Chapter 9 : Aftermath

Hitomi was laughing gaily as she found her way out of the group of jovial dancers, gasping as the chilly night air of Gaea touched her bare shoulders. She smoothed her dress carefully as she whirled her head around, checking and making sure that she was entirely alone. Many noblemen and ambassadors had requested her to dance with them. The traditions in Fanelian wedding had dictated them to dance with the bride before the groom, even if the bride was a queen. Van had been very understanding and sweet, allowing the prospective dancing partners to take their turns to dance with his new wife and making himself content by exchanging secret looks and smiles with her.

However, all the excitement soon wore out, replaced by a need of privacy and the quietude of her room. No, she corrected herself. She would rather be with her new husband than sacrificing her wedding night alone without company. And she had to keep reminding herself that she was no longer the occupant of the Golden Guestroom at the south wing of Fanelia Castle. After all, she was the Queen and Van's wife. Her place was beside Van, in his quarters to be precise.

She let out a giddy laugh as she landed her bottom on the rail of the secluded balcony, inhaling deeply as she drank in the sight of Gaea's twin moons. A twinge of regret touched her mind for a second, but she was aware that no matter happened to her, she would never be sorry for her decision to disregard her own planet and assume her identity as a ruler of one of the countries on this vast, outlandish planet. Her knight in shining armour would always be by her side, gazing at her with those warm, crimson, passionate eyes – with those mutual feelings they had presented to each other.

There was only one thing that was bothering her, even as the wedding ceremony was being held. It was her family. She knew that by now her family would have probably listened, wide-eyed, to the news that Yukari told them, but it was not the point of her uneasiness here. She recalled how she had anticipated the moment of her return to Fanelia by recounting her strange experience to her only best friends, Yukari and Amano, and kept explaining the fact until they understood and believed her, but she never anticipated the loneliness of not having her family there. It was different when Gaea was still in the state of war, but now there weren't any other things that occupied her mind completely.

Smiling ironically to herself, she wrapped her arms around herself, imagining the moment of happiness if only her family was there to witness her sacred union with the King of Fanelia. Oh, what would mother say?

Congratulations, Dear Hitomi; you've become a really fulfilled woman, now...


Van was leaning on the archway that led to the balcony where Hitomi was standing where he was able to inspect her wistful expression, and yet he was able to tell that something was bothering her. Chuckling lightly, he shook his head slowly and decided to leave her alone to her thoughts, his eyes lingering on her lean back before he finally resolved to walk away. He was, however, confronted by Gaudi who apparently thought that the young king's decision to leave his bride on her own was absolutely an unwise idea. Although tradition imposed that the groom and the bride only met in their private chamber for the wedding night, it was utterly clear that the queen needed her king with her at the very moment.

"It's not like you at all to play an obedient lad and force all the rebellious streaks out of your system, my king."  The comment earned a chuckle of amusement from Van.

Drawing his eyebrows out of confusion, Van finally regarded his cousin and openly queried him, "Why do you think that the queen requires my immediate presence?"

Smiling surreptitiously, Gaudi bowed half of his body formally and answered promptly; his tone was plain although his eyes were shining with affection, "It is in Her Majesty's countenance, Your Majesty. She is craving something... no, someone to hold on to."

Van smiled at that. It was like Gaudi to notice everything. However, his face hardened as he moved his attention back to his queen, clawing at the nearest curtain hanging down the archway and chewing his lower lip thoughtfully as he tried to look past Hitomi's 'countenance' and understand the loneliness that had been radiating from it.

Turning away from the scene, Van eyed his cousin in bewilderment and stated, almost in a whisper, "I don't understand." Gulping down, he continued in a strain, "Why does she feel so sad to me all of sudden?"

"Go, cousin," Gaudi urged Van softly, nudging him gently with his elbow, gesturing slightly with his chin toward Hitomi, "It's the only way to know what's troubling her all along."

Letting go of the piece of red curtain, Van gave his companion a slow smile before he raced to his bride's side, demanding to know that everything was all right.

