I have had quite a few comments that the chapters are too short

I have had quite a few comments that the chapters are too short. Well I first posted this story on Anime shack, that's why the short chapters. I broke up some parts to make them post within the space allowed. I continued it here, but I will combine them to make the reading more interesting. And since this is my first Fic (I started and finished Spirit Seeker while writing this) it is still a learning process for me. I enjoy writing now and this will not be my last fic. Well on to the story.

Empress Terrial returns to the ones that sent her to Fanilia and the King. And Hitomi is reunited with her friends from Gaea. The Elders of the Cat Folk village have information to share, but Allen finds out more from a single cat girl, then Dryden from the Elders. Van is keeping secrets vital to the Prophecy.

Chapter 19 Friends, confessions, and Revelations

The Bosram Mountains, and close to them concealed from the casual on looker is a floating fortress. It is one of Ziaboch's few remaining fortresses since the war. A convoy ship approaches.

Lord Lawrence: "The Empress has returned to us. We have the doppelganger in place; the first plan is already in motion. He will strike when the time is right."

Empress Terrial enters the room and bows to her masters, the Three Dark Lords.

Terrial: "I was unable to sway the King, my Lords, I await your punishment Lord Lawrence."

Lord Lawrence: "Rest easy child, for events have turned to our favor. We leave now for Freid to reclaim Dilandau, he will help provide the distraction needed to keep the dragon from his task."

Terrial: "Dilandau is gone, I have seen what my Lord has become with my own eyes."

Lord Lawrence: "Wait and see."

Everyone is happy to see Hitomi. It is so good to be with her friends again. They are all like a second family to her. After eating Van excuses himself to check on Escaflowne. It is just an excuse; he knows if Hitomi is really to feel at ease, she can't do so if he is always they're waiting for something to happen. Hitomi is finishing up herself when Merle walks in.

Hitomi: "Merle is that you? You're beautiful!"

If it would be possible for a cat to blush, Merle does. Everyone starts to laugh. Any oddness Hitomi's friends are feeling at her changed appearance disappears. Merle raises her head high, walking to her place at the table. As usual she is grooming the back of her hand.

Merle: "Laugh all you want. I'm beautiful."

Allen reaches over the table, and fingers a lock of Hitomi's silver hair.

Allen: "I like the hair."

Dryden: "Yeah, Allen it's almost as nice as yours."

Again laughter erupts in the room. Allen though does turn red.

Allen: "Come on Dryden we have things to do."

Allen pushed back his chair, stands, and without another word, walks out of the room.

Millerna: "Dryden, you'd better go with him."

Dryden stands and bending over places his hand on his wife's shoulder, he gives her a quick kiss. Millerna reaches up and squeezes his hand. He straitens up and leaves to catch up with Allen. Millerna sighs.

Millerna: "I always though that I wanted someone to make me happy, but as it turns out I only found happiness when I realized that I could make someone else happy."

She is thinking as she speaks, She remembers the private conversation she had with Folken at the castle in Palas. 'Millerna is standing by the window, water in the bay outside sparkles in the sunlight, but all that side of the city lay in ruin. She sighs and lays her head in her hands. Folken enters the room, but seeing Millerna says softly "I am sorry for the destruction I have caused here in your kingdom." Millerna looks up at him, she has tears brimming in her eyes, "Sorry, this destruction is my fault.

"Your fault?"

"Yes, I pushed Hitomi into doing a reading about my marriage. I didn't realize that she had fallen in love with Allen. So she did the reading, but she switched the cards. She changed the destiny so that I would be happy with Dryden instead of waiting for Allen."

The look in Folken's eyes softens, "Oh, I see." The tears Millerna is trying so hard to control spill from her eyes unbidden, "Yes now you see. It is my fault."

Folken looks down at her, this is one wrong he can atone for now. "It's not your fault, Millerna, Hitomi had to be separated from Van. Dornkirk ordered it so. I myself preformed the fate alteration to change the gravity of Hitomi's heart to another. I was able to obtain the DNA samples needed while Dornkirk had the three them held in Ziaboch, Van, Hitomi and Allen Schazar. I used Allen to obtain that end. You see you are not to blame." Millerna looks up at him astonished, "But still if I hadn't asked her, no I begged her to read the cards. I was so unsure how I really felt, but I had found out things about Allen, and I wanted to know that Dryden would make me happy." Folken does understand, had he not been secretly sabotaging his own attempts to capture the dragon, for much the same reason, "If that is what you are seeking you will never find it. You'll find your own happiness when you find someone that you make happy."

