Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon and any of the characters.
This story is not written like normally. All is explained at the end.
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HopefulThe sun was nowhere to be found on this joyous Easter day. The rain poured down, as all the guests watched from inside.
"Did it have to rain on Easter?" wined a little girl to her mother, "I wanted to go Easter egg hunting!"
"Well, it looks like that won't be happening this year, now will it?" The young knight chuckled as he listened to the little girl. She wasn't going to be the only one not having the best Easter. He was asked to appear before the king. He, most likely, was going to be given another quest. He enjoyed the quests but he had to leave his beautiful maiden behind. He walked into the chapel and sat down to listen to mass. It went by all too quickly. Soon, he will be before the King listening to his new task. As he entered the King's quarters, he bowed low to the ground.
"You may rise." As the young knight raised his head he saw the smiling king and next to him the beautiful queen, with her shinning red hair up in a tight bun.
"You asked for me, my lord?"
"Ah, yes. Sir Takeru, I kindly ask that you delight us with the tale of your adventure when you met Lady Hikari. For on this Easter Day we need a happy story to entertain us all." The young knights' ocean blue eyes shined; maybe he would be able to stay at home longer.
"If you would like to hear this lowly knight's tale, than I shall be glade to tell it to you." He took a deep breath and brushed away his blond hair from his face. "It all started, here like all my adventures do..."
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"You wished to see me my Lord?" a young Takeru asked. He was very nervous; this was one of his first real journeys as a Knight, not a squire.
"I have a very important task for you. In a neighboring kingdom, there is a cave, and inside that cave is something very important to me. The problem is that their King refuses to use one of his knights to retrieve it for me. He said he would let one of my men go in though, so I ask you if you could do this?" The king asked the young Knight.
"Of course my Lord. But, might I be granted permission to ask a few questions?"
"What would you like to know?"
"Well, first of all, why doesn't their king want to send in a knight?"
"That's a down side to this mission. It is rumored that there is a challenge that must be preformed before you can enter the cave. This challenge is said to be nothing ordinary, anyone who has tried to get into the cave has died. But I trust that you will be able to over come this for you are such a great knight."
"Please, I am no great knight, my lord. My other question is what am I retrieving from the cave? And how important is it if you desire it and so many have died trying to retrieve it?" Takeru asked. "And where is this cave?"
"You will be getting me the Hope Stone. It is a legendary stone that will finish off my collection. I have the six other stones of life; the Hope Stone is the last one. When a person comes into possession of one of the stones they will be granted the special power of the stone. Only one person can truly control each stone, in this kingdom we have all the people who control the stones. If these stones fall into the wrong hands, terrible things could happen. The cave is in the Far West, in Lord Daisuke's lands. When you get there you will know. You must leave soon. It is very important to get this gem."
"Of course my Lord. I will leave tomorrow at sun rise."
"Very good. You may leave to prepare for the journey."
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The next morning the sun was shinning and the birds chirped happily in a tree. Takeru walked out to his horse. He was wearing his bright silver armor. In his hand was a silver shield with the symbol for hope on the outside. The symbol was a circle with what looked like a fire tail under it and five triangles going around the other side of the circle. The symbol was yellow. This shield was made just for him and this occasion. He was told that this symbol was going to be on the stone and that was how he was going to be able to recognize it. As Takeru mounted his horse, Pegasus, and rode out of the castle, he thought about what the king had explained to him. He still didn't get why he was sent to get the stone. He was just a lowly knight, and not even very experienced on his own.
He rode on for two weeks without meeting anybody. He was becoming very lonely. Then, one day he saw a huge castle. It was an interesting color due to the stones that it was built of. The castle appeared a light orange color. Takeru was overjoyed to see this castle, for it meant that had to be people around.
As he rode up to the castle he took a closer look at it. It looked like a gothic style church, but it was much too big to be just a church. The stained glass windows were all different shades of blue, Takeru took special notice of this because blue was his king's favorite color. The castle would be great if under attack because the enemies would think it was a chapel, but Takeru knew better.
When he reached the drawbridge he looked around for someone to open it for him. No one was in sight. Suddenly he heard a beautiful voice. As he looked up, he noticed a young girl up in a tower and she was the source of the beautiful song. Takeru called up to her. "Young maiden, do you know someone to open this gate for me, a lowly knight to enter?" As soon as the girl heard his voice she hurried away from the window. Takeru was confused. Why would she run away? He decided that he would ask the Lord of the castle about it when he met him. Takeru called out again, this time trying to get anyone's attention. This time, a young boy came to the top of the drawbridge. As soon as the boy saw him, he hurried away and soon, the gate was open.
