Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne or any of it's characters.
The Scepter of the Dragons
Chapter 13: One step forward, two steps back
By Coolchick1500
~~Long chapter alert!!!~~
Van awoke the next morning by a light tapping at his door. He blinked several times and finally got out of bed to answer the door before it awoke Hitomi. To his surprise it was Mrs. Kanzaki. "Mrs. Kanzaki, what are you doing here at such an early hour?" Van asked, trying to be polite. To be truthful, he wanted to bite her head off for waking him up.
"I was looking for my daughter" Mrs. Kanzaki replied. Her voice as cold and icy as her deep blue eyes.
"She's sleeping. When she awakens, I'll tell her you were looking for her" Van said.
"You'd better. She and I have a few things to discuss" Mrs. Kanzaki said, turning and walking down the hall.
Van shut the door and sighed. "Ouch" Van said.
Hitomi stirred and moaned in her sleep. Van attention was caught be this. His eyes looked upon his beautiful fiancé. "How I wish I could make all of your pain disappear" Van confessed to Hitomi.
Hitomi stirred more and Van decided to keep his mouth shut. Van walked over to the glass balcony doors and opened them. The small gust of wind shifted the forest green curtains. After breathing in the fresh air for several minutes he came back into his room. He walked over to Hitomi, who was stirring more and more. He sat down on the edge of the bed, and wiped wisps of hair away. He bent down to kiss her soft lips. As his lips touched hers, Hitomi's eyes opened. She moaned into his mouth. He ended the kiss and stared into his beloved's emerald green eyes. She smiled. "Morning. How are you?" Hitomi asked.
"Good. Your mother was here earlier. She said she had to talk to you" Van said.
"Great. I wonder what she wants," Hitomi said, sitting up in the bed.
She held the sheet to her chest, seeing as she wasn't wearing anything. She looked over behind Van and saw the silk nightgown lying on the floor. She remembered the night before and smiled. The way he kissed her; the way he touched her; the way…"Hitomi, are you there?" Van asked, snapping out of her trance.
"Huh? What? Oh yeah" Hitomi said.
"Thinking about last night?" Van asked.
Hitomi smiled, looked away, and blushed. "Yeah" She admitted.
"Okay, until Zaibach and Basram arrive, you're free for the day" Van said.
"Cool. I want to spend the day with Yukari and Amano anyway," Hitomi said.
She got out of the bed, dragging the sheet with her, and picked up her nightgown. She went into the bathroom, and got dressed. She came back out and started to leave. "Where are you going?" Van asked.
"To my room. All of my stuff is there" Hitomi responded. She went down the hall, and into her room. She grabbed her duffel and opened it up. She pulled out a pair of shorts and a navy blue tank. She put on her tennis shoes and closed the door as she left the room. She walked down the hall to Yukari's room. She knocked on the door. "Come in" A voice from within said.
Hitomi opened the door and found Amano on the bed, talking to Yukari. "Hey, is it okay if I spend the day with you?" Hitomi asked.
"Yeah. You know you don't have to ask" Yukari said.
"I know, but I need to talk to you, Amano, and Tom" Hitomi said.
Yukari's head popped up from looking at her duffel bag. "What about?" She automatically asked.
"I think my illness is coming back," Hitomi said.
"Amano, go and find Tom. Take him behind the castle where the men for the army train. We'll talk closer to the forest," Yukari said.
Amano got up and ran out of the room to look for Tom. Yukari grabbed her bag and took Hitomi's hand. She led her to the back to the castle. She and Yukari waited patiently for Tom and Amano. They watched the men train. Some with swords, some with crossbows. And some were running laps. "Man, you and Amano need to get out there and show them how it's done" Yukari said.
Hitomi smiled. She and Amano were considered the fastest runners on the track team. Tom and Amano were running towards the two girls. "So what's the emergency?" Tom asked.
"I think my illness has surfaced again," Hitomi said.
"How did you come to that conclusion?" Amano asked.
"For the past few days, all I've wanted to do is sleep. It was like that before they diagnosed me. But it's worse now. I'm weak and nauseated," Hitomi said.
"Where's your medicine?" Tom asked.
The doctors had given Hitomi medicine to suppress her symptoms. "It's back in Japan. When Dani had given me the book to read, I rushed to pack things. I didn't even think about it" Hitomi confessed. "It's a good thing that you had multiple bottles of this stuff" Yukari remarked.
She took out a medicine bottle of a drug called: Nexoello. Hitomi smiled. When she got back to Japan, she gave bottles to all of her teacher, her track coach, Yukari and Amano just in case she forgot hers. "You always come through for me in a close situation. Unfortunately there's only two days worth of medicine in here" Hitomi remarked.
"Don't you only need to take a days supply before it works?" Tom asked.
"Yes, but I haven't taken it in so long, I don't know how much I'll need to take care of my symptoms" Hitomi stated.
A horse carrying Larson strode up to the group of teenagers. "M' lady, Van wanted me to tell you that your mother is looking for you again" Larson said.
"Thank you. Do you know where she is?" Hitomi asked.
"No, but Van did say that she looks and sounds pissed" Larson said.
Hitomi sighed. The last thing she wanted to do was face her mother. She'd almost want to face Dornkirk rather than her mother. Almost. Reluctantly, she started to walk back to the castle. Once she reached the back door, she was greeted by her not so happy mother. "Hitomi, I wish to speak with you" Mrs. Kanzaki said.
Her voice sounded like ice. "About what?" Hitomi squeaked out.
"Word around the castle is that you're engaged to Van. Is that true?" Mrs. Kanzaki asked.
"Yes" Hitomi replied, waiting for the tongue-lashing she as about to get from her mother.
"You're engaged to man you hardly know. How can even say yes? You haven't talked to your father or I. We haven't advised you on anything!" Mrs. Kanzaki yelled.
"For your information, I do know Van! He is the most loving person I know. He's loyal and he would never hurt me! I said yes because I love him, and I had no reason to talk to you or dad, because this isn't your decision. It's mine! You can't advise me on anything because it is my life. You can't control me. You can't control who I love or who I marry!" Hitomi yelled twice as loud as her mother did.
"Maybe not. But it would have been nice to hear that you were engaged from you and Van. Not some castle servant" Mrs. Kanzaki said.
"I'm sorry for not telling you; however, I think there's more to the story of your not wanting me to marry Van than you're letting on" Hitomi said.
