Author's note: These events take place after any of the Slayers movies, novels, etc. Also, Slayers doesn't belong to me but Lacy, Len and the whole Guardian system is mine.

"Once upon a time, in a land far, far.... Wait a moment." A gloved hand flipped the book to its cover and read the title, Fairies Tales for Children. "Sorry, " the right hand waved in apology. "Wrong book." The hands negligently threw the book behind its body.... If it had a body.... The book hit something solid a few seconds later. Perhaps, a wall?

"Since the book isn't here, I will tell you a story myself. A very special story."

The little boy sat stiffly in his couch-like chair surveying the person--or thing--in front of him. "...."

"A dark shadow shrouded the storyteller keeping its face and body hidden. Only the white-gloved hands could be seen. The hands themselves were neither overly large nor delicately small. Just your average sized pair of hands." The voice paused in reflection. "Yare, yare. I do have a way with words, don't I?" The voice sounded very pleased with itself.

The little boy ignored it. Instead he sat in his chair, looking expectantly at the "storyteller" as he called himself at this moment in time and space. Humoring the fellow, the boy studied the storyteller before him as if he were a stranger. The storyteller's descriptions with of his hands were very accurate... just too flowery. From the voice of the mysterious storyteller, the little boy guessed to be perhaps a young male ... or a young female with alto voice. But then, most females have an alto range voice in his experience. Of course, he has only met five females in his entire life and so he couldn't be absolute, absolutely, certain that....

"What?"

"..." Keep your prey guessing, the boy thought.

The hands disappeared under the shadow for a moment. "Hum... A tough audience, eh?" The right hand returned. "Well, Like I said, I'm going to tell you a special story. A experitory."

The boy gazed questioningly at a spot some inches above the hands where he guessed the head should be ... if it has a human shape.

"Experitory. The word comes from experience and story. Thus, it's a true story, if you will. But unlike other true stories, I have personally seen this tale unfolding so you can think of experitory as above a regular story but below a biography. After all, a story has to have some misleading facts in there to make it a good story." Now both hands could be seen.

The boy grabbed a small blanket from behind him and settled into his couch-like chair, snugly wrapped in soft cotton and highly comfortable to listen to the experitory. His brilliant red hair spilled over the off white blanket like one of those rumored sea flowers of the oceans coral reefs.

In the beginning, as everyone knows, the Lord of the Nightmares created this world along with the Cephied and Shabranigdo. She also created the humans and dragons. However, it was Shabranigdo who created the Mazukos. Maybe that's why they didn't receive the same gift L-sama has bestowed on the humans and dragons. Of course, a gift is only a gift if the receiver likes it. When the receiver doesn't, well ... it's more commonly known as a curse.

You see L-sama liked to spy on the Gods and Goddesses of other universes. Why not? It's a useful occupation and the rewards can be pretty valuable. Also, good blackmail material. Anyway, while spying on this one God on some distance universe whose occupants calls it "the universe"--great name, ne?--She came across a new form of managing the children.

The management system was efficient, had more chaotic elements to it, and most importantly of all, drastically cut down on the number of prayers and petition to the God or Goddess in charge. The God of that universe called those management people Guardians. The children of that God however called them by a different name: Angels.

The structure was quite brilliant, and even L-sama was surprised on how balanced the system can be seeing as how a barbaric God ruling over a block of space only 1/10 the size of Her universe invented this great system.

In that God's universe, there was a potentially hazardous creation who called themselves humans. To balance them, he created the equally hazardous Guardians. For every human, there is Guardian. And for every Guardian, there is a human. However, only the Guardians can contact directly with God and only the humans can directly change the world both creations lived in.

Thus, only when the Guardian and human worked together can something devastating happen, such as the destruction of God's universe and other things like that. Hence the name Guardians; guarding keep the humans from talking with their God and convincing Him from doing destructive stuff.

But there is one catch; humans cannot see or hear the Guardians, only share their Guardians' feelings. Those humans are rumored to be really crafty because some fruit they ate a long time ago from some Tree of Knowledge or something. Needless to say, most humans don't listen or know their Guardian very well. And the potential for disasters was greatly reduced, almost at zero.

The Guardians lives on the other hand were, well, I've heard the vacation agencies are really, really huge in the Guardians' world and the number of applications for a vacation even larger.

