Guess what? Guess what? Guess what!?
I got a BETA READER!
AHHHHHH! It's been sooo long since I've had one and it's so awesome! Please allow me to dedicate this grammatically corrected chapter to the one and only Kerapal Bubbles! (Seriously, you are awesome!)
And now… for your reading pleasure…
The greenish-tinged sky held its breath for ten seconds before sending a crashing bolt to the ground. It lit up the windows in its brief moment of life and faded back into the thick, dense darkness once more. Inside a small office, the doctor jumped slightly at the screaming crash outside his window. The woman in front of him closed her tired green eyes and the corners of her lips raised in happiness.
"They said on the news the thunderstorms will keep coming like this. Very strange weather we are having, huh?" Silence filled the room and the doctor sighed. "Have you still been having the night terrors?"
She gasped as if waking from a dream. She shifted her back on the fluffy couch. "They weren't night terrors. I told you," she finally answered.
"The nurses kept informing me that you were thrashing around in your sleep. Our top priority here is to make sure you are comfortable and resting."
"They weren't night terrors. I was just dreaming of…"
"Of what?"
She opened her eyes and stared hard at his face. "I don't remember anymore."
"They have stopped, correct?"
"…Yes…"
"Good. The new medication is working." The doctor tapped his finger on his tablet and made a quick note of her answer on the digital screen.
"The nurses also told me you've been really quiet these past few days. You don't like speaking to them?"
She didn't answer, but glanced down to watch her fingers play with the draw-strings of her pants.
"Hitomi? Do you want me to change the nursing staff overseeing your care?"
"No. I just… don't want to talk. I wanted to listen."
He jotted down another note.
"Where are my cards?" the young woman asked, lifting her green eyes back to the doctor imploringly. "I really want my tarot cards. You see, I got them from Gra-"
"Yes, I know this story." The doctor laughed with strain on his throat. "You've told me many times before. And I've told you that such things are not allowed in the facility."
"I wouldn't hurt anything…" she mumbled.
"I know you wouldn't, Hitomi, but rules are rules."
"Can I go outside?" her eyes switched to the window. The rain pelted hard against the grey window. Another hit of lightning and she smiled again.
"Unfortunately, you cannot. It's raining outside."
"I like it when it thunders. The red eyes come back to me stronger when I hear the thunder. It reminds me of a bright light…"
"We've talked a lot about the red eyes and bright lights through our sessions. They used to make you upset. I'm glad to see you are keeping a reasonable head this time."
She shook her head, still staring blankly at the window. "The red eyes don't come in anymore, but I want… I want…"
"What do you want?"
"To rewind…"
"To when?"
"To back when I could remember…"
The doctor sighed and sat back in his chair defeated. "Hitomi, the medication… have you been taking it properly?"
"Yes," she answered softly. "It's shut out a lot, but I still hear the red eyes…"
"You hear them?"
"They speak to me."
"What do the red eyes say to you?"
"Whispers… mumbles…" she said wistfully. "Wishes…"
"When do you hear it?" A burst of lightning crackled in the tormented green sky.
Her sharp eyes turned cuttingly to the doctor and he sat up in his chair.
Her pupils were dilated.
"They speak to me now…"
The world turns slowly – ever so slowly – and yet the days flash by like strikes of quick lightning. It snaps the ground and dissipates back to the sky; its violent battle with stability pacified in only a brief moment. And in the thunderous roar of its horrible cry, she heard it very quietly calling. But just like the lightning, the voice would leave her; slowly disappearing into the recesses of her mind.
And then the world would continue its slow mad spin.
She knew there was a time when she was closer to the red eyes. There was a time that she knew… everything… her days here went fast and sharp, but the world around her seemed to be standing still. Almost as if it was holding its breath.
Tremors of quiet excitement brushed over her as she stood at the storming window. The rain seemed to melt on the glass. It had been storming for weeks.
Brushing a loose fringe out of her right eye, her teeth chewed on her bottom lip in concentration. Her finger lifted to follow a tear of a raindrop as it dripped gently to the windowsill.
BOOOOOOM
What is… wrong…with…
"I hear you in the lightning…" she whispered quietly. "I hear you every time it crashes… My mind… My dreams are now… I thought you were gone forever, but you are still here."
The reflection staring back at her from the darkening glass was something she didn't want to see… a different person. The thin, frail shadow of a stronger woman. The pills had made her fade away. But she always heard the lightning. She always heard the terribly exciting crash of thunder even in her dreams. Sometimes the voice was quiet; whispering words that made it hard to hear. Other times, it was laughter. A lazy smile spread on her lips as she closed her eyes to wait.