Mrs. Kanzaki turned her head. "You don't want me to marry him because he a Draconian, don't you?" Hitomi asked.
"Yes"
"Why? Why would you tell me not to marry a man that is from the same heritage as I? In case you've forgotten, I'm also a Draconian. It doesn't matter if he is one also. All your afraid of is that history will repeat itself with Van and I just like what happened with Fiona and Tyler" Hitomi stated.
"So what? Is it too much to ask to protect your child? You may not understand this now, but when you're a mother, you want what's best for your child" Mrs. Kanzaki said.
"I know you want what's best for me, but I love Van. He's not perfect. He has flaws, but so does everyone. No one person is perfect. He may not be the greatest person in your eyes, but he is in mine" Hitomi said.
With that Hitomi left and walked back to her friends. Kevin had joined the group. "What's up?" Yukari asked.
"Nothing. I've taken care of it" Hitomi said.
Yukari pulled her best friend over to the side. "She learned about you being engaged, didn't she?" Yukari asked.
Hitomi shook her head yes. "She wasn't at all pleased," Hitomi added.
"I don't blame her. Amano had to hold me back from beating you senseless because I wanted to beat you upside the head for not telling me" Yukari said.
Hitomi smiled. They joined the others. "So, what are you going to do with your illness?" Kevin asked.
"I don't know. I can't tell Van. This is the last thing he needs on his plate right now. With the kings of Basram and Zaibach coming later today, and what I told him last night…I just don't think he'd be able to take it" Hitomi said.
"My son is stronger than you give him credit for," Varie said. Her ghostly form appearing behind them.
"Believe me, I know he is, but still. If I tell him, it may do more harm than good" Hitomi said, looking down at the ground.
"Trust him" Varie said.
"I do. But the last thing he needs to know is that I'm dying" Hitomi said.
"He already knows that" Varie said.
"But if I tell him what's wrong with me, he won't let me do anything. He won't let me leave the castle, or my room for that fact. He probably wouldn't let me out of bed" Hitomi said. She chuckled at the last part.
Larson came galloping up the hill. "I'm sorry for disrupting you m' lady, but Van wanted me to tell you to get inside" Larson said.
Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Why?" Yukari asked.
"He wanted Hitomi to get ready for the arrival of Basram and Zaibach" Larson said.
"Larson, with all due respect, they aren't due here for another three hours. Tell Van that I will come inside in about two hours" Hitomi said.
"Van said to bring you back," Larson said.
"I knew that was coming" She whispered in Yukari's ear. "Tell Van that if he wants me in the castle that badly, he'll have to come out here and drag me back inside. But for the next couple of hours, I want to spend time with my friends" Hitomi said to Larson.
Larson sighed. "Very well m' lady, but he won't be pleased" Larson said.
"I know. But I still have a few things to discuss with my friends" Hitomi said.
Larson rode off back to the castle. Hitomi knew she was going to hear it from Van later, but she didn't care. "The last thing I need to do is die," Hitomi said, continuing her conversation with her friends.
"I told Van this while you were injured in Freid, but on Gaea there is a cure" Varie said.
Hitomi's face lit up. "Really what is it?" Hitomi asked.
"There is a small plant in the Mystic Valley that has maroon color berries. These berries cure any disease you may have" Varie told the teenage girl.
"HITOMI!" Van yelled up the hill.
Hitomi cringed. "Ouch" Kevin remarked.
Hitomi shot Kevin a deadly look. "Sorry" Kevin mouthed the word.
Van stomped up the hill. Hitomi folded her arms across her chest, standing her ground. "Yes Van" Hitomi said.
"I thought Larson told you to go back into the castle," Van said.
"He did, but I told him…" Hitomi was stopping in the middle of her sentence by Van.
"He told me what you had told him. Now if you wish, I can drag you down the hill and back into the castle" Van said.
Hitomi picked up on the hint of playfulness in his voice. "We'll leave" Tom said, running down with hill with Kevin right behind him.
Yukari grabbed her friend's hand and gave it a squeeze. She ran off with Amano to catch up with Tom and Kevin.
"What's the big deal?" Hitomi asked.
"It takes you more than an hour to get ready," Van said.
"No, it doesn't. It would take me an hour, with about ten minutes to spare" Hitomi stated. "Besides I don't' see why you want me to get ready three hours from now. God, you don't even like the kings. I wouldn't mind taking extra time if it were Millerna, or Chid, or Dryden coming, but these kings don't deserve the extra time" Hitomi babbled.
Van placed his index finger on her lips. She kept her mouth shut because she didn't want to argue with Van. "Hitomi, please?" Van asked.
She turned around and walked a few steps away from her lover. "What is it?" Van asked.
"Nothing" Hitomi replied.
"Then why would your mind be thinking like it is?" Van asked.
Damnit! She yelled at herself.
"Your thoughts always betray you. When will you learn that?" Van asked.
He can over to her and saw her looking at Fanelia. Tears formed in her eyes. She blinked them back, refusing to let her emotions control her. "Hitomi, please tell me" Van pleaded.
"My illness is surfacing. Or at least the symptoms. That's why I'm so tired lately. But I'm also weak and nauseated" Hitomi said.
She didn't look at Van. She didn't want to see the look on his face. He came up behind her, and held her in a tight embrace. "It's okay. My mother told me that there's a cure," Van said.
"I know. She told me about it. It's in the Mystic Valley. It's a plant with a maroon colored berry on it" Hitomi told Van.
"If that's the cure, then we need to get to it fast"
"But will it be fast enough?"
"As soon as the kings are gone, which will be a few days away, you and I will leave for the Mystic Valley"
The young seer smiled and leaned back against Van. His chin rested on the top of her head. "Come on back to the castle and get ready" Van said.
"Fine. If it will shut you up and make you happy" Hitomi said. She crossed her arms.
They walked back to the castle hand-in-hand. Once back at the castle, Merle took Hitomi back to Hitomi's room and helped her get ready. Less than an hour later, Hitomi walked out of her room. She was wearing a simple white gown. It was sleeveless and had lace around the end of the armholes. The neckline was high, considering the other dresses Merle had show her. A yellow sash tied around the waist. While walking down the corridor that led to the Council Room, a young child, no more than ten years old ran into Hitomi. "Christina Jessica Rage de Stant!" Someone yelled.
Hitomi recognized the voice as Marie, the servant she met the night before. Christina hid behind Hitomi. Marie caught up with the young child a few seconds later. "I'm so sorry Lady Hitomi" Marie apologized.
