*Written, not edited, what more can I say? Hope you like, next chapter the girls go back!*
Chapter Nine: Pretty Good Year
He walked from the room and lingered in the dark halls, cloaking himself in darkness. A hand brushed back his golden bangs as he sighed, "The Magic Knights."
Cold blue eyes like steel shot toward him, "Come out Eagle," his voice was crisp but not the same, never the same.
"Guru," Eagle bowed to the man.
"Eagle, what are you speaking of the Magic Knights for?" Clef demanded.
"Even if you stop others from speaking of them you yourself will never stop thinking of them," Eagle shot harshly back.
Clef's gaze was cold, and Eagle apologized and answered softly.
"Lantis says they're in danger."
Clef looked down and shook his head, "Nothing we can do," he muttered and walked off.
Tears on the sleeve of a man
Eagle spun on his heels after the Guru had gone. Hikaru was in danger, and they were helpless. He needed to be free, he needed to get his mind off this unhappy subject.
He went outside and breathed in the sweet air, so different from Autozam. That's why he chose to move here, or so he said. Somewhere they all knew it was because of a certain Fire Knight.
He wanted not to have to deal with that, not after what he had heard from Clef, but he couldn't help thinking about her.
Don't wanna be a boy today
He closed his eyes, "Annuo moi une desiderium, l'image."
A blurry image of a girl with red hair; she was smiling a sad smile. Her friends comforted her. He tried to see distinct images, but something cut it off.
"You shall not go here," a voice boomed.
"Why won't you let me see them Clef?" Eagle shouted to the sky. "What are you hiding?"
But there was no reply.
Heard the eternal footman
He walked around the palace and tried to lose himself in Cephiro's beauty, but somehow Cephiro no longer seemed so beautiful. He waved to the edge of a cliff overlooking the sea and wanted to fly again. He closed his eyes, and he was soaring high above Cephiro, looking over rolling hills and crashing waves, level with the giant mountains. For a split second he was free and happy, but when he turned his head she was crying again, and he was pulled down to land.
Bought himself a bike to race
He walked back inside and sat down. He picked up a pen and paper and tried to figure out another way to free himself. Before he knew it the pen was moving across the paper in words he could never speak and would never get the chance to.
My dearest Hikaru,
The world has become drab without you in it. The world has become colorless, and there is no joy left in my body. I miss you terribly and feel life isn't worth living without you. Seeing places that I know you once were is a death like no other.
Sometimes I dream of you and laugh at how wrong I am. You and I are only friends.
I just want you to know that I miss and love you.
Eagle
And Greg he writes letters and burns his CD's
"Eagle you look pale," a voice said from the doorway, and Eagle turned.
He smiled and there was joy in it at seeing Zazu and Geo in the doorway. "You're back early."
"Lantis called us back, said something was wrong," Geo was wary. He knew where there was tension between the two.
"Lantis fears the Magic Knight's safety. He feels it is threatening Cephiro. Guru Clef knows something is wrong, but what, he will not say," Eagle answered simply.
"What do you think?" Zazu inquired.
"I think they're strong," he looked into his hands. "I think they have pure hearts and will live on without spite or anger to Cephiro. I sleep well enough at night."
"If a few hours is well," Geo shot back, and Eagle glared.
"They miss you on Autozam," Zazu informed Eagle, trying to change the subject. Eagle just turned his head. "You don't miss home?" he sounded hurt.
"Home is where the heart is, and my heart isn't on Autozam," Eagle said softly.
"It's not in Cephiro either," Geo answered just as softly, but deadly all the same.
"What?" Zazu whispered.
"Your heart is with Hikaru, on Earth," Geo said sternly, and Eagle turned, his white cape flashed behind him.
"We're safe in Cephiro, you don't need to check up on me," he said harshly, not turning to look at them. "Tell the people of Autozam not to expect me back, I was something there, was."
They say you were something
In those formative years
He closed his eyes and tried to get rid of the rising excitement in his stomach. This was crazy, of course he didn't feel her presence, of course she couldn't be on her way. Of course they weren't tearing through the folds of Cephiro. The butterflies in his stomach would not cease though. Why? Why was he trying to fool himself? He was quite content knowing that she wasn't coming back. He wasn't sure that he could handle letting his hopes get built only to be shattered once more. He tried to rip them back down, tried to maintain the little stability he had left.