Millerna: "You see Hitomi, in the end Dryden left me till I was ready for his love. If you had not of changed the cards back then, changed the destiny, I would never have married him. Thank you."

Millerna reaches over and hugs Hitomi, both are laughing and crying.

Millerna: "Yukari and I have spent a lot of time together since her arrival. She's told me a lot about the Mystic Moon and Its strange customs. You really run with other girls just to see who can run faster, she called it a race, I would like to try it sometime, that and ice cream.

Merle: "Well at least you had fun, you didn't have to baby-sit that husband hungry Empress."

Hitomi: "Who?"

Merle: "The Reigning Empress of Ziaboch. She was after Lord Van."

Yukari: "Merle!"

Hitomi: "That's OK, it has been three years, I couldn't expect him to just wait for me, I may have never been able to come back."

Merle: "No Hitomi, He did wait. He waited for you."

Outside the Crusade, two men head to the village, they are joined by a third.

Amano: "What are we trying to find out here?"

Dryden: "The exact location of Cred would be nice for starters."

The three approach a guarded hut, the meeting place of the Elders of the village. The guard lowers his spear to block the entrance. He points at Dryden and Amano.

Guard: "You two may pass, but your warrior must remain outside."

Allen realizes at once that his is the only one of the three that is armed. He steps back one pace to show the guard, that he has understood, and will not try to enter. Dryden and Amano enter the hut leaving Allen outside with the guard. After a time Allen grows tired of waiting, 'What is taking so long in there?' He decides to walk around a little to stretch his tired muscles. He walks a short distance, keeping an eye on the hut in case Dryden and Amano come out. The cat folk here in the village are all busy going about the days routines. One cat girl though walks by him, her head down. She looks so sad, Allen can't resist the urge to make her smile.

Allen: "Why so down little one, it is a beautiful day out."

The girl looks up seeing Allen smiling at her, she tries to smile, but ghost of a smile is all she manages.

Kala: "My brother is gone. I think he left with Hitomi, the Dragon."

Allen: "Who?"

Kala: "The beautiful dragon lady with the silver hair. Nathen brought her to the village yesterday. He said she had saved his life. The people are calling her the dragon goddess, but she's more, and I'm afraid for Nathen, he wouldn't leave without telling anyone unless he's in trouble. I'm afraid the dragon has him."

Allen: "Why would you be afraid, little one, you said that your brother was saved by Hitomi, but you are afraid she may have hurt him. Why?"

The girl lowers her head, even if she tells will anyone believe her especially a stranger. She is only a child after all.

Allen: "It's ok, I am Allen Schazar a night of Astoria, and I am sworn to protect beautiful little princesses such as you."

At his remark Kala smiles just a little, but the tears in her bright eyes threaten to fall. She likes this man, he seems kind, and maybe he really can help find her brother.

Kala: "Last night I followed Nathen and Hitomi when they went for a walk. I knew it was wrong to do it, but I was curious. They stopped out by the fields, and when Nathen tried to kiss her, she ran. But than she stopped before she reached the fire. She turned and flew to the trees where I was hiding. Then it happened, she changed into the green dragon, it had to be the one everyone is talking about, the one that killed the bandits in the man village. What if she killed Nathen for kissing her."

Kala is crying now, she is afraid of Hitomi and scared for her brother. All the stories of Dragon mere, feeding that fear. Allen can't believe what he is hearing from this girl, yet she's not lying, Hitomi is the Green Dragon, and Van surly knows it. He reaches down and putting a hand under her chin, tilts her head up to look at him.

Allen: "Don't worry little princess, your brother is safe I know this for a fact. He should have not have let you worry so. There you do have a beautiful smile."

At that Kala does smile.

Dryden and Amano leave the hut of the Elders, joining Allen outside and all three men head back to the Crusade.

Allen; " Any luck?"

Dryden: "Yes and No. According to the Elders Cred isn't just one place. It is the place a dragon goes to die, only the dragon knows when and where to go. Most go to dragon graveyards, but not all. The dragon is drawn to its cred by destiny. And it's not likely that the Green Dragon will tell us where to go is it."

Allen: "Hum, anything else?"