"You have nothing to be sorry for" Hitomi told Marie. "By the way, who is this young one?" Hitomi asked.
"This would be my daughter. Her name is Christina, but she likes to be called Crissy" Marie said.
Hitomi looked back at the child. She was wearing a dress that stopped at mid-calf. She hair was pulled back into a ponytail. It was a light blonde color, and was curly. "Crissy, why don't you come over here?" Marie asked her daughter.
Crissy shook her head no. "Crissy, honey, what's wrong?" Hitomi asked.
Crissy looked up at Hitomi. "Nothing, I just want somebody to play with me" Crissy replied.
Hitomi smiled at the child. "Do you want to come with me?" Hitomi asked.
Crissy smiled and shook her head violently. Hitomi took Crissy hand, and walked over to the child's mother. "You don't mind, do you?" Hitomi asked.
"No, go right ahead" Marie said.
Hitomi and Crissy walked down to the Council Room. Crissy stopped before Hitomi opened the door, and wouldn't move. "Come on in" Hitomi said.
"I'm not allowed. Mommy told me never to go in there. If I did, Lord Van would get mad at me" Crissy said.
"He won't get mad at you as long as you're with me" Hitomi told the young one.
Crissy took Hitomi's hand and they walked into the Council Room. Van was sitting in his throne. "Ah, Hitomi, I was wondering when you were going to show up" Van said, getting up from this throne.
Crissy stood behind Hitomi, tugging at her gown. "Who's that?" Van asked, after seeing Crissy little head.
"This is Marie's daughter. Crissy this is Van" Hitomi introduced the two.
"Hello Crissy" Van said, stooping down to Crissy's height.
"Hello your highness" Crissy said.
Hitomi smiled at the young girl. "The kings should be here in about another hour or so" Van reported.
"Great" Hitomi didn't sound too enthusiastic.
"Can I go and play with Lady Merle?" Crissy asked.
"Sure, go ahead" Hitomi said.
"Thank you. I'm going to pull her tail" Crissy told the couple.
She left the room and Hitomi closed the door. "Finally you and I are alone," Van said, wrapping his muscular arms around her tiny thin waist.
"Don't get your hopes up. It's broad daylight. Besides you and I can be alone tonight" Hitomi told him.
Van's smile widened. "Good" Van said. "Van, Basram's king has just arrived" Larson said, entering the room.
"Thank you Larson. Hitomi if you would please come with me. Larson please follow" Van said.
Hitomi got this strange feeling. She didn't know what it was, but it had something to do with the arrival of the kings. She, Van, and Larson walked to the landing platform. A leviship had just touched down. A young man wearing very formal clothes stepped out. More than a dozen guards followed him. "Lord Van, may I present his royal Highness King Jared Hougle de Stareza" Larson announced.
"It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Lord Van" Jared said.
Hitomi finally got a good look at him. He had short blonde hair. And looked very young. Hitomi decided he was no more than twenty-five. He was more muscular than Van, and he was very handsome. "Who is this young beauty?" Jared asked.
"This is Lady Hitomi Kanzaki. She is my fiancée" Van said.
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well Lady Hitomi," Jared said, kissing her hand.
"The pleasure is mine, you highness" Hitomi curtsied.
Maybe this won't be so bad Hitomi thought. Just as soon as she thought that, she glanced over towards Van. He appeared to be very hurt and jealous. Hitomi gave him a sympathetic look, as to say 'sorry.' "Lord Jared, please feel free to look around Fanelia" Van said. He shook all of his emotions off of his face.
Hitomi was almost in tears. She had never seen Van so cold since the first time she met him. Fighting back tears, she excused herself, saying she had to take care of something. She asked Larson if he would come get her before Zaibach's king arrived. He told her that he would be glad to. Hitomi walked away to go and find someone to talk to. She found Dani, playing with her laptop in the meadow a few minutes later. "What's wrong?" Dani asked. She saw the emotional distress in her cousin's face.
"I think I really hurt Van's feelings" Hitomi said.
"What happened?"
"Basram's king is here and I met him. And I thought that is wouldn't be so bad. Well, Van and I can read each other's thoughts, and he read mine as I thought that. Now I'm afraid he's mad with me. I shot him an 'I'm sorry' look, but he dismissed it. Like he didn't care. He was emotionless. The last time he was emotionless was when I first met him. It's scares me that he would be like this. I don't want to lose him" Hitomi explained to her young cousin.
"Tonight, talk to Van. Make him understand what happened. He doesn't seem that unreasonable"
"He's arrogant and stubborn. When his mind is made up, you can't change it"
"I bet you could if you really wanted to"
"It's hard to do. Granted it's not impossible, but it's improbable"
Dani got up. "Look you have a little bit of time before Zaibach's king gets here. Go talk to Van now"
"Thank you" Hitomi said. She stood up and left to go find Van.
He found him in the Escaflowne's crypt. He was standing by Folken's grave. She listened to his one-man conversation. "How could I have done that to Hitomi? I love her. Why did I shut her out?"
"I…I'm so sorry" Hitomi said.
Van turned to see his fiancée in tears. "Hitomi, it isn't your fault" Van said.
"I just meant that he didn't seem like such a bad person," Hitomi said, falling to the gravel ground.
"I figured that out," Van said. "I am sorry for what I did to you" Van said, hugging his lover.
She and Van talked for a while, and decided that they needed to get back to the castle. As soon as they stepped into the castle, Larson met them. "Your Highnesses, Zaibach's King has arrived"
"Thank you Larson" Van told the soldier.
Hitomi followed Van to the landing platform. Zaibach's leviship landed beside Basram's. An old man walked out of the ship, and like Jared, a dozen guards too followed him. "Lord Balcifer, it's nice to see you again," Van said.
"The same could be said for you Lord Van. How is everything?" Balcifer asked.
"Everything is well. Lord Balcifer, I would like you to meet my fiancé Hitomi Kanzaki" Van introduced the two.
"It is nice to meet you Lady Hitomi" Balcifer said.
"It is a pleasure to meet you as well Your Highness" Hitomi curtsied.
"Dinner will be in a few hours. Please, make yourselves at home" Van told the elder ruler.
"Thank you. I'm looking forward to the meeting with you and the other rulers of Gaea" Balcifer said.
Marie showed him to his room. "Other rules of Gaea?" Hitomi asked.
"Yes, I forgot to mention that Queen Millerna, King Dryden, and Duke Chid will be arriving shortly" Van said.
