Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Escaflowne. So please don't sue me!

Author's Note: kk, karmy 014, Inda, thepinkmartini, Slala, livelovemusic95, aye-know-hah, Alana Mae and memeylupht, thank you so much for your encouraging reviews! Your support inspired me to continue this fic. Enjoy!

POIGNANCE

CHAPER 1: THE WHEELS HAVE TURNED

"Lord Van! Van! Wake up! C'mon now, it's past noon already!"

With a speed that could surpass the fastest war horses in Gaea, Merle pounced on Van and shook him with all the strength her petite form could muster. To an observer, however, strangled might be a better term.

"I said—WAKE UP!"

Before she could even do more damage to the already shaken young king, Van flung a pillow to the cat girl beside him. It hit her squarely on the face, and before she could retaliate with her dangerously glinting claws, Van was already on his feet, clearly bewildered by the sudden intrusion.

"Merle? Wh-what are you doing here?" The last thing he remembered was seeing the eerie glow of the Mystic Moon before completely blacking out. And then what?

"What am I doing here? Seriously?" By now, Merle was beyond annoyed. If Van was trying to pull a trick on her, which he rarely ever did, now was definitely not the most appropriate time. "You're in a pub, Van. A pub. Do you even know what today is?"

"Today?"

Merle looked as if she were about to explode any second, and Van had to hurriedly rack his brain for what "today" was lest he suffer the cat girl's wrath. Think, Van, think. Council meeting? Training? Merle's birthday? No, no…that was a couple of months ago. Dammit, what else could be so important to have Merle look at me with that…that expression in her eyes?

And just when Merle was about to strangle her friend, for real this time, it hit him.

"Today's…my wedding."

"Wow, I could really feel the eagerness in your voice." Merle spat, still clearly annoyed with her friend. "I love you Van, but forgetting your own wedding? Really? The celebration's in about three hours, and look at you, still garbed in your smelly clothes from yesterday, clearly disoriented and looking every inch the regal king that you're supposed to be! Oh, drinking better be the only thing you did last night…"

Merle was clearly fuming. When Manna, Van's old chambermaid, announced that he was missing from his room just a few hours before his wedding, they had to search every nook and corner of the castle—and the kingdom—just to find him. Just when all hell was about to break loose, one of Van's men chanced upon his favorite steed tied onto the wooden gate of a pub near the outskirts of Fanelia. Merle was thankful that Van's betrothed had not gotten wind of Van's disappearing act, or else—well, she wouldn't want to think about the commotion that would have ensued.

"This, Van, was totally unexpected of you. I'm so disappointed!" Merle was far from done with her tongue-lashing, and was about to spout off a few choice words about Van's negligence when she saw the dejected look on his face. His eyes displayed a certain emotion she couldn't quite put a finger on, and seeing how troubled he was, she tentatively reached out a hand to comfort him.

"Van…hey, you okay?" Her voice, which previously dripped with annoyance, suddenly softened at her friend's apparent distress. Although she didn't feel the least bit apologetic for her outburst earlier (because he most definitely deserved it, she reasoned), she decided that Van's had enough of her reprimanding. He probably was just as nervous as any groom could be right before his wedding, and he may have resorted to good 'ol alcohol to calm his nerves. It wasn't really the best excuse, but it'll do. But why in this decrepit place?

Merle was still so caught up with convincing herself to let Van's little transgression pass when his sullen voice suddenly broke her train of thought.

"There's no turning back now, eh, Merle?" The way he spoke, the way he slowly clenched and unclenched his fists and the way he sighed in what Merle could only recognize as bitter acceptance made her instinctively embrace her friend.

"I know you're a bundle of nerves right now, and as much as I would like to tell you that yes, you could still postpone your impending doom another day, I can't. You're in this too deep now, my friend, and you better get your ass moving if you don't want uproar to erupt in Fanelia!" The cat girl quickly pulled away from Van and playfully punched his chest. Van was extremely, if not abnormally, depressed and nervous today, and Merle just had to lighten the atmosphere to get rid of the gloom that seemed to be suffocating them both. "You know I'm capable of murder, so if you don't sober up…oh, Fanel, you wouldn't really want to know what I'd do to you."

Van let out a small smile at Merle's odd attempt to cheer him up. Although her face was dead serious as she threatened him, the twinkle in her eyes betrayed her playfulness.

"I still haven't forgiven you for this, Van. But I'll let your wife-to-be do the punishment later on, once you confess everything to her after your wedding." Merle wrinkled her nose in mock distaste at Van's disheveled state. "Tsk. Celena would have a fit once she sees you like this!"

"Lady Celena Schezar. Of course." Van did little to conceal the sadness in his tone, and this didn't go unnoticed by Merle. Although she wanted to comment on it, eventually she decided not to, seeing that they were running out of time and a lengthy discussion might transpire if she were to probe further.

"Come on now, let's get moving! We have roughly three hours to get you ready, and if we move fast, you'd still have more than enough time to take a walk out in your gardens!" With that, the cat girl quickly went behind Van and pushed him out of the door. Two of Van's men were standing guard outside and she signaled for them to grab a couple of Van's belongings she saw were carelessly strewn across the floor.

