Author's Notes: Thanks to everyone who reviews and everyone who reads. Merry Christmas! But this won't be my real Christmas present to you. It'll be next week when I update a chapter on the Thursday between Christmas and New Years! Happy Holidays!
Chapter Nine
Hitomi fell asleep in the car before Van had actually gotten her anywhere. The passenger side window was open and the wind on her face was extremely cooling. She was just dead weight and before she knew it she had fallen asleep.
She woke up on a couch. It was daytime. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, noticed she was in a living room, and that . . . she was wearing a different shirt! Eeep!
A teenaged girl was looking at her. She was sitting in a chair close to Hitomi. She had dark eyes, and short ruddy-red hair. "So," she said with one eye brow raised. "You're awake." She was wearing a black tank top, and long khaki cargo pants. Hitomi also noticed that she had a tattoo on her upper arm. It was a dragon, just like the dragon that man Gaddes had on the back of his neck. "You've been asleep a really long time."
Hitomi sat up. "What time is it?"
The girl looked at her watch, "Eight thirty."
"What day is it?"
"Tuesday."
So, it was only the day after everything had happened. Suddenly, she remembered an essay she was supposed to turn in for English class . . . she'd missed class! "Shouldn't I have gone to school today?" Hitomi blurted, thinking about her paper.
"Van asked me to tell you a few things. Obviously, you won't be going to school anymore. Not any school. You won't be safe there. Once the Dragon Slayers know that you're a threat, they'll want you dead."
"They already want me dead?" Hitomi mumbled. So much had happened; she was having a hard time making sense of it all.
"So, Van noticed." The girl regarded the floor with a sickened expression on her face. "My name is Merle."
Hitomi nodded, and was about to ask her about her parents and sister when Merle continued.
"You'll be on the most recent edition the Missing Children ad. Since you're still seventeen, you'll be on the list. It's a pity you couldn't have joined us before you became famous. You could have been helpful then," Merle said bitterly.
Hitomi put a hand to her face, she still couldn't see well out of her eye because of the swelling. "Is there some ice or something that I could put on my eye?"
"Oh yeah. I just didn't want to put an ice pack on it while you were still out of it. I'm not the best doctor and I didn't want it to leak and spill cold water into your hair while I was out of the apartment." The girl jumped up and went into the other room. She was back in a moment with an ice tray and a white dish towel. She sat down on the floor next to Hitomi, and began to crack the ice.
"Do you know what happened to my mom and dad and sister?" Hitomi asked as soon as she saw a break in the girl's conversation.
"Sorry," she said shaking her head.
"What about my friend Millerna? Do you know what happened to Millerna? Did she live after all?"
"I haven't been told," she confessed.
Hitomi put her head back on the pillows set up for her and thought about the next most important thing – Van. "Where's Van?"
"He'll be around," Merle said nonchalantly.
"He's in trouble, isn't he?" Hitomi asked.
Merle smiled. "Van was practically born in trouble."
"No, but he's in more trouble because the Dragon Slayers didn't know who he was before last night. Now that they know who he is, do you think that he is in danger?"
"I doubt it. Van is the Dragon. Dilandau would have seen his face eventually, and Van has always been prepared for that. He simply wanted to hold off on the inevitable for as long as possible. That's all."
"So, you don't think that he's mad at me for what happened?"
Merle pulled the cloth up around the ice cubes. "Van is not the one who lost yesterday. You are. Don't think you're licked though." She handed Hitomi the make shift ice pack.
Hitomi put it up to her eye. "Will I get to see him?"
"I don't know where he is. He said he'd come to see you tonight though, so he'll be here. So, stop bugging me," Merle said, getting up to leave.
"Merle, how did you get involved in this? Van told me that people get in this because the Dragon Slayers did something horrible to them."
"That's why, but I'd actually rather not talk about it," Merle said looking out the window. "I'll leave you alone for awhile. You look like you're going to pass out."
"I just might."
She turned herself onto her side as Merle left the room. Her head pounded. What she wanted right at that moment were some pretty good drugs, and a cold drink, but she didn't dare ask Merle for either. The girl did not look happy to be nursing her.
Her mind went straight to Van once given a little encouragement. She closed her eyes and pictured him forming that ball of fire above his arms. How had he done that?
There was definitely one other thing she didn't understand and she wanted to ask Van. Why had the gem stone hurt like that? She would have asked Merle, but she was afraid that Merle wouldn't know the answer. Besides she didn't know that Merle was someone she could trust. She seemed to have a lot of pent up hostility towards her, and Hitomi didn't understand why.
