Chapter 6: Confusion
Van followed Yukari numbly, Merle grasping his arm with her face hidden in the hood of her cloak. Something was terribly wrong and he felt sick. He walked mechanically, taking no notice of his surroundings. In a daze he passed large buildings and strange objects. The people gawked at him and Merle, but no one stopped them other than to give Yukari a sympathetic look or say some comforting words. Yukari barely acknowledged them and within a few moments stopped. Van halted next to her and shook himself out of his stupor to examine the area around him.
Surrounding them were tall buildings, square and unattractive in their uniformity. They lacked the natural beauty of the structures in Fanelia, Van thought, and looked like ugly gray blocks. People were entering and leaving them through doors made of glass and he watched their movements for a moment, then dismissed them.
Merle, when she dared remove her head from the confines of his arm, was gasping at the large quantities of glass in the buildings. She glanced up at Van, then returned to marveling the glass doors. Glass was a luxury in Fanelia, something only the rich possessed. And here people were using it in doors! She looked back up at Van, miffed that he wasn't more impressed.
Van turned and studied the sight in front of him. The ground was covered in smooth gray stone, marked with yellow lines. Between some of the lines sat odd structures made of metal and glass. He examined them, trying to determine their purpose. His breath caught in his throat and he unconsciously stepped backwards and gripped his sword when one near them began to roar and lights flickered on from the front. Merle shrieked and hid behind him as it moved towards them before turning and quickly moving away to join the others Van now saw streaming along in the distance.
"Car." said Yukari, noticing their reactions. "It's just a car." Van studied her, noting her undisturbed attitude and relaxed slightly. Merle continued to hide her face in his side and he put a comforting arm around her.
"I think I don't want to be here anymore," a muffled wail came as she tightened her arms around his torso. "We need to get Hitomi and go back home."
Yukari looked at Merle at the mentioned of Hitomi's name and struggled to keep her face from crumbling. She turned her head to stare off into the distance when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to look into Van's determined face.
"It will be OK," he said. "Whatever has happened, it will be OK."
Yukari nodded, hearing the comfort he was trying to convey. She turned back to the parking lot as Amano pulled up along the curb. He turned the car off, and slipped out, walking around to hug her. He faced the two strangers.
"Amano," Yukari said wearily. "This is Van."
Amano looked at the man, taken aback. He had believed his wife and Hitomi, but a lingering doubt had remained. In the back of his mind, he had not expected someone to actually appear. He studied Van; starting at the rough leather boots and traveling up to the unruly black hair and reddish eyes that were staring at him in an equally critical manner. Amano stepped back at the hostile challenge in Van's eyes and looked down at the quivering person attached to his side.
"Who is that?" he asked. Yukari shook her head. "I don't know. They don't speak our language. Let's just get them back to the apartment."
Amano nodded slowly then opened the doors to the car for them. Van stared at the car and then back at Yukari as she gestured for him to get in. He looked apprehensively at the open door and then turned his eyes again to Yukari. Merle remained behind him.
Yukari sighed and closed her eyes, rubbing them briefly. When she opened them again she rummaged through her purse and pulled out her wallet, removing a picture of Hitomi from the inside. She showed it to Van, whose eyes widened as he grabbed it. He looked back at Yukari, who motioned towards the car. This time he nodded silently and cautiously crawled inside, dragging Merle along with him. Merle grumbled about trusting weird machines that roared and smoked, but subsided when Van gave her an irate look. She meekly followed him, ducking her head so that her ears would not brush the door frame.
They settled uncomfortably on the seats, Van's sword across his knees and his pack on the floor at his feet. Van and Merle stiffened as Amano slid into the front seat and the car began to vibrate and make noise. After a moment, Merle, her curiosity getting the better of her fear, let go of Van to plaster herself against the window as the car began to move.
Van watched Merle for a minute, seeing her ears twitching under the hood. He shook his head at her enthusiasm and looked down at the picture still clutched in his hand. He brought it close to his face, amazed at the clarity of the image. He traced the miniature form of Hitomi on the paper, lost in drinking in the details. It was made recently, he thought. Her hair was longer and her arm was not in a sling.
He was still lost in his thoughts when he felt the momentum of the car begin to slow. He had been completely oblivious to the entire journey, wrapped up in the image in his hands. But next to him Merle was about to explode with excitement. "Did you see? Did you see?" she squealed excitedly at him. "It was just like Hitomi said. Smooth roads and cars and tricks and buildings everywhere."
