Chapter 21

"Liar," Hitomi stapled her word with a quick jump to her feet. "If that were true you wouldn't have told me everything."

Van stood back, eyes widened, and eyebrows shot straight up his forehead.

The queen's arms folded across her belly as she stared at her husband through watery eyes. True, his words had stung her, stabbed her—okay, it ripped her heart open and emptied it out. Instead of crying in a corner, her heart persisted it couldn't be true, his words couldn't be true.

"I never lied," Van asserted strongly, but the defense was weak.

"You did, just now. How can you say something like that?" Taking a deep breath she set her mouth and her mind to the task. "I think you are a good person, you've been hurt, but you're still good. If you thought love was not in your future, you would have," she paused searching for the appropriate word, "secured an heir the first night we were married!"

Van made a noise of disgust in the back of his throat, "It doesn't mean anything more than I don't believe it is right to force myself upon anyone."

"And all the other times? I've hardly been apart from you since we were married. You've always worried about me and the others. You care about your people, if you didn't think love was possible anymore, you'd be a real jerk."

Not saying he wasn't being one right then, but bringing up that point would have been counterproductive.

Van was taken aback by this sudden change in emotion from her. He expected her to cry or to be cruel, but mad and defensive? She had the nerve to assume he was lying about a decision he reached many years ago!

Hitomi sucked in another deep breath and he knew this wasn't over.

"You may never love me, but you'll love someone again, Van. You already love your people and they love you," she softened her voice as she took a step closer to him. "And what about whenever an heir does come along? Will you not love your own child?" If she had been thinking with a well rested mind, she probably would have been embarrassed over the touchy baby topic.

His eyebrows crashed together. It was late, he was tired and sore from retelling his horror story, but that didn't mean he was going to be belittled by her!

"That's different!"

"Why? Does that type of love go into of come from a separate heart?"

They engaged in a childish glaring contest after she spoke.

This is what it was like to open up to someone? Have them say how wrong it was to feel what was felt? That was absurd! She was insane! She was—turning and walking away.

"Where are you going?"

"To some other place," she replied, glancing over her shoulder. "You're not my favorite person right now."

Van's mouth hung open slightly as she quietly shut the door behind her.

What the fire just happened here? She was moody? She was the one who got angry at him for something as simple as saying he wasn't going to love again?

Of course he loved his people! If he didn't he would have married the first harpy who nested in his castle. Too fueled by his irritation and complete lack of understanding of the opposite and potentially insane sex, he decided the roof tops were sounding just about the right place to be. Grabbing his sword, Van headed for the door.

Hitomi, once she had found a spare bedroom, crumpled like a tissue. She was highly upset, not really angry, about the ignorant thing Van said. How could anyone in his or her right mind ever say they would never love again? They'd have to give up all hope and become suicidal. Van wasn't like that!

He was just scared and that irked her in a way that shouldn't have been possible. He was running away from things, saying he wasn't going to love when everyone knew love couldn't be controlled. If Van was telling the truth about his lack of wanting to care, he would be a real creep, an insufferable jerk.

"That idiot," she repeated over and over as she sat with her back to the door, knees drawn to her chest, and leaned her head into her hands. The room was cold since no fire was burning and the balcony doors were left open, letting the icy breeze flirt with the curtains.

Hitomi couldn't say truthfully if it was his words, his story, or her heart that hurt her more.

True, they weren't the closest friends, but she had been around him a great deal since they had been married. She had seen him relating to others such as his subjects, knights, and servants. He was never cruel to them, never raised a hand, or his voice toward them.

There were times, too, when they were alone and she saw his 'soft' side. The side of him that wasn't calculating how to keep a country running, how to prevent two disgruntled parties from slaying each other, sword techniques, and all the normal things that kings thought about. In the field of flowers, she had been so sure there was something between them.

In the barn, when he kissed her…she had felt something from him. He wouldn't do that if he really didn't care, would he? Even though the emotion in his eyes weren't expected at the end, the beginning—his eyes told a completely different story.

No one could control love or who loved who, and sadly Hitomi was learning that all too well.

"Are you purposefully trying to resemble something dropped from a sick dog's behind?" Armand questioned light heartedly to the Queen.

Hitomi's cheeks puffed up as she pinched her lips between her teeth to keep a nasty comment from coming out of her mouth.

"Where's his majesty?" Rai stared at Hitomi, waiting for an answer.

"I don't care," the blonde spat out, turning her face away sharply.

Two sets of eyebrows went up at the declaration. Armand knew he should have kept his eyes down, but being the somewhat too curious for his own good, dared to look at his mother. Her eyes met his and there was an unspoken message of: Come. Here. Now.