Hold on to nothing as fast as you can
He still had Lantis and the people of the palace and this world with clean air to breathe and good food and….
Well, still, Pretty Good Year
He walked back outside and onto the shore, trying to find a way to free himself.
"Who am I kidding?" he muttered to himself and threw a rock into the ocean. "I can't just not think about her, none of them can. Not even Ferio who's engaged."
"Can't stop thinking about who?" a melodic voice floated in from behind him, and he spun and bowed low to the ground.
Maybe a bright sandy beach is gonna bring you back
She smiled softly, "Eagle you're among friends; you don't need to bow. Who are you talking about?"
"The Magic Knights," he muttered, and her eyes widened.
"You knew them? I mean, of course you did, but why do none of you mention them?" she whispered, and her eyes widened. It didn't even click, what he had said before and now.
"We knew them, but we don't speak of them because they were banished from Cephiro by Mokona. They were not needed, and it wounded us deeply that they were lost to us, to all of Cephiro," he answered and tried not to look her in the eyes. He didn't want to be forced to tell her, 'Your fiance was deeply in love with the Knight of Wind. He lost the most.'
"Oh," she turned her head and looked down. "I'm sorry for you."
"Me too," he mumbled, and she turned and left him with his silence. Somewhere her subconscious registered the event, and knew that it had some importance with events that were yet to come.
Maybe not so now you're off
His mind shifted back to something he had tried to do once. He laughed now at the idea. He had walked into Clef's study hesitantly and bowed to the Guru who had bags under his eyes from loss of appetite and sleep.
*"Guru, you must let me go to Earth. If you must, use the spell to send me back there permanently. If only…if I could only just spend one more moment there…" he trailed off under Clef's intent gaze.
"One moment with her," he nodded and shook his head. "No Eagle."
You're gonna see America
*"Why?" Eagle's eyes flared. "You can perform the spell!"
"Can, but won't," Clef turned his eyes from the dangerous ones that followed him.
"Why?"
"Because it's not right. I can't send you and not Lantis or Ferio or Ascot or Presea. I can't send one of you and not the others, and I don't have the strength to send you all. Eagle, Earth is not the place you think it is," he looked back to an image in a crystal and threw his hand out so the picture vanished. "Earth is cruel and hateful; they are not happy there, and you wouldn't either. Earth is large and dangerous; it is not the carefree easy life you have here. People are not easy-going; they are not all friendly. You would be lost there, we all would, and I'm not afraid to admit it. That's why I will not let you go," he dismissed him with a wave of the staff.
Eagle turned and as he turned he saw Clef standing over the crystal, a streak of blue was all he saw.
Well and let me tell you something about America
In his heart of heart's he was glad he hadn't forced Clef to use that spell. He didn't want to have to leave Cephiro, he would for her. He wasn't sure though if he could go there and have to live without her even there. At least here he could believe that she maybe missed him. Here he was safe with his ideas and dreams; there, he might be forced to face cruel reality.
Well, still, Pretty Good Year
In the last year and a half so many things had faded, hope and beauty. Everything had slowly faded from Cephiro, not only inside the castle, but outside too. The people seemed to be effected by the Magic Knight's disappearance though many of them had never met the three girls.
Some things are melting now
But he couldn't reach her.
How could he just reach her, just once? He just wanted to tell her how much she meant to him. He wanted to remind her not to cry and tell her to remember to smile. He wanted to see if she was okay. He wanted to do so many things, but still he was stuck in Cephiro and she was lost on Earth.
What's it gonna take till my baby's alright?
"You're late," Caldina scolded mockingly when Eagle slunk into his seat at dinner.
"Yeah," he muttered, and she looked down. Lafarga scowled at him, but he didn't bother to fight back. "Gomen."
"No problem," she turned her head; it hurt them all.
Lafarga wanted to hit him, but knew that it wouldn't make an impact; the sadness engulfed them all.
And Greg he writes letters
With his birthday pen
Sometimes he's aware that they're drawing him in
Lantis looked across the table at his best friend, and Eagle could see the Fire Knight in his eyes as clearly as he knew Lantis could see them in his own. It was only a matter of time before they met each other head on, though he didn't know that yet. He smiled grimly, and Lantis did the same. He had no reason to fight him now; she wasn't coming back.
Lucy was pretty
Your best friend agreed
And yet…that feeling…it was still there…
Well, still, Pretty Good Year…