"Trucks," Van absently corrected her, looking around as the car slowly pulled into another area similar to the one they had left.
Merle continued as if he had not said anything. "Do you think there will be a TeeVee? Or a redia where we are going?"
"Radio" Van corrected her again as the car slowed to a stop and turned between two marked lines. He stared out the window at the squat building that loomed in front of them, then turned his attention to awkwardly following Merle out of the seat when Yukari opened the door. Merle resumed her tight grip on his arm as they paused to look around and then followed Yukari. She led them up the metal stairs to a door, Amano trailing behind them. Van gripped his sword, unable to shake the feeling of walking into a trap. His leather boots were quiet on the metal stars and he silently came to a halt behind Yukari as she stopped in front of a door. Van could not see anything special about the door; it was identical to the others lining side of the building. He snapped back to attention when she knocked on the door.
Upon her knock, the door was violently thrown open by a boy. Van estimated his age to be a few years younger than himself. He focused on them and disappointment flashed across his face as he held the door open to allow them in.
"Hello, Yukari, Amano," he said as she her way into the room. Van halted at the door, Merle clutching his arm. Yukari beckoned them inside as a woman emerged from a room in the back.
Van scrutinized the boy at the door, not willing to enter unknown territory. The boy stared back at him, perplexed. "Who are you?" he demanded.
"I can understand you," Van said, blinking in shock. "Why can I understand you?" He felt Merle stiffen next to him and he exchanged a glance with her. Confusion flitted across the boy's face at the odd response and he opened his mouth to retort but was interrupted by a voice behind him.
"Compliments of his Grandmother," a woman's voice called. "Please come in."
Van gave once last look at the boy and entered; Merle did not relinquish her hold on his arm as they squeezed through the door frame. He stopped in front of the older woman who had spoken, his eyes noting the absence of furnishings around them and the makeshift bedrolls on the floor. She looked at him with green eyes and smiled.
"Welcome to Earth, Van."
Hitomi gasped as Veris barged into the room and frantically gathered his stuff together. He swung around, abandoning his possessions to stride over to her. She shrank back against the wall as he towered over her.
"What did you do?" Veris screamed frantically. "What did you do?"
Hitomi stared at him in frightened bewilderment, then hissed in pain as he grabbed her arms and hauled her to her feet. Blood began to flow painfully back into her legs as he supported her weight and tears sprang to her eyes.
"I saw the light! Who did you bring? Who is here?" he continued hysterically.
Hitomi closed her eyes as he shook her, hiding the feelings of relief and hope that surged through her. Veris had seen the column of light and that could mean one thing. Van had come and he would find her. She shoved the welcome thought out of her mind to focus on her current situation.
"I didn't bring anyone," she whimpered. "I don't know what you are talking about."
He stared at her, not believing her words. He dropped her back on the ground. "We are leaving. We are going back now." He resumed stuffing things into bags.
"We can't go back now." She stammered, thinking quickly. If he had seen the light, that must mean they were close to the track. And close to Van. "It is the end of the work day and lots of people will be out, going home and running errands. Someone is bound to see you dragging me through the streets. Besides, how do you know that was a light from Gaea? There are many lights in the city. There are big ones called 'spotlights' that are used to attract people's attention to events and to find stuff in the sky. It could have been one of those."
Veris slowed his activities to regard her words, distrust showing in his face.
"I didn't bring anyone," she repeated truthfully.
"Why are you being so helpful?" he asked suspiciously. He stopped his frantic packing to scrutinize her face.
Hitomi realized her mistake. If she wanted to escape, she should have been encouraging him to go out when there lots of people around. Her mind whirled, trying to come up with a plausible reason.
"I just don't want anyone else to get hurt." she responded. "I know you are going to kill me but I don't want any innocent bystanders to get harmed. And the more people around the more of the chance you will hurt them, too."
Veris did not look satisfied with her reason, but her talking was enough to calm him and he sat back, considering what she had said. He knew there was a lot of he did not know about the world he was trapped on, and her words did have a ring of truth to them.
Hitomi sighed as the man relaxed. He turned his back to her, gazing about the room indecisively. Hitomi took that brief second to gather her strength and concentrate her thoughts. Putting all her effort into one word filled with pure need, she let her voice scream his name through her mind
She opened her eyes to see Veris smiling slyly at her.
"Have a nice conversation?" he asked calmly as Hitomi felt her heart sink in her chest.
