Disclaimer: I do not own Escaflowne. My writing is purely for the enjoyment of my readers and myself.
Legends of Gaea: Chapter 2
Perched high in a tree, two wolf-men sat in waiting. One, the younger of the two, sat impatiently. He gently rocked back and forth on his sturdy branch and irritated his companion with incessant chatter.
" Do you see him yet?" Mizook asked in a loud whisper.
Zire shook his head for the up-teenth time and released a weary sigh.
Mizook began to bounce harder, enjoying the consequent shower of leaves that flittered to the ground.
Aggravated, Zire glared at him." Would you stop that?" He whispered harshly after a few moments.
Mizook looked at him in mock innocence. " Stop what?"
" Stop that bouncing! Its going to attract unwanted attention."
Mizook snorted and bounced one more time just to spite his cousin. Zire shot him another warning glare and this time bared a little teeth. Mizook jerked back and pouted.
" That's it! We're switching places."
"Awe Zire…" Mizook whined.
" NOW!" Zire growled impatiently.
As the two wolf-men shifted positions, Mizook managed to get his fur caught between the branches. Zire rolled his eyes and reached over with one hand to yank hard on the trapped tuft of fur.
" Ouch!"
" Shh!"
" That hurt. Couldn't you have pulled a little more gently?"
Zire glared at him. " I swear, if you utter one more word I will shove you out of this tree and you can land on your head for all I care."
Mizook frowned at that but wisely kept silent, finally settling down and continuing his surveillance. From their perches in the tall oak tree they could see everything.
" How is Van going to rebuild Fanelia if most of it no longer exists?" Mizook asked after a few uneventful minutes passed by.
Zire shrugged. " I don't know."
Mizook fidgeted and scowled at his new branch. It didn't bounce. Zire grinned, watching him from the corner of his eye.
"Where is Lumu?" Mizook asked.
Zire shook his head in resignation. There was no way anyone could get Mizook to be still and quiet at the same time. " I imagine he's busy preparing a place for Van to stay tonight." He answerd quietly.
" Oh." Mizook murmured.
Silence.
More silence.
A cricket sang nearby.
Zire glanced over at Mizook curiously. Why was he so quiet all of a sudden? "Mizook?"
Mizook looked over at him with a guilty expression, his ears flat.
" What are you doing?" Zire asked, suddenly alarmed that Mizook was looking at him like that.
" Nowing." Came the quick reply.
Zire narrowed his eyes. " Don't lie to me."
Mizook shook his head vigorously, while bits of food splattered out of his mouth.
" What are you eating?" Zire asked, one eye twitching in tightly checked anger.
Mizook's shoulders slouched as he opened one of his paws to reveal smashed walnuts.
" Mizook!" Zire barked. " You shouldn't eat those! You're allergic to walnuts! Remember?"
Mizook suddenly turned green and burpped.
" Oh no." Zire muttered as he made his way over to his younger cousin. " Mizook," He said once he helps him down the tree. " I don't know how you survived to be this old. What with you eating things that make you sick and all."
Mizook just burpped again and swayed to one side. Zire steadied him and frowned trying to think of what to do. Someone had to stay in the tree and make sure that Van arrived safely. He was about to lose hope when just then, two more wolf-men arrived: Neftoo and Middel.
They paused for a moment and snickered when they finally realized what happened.
" Let me guess." Neftoo, the taller of the two, chuckled as he stepped closer. " He ate walnuts again."
Zire rolled his eyes and sighed helplessly. Neftoo turned to his fellow wolf-man.
" Middel? Do you mind?" He asked, gesturing to the green-faced Mizook.
Middel laughed and took one of Mizook's arms, lifting it over his shoulder. " Come on Mizook. You need to lie down."
" Thank you Middel." Zire smiled as the two wolf-men disappeared into the woods.
Neftoo and Zire quietly climbed back up the tree and settled down to wait for Fanelia's king. The meadow below them remained quiet and undisturbed as they continued their watch.
The only movement that could be seen was the soft swaying of the tall grasses in the cool, night breeze. The full moons shone brightly and cast an unearthly, blue-glow across the meadow. And then, suddenly, Zire sat up straight, sniffing the air.
A faint scent reached his nostrils and he closed his eyes to better focus upon it. Neftoo also smelled the scent and gave Zire a curious look.
" I think I smell Van, but what is that other scent with him?"
Zire opened his eyes and shook his head. " I'm not sure…"
" Could it be the mystic moon girl?" Neftoo guessed.
" Maybe." Zire replied scanning the meadow.
Neftoo smiled as two figures finally stepped into view. " There they are."
Zire squinted with a sudden frown. " His companion isn't the girl."
Neftoo strained to get a better look at the stranger.
" In fact, I don't think it's a girl at all." Zire murmured, frowning even deeper.
Neftoo nodded. " Your right. But if it isn't the girl than who is it?"
The two wolf men looked at each other for a moment and hurried out of the tree to meet their visitors. " Let's go find out." Zire suggested.
Van looked up at the sky and gazed at the Phantom Moon with longing. How he wished things could be different. Folken watched him quietly. Van's expression was far away and at length Folken looked up at the twilight sky himself to gaze at the world that had such a tremendous influence on their lives.
Van suddenly realized that he had stopped walking and glanced over at Folken who was himself star gazing. His placid features seemed to weigh down with exhaustion and Van suddenly realized that he never considered how the recent turn of events might be impacting him. The moonlight softly illuminated the baby-blue strands of Folken's hair, and for a moment Van remembered a time when they were younger. It was a night like this many years ago when Folken taught him the names of the moons and the stars...