What would the whisper from the red eyes tell her?
"Hitomi, dear," a voice called from the doorway. The metal door opened and a plump nurse came forward. "Your 2 o'clock session with the new doctor is about to begin. Do you want me to give you your lunch afterward?"
"Be quiet just for a moment…" Hitomi hushed, lifting a hand to her lips.
BOOOOOOM
How I… can't reach you…
"I don't know you." She told the voice. "Do your red eyes mean that I can see demons? Or maybe angels…? I wish I knew… I wish I could remember…"
"Come on, Hitomi. The doctor is waiting."
"I want to hear the storm." She said slowly to the nurse, still facing the dark sky.
"It's supposed to rain all night again. You'll have plenty of time to-"
"But will it be thundering or lightning? Not like this! Right now is the best moment…"
The nurse exhaled. "Please, dear, you've been standing at that window for hours. Please come and sit down with the doctor. I'll make you your favorite soup in the meantime."
Closing her eyes in frustration, she was quiet for one more moment and was rewarded with a-
BOOOOOOOOOOOOM
There's still a light in the…! I can help… don't forget…
"Forget what? Forget what" she whispered like a chant. Her heart pulsed in her ears. Her hands shook as she spread them on the chilling window. "Forget what? Forget what? Forget wha-"
BOOOOOOOM
Forget me… Don't forget me… I'll come for…
A tear escaped down her cheek. Through her closed eyes, a pinprick of red was visible through the darkness. She pressed her forehead into the cold surface of the glass as if forcing the familiar image closer. Through her drugged mind, she concentrated on the red and it blinked. The eyes! They were here!
"Laugh for me… Please, let me know you can hear me, red eyes… Laugh…"
"Hitomi, you know what your doctor said about-"
BOOOOOOM
The distant sound of a quiet chuckle made her tingle with happiness.
Don't disappear…
"Don't disappear…" she repeated back to the red eyes.
She smiled, her entire being filling to the brim with that wholesome sound. The red eyes laughed… the red eyes could still hear her… there was still hope.
"Come now, honey."
"Okay…" she said still smiling dreamily, turning away from the window at last. "I've got a new doctor?"
"Yes," the nurse nodded briskly, obviously relieved to have the girl back on track. "He was called in specifically for you."
Curious, she remained quiet as they passed through the tan hallway and down the staircase to the first floor. Entering through the usual session doorway, she stopped short and a horrible strangled gasp escaped her throat. He stood fluidly to meet her, a welcoming smile on his lips.
"Hello, Hitomi." Amano said pleasantly. "It's been a long time."
"You must be wondering why I'm here."
"You're my doctor now…" Hitomi mumbled, her fingers playing with the tassels on the pillow.
"That's right," Amano said softly. "I am your doctor now. I heard that you were here from a friend and I applied as soon as the position was available. I just flew in from England several weeks ago."
"Yukari's here?"
"No," he answered and the side of his cheek twitched. "Director Makino was kind enough to let me take care of you since we know each other."
"You don't know me…"
"I have known you for years, dear friend. What do you mean I don't know you?"
Her fingers untangled from the pillow as she finally looked into Amano's kind eyes. "Can I have my tarot cards? I used to have them, but they got taken away after I got here."
Amano, his shoulder-cropped hair pulled into a ponytail at base of his neck, sighed and shook his head. "I remember how you used to have those things. The girls in high school called you the 'fortune teller', right?" His eyes lit up. "Hey, what about that necklace you had? The good luck pendant you showed me long ago?"
"Pendant?" Her fingers were back on the pillow tassels. "I don't remember a pendant."
"It was a pink stone, really fine and smooth." He sat forward as if encouraged. "It was amazing! You asked me to give you your first kiss if you ran the dash in under thirteen seconds using the necklace as a timer, remember?"
"No, there has never been a necklace."
Amano blinked at her response, but wasn't discouraged. "It was around the time you disappeared. I remember it very well. You ran off by yourself during a lightning storm and were gone for months on end."
"There's no lightning outside anymore. I've missed most of it." Her green eyes switched to the cloudy window sadly.
"The doctor told me you liked thunderstorms."
"I do."
"Why?"
"Can I have my tarot cards?" she asked once more, her eyes switching back to his with a hopeful lift. Amano's smile froze on his face.
"Hitomi, can you please answer my question?"
There was a stand-off pause where doctor and patient stared at each other. Finally, she caved. "The lightning gives me the red eyes. It is the only thing I have left."
"The only thing you have left of what?"
