Wow! I can't believe all the reviews I got for Chapter Six!! It really must've been my best chapter ;). Anyhoo, in appreciation for all of your reviews, I have posted Chapter Seven! Ahem. Well, anyway, in response to Sage's review: I cannot tell you if you are right or wrong at this point, but I can say that I love the way you think. Hopefully that will answer your 'am I right?' question ;).
Anyway, this chapter is sort of a turning point for Neicole in a way, though it will be elaborated on as the story continues. Also, the title doesn't really make sense until the last line of this chapter. Oh, and just to explain, remember how I said Longgalia was a duchy in Austuria? That played a major role in the Great War. After all, since Dornkirk's son was Duke of Longgalia, Zaibach always tried to stay allies with Austuria. It's kind of ironic in a way, since Millerna said that one line: "In the end, do you think Austuria alone will remain untouched?" That's what persuaded Mahad dar Freid to finally declare war against Zaibach. But, in actuality, Austuria WOULD have remained untouched—most of it, at least—since Neicodemus was/is Duke of Longgalia. What's even more ironic is the fact that Neicodemus's deceased wife was from Freid, and you would think that Neicodemus would have tried to stop his father from destroying the land of his wife's brother. And contrary to what some of you may think, Neicodemus did truly love Mahalia. It wasn't just a scheme of Dornkirk's to get his hands on that Atlantis Key. Whew. That was a long rambling.
Ditto.
~*Chapter Seven: She's So High*~
After she had yelled out 'King Van', Neicole had stood in front of that window for what seemed like an eternity to her. The seconds crept by like sap trickling slowly down a pine tree, as she tried to make sense of the events that had just transpired.
First, she had thought she was the luckiest girl in all of Gaea as she found the object of her heart's desire creeping suspiciously around the entrance to her guest bedchamber. Though he did pass my door, she realized sadly. Second, that extremely beautiful pinkish gem on that necklace of his started glowing in little spurts of light, as if there was a firefly encased inside. It spooked her that a piece of jewelry could do something like that, but after what happened next she was pretty willing to believe that anything was possible:
King Van was a Draconian.
She had watched as his wings had jutted out from his shoulder blades, somehow not tearing his shirt. The little gem glowed brighter as it happened, she remembered, and for a brief moment she took the time to ponder on why that happened. She usually didn't ponder, for there was always some new store to shop at or some new prince that her father wanted her to meet, but, as it has been documented, strange happenings often make people do odd things. And thus, Neicole pondered.
She was brought out of her musings as she noticed an oblong and pristinely white object laying innocently on the scuffed and somewhat broken floor. She approached it tentatively, and gasped as she realized it was a feather. A feather from King Van's wings! She knelt to the floor cautiously, so as not to rip or dirty her nightgown. She extended a hand tentatively, and attempted to lift the feather from the ground. But to her surprise, it disappeared in a flash as soon as the flesh of her fingers brushed the fuzz at the base of the quill. It disappeared…she told herself with an inward cry. It disappeared as if…
…As if it wasn't mine to touch…
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Surprisingly, Megumi had no reaction whatsoever to Sano's faint. She simply stared, slightly open-mouthed, as Van knelt beside Hitomi (who was still on the futon). Both Kaoru and Kenshin were entranced as well, and made no attempt to move. Kaoru still sat behind Hitomi, and still supported Hitomi's head in her lap. Kenshin still knelt beside Hitomi, though he was opposite Van.
Van felt the tips of his wings brush slightly against the floor, and only then did he remember that he had them out in the first place. Nervously, he questioned, "They don't think I'm a curse, do they?"
"No," Hitomi answered with a smile. "If anything, they think you're salvation. That's one of the differences between Gaea and Earth. They're just stunned into silence."
Kenshin managed to mumble another soft "Oro", as if in agreement. The initial shock of it all had worn down considerably, though inside he was in intense turmoil. Every ounce of him felt unworthy to be in the supposed angel's presence, most of him felt afraid that the angel would sense his bloodstained hands from ten years ago, and the remaining part of him was slightly curious about the angel's apparent fatherhood to the amazingly calm and quiet newborn. And not only that, he was also incredibly tired for it was about half past midnight.
Van smiled at Hitomi's response, though inside he frowned slightly as a realization hit him. "I would understand…if…if you don't want to…come back with me," he spoke reluctantly.
Hitomi had shock written all over her face. "Why would you think that I wouldn't want to?"
"Because our son will be brandished as curse by some," Van explained quietly. "Not only is he Draconian, but he was…" Van paused. He swallowed forcefully, as the rest of the sentence pained him. "He was…conceived and born out of wedlock." Not caring that the strangers (to him, at least) in the room were hearing/watching him, he grasped Hitomi's free hand and held it lovingly in both of his. "I want you to come back with me—believe me, I do; I really do. I want you to come back with me and rule Fanelia by my side as my Queen. But I know that it would pain you if our son was treated harshly, as it would pain me, and that's why I would understand if you choose not to come back."
It was at this moment that Kaoru gained the courage to speak. "Do you…want Kenshin, Megumi, and I to leave?" she asked gently. "You probably want to talk alone."
