The Way Things Were

Disclaimer: I write about 'em, I don't own 'em. Escaflowne belongs to Sunrise, Bandai and whoever else has the copyright privileges.

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The Way Things Were

Chapter 7

Voices.

Do you believe in destiny?

Familiar voices.

Fate can be altered! It won't end this way!

Voices from the past, or perhaps another life.

I know what he's planning! I'm going to end this.

Desperate pleas of the heart.

Please don't go! What if something happens?

Reassurance.

Don't worry. I'll come back to you, I promise.

The swish of a blade.

NO!!!

Anguished cries into the night.

But you promised! You… promised… me…

And then…

Silence.

He breathed in the scent of the long-forgotten room. Carvings, tapestries, ornaments, all signifying the impetuous stage of Gaea's history not too long ago. The large arched windows were draped shut, not allowing in light or vision for prying eyes. The doors boarded and locked, the keys demolished in a fire to keep the secret safe.

A grand room to hide an equally grand secret, he thought regally. Surely they knew that it was impossible to keep it from us. They are only saving reputation by keeping this from the public. And maybe perhaps, even from her

The dust-covered objects that had once been so shiny and exquisite failed to show a reflection of the man who explored the room. There was nothing that these objects could tell him that he didn't already know, but he wanted to see it anyway. He wanted to confirm their existence with his own eyes.

He ran his hand along a sword, the hilt of which had the crest of Fanelia emblazoned upon it. Its sheath discarded, it was a deadly tool. He held the hilt to his lips, and blew along the length of the blade, sending a massive cloud of dust flying in the still air. The blade glistened in his hand, and hummed as he used it to perform a few stances. The years had not aged the blade, for it was still sharp enough to kill. Anger surged within him at the thought of killing, at the thought of knowing all of this was rightfully his. Finding the sheath on the ground beside his foot, he slipped the weapon back into its lair. He would not need it now, but the blade would definitely taste blood soon.

And then I shall have what should've been mine… starting with Fanelia.

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She took a few steps back as the last blow narrowly missed her head. Varie ran forward towards her opponent, aiming for his torso with the hilt of her blade. But Remus had anticipated her move and dodged it easily. Moving back a few paces to put more distance between them, Varie gripped her sword so hard that her knuckles were white. Her shoulders heaved as she tried to draw in deep breaths to calm herself. The sunlight filtering through the slightly obscured windows shone on her damp face, and deflected off the blade of her sword, making it look even more lethal than it already did. The silence that hung for those few moments closed in on her like a heavy mist, forcing her to attack or be taken in by it.

Her sword was the renowned Dragon's Breath. It's blade, when piercing human flesh, stung like fire. It was practically indestructible, and in the wrong hands, could cause much bloodshed and death. Not that many could wield this legendary sword; it took someone with great strength and courage to even touch the weapon. She had been accustomed to it, having trained with it for a good number of years. But she knew how dangerous the blade was; after all, it was never a good idea to play with fire.

Unable to stay still much longer, she charged forward in her haste. Big mistake. It went against everything she had been taught, but her instincts had taken over. She hadn't taken the entire situation into account, and before she knew it, her sword had been knocked out of her hands and the tip of Remus's blade was at her throat.

"That's enough for today," Remus told her after he had re-sheathed his sword and helped her to her feet.

"No, I'm fine," Varie insisted, seeing as how they had only been training for a half hour or so. "Please, let's spar for a bit longer."

"You must learn patience, Princess Varie," Remus replied, already opening the training room door. "Your mind is wandering… you are not focused today. There is no point in continuing to train any longer. We will recommence our training tomorrow."

And with that, he headed out the door, leaving her with her thoughts. She had hoped sparring would have taken up a good chunk of the time she had before her Father returned with Duchess Celena, leaving just enough time for her to freshen up before going out to greet the serene duchess. Now she had plenty of time to deal with, and that gave her time to mull over the present events about to take place, which was something she had hoped to avoid.

Walking solemnly back to her room, she nodded to the guards saluting her. Upon entering the spacious bedroom, she found a long white box on her bed. Opening it curiously, she found a beautiful solitary red rose sitting on top of what she knew to be her party dress. She gasped in wonder, and found that there was an attached note from Mattie. After reading it quickly, an enormous smile spread across her face. In much higher spirits, she hurriedly had a bath, washing away all the sweat off her skin.

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"Celena!" Van called out to her, and held her in a friendly embrace when she had exited the leviship.

"It's good to see you again, Van," she said after they had broken apart. "And you too, Hitomi," she greeted the Queen, giving her a gracious kiss on the cheek. Dryden watched his wife greet the Fanelian royals, and stepped out of the leviship to do the same.

"Why hello, Your Majesty, I trust you're doing well?" he took Van's offered hand and shook it in a firm handshake. He received a curt nod from the King and he turned his attention toward Hitomi.

"And the beautiful Queen. How are you, my dear?" he took Hitomi's small hand in his and kissed it.

"Just fine, thank you. And you, Dryden?" she asked courteously. Dryden merely shrugged and ran a hand through his hair.

"Nothing new, Your Majesty. We've come to give a special happy birthday to the princess."

