When the Demon Stirs ~ An Escaflowne Fan Fic ~
By: H. Zane
In vision of the dark night
I have dreamed of joy departed,
But a waking dream of life and light
Hath left me broken hearted.
~ Edgar Allan Poe
~ Chapter 06-Vehemence ~
Van lay alone in his bed, eyes focused intently on the Mystic Moon. "I wonder if we look at the same sky?" He questioned to himself, "I wonder if you're thinking of me now?" The only reply he heard was the wind on the trees. He groaned and rolled over when his question wasn't answered. "I need some sleep," he thought. He tossed again to get more comfortable and closed his eyes.
Seconds later he heard something at his door, it sounded like a quiet knock. His eyes opened in time with the door. Once covered in darkness he was now bathed in the foyer's candlelight. There was a figure of blackness standing in the doorway, in front of the light so Van couldn't see this stranger's identity. The dark silhouette loomed in the doorway, it seemed as though he or she was unsure of how to approach. Van looked on curiously, his eyes had adjusted to the soft light; he could now make out that it was a woman, a very slender woman. She was wearing a long thin gown that was almost see-through against the light. "Who are you?" he questioned. But the stranger didn't answer; instead she closed the door behind her, blanketing the room in darkness once again and started to walk slowly to his bed.
Van sat up on his elbows, his heart was beating a mile a minute. He gave a thought to who this might be, but then dismissed it, because he couldn't handle the disappointment if it wasn't her. The figure stood at the foot of his bed looking at him in the Mystic Moon's light. He was tired, she could tell, but also interested; pieces of his hair fell in front of his eyes, making him look desirable and vulnerable. She climbed onto the bed and crawled on her hands and knees toward Van.
A thousand thoughts raced through his mind at once. "How did she get past the guards?" He thought he should get up and get his sword, that it was an assassin sent to kill him. He gulped hard in his throat, despite all the nasty things he was thinking, he wasn't afraid. In the back of his mind he knew that none of that was true, because he had already come to a decision; he just didn't believe it yet.
The woman slowly crawled her way to the king, and stopped when she came to his torso. She gently settled herself on his pelvis and looked down at him adoringly. She gazed at his bare chest and longingly started to caress it, she could feel the intense beating of his heart under her fingertips. Van opened his mouth to speak but she hushed him with her finger, and gently pushed him off of his elbows to a lying position. The figure leaned down slowly with him, finally revealing her face in the starlight.
"Hitomi," he sighed breathlessly. He cupped her face in his hands, her emerald eyes dazzled, "Is it really you?"
"Yes, Van it is me."
Van almost passed out from bliss, she was back; she had come back to him! She lovingly pushed his raven hair out of his face, and met his eyes with hers.
"Will you stay with me forever?" he asked hopefully.
"I will never leave you again, my king."
Van's heart leaped in his chest. He could never imagine being more happy then he was at that moment. He traced his hand gently from her cheek to her lips; they were soft and moist. He licked his own and gently pulled her face towards his. He started to tingle as her body slowly covered his. Their lips were millimeters apart and he could feel her hot breath on his face. "I love you," she whispered as she brought her lips down and…
"Van-sama, wake up." Merle shook him, frantically trying to wake him up. "You're late for the budget meeting. Van-sama, wake up."
Van lazily opened his eyes and looked around the room, it was well into the morning and Merle was coaxing him to get up. "Damn, it was only that dream again," he thought disappointedly. "Alright Merle," he said aloud "I'm up, I'm up." He sat up and rubbed his face awake. Merle pulled back and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Van-sama this is not like you to sleep late. Are you feeling ill?" Merle brought her hand up to feel his forehead. Van sighed annoyingly and pushed her hand away. "I'm fine Merle, please tell them I'm on my way." Merle nodded and jumped off of his bed, she ran off closing the door behind her. Van got to his feet rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He walked over to the window to get a breath of fresh air. The faint outline of the Mystic Moon caught his eye. He frowned feeling sorry for himself then continued to get dressed.