Smirking his usual smirk, Gaudi caught a figure spying on them behind a stone pillar not so far away from where the couple was from the corner of his one good eye. "Merle, is that how you want it to be?"

"Yes," came a sigh from the feline, "They deserve each other. I don't want any single thing to ruin the end of their day. Today was enough to cause obscenities for Hitomi alone. My instinct says that Hitomi misses her world, a lot, and I won't let it becomes a major factor for at least today. But I needed your help to..."

"You can't face them yourself, right?" Gaudi sliced her sentence and let it hang in the air, filling the emptiness around them despite the gaiety of the party itself.

"Yes, but..." Merle was silent, thinking, "I know I am a coward, but..."

"You're not a coward and you know it yourself, young lady." Again, Gaudi interrupted her train of thought and silenced her. Smiling rakishly, he marched towards the cat-woman, and before she realised what had happened, he had her bronze hand in his, upturned the palm and gave it a lingering but polite kiss, befitted only for lady of honourable class. His eyes never leaving hers as his smile widened into a grin, a proud one, and announced quietly for their ears only, "To me you've always been a lady, a very brave one at that." Then he straightened himself and bowed solemnly at her, speaking gruffly as he did so, "As the very best friend of my king and my cousin, I am honour-bound to protect you from every danger, seen or unseen."

For a moment, Merle seemed to lose her wit to answer, but she bowed awkwardly as she cast a disbelieving glance at the tall man before her and involuntarily expressed her gratitude.

"Thank you...Your Grace, it was an honour for a low-born creature like myself." She responded in a self-mocking attitude, irony in her eyes as she tried to chase away unhappy expression on her face, "I am still what I am, Lord."

Touching her cheek tentatively, the young general smiled warmly as he whispered for her ears only, "No, you're a lady in your own right." Then, laughter rumbled in his throat, he added mischievously, "Especially after what those holiday trips to my estate that you keep making from year to year did to you. Your mannerisms have improved remarkably, by now."

"Oh, yes, my lord…and with your meddling, of course." The twinkle in her eyes told him that she indeed kept how she had enjoyed her last holidays in his estate every year a secret from even Van himself. And even after all these years, my dense cousin still hasn't figured out yet why his ward has been changing in manner so rapidly all these years! Gaudi mused silently, a grin of amusement plastered on his smooth face. Then, almost softly, he urged her and smiled, "Go, Merle. My blessings will always be with you, whatever you might do or intend to do. I will keep this a secret until they realise it themselves."

Her eyes wet, she curtsied once again, this time gracefully; her heart burst with gratefulness.

"Thank you…" she whispered, "thank you, my lord general…"


She saw him there, yet she didn't have the courage to approach and talk to him. Since when did she become a coward? And there she had repeated to herself that courage was the most conspicuous manner that a princess should maintain, especially when it was associated with her pride. However it may be, she was thoroughly flabbergasted by how he treated the filthy companion of Hitomi's, her freed-slave-turned-companion no doubt, with gentle manners intended for ladies of high rank only. And here she was thinking that she might talk Gaudi into accompanying her all night, that unfathomable jerk! How dare he indulge an animal woman like the way he would to the court ladies? She was only in the class of slaves, for God's sake!

Puffing a loose strand up, she snorted derisively and whirled away from the spot, the material of her gown tucked carefully in her hands to prevent her tripping over it.  She let out in relief the breath that she had held until she was out of Gaudi's sight, smoothing her gown all over while gathering her wits at the same time. Her hand was reaching out negligently as a servant offering her a glass of red wine; the very same red wine that Van had passed onto Hitomi's mouth in the ceremony earlier.

The very same one…

For a moment, Ardine's eyes went insipid as she recalled her crushing defeat just a few hours earlier. Her sapphire blue eyes stared intensely at the blood red liquid of wine inside the crystalline goblet; her lips were curving up in a blatant disappointment, although she had to reward herself for not crying out the contents of her heart even in the concealment of her vast chamber.

