Chapter 11: Discoveries

Okay, I have ample time now, so I must work on this fic! O_o!!! Whee a lot of stuff is gonna be revealed in this chappy! =D! yes I said chappy…and I don' t mean the diner . As I always like to say, er, yell, er command…oh whatever! READ ON!

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            "WAHOO!" Thatz yelled as he saw all the food laid out in front of him. "Now THAT is what I'm talking about!"

            Rune twitched and tried to ignore his vivacious eating noises as he turned to Cernozura. "Yes, thank you, Cernozura."

            The attendant smiled. "No problem! I'm just glad your friend over there likes the food…" she said staring at Thatz, a sweat bead forming on her head.

            Kitchel stared at the Dragon Knight from across the table disgustedly. "I would have hoped your manners would have improved…"

            Thatz blinked and looked at her, a piece of ham halfway to his mouth. "Eh?"

            "Ugh! Just eat already!" she yelled. She turned to her left and looked at Cesia. "Hey, Cesia-chan, what do you think of the food?" No response. "Er…" Kitchel waved her hand in front of her friend's face. "Cesia-chan? Daijobu-ka?" I've been asking that a lot lately…

            Cesia blinked and looked at her friend. "Oh, gomen ne, K-chan…I've just been…thinking…"

            "'Bout what?" Thatz asked in between mouthfuls.

            "Finish chewing before you talk!" Rune snapped. He glanced over at Rath who sat on the other side of Thatz, directly across from Cesia. He hadn't touched his meal. Instead he was just staring at seemingly nothing, holding the goblet in his right hand. Rath…

            "Nothing important," Cesia said as Rath suddenly got up and exited the room. She blinked and looked after him. "Er…"

            "What is up with him?!" Kitchel yelled annoyed. "Ever since we got here he's been all silent and gloomy and…stuff!"

            Cernozura held the tray in her hands, staring after the Dragon Knight. He's heading to Lykouleon's office… She blinked when the Dragon Officers came in. "Oh, more diners?"

            Ruwalk pulled up a chair next to Cesia. "Yep, so whatcha got?"

            "The usual."

            "Sounds good," Alfeegi said, sitting next to Rune.

            Tetheus sat next to Kitchel, much to her surprise. He glanced at her when he saw her staring at him. "What?"

            "Uh, er, nothing!" she said as she quickly went back to her food.

            Everyone stared at for a moment then went back to eating as Cernozura served the Dragon Officers their meals.

            "Can anyone pass that drum stick?" Thatz asked.

            "That's your fifth serving already!!" Rune exclaimed.

            "I'm a growing boy!" Thatz said back.

            Alfeegi rubbed his temples. "The bills…"

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            Lykouleon looked up as Rath entered and they stared at each other for a moment. "Back so soon?"
            "Don't play games with me," Rath said. "Just tell me. Is Cesia a yokai?"
            The Dragon Lord looked into Rath's eyes and could see a slight hint of pain within them. "Partly," he said without looking away.

            Rath blinked. She's part yokai…? Why? Why didn't I sense this before… "You're lying! There's no way she could be part yokai!!" he yelled angrily as he started to turn and leave

            "Rath!" Lykouleon said harshly, making the young Dragon Knight stop where he was. The Dragon Lord sighed. "She's not just part yokai, Rath. And you can sense it, too. That's why you could never tell what she truly was. Even I am not sure what else she is."

            Rath stood there, his hand on the door handle. How can he protect Cesia if she's part yokai? The word made a bitter taste in his mouth and a sense of rage raged through him like a wild fire. He wasn't sure what he was going to do now… But she's not yokai…She can't be… He heard Lykouleon stand up and walk toward him.

            "Rath, like I said, she is not full yokai. There is barrier that prohibits yokai from entering. She felt pain because of that. But she is only part yokai, so it didn't hurt as much as it would if she was full yokai. She would not have been able to enter Draqueen in the first place." He stopped behind the Dragon Knight. "Rath, she also has power. Power that neither she nor I know of. She is still the same person you have always known. She is not any different, nor ever will be."

            "I know that…" Rath said softly. "I know that…but…" He turned and faced the Dragon Lord. "I'm afraid…of what I might do…" He looked away. "I lost control of myself when I was fighting Bierrez in a sense. I didn't notice anything that went around me. The only thing I felt was the desire to kill him."

            Lykouleon stared at him for a moment then placed both of his hand on Rath's shoulders, looking at him squarely. "Rath. I cannot promise you what will happen to Cesia. But I can guarantee that you will not harm her. Your desire to protect her overcomes your desire to kill yokai. Rath, do you know what you are?"

            Rath blinked. "What do you mean?"

            "You are a Dragon Knight, sworn to protect those you love. And you will use that power for that purpose. To protect the ones you love, not kill them." I won't tell him what he truly is now… He let go of Rath's shoulders. "Trust me."

