DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own any of the Escaflowne Characters. I just write this for fun like so many other people.
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~~~**~~~ 2. Awakenings ~~~**~~~
Hitomi found herself standing in a garden of some sort with the bright sun shining down at her from a clear blue sky. She let her gaze wander over her surroundings and soon her eyes came to rest on Van just a few yards away, and at his side was a very pretty girl. They looked content and were walking around talking silently to one another. The girl was a little taller then herself and the girl had red wavy hair she had a gracefulness about her that just couldn't be overseen. And she had the most piercing green eyes she had ever seen. The girl was out right beautiful, no question about it.
The scene that came to pass before her next though caused her heart to break. She watched stunned as Van leaned down and captured the red haired girl's lips in a soft and loving kiss, and when they broke apart, the girl's cheeks were tinted pink, but had a happy smile on her lips, a smile that Van returned with one of his own.
Then the scenery changed around Hitomi. The next saw around her was a crowd of cheering people. She looked up, towards were all the others were looking, and saw the girl and Van standing on a balcony, Van had his arm around her waist smiling.
Hitomi could hear the people around her talking and the words that reached her were those of admiration and hope and jealous, but all in all happy sentiments.
"It was about time Van-sama found someone..."
"She's so pretty! And so lucky! I wish I was a princess too..."
"This is going to tie the two Kingdome's together..."
The settings around her suddenly changed again. The stony ground beneath her feet suddenly gave away. She fell like she had done in her other visions but this time there was no angel to catch her, to help her up again. She screamed as she fell backwards into darkness. She called out to Van. But there was no one there...
~~~**~~~
Hitomi woke up with a start and a gasp and franticly looking around trying to orientate herself her head was buzzing and there was a lingering feeling of loss inside of her. The next thing she became aware of was Allen's worried looking face gazing down at her.
"Allen-san..." She whispered and closed her eyes for a moment, she almost felt like crying again, but this time for a whole other reason then the one earlier.
Allen helped Hitomi to her feet but the dizziness lingered and she had to hold on to a chair to keep her balance. After a few moments she turned so that she could look at Van, who looked worried and concerned. She forced a small reassuring smile at him, and it almost felt believable. But it fell a little as she opened her mouth to ask, to make sure...
"What's her name Van? The pretty girl in the garden... the one with red hair?" She questioned getting a surprised look from Van before he averted his eyes from her, looking almost guilty.
"...Princess Lana Icaron..." He said, scratching the back of his neck and avoided looking at Hitomi.
Hitomi gave a small nod then straightened up and let out a small sigh, before she smiled a bit sadly at Van. "That's a pretty name..." She said. "It suits her."
The door creaked open behind them, and the mentioned princess entered the room a bit tentatively, a concerned look on her smooth and delicate features. Hitomi saw Allen frown slightly, out of the corner of her eye, but it passed as quickly as it appeared, and it almost made her question if it had been there to begin with.
"Van-sama, what are you doing in here? There are people... Oh hello, I don't think we have met." The princess said as her bright green eyes came to rest on Hitomi and a pleasant smile settled over her red painted lips.
Hitomi looked at the Princess for a moment then caught herself and gave a slight bow. Van suddenly looked really uncomfortable and looked between the two girls for a moment. Hitomi was quite sure that if he had had his sword at his side he would probably have had his hand on the hilt. He looked like he was in the midst of a battlefield...
Allen was the one who broke the uncomfortable silence that had settled over the room. "Princess Lana, this is Hitomi Kanzaki, the girl from the Mystic Moon." The Knight said with a pleasant smile on his lips as he motioned to Hitomi. The green eyed princess blinked a few times like she didn't believe it and then stared at Hitomi for a few seconds. Then she walked over to Hitomi and took her right hand in both of hers and a bright smile blossomed over her delicate features.
"It's an honour to met you Hitomi. I've heard so much about you, most of it from Van-sama."
Hitomi blushed a little and looked over at Van who just gave her a tiny smile, then she turned her eyes back to Lana and gave the flashed the princess a small embarrassed smile.
"It's a pleasure to meet you too Princess Lana."
