Okay, I'm not really that mean. I know that there's many options, and I'm hoping it's pretty clear that there isn't a Fol/Hit pairing. I'll tell you that. Anyways, this part has been rather short getting up. I just finished the other part yesterday, and now I'm onto the next (sort of pushing off writing the other)!
And now, here's part six!
Part Six :: Secrets
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
A week had passed since the 'incident' and Hitomi was glad that most of it seemed to have just blown over. No, it wasn't that fact that Ahiru hadn't been a bother, because she really was, or that any of her servants weren't making themselves apparent, because they had tendancies to show up every so often, it was just the fact that she had been so suave about it all. Deny, deny, deny. That was the key to let it all go without notice. Allen, Van, and even Merle had been quite the bother about what had happened for the first few days, but then Ahiru's advice on how to get rid of them was quite successful.
Cry.
Once those tears started flowing, and she started screaming out of 'frustration' they just backed off as though she were a woman possessed. It actually made her smile, and even laugh a little once she was in her room and they couldn't bother her. And Ahiru had been a help, a great help, in all of this. They were, technically speaking, the same person, and felt exactly the same as the other. It was almost like sharing things with a twin sister, only there was one thing neither really wanted to have to share.
The usual conversation of the past week was currently going on as she lay on her bed.
~ Nee(1), Hitomi! Let's go to the main bazaar in the city today, okay?
"Hai... hai..." Hitomi sighed, yawning. It had been a long night and she hadn't felt much like sleeping. There was yet another meeting between Asturia's King, his advisors, Van and Allen. And everytime there was a meeting she had a bad feeling in her gut.
There had been no sign of Zaibach lately, and she was grateful for that. Ahiru had been a great help when Naria and Eyria attacked. She'd sent them off to who-knows-where. Ever since they didn't return and Hitomi had this sneaking suspicion that they were planning on taking her a different way.
"I'm so tired... Give me some time..."
~ If you're that tired then let me take over. We'll just find some other clothes and just change places. I know that Kiitsu is going to have them there searching for someplace nice to eat.
"With my luck you'd get us in trouble," she muttered in response, lazily picking up a stick of Pocky and nibbling on it. It was fortunate that Ahiru wanted to teach her a few tricks, such as transporting objects over a distance. Once she'd learnt it, the first thing she brought over on her own was a box of Pocky, then several others. "We gotta keep a low profile if you plan on Van not knowing about you. I mean, I don't understand why you hate him so much, but you have to let go of some of these things."
~ But Kaiou is my - I mean... I guess he is, our son. Don't you want to meet him?
"Allen would never let me go, not without him. So how am I going to explain a man that looks like Van and a son who does also? He's already uneasy about me going near Van," she protested. "And I know you don't have any objections to that but Allen doesn't own me so I don't plan on acting that way - if fact, even if we ever were to marry I wouldn't let him control me like that!"
"Hitomi, who are you talking to?" Merle's ever curious voice came from the window. Hitomi gasped and rolled onto her back.
"Oh, uh... just myself," she explained, pushing herself into a lazy sitting position. "Merle, I've told you not to sneak up on me like that, so why do you always do it?"
The cat-girl shrugged. "I dunno. Just do."
"Well I don't like it so get out," she snapped. Lately she'd gained much of Ahiru's boundless anger and found herself taking it out of the two from Fanelia. "I don't know what you or Van want from me and I don't care. I'm going out into the city."
Merle blinked, then hissed.
"You don't need to snap at me like that! I didn't do anything!" she screeched as Hitomi stood up and left the room. "What's her problem?"
She stuck her tongue out at her befopre hopping up onto the roof.
Hitomi took extra care when leaving the castle to make it appear as though she were heading to the gardens, especially once Allen stopped her to give her a 'talking' to. She listened, then disposed of what he was saying. It was pointless to remind her of her place. Why should she have to do as he told her to just because they were together?
Of course, maybe it wasn't her own choice to be like this. Ahiru had a very feminist air about her and didn't like to take any 'crap', as she liked to call it, from a man.
She grinned as she walked through one of the fields leading to the outskirts of Asturia. It was all too easy. She almost expected Allen to suddenly show up on horseback and pull her back to the castle.
"Nee, Ahiru-sama... you haven't told me why you don't like Van. If I remember correctly, you guys were betrothed, right?" Hitomi asked.
You remember it, Hitomi. I have no need to say it.
Hitomi looked over to the faded image of Ahiru walking beside her. She watched her mouth moving and listened to her words, and she smiled. This sight and the sounds were for her alone, like an invisible friend.
"But you know, I want to hear it. I don't remember that sort of thing clearly," she persisted.
When both of us had lived nine years, we were alone. He had lost his mother, father and even his brother. All he had was Merle. As for myself, I never really had my mother around, here on Gaea. I had the one who married my father, but my real mother, the one you grew up with, was back on the Phantom Moon. Van and I only had each other... since my father's death. Yes, I had Folken, but I couldn't tell Van. Folken wanted to remain a mystery to Zaibach, and not become a slave to the empire. If anyone knew about him then there was always a chance that Dornkirk would come back for him... and I didn't want to lose him... he was my niichan...
"Okay, so now tell me why you and Van aren't together." She yawned, stretching her arms up to the sky.
Van and I were alone... and when we found out how we would... consumate our marriage one day, which needless to say shocked us both, we... sort of...
"No wonder... and then you got pregnant from that, huh? And I'm guessing that didn't go over well with him," Hitomi sighed. "And if I should ask anything, what were you two thinking, doing something like that?!"
We were alone, Hitomi! We thought that only the other could be there for us... but I was mistaken. I wish I never had...
"But you're so proud of Kaiou... how could you say that?"
Kaiou's the only good thing that came out of those times.
"I see..."
Hitomi sighed again and looked at the ground. This was a strange conversation. Ahiru really was a different girl than she was. She didn't start her period until she was thirteen, and Ahiru had apparently started some time after she had lived nine years. Hitomi found herself wondering, still, what they had done. How two young children would do something so drastic just because they were alone. But in its own way it wasn't too surprising. On the Earth there were many a young girl getting herself 'knocked-up'.
"Yeah, well maybe we should let him know."
He didn't want a child then and I doubt he'd want one now.
"Don't be so sure, Ahiru-sama..."
In a darkened room two figures stood silently, their backs to one another. One was a tall, with long blond hair and sparkling blue eyes; the other man was shorter, with messy black hair and chocolate brown eyes.
"Something's wrong with Hitomi," the blond said quietly. "I don't understand why she's been acting so strangely. Van, do you think it has anything to do with last week, and with Ahiru?"
"Maybe..." Van sighed, slamming his fist on the nearest table. The gentle candle-light which was the only source of light flickered. "Damnit, Allen, she can't be... she just can't be..."
Allen sighed and brushed his hand against the hilt of his sword.
"Well maybe she is. She's not acting herself... maybe Hitomi doesn't exist any longer?" he suggested.
"Do you really think that?"
"Maybe. It's more than likely that Hitomi isn't in there anymore. She's moody now, and very cold. At least back then she spoke to you kindly. I don't think Hitomi would just suddenly become cold without a reason." He closed his eyes and turned around. "Van, what happened betwen you and Ahiru?"
Van was silent a moment before he turned to face Allen. He waited a bit longer before deciding to tell him everything that had happened.
--------------------------------------------------
1. nee :: Hey ; Say
Well, that's the next part. I hope you all like it. I'll be taking a break from this fic for a short while so that I can write more of my other Escaflowne fanfiction, plus two others. So, please don't put "update soon" in your reviews because I can't for a little while.
- Nekura
