I know I took my time with this, but it's hard to philosophize when you're no good at it. I hope you enjoy it, and I further hope it makes sense to you.
* * * Palas, in the palace (tee hee, sorry)
Folken walked slowly back to his makeshift laboratory, contemplating the events of the strategy meeting. He had given information of Zaibach troop movements, supply lines, and even detailed specifications on many devices used by them. Of course, that had been easy, considering most of the devices used by Zaibach - such as the stealth cloaks - had been invented by him. As he had talked, he noticed several things occurring around him. Van had been glaring at him the entire time, and everyone else had either been taking notes, or shooting him subtle glances as if they expected him to suddenly pounce on them, sword drawn. Only Dryden seemed to be relaxed in his presence, but Dryden always seemed relaxed. Folken felt it ironic that these people hung on his every word when he was speaking of Zaibach's defenses, believing every word and yet were terrified to approach him or trust him as a person.
'How ironic' he thought. 'Flock to me for knowledge, but hide in fear if I approach you. Would they care if I disappeared…if I died? Would Van care?' He let out a small sigh as his thoughts turned to his brother. Van. Folken could do nothing to change Van's heart, nor anyone's opinion of him. He chuckled quietly to himself, admiring the irony. 'The more control I try to gain over fate, the less control I seem to have.'
He knew nobody trusted him, except perhaps Hitomi, and she wasn't here. ' I am in a very dangerous situation, and contemplating an even more dangerous plan. The world is going insane, and dragging us all down with it.'
Before his thoughts could go further down this depressing road of contemplated suicide (for a good cause of course), he was distracted by a sound. Singing, or rather, humming. That in itself would not have been enough to startle Folken out of his thoughts, but for the song that was being hummed. It was a traditional Fanaelian song (you know, that one he's always whistling throughout the series) that he knew well. Again, not very startling in itself, but it was not a song known to many outside of Fanaelia, therefore, Folken came to the logical conclusion that this person may be from Fanaelia and it would be prudent of him to discover it's source.
The former prince of Fanaelia followed the voice - a very tuneful and lovely one at that – and came to one of the many greenhouses that graced the royal Asturian gardens. He saw a shadow move one of side of it, and rounding the corner found himself gazing at the profile of a young woman, seemingly no older than he, and perhaps younger. She was bent on her knees, so he could not tell her height, and she was dressed in clothing similar in style to those of the other gardeners he had seen milling about the gardens in past days. Her dark hair was bound up at the nape of her neck, with bangs and side-hairs too short to be bound framing her face, obscuring her eyes from him. By her dark hair alone, he could tell that she was not Asturian, as they were generally fair-haired, and as it was a Fanaelian song, he knew that she had to be Fanaelian. She seemed preoccupied with the plant she was tending, and Folken's sharp eyes picked out two almost identical plants, one healthy, and one that appeared to be dying. She was currently tending to the one that was dying.
The music suddenly stopped, and Folken moved his gaze from the plants back to the woman, who was now looking at him calmly. Folken waited for her calm gaze to turn hostile and for it to turn its attention to his mechanical arm, hidden under a bright scarf, as usually happened when people took notice of him. It didn't happen. The woman merely looked into his eyes and then smiled. Folken blinked in surprise at her reaction but before he could do anything the woman laughed lightly and then spoke to him.
"You appear astonished that I do not regard you with the same level of contempt and fear as others do, Lord Folken." She had a soft voice and an easy manner, and seemed to be completely comfortable with his presence. Folken blinked again, and the first thought that entered his head was how she had known who he was, and then it was why she hadn't immediately reacted with fear then contempt. As though she had perceived his thoughts, the woman spoke again.
"You look surprised that I recognize you, but you shouldn't be. You don't exactly blend in with the crowd." Folken found his voice and used it to phrase his second thought.
"I must admit, I was a bit taken aback with your reaction to my presence. It was a bit different than what I am accustomed to." The woman's smile took on a slightly sadder tone, like that of a mother realizing her children are not as well-mannered as she had wished, which Folken found unusual.
"Sadly, there are many people who react badly to those who are different than they, and judge people on what they hear from others rather than what they experience for themselves. I rely on what I learn myself about a person and then make my own decisions."
"Very wise." Replied Folken. He kept his voice level, but inside he was absolutely floored that she wasn't afraid of him in any way. "You aren't afraid of me at all?" As soon as he said it, Folken realized how ridiculous it sounded to his own ears, and was embarrassed. The woman merely laughed again.
"Should I be? So far you have not given me any reason to be afraid of you, therefore I am not. As I said, I prefer to judge people on what I learn about them in person."
