Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer here, I wish I owned Slayers and everything with it, but I don't. If I was making money off this, I'd be rich...but I'm not. I'm just a poor college student with too much free time.

Following a nice comment suggestion that I do something more original. Hopefully this hasn't been done to death, and if it has, I haven't read it. No major warning...I'm actually nice to everyone this time. (Gasp, what a shock!) Hope you enjoy!

"Hmm...a bit more red here? Maybe orange would look better..." Lina regarded the picture a moment, fiery tones depicting a distant sunset.

She stared another moment at the canvas, left arm shifting slightly to hold her palette more comfortably. Her paintbrush hovered above the palette, her fingers gripping the frail wood loosely. Despite her casual posture while painting, her friends had often commented that her calm demeanor was just a front for an iron will, and an equally strong dedication

Tilting her head slightly to one side, Lina finally made her decision. With a speed that still amazed her fellow students, her paintbrush moved from paint to canvas, smoothly adding a stroke of rich yellow to the painting. With a small sigh, Lina took a step back, looking her piece over with a critical eye. Despite having worked on the painting for two weeks solid, something still felt absent. When repainting every bit of background hadn't made a difference, her focus had shifted to the colors themselves. After buying new paint, re-shading all the key areas, and now tweaking the highlights, the painting still felt...off.

A slight intake of breath caught Lina's attention. Looking over her shoulder, she noticed Sylphiel standing behind her, a bright smile on her face. The dark-haired art student had been a close friend since joining the art school the same day as Lina. Sylphiel specialized in children's art, painting vivid murals for everything from buildings to books. Though Lina had been praised more by fellow students, secretly she admired Sylphiel's skill above all others. Somehow the quiet woman managed to imbue her work with emotion that couldn't be ignored. People couldn't help being overwhelmed by the gentle feelings of love and family Sylphiel painted. For years Lina had been trying to give her own work that extra dimension, without success.

"Such a beautiful painting, Lina!"

The admiration made Lina wince a bit, even though she knew her friend meant every bit of emotion behind the statement. She had always had a hard time accepting praise. If her work didn't feel right in her own eyes, how could others think so highly of it?

"Thanks, Sylphiel. I wish I felt that confident about it." She admitted, setting her palette down gently. After a moment she moved back to stand beside her friend, again judging the painting with a gaze of scrutiny.

"What do you mean Lina? Your painting looks perfect! The clouds are shaded enough that they look real, while the sunset colors seem taken straight from an evening back home. You have a gift Lina, you only need to see it."

Lina couldn't help returning Sylphiel's open smile. Sometimes she wondered how her friend could find the good points in everything, yet she couldn't imagine Sylphiel any other way. If any woman deserved to find happiness in life, Sylphiel was that woman.

Deciding that it might be best to call it a day, Lina ran her arm across her forehead, letting out a deep breath. "So, came to check up on me? You should be proud Sylph, I actually stopped for lunch today."

A delicate laugh was her response. "If my food is the only thing that will get you to rest, I'll have to make you lunch more often."

"You bet!" Lina winked to show she was only teasing her friend. "I don't need to tell you how good your cooking is."

"I should hope so, given how much you eat!"

Once Lina noticed Sylphiel's bright smile, she knew the woman was teasing her. "C'mon you, let's get out of here. I don't know about you, but I could use a nice meal."

It didn't take long for Sylphiel to fall into step beside her, though Lina waited patiently while the woman locked the studio up for the evening. Falling into a light conversation that purposely avoided the day's work, they chatted while walking through the mostly-empty school. Faintly Lina could hear the sounds of other students working, most likely those that wanted to finish their projects before heading off for the weekend.

Atlis University was known for its open-door policy. During the weekdays the school was always open, allowing students to work on their projects when they had the time. Light security would wander the halls, more to discourage theft than to keep an eye on the students. Friday, at midnight sharp, the doors would be locked until Monday at seven, and no student would be allowed in, no matter the excuse. Sylphiel had teased her a time or two that the rule had been made for people like Lina. It was no secret she would paint all weekend if allowed.

Realizing her mind had wandered, Lina blinked several times to clear her thoughts. She almost laughed after noticing had already reached the parking lot. Briefly the pair stopped in front of Sylphiel's car, the silver Taurus glowing gold in the fading sunlight. It was amazing how early the days ended in winter.

"Did you want to ride together Lina?" Sylphiel asked softly, searching through her keys a moment.

"Nah, I can meet you there. Save me a table?"

The woman nodded, opening her door. She paused a moment, one foot in the car. "We are eating at Aqua's, right?"

Lina grinned, reaching for her own keys. "Of course, where else?" With a wave, she started toward her own car, still searching her pockets.

A short time later Lina stood before a slightly beat-up Pontiac. The teal paint had an almost painful shine to it, and briefly Lina groaned at the thought of driving so close to sunset. Opening the door, the noticed a pair of sunglasses sitting on the passenger-side dashboard.

"Hmm...must be Filia's. I'll have to return them Monday, assuming she needs another ride."