Van followed Yukari numbly, Merle grasping his arm with her face hidden in the hood of her cloak. Something was terribly wrong and he felt sick. He walked mechanically, taking no notice of his surroundings. In a daze he passed large buildings and strange objects. The people gawked at him and Merle, but no one stopped them other than to give Yukari a sympathetic look or say some comforting words. Yukari barely acknowledged them and within a few moments stopped. Van halted next to her and shook himself out of his stupor to examine the area around him.
Surrounding them were tall buildings, square and unattractive in their uniformity. They lacked the natural beauty of the structures in Fanelia, Van thought, and looked like ugly gray blocks. People were entering and leaving them through doors made of glass and he watched their movements for a moment, then dismissed them.
Merle, when she dared remove her head from the confines of his arm, was gasping at the large quantities of glass in the buildings. She glanced up at Van, then returned to marveling the glass doors. Glass was a luxury in Fanelia, something only the rich possessed. And here people were using it in doors! She looked back up at Van, miffed that he wasn't more impressed.
Van turned and studied the sight in front of him. The ground was covered in smooth gray stone, marked with yellow lines. Between some of the lines sat odd structures made of metal and glass. He examined them, trying to determine their purpose. His breath caught in his throat and he unconsciously stepped backwards and gripped his sword when one near them began to roar and lights flickered on from the front. Merle shrieked and hid behind him as it moved towards them before turning and quickly moving away to join the others Van now saw streaming along in the distance.
"Car." said Yukari, noticing their reactions. "It's just a car." Van studied her, noting her undisturbed attitude and relaxed slightly. Merle continued to hide her face in his side and he put a comforting arm around her.
"I think I don't want to be here anymore," a muffled wail came as she tightened her arms around his torso. "We need to get Hitomi and go back home."
Yukari looked at Merle at the mentioned of Hitomi's name and struggled to keep her face from crumbling. She turned her head to stare off into the distance when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to look into Van's determined face.
"It will be OK," he said. "Whatever has happened, it will be OK."
Yukari nodded, hearing the comfort he was trying to convey. She turned back to the parking lot as Amano pulled up along the curb. He turned the car off, and slipped out, walking around to hug her. He faced the two strangers.
"Amano," Yukari said wearily. "This is Van."
Amano looked at the man, taken aback. He had believed his wife and Hitomi, but a lingering doubt had remained. In the back of his mind, he had not expected someone to actually appear. He studied Van; starting at the rough leather boots and traveling up to the unruly black hair and reddish eyes that were staring at him in an equally critical manner. Amano stepped back at the hostile challenge in Van's eyes and looked down at the quivering person attached to his side.
"Who is that?" he asked. Yukari shook her head. "I don't know. They don't speak our language. Let's just get them back to the apartment."
Amano nodded slowly then opened the doors to the car for them. Van stared at the car and then back at Yukari as she gestured for him to get in. He looked apprehensively at the open door and then turned his eyes again to Yukari. Merle remained behind him.
Yukari sighed and closed her eyes, rubbing them briefly. When she opened them again she rummaged through her purse and pulled out her wallet, removing a picture of Hitomi from the inside. She showed it to Van, whose eyes widened as he grabbed it. He looked back at Yukari, who motioned towards the car. This time he nodded silently and cautiously crawled inside, dragging Merle along with him. Merle grumbled about trusting weird machines that roared and smoked, but subsided when Van gave her an irate look. She meekly followed him, ducking her head so that her ears would not brush the door frame.
They settled uncomfortably on the seats, Van's sword across his knees and his pack on the floor at his feet. Van and Merle stiffened as Amano slid into the front seat and the car began to vibrate and make noise. After a moment, Merle, her curiosity getting the better of her fear, let go of Van to plaster herself against the window as the car began to move.
Van watched Merle for a minute, seeing her ears twitching under the hood. He shook his head at her enthusiasm and looked down at the picture still clutched in his hand. He brought it close to his face, amazed at the clarity of the image. He traced the miniature form of Hitomi on the paper, lost in drinking in the details. It was made recently, he thought. Her hair was longer and her arm was not in a sling.
He was still lost in his thoughts when he felt the momentum of the car begin to slow. He had been completely oblivious to the entire journey, wrapped up in the image in his hands. But next to him Merle was about to explode with excitement. "Did you see? Did you see?" she squealed excitedly at him. "It was just like Hitomi said. Smooth roads and cars and tricks and buildings everywhere."