As Takeru entered the courtyard the Lord of the castle came running out to meet him. The Lord was not too tall, but not too short, not too fat, but not too skinny. He had spiky brunet hair and stunning reddish-brown eyes. His orange apparel proved that he liked the color and with a smile on his face he looked like a jolly fellow.
"Welcome! I am honored to have you at my Castle. I am Lord Daisuke, King of this area called Veecina. Come inside and eat, my friend! Leave your horse and armor here, you will not need them."
Takeru was then ushered inside to a hall where a great feast was being set up. He was pushed to a seat right next to Daisuke and forced to sit down. Soon Daisuke, a young woman with purple hair and matching violet eyes, and little boy with brown hair and bright green eyes joined him. "These are my dear friends, Lady Yolie and Duke Cody." Each said hello and then he turned back to Takeru. "By the way my friend, who are you?"
"I am Sir Takeru, a knight from the Lord in the East, of the kingdom Gaburia. I am in search of a cave that holds the Hope Stone. My Lord desires this stone and I must retrieve it. I was told that you Lord Daisuke would be the one in whose land contained this cave." Daisuke's eyes grew in shock. He dismissed everyone in the room, but Yolie and Cody. When everyone was gone, he spoke.
"You are the unlucky fool who must go into that cave? I did not dare send one of my own knights there for fear that they would die. But you! You go there willingly?" Daisuke then took Takeru into a different room as Cody and Yolie followed. "You see, I know about those stones, for I can control two gemstones of the same origin, as can Cody and Yolie. How do I know this? As all the others like me, I had a dream that told me that I was the one to control the stones, but unlike your lord and his followers, we were given two stones each that we could control. We were given the responsibility of taking over for someone who died. But none of us could control the Hope Stone. That is why I have not sent anyone to retrieve the stone. If I were you, I wouldn't go in there at all."
"Well, my Lord has sent me to retrieve that stone and I will not disobey him." Takeru responded, appalled by the idea of going against his king. Then, he heard it again. That sweet, angelic voice that he had heard before entering the castle. He looked around for the source, but the voice seemed to be bouncing around the room. "Who is the owner of that wonderful voice? I saw her in a tower before I entered but she ran away when I called out to her. I didn't get a chance to even see what she looked like." Daisuke's eyes grew very thin. He looked Takeru over and a sneer came to his face. The once jolly looking man now looked evil and sadistic.
"You saw her? Well, she is my pet. She is Lady Hikari, the one who will become my bride. But she is not so willing to accept me. Long ago, her brother was a very close and loyal friend to me. He left on a journey one day and then disappeared and left her in this land. I was kind enough to take her into my home and care for her. She is very beautiful and I had been admiring her from a distance, so I grabbed the chance to have her. Hikari has not warmed up to me yet, but she will, oh, she will."
"Daisuke! In my kingdom, the lady gets to choose whom they marry, no matter what their ranking. I believe that you must always respect a lady. We are here to serve them." Takeru commented while being very shocked at what Daisuke had said.
"The same policy is implied in this kingdom, but I always get what I want, I want her, and no one can stop me. Cody, show him to a room so he can rest tonight before his journey. I am going to visit my sweet Hikari." Then Daisuke walked out of the room and Takeru was left with Cody and Yolie. Takeru was amazed at how Daisuke could act in such a way. Maidens are to be respected and you should always do what they wish over what you wish. As he continued to think about this, the boy, Cody, broke through his thoughts.
"Sir, he really isn't that bad. I have known him for a long time and he never acted like this before, but as soon as she came into his life, he changed. I hope that one day he will give up on her and turn back into his old self. All men change when it comes to love, Daisuke just changed in a different way than other people." Takeru looked down at the young boy. What words of wisdom to come from such a small child! This boy was truly special. "I will now show you to your room, Sir Takeru." Takeru said goodbye to Yolie and started to follow Cody out of the room.
As they started walking away Takeru heard a faint yell. He frantically looked around to at least find the direction that the voice was coming from but to no avail. They walked farther down a hallway until they reached a door. At this point Cody stepped aside and opened the door for Takeru. Takeru stepped inside the room and said good night before closing the door.