"I don't know. It's like… it's like I've forgotten the words to my favorite song," she mumbled. "I try to remember, try to feel some rhythm or beat, some tune, but it slips as soon as I recall even a fragment. It's that sense of irritation, the sense of loss and despair, which tells me it's not all in my imagination. That I've truly lost something. What have I lost though? What have I forgotten? Why do I keep feeling and hearing, but I don't know what it is? And now, when I finally started seeing it in my dreams, they are called 'night terrors' and I lose even more than I've gained."
"Hitomi?"
"Can I have my tarot cards?"
His eyes closed in defeat.
"No, you cannot."
"I had a dream last night."
"You did?" Amano's eyebrows rose and clicked his pen. "What was it about?"
"I was flying. Flying from a black castle, I could touch the sky if I wanted to. It was dark, but it got brighter and brighter and I felt… felt…"
"Felt what?"
"Felt arms around me. Carrying me. I wasn't flying by myself. The sky was green, like it is now, sick and hot… but as I rose higher and higher to the clouds, the green slowly vanished. And everywhere was sunshine."
"Have you had dreams like this before?"
Hitomi shrugged and her eyes drifted to the blue carpet. "Probably."
"This is a very good sign, Hitomi. I'm no dream-reader, but you sound like you are finally breaking free from something. This person holding you… it sounds like someone is helping you to surface." His face flashed with an expression of pride and she immediately turned her eyes sharply on him.
"It's not you, Amano." She said coldly.
He blinked. "What was that?"
"The person holding me up. It's not you. Don't think for a second you have helped me in any way."
Amano's lips opened, but the words couldn't come.
"You keep saying how you're my friend. But you're not my friend, Amano. You're my doctor. That relationship we had long ago is gone. Now I'm another check mark on that piece of paper in your clipboard, right? I'm just another number you can cross off as 'crazy' or 'not crazy'."
"H-Hitomi, I didn't even say any-"
"You didn't have to. I am done talking with you today, Amano."
He checked his watch. "But our session has just begun. You still have another hour and fifty minutes."
"Call my nurse. I want to be alone."
"You can't leave, but we can sit here quietly if you want."
Her green eyes fell back to the carpet. "Can I have my tarot cards?"
Amano swallowed down a thick lump that had developed in his throat.
"No, you may not."
She felt a large, warm hand resting on her left shoulder and the doctor's blue office snapped to a beaming sunshine that was blasting in her eyes. With a groan and a crick in her neck, Hitomi moved to sit up and her vision swam to find a tan face close to hers.
"Van!" she jumped to the right and her head hit the window loudly. A dull throb swam up and down her leg and she hissed in pain as another painful pounding flickered into her bruised skull.
"Owww… You scared me… why are you so-so close?"
"You were speaking incomprehensibly," he said quietly sitting back. The dirty, lime-green 'MYSSTES' shirt shifted on his shoulders as they lifted uncomfortably. "I was endeavoring to hear your words in case it was imperative."
"Oh-Oh, I did? Y-yeah-yeah…" she stumbled and swallowed down her receding alarm. "I was dreaming."
"What did you dream?" His tan hand moved to rest on the seat about a foot away from her thigh. She was annoyed at how painfully aware of it she was.
Shaking her head slowly, her uncombed short hair flipped into her eyes. "I don't know. I honestly couldn't tell. You told me Magic said those visions weren't going to come to me anymore, but I… I wonder what that was about."
"You did see something then?"
"I'm not sure. There was a doctor and I was speaking to him, but… he was an old friend of mine. Yukari's boyfriend… it was weird. Never mind…" she trailed off remembering the existence of 'the red eyes'. Of the conversation through lightning that she could barely hear. Of the fierce joy she'd felt when she heard the small laughter through the burst of white light cracking from the sky. Was this another her? Another one in the long line of multiple realities that was being torn apart? Her sadness… her longing for something she had lost… it was almost painful to remember. What did this mean? Were realities breaking apart? Was this their reality if they failed? Were they running out of time?
She glanced at Van and instantly lowered her green eyes to her lap.
"It's nothing."
Hitomi expected him to push the subject, but he surprised her.
"You look feverish. You should try to rest more if you can." He mumbled pressing his lips together. He leaned his head slowly on the back seat headrest and his thin leg bounced nervously; rattling the car lightly.
"Feverish?"
"Your cheeks," he said, his own tan skin tinged red. His left hand reached for the door handle. "They are flushed. Perhaps I should go ask Chordata to bring back cold medicine…"
"No!" Hitomi yelled and immediately felt stupid – making her face even more blushed. "No, I'm alright. Don't bother her with that. She's already concentrating on getting fresh bandages, right?"
"True."
"I am not sick. It's just hot in here."
"Also true," his lips curled in a light smirk. "How is your leg faring?"