After figuring out the details of this new system and observing it working in person, L-sama immediately went back to Her world to implement the system in one of Her worlds. This one. However, since the Mazukos weren't her creations (directly) and old Shabby has been sleep for several decades by then, She decided that the Mazukos didn't need a Guardian. A Mazoku is its own Guardian. It's wasn't very fair in my opinion but then, who listens to us lowly soldiers. The humans and dragons each got their own Guardian... or Guardians.

L-sama decreed that for those humans related to someone touched by Cephied, they had two Guardians. One for their dragon--yes, even then the dragons lived, breathed, and died for Cephied--side and one for their human side. L-sama figured that those humans touched by Cephied are already too confused to curse... er bless them anymore with this extra baggage so to say. Like the original system, only Guardians can directly contact L-sama while only the other races can directly change their world. Also, the Guardians cannot be seen or heard, only felt--except for the Mazoku's special case.

This system might have worked out very well if L-sama didn't like chaos so much. She didn't give Guardians to any descant or relative of non-humans or non-dragons. The dragons, of course, completely ignored their Guardians since they only wants to talk to Cephied's generals, not L-sama. Consequently, many of the dragon's Guardians applied for rebirth and become elves instead. As far as I know, no dragon over 100 years old has a Guardian around him/her. Couldn't blame the Guardians. Stuffy creatures. One had the gull to call me Nagomi. What I wouldn't do to kill that one slowly and painfully....

"Ouch!" The hands disappeared for a moment and then reappeared holding three sharp daggers.

The little boy glared dangerously at storyteller and held up three more sharp daggers in his little right hand.

"Umph... If that's the way, you feel about it. I'll just end the story right here!"

The boy narrowed his slit pupil, amethyst eyes in a near-perfect imitation of his father when his father wants to threaten some being.

"...or I can continue right away..."

The daggers disappeared without the slightest sound. Pulling the fallen blanket around his shoulders, the little boy hid a secret little smile. He had practiced on "that look", as his sister calls it, for hours. It seems to be quite effective. And if father goes off on another tangent, there is always mother's way that he could try.

Anyway back to the experitory. Where was I? Oh yes, the elves.

Very interesting creatures. They couldn't make a single decent machine that didn't go right back and start attacking themselves but they could invent spells to call upon the powers of L-sama Herself with a little help from the people touched by Cephied's knowledge. Of course, they didn't have the handicap of Guardians like the humans in creating the spells but still .... When L-sama found out about the spells--hey.

Why is that so hard to believe? Most of the casters died before the spell was completed so L-sama didn't notice. Too busy spying on the other Gods and Goddesses, I guess.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!" A thunderbolt suddenly crashed through the roof of the house and into the little dimension to hit squarely at the storyteller. The storyteller promptly fell to the floor, well done. "Gomen, L-sama. Your Divineness." Xellos coughed as he passed out from too much electricity.

The little boy didn't look afraid at all. Instead of going over to his father asking him if he's all right like a ordinary child might have done, he climbed down from his couch-chair to land lightly on his little feet. Clutching his blankets around him, the little boy ran to the door of the darkened dimension/room. He reached on his tipy-toes to turn the doorknob. Opening the door, he placed his head into the living room and shouted, "Lacy, L-sama zapped daddy for bad mouthing Her again. Do you think hitting daddy with a Mono Volt would wake him up so he can finish my expy...eperi...ertory?"

"No, you silly boy." A little girl who looked almost identical to the little boy replied arrogantly. She ran to the little boy who reluctantly stepped aside to allow his twin sister to squeeze through. The siblings closed the door together with a soft click.

"Just whisper in his ear that mommy found out about he did to her largest stack of treasure." Lacy said confidently.

"WHAT!?"

There is a started exclamation followed by a loud band as Xellos hit his head from jumping too high in his show of emotion.

"See?" The sister said as the siblings walked to the couches where their father is now in full view.

The boy only looked sourly at his twin. "Why are you here? This is my story."

"I wanna hear too." Lacy complained.

"Now, now Lacy, Len. Share and share alike." Xellos said with his usual smile on his face. "That doesn't apply to personal business though." He added.

"Yes, daddy." The two children chimed in union as they climbed into the couch-like chair the Len has been using.

Xellos winced. He knew he shouldn't have let Lina raise their children. Look at all the bad habits they've picked up.

