(A/N: Disclaimer- I do not own Escaflowne! Not yet anyway…)

Chapter 10

Reunions

"Emerald…" a sweet voice spoke softly.

Emerald opened her eyes and looked around. Once again she was in the white room that stretched for an eternity and had no end. She was laying down on absolutely nothing; she was just floating on air.

"Not again…" she groaned hoarsely, "Every time I appear in here, something bad happens."

She remembered the first time she came in here; it was right before she left from her home on Gaea. The second time she was in here she happened to have gotten a tail as part of the Phase of Nature from Aoshi. She tried to sit up but a force kept her where she was. She finally stopped trying to resist and brought her head back down.

"Emerald…" the voice chimed again.

Her annoyance was getting the best of her.

"What?" she shouted, "Stop playing games! Show yourself!"

A woman appeared wearing a long maroon cloak that covered her whole body. Her soft, jade hair swayed well past her shoulders. A pair of extremely large, angelic wings unfolded stately behind her. The woman's brown eyes glittered with cheerfulness. She looked down at Emerald and smiled softly. There was a relieved look upon the woman's stunning face. Emerald's eyes went wide in surprise of seeing the grand goddess of Gaea.

"Kaoru-sama! I'm sorry, if I had known it was you--"

"Oh, come now, Emerald. You do not need to apologize!" she exclaimed pleasantly, "After what you have been through, it is quite understandable for you to be so agitated."

"What are you talking about, Kaoru-sama?"

Kaoru's expression changed instantly.

"You do not remember what happened to you?" she frowned.

"No…"

"Well, you were hit by a fireball made by the droid Laesa at a very close range I might add. When Master Getchin finally got a look at you, you literally had a smoldering hole the size of your head where your stomach and everything else were supposed to be. No one could have survived that."

"So you're saying I'm dead? Oh great!" Emerald said bitterly.

"No, Emerald. Astonishingly, you live to tell the tale."

 "Then what am I doing here if I lived?"

"You are unconscious, Emerald. You have been for the last two months. It is February on Earth right now. I think it is time for you to wake up."

Emerald blinked.

"I missed Christmas? Oh well…at least I'm not dead. It's time to wake up, huh? Second time I've heard that in here. I guess it is time; I shouldn't keep my audience waiting."

She looked at the beaming Kaoru and got a strange feeling.

"Is there something you're not telling me, Kaoru-sama?"

Kaoru smiled one last time to her.

"There is, but all in good time, Emerald. All in good time."

~*~*~*~

"Mom! Dad! I think Emie's waking up! I just saw her hand move!" rang Anna's voice.

"Anna, that's the seventh time you've said that today!" Hikari said weeping.

"No, mother, I'm serious this time! Come and see for yourself. She's waking up!"

Emerald's hand twitched again as Suboshi and Hikari stepped up to the hospital bed. Both of them gasped and Suboshi ran out of the room to get the doctor. Again, her hand jolted, which brought another gasp from Hikari. Slowly, Emerald started regaining consciousness. A few doctors and nurses rushed in behind of Suboshi and started checking her vitals, almost all of them stunned that she would ever wake up. After what seemed like hours, she groggily opened her eyes.

"Emie! Oh, Emie you're awake!" Hikari cried.

Emerald's eyes shifted slowly to meet Hikari's.

"Ah geez," she gruffly complained, "Stop crying, silly."

 Hikari smiled and laughed. She wiped her eyes, but tears still flowed. Suboshi placed a hand on Emerald's shoulder.

"You gave us a pretty good scare, missy, " he said.

He leaned in on Emerald's bed and whispered.

"I've been having to hear Hikari's crying for two whole months. I think her deafening sobbing might have woken you up!"

Emerald giggled as Suboshi lightly kissed her forehead. Hikari stood up and gave her a painful hug, giving her a kiss on the cheek. After prying her off of Emerald, Anna gave her a hug.

"Man, Emie-chan! It never fails with you. If you missed me so much, you should have called, " she winked, "Welcome back."

"Thanks, minna. Sorry I scared you, " she looked around, "Where am I, exactly?"

"In the hospital wing of your school. I'm glad they have a facility like this so close," said Suboshi.

"Oh, Emie! I've been so worried! I thought you were never going to make it." Hikari bawled.

Emerald sighed and snickered.

"Thanks for having faith, Hikari-san," she said in a sarcastic tone.

A nurse walked in the room and knocked on the door.

"I'm sorry, but visiting hours are over now. You'll have to come by tomorrow," she said.