This meeting, like all other meetings, proved to be brutally boring for Van. He wasn't the type to just sit on his butt and listen to the same old squabbles day after day. He didn't like to talk about things; he just liked to get them done. Many townspeople talked about the king's impulsiveness, some marking it a good trait, some marking it a bad. The ones marking it a good trait always argued, "If it wasn't for the king's headstrong attitude and dedication, Fanelia would still be a pile of ashes." The latter always failed to come up with an arguing statement. Van was truly a loved king, none of his accomplishments went unnoticed and his heroism in the Great War would be remembered for all eternity. Yes, there wasn't anything that he couldn't do for his country, except sit through another boring meeting…
Van sat in his chair at the head of the table. He had been there for hours, with his four castle samurai and his six advisors. The castle samurai and royal advisors were appointed almost immediately after Van's return to Fanelia. The samurai were the greatest left in Fanelia after the war, and had served for Van's father in their youth. Most of his advisors served his father as well, the ones that did had openly disapproved of Van's mother, so Van treated them like accountants more than confidants. Van's trust went to his samurai, like them, he too was a warrior, and could relate to them.
"This is ridiculous," thought Van, "we've been here for five hours already. How much can possibly be said about corn?" He rolled his eyes and started to nod off, but was snapped back to reality with a fist hitting the table. "Van-sama did you hear what I said?" Tiras, one of Van's cocky advisors was staring directly at him. He was tapping his fingers testily on the wooden table. "Oh, um, sorry uh, what where you saying?" Said Van a little embarrassed. Zebulon, the youngest samurai, gave a little chuckle; he clearly was the only easy-going one out of the group. Tiras ignored him and cleared his throat, "I said Van-sama are you planning on escorting anyone special to banquet tomorrow?" Van's blood immediately started to boil at this. Everyone in that room knew about his feelings toward Hitomi, 'the girl from the Mystic Moon'. "Does it matter?" said Van through gritted teeth. "Well Van-sama it would be nice if you get to know some of the young ladies in Fanelia."
"What for?" asked Van mockingly.
Tiras made a face "For marriage, of course."
"Not interested."
"Van-sama be serious," Akio another advisor spoke up, "Fanelia would love to see you settled down and starting a family."
Van said nothing; he just turned his head away from staring eyes and looked at the floor. "Really Van-sama you can be quite stubborn." Said Tiras again. He turned and faced the rest of the councilmen and whispered: "He still thinks that girl from the Mystic Moon is going to come back. When is he going to realize 'that girl' will never come back?" And that was it; those appalling words that Van dared not say or even thought about were said. Van felt the rage sweep through his body. He immediately stood. "Enough!" he yelled, "I will not have you speak about her in that manner!" Van scanned the room; the whole council froze from Van's outburst. "And I will not stand for you calling her 'that girl' her name is Hitomi." He fixed his eyes on Tiras "Is that understood?" Tiras couldn't take the king's intense watch any longer; he cast his eyes down and nodded. The whole group nodded too, but only the castle samurai where sincerely ashamed at their behavior. Van gave a gratified smile. "Now", he said, "It's stuffy in here, I'm going for a ride." He started to walk out the door when Tiras held up a finger to protest, but Japheth, Van's head samurai, grabbed his arm. He just shook his head no, knowing when to leave the king alone. Tiras just frowned and shut his mouth.
Van rode his horse to the Village of Urthas. He figured while he was out he'd check to see how the new trade routes were working out. After a couple hours of conversation with the Village Chief, he was content with the progress, said his goodbyes and headed on this way again. He rode for a little while when he stopped, not far from where he and Hitomi had first landed on Gaea. He smiled recalling that memory, how confused she was, and how, though he didn't realize it then, happy he was that she got pulled along with him. "What was it about you Hitomi?" he thought to himself. "Was it because you saved my life…or was it how you stood up to me, like no one before had ever dared?" He chuckled quietly to himself; "You sure put me in my place."
