'Lo, all…Suicidal Hitomi here. I decided to star another Esca fic, Van/Hitomi, AU, and all that. My old fic, "Eternity Dragons", is on hold for now. I'm planning on either re-writing the whole thing or using the plot in another fic. Meh –shrugs- Sorry to anyone who wanted the next chapter :(
So here is fic attempt number 2! I do not own Escaflowne and whatnot. Please don't forget to review! I'm always up for suggestions, yo.
Echelon
Prologue
The rumors were spreading. All over Fanelia, there was no one that hadn't heard a whisper of the latest gossip. The stories had even spread to Asturia. Everyone knew about it. Everyone knew about her.
She didn't have a nickname. She was simply called The Thief. For the past two weeks, ever since her first evening of eluding the castle guards, the Thief had been breaking into the Fanel castle every other night. She had not yet been caught. No one had even come close, including, rumor had it, the King himself. She would always manage to stay one step ahead, just out of reach, and she would, every time, steal away with something priceless or expensive that was property of the royal Fanelian family.
Although many glimpses of the elusive Thief had been caught, the description was not enough to satisfy the curious minds of the citizens of Fanelia. However, they were all more than happy to pick up where the simple descriptions had left off.
Some said she was a raven-haired beauty, seeking revenge for her lover, who had been killed by the King. Others claimed the Thief was a blonde, blue-eyed princess from the Mystic Moon and was acting on orders of her mysterious god. There were even stories that the girl was a simple farmer's daughter, vying for the attention of the young King in her desperate urge to declare her love for him. Strangely enough, all agreed that the Thief was in her early twenties. All stories seemed better that way, for she had now become a legend.
The original reports had almost been forgotten. The guards of Fanel castle had seen the Thief more than once. She's middle height, thin, and quick as a cat, they said. You can't see her face and she's always dressed in dark colored clothes. Even her hair is tied back. That was all they could see, because she never stayed around for long. A window, a door, she would always find a way out and disappear, leaving behind perplexed guards and a vacant chest or display case.
Such were the ways of the Thief.
Van Slanzar de Fanel let out a low sigh, tapping his sword butt idly against the back of the royal throne where he now sat, eyes closed. With another loud exhale, the eyelids slid open to reveal a pair of amber irises, moving slowly to look over the throne room for the tenth time, his patience running out.
Eight times. Eight times in total, the Thief had made a fool of him and run off with something or other from the castle. The last incident was still fresh in his mind.
"OI! YOU!" Van yelled, running down the hall after the retreating figure in black. The Thief didn't turn but kept up her retreat, one hand holding the book she had just stolen from the royal library. It contained all of the Fanel ancestry, the family tree, and more importantly, the royal traditions and secrets that few out of the castle knew. And now the Thief would know.
"GET BACK HERE!" The young king yelled again, turning his speed up a notch as he went into a full out sprint. He had expected the masked girl to start running faster. He was wrong.
He was caught completely off-guard when he saw the Thief turn around and wordlessly chucked the precious book at him. He skidded to a stop, his eyes wide as he saw the book soaring through the air. He managed to catch it but fumbled. He barely noticed the female burglar come forward, but certainly noticed when she ducked down and lashed out at his feet in an under sweep attack.
Van was knocked off his feet, tumbling backwards as the book, to his dismay, fell from his hands, along with his sword. The attack was a surprise in more ways than one. Firstly, because the Thief had never approached him before, always running away. Now she freely attacked him. Secondly was that she had outsmarted him. Again.
Growling, he tried to stand, but it was too late. The book, which had fallen to the floor nearby, had been picked up by a slender, pale hand. There was a soft laugh from the Thief. She stepped away from him, finding an unlocked window behind her, and, with the stealth of a cat, she opened it and climbed out. She paused on the sill for just a moment and Van caught a glimpse of a pair of bright jade eyes as he finally stood.
"Got you again, Van Fanel." And with that, she was gone, leaving Van to stare at an open window. The message had been enough. He was beaten. The King of Fanelia… beaten by a girl thief.