"You forgot to tell me that my friends were coming. How could you?" Hitomi asked.
"That's why I had Larson go and get you a few hours ago" Van said.
Hitomi started to walk off. "Where are you going?" Van asked.
"To the library. I need to do some research" Hitomi stated.
"Have fun doing as such. All of the books are written in Faneliean. You won't be able to read them," Van said.
Hitomi stopped in her tracks. "Great" Hitomi mumbled.
"Why? What do you need?" Van asked.
"Nothing. I'll just ask Marie or someone in the castle to help me" Hitomi didn't want Van to know what she was looking for.
She walked back into the castle and went to the library. She ran into Marie on the way there and asked for help translating the text. Marie agreed. Once in the library, Hitomi told Marie what she was looking for. Marie went and pulled out a book. "I think what you're looking for is in this" Marie said.
After hours in the library, Hitomi had finally found what she had wanted. "It says here that an alliance treaty is used for countries that are in times of war, or after the war is over. An alliance treaty during war is used to give the country(ies) in the war aid, such as Guymelef, man power, weapons, supplies, even money. And after the war, the countries in the treaty help rebuild the damaged country" Marie translated the text Hitomi had wanted.
"Thank you. That will help a lot," Hitomi said.
"Think nothing of it your highness" Marie said.
"I'm not a queen yet. Please, just call me Hitomi"
"To any Faneliean person or Gaea person for that fact, you are royalty. You helped Lord Van in the Destiny War. If it weren't for your m' lady, Zaibach would have won" Marie said.
And with that she got up and left the room. Hitomi got up and left the library as well. She wandered around the castle. She came upon a room that led up to the top of the castle. Once there she saw Tess and Micah. "What are you two doing up here?" Hitomi asked.
"We just needed a place to think. Gaea is so unreal. I could have never imagined it being real," Tess said.
"Well it is real" The three heard a voice from above.
"Merle, it's rude to listen to other people's conversations" Hitomi scolded the catgirl. Merle jumped down from the roof and onto the ledge.
"Well sorry" Merle said.
"Anyway, I heard that dinner was ready" Merle said.
She walked down the stairs. "If you'll excuse me. I have to be going" Hitomi politely excused herself.
Hitomi walked down to the dinning hall. Jared, Balcifer, Larson, Millerna, Dryden, Chid, Merle, and Van were all seated and talking. "I'm sorry for being late," Hitomi said.
"That's okay. Dinner hasn't actually started yet," Dryden said.
Dinner was served about five minutes later and after everyone was finished they talked. After dinner, all of the Gaean rulers followed Van and Hitomi to the Council Room. They sat down but none of them spoke. "Shall I start?" Van asked. The kings and queens discussed political views, as well as economic views. They talked about how the economic statures of their kingdoms were doing. But they kept missing one important question. After the meeting was almost over, Van asked if there was anything else that needed to be brought to attention. "Yes" Hitomi said.
"What is it Lady Hitomi?" Jared asked.
"Why did you and Lord Balcifer sign an Alliance Treaty?" Hitomi asked.
"We thought it necessary" Jared replied.
"If I may ask, for what?" Hitomi asked again.
"We used an Alliance Treaty for trade" Balcifer was the one to answer this time.
"An alliance treaty is for countries that are in war, or have just gotten out of war. It says that in an alliance treaty the other countries that weren't in the war, help the warring country with supplies such as men, weapons, Guymelefs, even money. If you needed something for trading, why not use a trade agreement?" Hitomi asked.
"The things that we are trading are of dire need in the other countries. Zaibach is trading their technology for a tablet" Balcifer said.
"What kind of tablet?" Millerna asked.
"This tablet tell you the location of an ancient artifact that Zaibach is searching for" Jared said.
"What is the artifact?" Dryden asked.
"The Scepter of the Dragons" Jared replied.
Hitomi's blood ran cold. We need that tablet Hitomi thought. I know and we'll get it Van reassured her. "What is Zaibach planning to use the scepter for?" Van asked.
"We have some enemies to rid ourselves of" Balcifer replied. He leaned back in his chair.
"I mean no disrespect when I say this, but in the past all Zaibach as been searching for is power. How do we know we can trust you to do the right thing with the scepter?" Hitomi asked.
"It's a leap of faith," Balcifer said, staring down Hitomi.
Though Hitomi's blood ran colder, she didn't budge. "I have heard of this artifact. You can't control it. You need a decedent of the people who protected it" Hitomi said.
"True, but I have friends who are remedying that as we speak" Balcifer said.
"Their names wouldn't be Kelar, Ksedrie, and Katrie would they?" Hitomi asked.
"Yes, but how do you know of them?" Balcifer asked.
"We have had the unfortunate incident of meeting" Hitomi replied coldly.
"You're the girl we need to control the scepter!" Balcifer sounded shocked.
I wondered how long it would take for him to figure it out Hitomi thought. Van smirked at her remark.
"May we continue this in the morning?" Chid asked.
"Yes if course" Van said. He dismissed the rulers.
After Balcifer and Jared left, Dryden remarked that he had found more to the prophecy Hitomi's mentioned in. "It seems that there are suppose to be six guardians for Hitomi and her scepter. One of which is supposed to be the 'White Dragon.' The other five are friends of the 'Dragon Knight.' We need to find them before anything else can be accomplished" Dryden said.
"How do we know who the six are?" Hitomi asked.
"They are supposed to be revealed when you find the scepter" Dryden retorted.
"We need that tablet," Van said.
"But how do we get it?" Chid asked.
"Would stealing be too low?" Hitomi asked.
"At this point, I would almost say no" Van said.
"Jared doesn't seem too reasonable. Maybe we can buy it from him" Dryden suggested.
"It would cost a large sum of money" Hitomi remarked.
"Doesn't everything?" Dryden asked.
~How did you readers like my chapter? I know it was an odd place to end it, but if I had gone to where I wanted to go to, it would have been another 5 pages or so. Right now I have 16 pages of this. Incredible. So do you like my short chapters or long chapters? Tell me what you think about the length. If you like the shorter ones, I'll write the shorter one. If you like the longer chapters, I'll write the longer chapters. It makes no difference to me. Chapter 14 should, no guarantees, be up by next Monday. I know I didn't get 30 reviews, but that's okay. This chapter has been sitting here on my computer for about a day now, and I wanted to get it out. For the next chapter though, it would be nice to get to at least 31. That's all for now. CYA!~
The Scepter of the Dragons
Chapter 13: One step forward, two steps back
By Coolchick1500
~~Long chapter alert!!!~~
Van awoke the next morning by a light tapping at his door. He blinked several times and finally got out of bed to answer the door before it awoke Hitomi. To his surprise it was Mrs. Kanzaki. "Mrs. Kanzaki, what are you doing here at such an early hour?" Van asked, trying to be polite. To be truthful, he wanted to bite her head off for waking him up.