Dusk was approaching and he looked to the heavens to find the Mystic Moon coming out of the purple and pink swirled sky. "That girl will never come back." The words of Tiras replayed in Van's mind. He started to get angry again but shook it off. He closed his eyes and concentrated on Hitomi. He tried to call out to her but he couldn't reach her. He tried harder, but he could only make out a faint sense of confusion and maybe…sadness? "Why is it getting so hard to feel you Hitomi?" he asked from his heart, but got no reply. He felt a wave of grief wash over him and a fear he hoped he would never feel; fear that she would move on and forget him. Van brought a hand up to his temples and rubbed them stressfully. "I need to clear my head." He walked to an open area and pulled out his sword and began to silently spar alone. This always worked wonders when his emotions were getting the better of him. He pushed everything from his mind: his duties, Tiras…Hitomi…everything. His only company was the sound of steel swishing through air.
Time passed by unnoticed to the king, before he knew it the darkness had rolled in and the sky sparkled with millions of stars. He stood still, panting under the moonlight, beads of sweat lingered on his brow. "I've been away for a long time," he thought. "I really have to stop doing that." He sheathed his sword and whistled for his horse. While he waited for his horse, he started to feel soft warmth spread across his chest. Before he had time to react he saw a faint pink glow from under his shirt. "What? The pendent, but why?" He reached in his shirt and pulled out the pendent, it grew brighter by the second, illuminating the night. "Does this mean I can visit her again?" No sooner did the words leave his mouth, that the clouds separated and that all too familiar column of light shot down from the Mystic Moon.
Van rubbed his eyes in disbelief. He stood dumbfounded for a second until his wits returned to him. His heart jumped in his throat, "that, that light…that means…HITOMI!" He ran and jumped on his horse, and he took off in the light's direction, towards Fanelia…
End of Chapter 06
By: H. Zane
In vision of the dark night
I have dreamed of joy departed,
But a waking dream of life and light
Hath left me broken hearted.
~ Edgar Allan Poe
~ Chapter 06-Vehemence ~
Van lay alone in his bed, eyes focused intently on the Mystic Moon. "I wonder if we look at the same sky?" He questioned to himself, "I wonder if you're thinking of me now?" The only reply he heard was the wind on the trees. He groaned and rolled over when his question wasn't answered. "I need some sleep," he thought. He tossed again to get more comfortable and closed his eyes.
Seconds later he heard something at his door, it sounded like a quiet knock. His eyes opened in time with the door. Once covered in darkness he was now bathed in the foyer's candlelight. There was a figure of blackness standing in the doorway, in front of the light so Van couldn't see this stranger's identity. The dark silhouette loomed in the doorway, it seemed as though he or she was unsure of how to approach. Van looked on curiously, his eyes had adjusted to the soft light; he could now make out that it was a woman, a very slender woman. She was wearing a long thin gown that was almost see-through against the light. "Who are you?" he questioned. But the stranger didn't answer; instead she closed the door behind her, blanketing the room in darkness once again and started to walk slowly to his bed.
Van sat up on his elbows, his heart was beating a mile a minute. He gave a thought to who this might be, but then dismissed it, because he couldn't handle the disappointment if it wasn't her. The figure stood at the foot of his bed looking at him in the Mystic Moon's light. He was tired, she could tell, but also interested; pieces of his hair fell in front of his eyes, making him look desirable and vulnerable. She climbed onto the bed and crawled on her hands and knees toward Van.
A thousand thoughts raced through his mind at once. "How did she get past the guards?" He thought he should get up and get his sword, that it was an assassin sent to kill him. He gulped hard in his throat, despite all the nasty things he was thinking, he wasn't afraid. In the back of his mind he knew that none of that was true, because he had already come to a decision; he just didn't believe it yet.