After taking a seat, she reached over for the pair. The dark glasses were almost to her face when someone loudly called her name, almost making her drop the things. Looking over, Lina caught sight of a running Filia, blond hair billowing behind her like some medieval cloak.

"Lina, wait a second!" The woman waved frantically, and Lina wondered what could be so important. It had to be more than the sunglasses.

Smiling a bit, Lina climbed out of the car to wait. Filia had been her friend since high school, when they had both shared a semester of choir. The taller woman had the look of a cheerleader, with her long blond hair and bright blue eyes, but her personality didn't fit. Filia was a dedicated creative, somehow managing to fit singing, cooking, and sculpting into her schedule. Now and then she and Lina would team up, with Filia working up some pottery, and Lina painting it. It was a handy way to pay the rent in the summer.

A bit breathless, Filia came to a stop a few feet away. After catching her breath, she flashed Lina a tired smile. "Sorry about that, I wanted to catch you before the weekend break."

"Not a problem, Filia. What did you need?"

"Can you stop by my house tomorrow? We've been talking about another project, and I could really use your help painting a few things."

"Sure thing Filia. You know, you could have called later tonight."

Lina couldn't hold back her laughter at the wide-eyes shock on Filia's face. The woman let out an exasperated yell.

"Don't worry Filia, we all lose a bit of common sense around mid-terms. Your schedule is twice as hectic...you're allowed to forget things now and then. " Lina grinned a moment, wondering how far she could push her friend. "Just don't make it a habit."

Ducking a playful swat from the blonde, Lina placed the sunglasses in her hand. "Here, you forgot these yesterday. Well, see you tomorrow!"

Lina was still laughing lightly as she drove out of the parking lot. Even the harshness of direct sunlight couldn't bring her spirits down.

-

Keys jangling noisily, Lina managed to open the front door on the second try. Still humming the tune from a song on the radio, she tossed her jacket on the couch without a care. Unlike many students, she lived in an actual house. Now and then a friend would room with her for a month or two, but usually she lived alone. At one time the home had been her grandmothers, but the kindly woman had passed on several years back. Technically her older sister Luna was supposed to live with her, but that arrangement hadn't worked. Now Luna lived in her own place across town, far enough away for independence sake, but close enough for emergencies.

More than once someone had asked her if she minded living alone. Usually she put on a brave face and told them she loved the freedom. At night, in a fairly large building that had a knack for attracting shadows and silence, she missed the company of others.

"Ah well, I've got painting to keep me company!" Lina joked, more to hear her own voice than anything else.

Heading upstairs, Lina sought out her stereo first. After rummaging a bit through various discs, she popped a CD into the player, turning up the volume before heading into the other room. By the time she stood before a blank canvas, paints spread out in a neat row just waiting to be used, the first chords of a Dream Theater song reached her ears. Taking that as a cue, she grabbed some darker colors along with her palette. After mixing paint for a bit, she rummaged for the right paintbrush, then went to work.

It was easy to focus on the music over her painting, time slipping by without notice. For some reason she had always done her best work at night, while home by herself. Just knowing no one would suddenly appear at her shoulder, throwing praise or odd comments at her, made things easier. Here she was painting solely for herself, for her music. This canvas would never feel the brush of another's eyes, a glance that would strip another layer away from what made it special, made it hers.

Pausing, Lina realized how selfish she sounded. Wasn't a painting meant to be seen? Could she really paint for just herself? Maybe that was the real problem with her work.

"God, I sound afraid to paint for others. I'm going to become one of those weird hermit artists, painting who-knows-what!" Lina muttered, glancing up at her work for the first time.

Lina wasn't surprised to hear herself gasp in awe. The canvas before her was covered in various shades of blue, to the point where she couldn't tell exactly where each color blended into the next. Clouds stretched across various parts of the picture, soft light blues arching delicately against the slightly darker background hues. Stars were scattered about the picture, hidden behind clouds and in small open patches of sky. Against the clear patches of stars hid faint circles of shadow, the shapes hinting at distant planets. Overall it reminded Lina of nights spent stargazing as a child, when the sky seemed to stretch forever, and everything held the fresh wonder of innocence.

Focusing on the painting again, Lina noticed a lone figure. Almost hidden amidst the clouds, yet still part of the foreground, sat a painted faerie, head tilted toward the upper-left corner of the canvas. She perched on one of the larger cloud banks, arms wrapped loosely around her legs, knees held close to her chest. The barest of smiles graced her face, while her eyes held an almost wistful look to them. Clothing and hair billowed out behind her in gentle waves, reminding Lina briefly of Greek styles she had seen.

What had truly affected her was the emotion in the piece. Despite years of painting, both at home and in public, nothing had ever held that spark of life to it, that quality that Sylphiel imbued her work with. Looking at the picture in front of her, Lina had captured that spark.

"How? What was so different this time?" She mused, taking a step back from the painting to get a better view.

A slightly annoyed tenor voice answered her. "I'll tell you what is different. This time you actually listened to me."