Kenshin nodded in agreement with her. Megumi attempted to make a reply as well, but it came out as a squeak-like syllable.
"Wait," Van commanded in a gentle voice. He closed his eyes for a moment, and with a slight wince he was able to reabsorb his wings. Opening his eyes again, he looked to Kaoru. "Thank you for helping Hitomi," he told her with a smile.
Kaoru shook her head. "No, you should thank Megumi," she said, pointing to Megumi. "She delivered the baby."
Megumi's eyes went wider then they already were. "Me?" she asked, pointing to herself. "As much as I'd like to take the credit, you should be thanking Ken-san [what she calls Kenshin]." Pointing to the red-haired, purple-eyed Kenshin, she continued, "He's the one who came running when Hitomi yelled for help."
Van shifted his gaze to Kenshin, who was on the opposite side of Hitomi's futon. "Thank you."
After a moment of surprise, Kenshin smiled warmly. "You're welcome." Pausing to look down at Hitomi, he noticed that she was barely able to keep her eyes open and that the baby had already settled into sleep against her chest. "Perhaps we should all go to bed. Hitomi-dono looks very tired, that she does."
Kaoru nodded in agreement. "Yeah. And in the morning, we'll all have a big breakfast to celebrate the birth! And you two can pick out a name for the baby!" After gently laying Hitomi's head back down on the pillow of the futon, she stood. Looking at Van, she continued, "Listen, I know that I don't know you or where you come from, but any friend of Hitomi is a friend of mine. You're welcome to stay here as long as you like, because I'm sure Megumi will agree with me on the fact that Hitomi should probably stay in bed for a little while." She turned her attention to Kenshin and began to help him off the floor.
Megumi nodded, agreeing with Kaoru's statement. "Yes, Hitomi should stay in bed for a while."
Van smiled in appreciation.
"No, no, no," Hitomi protested languidly. "I'm fine! Really…I…am…." And with that, she passed out into peaceful slumber. Her and Van's son continued to sleep deeply upon her chest, still wrapped in the soft cotton towel.
Van took the opportunity to drape a blanket over Hitomi from the waist down. After he did so, he stood and pointed to Sano and Yahiko. They were still out cold, their bodies twisted in unimaginable positions. "Do you need any help getting them into their rooms?"
Megumi and Kaoru snickered quietly. Kenshin shook his head, as both a reply to Van and a disapproval to Megumi and Kaoru. "No, we will manage to get them to their rooms, that we will. Sessha can carry Yahiko, and both Megumi-dono and Kaoru-dono should be able to carry Sanosuke."
"If you say so," Van acknowledged. "By the way, what are all your names?"
"I'm Kamiya Kaoru. I own this dojo."
"I am Himura Kenshin, that I am."
"Just call me Megumi. And this Rooster-head is Sagara Sanosuke, better known as 'Sano'."
"Yeah, and that Brat is Myojin Yahiko. Feel free to call him 'Brat'. Or 'Yahiko-chan'—he LOVES that…."
Van laughed quietly.
"That is enough, Kaoru-dono," Kenshin chided teasingly. Turning to Van, he asked, "What is your name?"
Van smiled. "Van Fanel. But my councilors would have a fit if they heard me introduce myself as simply as that; they would say something elaborate like 'His Royal Majesty, King Van Slanzar de Fanel of Fanelia'. But please—call me Van."
Kenshin, Kaoru, and Megumi nodded, not questioning the whole deal about him being King of some country called Fanelia or the fact that he and Hitomi had the same last name, although they claimed they weren't married. After all, not long ago the man had wings and had descended onto the floor of the room in a beam of light. They weren't about to question anything anymore.
After Kenshin had lifted Yahiko and carried him out of the room, Megumi and Kaoru readied themselves to heave Sano into their arms. Pausing, they turned to face Van, who was kneeling down beside Hitomi again, just gazing at her and their son. "She's really lucky," Megumi began. "Any other woman would have died from losing that much blood. And any other child would have died from being born this early."
"My kind only takes five months to fully develop," Van explained, still facing Hitomi. He extended his arm, and cupped Hitomi's face in his hand. "Though I'm truly blessed I didn't lose her." He paused, and lovingly lifted his son off of Hitomi's chest and held him for the first time. He marveled at how this was the creation of Hitomi and himself; that they had come together to make something so beautiful and so perfect. Remembering that he had been speaking, he continued in a soft voice, "I…owe all of you my life for helping her."
Kaoru shook her head, although Van couldn't see her do so. "No, I think there is someone else you should thank for that. Do you…know anyone named Varie?"
Van quickly spun around, carefully minding the baby, his eyes wide. "What about her?"
"When Hitomi woke up from her blackout, she kept talking to someone named Varie. I tried to snap her out of it, but she never heard me. But I do think that if this Varie person hadn't been there in her mind, Hitomi might've died from the pain," Kaoru answered.
Van smiled, and a few tears trickled down his cheeks. He clutched his son even more to himself, but not too tightly.
"Who is Varie?" Megumi asked tentatively.
"My mother," Van answered, another tear trickling down. "My dead mother."