Her head was fuzzy and she was drifting off to sleep again.
Van woke her up. The twilight was still hanging in the air outside, so it wasn't quite night yet. She must have slept an hour or two at least.
He patted her head with a new ice pack.
Hitomi moaned a little bit at the feeling in her head, and saw that she had knocked the ice pack Merle made for her onto the floor in her sleep.
"Good after-morning," he said pleasantly, looking into her eyes.
Hitomi couldn't help but think that he was incredibly good looking, but she pushed the thought away, thinking she was out of her mind.
"Thank-you," she said.
He smiled, "For what, silly girl?"
"You saved me last night."
"My pleasure. I thoroughly enjoyed it."
"Did you really?" she exclaimed
"I don't have an excuse to bust into one of their hide-outs very often . . . and torch the building. Actually, I've never done it before. Merle told me that she talked to you, and you seemed kind of out of it. Are you in a lot of pain?"
"Yes."
"Still? I thought it might be better by now. You've slept all day. Why didn't Merle give you anything? Anyway, I think I have some pain killers. I get pretty bad head aches, and I have stuff for that, but I think they might be a little powerful for you."
"It'll be okay," she reassured him.
"I'll be right back then." He went through the doorway that seemed to lead to the kitchen and then around the corner. He was back in a moment, and he brought a glass of water with him. Sitting on the floor next to her, he handed her the water. "Take this." He put the pill in her palm.
She drank a little bit of the water and put the pill in her mouth. It tasted terrible, so she did her best to swallow it at once. Then she drank a little more water.
"Which one of your injuries hurts the most?" he asked her. "Those monsters banged you up pretty bad."
"I have a head ache, and this cut doesn't feel that great." She pointed to the cut by her lip. "Do you think I'll have a scar? I don't want to scar."
"I don't know, but maybe you'll have a little one. They scraped your cheek pretty badly too, but it might be all right if you just give it some time to heal."
She put her hand over her stomach, "I don't feel too good. I think I might throw up."
Van got up and went back into the kitchen. He returned shortly with an ice cream pail, and put it in her lap.
"Thanks," she took it from him and held it close to her.
"Hitomi, there isn't any use pretending that you are well enough to do anything, but lie in bed for awhile yet, so I think that we need to decide where we're going to put you while you're recovering." He regarded her with weary eyes. "I took you to my place to begin with, but Merle didn't think that was very 'appropriate' and insisted I bring you here, so this isn't my apartment. There's also the problem that Merle can't afford to keep you here on a permanent basis. She and her room mate are really important to our every day operations, and they both have day jobs. Since, you can't take care of yourself for the time being, and they are too busy, there aren't very many options," he said presenting the alternatives. "Either you can go live with my aunt in the country until you're better, or you can come with me back to my place."
"Didn't Merle say that was 'inappropriate'?"
"It is . . . especially since I don't live alone. But I don't want to leave you with just any of our members while you recover. I only trust myself or my aunt to take proper care of you. Besides, it wouldn't be as inappropriate as you'd think. It's not like you'd be sleeping in my bed. You'd have your own room for privacy. The only thing is . . . is that in order for you to make your decision you have to know what the choices really mean. If you come to live at my place then you have to join our resistance group. It wouldn't be safe for you to know all about us and not be part of our team. So, if you go to my aunt's, that's your way out of all this mess. You won't have to deal with me, or my problems, and any of the crap that's gone on. I really want to give you the choice. It's just that sometimes things go wrong, like what happened with Gaddes when they burned down that building downtown. If you're not willing to accept a little danger than I would seriously suggest that you go live with my aunt until you're better. The choice is really up to you."
"How long do I have to make up my mind?" she asked, tugging her blanket closer around her and thinking that her head hurt far too much for her to make this decision.
"These girls can't keep you here after tomorrow. We have to move you, so you'll have to make up your mind before 7:00 a.m. tomorrow morning. That's when Merle leaves for work. She says I have to pick you up before she locks the apartment."
"Van this really isn't fair. I. . ."she couldn't think. "I don't know anything about your resistance group. I think I could make a better decision if you would tell me more."
"I'm sorry Hitomi. I don't dare tell you more until you're one of us."
"Well, what exactly would happen if I went to your aunt's?"