She was very beautiful and in control of herself that night, in spite of the misery that streamed out of her eyes. Her face was sprinkled with sparkling powder and painted delicately according to the fashion in her country, hiding all traces of strained and worried expressions that had haunted her sleep since the day her dreams shattered. She had been acting perfectly in front of all the royal guests, flaunting her smiles and empty words of praises to the newly wedded bride and groom, shielding her true and inner-most feelings from everyone's glare. How she wished to shout all her agony on top of her lungs and pour out all of her troubles, but she was decorum-bound that, as a princess, she had to behave accordingly, and that included full control of herself. If she couldn't control her behaviour privately, at least she could control herself in public; she told herself, sighing in exhaustion.

She went on walking across the huge royal hall of Fanelia Castle, greeting a young and handsome Ispanian ambassador that she (curses!) happened to know cordially as he himself recognised her as the princess of his own country and offered his most dazzling smile, bowing mockingly.

"My most sincere and solemn greeting, Your Highness. You're exceptionally beautiful, tonight."

"My, oh my," Ardine exclaimed sardonically, fanning her face unhurriedly and giving the young man an abrupt and tight-lipped smile, "Aren't we a little bit on the flirty side, tonight? I presumed you're Lord Atkatcha of the House of Mahnshur? My pleasure seeing you here, Good Sir."

A shrewd smirk and, "Still sarcastic as usual, Princess. That reminds me; maybe that's the main reason why the King of Fanelia rejected the proposal. Am I right? Hm, Princess?" He laugh softly as he enjoyed witnessing Ardine's building fury, her fists shaking ever so slightly from beneath the heavy and sparkling cloak she wore. "Your father was devastated when you rejected me without a strong reason last season. " he continued slyly, his eyes clearly indicated that he enjoyed the bantering and Ardine's humiliation, "Wonder what he could do to cover you this time. Or maybe you'll run to your dearest-darlingest twin brother of yours, hm? Even a king has his limit to protecting you from the punishment to come, Princess. It is not too late…"

Atkatcha backed off two steps and gasped involuntary, shock written all over his face as Ardine splashed the contents of her goblet onto his face; her emerald eyes were blazing with unearthed fury.

"You and your rotten cowardice!"  Ardine accused him indignantly as she twisted the material of her gown, "You were the one who backed off from the arrangement. Yes, you! You couldn't best me, and stand me, so you decided to resign with your tail tucked between your legs." She didn't care that she made a scene, for she only needed to have her anger unleashed somewhere, and the unfortunate creature coincidentally was Atkatcha. And pity him, Ardine was not about to let him go without equal humiliation.

Gritting her teeth together, she ignored the guests staring at them and continued with her insults, "For your own benefit, I'm telling you here and now. An old prophecy since I was born into this world has stated I am someday a queen of the biggest kingdom in this entire Gaea. And what are you, pray tell? You're nothing but a loser!" She spat the words with a vengeance, her head held high as she whirled around to leave her baffled opponent with his inane mind. However, her arm was restrained by his strong one and she immediately was faced by the wrath of a dishonoured nobleman.

"I would have challenged you to death if you're a woman, Ardine." The young lord snarled, his eyes red in his madness, "It's my honour we're talking about here. And mind you, I am going to be a king as well someday,"

"A king of a very unimportant tribe," Ardine scorned him, avoiding eye contact at the same time, "is not a genuine king." She didn't want her disappointment show.

"Or have you been too close to that useless twin brother of yours?"

"Don't you dare to drag my sweet brother's name here!" she let out a outrage hiss, her lovely blue eyes flashed in anger, "Our bonding is pure, unlike those scandalized news stories about siblings fighting each other for power!"

Pursing his lips in disgust, Atkatcha let go of Ardine's arm only to grab her wrist and drag her forcefully towards the dance floor. Skipping and hopping, Ardine tried to balance her body while at the same time keeping her pace and freeing her wrist. She never wished to make a big scene, but her pride and safety were in question here. Why the guards had not moved to defend her was beyond her, Atkatcha didn't possess the right to treat her like some ordinary milkmaid. She was the crown princess of Ispano, for God's sake! And Mahnshur tribe is under Ispano's vigilance eyes at the moment. Wasn't he afraid to break the treaty and destroy his own nation?