Soon enough, Van was walking on his own accord, without Merle's prodding. As they reached the bottom of the stairs, Van felt thankful that only, he, Merle, and the old man by the counter were present at the pub. Although he had no idea how he looked like at that time, he was certain that he appeared far from being respectable. Definitely not how I'd want to be seen by my people. Especially not on the day of my wedding.

He had no idea how or why he was in a part of Fanelia he'd rarely ever been to—in a pub, no less—when the last thing he remembered was entering his chambers immediately after making arrangements with visiting traders from Eastern Gaea. It was true that he felt utterly desolate at the thought of letting his love for Hitomi go after all these years, but how could he have ever considered going to a pub in the middle of the night just to drown his sorrows with alcohol? It was an utterly stupid move, and Van hated the fact that he could not even remember how he brought himself to actually do it in the first place.

The confusion from last night's missing memories and the splitting headache from his probably massive alcohol consumption were beginning to take their toll on him, and he knew that it was only a matter of time before the nausea overcomes his senses.

Seeing the condition Van was currently in, Merle hurried to the old man behind the counter and offered him several gold coins in payment for what she believed to be the cost of Van's stay in the pub and his vow of silence with regard to the young king's little adventure. It came as a surprise to her, then, when the old man refused to accept it.

"I have no need for this treasure you offer me, young lady. I housed my lord out of my own good will, and I believe that someday, when he is more…aware, of his surroundings, he would return and offer me his thanks himself." Although the old man's answer confused Merle, she saw that there was no use convincing him to accept payment. In a fit of hurriedness, she merely bowed and muttered her thanks, grabbed Van's arm and led him to the exit. The two soldiers who were with Merle immediately followed suit, and right before the pub's little wooden door closed, Merle looked back.

The old man was nowhere to be seen.

The moment they arrived at the palace, Merle immediately ordered the young soldiers to assist and accompany Van to his chambers. People were already starting to gather inside the throne room, and they had to take the passage near the kitchens to avoid detection. Fortunately, Van's headache subsided and he seemed to have already understood the gravity of the situation. He hurriedly and stealthily rushed towards his room all the while thinking about the stupidity of his actions. He might not have remembered the events of last night, but he knew that whatever it is that drove him to take a trip near the outskirts of Fanelia—thoughts of Hitomi coupled with the few ales he shared with the traders, most probably—it was greatly foolish of him to have fallen prey to it.

His heart ached at the thought of marrying Celena, but he knew that it was time to let go of the past. He loved Hitomi still, but he thought it unfair to his future wife if he held on to this love. However, he knew that he still had a good couple of minutes before the ceremony began. And in what little time was left of his singlehood, Van let himself indulge in the memories of the past—of brown hair, green eyes, and a love that no matter how difficult he tried to bury, would forever remain in his heart.

I'll forget, Celena. But please, just this time, this last time, allow me to remember. And for the first time in years, Van allowed himself to cry.

Merle knew how hard it must be for Van. She saw the look in his eyes and heard the unmistakable sadness in his voice. She didn't know how greatly this marriage would affect him until today. All the while, she thought he was fine. Well, apparently not. She knew, however, that there was no turning back now. Everything was set, and he—they—had to go through with it.

As his best friend, the least she could do was make sure that everything would go over smoothly. When she learned about his disappearance from Manna, she immediately rushed to his bride's chambers. When Merle saw that she was there, awake and evidently nervous, she felt herself calm down a little. Her future sister had no inkling whatsoever about Van's disappearance, and she would make sure that it would remain that way, at least, until Van himself confesses. She promised herself that she would find him, and beat the hell out of him, no matter what. Although she knew how greatly Van detested today's union, she also knew that this marriage was inevitable, and postponing it today would only do more harm than good.

As Merle was silently mulling over the events of earlier, one of Van's men approached to tell her that the young king was already dressed and ready for the ceremony. Merle smiled at the good news, and before she set out to visit her friend, she glanced at the peonies lining up the aisle to make sure that everything was carefully and meticulously set. Once satisfied, she turned on her heels and climbed up the stairs into Van's chambers.

The moment she opened the door to Van's room, Merle immediately beamed at the sight that welcomed her. She knew that Van was a good-looking young man, but now, garbed in the royal colors of Fanelia, he looked more dashing than ever. "Manna did a pretty good job concealing your drunken self beneath all the layers of clothing, my lord."

"Merle." He let a small smile escape his lips. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it. I know you're scared, terrified, even, but you'll manage. I know you will. It was incredibly stupid of you to run away, but let's pretend for a while that it didn't happen, okay?"

Merle slowly approached Van and embraced him with all the sisterly tenderness she had. They stayed in that embrace for a couple of seconds before she finally pulled away. With a slight push, she shouted. "Now get going!"

Van briefly closed his eyes and remembered, for the last time, all the love he had for Hitomi. As quickly as his emotions surfaced, however, he buried everything away.

There was no turning back now.

Author's Note: A Van-Merle chapter! I decided to alter my first idea for Poignance (the one I had while writing the first chapter), so if you were waiting for Hitomi to appear, then you would have to wait until later in the story. I hope you still support this, though.

Thank you so much for your reviews!