"Stings, but the poultice takes most of the pain away."
"Next time we stop, you should stretch the muscles a bit."
Hitomi smiled at him and nodded. A bead of sweat that had nothing to do with the hot weather ran down the back of her neck and trailed down her spine. His long fringe brushed over his forehead as a sweltering wind tossed through the open driver-side window and rustled his black hair. Ever since that night in Joko, Van's navy hat had turned up missing in their packs. He'd grumbled for hours, but Hitomi found that she was actually more unsettled about it than he was. Being able to see his face so clearly – well, clearer than before with all that black hair – her thoughts kept tracking back to the stage… the lights… the crowd…
Those kisses…
Turning away to hide her thoughts from him, she shifted on the leather seat to stare out the dirty window at the small convenience store connected to the gas station. A blank field of gold dirt and crispy shrubs stood for miles beyond the store. Despite the open world, she felt trapped. The car was too small for his long body and his legs leaned slightly toward her side. His body, inclined against the door frame, was practically positioned to face her.
She didn't know how to respond to him. Ever since that moment on the roof of Mysstes, her feelings, confusion and excitement and fear, all wanted to violently fight with each other on what she should be feeling first. And now with the play and the way they had been dressed and the way she saw him on stage… like… like…
Hitomi let out a loud sigh through her mouth and tried to ignore as Van's other knee started shaking to match his left. It had been this way for countless hours. Ever since she'd been confined with him in the backseat of this baking vehicle. They had this…tension between them, an underlying awkwardness that had only grown.
But… she liked it.
Her heart racing, her stomach twisting, the feeling like tumbling off a mountainside only to feel-
I was flying… arms around me. Carrying me… Everywhere was sunshine…
She shook her head to will the disturbing dream away, but the memory stayed…the memory of arms carrying her through the night sky of Joko; white wings flapping through the air. Those same arms carrying her down the stairwell when she couldn't walk properly. Another time holding her close through a crowd of smiling drunken faces; keeping her safe and protected.
Those arms were the last thing she remembered during the escape from Mysstes .
Bakura had filled her in on what had happened that night in Joko when she finally came to. Speeding through the blinking streets, Hitomi was surprised to see Chordata sitting in the passenger side of the black car; the fur on her neck standing on end. Van sat beside her, his face pale and his hand pressing a piece of Chordata's white dress on his left arm. It was blood-soaked.
The crowd Hitomi had set on the Zaibach soldiers had served as a good distraction and was just what Chordata had needed to strike down the support guards with her claws. She'd jumped from the shadows, "attacking like a lioness" the dog-man had said with a hint of awe in his throat. Meanwhile Van, noticing Hitomi getting overwhelmed by the crowd, had turned from his fight to save her, but was shot before Chordata could bring the man down. Thankfully, it had only grazed the surface of his left bicep, but the smell of blood was still prominent in the backseat a day later. It had stained the seat and floorboards.
A reminder of how much she owed each and every one of them her life.
How much she already owed the black-haired king…
She glanced at Van and her fingers twisted in her lap. "Hey, I-I wanted to say something…"
"Yes?" he answered and his deep voice made her shiver slightly.
"Van, I wanted to say thank you… for saving me…"
"When?"
Her nervousness instantly disappeared and was replaced with mild irritation. "When? What do you mean, when? When you saved me, remember? From the Zaibach soldiers in Joko? The crowd was trampling me under? You picked me up even though you got shot? Or did I dream all of that?"
His head tilted and a bit of his hair fell over his cheek. "Ah, yes, that time. You are quite welcome."
"That time?" She straightened up in defense.
"As I recall, I save you fairly often. I was in need of being reminded as to the particulars." His lips were back in that smirk.
"You don't save me… all the…" she trailed off, knowing she had no argument in the subject.
"Well," she finally spat as his grin grew a little wider. "Thanks anyway. I know it probably doesn't mean much considering I am constantly needing to be rescued and all, but I still wanted you to know that I like living and I'm still able to do so because of you- what could you possibly be laughing at?"
A chuckle had escaped him at her small speech and he pretended to clear his throat. "Absolutely nothing. And I will strive to continue keeping you alive, Miss Kanzaki. 'Tis something I excel at, it seems."
"Well, keep on excelling." She shifted a bit and her leg gave a twinging pain.
"I plan to," his smile softened as he watched her hands come forward to yank on the chords of the support poultice. "Is it loose?"
"Yeah," she gasped and clenched her eyes shut as she pulled the laces. "I just need to-"
Her hands playing with the strings of her pants; her eyes never leaving the rain-pelted window…
"Hitomi?"
