Chapter 3: Conflict
Hitomi gasped as water was thrown on her face. "How cliché," she managed to think before the pain in her head exploded. A wave of nausea swept through her on the tail of the pain and she struggled not to vomit. She bit back a moan, clamping her teeth down on the gag in her mouth. Her senses slowly returned to her, and she realized she was sitting against a wall. The dampness of the room had soaked through her clothes and she shivered, goosebumps rising painfully over her bruised skin.
Experimentally she opened one eye, and then shut it again as the weak light from the room acted as a catalyst for more pain and a nauseating dizziness assailed her. Hearing someone moving around her, she struggled to open her eyes and bring the person into focus. Meager sunlight streaming in through a small dirty window near the ceiling cast the room into shadows. Hitomi tried to rub her eyes and realized she was bound, her wrists tied behind her.
A constant muttering and the dripping of water reached her ears. She struggled against the tie around her wrists and ankles, trying to do it without the person noticing. Suddenly the taste of the rag in her mouth hit her and she gagged reflexively. The person heard the retching noise and turned to her. Hitomi stopped struggling, fear paralyzing her as the figure approached. The babbling voice grew louder as the person drew closer and she began to make out words.
"Awake. She's awake. The girl who is supposed to be dead is awake. Good. She can understand me. No one can understand me, but she will. Girl-who-is-supposed-to-be-dead, can you understand me?
Hitomi jerked back, hitting her head on the wall as half-mad eyes peered closely at her through dirty hair. The hoarse voice dropped to a whisper. "Do you understand? You have to understand. Maybe she can't, maybe it's all in my head. Maybe I did make it up. Maybe they were right. NO!" He backed away, clutching his head. After a moment he looked at her again, a gleam of sanity in his eyes this time.
Hitomi stared at the dirty face in front of her. Her captor watched her try to gather her courage, then chuckled cruelly. "It's all your fault. He was right. But now you're going to fix it." She flinched back, hitting her head against the wall again as he reached out to brush her hair out from her face. "Aren't you?"
Van strode through the hallway, trying to outpace Merle, who was trotting to keep up with him. His hair was a mess from the inadvertent nap he had taken in his desk chair over crop reports and he was in an extremely foul mood. He was tired and grouchy and overlying it all was a nervous dread that had settled in his stomach since his nightmare the previous night. And now to top it all off his advisors were begging an audience.
"For the last time, NO! You are not coming with me," he snarled at Merle as she opened her mouth to say something. She merely smiled innocently up at him, showing her teeth. He glared at her and sped up a bit more as they approached the assembly room. He burst through the door, unsuccessfully trying to close it before she slipped through. The advisors in the room quailed before his gaze while Allen swallowed the undignified snicker that welled up. Phiat grinned from his position against the far wall.
"What is it?" demanded Van. "What matter has sprung up that is so urgent that we must meet right NOW!" He knew his foul mood was a little excessive, but the attention everyone was demanding from him was enough to madden a saint.
Argas stepped forward, almost shaking in his boots. "Your Majesty, we would like to discuss the subject of your safety in traveling to retrieve the Lady Hitomi, your intended."
Van stared at him, stupefied. "Is that it?" he asked incredulously. They had already discussed the subject of his trip more times than he could count in the past two years and he thought that he had finally laid to rest all their fears. Apparently he was wrong.
Allen cut in smoothly. "I think, King Van, that your esteemed advisors are still harboring certain concerns over your impending journey to the Mystic Moon."
Van listened patiently as the advisors argued once again the benefits of taking an armed escort and as Merle piped in her opinions on the advantages of a cat as a traveling companion. Finally he could not take their prattling anymore.
Van glared at Merle, and then stared down each advisor. "Let me make this clear," he ground out. "I am going alone to the Earth. I am not taking guards, samurai, or ANNOYING ADOPTED SISTERS!"
Argas paled and stepped back, bowing. Allen grinned and followed Van out the door as the king stomped away.
"Honestly, Allen, did they really expect me to agree with them?" he asked wearily. Allen cast a concerned look at him.
"Have you been sleeping?" Allen said softly, changing the subject. Van shook his head, shoulders slumping as he slowed his pace.