Pretending to not see that look, he quickly turned his head away.

"If you'll be so kind, your majesty, may I borrow Sir Armand?"

Hitomi lifted an eyebrow, but gave no other kind of motion. Grumbling, the tall brunette followed his mother out the door like a whipped puppy and with a sharp click, the door shut. The queen didn't suppress the small grin as their volume could be heard behind the shut door.

Apparently the knight was getting a vicious chewing out.

There were some meager words on his behalf, but nothing Hitomi could pick out clearly. Tucking her hand under her chin, she gave a half-hearted smile and pushed her food around with her fork. The door opened and Hitomi was ready to give a cute remark to the tongue-lashed man, but lost all her words as Van entered through the second door on the far side of the dining hall. He looked up briefly before he sat down and absorbed himself into his food.

She, as Armand had the sheer joy of pointing out, looked a bit worse for wear. While Van, the perfect royal, didn't appear to have lost one minute of sleep. If it wasn't for the fight that probably would follow, she would have thrown her biscuit at him.

His eyes met hers briefly before flickering back to his plate.

"Is there something on my face?" Van inquired in his, what Hitomi could only think to call, haughty voice. It was condescending without belittling, but wanting to. Perhaps it was just a tone only a born royal could create. It grated on her nerves.

Stabbing her sliced fruit with her knife, Hitomi couldn't think of any snappy reply. She didn't want to talk to him! Prince Chid was coming today and she would have to play the part of happy-happy hostess to the young Prince.

Was this what her life had dissolved to? Pretending to be something she wasn't? Pretending to feel something else than what she really did?

"Fix it!" Rai's shrill brought the occupants of the room out of their own stupors and both sets of eyes focused on the door as a dejected knight marched back through them. Like a scolded kid, he stood in the corner stiff as a board and eyes twitching to glare as his mother passed by him and began to pour the king's drink.

"It's a great pleasure to see you again, Millerna," Van said politely, bowing slightly. The princess smiled and returned the greeting. Hitomi gave the other blonde a warm hug and expressed her happiness at having them come to the palace again.

"Sir Allen," Van acknowledged with a handshake. Hitomi was wide eyed when the knight took her hand and kissed the back of it lightly when it was their turn to exchange pleasantries.

"Where is the Prince?" Hitomi asked as she backed away from the knight and tried to not let her blush be too noticeable.

"Yes," Millerna started, giving a nervous smile. "My nephew is currently on the air ship, we wanted to make sure everything was ready."

"Of course! We've been busy the past week for your visit!" Hitomi announced happily.

"Very well, I'll send for him." She turned to Allen, and then gave her attention back to the royal couple. "Would you mind if he met you in a smaller room? Large rooms make him…nervous."

Van agreed and told one of the butlers to escort the visitors to the first floor library, it wasn't huge, but it was far from small. Offering his arm to her, Hitomi looped hers through and drew close to her husband. It was all for looks to him, but it wasn't to her.

Once they left the throne room, Hitomi closed her eyes and sighed. She was so pathetic.

Armand trailed behind them like a kite tail, but a sudden movement outside caught his attention. Peering out the window he eeped at what he saw. The couple turned, and he laughed it off saying that the pigs had gotten into the rose bushes.

Two strange looks later and the knight was alone.

"Oh my gods," Armand shrieked, his hands flying up to cover his eyes. "Who let them in?"

Across the courtyard came two women who the knight could have sworn were banded from the palace. Leiko and the mother of the Queen, Minerva, were making their way through the courtyard quickly. They were without a doubt two of the most colorful characters to ever climb over palace walls. What were they doing here?

He had to make sure they didn't get in! If Prince Chid was as fragile as everyone reported, those two would drive him into insanity. Given enough time with them, those two could have driven the entirety of castle into the funny farm.

Armand was able to catch them at the side door. At any given time women who have a goal in mind are scary, but Hitomi's family had a way of striking a person in such a way that Armand wasn't sure if he should laugh or consider an alternative life style when the two females started to flirt with him.

"What can I do for you two ladies?" Armand gave his most charming attitude; Minerva wasn't buying it though Leiko flirted her eyes at him.

"I came to see my darling baby sister!" Leiko pleaded, her eyes large and hands clasped in front of her. "I've simply been lost without her!"

Armand's eyebrows ironed flat. What kind of chump did they take him for?

"I'm sorry, but she is engaged at the moment."

"Can you be married and engaged at the same time?" Leiko asked her mother in shock.

If it wouldn't have allowed them access, Armand wanted to ram his head into a wall because of them. Instant insanity, wasn't that what he thought would happen?