There was a brief fight on the couch over the blank until the little girl pulled another blanket and a big, fluffy teddy bear from what appeared to be a black hole. The little boy scowled at his sister who smugly hugged her teddy and wrapped comfortably in her favorite soft purple blanket. Not to be outdone, the little boy pulled his favorite bunny from his personal pocket dimension to cuddle. There were now two red-haired children with slit pupil, amethyst eyes all snugly warped in their respective blanket and hugging their favorite toy in the couch-like chair.

Xellos sweatdropped. Did Amelia or Fillia stop by while Lina was raising the kids?

"........"

Two threatening glares in his direction brought Xellos back to reality. "Well, on with the experitory." At least, they've got Lina's temper, Xellos thought with some pride.

So you can image what L-sama felt when a human related to Cephied's general learned and successfully cast one of the elves' spells. No Lacy, She didn't cut the spell caster only ribbons. Or turned her into a donkey, Len. No, not even cursed her with a terrible, unbreakable curse.

She was absolutely trilled. It turns out that L-sama implemented this system not to balance out the powers and potential of her creations on this world but find humans or dragons special enough to have intelligent chat with. Since only the most clear and most powerful of either race would be able to contact Her within the new system, She was sure it would be wonderful talking with the Chosen.

The new system, however, worked a little too well. For centuries, no human or dragon talked with Her on this world. I guess it gets very lonely now that She isn't bothered every second from thousands of her children praying to her for something. For a long time, She thought she was disconnected from everyone within this world since the She created the Guardians. But She refused to unmake what She created and thus, waited hoping some human--She lost faith in the dragons a long time ago. Can't really blame her.--to talk with Her. Tell her what's going with the humans. What do they wish? How are they doing? Do they still even remember Her?

Of course, She often asks us Mazukos about the state of the other races on this world since we're technically also Guardians in the system She's implemented. But for some reason, She always kicks us out after only a few seconds of chat with Her. Something about us taking advantage of the situation. Now that is just unfair. We Mazukos would never stoop that low. We were simply giving Her advise in place of our less fortunate races. L-sama didn't buy that though. There are still some Mazukos who try that and as punishment, She turns them into radishes. No, Lacy. Mice are overrated. With the rate mice reproduce, you'll be up to your ears in your enemies' families in no time. Trust me. Vegetables are much better choices.

But anyway, this magic user thus, had TWO Guardians with her. A small ruby flame dragon that is her Dragon Guardian and a small flame-haired child with golden wings is her Human Guardian. The Dragon Guardian is called Flame and the Human Guardian is called Ruby. Their names very accurately described the human they guarded: the infamous Lina Inverse. The Ruby Flame. And oh, yes also called the bandit killer, the enemy of all who live, someone-even-a-dragon-wouldn't....

"Ahhhhhhhhhh! What you two doing!?" Xellos yelped as dozens of Flare Arrows and Freeze Arrows flew at him.

"Mommy said to beat up anyone calling her those names." Len replied seriously.

FLARE ARROW!

Lacy grinned happily as shot the more arrows at her father.

"But not at me!" Xellos protested as he tried stop the arrows with his cloak.

The two siblings paused in mid-casting and looked at one another. "Mommy didn't specify." They chimed in union and finished their spells.

"If you don't stop, I will not finish the story!" Xellos shouted finally.

Both children immediately stopped. They quickly burrowed into their blankets, hugged their stuffed animals, and then looked innocently at their father. They looked like a pair of Angels.

Xellos nodded to himself. They're going to be great Mazukos one day. "Now as we saying..."

But it's not so great having two Guardians with you, especially two Guardians whom didn't get along. I've never seen two Guardians so at odds with one another. Worse still, both Guardians had temperaments so much like Lina-chan's that I often wondered why they haven't destroyed this world yet. I still do.

Silence.

Don't believe me? While let me tell you how I first met Lina-chan. Or more accurately, Ruby-chan and Flame-chan. You'll see what I mean. Why do you think your mother can cause so much trou... er... chaos.

The two Guardians were fighting as usual one day when I first stumbled onto them. The strangest thing however wasn't that they were fighting. I've seen too many wars in my old age. The strangest thing was that the human they guarded was no where in sight. Why that's unheard of for a human to be without his/her Guardian(s). After all, without the Guardians to keep the humans out of trouble, who know what they could do....