Lana returned the smile and gave Hitomis hand a small squeezed before she let it go and walked over to Van to hook her arm with his before she looked back at Hitomi.
Lana nodded and walked over to Van and hocked her arm with his, looking back at Hiromi as she started to lead the king towards the door.
"I'm sorry that I have to have to take Van-sama away like this, but we have an engagement party to attend. We'll make sure that someone shows you to one of the guest quarters though, and then we can all talk in the morning." The princess said brightly. Van visibly flinched and looked even guiltier then before and avoided looking into Hitomi eyes.
Hitomi just felt numb, like she was listening to a TV that was in the other room. She barely noted the goodbyes from the princess and Van. Her gaze came to rest on her hands, which were gripping the chair so tightly that her knuckles were turning white. She didn't notice when Allen walked over to her, nor did she take notice of his hand which came to rest on her shoulder.
"Hitomi are you alright?" He asked his smooth voice full of concern. She didn't answer him, nor did she even turn to look at him. He gently turned her so that she was facing him and placed a hand on her chin and made her look up at him. It was unwavering to look into her eyes, because they weren't looking at Allen. It was like she was a million miles away. A worried frown came to crease his brow once more and he placed his hand onto her shoulder. She turned her face downwards again and stared at his chest but not really. He gave her a light shake and spoke her name.
"Hitomi? Hitomi answer me." The girl in front of him drew a sharp breath then looked up at him, a lost look in her eyes.
"What?" She asked, completely unaware of what had transpired in the last couple of minutes. Allen let out a soft sigh and smiled softly at her. "I think we should get you to your room and let you rest. You seem a bit out of it." He said before he picked up her bag once more before he offered her his arm, which she took, with a somewhat dazed look on her features, but didn't say anything. She only gave a small nod, and with that they walked out of the library.
They walked through the empty corridors in silence; it wasn't until they were almost at the guest quarters that Hitomi spoke up. "...Allen-san..." She said her voice thin and frail sounding. The Knight turned his head too look down on her.
"Yes Hitomi?"
"...How, and when, did Van meet Lana?"
Allen raised an eyebrow at the question then looked away from her and let his gaze linger on some point far ahead of them down the corridor, a small frown spreading over his features.
"It was quite a while ago... I don't think Van really liked her at first. He didn't have that much time in the beginning to actually take notice to her. He was trying to rebuild Fanelia and bind the kingdoms together by a peace-treaty. Most of them agreed but there were a few that didn't think it was a good idea. Princess Lana's country was one of them."
Hitomi listened in silence as Allan spoke, her eyes on the floor as they walked at a slow pace down the corridor. After a short pause Allen started speaking again after a quick glance at Hitomi.
"Princess Lana's father wasn't the most easygoing of men. He highly objected to the idea of every country as one, it was then Princess Lana came into the picture. In the beginning I think she was brought into the picture to change Van's mind, but it worked the other way around. Van still didn't like her though."
Hitomi shook her head and Allen raised an questioning eyebrow at her. "No Allen-san... Van liked her from the beginning. He just wasn't mature enough to admit to himself..." She had a distant look in her eyes but after closing her eyes for a few moments it was gone.
"Van isn't hurting anymore, and he's not alone. I'm truly happy for him..." She couldn't stop the tear that escaped her eye but she brushed it away before it could roll down her cheek.
Allen tilted his head slightly and looked at her a concerned look in his eyes one more.
"Then why are you crying Hitomi?" He questioned softly.
She sniffled a little and shook her head, brushing away another tear.
"It's nothing. I guess I just wasn't prepared for it... I thought that perhaps it was Van who had found a way to bring me back here again... because he wanted to be with me again..." She trailed of and squeezed her eyes shut, shaking as she tried her best to hold back the tears.
Allen dropped Hitomi's bag and gathered the trembling girl into his arms giving her a comforting hug. Hitomi was grateful for the gesture but felt a bit awkward as well but sp she buried her face in the fabric of his shirt that covered his chest and gripping onto his shirt with both her hands letting out small sobs.