"I was looking for my daughter" Mrs. Kanzaki replied. Her voice as cold and icy as her deep blue eyes.
"She's sleeping. When she awakens, I'll tell her you were looking for her" Van said.
"You'd better. She and I have a few things to discuss" Mrs. Kanzaki said, turning and walking down the hall.
Van shut the door and sighed. "Ouch" Van said.
Hitomi stirred and moaned in her sleep. Van attention was caught be this. His eyes looked upon his beautiful fiancé. "How I wish I could make all of your pain disappear" Van confessed to Hitomi.
Hitomi stirred more and Van decided to keep his mouth shut. Van walked over to the glass balcony doors and opened them. The small gust of wind shifted the forest green curtains. After breathing in the fresh air for several minutes he came back into his room. He walked over to Hitomi, who was stirring more and more. He sat down on the edge of the bed, and wiped wisps of hair away. He bent down to kiss her soft lips. As his lips touched hers, Hitomi's eyes opened. She moaned into his mouth. He ended the kiss and stared into his beloved's emerald green eyes. She smiled. "Morning. How are you?" Hitomi asked.
"Good. Your mother was here earlier. She said she had to talk to you" Van said.
"Great. I wonder what she wants," Hitomi said, sitting up in the bed.
She held the sheet to her chest, seeing as she wasn't wearing anything. She looked over behind Van and saw the silk nightgown lying on the floor. She remembered the night before and smiled. The way he kissed her; the way he touched her; the way…"Hitomi, are you there?" Van asked, snapping out of her trance.
"Huh? What? Oh yeah" Hitomi said.
"Thinking about last night?" Van asked.
Hitomi smiled, looked away, and blushed. "Yeah" She admitted.
"Okay, until Zaibach and Basram arrive, you're free for the day" Van said.
"Cool. I want to spend the day with Yukari and Amano anyway," Hitomi said.
She got out of the bed, dragging the sheet with her, and picked up her nightgown. She went into the bathroom, and got dressed. She came back out and started to leave. "Where are you going?" Van asked.
"To my room. All of my stuff is there" Hitomi responded. She went down the hall, and into her room. She grabbed her duffel and opened it up. She pulled out a pair of shorts and a navy blue tank. She put on her tennis shoes and closed the door as she left the room. She walked down the hall to Yukari's room. She knocked on the door. "Come in" A voice from within said.
Hitomi opened the door and found Amano on the bed, talking to Yukari. "Hey, is it okay if I spend the day with you?" Hitomi asked.
"Yeah. You know you don't have to ask" Yukari said.
"I know, but I need to talk to you, Amano, and Tom" Hitomi said.
Yukari's head popped up from looking at her duffel bag. "What about?" She automatically asked.
"I think my illness is coming back," Hitomi said.
"Amano, go and find Tom. Take him behind the castle where the men for the army train. We'll talk closer to the forest," Yukari said.
Amano got up and ran out of the room to look for Tom. Yukari grabbed her bag and took Hitomi's hand. She led her to the back to the castle. She and Yukari waited patiently for Tom and Amano. They watched the men train. Some with swords, some with crossbows. And some were running laps. "Man, you and Amano need to get out there and show them how it's done" Yukari said.
Hitomi smiled. She and Amano were considered the fastest runners on the track team. Tom and Amano were running towards the two girls. "So what's the emergency?" Tom asked.
"I think my illness has surfaced again," Hitomi said.
"How did you come to that conclusion?" Amano asked.
"For the past few days, all I've wanted to do is sleep. It was like that before they diagnosed me. But it's worse now. I'm weak and nauseated," Hitomi said.
"Where's your medicine?" Tom asked.
The doctors had given Hitomi medicine to suppress her symptoms. "It's back in Japan. When Dani had given me the book to read, I rushed to pack things. I didn't even think about it" Hitomi confessed. "It's a good thing that you had multiple bottles of this stuff" Yukari remarked.
She took out a medicine bottle of a drug called: Nexoello. Hitomi smiled. When she got back to Japan, she gave bottles to all of her teacher, her track coach, Yukari and Amano just in case she forgot hers. "You always come through for me in a close situation. Unfortunately there's only two days worth of medicine in here" Hitomi remarked.
"Don't you only need to take a days supply before it works?" Tom asked.
"Yes, but I haven't taken it in so long, I don't know how much I'll need to take care of my symptoms" Hitomi stated.
A horse carrying Larson strode up to the group of teenagers. "M' lady, Van wanted me to tell you that your mother is looking for you again" Larson said.
"Thank you. Do you know where she is?" Hitomi asked.
"No, but Van did say that she looks and sounds pissed" Larson said.
Hitomi sighed. The last thing she wanted to do was face her mother. She'd almost want to face Dornkirk rather than her mother. Almost. Reluctantly, she started to walk back to the castle. Once she reached the back door, she was greeted by her not so happy mother. "Hitomi, I wish to speak with you" Mrs. Kanzaki said.
Her voice sounded like ice. "About what?" Hitomi squeaked out.
"Word around the castle is that you're engaged to Van. Is that true?" Mrs. Kanzaki asked.
"Yes" Hitomi replied, waiting for the tongue-lashing she as about to get from her mother.
"You're engaged to man you hardly know. How can even say yes? You haven't talked to your father or I. We haven't advised you on anything!" Mrs. Kanzaki yelled.
"For your information, I do know Van! He is the most loving person I know. He's loyal and he would never hurt me! I said yes because I love him, and I had no reason to talk to you or dad, because this isn't your decision. It's mine! You can't advise me on anything because it is my life. You can't control me. You can't control who I love or who I marry!" Hitomi yelled twice as loud as her mother did.
"Maybe not. But it would have been nice to hear that you were engaged from you and Van. Not some castle servant" Mrs. Kanzaki said.
"I'm sorry for not telling you; however, I think there's more to the story of your not wanting me to marry Van than you're letting on" Hitomi said.
Mrs. Kanzaki turned her head. "You don't want me to marry him because he a Draconian, don't you?" Hitomi asked.