"Well, let's be on our way then, shall we?" Van intervened, indicating the waiting carriage. He offered his arm to Hitomi, and Dryden did the same for Celena. The two couples boarded the carriage and prepared for the ride into town.

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"You're late," he commented, sensing the presence of his second-in-command without turning around to look.

"There were some things I had to see to, sire," Daleth answered, bowing to his superior although his back was turned.

"I trust things are going well?"

"Of course, sir. However, I believe the King is starting to suspect. The Princess also has a dragon friend I think you might be interested in."

"Dragon?"

"Yes, Your Excellency. I watched her take off one night to talk to this dragon in the woods. I believe she calls it 'Himitsu.'"

The sound of his commander's hollow laugh filled the dark room.

"She is Draconian, isn't she? But I doubt she knows what she is truly capable of." Silence hung for a minute, and Daleth waited diligently for an order or dismissal that he knew would come.

"The King doesn't know what we're up to," he mused aloud. "He's just remembering a very old prophecy." He stopped talking again, and silence reigned with the shadows once more.

"The preparations are ready, aren't they?" he asked after a while.

"Yes, sire. Everything is in place."

"Good. Be ready to leave at 1700 hours. We don't want to be late, do we?"

"No, sire," Daleth replied, and was about to leave when his master beckoned him back.

"Oh, and Lord Daleth, bring this 'Himitsu' dragon back to me. It could be of some use later."

"As you wish, my lord."

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"Varie, look at you! You look amazing!" Celena was excitedly greeting her 'niece.' "My, how you've grown!"

"Thank you, Duchess," Varie replied modestly, happy to see her 'aunt' again.

"Now, just because you've grown up and it's your birthday doesn't mean that you start calling me 'Duchess' all of a sudden. I'm still Aunt Celena to you!" Celena teased, and Varie laughed at her Aunt's never-ending enthusiasm.

"Yes, Aunt Celena."

"That's better," Celena smiled. "Now, care to take me around this place again?" she asked, indicating the castle. "I haven't been here for a long time and I really don't know my way around anymore."

"Sure, Aunt Celena. How about I show you your room first, and then we can tour a little bit."

"Sounds good to me." It was then that the two of them remembered that Van, Hitomi, and Dryden were also standing there.

"That is, if it's alright with you, Father?" Varie asked the King.

"Go right ahead. Just don't be late for dinner. After all, we need the guest of honour to be there," he added with a hint of amusement in his voice.

"We'll be on time, Van," Celena answered for Varie. "See you later, then."

The two women had a wonderful time walking around the palace and through the royal gardens, and before they knew it, the clock tower chimed and signalled that the time was quarter to six. Each woman had hitched up her skirts and ran as fast as she could back to the castle, laughing all the way. Once they entered through the doors, each went their separate ways to freshen up before the partying began.

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I'm a nervous wreck, Varie thought to herself as she stood in front of the large mahogany doors that led to the dance hall. Any moment the clock would strike six, and the doors would be opened for her to walk through to the royal assembly of guests that had come to wish her well on her twentieth birthday all by herself. She hated having everyone's eyes on her, hated the fact that her every move would be monitored and one wrong move could mean disaster. Her hands were shaking terribly, and it was all she could do to keep them steady and poised.

Why do they make me do this by myself? Why do I even have to do this in the first place?

She paced back and forth across the floor, the sound of her shoes calming her a bit. She couldn't understand why she was so nervous.

I mean, all I have to do is walk in there without falling, or tripping, or… or…

She started to pace faster as her mind thought up the many impossible disasters that could happen.

"You're going to make a hole in the floor if you keep doing that, princess," an amused voice said from her left. She stopped walking, and looked over to see Jared standing beside the door, his green eyes laughing at her silently.

"Jared, I… I didn't see you there," she said honestly, and then wondered to herself how she could possibly not see him standing right there in front of her. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, almost all the palace guards are outside patrolling the castle entrances and securing a perimeter around the main square, and since there aren't any notices to deliver and this position was available, I got placed here."

Varie nodded her understanding, and continued to pace again.

"Stop doing that," Jared said to her firmly, gripping her arm to keep her from pacing any further. "Look, you'll be fine. Have some confidence in yourself; you look incredible. Just walk in there and dazzle them all," he gave her a reassuring smile. She couldn't help but smile as well.

"I knew there was a reason I always liked you," she said, giving him a quick hug. It was at that moment that the clock tower struck six, and Varie suddenly became nervous once again. Jared squeezed her hand gently, and led her to the doors.

"Ready?" he asked her. She only nodded mutely, becoming quite aware of her pounding heart.

"Good luck," he whispered to her, and began to open the doors.

"Thanks," she whispered back, as the blinding light from inside was growing more and more radiant as the doors fully opened for her to enter.

Okay Varie, she thought to herself. It's now or never.

And with a last calming breath, she stepped into the light and let it engulf her.

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Author's Notes: I'm finally back. We've moved, but everything's a big mess and nothing's going right, so it may be a while before I update again. Thanks to elektra^_~, Meghanna Starsong, and Lady Amalthea for reviewing the last chapter. I'm totally exhausted so I'm not going to babble on for long. Hope you enjoy.