"It's going to be alright Hitomi." Allen's voice was soft and reassuring as he held her close. They stayed like that until Hitomi's breathing started to go back to normal as she slowly started to get a grip on her emotions again.
"There's probably a reason why you are here, and we'll figure it all out in the morning." Allen said in a soft voice and looked down at the girl who started to move away from him, rubbing at her eyes with a slightly embarrassed look on her face. She however gave a small nod at his words and Allen let his arms drop slowly from around her and the green eyed girl took a step back. She took a deep breath before she looked up at him, her eyes still shiny with tears but she looked like she was in control again.
"Thank you Allen-san." She said and smiled at him before she reached down to retrieve her bag from the floor to then sling in over her shoulder. A comfortable silence settled between them as they walked side by side down the corridor. And it wasn't to long before they met one of the pageboys. The boy's face brightened in relief at the sight of them.
"Hitomi Kanzaki I presume, I've been looking for you. I was sent to lead you to your quarters, please follow me." They boy said as he bowed at them. Hitomi gave a small nod at the young man and followed.
Faint music and laughter could be heard from the main hall. She hadn't really noticed until then, but the sounds that had made her think of how alive the castle felt, now made her feel rather empty inside. She was starting to wonder what she was doing on Gaia again. She got lost in her own thoughts and didn't take much notice of her surroundings until she was drawn out of her thoughts by Allen when he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"We're here Hitomi."
"Hmm... oh right, my room." Hitomi said walked inside once the pageboy had opened the door for her, and Allen followed her inside, just to make sure that she would be all right.
The green eyed girl walked over to the bed and dropped her bag onto it then made her way over to the balcony wrapping her arms around herself as she looked up at the earth high up in the sky.
"Hitomi?" Allen followed her across the room and soon came to stand besides her on the balcony and looked at her as she stared up at the sky.
"It's weird... I was doing this just an hour ago... but then I was in my room thinking about Van and Gaia..." She said musingly before she let out a small sigh and shifter her eyes to look down at the railing. "Why am I here?" The question wasn't directed at Allen, she was just thinking out loud. The blond Knight looked at her with a contemplating look in his azure blue eyes for a few long moments he then turned his gaze towards the Mystic Moon. A few moments later he spoke, his voice as musing as hers had been just a minute or so earlier.
"Maybe someone wished you to come here. Or it's destiny who wants you back." He turned to look at her, a small smile on his lips. "Either way I'm glad that you're here again."
Hitomi felt a faint blush creep across the bridge of her nose at his words. And when Allen saw it he couldn't help but smile fondly at her.
"Well I better leave you to your rest. Sleep well Hitomi, I'll see you in the morning." Allen bowed to Hitomi and turned around to walk away.
"Allen!" Hitomi blushed even more when she realized that she had said his name louder then was necessary and turned her eyes towards the floor in embarrassment. The feeling his now questioning eyes on her didn't help either, it only made her blush harder.
"Yes?" He said, a curious smile on his lips. Hitomi never noticed it though because her eyes were fixed on the rug on the floor.
"I... um... I mean... thank you Allen-san." She said and raised her eyes to look at him and saw the warm smile that settled there, and she couldn't help but smile back at him.
"No need to thank me Hitomi, you sleep well now."
"You too." She said and watched him as he left her room. She turned to look up at the Mystic Moon once more and smiled sadly at it.
"I guess I won't be able to meet you on time Yukari..."
~~**~~
In another part of the castle Van was staring up at the same Mystic Moon in much the same way as Hitomi, his mind filled with a buzzing with questions.
"Hitomi..." It was just a whisper of her name but it carried so many questions hidden questions. He was brought out of his thoughts when he felt a hand on his arm. He turned slightly and came to look down at his fiancé who was smiling brightly at him.
"Are you ok Van-sama? You seem a little distant."
A small sigh escaped him before he forced a small smile onto his lips before he spoke.
"I'm fine Lana... I'm fine."
~~**~~
Ok. That's chapter two edited. I hope it agrees with you. I agree with it. XD
If you've read this far, why not jot down your thoughts about it for me in a Review?
Take care.
Darkie Hime