"Yes"
"Why? Why would you tell me not to marry a man that is from the same heritage as I? In case you've forgotten, I'm also a Draconian. It doesn't matter if he is one also. All your afraid of is that history will repeat itself with Van and I just like what happened with Fiona and Tyler" Hitomi stated.
"So what? Is it too much to ask to protect your child? You may not understand this now, but when you're a mother, you want what's best for your child" Mrs. Kanzaki said.
"I know you want what's best for me, but I love Van. He's not perfect. He has flaws, but so does everyone. No one person is perfect. He may not be the greatest person in your eyes, but he is in mine" Hitomi said.
With that Hitomi left and walked back to her friends. Kevin had joined the group. "What's up?" Yukari asked.
"Nothing. I've taken care of it" Hitomi said.
Yukari pulled her best friend over to the side. "She learned about you being engaged, didn't she?" Yukari asked.
Hitomi shook her head yes. "She wasn't at all pleased," Hitomi added.
"I don't blame her. Amano had to hold me back from beating you senseless because I wanted to beat you upside the head for not telling me" Yukari said.
Hitomi smiled. They joined the others. "So, what are you going to do with your illness?" Kevin asked.
"I don't know. I can't tell Van. This is the last thing he needs on his plate right now. With the kings of Basram and Zaibach coming later today, and what I told him last night…I just don't think he'd be able to take it" Hitomi said.
"My son is stronger than you give him credit for," Varie said. Her ghostly form appearing behind them.
"Believe me, I know he is, but still. If I tell him, it may do more harm than good" Hitomi said, looking down at the ground.
"Trust him" Varie said.
"I do. But the last thing he needs to know is that I'm dying" Hitomi said.
"He already knows that" Varie said.
"But if I tell him what's wrong with me, he won't let me do anything. He won't let me leave the castle, or my room for that fact. He probably wouldn't let me out of bed" Hitomi said. She chuckled at the last part.
Larson came galloping up the hill. "I'm sorry for disrupting you m' lady, but Van wanted me to tell you to get inside" Larson said.
Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Why?" Yukari asked.
"He wanted Hitomi to get ready for the arrival of Basram and Zaibach" Larson said.
"Larson, with all due respect, they aren't due here for another three hours. Tell Van that I will come inside in about two hours" Hitomi said.
"Van said to bring you back," Larson said.
"I knew that was coming" She whispered in Yukari's ear. "Tell Van that if he wants me in the castle that badly, he'll have to come out here and drag me back inside. But for the next couple of hours, I want to spend time with my friends" Hitomi said to Larson.
Larson sighed. "Very well m' lady, but he won't be pleased" Larson said.
"I know. But I still have a few things to discuss with my friends" Hitomi said.
Larson rode off back to the castle. Hitomi knew she was going to hear it from Van later, but she didn't care. "The last thing I need to do is die," Hitomi said, continuing her conversation with her friends.
"I told Van this while you were injured in Freid, but on Gaea there is a cure" Varie said.
Hitomi's face lit up. "Really what is it?" Hitomi asked.
"There is a small plant in the Mystic Valley that has maroon color berries. These berries cure any disease you may have" Varie told the teenage girl.
"HITOMI!" Van yelled up the hill.
Hitomi cringed. "Ouch" Kevin remarked.
Hitomi shot Kevin a deadly look. "Sorry" Kevin mouthed the word.
Van stomped up the hill. Hitomi folded her arms across her chest, standing her ground. "Yes Van" Hitomi said.
"I thought Larson told you to go back into the castle," Van said.
"He did, but I told him…" Hitomi was stopping in the middle of her sentence by Van.
"He told me what you had told him. Now if you wish, I can drag you down the hill and back into the castle" Van said.
Hitomi picked up on the hint of playfulness in his voice. "We'll leave" Tom said, running down with hill with Kevin right behind him.
Yukari grabbed her friend's hand and gave it a squeeze. She ran off with Amano to catch up with Tom and Kevin.
"What's the big deal?" Hitomi asked.
"It takes you more than an hour to get ready," Van said.
"No, it doesn't. It would take me an hour, with about ten minutes to spare" Hitomi stated. "Besides I don't' see why you want me to get ready three hours from now. God, you don't even like the kings. I wouldn't mind taking extra time if it were Millerna, or Chid, or Dryden coming, but these kings don't deserve the extra time" Hitomi babbled.
Van placed his index finger on her lips. She kept her mouth shut because she didn't want to argue with Van. "Hitomi, please?" Van asked.
She turned around and walked a few steps away from her lover. "What is it?" Van asked.
"Nothing" Hitomi replied.
"Then why would your mind be thinking like it is?" Van asked.
Damnit! She yelled at herself.
"Your thoughts always betray you. When will you learn that?" Van asked.
He can over to her and saw her looking at Fanelia. Tears formed in her eyes. She blinked them back, refusing to let her emotions control her. "Hitomi, please tell me" Van pleaded.
"My illness is surfacing. Or at least the symptoms. That's why I'm so tired lately. But I'm also weak and nauseated" Hitomi said.
She didn't look at Van. She didn't want to see the look on his face. He came up behind her, and held her in a tight embrace. "It's okay. My mother told me that there's a cure," Van said.
"I know. She told me about it. It's in the Mystic Valley. It's a plant with a maroon colored berry on it" Hitomi told Van.
"If that's the cure, then we need to get to it fast"
"But will it be fast enough?"
"As soon as the kings are gone, which will be a few days away, you and I will leave for the Mystic Valley"
The young seer smiled and leaned back against Van. His chin rested on the top of her head. "Come on back to the castle and get ready" Van said.
"Fine. If it will shut you up and make you happy" Hitomi said. She crossed her arms.
They walked back to the castle hand-in-hand. Once back at the castle, Merle took Hitomi back to Hitomi's room and helped her get ready. Less than an hour later, Hitomi walked out of her room. She was wearing a simple white gown. It was sleeveless and had lace around the end of the armholes. The neckline was high, considering the other dresses Merle had show her. A yellow sash tied around the waist. While walking down the corridor that led to the Council Room, a young child, no more than ten years old ran into Hitomi. "Christina Jessica Rage de Stant!" Someone yelled.
Hitomi recognized the voice as Marie, the servant she met the night before. Christina hid behind Hitomi. Marie caught up with the young child a few seconds later. "I'm so sorry Lady Hitomi" Marie apologized.