"That's simple. I'd drive you out there tomorrow. She has a spare room you can sleep in, until you're better. Of course, I'd call you from the city and let you know what I'd found out about your family and Millerna. Then depending on what happened to your parents, you'd make a decision about where you wanted to go from there, but I'd strongly recommend that you simply never come back to this city. Dilandau will stay here because I'm here, and it's his goal to eliminate me, and I think he likes you so well that there's a chance he could convince the rest of the Dragon Slayers to forget all about you." Hitomi could tell that he was trying very hard to sound impartial during this speech and for the most part, he seemed to succeed, but she got the impression that he really wanted her to stay and what he suggested would separate them forever.
"So, I'd never see you again?" she asked.
"Yeah . . . that's what would happen," he paused, searching her eyes. "On the other hand there is one thing I can promise, if you joined our resistance, that is. You would never kill anyone."
Hitomi saw that this last declaration meant a great deal to him, but there was still one more thing she wanted to ask him before she even considered throwing caution to the wind. "Does that also mean that you won't explain the fireball to me, unless I join?"
He nodded. "That's what that means," he said slowly. "So, what do you think?"
Her head hurt so much. What was she going to do? But as she looked at Van, she thought his eyes looked really honest and a little sorrowful. It was what those creatures had done to Millerna, possibly to her parents and sister. No, she couldn't walk out on this. It was far too personal. She didn't care if she would be in danger. Then she said it. "I . . . I think that Dilandau and his little blood hounds desperately need to have their asses kicked."
His eyes popped open, "Is that an answer?"
She decided that she didn't want to think about it anymore. Van was the only person in the whole world who could help her now. He was her only friend. He had been the one to come for her last night, and if she could help him with whatever cause he had going she would be glad to. Not to mention the fact that Dilandau was the one who had harmed every last person she cared about. Maybe she could help him get his own back. Her head hurt, but she tried to uncloud her judgement as she considered the possibilities. She could do the most damage if she stayed with Van, and yes, she wanted revenge.
"Yes."
He smiled. "Are you sure you know what you're doing?"
She placed the ice pack on her face again. "Van, is this normal?" she indicated her swollen face. "Do most people go around with this kind of handy work on their face? I don't. Things need to change."
He had the hugest grin on his face. "You silly girl. I am so sorry that those guys did this to you. Don't worry. It will get better sooner than you think," he said, his mood seeming to brighten. "Want to hear how the news crews explained the fire I set last night?"
"Of course."
"That whole building burned down. The fire engines got there only a little bit before we got out of there. It was kept out of the papers more than I'd like, but I did get a laugh out of how they explained it."
"How did they explain it?"
"They said that one of the motor bikes crashed."
"But that's ridiculous; you set fire to the ceiling."
He smiled again, "That's only what they're saying. The fire chief said that they had to take their word for it because there was no reasonable answer, but that titbit of information wasn't in the papers." He raised his eye brows. "All the same, I was incredibly satisfied to read that article."
"But Van, what did they say to explain the dead bodies lying around the dirt heaps? They obviously found them when they went to investigate after the fire was put out."
"No, there wasn't a word about those dead riders. They found the motor cycles, but they didn't find any dead bodies. My only guess was that Dilandau had some members of his club pick up the bodies and take them out with them. Dilandau must have something he does with dead bodies if he's managed to stay out of trouble thus far. A lot of people go unaccounted for in our society."
"Van, how did you do it?" Hitomi asked suddenly.
"How did I do what?"
"You set fire to the stadium. How did you do it?"
"There's a good reason for it, even though it doesn't make a whole lot of sense," he said, mildly touching the wisps of hair around her ear. "There's magic. You saw it, and I know you have felt it." He fingered the necklace around her throat.
Her eyes widened. "Yes, why did it hurt like that?"
"How bad was it?"
"It was more painful at the time, weighed against everything else that happened to me. I would have taken it off, but I never got the opportunity. My hands were always tied, and then after you broke me out, I forgot about it completely."
"Really?" He frowned. "I didn't think it would hurt that much, but I haven't had anyone wear it since I made it. No one qualified, until I first saw you."
"On the bus," Hitomi smiled at him.
Van studied her carefully. "That wasn't the first time I saw you."
"When did you first see me?" she questioned, really curious.
"Do you really want to hear about that?"
"Yes, I do."
"This is a really long story and you're going to think I'm a psychopath," he sighed, with this attitude like it couldn't be helped and he'd have to tell her. "That girl who Millerna saw murdered. Her name was Kristy. She's one of Allen's. We sent her on a quick little mission to break the lock on that building. The idea was that we wanted to go check on it the next day; to see if someone would have replaced the lock already. You see, that would be a good indication as to how important the building was to the Dragon Slayers. No one thought that Dilandau and a couple of his thugs would be there in those two minutes that Kristy was there. We went to go check up on her, when she didn't come back on time. They had left her for dead. She was hurt really badly when we found her. She told us that some girl walked in on them while they were beating the trash out of her. She said that Dilandau hadn't expected that. She also told us how he reacted. She couldn't say much else before she . . . passed away. We don't dispose of dead bodies, so we had to leave her where we found her. After that we had to start following Dilandau around, all the time actually. I saw you with him first." He paused and looked at her. "I suppose you want me to tell when that was."