"If only others were as sensible." Folken added. The sad smile once again crossed her face, but only fleetingly. He then noticed for the first time that her eyes were an incredibly dark shade of blue, like the sky just after the sun has gone down. He found himself captivated by those eyes and could tear his gaze from them. Everything went silent around him, and the world seemed to slow down. He could hear nothing at first and then suddenly, a far off voice whispered to him in a strange language, almost chanting. Then as suddenly as it had occurred, the world returned to normal and he blinked in surprise. He looked around him and then at the woman, but she didn't appear to have noticed what had occurred, or perceived his confusion. She simply turned back to her plants and continued the conversation.
"And what brings you to this part of Palas?"
"I beg your pardon?"
"Since you've arrived here in the capital, you've stayed generally within the confines of the castle, and I was curious as to what drew you outdoors."
"It was you actually." The woman looked up at him, surprised at his reply.
"Me?"
"Yes. I was heading back to my laboratory, and I heard you singing. It's a very old Fanaelia song that few people know in Fanaelia, let alone in Asturia. I thought perhaps you were from Fanaelia."
"I was not born there, but I have visited many times throughout my life." She looked toward the sky with a dreamy look in her eyes as she spoke. "There was always something special about Fanaelia." Folken suddenly felt his heart wrench at her use of the past tense to describe Fanaelia. She continued, not noticing his sudden discomfort. "But, what's done is done."
"That seems a trifle callous." Folken, having recovered, tried to spark a debate with this woman. Fate being an area of expertise for him, he desperately wanted to speak with someone about it. Her response was another mysterious and attractive smile.
"Perhaps, but there is no sense in longing for times past. Everybody makes mistakes, even if, at the time, they may not realize it. It's what makes humans, human." Folken was interested in her wording 'its what makes humans, human.' Most people would have phrased it 'its what makes us human.' It was more convenient, and far more efficient. It was as though she was implying that she was outside the human race.
Folken was suddenly struck with an odd thought. 'What if she isn't human?' But as quickly as the thought came, it was dismissed as instantly.
"It's all about Destiny. Every person does whatever he or she was meant to do." Here was his moment to find out how she felt about his past.
"An interesting notion. Even if what they were meant to do means destroying an entire nation and its inhabitants?" She answered immediately, as though she had been expecting him to say just that.
"No matter how horrendous it may seem, it was meant to occur, and will have bearing on that person's future later on. Everything eventually leads to a single defining moment that will determine the destiny of an entire planet. As much as people preach that a single life is all-important, the collective is even more vital, and each person, no matter how seemingly insignificant, plays their own part in that manifest destiny." (did that make any sense?)
Folken was quite intrigued by this woman. If possible, she was even more perceptive and intelligent than most of the Madoushi he had studied under. Whoever she was, she saw the world the way he did, sacrifices had to be made for the greater good, but she was more general with it, stating that all lives contributed to which way fate progressed. Life was a series of dominoes that separated at different points, but always led back to the original path and the final destination. It was an interesting theory.
"So, you say that one fate separates into several smaller ones, but eventually lead back to the original path and the ultimate destiny. One thing affects another, and so on to reach the final fate?" The woman smiled, happy that he had understood.
"Yes. I believe I have heard it called 'the Domino Effect'; one thing affects another and progresses as it moves along. I'm glad you understand."
In that instant, Folken made a decision. The Fate Alteration Engine was nearing completion, and Folken was having second thoughts. He wanted someone else's opinion; someone who wasn't involved in the project and could be objective. But he wouldn't tell her everything; simply pose it as a hypothetical situation. Before he could pose his 'theory', she spoke first.
"Minerva." Folken was confused.
"Excuse me?"
"Minerva." She repeated. "My name is Minerva. I already knew yours, so I felt it was unfair that I should have such an advantage over you."
"I see. Thank you for evening the playing field." Folken was again about to pose his fate alteration theory to Minerva, but was again interrupted. Princess Eries decided to make an appearance. He turned to look at the poised and proper princess
"Lord Folken, your presence is required immediately."
"Yes, of course. Just a moment please." Folken turned back to apologize to Minerva for the interruption and ask to continue their conversation later, but she wasn't there anymore. She hadn't gotten up and walked away, she just wasn't there.
"Lord Folken?" Folken remembered the Princess.
"Yes. I apologize Princess Eries. We should go." As he walked toward the palace with Eries, he looked back briefly where Minerva had been. All that was left of her presence were the two plants, one healthy, one dying. He sympathized with the one that was dying. Dying. Just like he was.
* * * *
Okay, the plant thing will be important later. Folken's 'lesson' wasn't finished because the silly princess interrupted, so we'll come back to that later. Next chapter: Merle gets a lesson in patience.
Review as usual and I apologize for taking so long…this story is very difficult for me to write, because philosophy isn't one of my finer qualities.
Lesson 1: Minerva is the Latin name for the Goddess of Wisdom. I felt it was an appropriate name for our mystery lady.