His voice broke the vision and she shivered with a flicker of chills that hit her spine. She was there… she was there, but now-
"Are you needing assistance with your leg?"
Her hands were slightly shaking and she nodded. "Please, yes." With a hitch of worry crossing his face, he moved closer and his long tan fingers took the poultice's laces from hers. Pulling the strings tight and tying it into a knot, she let go of a long breath once he was done and whispered, "thank you."
"Are you alright?"
"I keep getting these weird flashes. I don't know…" she looked up and saw he hadn't moved back to his side. Her heart rose and pounded hard in her chest. His deep eyes were ignited with a hot fire – that familiar flame she always felt spread through her when their lips connected. His hands moved from her knee and she let out a small squeak as his fingertips brushed the top of her thigh. She swallowed thickly and knew all she had to do was close a couple of inches.
Just a tiny handful of inches… and she would feel that fire…
She was growing closer. Feeling his breath fall on her chin. Her eyes closed and-
"Mighty Moon, that is hot!"
Both Van and Hitomi jumped as one and their foreheads collided painfully. Seeing stars, she instantly felt cooler as Van sat back on his side and rubbed his forehead with a frown. Glancing out the window, she saw Bakura yelping; clutching his furry hand to his chest. Chordata was coming up behind him with yellow bags in her white fingers. Awkwardly using the bottom of his black Joko t-shirt, the canine opened the door and swept a hand for the white lady. "For you, ma'am."
"Thank you, Bakura," Chordata's gentle voice held a small smile. The cat sat and rustled in the yellow sacks she'd brought with her.
"I have bottled water, muffins, and some… brown chew?" she quirked an eyebrow at Bakura, who was sliding into the driver's seat. He grinned widely and nodded. "Best mixed jerky ever. I still can't believe I found some!"
Handing it off, she passed water to both Van and Hitomi as Bakura started the engine. Van opened his, but put the water aside. His mahogany eyes had crunched to the window as if sulking.
"How much longer to Guitoma?" Hitomi asked the dog-man as he backed out of the spot and pulled onto the dirt highway.
"Maybe another ten hours or so. It'd be four if we had braved the trolley stations near Borderfields, but Miss Chordata filled me in on what happened the last time you guys tried the trains. Chased by Zaibach soldiers, impersonating a Strategos…" He shook his head and his long brown ears flapped. "You three have had some adventures."
"Well, from what happened in Joko, I guess you're part of the Adventure Club now," Hitomi smiled lightly.
"Regardless of adventures, we are taking the long way. It's safer, but, like I said, it's the long way." Bakura used his knee to steer the car as he ripped open the jerky with his claws.
"Why are you not apprehensive for your family's safety?" the black-haired king said in an accusing tone she was familiar with. She glanced at him and found his mahogany eyes were glued unblinkingly to the rear view mirror. "Zaibach will be expecting us to go to Guitoma. They will gravitate instantly to your loved ones. Are you not fearful for their safety? Are we not driving straight into their hands?"
Hitomi straightened up in the seat. The thought hadn't crossed her mind.
To her astonishment, the dog-man snorted a laugh. "Actually, the only one I have left is my Grammy, and I'd be surprised if they can even find her. She's a bit of a hermit. Always believed in the nomadic lifestyle of her wolf heritage. If they go after Grammy…" he let out another snorting laugh. "Pack save them all…"
"So, we're just going to surprise her then?" Hitomi asked.
Taking a large bite of jerky, he said through a mouthful, "Funny thing is, she probably already knows we are on our way."
Thaioden had a smile on his bloody lips.
The long-haired man was sitting on his red-stained white couch, an empty bottle of some mysterious liquid had fallen to the floor from his still fingertips. His head tilted back, his brown eyes still gleamed as if the life hadn't already left his body.
"Search the room." The command came from a still form in the doorway.
"We found a blocked number on his phone only twenty minutes ago. The connection is untraceable. Orders, Stratego Hatchet?"
He pushed up his glasses with a gloved finger, his mouth falling into a light frown as his hand brushed a stinging scrape on his cheek.
Chordata… I would have never thought to see your traitorous face again…
"Let's head back to Headquarters."
"What about him, sir?" the soldier pointed to Thaioden's lifeless corpse. Hatchet saw a drop of blood trail from his smirking lip down the stubble of his chin.
"Burn him with the rest of the garbage."
The dirt road gave way to smaller, greener shrubs before caving for brighter, taller trees. Passing through a bustling city, Bakura continued after stopping for gas and spent another long hour on a packed traffic highway. Finally, he took several convoluted turns before pulling out on a thin road. Night was beginning to set and the stars were appearing. Chordata had fallen asleep after the city, but Hitomi found herself too wound up for sleep. Her mind raced with the passing streetlamps. Glancing at the tall man sitting beside her, a suddenly startling thought crossed her mind.