"Of course," she said, her heart was beating wildly. Any confession she heard from him was a great one.
"At the club. You were flirting with him, and he just sort of looked through you. You got annoyed with him and walked out of the club in a huff. This was almost a year ago. I had Gaddes watch Dilandau, and I left and followed you. I didn't do a very good job. I trailed so close I thought for sure you would have seen me. I remember you walked so slowly, and when I saw your head turn in the street light, I saw a tear streak down your pale skin. I had never seen anything like that before. People around here have good reason to cry when they do, but it is much more like howling to the moon. You didn't make a sound - fascinating. Anyway, the next time I saw Dilandau, you were with him again and looked just as cheerful as ever, so I figured he'd made up with you. When we saw the dynamic of your relationship, we were sure that it was you that saw the murder. You weren't a Dragon Slayer and we didn't even think that it might be Millerna. As a matter of fact we didn't even see her with Dilandau until months after the murder."
"Why didn't you come and talk to me about it?" Hitomi wondered aloud.
"We had more pressing matters around here just then."
"Like what? Things could have been cleared up a lot quicker maybe if you had talked to me back then."
"Perhaps, but what was going on here was extremely serious," he said.
"I don't like interrupting you Van, but what is the name of your resistance group?"
"The Abaharaki. But like I was about to tell you, we were sort of going through a little bit of a power struggle. Allen is the leader, but there are quite a few people who feel really strongly that it should be me."
"I don't understand. Why would they want you instead of him?"
"I keep on saying that I don't want to be the leader, and I'll happily leave it to Allen, but some people think that I'm more qualified."
"Why?"
"Like I said," he whispered into her ear. "It's magic."
She looked into his eyes and anticipated the next moment and when nothing happened, she whispered back, "What kind of magic?"
"Elemental magic," he said seriously.
"Elemental magic," she said back to him in a flat voice.
"You sound so excited. You saw what it can do, and that's not the half of it."
"I'm sorry. I just thought that you were going to say something else."
"And just what exactly did you think I was going to say?"
"Nothing," she said, blushing hotly. He had been so suggestive; she thought he was going to kiss her for certain – banged up face and all.
"I wish you were feeling better. Then we could get to work at once," he said, and for a moment it didn't even occur to her that he was still talking about the resistance group. But when she looked up into his eyes, it was clear that he was not deliberately teasing her with the remark, but speaking sincerely and not even realizing there was a possible double meaning.
"I am never going to feel better," she said picking up on his tone of conversation. "I have lost a lot Van and I'm so worried about my family and Millerna that I could scream. You know when I was at school I used to hear girls whine about some distant cousin who died recently. They would do their best to sponge as much attention as they could off the tragedy, and I vowed that I wouldn't be that way. I don't want to be that way. But, I'm still hurt Van, so very hurt by everything that's happened. It's easier to keep myself together, when you're here though. It's a lot easier."
"I'm glad." His face suddenly became very serious. "I wasn't going to tell you this until I dropped you off at my aunt's . . . if that was your choice, but since you've decided to stay on with us, I think I should tell you now."
"What is it?"
"There's a reason I couldn't trust you with anyone other than myself or my aunt, but I didn't want to say what that was." He took her hand in his and seemed to brace himself for what he was about to say. "You see . . . Millerna passed away at about 5:00 a.m. this morning."
Hitomi heard a clock tick in the hallway. She noticed the crimson flecks in Van's eyes. She felt the plastic of the empty ice cream bucket on her lap, and couldn't think about what had happened at all. She couldn't even speak.
"I'll take care of you, Hitomi," he said.
"I won't forget," she said stiffly. "You have helped me so much. You saved me," she said, finding it impossible to think about Millerna. "I don't know what Dilandau was going to do to me back there, but I feel so rotted out inside whenever I close my eyes. The rest of the time I think about you."
"What's to think about when it comes to me?"
"I don't know," she paused. "It's magic."
"I'll go to sleep on the other couch, so if you need anything in the night, you can just crawl over and tug on my sleeve. Okay?"
She nodded.
"Good night then," he said quietly.
7