Van shrugged, then, seeing the concern in Allen's eyes, answered truthfully. "Not for several weeks. So much needed to be done: There was the investigation into how Viole was able to construct a guymelef." Van shook his head. "We still don't know the source of the money he used to buy guymelef parts and hire assassins. And then there was the finishing of the castle and preparing for the wedding itself. But last night was pure insomnia. I couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was happening. And my advisors are jumping up and down on my last nerve."
Allen looked at him sympathetically. "Well, it is the first time they have prior knowledge of a trip to the Mystic Moon and they are apprehensive about their only king disappearing for days with no contact. At least they no longer harbor any reservations regarding the wedding."
Van smiled. "Yes. I think Celena and Merle are to thank for that. Where is Celena, by the way?"
Allen grimaced. "Sulking in her room. She isn't speaking to me since I forbade her to try and convince you to take her. She has developed quite a interest in the Mystic Moon and had her heart set on riding in one of those 'cars'."
Van laughed. "Well, at least she was easier to stop than Merle. If she opens her mouth again near me in the next twenty four hours, I am going to shove a piscus fruit in it."
Allen chuckled. "Persistent, isn't she?"
Van sighed as they reached the doorway to his chambers. "You have no idea. I am going to bed."
Allen grinned wickedly. "Enjoy the last night alone in your room."
Van's face flamed as he ducked into his room. He shut the door on Allen's laughter and slumped against it, resting his head against the wood before making the effort to go to his bed. Kicking off his boots, he sat heavily at on the edge of the mattress and stared at the night sky through the window. Allen's words echoed through his mind and he blushed again in the darkness. It wasn't that he hadn't contemplated what married life would be with Hitomi; it was all he had thought of in his spare time for the past two, no seven, years. But now that the event was impending anxieties were building.
Van flopped onto his back on his bed, spreading his arms out and stared at the canopy. It was one thing to think about it, he reflected, and another to do it.
He was scared.
Admitting it did not help dispel the fears that were pooling in his chest like rain in a barrel. Van groaned and crawled up to the head of the bed, burying his head in the pillows. Briefly he wondered if Hitomi was facing the same fears. Anxiety over the thought that she was reconsidering made his heart race, but he told himself he was being foolish. She was the one who had set the date and he shouldn't doubt her after all that had passed. And now only twenty-four hours were left. He shut his eyes, picturing Hitomi as he last saw her, beautiful, strong and perfect.
His daydream was interrupted when he heard the door creak open. He lifted his head to see a worried face peering in. He motioned for her to enter and Celena walked to the edge of the bed, looking him over.
"Allen said you weren't sleeping well," she said after a moment. Van rolled his eyes, sitting up. She smiled at his reaction. "I was just on my way to the gardens and ran into him - not literally - and I stopped by to see if you are OK."
Van hid a smile. "You're talking to him now?" She shrugged and nodded. Van watched her for a moment.
"The gardens? Taking a walk?" he asked with elaborate casualness and was rewarded with a blush spreading across her face. She didn't meet his eyes until a snicker broke through his defenses; at the sound her eyes flew to his face and she flushed more.
"You'd better tell Allen." he teased. "I don't need him killing the captain of my samurai in a fit of brotherly jealousy."
Celena looked mortified. "How did you know?" she sputtered.
Van laughed. "Please, you have been making puppy eyes at Phiat since he saved you two years ago."
Celena glared daggers at him. "I have not!" she shrieked.
Van nodded indulgently. "Of course you haven't. And it is just coincidence that Phiat headed out to the gardens right after the meeting with advisors."
Celena's eyes lit up. "He did?" she asked happily and spun around, heading back to the doors. Before she left she turned and gave him a pleading look. "Don't tell Allen. I'll tell him soon."
Van waved her out of the room, nodding as she blew him a kiss and skipped out. Van, cheered by her apparent happiness, was pleased that he had been able to tease her. After her collapse two years ago, she had become a serious, withdrawn shadow of her former joyful self and it was only in the past few months that she was returning to her former buoyant nature.
Van fell back on the bed, smiling at the thought of the budding romance between his friends. Hitomi would be pleased, he thought. He closed his eyes, trying to will himself into getting some sleep.