"Van, are you awake?"
He let out a grunt from where he was dozing slightly and sighed. "What is it?"
"I keep thinking about something. I can't get it out of my head now that it's here."
"This cannot be good."
"That man in the alleyway. He said something that has me worried."
Van lifted his right hand and brushed it through his hanging black locks. "He was just trying to unnerve us. Bring our guard down."
"But he said something about a young girl and that she told Zaibach where to find us." Hitomi's eyes drifted from his tired face to the back of Chordata's headrest. The shadows danced like ghostly phantoms against the cat's seat. "He said that she-"
"You believe it to be your friend you brought with you to Fanelia." Van interrupted with a hard voice.
"H-how…?"
"I already assumed as much once we made the discovery that Zaibach had found us in Joko. She was the only one who knew where we might possibly have gone."
The short-haired girl closed her eyes against the bluntness of his words. Her fingers grew cold and she shoved them under her thighs to get them warm. Slightly shaking, she nodded, "Yeah. Yeah, I think… I think they got her…" Her voice hitched and she pushed back the burn from behind her eyes. "I just assumed she got out. And then, I completely forgot about her. I was so busy with my own safety that I didn't even stop to consider if she made it out okay! Zaibach… they caught her. My dear friend… Yukari… What am I going to tell her mother? Or Amano?" Her stomach dropped and squeezed painfully as another horrifying thought crossed her. "Or what if Zaibach has them too? What if Zaibach has hunted down my own mother and little brother and killed them because of what I've done?" The tears trailed slowly from her eyes and she brushed them off her cheeks with hands in annoyance. "And why stop there? My aunt and uncles and my cat. Oh, God, I've completely abandoned everyone to the mercy of Zaibach!"
"I doubt your family in Austuria is in danger." Van said firmly and she blinked in surprise. More tears slipped from her eyes as she watched his head raise to look at her. His back was straight in the seat, his hands draped regally on his dirty pants. He looked strong, brave; like a king encouraging his men on the battlefield.
Van Slanzar de Fanel…
"Zaibach would have to plan a high-scale terrorist attack and risk provoking Austuria. The operation would be too dangerous to carry out, especially with the ties between the two countries. The bond is too strong for Zaibach to just outright attack Austurian civilians. They need Austuria's continued support and resources."
"You-You think so?" She whispered, not realizing how desperately she wanted to believe his words. "But what about a secret attack? They are using stealth cloaks. They invaded Mysstes without any opposition."
"Joko's border is weak. And Zaibach is their neighbor to the north. It would not be advantageous to provoke Austuria." Van answered immediately.
"He's right," Bakura jumped in from the front. "Joko hasn't been stable for almost two full decades. You've seen the state of that place. It's a wreck." The dog let out a dark laugh. "One of the main reasons Mysstes is such a popular place there. It's an escape for the people. Thaioden really knew his clientele."
"S-so, Yukari…"
The car fell into silence and a vehicle sped past them loudly.
And then Van sighed again, "You never hear Magic when it takes you over. We can right all wrongs if we keep going. If we find these memoirs and figure out what we need to accomplish, then there is a possibility that we can save your friend."
"She's in the middle of Zaibach, Van," Hitomi whispered shakily, still trying to stop her flowing tears. "How can we save her if she's there? She's probably dead."
He stopped, his shoulders lowering. "I… do not know."
"Things are not always as they seem," Bakura chimed.
The silence came once more, but this one held a shocked vibe of speechlessness.
"Wha-" Van started, but Hitomi interrupted him.
"Where did you hear that?" She demanded, sitting forward. "Where did you hear it!?"
"F-From Grammy." The dog's ears lowered slightly and his claws tightened on the wheel. "What? It's something she's always said. A-and it seemed like the right thing to say just now."
"My father wrote that in his letters. It was meant to lead me to Mysstes . How-How would your Grandmother…"
"You can ask her when we get there. It's about two hours or so and Grammy will find us." She exchanged a furtive glance with Van. 'Find us?' he mouthed and she shrugged worriedly. Bakura continued as if he hadn't said anything strange, "Grammy will know what to do, so don't worry about anything. We'll be safe…uhh…" he faltered. "I mean relatively safe with her. Like I said before, she's more… wolf than canine…"
"Did she know Thaioden?"
"She was how I got my job there."
They exchanged another look and Hitomi's uneasy heart unclenched slightly. She looked at her trembling hands and exhaled slowly.
Another minute or two passed with complete silence.
