A Man-to-Man Talk
Van sat and ate his fruit salad as his advisors briefed him on the news of the day. Two stories that struck him as odd was one, that General Corkin from Zaibach died in a fire yesterday. The other was a shocking story of someone finding a human penis in Zaibach. What the person was doing with the penis was beyond him.
He decided not to tell Folken. Folken was acting strangely enough. He refused to come in contact with Eriya because he thought she was Naria and that she was going to hurt him. Normally, Folken would've put any such thoughts out of his head, but something must've happened to Folken. And he knew it.
Hitomi was faring better. She was still delusional, but not delusional to the point where she would hurt herself or others. It seemed the only happy couple in the palace was Allen and Alena.
Were they ever happy! Van had never seen Allen like this before. Laughing heartily, enjoying life to the fullest, completely amazed by this raven-haired beauty that came into his life.
He thought about Hitomi and those words he would utter on their wedding day.
I, King Van Slanzer de Fanel take Hitomi Kanzaki to be my lawfully wedded wife and queen. I will cherish her, and love her through sickness and health, war and peace, life and death, and love and lust. 'Till death do we part.
He thought about the sickness and health part. Would Hitomi return to normal before the wedding? Or would she remain mentally ill for the rest of her life? He tried not to think about it.
"What's wrong, Van?"
He looked up, only to see the familiar blond Asturian before him.
"Sit down, and maybe we can talk, Allen."
Allen sat across from Van and poured himself some coffee.
"What's going on?" Allen said.
"It's Hitomi. I'm worried about her."
"Being worried about her is normal. When Celena had split personalities I prayed to the heavens that she would return to normal. Thanks to Hitomi, my prayers were answered."
"Do you think she'll get over it?"
"Definitely. But what you probably meant to say is, will she return to the person you and I both fell in love with. That's, as Hitomi would say, the kicker."
"Do you think so?"
"Well, Alena and I discussed it over a bottle of wine and she said that the key to returning Folken and Hitomi back to normal may lie in Dilandau's defeat."
"Dilandau was killed by Naria a while ago."
"No, she said Dilandau's still alive. His spirit lives on, and no one knows where it is. But we're sure wherever it is, it's not helping people. Any word from Merle?"
"I haven't talked to Merle in almost two months."
"Maybe she needs time to heal, assuming that ghosts can heal their emotional wounds."
"But two months?"
"Women tend to almost never forget. It takes a long time."
"How about you and Alena?"
"We're great. I love her. I think this is it, Van. I think she's the one. She's the one I am going to love for the rest of my life."
"What makes you like her so much?"
"She's a breath of fresh air from all the royalty I've been with. Plus she doesn't fit my normal requirements for a woman, making it more exciting. She's got depth, and she's interesting. Millerna was interesting, too, but she jumped from man-to-man. Have you set a wedding date yet?"
"No, not at all."
"I haven't either."
"You proposed?"
"I wish you could've seen it, Van. She practically fell off her chair."
Van laughed.
"Hey, I have an idea. Listen up."
Allen began whispering into the king's ear and he got a big smile on his face.