"Aw! I want to stay longer!" Anna whined.

"Anna! You heard the nurse! It's time to say our goodbyes," said Suboshi.

Everyone took turns hugging Emerald and saying goodbye. Soon, she was all by herself in the large hospital room. Now that she was alone, she placed a hand on her stomach and almost screamed. It was completely healed; there was no hole or anything. How could she have healed so fast if Kaoru herself said she was shocked she made it alive? Emerald didn't even feel any pain or ache. It was as if she didn't get hit at all.

'Weird…' she thought as she moved her hand from her abdomen.

Suddenly everything came rushing back to her. She remembered the whole fight with Laesa and the conversation she had with her right before she was practically blown up. Laesa had known she was from Gaea, and Getchin did too. She remembered how Laesa said she wanted her dead and how she shot a lethal inferno right through her abdomen. A surge of fury ran through Emerald. If she ever saw Laesa again, she would pay for putting her in a hospital bed. Emerald yawned and tried to stay mad, but even after being asleep for months, she was very tired. She turned to her side and drifted off to sleep.

Emerald hadn't slept for very long when she heard a window opening next to her. Her eyes sprang open as she watched a dark figure creep into her room. She was reaching for something to hurt the stranger with when she heard a familiar voice.

"Milady, it is I," said the figure.

"Boah?" she squeaked very amazed that he could get up to a second story window so quietly.

"Hai." He replied.

Emerald turned on the lamp next to her and sat up as Boah pulled up a seat beside her. His handsome face had a deep look of stress as she got a good look at him. His dimly lit body looked very tired. He lifted up Emerald's hand and courteously kissed it then held it with his own. He looked as though he was on the brink of crying.

"My lady, forgive me. I am so sorry, words cannot express my anguish," he muttered sadly.

"What are you sorry for? Did you do something wrong?"

"Indeed I did, Lady Emerald, indeed I did. Look what has happened to you! I was not there to protect you, and look where you are now."

His eyes filled with distressed tears and he gripped Emerald's hand.

"It is my sacred duty to keep you from harm. I gave solemn oath to your parents that I would! I was not there to defend you for a few hours and you get a lethal inferno blasted through you! Please find it in your kind heart to forgive me, milady; but I will understand if you refuse. I am not a good protector, nor will I ever. I will never be a Knight Caeli."

Even with his head lowered, Emerald could make out that he was sobbing. She could feel his hand trembling as his heart filled with disgrace. All pride seemed to have disappeared from him. He moved closer to Emerald and talked shakily.

"And forgive me for my foolishness. A true man would not shed tears."

Emerald could not help but smile at the young man's words.

"Nonsense, Boah-kun. If anything a real man wouldn't be afraid to cry. There's no harm done either. I'm fine now, and I don't want you worrying about it. You're a great guardian, really you are, and you will be a Knight Caeli."

Boah looked up at her red-eyed. Though he still looked distressed, he managed a grin.

"Thank you…milady…" he murmured.

He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it once more. He then lowered his head, closed his eyes and smiled.

"I thank you."

~*~*~*~

"I still don't see what I did wrong, Master."

"What are you talking about? You nearly killed one of my students, Laesa!"

"I just did what you told me to do."

"I didn't tell you to kill her, did I?"

"No, but I wasn't trying to kill her."

"That's a lie and you know it, you've been hiding behind that excuse for two whole months."

"I'm not hiding behind anything, Master. Like I said, I was just doing what you told me to do."

"I just told you to make it a good fight. I just wanted to be amused and I wanted to see if she had what it takes. I wanted to see if she lived up to her name, but I didn't even get a chance to see her in action since you chose to try and kill Emerald!"

"But I did as I was told, Master. I amused you and I fought with her. Weren't you entertained?"

"Of course I wasn't! If I had known you were going to shoot her out of the sky, I'd have stopped the fight at once!"

"Sorry, Master. I—"

"I still can't believe that you told her that we knew. I told you about her in confidence that you wouldn't tell anyone!"

"Forgive me, Mast—"

"I know you hate her. You let your own detestation get ahead of yourself and you almost killed a human being. I'm disappointed in you, Laesa. Very disappointed indeed. You may go."

"But, Getchin-sama—"

"Please leave now…"

"H-Hai, Master…but I'm sorry for what I've done to you and her."

"Leave."