The woman slowly crawled her way to the king, and stopped when she came to his torso. She gently settled herself on his pelvis and looked down at him adoringly. She gazed at his bare chest and longingly started to caress it, she could feel the intense beating of his heart under her fingertips. Van opened his mouth to speak but she hushed him with her finger, and gently pushed him off of his elbows to a lying position. The figure leaned down slowly with him, finally revealing her face in the starlight.
"Hitomi," he sighed breathlessly. He cupped her face in his hands, her emerald eyes dazzled, "Is it really you?"
"Yes, Van it is me."
Van almost passed out from bliss, she was back; she had come back to him! She lovingly pushed his raven hair out of his face, and met his eyes with hers.
"Will you stay with me forever?" he asked hopefully.
"I will never leave you again, my king."
Van's heart leaped in his chest. He could never imagine being more happy then he was at that moment. He traced his hand gently from her cheek to her lips; they were soft and moist. He licked his own and gently pulled her face towards his. He started to tingle as her body slowly covered his. Their lips were millimeters apart and he could feel her hot breath on his face. "I love you," she whispered as she brought her lips down and…
"Van-sama, wake up." Merle shook him, frantically trying to wake him up. "You're late for the budget meeting. Van-sama, wake up."
Van lazily opened his eyes and looked around the room, it was well into the morning and Merle was coaxing him to get up. "Damn, it was only that dream again," he thought disappointedly. "Alright Merle," he said aloud "I'm up, I'm up." He sat up and rubbed his face awake. Merle pulled back and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Van-sama this is not like you to sleep late. Are you feeling ill?" Merle brought her hand up to feel his forehead. Van sighed annoyingly and pushed her hand away. "I'm fine Merle, please tell them I'm on my way." Merle nodded and jumped off of his bed, she ran off closing the door behind her. Van got to his feet rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He walked over to the window to get a breath of fresh air. The faint outline of the Mystic Moon caught his eye. He frowned feeling sorry for himself then continued to get dressed.
This meeting, like all other meetings, proved to be brutally boring for Van. He wasn't the type to just sit on his butt and listen to the same old squabbles day after day. He didn't like to talk about things; he just liked to get them done. Many townspeople talked about the king's impulsiveness, some marking it a good trait, some marking it a bad. The ones marking it a good trait always argued, "If it wasn't for the king's headstrong attitude and dedication, Fanelia would still be a pile of ashes." The latter always failed to come up with an arguing statement. Van was truly a loved king, none of his accomplishments went unnoticed and his heroism in the Great War would be remembered for all eternity. Yes, there wasn't anything that he couldn't do for his country, except sit through another boring meeting…
Van sat in his chair at the head of the table. He had been there for hours, with his four castle samurai and his six advisors. The castle samurai and royal advisors were appointed almost immediately after Van's return to Fanelia. The samurai were the greatest left in Fanelia after the war, and had served for Van's father in their youth. Most of his advisors served his father as well, the ones that did had openly disapproved of Van's mother, so Van treated them like accountants more than confidants. Van's trust went to his samurai, like them, he too was a warrior, and could relate to them.
"This is ridiculous," thought Van, "we've been here for five hours already. How much can possibly be said about corn?" He rolled his eyes and started to nod off, but was snapped back to reality with a fist hitting the table. "Van-sama did you hear what I said?" Tiras, one of Van's cocky advisors was staring directly at him. He was tapping his fingers testily on the wooden table. "Oh, um, sorry uh, what where you saying?" Said Van a little embarrassed. Zebulon, the youngest samurai, gave a little chuckle; he clearly was the only easy-going one out of the group. Tiras ignored him and cleared his throat, "I said Van-sama are you planning on escorting anyone special to banquet tomorrow?" Van's blood immediately started to boil at this. Everyone in that room knew about his feelings toward Hitomi, 'the girl from the Mystic Moon'. "Does it matter?" said Van through gritted teeth. "Well Van-sama it would be nice if you get to know some of the young ladies in Fanelia."