Allen isn't really listening, he is still thinking about the information he gained from the cat girl in the village. How can this be, and why would Van keep to himself such vital information.

Amano: "What do you think about the legend the really old one told us, I wish he could have been more detailed, he seemed to be leaving parts out, I wonder if he just forgot them."

Dryden: " I got that feeling too, but we were lucky as it was that they even spoke to outsiders. I'll check the legend against some of the older prophecies; I know I have seen references to the same thing, both in the book of three and in some of the other books. One thing that does bother me is that references to dragons aren't in any of the earliest accounts, like they didn't exist before a certain point. Ugh! This is all driving me nuts."

Van is in the guymelf bay sharpening Escaflowne's sword. The repetition of the work allows him some time to think. Allen enters the bay; he has come looking for Van to get answers from his friend. Van looks up at Allen standing before him, and then resumes his work.

Allen: "When were you going to tell us about the dragon?"

Van is silent, the only indication he has heard what his friend has said, is a momentary pause in his work.

Allen: "Van look at me. When were you going to tell us about Hitomi, she's not only the dragon woman, she's the Green Dragon. You had to know."

Van: "What did you want me to say, Allen, the woman I love, is the dragon that must be extinguished, killed in order to save Gaea? How do you think everyone would act, she is scared enough, and she can feel the emotions around her now, she would have known."

He pauses now, looking up at Allen he continues,

Van: "Last night when I fought the Green Dragon I hit it with the dragon dust, it changed in the dragon woman we saw at the village. She fell from the sky. I almost didn't reach her in time. It scared me that she might have died. And that was before I knew who she was. How can Escaflowne kill her, I love her. I didn't say anything because Hitomi's not ready, she's scared and she has the memories of the dragon, she knows what it is doing and is helpless to stop it. Allen, how did you find out?"

Allen: "A girl in the village. Her brother is the one who brought Hitomi to the village. He's disappeared; my guess is that he is the same one who confronted you. He's on the ship I'm sure of it."

Van: "The ship, but why?"

Allen: "It's Hitomi, she does that to men, all of us, we want to help her, to protect her. Even your brother, Folken did."

Van doesn't care for what Allen is saying, but he knows how it feels to want to protect her, that very feeling had obsessed him during the war with Ziabach. It is something he remembers all to well.

Van: "Should we search the ship for him?"

Allen: "No, he'll turn up. I have a feeling before this is all over we may need him. I will send word to the village that the goddess has chosen him to travel with her as her protector, that should satisfy them and it will make his little sister proud. Besides I don't want that little girl to not know what happened to her brother."

Outside the Levi ship a small golden dragonet circles the ship, unnoticed by those working outside. Goldie is beside himself; he has circled the large ship all night. He knows his mistress is in there. He felt her stirring in the early morning at dawn. But now, much later, he has become frantic in his need to find her. As a crewman leaves the ship Goldie can wait no longer, he pushes away his fear and enters the ship were the man came out. Now he is flying from room to room, place to place, swooping to miss the humans that are here and there inside the hallways.

Hitomi has returned to her room to rest, the dragon dust is still with her making her yawn. Suddenly she stiffens, emotions come rolling at her. She can feel driving need, love and fear.

Hitomi: "Oh no!"

She rushes from the room, no longer tired, and heads in the direction of the guymelf bay. As she approaches the feelings grow stronger, along with new feelings, one is annoyance, and the other is sheer amusement. Hitomi enters the bay in time to see her little Goldie darting and swooping at the owner of all the annoyance, Van. Goldie is chattering loudly at him in a most demanding tone.

Allen: "What did you do to him?"

Van waves his arms in the air, trying to defend himself from the little creature without harming it.

Van: "I don't know!"

Hitomi: "Goldie!"

The little dragon breaks off his attack and veers directly toward Hitomi, landing lightly on her shoulder and coiling his tail around her neck. Now content he nuzzles her cheek with his head and chirps softly to her.

Hitomi: "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you."

She reaches up to scratch behind his ear; the chirping changes to a soft sound, almost purring. Allen and Van watch the little dragon as he receives all Hitomi's attention. It is apparent that the animal loves her. Allen doubles over laughing as Van turns in his direction.

Allen: "My point has just been proven, he is protecting her."

I just love Goldie, he is more a friend than a pet, and has his own part to play. What will happen next?

Fanilia