"As you wish…Getchin-sama…"

'I didn't mean for it for you to go into a coma, Emerald. I can promise you that, I just wanted to see what you could do... Please forgive me…If I had known…that she would…I'd never would have allowed her…'

~*~*~*~

Emerald woke up the next morning to find that Boah had left. In his place was an emerald rose that was still glittering from his spell. Emerald took the flower and smiled. She then looked around the bland room. It was so dull and boring, even with the doctors and nurses checking up on her. When the wave of nurses had left her side, Emerald hopped out of bed and opened the window.

It was a glorious day outside. The sun shone brightly in the clear, blue sky while birds flew happily without a care in the world. Down below, she could see a few groups of boys training, having a great time. The weather was perfect for anything, and everyone seemed to be having fun. She envied them all, when suddenly she got an idea.

She locked the room door, and changed her clothes to some of her own that she found in a suitcase. Emerald shut her eyes as she unfolded her saintly wings. Her wings took up most of length of the room, and it started to be quite uncomfortable, but it didn't matter. She would be out of the room soon enough. Right now, Emerald didn't care anymore about hiding her wings. It wasn't really a big deal. Everyone in her school had to fly some way or another and she was positive she wasn't the only one with wings. No one knew who or what Draconians were, anyway. She jumped up on the windowsill, looked down, and hoped that her wings wouldn't fail her.

She was about to fly out when she heard a banging on the door.

"Miss Rose? Are you in there? Miss Rose?"

Emerald laughed and threw her hands in the air as she talked.

"Not anymore, I'm not!"

She took a great leap off the windowsill and bounded out of the room. With arms outstretched she soared a few feet before the length of her wings made it out of the room. Her wings gave a giant flap as she flew away from the hospital wing hearing the doctors shout from the window.

"Miss Rose, get back here! You're not supposed to be out of your bed!"

"Doctor, look at that! She has wings!"

"Don't you think I can see that? Miss Rose! Come back!"

Emerald acted as though she didn't hear a single word from them and she laughed happily as the boys fighting stopped to look at her in amazement. She felt wonderful! Ever since December was confined to that little room, not being able to go outside. Now that Emerald felt the cool, fresh air, she never wanted to go inside again. As she flew over the school's training fields, she spotted Takiji heading back to his dorm by himself. She grinned as she flew down towards him.

"Takiji!!" she yelled as she came closer to him.

Takiji looked around, and seeing no one, kept on walking. He did not even notice the flying girl behind her. She was so close to him now that she could touch his hair.

"You're so stupid, Takiji!" she said as she tugged at a piece of her hair.

He stopped, and with him coming to a quick halt, Emerald collided with Takiji, tackling him to the ground. They rolled a few yards before actually stopping. Emerald lay on top of him with her wings shading both from the sun.

"Emie! You're alright!" he exclaimed, wrapping his arms around her neck in a tight embrace.

"Of course I am, Taki!" she exclaimed.

He opened his mouth to say something when he finally realized her wings. He stared at them in utter marvel, moving his eyes from side to side to look at them.

"Emie…you have wings?" he managed to say.

"No," she rolled her eyes, "these are loaners."

He lifted a hand and touched her right wing.

"They're so beautiful and soft." He said ignoring her comment.

Emerald blushed despite herself at his words. Takiji seemed to be in a trance as he felt the pallid, downy smoothness of her wings. A few feathers did their twirling ballet in the February air, before gliding off to somewhere else. Takiji's hand slowly moved from Emerald's wings to the side of her face. He gently stroked her flushed cheek. His eyes drifted from her wings to her eyes.

"Emerald," he whispered.

His eyes closed slightly. He moved closer to her, stopping inches from her face, his lip coming ever so close to hers. His eyes closed slightly as Emerald blushed crimson red.

"T-Takiji?" she squeaked, "Are you okay?"

Takiji look as if he broke out of her spell. His eyes widened as he realized what he was doing. He got from under Emerald and moved himself away. His face was as red as a tomato and he kept staring at a clump of grass at his feet.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what…er…came over me! Well, I got to go! See you when I see you! I'm glad your back, Emie." He said very quickly and ran off into the dorm.

Emerald sat there watching him run away, her cheeks still red. She absently touched the side of her face. She folded up her wings and they disappeared in a sea of feathers. She was speechless.

'Um…I don't think I should open my wings when Takiji's around…' she thought.

Emerald stood up and dusted herself off, watching the path Takiji went to get away from her. Her hand touched her cheek once more before she snapped out of it and stopped staring at nothing. She then looked to her left and saw Getchin's living quarters. Emerald clenched her fists together and started heading to his home. She sensed Laesa's life force coming from there.