"How dare you, Atkatcha," Ardine's eyes scourged him to the soul as she tried to free her wrist futilely. Then she sniffed a strange aroma from his breath and understood why he acted that way. Another shadow started to cloud her eyes and changed their colour into a deeper shade of blue; the anger subsided, replaced by raw fear. "Atkatcha, stop! Please…" the princess started to whimper softly, her eyes wide and watery and she looked around in a shameless plea, hoping that someone would help her. Somehow, the rumour that Ardine had destroyed the bride's gown that morning was causing some reluctance for the guests to help her. They weren't so keen on the way the princess kept her competitor at bay.

"Oh no, Princess."  Atkatcha replied almost giddily and sneered, "You owe me for the humiliation, remember? And since the king rejected you, you're mine, now…"

"Yours? But she is under Fanelia's protection, young lord of Mahnshur." A grim voice piped in, "And she is a very royal guest whom we honour with our every drawn breath. In this case, you…" drawing a shiny sword out of its sheath, the man was flashing a feral grin as he pressed the sword on Atkatcha's neck, whom in turn shuddering uncontrollably. "You're just drunk, Sir, and you don't know what you do. Soon you'll regret it for you've been insulting the princess of your sworn allegiance. Or…" licking his dry lips, he pushed his sword down deeper that it nicked the nobleman's neck and pressed him promptly, "Would you consider my challenge, good sir?"

The reflection in the sword had eventually startled the princess and returned her dulled senses. She lifted her face and met the bluest eyes she had ever seen in her life, so warm with sympathy and compassion, yet enraged in feverish irritation. His voice had flooded her with a sense of security that was unfamiliar to her in the last few months since her arrival in Fanelia. There was assurance in the voice and the eyes; she was able to sense it all right. She exhaled in relief for that.

"Gaudi," she whispered softly and gladly leaned on his broad chest after she shook off Atkatcha's loosened grip. She was totally exhausted by the sheer tension that she had experienced all morning; her nerves threatened to snap at that moment. All she wanted was a protective arm encircling her fragile body, leaving her in contentment, far from her duty and responsibilities to act as a proper princess, just to act like a frightened and distressed young lady.

Somehow, the arm that held her firmly on the waist promised all of that.

Somehow, she knew that at least tonight she could rest peacefully.


Merle knew perfectly well that her decision would upset both her lord and her best of friend, but she was unable to see the intimacy between the two of them. Her heart was torn into two. She also knew that they would mark her as an utter fool, but she understood well the consequences of staying longer than necessary under the same castle. She damned well wouldn't risk another portion of her heart at that.

She made no sound as she packed her clothes into her tiny compartment, afraid that someone would overhear her leaving. She had never wished to cause Van any great embarrassment over her yet another antic, so she chose to go without even saying her good-byes to the man she loved most in the world. Oh, she would leave a note all right, but only to tell them the intention of her departure, not her whereabouts.

Her good will dictated her that she was to be a nun, dedicating what was left of her life to God. At least the nuns would accept her, better than most of the nobles in the court who could never accept their different appearances. She would be happy there, and she would forget Van and wished the couple the happiness that had they deserved a long time ago, albeit in a long time to come.

Securing her compartment meticulously with thick rope, she finally was ready to leave all the grandeur that Van had granted for her during her almost twenty years of service as his companion, her eyes determined and her jaws set. She promised herself not to cry, not to even shed a single tear. She had to harden her heart if she really wanted to leave the place, knowing that a weak mind would only bring her back to Van's side. Slowly she slid her arms into the two straps of the backpack, then checked that it sat nicely on her back to avoid discomfort. She wrote her letter, then fled into the dark night without bothering to look back.

