The players in the Prophecy have finally come together

The players in the Prophecy have finally come together. Hitomi meets up with old friends and morns the loss of her life on Earth. Van shows Hitomi his true feelings. Together they will face the future, but how much of the Prophecy will Van reveal to her? Is she ready?

Chapter 18 Friends and Family, Hello and goodbye.

Van must try to explain to the others, but he is at a loss. Prophecies are like riddles to solve, and this one needs to be solved before it is too late. He doesn't like the way events are heading at all.

Again everyone is assembled in the room Dryden is using for studying the prophecy.

Van: "Last night I found the dragon goddess from the village. I brought her here, I'm sure you all know by now that she is Hitomi."

Dryden: "That woman last night is Hitomi, they are the same person, and no one told me."

Merle: "It was for you to tell them, Lord Van, so Allen and I didn't."

Millerna: "Oh no but how?"

Van: "I don't have any answers, I think Hitomi knows even less than we do. She had a vision in which she saw an energist shattered, but that's all. Something was done to her to change her, now its not only visions, but she can feel the emotions around her. I have never seen anyone like her before here on Gaea."

Allen: "Do you think it could be Ziaboch sorcerers, like what they did to Celena?"

Van: "It could be, but then they are not the only ones with power on this world. All I know is that she's scared to even come out of the room. She didn't seek us out when she arrived, because she didn't know how we would accept her. What she needs now is a friend."

Van looks directly at Yukari. He can tell that she has had a hard time since her arrival, and knows; she wishes to return to her home and her normal life back on the Mystic Moon.

Yukari: "I'm not Hitomi's friend, I'm her best friend, and we have been together since we were small. I would have given up Amano for her, when I thought she was in love with him. I want to see her."

Hitomi is sitting on the bed, allowing herself to think about everything that has happened. Last time she was here her unsure heart caused sad fates to happen to those she cared about. Whatever was happening to her, she would face it.

A soft knock on the door brings Hitomi back from her thoughts. She turns as a young woman enters with Hitomi's duffle bag.

Hitomi: "Did it follow me here?"

The woman looks up and smiles.

Hitomi: "Yukari, Oh Yukari, but how. No don't look at me."

Hitomi grabs the sheet and pulls it up to hide herself from her friends gaze. Yukari shakes her head 'Well some things never change.' She walks over to the bed and pulls back the sheet from her friends face. She takes a deep breath before speaking.

Yukari: "Since when did that ever work with me Hitomi. You are my best friend, do you think I wouldn't try to find you. You were, no you are in trouble. Amano and I knew we had to try to do something. We ended up here on Gaea."

Hitomi: "But how?"

Yukari: "The feather, Van's feather. We used it to try to contact Van. We did more than just contact him, but then I think Amano was wishing to come. You did say that power that exists here in Gaea is the power of peoples wishes, maybe his was strong enough to bring us here."

Hitomi: "Amano is here too. And you've met Allen then."

Yukari: "Yes its really strange, they could be brothers, In fact Amano's being passed off as his cousin and I'm the loving wife."

She giggles as she says the last.

Yukari: "Amano is loving every minute of it, except the you in danger part that is. He said he'd come to see you after sword practice that is if you're up to it. I did say he was enjoying this didn't I."

Hitomi: "Mortal sword combat, Yukari, and yes I'd like that. If you have my duffle and the feather, you went to see my mom. I miss her.

Yukari: "We went there right away, and again three days later. She had the duffle ready when we got there, and the feather. She loves you and wants you to be happy."

Hitomi opens the duffle while Yukari is speaking. There are some clothes and personal things. Her Tarot cards and couple of picture frames, one a single picture of her Yukari and Amano at a track meet. Then she pulls out the double frame and opens it. One side is a family portrait, the one taken over the holidays. Her father and her mother both smiling, herself and her little brother. On the other side is a photo of her grandma, the one taken almost thirty years ago, when she was fifteen, the day of the carnival and her visit to Gaea. Tears fill Hitomi's eyes.