When she got to the front door of Getchin's manor, she didn't even bother to knock. She opened the door and let herself in. A few of his maids jumped in surprise at Emerald and tried to stop her from going any further. However, Emerald was blinded by the rage of what Laesa did to her and she growled at them.

"Do you really want to try me?" she hissed as she brushed off the maids.

She walked up the marble staircase in the middle of the entranceway and headed down a hallway where she stopped in front of a carved, burgundy door. She placed both hands on the door and sensed both Getchin's and Laesa's power. With anger in her heart, she pushed open the door and stepped inside.

A gush of cold air blew past Emerald making her shiver. Although there was a crackling fire blazing in a brick fireplace, Emerald couldn't help but shiver. The room was dim, the windows were draped and little light entered the room. In front of the flames sat a violet chair. Emerald walked up to it and saw Getchin sitting in it, two fingers massaging his temples.

"Come. Sit." he told her and with a wave of his hand, another chair appeared diagonal from him.

Emerald sat down and stared at Getchin. Much to her surprise, her fury seemed to have gone down when she saw him. He looked almost as bad as Boah did when she saw him.

"Feeling better, I see. I hear you left the medical wing a little earlier than expected."

Emerald lowered her head and suppressed a smile. She knew she wasn't supposed to have left the wing, but it was just so boring!

"I felt better," she said.

Getchin made a weak smile.

"Indeed. You look better as well," he shifted in his chair so he was face to face with Emerald, "Look, I didn't mean for that to happen. Laesa just didn't think that's all. I never told her to fight so dirty, and I didn't teach her that either."

Emerald looked past his words and sensed his thoughts without knowing she did so.

"You're sorry about not telling me about what you found out sooner, huh?" she said.

Getchin looked stunned that she knew what he was thinking, but calmed down and realized that he wasn't talking to an ordinary girl.

"That's correct, Miss Rose."

"You can call me Emerald, Getchin-sama."

"Right, Emerald. I do regret that I didn't tell you that I knew about your past. I hope you can excuse that."

"It's not very east to forgive something like this so quickly, Getchin-sama. How did you find out anyway?" she asked inquiringly, not sounding mad at the least.

Getchin sighed deeply and sat up straight, trying to think of how to start. When he thought of what to say, he looked at Emerald and began.

"It was a long while before you arrived on Earth when I discovered Gaea. It was completely on accident when I did. I was bored one night and I was in this very room when I made a little galaxy to past the time. I have an infatuation for astronomy, and I make real looking models of the planets and the stars with a spell I made myself. I often do that when there is nothing else to do; and when I make them, they look quite stunning. Anyway, I was looking at the stars and the planets when I spotted a small world right between the Earth and Mars."

Emerald listened attentively while he spoke and tried her very best not to get distracted. She often gets unfocused when people talk for a long time.

"At first I thought it must have been some mistake, an error I made from the spell. I simply thought it was another image of Earth, so I used another spell to 'zoom in' on the twin Earth. When I got the planet close enough to see cities and people, I found out that it wasn't Earth at all but Gaea. The world was a place wedged in medieval times, and I wondered why it hasn't been seen on Earth."

"I researched and researched, but I could never find out anything about this phantom planet. I was about to give up when a beam of white light surrounded me and I was actually in the planet I was looking at a few seconds before!"

Emerald shot back to reality and almost choked on her own spit at his words.

"You went to Gaea?!" she gasped in shock, "No freaking way!"

"I guarantee you, Emerald. I freaking went to Gaea as you so delicately put it."

"Oh…sorry…" Emerald said quietly and calmed herself.

"I suppose it was that I sincerely wanted and wished to know about that planet; I was extremely curious and I guess that's what brought me there. Everywhere I turned, people were talking in this strange language so I didn't get anywhere. I still didn't know where I was."

~*~*Flashback*~*~

"Excuse me, sir! Could you tell me where I am exactly?" asked a young Getchin to a raggedy old man.

The old man just looked him over and gave him an odd look. He turned and walked away.

'Not again! That's the tenth person who's looked at me funny,' Getchin thought as he walked wearily down the crowded marketplace in search of an answer.

He stopped in front of a tavern and sat down on a barrel in front of it.

'Just great, I'm stuck in a place I don't even know the name to, and everyone keeps on staring at me,' he thought to himself, 'Probably from the clothes I'm wearing…but I just need to find out where I am. That's all I need to know.'