"Trucks," Van absently corrected her, looking around as the car slowly pulled into another area similar to the one they had left.
Merle continued as if he had not said anything. "Do you think there will be a TeeVee? Or a redia where we are going?"
"Radio" Van corrected her again as the car slowed to a stop and turned between two marked lines. He stared out the window at the squat building that loomed in front of them, then turned his attention to awkwardly following Merle out of the seat when Yukari opened the door. Merle resumed her tight grip on his arm as they paused to look around and then followed Yukari. She led them up the metal stairs to a door, Amano trailing behind them. Van gripped his sword, unable to shake the feeling of walking into a trap. His leather boots were quiet on the metal stars and he silently came to a halt behind Yukari as she stopped in front of a door. Van could not see anything special about the door; it was identical to the others lining side of the building. He snapped back to attention when she knocked on the door.
Upon her knock, the door was violently thrown open by a boy. Van estimated his age to be a few years younger than himself. He focused on them and disappointment flashed across his face as he held the door open to allow them in.
"Hello, Yukari, Amano," he said as she her way into the room. Van halted at the door, Merle clutching his arm. Yukari beckoned them inside as a woman emerged from a room in the back.
Van scrutinized the boy at the door, not willing to enter unknown territory. The boy stared back at him, perplexed. "Who are you?" he demanded.
"I can understand you," Van said, blinking in shock. "Why can I understand you?" He felt Merle stiffen next to him and he exchanged a glance with her. Confusion flitted across the boy's face at the odd response and he opened his mouth to retort but was interrupted by a voice behind him.
"Compliments of his Grandmother," a woman's voice called. "Please come in."
Van gave once last look at the boy and entered; Merle did not relinquish her hold on his arm as they squeezed through the door frame. He stopped in front of the older woman who had spoken, his eyes noting the absence of furnishings around them and the makeshift bedrolls on the floor. She looked at him with green eyes and smiled.
"Welcome to Earth, Van."
Hitomi gasped as Veris barged into the room and frantically gathered his stuff together. He swung around, abandoning his possessions to stride over to her. She shrank back against the wall as he towered over her.
"What did you do?" Veris screamed frantically. "What did you do?"
Hitomi stared at him in frightened bewilderment, then hissed in pain as he grabbed her arms and hauled her to her feet. Blood began to flow painfully back into her legs as he supported her weight and tears sprang to her eyes.
"I saw the light! Who did you bring? Who is here?" he continued hysterically.
Hitomi closed her eyes as he shook her, hiding the feelings of relief and hope that surged through her. Veris had seen the column of light and that could mean one thing. Van had come and he would find her. She shoved the welcome thought out of her mind to focus on her current situation.
"I didn't bring anyone," she whimpered. "I don't know what you are talking about."
He stared at her, not believing her words. He dropped her back on the ground. "We are leaving. We are going back now." He resumed stuffing things into bags.
"We can't go back now." She stammered, thinking quickly. If he had seen the light, that must mean they were close to the track. And close to Van. "It is the end of the work day and lots of people will be out, going home and running errands. Someone is bound to see you dragging me through the streets. Besides, how do you know that was a light from Gaea? There are many lights in the city. There are big ones called 'spotlights' that are used to attract people's attention to events and to find stuff in the sky. It could have been one of those."
Veris slowed his activities to regard her words, distrust showing in his face.
"I didn't bring anyone," she repeated truthfully.
"Why are you being so helpful?" he asked suspiciously. He stopped his frantic packing to scrutinize her face.
Hitomi realized her mistake. If she wanted to escape, she should have been encouraging him to go out when there lots of people around. Her mind whirled, trying to come up with a plausible reason.
"I just don't want anyone else to get hurt." she responded. "I know you are going to kill me but I don't want any innocent bystanders to get harmed. And the more people around the more of the chance you will hurt them, too."
Veris did not look satisfied with her reason, but her talking was enough to calm him and he sat back, considering what she had said. He knew there was a lot of he did not know about the world he was trapped on, and her words did have a ring of truth to them.
Hitomi sighed as the man relaxed. He turned his back to her, gazing about the room indecisively. Hitomi took that brief second to gather her strength and concentrate her thoughts. Putting all her effort into one word filled with pure need, she let her voice scream his name through her mind
She opened her eyes to see Veris smiling slyly at her.
"Have a nice conversation?" he asked calmly as Hitomi felt her heart sink in her chest.