"You have nothing to be sorry for" Hitomi told Marie. "By the way, who is this young one?" Hitomi asked.
"This would be my daughter. Her name is Christina, but she likes to be called Crissy" Marie said.
Hitomi looked back at the child. She was wearing a dress that stopped at mid-calf. She hair was pulled back into a ponytail. It was a light blonde color, and was curly. "Crissy, why don't you come over here?" Marie asked her daughter.
Crissy shook her head no. "Crissy, honey, what's wrong?" Hitomi asked.
Crissy looked up at Hitomi. "Nothing, I just want somebody to play with me" Crissy replied.
Hitomi smiled at the child. "Do you want to come with me?" Hitomi asked.
Crissy smiled and shook her head violently. Hitomi took Crissy hand, and walked over to the child's mother. "You don't mind, do you?" Hitomi asked.
"No, go right ahead" Marie said.
Hitomi and Crissy walked down to the Council Room. Crissy stopped before Hitomi opened the door, and wouldn't move. "Come on in" Hitomi said.
"I'm not allowed. Mommy told me never to go in there. If I did, Lord Van would get mad at me" Crissy said.
"He won't get mad at you as long as you're with me" Hitomi told the young one.
Crissy took Hitomi's hand and they walked into the Council Room. Van was sitting in his throne. "Ah, Hitomi, I was wondering when you were going to show up" Van said, getting up from this throne.
Crissy stood behind Hitomi, tugging at her gown. "Who's that?" Van asked, after seeing Crissy little head.
"This is Marie's daughter. Crissy this is Van" Hitomi introduced the two.
"Hello Crissy" Van said, stooping down to Crissy's height.
"Hello your highness" Crissy said.
Hitomi smiled at the young girl. "The kings should be here in about another hour or so" Van reported.
"Great" Hitomi didn't sound too enthusiastic.
"Can I go and play with Lady Merle?" Crissy asked.
"Sure, go ahead" Hitomi said.
"Thank you. I'm going to pull her tail" Crissy told the couple.
She left the room and Hitomi closed the door. "Finally you and I are alone," Van said, wrapping his muscular arms around her tiny thin waist.
"Don't get your hopes up. It's broad daylight. Besides you and I can be alone tonight" Hitomi told him.
Van's smile widened. "Good" Van said. "Van, Basram's king has just arrived" Larson said, entering the room.
"Thank you Larson. Hitomi if you would please come with me. Larson please follow" Van said.
Hitomi got this strange feeling. She didn't know what it was, but it had something to do with the arrival of the kings. She, Van, and Larson walked to the landing platform. A leviship had just touched down. A young man wearing very formal clothes stepped out. More than a dozen guards followed him. "Lord Van, may I present his royal Highness King Jared Hougle de Stareza" Larson announced.
"It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Lord Van" Jared said.
Hitomi finally got a good look at him. He had short blonde hair. And looked very young. Hitomi decided he was no more than twenty-five. He was more muscular than Van, and he was very handsome. "Who is this young beauty?" Jared asked.
"This is Lady Hitomi Kanzaki. She is my fiancée" Van said.
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well Lady Hitomi," Jared said, kissing her hand.
"The pleasure is mine, you highness" Hitomi curtsied.
Maybe this won't be so bad Hitomi thought. Just as soon as she thought that, she glanced over towards Van. He appeared to be very hurt and jealous. Hitomi gave him a sympathetic look, as to say 'sorry.' "Lord Jared, please feel free to look around Fanelia" Van said. He shook all of his emotions off of his face.
Hitomi was almost in tears. She had never seen Van so cold since the first time she met him. Fighting back tears, she excused herself, saying she had to take care of something. She asked Larson if he would come get her before Zaibach's king arrived. He told her that he would be glad to. Hitomi walked away to go and find someone to talk to. She found Dani, playing with her laptop in the meadow a few minutes later. "What's wrong?" Dani asked. She saw the emotional distress in her cousin's face.
"I think I really hurt Van's feelings" Hitomi said.
"What happened?"
"Basram's king is here and I met him. And I thought that is wouldn't be so bad. Well, Van and I can read each other's thoughts, and he read mine as I thought that. Now I'm afraid he's mad with me. I shot him an 'I'm sorry' look, but he dismissed it. Like he didn't care. He was emotionless. The last time he was emotionless was when I first met him. It's scares me that he would be like this. I don't want to lose him" Hitomi explained to her young cousin.
"Tonight, talk to Van. Make him understand what happened. He doesn't seem that unreasonable"
"He's arrogant and stubborn. When his mind is made up, you can't change it"
"I bet you could if you really wanted to"
"It's hard to do. Granted it's not impossible, but it's improbable"
Dani got up. "Look you have a little bit of time before Zaibach's king gets here. Go talk to Van now"
"Thank you" Hitomi said. She stood up and left to go find Van.
He found him in the Escaflowne's crypt. He was standing by Folken's grave. She listened to his one-man conversation. "How could I have done that to Hitomi? I love her. Why did I shut her out?"
"I…I'm so sorry" Hitomi said.
Van turned to see his fiancée in tears. "Hitomi, it isn't your fault" Van said.
"I just meant that he didn't seem like such a bad person," Hitomi said, falling to the gravel ground.
"I figured that out," Van said. "I am sorry for what I did to you" Van said, hugging his lover.
She and Van talked for a while, and decided that they needed to get back to the castle. As soon as they stepped into the castle, Larson met them. "Your Highnesses, Zaibach's King has arrived"
"Thank you Larson" Van told the soldier.
Hitomi followed Van to the landing platform. Zaibach's leviship landed beside Basram's. An old man walked out of the ship, and like Jared, a dozen guards too followed him. "Lord Balcifer, it's nice to see you again," Van said.
"The same could be said for you Lord Van. How is everything?" Balcifer asked.
"Everything is well. Lord Balcifer, I would like you to meet my fiancé Hitomi Kanzaki" Van introduced the two.
"It is nice to meet you Lady Hitomi" Balcifer said.
"It is a pleasure to meet you as well Your Highness" Hitomi curtsied.
"Dinner will be in a few hours. Please, make yourselves at home" Van told the elder ruler.
"Thank you. I'm looking forward to the meeting with you and the other rulers of Gaea" Balcifer said.
Marie showed him to his room. "Other rules of Gaea?" Hitomi asked.
"Yes, I forgot to mention that Queen Millerna, King Dryden, and Duke Chid will be arriving shortly" Van said.