"We will find a way to save your friend. And that Thaioden man, too."
His voice was deep and low. He faced the window; his right hand slowly moved closer to her on the seat. Without a second thought, she trailed her left hand over and placed it on top of warm fingers. His head swung around to see her giving him a small watery smile.
"Thank you," she breathed.
He glanced away sharply and gave a fast nod. Moving her hand, she turned away to stare out her own window.
Yukari… We will find a way to save you. And Thaioden – wherever you are. We will make everything right again.
It was an hour later and she was disturbed from her thoughts by a grunt from Van. Glancing over with a curious smile, she watched him twist against the door and his elbow hit the handle. His foot suddenly moved to graze the side of Hitomi's calf and a jolt of surprise hit her.
"I apologize," he murmured and instantly lifted his leg away as if she was poisonous.
"Are… are you uncomfortable?" she asked hesitantly.
"I am fine. Perfectly fine." He answered immediately and stopped shifting as if to prove her wrong. "How are you?"
"I probably won't sleep tonight, but…" She felt the hard well-up of fear before swallowing it down and saying, "But you could lay your head in my lap if you want."
Bakura's ears visibly perked and his hand slipped on the steering wheel slightly. A terrible quiet hit the car, so much so that she knew Chordata was awake and had heard it as well. She instantly wished she was brave enough to jump from the car. It seemed a better fate than sitting there in the dark watching Van's mouth slightly open and his body frozen in shock. The entire car seemed to be waiting for Van to answer.
A full minute passed until-
She let out a strange giggle and swallowed audibly, "Ne-never mind, then. I just thought it would be more comfortable for you, but it's completely and totally okay. I absolutely understa-"
"I accept your offer. Please, let me know if I hurt your leg." He interrupted her and moved slowly closer to her side. Her hands raised to her chest as he boldly lowered his head and rested his cheek on her thighs. He faced the seat, so she couldn't see his expression. She was thankful for the deep night.
Her face was on fire.
His long arms draped off the cushion and he sighed quietly.
Her hands still hovering over his shoulders and head, she wondered where she should put them. On his back? On his hair? Oh, God, she did not think this through, did she? Feeling his right shoulder muscles against her leg begin to settle, she took a deep breath and slowly lowered her right hand around his head and the other to rest on his side. The bandage around his gunshot wound was very visible in the dark and she could feel his ribs underneath his shirt.
She chided him in her head about his eating habits.
He twitched lightly, but she forced her hands to remain where they were. A piece of his hair fell over her fingers.
His hair was thick; the strands probably tripling hers in size. She leaned back to concentrate on the passing darkness through the window and felt his body suddenly tense once more. As if on reflex, her hand began gently trailing back and forth on his head; his long hair tangling in her fingers.
He relaxed, every bit of tension leaving him.
A warm feeling, calmer and quieter than the flames he usually gave her, slowly enveloped her body as she listened to him breathe steadily in and out.
Van… she leaned over and smiled. He was deep asleep.
This was the second time she'd seen him sleep. Completely off-guard and peaceful.
She stopped rubbing his head and he made a weird sound of protest. A huge smile popped on her face.
Destiny…
All over the many universes, a poison was spreading. Versions of herself and this man… Two simple people and yet they somehow tore the very fabric of reality apart. How was it possible? How was it that here, in this universe, they could fix everything?
The red eyes… she had heard the cry in her own voice. The tears falling down her own cheeks. She was standing to the window desperate for a hint of lightning: a bridge that somehow still connected her to the one she wanted the most…
…It's like I've forgotten the words to my favorite song. I try to remember, try to feel some rhythm or beat, some tune, but it slips as soon as I recall even a fragment. It's that sense of irritation, the sense of loss and despair, which tells me it's not all in my imagination. That I've truly lost something. What have I lost though? What have I forgotten? Why do I keep feeling and hearing, but I don't know what it is?
Looking back down at the peaceful man in her lap, she made a promise.
She would save not only that world, but all of them out there. She would save every one of them.
She would save herself.
The car stopped so abruptly that Van almost fell out of her lap. His face collided with her wounded knee and she let out a squeal. Straightening up immediately, his face contorted in horror.
"Your leg! I apologize!"
"I-it's okay…" she wheezed, pushing back the pain. "Bakura, what's going on?"
The front was completely quiet and Van moved forward to see through the windshield. She watched his back tense and his voice lower threateningly.
"Is that Grammy?" he growled.
"…Yeah…" Bakura whispered with a hint of a whimper. "She found us."
Rising up, Hitomi swallowed back the scream in her throat.