Hitomi gasped as water was thrown on her face. "How cliché," she managed to think before the pain in her head exploded. A wave of nausea swept through her on the tail of the pain and she struggled not to vomit. She bit back a moan, clamping her teeth down on the gag in her mouth. Her senses slowly returned to her, and she realized she was sitting against a wall. The dampness of the room had soaked through her clothes and she shivered, goosebumps rising painfully over her bruised skin.
Experimentally she opened one eye, and then shut it again as the weak light from the room acted as a catalyst for more pain and a nauseating dizziness assailed her. Hearing someone moving around her, she struggled to open her eyes and bring the person into focus. Meager sunlight streaming in through a small dirty window near the ceiling cast the room into shadows. Hitomi tried to rub her eyes and realized she was bound, her wrists tied behind her.
A constant muttering and the dripping of water reached her ears. She struggled against the tie around her wrists and ankles, trying to do it without the person noticing. Suddenly the taste of the rag in her mouth hit her and she gagged reflexively. The person heard the retching noise and turned to her. Hitomi stopped struggling, fear paralyzing her as the figure approached. The babbling voice grew louder as the person drew closer and she began to make out words.
"Awake. She's awake. The girl who is supposed to be dead is awake. Good. She can understand me. No one can understand me, but she will. Girl-who-is-supposed-to-be-dead, can you understand me?
Hitomi jerked back, hitting her head on the wall as half-mad eyes peered closely at her through dirty hair. The hoarse voice dropped to a whisper. "Do you understand? You have to understand. Maybe she can't, maybe it's all in my head. Maybe I did make it up. Maybe they were right. NO!" He backed away, clutching his head. After a moment he looked at her again, a gleam of sanity in his eyes this time.
Hitomi stared at the dirty face in front of her. Her captor watched her try to gather her courage, then chuckled cruelly. "It's all your fault. He was right. But now you're going to fix it." She flinched back, hitting her head against the wall again as he reached out to brush her hair out from her face. "Aren't you?"
Van strode through the hallway, trying to outpace Merle, who was trotting to keep up with him. His hair was a mess from the inadvertent nap he had taken in his desk chair over crop reports and he was in an extremely foul mood. He was tired and grouchy and overlying it all was a nervous dread that had settled in his stomach since his nightmare the previous night. And now to top it all off his advisors were begging an audience.
"For the last time, NO! You are not coming with me," he snarled at Merle as she opened her mouth to say something. She merely smiled innocently up at him, showing her teeth. He glared at her and sped up a bit more as they approached the assembly room. He burst through the door, unsuccessfully trying to close it before she slipped through. The advisors in the room quailed before his gaze while Allen swallowed the undignified snicker that welled up. Phiat grinned from his position against the far wall.
"What is it?" demanded Van. "What matter has sprung up that is so urgent that we must meet right NOW!" He knew his foul mood was a little excessive, but the attention everyone was demanding from him was enough to madden a saint.
Argas stepped forward, almost shaking in his boots. "Your Majesty, we would like to discuss the subject of your safety in traveling to retrieve the Lady Hitomi, your intended."
Van stared at him, stupefied. "Is that it?" he asked incredulously. They had already discussed the subject of his trip more times than he could count in the past two years and he thought that he had finally laid to rest all their fears. Apparently he was wrong.
Allen cut in smoothly. "I think, King Van, that your esteemed advisors are still harboring certain concerns over your impending journey to the Mystic Moon."
Van listened patiently as the advisors argued once again the benefits of taking an armed escort and as Merle piped in her opinions on the advantages of a cat as a traveling companion. Finally he could not take their prattling anymore.
Van glared at Merle, and then stared down each advisor. "Let me make this clear," he ground out. "I am going alone to the Earth. I am not taking guards, samurai, or ANNOYING ADOPTED SISTERS!"
Argas paled and stepped back, bowing. Allen grinned and followed Van out the door as the king stomped away.
"Honestly, Allen, did they really expect me to agree with them?" he asked wearily. Allen cast a concerned look at him.
"Have you been sleeping?" Allen said softly, changing the subject. Van shook his head, shoulders slumping as he slowed his pace.