Tiptoeing quietly, she tried to avoid the guards as best as she could, to use her feline senses in full capacity. It was the rare occasion when her abilities became handy instead of giving her troubles like what she generally experienced. Moreover, the Goddess of Fortune was on her side. The big party had eventually taken its toll on the castle guards and the security force had become somewhat dull and lenient a few moments after the party began. She had also checked the security arrangement, and it wasn't too difficult of a formation to break through and not even a soul knew that she was gone from the party, apart from Gaudi who had promised her to help explaining her decision to Van and Hitomi. Anyway, she became quite good at sneaking in and out, lately. She had practiced for the occasion. And somehow, keeping a low profile had its own advantages. People didn't expect her to be more intelligent than she looked, because they had been nailed too much on the judgement based on appearance. Except Van and Hitomi, of course… but they were not a problem right now.

She had passed two guard posts – now, that's good, she congratulated herself, - and the main garden of the Castle. The next one she should be careful of was the garden with lots of statues of Fanelian heroes and heroines and, if she were lucky, there would be no guard in that area. As she walked, her eyes grew accustomed to the dark, and they would grasp any strange or suspicion movements, so she didn't have to worry that she would be found and put in a dangerous situation.

No one would catch her tonight. Everything would be fine; everything would go her way.

No one would even see her in the darkness.

Not in a lifeti---

"Ummph!!!" Merle tried to break free when a palm enclosed over her mouth and a hand restrained her body, her growl tiny and weak. Cold sweat started to drench her forehead as she was struggling free from her captor, and she was afraid for her own life immediately. She knew that smell! Human? Definitely not! It was more like a smell of an animal-man like her. Assassin? Could be.

She forced herself to look at the face of her captor and gasped subsequently. His blue eyes…his cold blue eyes, just like hers, were cold and vindictive, void of life and compassion.

Only one thing crossed her mind.

She knew those eyes.


"My queen. How can I be of service for you?"  A deep baritone voice startled Hitomi out of her reverie, but her face lit up as she spotted her new husband a few yards away from her spot.

"Van."

Smiling, Hitomi opened her arms and squealed gleefully as Van approach her and positioned himself within her embrace, sitting right beside her on the wide rail of the balcony and leaning his head against her body. Van flashed a surreptitious smile against Hitomi's breasts, for he had a thought in his mind that would sure grace Hitomi's face with five shades of red. Her body has softened and curved all in the right places, Van mused inwardly, chuckling spontaneously at that thought.

"What?" Hitomi asked him in a startled voice, her brows drawn in surprise. Van sat upright carefully and cleared his throat, avoiding eye contact with his bride at the same time, drawing Hitomi's suspicion and curious nature even more.

"Ah. Nothing," he had replied to the silent question curtly, unwilling to display his current embarrassment. Damn her for making me thinking like that, Van cursed inwardly, although with a touch of affection.

"Van,"

Again, his bride's gentle voice echoed in his ears and he answered it lazily this time, "What?"

A quick peck on his mouth took him aback as he stared, stunned, at Hitomi, her laughter pealing in the air as she scrambled to her feet and darted away from him, her beautiful gown rustling against the stone floor.

"Tag! You're it!" came her cheerful reply.

Then she stood in front of him with all her glory, her hands planted into her tiny waist, the bright light from the party hall becoming like an aura surrounding her. Van realised that he was drooling literally, but he didn't care. She was such a magnificent creature! She was so, so beautiful, and she was his.

His only.

And he would never let anyone to take her away again from his side. Never ever.

However, for the time being, she was… his catch.

"Be prepared, Hitomi… I won't admit to defeat." Grinning like a child, he straightened his body and prepared himself for the 'little game' they were playing, "I never let my prey go, mind you."

Her answer was only a wink, and, "Suit yourself!"


Allen Schezar stood tall in his best armour and style, glancing at all the finesse around him unenthusiastically, though a fake smile was pasted on his lips. He had been feeling strange all day, and it was like experiencing a mixture of grief and loss. Yes, he did lose something. A chance. Oh, and what a fool he was not to take the chance when it was still within his grasp.

