . . ." She knelt and heaved the body on his back. There was quite a lot of blood already. "Wh--what's happened to Mr. Zelgadis?" she cried.

Hot tears spilled down Lina's face.

"I don't know--"