Standing before the car, reflected in the headlights, long dreadlocks framed the face of a snarling beast. Her fangs bared and her claws extended, she looked ready to tear the car to pieces. Suddenly her wild glowing eyes widened as she saw who was in the car. Straightening up from her crouch, her lips lowered to give an unmistakable frown and she beckoned them to follow her.
"Alright! We did it!" Bakura gasped as if he was holding his breath. "We have to walk the rest of the way. Everyone out."
Opening the door, Hitomi wobbled on her good leg and had to brace herself from falling over. The trunk popped open and Van grabbed their supplies and his sword.
"Come on! Come on! We gotta keep up with her! She won't wait forever!" The dog-man whined and Chordata braced her shoulder for Hitomi. The cat's strong white hand was trembling slightly on her waist as she rushed Hitomi along the trees after Bakura's brown wagging tail. Van followed up behind, his footfalls – despite carrying all of the bags – were quiet and stealthy.
They marched along at a fast pace through the dark, hanging trees; Hitomi blind and trusting Chordata's silent guidance and night-vision.
"There! Grammy's tent!" Bakura announced loudly through pants and sped up in excitement.
"Where?" Hitomi called out, and as soon as the words left her mouth, she and Chordata stepped from the drowning woods into a circular clearing. The stars spilled out through the night sky over the towering treetops. The two moons in the sky were brilliant and bright; giving ample light to the dark clearing. A large simple tent stood at the center next to an empty fire-pit. And in front of the fire-pit stood-
"Hi, Grammy," Bakura waved shyly to the thick figure that towered over him by three feet. Chordata's fingers dug into Hitomi side painfully. Her amber eyes wild with fright, the white cat was all but unmoving before this monstrous creature.
"You smell terrible," a low voice grunted from the beast. It sounded female, but still held a throaty growl. The long, shadowy face of Grammy turned and sniffed the air sharply. She took several steps closer and Chordata backed away with Hitomi trapped under her arm.
"I thought I smelled 'cat'. Disgusting…"
Hitomi's eyes widened horrified as she heard a sword unsheathe from a hilt. "How dare you say that to-"
"Van, no!"
"Van?" The beast barked and everyone froze. "So, this is the king. Put that sword away, fool. I will not harm those I bring into my home."
Bakura's glowing eyes turned swiftly and he nodded briskly at Van with a tense smile. "He meant nothing by it, Grammy. The white cat is his friend."
"I am aware of that, fool."
His tail wagged lightly. "I'm… I'm happy to see you again."
Grammy growled in response and turned away with a whirl of brown rags draping from her thin waist. Brushing away the patchy tent's opening, she turned and snarled, "Well, come in, you fools. If I must entertain a cat tonight, I might as well bring out my special herbs. You!" Her shining eyes tossed to Chordata, who gave an uncharacteristic yowl from inside her throat. "Do you like the nip?"
"The… nip…?" she whispered.
"Yes, are you deaf, fool cat? The nip!"
"I… I have never had it…"
Suddenly, the wolf's mouth gave an ugly grin.
"Newbie, eh? Very rare to find one that never had a taste of catnip before. We may be in for a fun time, you and I." Grammy stopped as her large wolfish eyes slid into Hitomi's. She dropped the curtain and came gliding closer. Chordata trembled terribly, but remained where she was as the dog-woman lowered her large snout to zip those hypnotic eyes over Hitomi's face. Close up, she noticed the chipped lower fang and the bits of woven leaves that hung in her thick locks.
She let out a smelly breath and grumbled, "I know that particular green eye… and that chin. You also have a bit of his smell. He reeked of paper."
"'He'?" Hitomi asked trying to keep her voice from shaking.
Grammy growled to herself before gesturing back to the tent. "No wonder that fool Thaioden sent you to me. I'll have to bring out the cards as well, it seems…"
I'm going to like Grammy.
I can already tell with the way I write her. I think I'm channeling a bit of Balgus attitude mixed with psychic mystic wolf-dog woman.
We are getting closer to the end! More information for the next chapter. More stuff revealed that I've had planned for… geez, how long have I been writing on this one? A year? Two years? Anyways, yeah, more reveals and stuff.
Also… I just started a new story again *points hypothetical gun at head and pulls trigger* Oh, well, this new one is supposed to be fun and quirky and not all dark and brooding and massively plotty like my other stories are. I wanted something that I could write on when I just needed to have a good time writing. I think you'll understand once you read the first chapter.
Welp, I've got a Rutilus to work on, so if you'll excuse me I'll just mosey on over to that Word Document.
Thank you to everyone who reads, reviews, favorites, and PMs me on predictions and stuff! I have the best group of readers! You guys rock my socks!
Stay classy and see ya next time!
Blue…