Holding back a growl as his mind automatically replayed that moment, he gripped his sheathed sword tightly until the leather gloves he wore creaked from pressure. He had one last chance, for the Thief was coming tonight. That's what his instincts told him.
Standing up, he walked out of the royal chamber room, just as the sun began to set and cast orange rays of light into the room. His steps were determined and his mouth set in a rigid line. Tonight… tonight, the Thief is mine!
Hitomi Kanzaki sighed, sitting back in her chair as she gazed thoughtfully at the cards spread out in front of her. It was perplexing. Hoping to take her mind off of the reading, she cast a glance at her bed, where a book sat open, showing a part of the Royal Fanel Family Crest. That Van Fanel. He was getting cleverer by the day, it seemed. It had taken quick thinking to steal that silly, ancient book from that dusty library, and even then, she had barely gotten away.
A soft smile spread across her lips as she turned back to the cards. But get away she did, and, she had to admit, seeing that look on Van's face had been worth the trouble. In any case, her identity was still safe. The Thief was simply a dangerous girl. No one suspected 'Tomi Kanzaki, daughter of Fanel's bookkeeper to be involved in any sort of thing like that. To them, she was the quiet girl who loved to run and had a canny ability to tell fortunes through her tarot cards, nothing more.
But over the past few years, Hitomi had witnessed her friends take on jobs and find goals in life. Yukari was gone, as was Amano. Hitomi had taken to reading books more. Her companions laughed at this as they left one by one. Soon, only Hitomi was left, and that was probably where the whole thieving business came in. It had started off innocently enough when she had accidentally stumbled across a book of Fanelian legends.
Flipping through the thick book, she had turned to a story in the back. Out of all the tales, this had been the only one without an illustration. The main title read "The Ghost." Smirking with amusement at the ridiculous name, she had read the tale of The Ghost merely out of boredom. The book told of a legendary thief from the earlier days of Fanel. He would appear anywhere, at any time, and manage to steal anything he wished. Each time, he would get away. No one ever knew his identity because there was not a soul who had seen the man's face. What was even more mysterious was that The Ghost had simply disappeared one day and never returned. That probably explained why no one had ever even heard of the legend before.
It was strange, but something of a spark had lit in the young teen's mind. She wasn't one to take to illegal practices and stealing, but this… surely picking up where an old legend had left off was worth her time? The story, as badly written as it was, had inspired her to do something exciting with her life. This was saying something, considering that Hitomi did very little exciting things in general. With that, the Thief was born.
Hitomi was jerked out of her daydreaming as she saw the sun begin to set. "It's time…" she murmured, standing and going to close the shutters of her window.
Taking her time, she pulled back her shoulder-length, honey brown hair into a ponytail, then pulled a bandana tightly around the top of her head. Then she started on pulling on the tight, black outfit which allowed her easy movement and made her less noticeable in the dark. Tonight would certainly be interesting. Van Fanel, in his typical male behavior, would come after her again. Seeking revenge, or to regain his honor, or whatnot. A smirk played along her lips as she pulled on the finishing touch, the black strip of cloth which tied around the lower part of her face.
Slipping out the window into the refreshingly cool, now dark night, she completely forgot about the tarot cards she left behind. The Tower and the Serpent drifted off of the table with the sudden breeze that came with her exit. Hitomi didn't notice, closing the shutters and pulled herself nimbly up onto the roof of her home. Tonight… I'll make a fool of Van Fanel.
There ya go. Prologueness. It's very, very short, 'cause it's just the introduction. It's an AU, as you can tell, and Hitomi, to my dismay, will be a little out of character, especially with the whole fighting, thief thing. Yes, I am going to keep going, for now, since Van and Hitomi'll meet in the next chapter. Yay! But for now, reviews would be nice just to see how it's coming along and if it sounds interesting... and the next chapters will be longer! Since I can't help myself xD
The title, by the way, is a working title. I'm not sure if I'll keep it or think of something later on, but for now, I'll leave it as is. Any suggestions?