"Let us in," Minerva demanded.

"I'm afraid that is impossible," Armand tried the higher, snobbier road.

"Let me see my daughter!"

"Is there a problem?" A new voice asked. Peeking over his shoulder the women's faces brightened. Armand glowered, just what he didn't need, the knight with shinning hair, Allen.

"He won't let us in to see our darling Queen!" Minerva cried, "My own child and he refused to let me be with her!"

Allen walked closer to the group, a smile on his lips, and Armand wondering if the man had amnesia about the last time these two were allowed in the palace.

"I'll escort you to her," Allen offered both his arms and Armand rolled his eyes. Leave it to a goody-two shoes to be the ever gentleman. Both of the relatives were hanging on Allen's every word as he made his way through the halls. Armand followed them with dragging heels.

Great, first he was blamed for the King and Queen's estrangement, his mother claiming it was Armand's mouth that made something bad happen, and now he had to explain why the in-laws suddenly decided to show up.

"Here we are, my fair ladies," the two 'ladies' cooed at Allen before letting go of his arm.

"The garden?" Armand asked, eyebrows perked.

"Yes," Allen folded his arms behind him and gave a secret smile to Armand who gave a short laugh before letting the women meander through the gardens. Turning to go, both knights happy as they continued to the library—pest free.

Hitomi fiddled with her dress, not too sure what to do with herself as they waited for the guests to arrive. Van and she were the only ones in the room, Rai having already filled the place with refreshments and left.

How long did it take for someone to retrieve another person from a flying ship?

"Sorry to be late!" Armand smiled, walking in with a scary spring in his step. "We had a small pest problem."

Allen, smiling privately, came in after him with much less ceremony.

"The Prince will be here shortly, Princess Millerna thought it best to collect him herself."

Van merely gave him a glance of acknowledgement before turning his attention to the window. Armand felt sweat spring to his forehead when the King went stiff.

"Is there something wrong, you highness?" Armand asked, his voice resembling a mouse's squeak at the end of the sentence. Surely those dimly burning candles hadn't already realized there was nothing but bugs, vegetation, and them in the garden.

"No," Van replied plainly. He didn't mean to lock up, but it was a natural reaction when he saw her reflection in the window's glass. She'd been staring at him for a few seconds before turning away, something akin to disappointment filtering across her face.

He wanted to say it wasn't his fault for whatever she was feeling. She was the one who had asked him to tell! He told her the truth and this was his reward? To see her suffer? Did Hitomi possibly think he received a sense of pleasure from this?

Guilt swept up his heart, but Van convinced himself there was nothing he could do about it. Then a nagging question bit at him, did he want anything to be done about it?

"Come this way," Millerna's soft voice beaconed from the hall, snapping the group away from their own thoughts.

Hitomi stayed to the back of the group as the men crowded around to see the blonde prince hesitantly step into the room, his hand locked around his aunt's. Large blue eyes quickly studied each face and relaxed when none of them appeared to be threatening.

"This is King Van, Chid," The boy barely acknowledged the world, much less the man once deemed harmless. The ten-year-old, nodded to the introduction and Van tipped his head in return and wondered what they could have done to such a young child to make him lock down so fiercely.

"Please forgive him, he hasn't spoken a word since-" Millerna's eyes shifted downward. There was no need for her to continue.

"This is Sir Armand; he'll be one of your attendants while you are here." Armand, new to this knowledge, had to fight down the urge to scream in denial. He already had to watch over the Queen, why did he have to play nanny to another royal?

"Your majesty," the knight gave a bow and the boy met his eyes momentarily before flickering them away to the other unfamiliar figure that approached with timid steps.

"This is the Queen of Fanelia," Millerna introduced with a smile.

"Hello, Prince," Hitomi gave her brightest smile as she bent her knees to met the young boy eye to eye. It was a highly warm and friendly gesture that coughed in the face of formality, "I'm—"

"Hitomi," Chid finished, his voice cracked and raspy from lack of use. "I know you." He let his hand slip from his aunt's as he slowly drew closer to the woman.

"Ha—have we met?" Hitomi asked, knowing all eyes were on her.

"Y-you came to see me when the bad people had me," Chid took another step closer to the woman. "You were the only one who was nice." Tears sprung to his light blue eyes seconds before he ran to the Queen and threw his arms around her neck, burying his face in her shoulder.

Frantic, the queen searched the faces of the other occupants. The two Asturians looked on with large eyes and disbelief written all over their faces. Armand, who was doubling up as a server seemed edgy. Van's eyes were widened in fearful shock.