After getting tired of villagers staring at him, Getchin got up and walked away from the busy street. He walked around the whole city, not knowing where he was going or why he was even walking. He stopped again in front of a large, marble building that held no doors. Getchin walked towards it and went inside. His eyes focused on a large granite statue of a sea dragon. Hundreds of candles surrounded it, and some people were sitting in front of it praying.

"You're in Palas, Asturia in Gaea, stranger," a voice said softly from behind.

Getchin hastily turned around to see a beautiful woman smiling at him.

"You…c-can…can…and you know…what…I…I…" he stuttered.

The woman laughed gently.

"Shh…" she answered and placed a finger over her mouth and disappeared into the air.

~*~*End Flashback*~*~

"Sensing her life force, I raced out to behind the shrine. But as soon as I got there, I was surrounded in the same beam of light and I was back in my study sitting in this very chair. It was the strangest thing, I promise you."

"Yeah, it was strange. That light I mean," she said.

"That wasn't the only strange thing," Getchin remembered.

"Oh?"

Getchin shifted in his chair.

"When I arrived on Earth, a book also appeared with me. It was in the old language I heard on Gaea and didn't understand. But when I read the title, it was as if I had known Gaean all along. I read all of it, and when I finished, the book disappeared. It probably went back to Gaea. And that's how I found out about you."

"Woah!" Emerald exclaimed, "What was the book called?"

"The Ancient Texts of Gaea and Atlantis was what it was called I believe," said Getchin.

"But…that's impossible! Only the priest or priestess of Asturia…could have…"

~*~*~*~

Takiji sat at the end of his bed, his face buried in his hands.

"Why did I have to go and do that, huh? Geez, she must think I'm some sort of freak or something…"

He was still whining to himself when he heard a knock on the door.

"What is it?" he snapped.

The door opened and Yuko walked in without asking permission. Takiji jumped up from his bed in surprise and confusion.

"Yuko? What are you doing here?" Takiji asked, still surprised to see him.

Yuko just smirked and walked around the dorm room, looking at nothing in particular. He stopped once in a while to touch one of Emerald's things. After what seemed like an eternity he turned to the perplexed boy, with the usual devious smile on his face.

"I heard Emerald left the hospital. Is she here? I would like to see her." He smirked.

"Um…no she's not, as you can see. Don't you have somewhere to be?" Takiji said hotly.

"Nope. I don't have to be anywhere, nor do I want to be anywhere. Well, that's not entirely true. I would much like to be where the gorgeous Emerald is." Yuko responded composedly.

"And why is that, Yuko? Emie's not that special." Takiji said, lying through his teeth.

The droid saw right through him, but acted as though he didn't. He smoothed back his long, black hair, still keeping his smirk.

"Oh, but she is. Emerald is a very unique one, indeed. Very much so. She's the strongest woman I've ever seen. Of course, Laesa is stronger, but she doesn't really count. Emerald's power and strength makes me think of what other things she could do…for me that is…"

"You better not mean what I think you mean, Yuko, or you're a dead robot!" said an outraged Takiji.

"Do you think I meant intercourse?" Yuko laughed gently, "Poor, simple Takiji! Get your mind out of the gutter, will you? Although I have thought about it…"

He chucked, amused that Takiji could get so angry so quickly. He watched Takiji's face turn red as his fists tremble in rage, especially when he said his last remark.

"You wish to kill me, don't you Takiji? I can tell; I can sense emotions, you know," he said heading out the door, "You're blinded by fury, but you are held back by love. So you're not going to kill me just yet."

"I'm not in love! What are you talking about?!"

Yuko stopped and turned his head toward the young boy.

"I think you know what I'm talking about," he walked away and shouted down the hallway, "That was fun, we should do this again sometime!"

~*~*~*~

Emerald leaned against the door of Getchin's study.

'Okaasan…so it was you. But why?' she thought as she lifted herself from the door and walked down the hallway.

"Fate works in mysterious ways I guess…" Emerald said out loud as she walked out of Getchin's manor.

She stopped in mid-walk and one could have sworn her eyes were ablaze with revenge. She growled inhumanly and her tail shook around violently. Emerald now remembered why she even came to Getchin's home. Her body started to glow a deadly blood red.

"YOU!"

Laesa whirled around and spotted Emerald. The same vengeful passion soared through her heart as well. Once again, they were face to face. Only this time, Emerald was overcome by a murderous rage. Little did she know but Laesa was feeling the same way.

(A/N: Yay! I'm done with chapter 10! I hope it was good because I tried my best! Well anyway, please, please, pleeeeaaaasssseee R&R for me! I'd like to know what you think!)