And what a hell he was in, at the moment. He wished that he was able to lighten up a little bit and accepted the fact that Hitomi was not his, but he was facing the impossible now. He always thought that his feelings for Hitomi were merely mutual friendship, but what he had felt this morning when he had witnessed her entering the throne room ever gracefully with those of her ever glowing sea green eyes was too intense to ignore.

What is that? He wondered silently, gazing absentmindedly at the court ladies who batted their eyelashes endlessly, just to attract his attention. Wasn't I through with this already? I thought I supposed to regard her as my younger sister…like Celena.

Smiling grimly to himself, the handsome general shook his head in total bewilderment and muttered in a rough voice, "I must be mad. She's Van's queen now, and I am suppose to regard her as any other royalty, even though we used to be friends… or even lovers!"

"Brother!" a gentle voice shook his off his reverie and he met his sister's blue eyes as he turned around to face her, "You've been dreaming again. The queen has revived quite a few memories of your person, I presume?"

Allen's expression softened at the presumption, his eyes narrowed as a smile stole its way to his mouth. Caressing his sister's now-long platinum hair, he stared deeply into those pools of blue eyes as he began explaining lightly, much to his surprise, since the newfound feelings should have rattled his mind, "I became quite involved with her at some point… I used to." Then, pausing awhile, Allen scrutinised his sister's void face as he squinted his eyes, witnessing something that wasn't quite right in his sister's behaviour since the morning of Hitomi's and Van's wedding, "What happened to you yourself, this morning? It wasn't like you at all to throw a hostile look at His Majesty the King of Fanelia. You're more gentle, kinder…as long as I remember." However, his eyebrows were lifted in mild anxiety as another hunch crossed his mind.

"Ah, perhaps you remember something from the past?"

Celena's face was grim upon hearing him mentioning the past, but she was trying to conceal it with a smile. A pained smile.

"It's not serious, brother dear…" she looked up at her brother and closed her hand upon the older man's, squeezing it gently, before she finally let it go and ran it along his strong and fine jaw line. "It was just I, trying to come to terms with feeling like a convict all my life. Really, it's not serious at all…"

She inhaled deeply as she noticed disbelief in her brother's eyes and broke eye contact upon seeing it. She couldn't hold the truth much longer if she kept seeing his concerned expression. She knew that her brother hated lies, and she herself had also hated lying with all her heart. She was never one for lie, even if that was merely a white lie.

"Now, brother dear," she cleared her throat and gave the other a cheeky smile, before finally passing the message that she supposed to tell him minutes ago, "The King Dryden and Queen Millerna have requested your presence by their side now. I guess you'd better go, now."

Looking slightly confused and taken aback, Allen stared for awhile at his sister before finally struggling with his answer, stammering at his words, "Yes…yes! I will come to them, most immediately," He was then about to turn around and leave her alone with her business, but he whirled around once again to give her a brotherly pat on her well-styled hair and warned her in a playful tone, "Please do be careful with men. Sometime they could be quite nasty to women. And…don't dance too much. You'll collapse from sheer exhaustion the next morning!"

Waving a hand in the air, the young girl giggled in amusement as she told his brother to go. Laughing, Allen strode away from her with some feeling of satisfaction, knowing that his sister would never cross his warning. However, he didn't notice when Celena's expression turned grim once again, her blue eyes turned colder that they bordered on the edge of malevolence.


"The Atkatcha fool is gone." Gaudi told her from the corner of his mouth, his expression hard and serious. He held Ardine's half limp body with one arm while the other arm expertly inserted his sword back into his sheath. "You're safe now, and I think the fool wouldn't have the nerves to wreak havoc again with you." He spoke softly to her, holding her waist firmly in his hands so that she wouldn't loose her balance and slide to the floor. Just from her eyes, Gaudi could guess that the princess was still in a state of shock.  It would take awhile for her to regain her composure, especially since she had been handled roughly by a man twice her size.

The princess moved slightly against him and murmured something, but it was too low and he couldn't catch it.

"Yes, Your Highness?" he lifted his eyebrows as a reaction and moved one ear nearer to her lips, waiting for her to repeat her words.