            "…I'm not so sure yet," Rath said as he turned. "But we'll see." He turned the door handle and exited the office, closing the door softly behind him.

            Lykouleon stared after him. "There is so much that neither you nor I know about all this…"

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Kitchel stared at Thatz boredly. "Are ever going to finish?"

The Dragon Knight just shook his head and continued on his twentieth course.

"How can you eat all of that?!" Alfeegi exclaimed.

"I think you should take it as a compliment," Ruwalk said amused. He turned to Cesia. "And you? Are you enjoying yourself?"

She blinked and looked at him. "Yes, the food is quite delicious…" She stared at Rath's empty seat. It had been thirty minutes and he still had not returned. His food had been left untouched as well. "Excuse me…" she said softly as she suddenly stood up and walked out of the dining hall.

Cernozura blinked. "Does she know her way around the palace?" she asked worriedly.

Kitchel stared after her friend for a moment then turned back around. "I think she just needs to be alone for a while…"

The Dragons glanced at each other then continued eating.

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            Rath walked down the long, elaborately decorated hallways and into his room, his mind deep in thought. What was he supposed to do now? What if those yokai came back? Should he let them take her? She's part yokai… He shook his head furiously. No, he had sworn to protect her no matter what the costs. Why did I make such a promise? He found a new set of clothes laid out on the bed and changed into them. Rath blinked when he saw himself in front of the mirror. He was now wearing a black shirt with a creamy milk colored vest-like jacket over it. He tucked the shirt in the jet-black pants and wrapped the dark, crimson red sash around his waist. Rath tugged at his bangs. When did these get to be so long? After strapping on his boots he walked out of his room, giving it one last glance. It looked big enough to fit a family.

Rath closed his door and walked out, his boots making soft thudding noises as he walked across the marble floor. After a while, he stood in front of a window that opened up to a balcony. He walked through it and leaned against the railing, staring across the moonlit garden, his mind straying back to his previous thoughts. Why did he? Was it some spur of the moment thing that he thought up? No…I know I've promised that somewhere else before…

            He shook his head and jumped over the railing, down to the garden below. He landed on his feet with a soft thud and straightened. It was a nice night, the full moon reflecting the sun's light down in front of him, showing the way. There was just the slightest hint of a breeze. He continued walking, his boots crunching on the rock path. He heard a water fountain ahead of him and stepped out into the opening, only to stop short. There, sitting on the edge of the water fountain, trailing her hand in the water, was the last person he had expected to see, yet the person he was thinking about the most.

            Cesia blinked and stood up straightening to see Rath standing there on the end of the walkway. A gust of wind blew between them as they stared at each other for a moment. Rath was the first to look away and walked around the perimeter. Hedges surrounded the area, four paths leading from each side. The fountain was twenty feet wide in diameter, and including the outer walkway, the whole circular area was thirty feet wide.

When he returned back to where he had started, Rath looked up at Cesia, who had been watching him the whole time. "So…"

"…So…"

An awkward silence settled between them. "Rath, I…" Cesia started to say just as Rath said, "Cesia, I…" The two blinked.

"You first," Cesia said.

"No, you," Rath replied.

"I insist."

"Ladies first."

Cesia smiled a little. "I was going to say…that…" She turned around and gazed into the water. "That I didn't want to become a burden to you…and if you want me to leave you alone I will…" She blinked when she suddenly felt him hug her from behind and saw his face in the water's reflection.

"No…that's not what I want," he said softly in her ear. "I didn't know what I had wanted before…but I know now." He gently turned her around and tilted her face up so that he was looking deeply into her eyes. "I have a feeling that we had met somewhere else before…somewhere in the past. And from even back then, I had sworn that I would protect you. Do you know the reason?"
            His words were similar to what he had said in the park back on Earth before Bierrez had shown up. It was so similar it made her blush slightly with a slight shiver. "No…"

But unlike before, there would be no stopping him now, no interruptions, and Rath knew it. "It's because…" he said softly, his face now only a couple of mere inches away from hers, "I love you."

And with that, he closed the gap and kissed her gently on the lips, making Cesia's eyes open wide. But she soon relaxed and closed her eyes as she immersed herself in the kiss. It was long, yet sweet and gentle, and it held such a feeling she had never felt before. Everything seemed to disappear around them as she realized that she, too, loved him just as much as he loved her. All questions about what would happen were thrown out of Rath's mind. All he wanted, and all she wanted, was to be with each other forever.

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*bites a tissue, big teary eyes on her face* T_T Man how I wished that was me!!! *runs around screaming* .; J/K J/K I'm not that obsessed…But I mean similar circumstances only real life. And no, this is not becoming some romantic fic centered on Rath and Cesia…*rethinks* Okay, well maybe slightly . But there's more to it as I create horrible twists to it! D! Okay well, see ya in Chapter 12! And Review!