Van shrugged, then, seeing the concern in Allen's eyes, answered truthfully. "Not for several weeks. So much needed to be done: There was the investigation into how Viole was able to construct a guymelef." Van shook his head. "We still don't know the source of the money he used to buy guymelef parts and hire assassins. And then there was the finishing of the castle and preparing for the wedding itself. But last night was pure insomnia. I couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was happening. And my advisors are jumping up and down on my last nerve."
Allen looked at him sympathetically. "Well, it is the first time they have prior knowledge of a trip to the Mystic Moon and they are apprehensive about their only king disappearing for days with no contact. At least they no longer harbor any reservations regarding the wedding."
Van smiled. "Yes. I think Celena and Merle are to thank for that. Where is Celena, by the way?"
Allen grimaced. "Sulking in her room. She isn't speaking to me since I forbade her to try and convince you to take her. She has developed quite a interest in the Mystic Moon and had her heart set on riding in one of those 'cars'."
Van laughed. "Well, at least she was easier to stop than Merle. If she opens her mouth again near me in the next twenty four hours, I am going to shove a piscus fruit in it."
Allen chuckled. "Persistent, isn't she?"
Van sighed as they reached the doorway to his chambers. "You have no idea. I am going to bed."
Allen grinned wickedly. "Enjoy the last night alone in your room."
Van's face flamed as he ducked into his room. He shut the door on Allen's laughter and slumped against it, resting his head against the wood before making the effort to go to his bed. Kicking off his boots, he sat heavily at on the edge of the mattress and stared at the night sky through the window. Allen's words echoed through his mind and he blushed again in the darkness. It wasn't that he hadn't contemplated what married life would be with Hitomi; it was all he had thought of in his spare time for the past two, no seven, years. But now that the event was impending anxieties were building.
Van flopped onto his back on his bed, spreading his arms out and stared at the canopy. It was one thing to think about it, he reflected, and another to do it.
He was scared.
Admitting it did not help dispel the fears that were pooling in his chest like rain in a barrel. Van groaned and crawled up to the head of the bed, burying his head in the pillows. Briefly he wondered if Hitomi was facing the same fears. Anxiety over the thought that she was reconsidering made his heart race, but he told himself he was being foolish. She was the one who had set the date and he shouldn't doubt her after all that had passed. And now only twenty-four hours were left. He shut his eyes, picturing Hitomi as he last saw her, beautiful, strong and perfect.
His daydream was interrupted when he heard the door creak open. He lifted his head to see a worried face peering in. He motioned for her to enter and Celena walked to the edge of the bed, looking him over.
"Allen said you weren't sleeping well," she said after a moment. Van rolled his eyes, sitting up. She smiled at his reaction. "I was just on my way to the gardens and ran into him - not literally - and I stopped by to see if you are OK."
Van hid a smile. "You're talking to him now?" She shrugged and nodded. Van watched her for a moment.
"The gardens? Taking a walk?" he asked with elaborate casualness and was rewarded with a blush spreading across her face. She didn't meet his eyes until a snicker broke through his defenses; at the sound her eyes flew to his face and she flushed more.
"You'd better tell Allen." he teased. "I don't need him killing the captain of my samurai in a fit of brotherly jealousy."
Celena looked mortified. "How did you know?" she sputtered.
Van laughed. "Please, you have been making puppy eyes at Phiat since he saved you two years ago."
Celena glared daggers at him. "I have not!" she shrieked.
Van nodded indulgently. "Of course you haven't. And it is just coincidence that Phiat headed out to the gardens right after the meeting with advisors."
Celena's eyes lit up. "He did?" she asked happily and spun around, heading back to the doors. Before she left she turned and gave him a pleading look. "Don't tell Allen. I'll tell him soon."
Van waved her out of the room, nodding as she blew him a kiss and skipped out. Van, cheered by her apparent happiness, was pleased that he had been able to tease her. After her collapse two years ago, she had become a serious, withdrawn shadow of her former joyful self and it was only in the past few months that she was returning to her former buoyant nature.
Van fell back on the bed, smiling at the thought of the budding romance between his friends. Hitomi would be pleased, he thought. He closed his eyes, trying to will himself into getting some sleep.