"What for?" asked Van mockingly.
Tiras made a face "For marriage, of course."
"Not interested."
"Van-sama be serious," Akio another advisor spoke up, "Fanelia would love to see you settled down and starting a family."
Van said nothing; he just turned his head away from staring eyes and looked at the floor. "Really Van-sama you can be quite stubborn." Said Tiras again. He turned and faced the rest of the councilmen and whispered: "He still thinks that girl from the Mystic Moon is going to come back. When is he going to realize 'that girl' will never come back?" And that was it; those appalling words that Van dared not say or even thought about were said. Van felt the rage sweep through his body. He immediately stood. "Enough!" he yelled, "I will not have you speak about her in that manner!" Van scanned the room; the whole council froze from Van's outburst. "And I will not stand for you calling her 'that girl' her name is Hitomi." He fixed his eyes on Tiras "Is that understood?" Tiras couldn't take the king's intense watch any longer; he cast his eyes down and nodded. The whole group nodded too, but only the castle samurai where sincerely ashamed at their behavior. Van gave a gratified smile. "Now", he said, "It's stuffy in here, I'm going for a ride." He started to walk out the door when Tiras held up a finger to protest, but Japheth, Van's head samurai, grabbed his arm. He just shook his head no, knowing when to leave the king alone. Tiras just frowned and shut his mouth.
Van rode his horse to the Village of Urthas. He figured while he was out he'd check to see how the new trade routes were working out. After a couple hours of conversation with the Village Chief, he was content with the progress, said his goodbyes and headed on this way again. He rode for a little while when he stopped, not far from where he and Hitomi had first landed on Gaea. He smiled recalling that memory, how confused she was, and how, though he didn't realize it then, happy he was that she got pulled along with him. "What was it about you Hitomi?" he thought to himself. "Was it because you saved my life…or was it how you stood up to me, like no one before had ever dared?" He chuckled quietly to himself; "You sure put me in my place."
Dusk was approaching and he looked to the heavens to find the Mystic Moon coming out of the purple and pink swirled sky. "That girl will never come back." The words of Tiras replayed in Van's mind. He started to get angry again but shook it off. He closed his eyes and concentrated on Hitomi. He tried to call out to her but he couldn't reach her. He tried harder, but he could only make out a faint sense of confusion and maybe…sadness? "Why is it getting so hard to feel you Hitomi?" he asked from his heart, but got no reply. He felt a wave of grief wash over him and a fear he hoped he would never feel; fear that she would move on and forget him. Van brought a hand up to his temples and rubbed them stressfully. "I need to clear my head." He walked to an open area and pulled out his sword and began to silently spar alone. This always worked wonders when his emotions were getting the better of him. He pushed everything from his mind: his duties, Tiras…Hitomi…everything. His only company was the sound of steel swishing through air.
Time passed by unnoticed to the king, before he knew it the darkness had rolled in and the sky sparkled with millions of stars. He stood still, panting under the moonlight, beads of sweat lingered on his brow. "I've been away for a long time," he thought. "I really have to stop doing that." He sheathed his sword and whistled for his horse. While he waited for his horse, he started to feel soft warmth spread across his chest. Before he had time to react he saw a faint pink glow from under his shirt. "What? The pendent, but why?" He reached in his shirt and pulled out the pendent, it grew brighter by the second, illuminating the night. "Does this mean I can visit her again?" No sooner did the words leave his mouth, that the clouds separated and that all too familiar column of light shot down from the Mystic Moon.
Van rubbed his eyes in disbelief. He stood dumbfounded for a second until his wits returned to him. His heart jumped in his throat, "that, that light…that means…HITOMI!" He ran and jumped on his horse, and he took off in the light's direction, towards Fanelia…
End of Chapter 06