" Look Van," A younger Folken said to a five-year-old Van. " Do you know what the names of those bright spheres in the sky are?"
Little Van stared up at the night sky, wide eyes blinking. After a moment he shook his head so vigorously that his bangs fell over his eyes. Folken looked back down at him and smiled gently. " Well, that big one is called the Phantom Moon."
Van looked up again and repeated the name. " Phantom Moon."
Folken smiled. " That's right. Now over there," And he pointed to another light not too far away. " - is the biggest star in the night sky; the South Star."
Van followed his finger and repeated the name. " South Star."
Folken nodded and continued to point out other heavenly beings, but Van soon lost interest and found the fireflies much more exciting.
Folken paused and looked at his little brother. " Van, are you listening?"
Van looked over at him and nodded his head. Folken continued. Van blinked at his brother and tried very hard to pay attention but he could care less about the names of the stars in the sky.
A soft breeze blew through the field they were sitting in and his bangs fell over his eyes again. He released a sharp puff of air that blew them away just as a firefly entered his range of vision. Van reached out and snatched it in his little hands. Carefully he cracked his make-shift cocoon for a peek inside. Folken, out of the corner of his eye, checked on Van.
" What have you got there?" He asked after watching him for a few minutes. Van smiled and walked over to show him. Folken was is sitting cross-legged on the soft, tall, meadow grass.
"Look." Van whispered. Folken smiled and peered inside the two little hands.
" I don't see anything." He teased.
Van's eyebrows furrowed. " Yes you do!" He said indignantly.
Folken peeked again and shook his head. "Nope…nothing there."
Van's smile fell into an expression of concern and he opened his hands. Suddenly, the firefly whizzed away, it's little butt shining as brightly as the stars above.
" Oh…now I see it." Folken stated in mocked wonder. He looked at Van and gently tapped his little nose. Van pouted.
Folken looked at mischievously and he quickly took off his shirt. Van watched curiously as Folken rose and stretched his wings to their full span. And before Van had any time to react Folken snatched him into his arms and soared into the sky.
Van squealed in delight as they twirled and spun through the cool night air. They flew through a lazy cloud of fireflies and skimmed the sparkling surface of a nearby lake. They laughed and smiled at the thrill they felt every time they could break the boundaries of gravity. It was rare whenever they could fly without fear of discovery. Nothing could compare to the exhilaration of the wind blowing against your face and open wings, carrying you higher and higher until you felt the stars were close enough to reach out and touch.
As they swooped closer to the ground Folken tickled Van and smiled at the gasps they elicited. Van began squirm and his laughter rang out clearly in the cool night air, its nature so contagious that Folken could no longer restrain himself. He burst into laughter and the two fell onto the meadow grass below with a dull thump.
They rolled to a stop and ended up staring at each other. Folken's hair was standing up on end and Van's eye widened. " Your hair is sticking up funny!" He blurted out.
Folken raised his eyebrows. " Really?" He asked.
Van nodded and Folken reached over and rubbed his hand vigorously against Van's head. A spark of static electricity suddenly caused Van's hair to stand on end too. Van's little mouth quivered as he tried to hold back a snicker, but lost his resolve when Folken burst into jovial laughter. The two laughed until their bellies hurt, happy for a chance to be together...
" King Van!" Van's thoughts were interrupted as someone's voice reached his ears. Folken looked out over the meadow and spotted two figures walking towards them. He turned to Van who was already walking to meet them.
Zire smiled warmly and nodded as Van drew near. " Your majesty…" He murmured and kneeled before Van on one knee.
Folken watched silently while Van gently rested a hand on Zire's shoulder and bid him to rise. " Please Zire, you know I don't expect you to kneel before me. Out here we are equals."
" As you wish your majesty." Zire replied and slowly rose to his feet.
" Van." Van corrected him.
Zire smiled. " As you wish, Van."
Neftoo nodded his hello to Van as Zire shifted his gaze from Van to Folken, who was still standing in the same place.
Van followed his gaze and sighed, gesturing in Folken's general direction. " He's with me." Van explained without bothering to give Folken a formal introduction.
Neftoo and Zire exchanged glances, shrugged, and gave Folken a nod of respect and welcome.
" He will spend the night with me." Van continued.
" Of course." Zire smiled warmly and turned to Folken. " Anyone who is a friend of Van is a friend of ours. Welcome dear brother."
Folken nodded to them. " Thank you." He murmured, grateful for their kindness. But the fact that Van didn't even bother to mention his name rested heavily on him.
Neftoo remained at a distance, staring at the mechanical arm that, free of robes, shone under the moonlight. Folken flicked his gaze to the quiet wolf-man standing beside Van and recognized the confused and wary expression. It wasn't the first time people had stared at him for the oddity of his mechanical arm. And suddenly Neftoo remembered his manners quickly looked away.
" Come…you both must be tired." He said, motioning for Folken and Van to follow him.
As they made their way towards the forest at the end of the meadow, Zire fell into step beside Folken. " Don't allow his stare to bother you. Neftoo has never met anyone like you before."
Folken looked at him and sighed softly. " No, its quite alright. I assure you." He replied. For it wasn't the wolf man's stare that bothered him, but the cold barrier he could feel between Van and himself.