Hitomi: "She's saying good-bye to me."

Yukari is about to mention the letter 'Is this the right time?' No. Van walks in the room a dress over his arm. He stops when he sees that Hitomi is crying.

Van: "Hitomi, I thought you would be happy."

He reaches her in two strides and removes the thing she is holding in her hands. Yukari silently leaves the room shutting the door quietly behind her.

Van: "Is it this thing that makes you cry. It's a beautiful painting, so detailed; I've never seen anything like it. Is this you?"

Hitomi: "It's not a painting there call photographs. This is me and my family and this one that you thought was me, it's my grandma. This was taken the day she came to Gaea and met Allen's father Leon. My mother sent these here with Yukari; it's her way of saying good-bye to me. Van she doesn't expect me to return this time. I will have disappeared just like grandma did."

Van: "Your grandma disappeared?"

Hitomi: "Yeah, not long after she gave me the pendant. I was thirteen, no one ever knew what happened to her, she went to bed one night and the next morning the room was empty. My mother never said anything if she knew, but once she told me she knew that grandma was happy."

Van hands Hitomi the dress he brought, then puts the photos back into the duffle.

Van: "There's something else here wrapped up in the bottom, did you see it?"

Hitomi: "No, I didn't."

Van takes out the package and hands it to Hitomi. She unwraps it then holds it close to her.

Hitomi: "It's the Dragon Prince from the stories my grandma use to tell me. She was an artist her paintings were wonderful. She painted this one especially for me. The Dragon Prince looks a lot like I do now, see."

Van looks at the painting. It is of a young man/dragon. He is smiling. In one hand is a scepter, and in the other a blue/green energist. There are mountains in the background and dragons flying in the air. In the corner almost hiding behind the clouds are two moons.

Van: "Hitomi, this is Gaea. Look in the corner, at the moons. Can I take this to Dryden, it may mean something."

Hitomi: "Sure, I'd forgotten about it, your right, but it might not be anything. She did come here and a lot of her works had two moons in the sky. I can't believe Yukari and Amano are here."

Van: "After they arrived, we decided it might be safer for them to blend in. The clothes you all wear make you stand out as foreigners. I hope you don't mind, I know you have your own clothes in the bag, but I brought you some clothes, they are Millerna's.

Hitomi: "I'd wear a gunny sack if it would get me some food. I'm not scared to leave the room now thanks to you. Go wait outside the door and I'll be ready in a flash."

Van leaves the room, wondering what a gunnysack is, to wait while Hitomi gets dressed. After just a few minutes Hitomi calls him back in.

Hitomi: "Well what do you think?"

Hitomi turns side to side in the lovely low back ivory gown.

Van: "You look uh great."

To Van she looks more than great she is beautiful. He loves her so much. He moves forward, laying one hand gently on her shoulder and with his other tilts her chin back to just the right angle. He leans forward, his eyes never leaving her face, and captures her lips with his in the kiss he has waited a lifetime for. Hitomi's sighs and leans into Van as the kiss depends. She feels as if she might drown in his kiss. Slowly he pulls away and smiles.

Van: "I have wanted to do that for a very long time."

Hitomi "Oh Van."

Van reaches up to put his now free hand on her other arm, as he touches her she winches.

Hitomi: "Sorry I hurt my arm and it's still a little sore."

Van lets go of Hitomi, and rubs his own arm in the same spot. He remembers feeling her pain the other night and the damage to Escaflowne. He knows her arm isn't just a little sore, the cut was deep and painful, but she doesn't complain. Why did the wound appear on him also? As far as unanswered questions go, this one is at the bottom of the list.

Van: "Come on let's go eat."

What is the legend of the Dragon Prince and does it have anything to do with the Prophecy unfolding now? Van has to face the fact that he may again loose his true love to the fate of the world in which he lives. More and more puzzles and less and less time to figure it all out.

Well again I will ask you to read and review. More action is soon to come, I promise.

Fanilia