"You forgot to tell me that my friends were coming. How could you?" Hitomi asked.
"That's why I had Larson go and get you a few hours ago" Van said.
Hitomi started to walk off. "Where are you going?" Van asked.
"To the library. I need to do some research" Hitomi stated.
"Have fun doing as such. All of the books are written in Faneliean. You won't be able to read them," Van said.
Hitomi stopped in her tracks. "Great" Hitomi mumbled.
"Why? What do you need?" Van asked.
"Nothing. I'll just ask Marie or someone in the castle to help me" Hitomi didn't want Van to know what she was looking for.
She walked back into the castle and went to the library. She ran into Marie on the way there and asked for help translating the text. Marie agreed. Once in the library, Hitomi told Marie what she was looking for. Marie went and pulled out a book. "I think what you're looking for is in this" Marie said.
After hours in the library, Hitomi had finally found what she had wanted. "It says here that an alliance treaty is used for countries that are in times of war, or after the war is over. An alliance treaty during war is used to give the country(ies) in the war aid, such as Guymelef, man power, weapons, supplies, even money. And after the war, the countries in the treaty help rebuild the damaged country" Marie translated the text Hitomi had wanted.
"Thank you. That will help a lot," Hitomi said.
"Think nothing of it your highness" Marie said.
"I'm not a queen yet. Please, just call me Hitomi"
"To any Faneliean person or Gaea person for that fact, you are royalty. You helped Lord Van in the Destiny War. If it weren't for your m' lady, Zaibach would have won" Marie said.
And with that she got up and left the room. Hitomi got up and left the library as well. She wandered around the castle. She came upon a room that led up to the top of the castle. Once there she saw Tess and Micah. "What are you two doing up here?" Hitomi asked.
"We just needed a place to think. Gaea is so unreal. I could have never imagined it being real," Tess said.
"Well it is real" The three heard a voice from above.
"Merle, it's rude to listen to other people's conversations" Hitomi scolded the catgirl. Merle jumped down from the roof and onto the ledge.
"Well sorry" Merle said.
"Anyway, I heard that dinner was ready" Merle said.
She walked down the stairs. "If you'll excuse me. I have to be going" Hitomi politely excused herself.
Hitomi walked down to the dinning hall. Jared, Balcifer, Larson, Millerna, Dryden, Chid, Merle, and Van were all seated and talking. "I'm sorry for being late," Hitomi said.
"That's okay. Dinner hasn't actually started yet," Dryden said.
Dinner was served about five minutes later and after everyone was finished they talked. After dinner, all of the Gaean rulers followed Van and Hitomi to the Council Room. They sat down but none of them spoke. "Shall I start?" Van asked. The kings and queens discussed political views, as well as economic views. They talked about how the economic statures of their kingdoms were doing. But they kept missing one important question. After the meeting was almost over, Van asked if there was anything else that needed to be brought to attention. "Yes" Hitomi said.
"What is it Lady Hitomi?" Jared asked.
"Why did you and Lord Balcifer sign an Alliance Treaty?" Hitomi asked.
"We thought it necessary" Jared replied.
"If I may ask, for what?" Hitomi asked again.
"We used an Alliance Treaty for trade" Balcifer was the one to answer this time.
"An alliance treaty is for countries that are in war, or have just gotten out of war. It says that in an alliance treaty the other countries that weren't in the war, help the warring country with supplies such as men, weapons, Guymelefs, even money. If you needed something for trading, why not use a trade agreement?" Hitomi asked.
"The things that we are trading are of dire need in the other countries. Zaibach is trading their technology for a tablet" Balcifer said.
"What kind of tablet?" Millerna asked.
"This tablet tell you the location of an ancient artifact that Zaibach is searching for" Jared said.
"What is the artifact?" Dryden asked.
"The Scepter of the Dragons" Jared replied.
Hitomi's blood ran cold. We need that tablet Hitomi thought. I know and we'll get it Van reassured her. "What is Zaibach planning to use the scepter for?" Van asked.
"We have some enemies to rid ourselves of" Balcifer replied. He leaned back in his chair.
"I mean no disrespect when I say this, but in the past all Zaibach as been searching for is power. How do we know we can trust you to do the right thing with the scepter?" Hitomi asked.
"It's a leap of faith," Balcifer said, staring down Hitomi.
Though Hitomi's blood ran colder, she didn't budge. "I have heard of this artifact. You can't control it. You need a decedent of the people who protected it" Hitomi said.
"True, but I have friends who are remedying that as we speak" Balcifer said.
"Their names wouldn't be Kelar, Ksedrie, and Katrie would they?" Hitomi asked.
"Yes, but how do you know of them?" Balcifer asked.
"We have had the unfortunate incident of meeting" Hitomi replied coldly.
"You're the girl we need to control the scepter!" Balcifer sounded shocked.
I wondered how long it would take for him to figure it out Hitomi thought. Van smirked at her remark.
"May we continue this in the morning?" Chid asked.
"Yes if course" Van said. He dismissed the rulers.
After Balcifer and Jared left, Dryden remarked that he had found more to the prophecy Hitomi's mentioned in. "It seems that there are suppose to be six guardians for Hitomi and her scepter. One of which is supposed to be the 'White Dragon.' The other five are friends of the 'Dragon Knight.' We need to find them before anything else can be accomplished" Dryden said.
"How do we know who the six are?" Hitomi asked.
"They are supposed to be revealed when you find the scepter" Dryden retorted.
"We need that tablet," Van said.
"But how do we get it?" Chid asked.
"Would stealing be too low?" Hitomi asked.
"At this point, I would almost say no" Van said.
"Jared doesn't seem too reasonable. Maybe we can buy it from him" Dryden suggested.
"It would cost a large sum of money" Hitomi remarked.
"Doesn't everything?" Dryden asked.
~How did you readers like my chapter? I know it was an odd place to end it, but if I had gone to where I wanted to go to, it would have been another 5 pages or so. Right now I have 16 pages of this. Incredible. So do you like my short chapters or long chapters? Tell me what you think about the length. If you like the shorter ones, I'll write the shorter one. If you like the longer chapters, I'll write the longer chapters. It makes no difference to me. Chapter 14 should, no guarantees, be up by next Monday. I know I didn't get 30 reviews, but that's okay. This chapter has been sitting here on my computer for about a day now, and I wanted to get it out. For the next chapter though, it would be nice to get to at least 31. That's all for now. CYA!~