The princess looked up and Gaudi gasped at the sight of her face. She was…crying. And her eyes…her eyes…the two sapphires were sparkling brilliantly with her diamond tears and before he realised it, he caught a teardrop with his forefinger, playing with it absentmindedly as she continued to fix him with a raged yet melancholy gaze. He understood that the anger was not directed at him; he even saw gratitude in those very blue eyes, but by Gods! How beautiful those eyes were with the fire of anger lighten up there, and he just realised the exquisiteness of them at that moment. He would be grateful if there had been no other man than himself who realised this fact before. Her eyes…they were simply…brilliant.

A shame I only have one good eye, that my other eye is patched!

"Th-thank you," the princess stammered her reply, her young face relaxed a little bit as a tender smile crept on her face. Gaudi's face softened as he witnessed evidence of tenderness in the princess, another fact that she was actually a mere young woman looking for self-identity. She hadn't found herself right then, therefore didn't really understand how to behave according to her own moulded personality. As he had presumed, her sparks of original personality only escaped sometimes when she couldn't control herself according to the education that had become her.

Seeing no reaction from the older general, she was preparing herself to walk away from the spot and assume her loneliness, but a voice halted her steps abruptly.

"If you would honour me with your company, Your Highness…"

Startled, she turned back to retort that it was inappropriate of him, a mere general, to ask her, a crown princess, to dance with him, but she lost her tongue the moment she noticed him bowing formally as he reached one arm out to her, as dazzling as any other prince she had met before, his rakish smile brought an amused smile of her own as their eyes met.

"Well…" she tentatively answered as she tilted her head to the right, considering offer seriously this time, "I could use some company, but I don't know how to do the Fanelian folk dance. And I notice the music is playing one, right now." Touching one stretched hand daintily, she was laughing gleefully as Gaudi closed his fingers over her and drew her close to him, his one good eye watching her expression intensely as he lifted the hand up and kissed the palm lightly.

"I could always tutor you a movement or two," Gaudi offered solemnly, his smile wide and refreshing, "Only please don't stomp on my feet, Princess."

"Hmmph!" Ardine snorted in un-lady-like manner and twisted her face in mock anger, but she circled her arm around Gaudi's elbow, lifting her chin as she gestured to the dance floor, suddenly alive with unexpected vigour. She didn't know why, but it seemed that her current problems didn't concern her much at the moment. She knew that she should be thinking of the way to avoid the traditional punishment awaited her in Ispano, but suddenly she wasn't afraid at all.

Glancing slyly at her, Gaudi merely twitched his lips and consequently responded, "So it is a truce for tonight, Princess? Fine by me. Let's enjoy the night together."

Ardine's face beamed at that as she followed Gaudi's lead willingly and told herself how she had forgotten how she loved dancing and parties.

They never noticed a pair of baleful eyes watching over them from a distance.


Hello again, guys…sorry for the long delay for this chapter. I've been back to my home country in Indonesia, and since there was a lack of resources and time, I was forced to stop writing for 3 months. Besides, there, I have a lot of family to visit! I'm happy, however, to finally launch the chapter nine of my Escaflowne fanfic. I hope that you're willing to give me comments, flames, etc., etc…and send it to my email below or just sign my guest book. From here, getting the plot in one line is getting trickier, because the story will involve larger area other than what's happening in Fanelia itself. War, perhaps? Conspiracies? Who knows….let's just wait for what my head's telling me… ^_^ ehehe. Gosh, I think the most difficult part is getting Allen and the gank reintroduce here, because of course I couldn't pop them up out of nowhere without conflict. So, Allen's fans, I'm sorry for being sooooo late to include your favourite character here, but that doesn't mean that he won't play an important role at all (and I'm considering even Selena herself…). I LOVE Allen myself, and I want him to be one of the good guys here. However, at the mean time…..*turning my head around, looking around for my brain, then, "HEEEEEEEELP!!!! BRAIN, give me more IDEAS!!!!"* 

Hehehehe…..see ya in chapter 10!


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