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Takeru did not sleep well that night. The symbol for hope kept appearing in his dream and with it followed another symbol that he did not recognize. Then, he heard Hikari's voice, and that strange symbol appeared again. It was a circle with kite looking shapes around it, forming a sun-like picture. But it wasn't the sun because it was a very light shade of pink. Then he saw Daisuke smiling, but it wasn't a happy smile. Then he heard laughing. People were laughing at him.
He woke up with sweat all over his body. Then, for a third time he heard her voice. This time, he could tell where it was coming from. He followed the voice outside of the room and down a different hallway that he had not seen earlier. He continued down the hall and then turned toward a room. As he opened the door it turned out to be a staircase. Takeru started up the stairs, and the higher he went the louder the voice became. Then at last he came to another door. He knew that she had to be on the other side of the door.
When he opened the door, he saw her sitting on the edge of the window still singing and not noticing that he was there. Takeru cleared his throat to get her attention. She quickly turned around and stood up. Her long flowing brown hair outlined her elegant face. Her crimson eyes shinned in the night.
"I'm sorry I disturbed you, fair maiden. I am Sir Takeru. But I had to find out who you were. I have heard your voice many times and I just had to see you. I also know what Daisuke is doing, by keeping you up here all alone. Please tell me, why did you run away when I called to you?"
"I ran because I was fearful that you had come to marry me to Daisuke. He forced me to live alone in this tower until I marry him, but I do not love him. Why may I ask do you come to this castle, if you did not know Daisuke before this, for if you did you would have known of me." She looked to him and waited for his answer.
"I am using the castle as a resting place. I must go off to find the Hope Stone. When I have it I will be able to go home." Takeru smiled at the thought of going home. Then, he looked back at the sad maiden, and realized that she could never go home. "I am sorry dear lady for bringing up the subject of home. If I could take you away from here I would. What Daisuke is doing is wrong. A lady should decide what to do when it comes to love. Love is the ladies' realm and the men just live in it." He looked back at her and he could see a small smile on her face.
"You are a true gentleman. You must please all the ladies back home. You probably already have a lady you fight for."
"Well, not yet I don't. I am a new knight and I never found the right lady to fight for. However I wouldn't mind fighting for you, my lady."
"You are too kind Sir Takeru. Well, if you need the Hope Stone, you will need one other stone." Takeru looked at her, not quite understanding. "Here is the Light Stone. It is the eighth stone of the life stones. Without the light you would not be able to control the hope. But because hope and light must always be together, They are so close in all the prophecies that speak of the stones, not many people see light right next to hope." She hands him a white rock with the pink symbol from his dream. "Keep it to remember me. You are a good knight, Sir Takeru, and I wish you well on your journey." She smiled at him, a real smile. He looked at her and smiled back.
"You are the one who controls this stone. That means that I would need to bring you back to my kingdom so you can control the stone there. Now I have a reason to take you away to my home, if that is your wish." Takeru looked at her hopefully. In the pale moonlight, she looked like a goddess, and he had fallen for this moon goddess.
"I would love to go with you. To get away from this horrid place. But how will I be able to get away? Daisuke would never let me go."
"We will find a way, my lady. We will find a way."
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The next morning, Takeru went to the main hall and saw Daisuke already waiting for him. Once again there was a fantastic meal on the table, just waiting to be eaten.
"Ah! Good morning Takeru. I hope you had a nice rest last night. Come, sit down and eat." Daisuke smiled, looking like the jolly man that Takeru had first met.
"I would love to, but I must be on my way. I must travel to the cave and find the Hope Stone. Thank you for letting me stay the night." Takeru bowed to him and left the hall getting all his armor back on and getting on Pegasus. He looked the same as he did when he had left his home, but now he had the Light stone in his pocket.
Takeru rode for only about an hour when he saw the cave. The mouth of the cave was small, but he knew that he was going to fine the Hope Stone inside because of all the yellow flowers blooming around just that cave. The flowers were found nowhere else.
Takeru walked up to the cave, leaving Pegasus behind, and looked around. He was told that there would be a challenge, but he was not sure who would give him the challenge. Then he looked in the cave and saw a stone like the Light Stone, but it had the symbol of hope on it. Takeru knew what it was. He reached in and grabbed the stone. When he pulled it out, he put it with the Light Stone and they started to glow. Then he heard a voice.
"You have befriended the Keeper of Light. Therefore, you passed the challenge of the Hope Stone and you may control it as you were destined to do."
Takeru looked around for someone who had said that but he saw no one. Then he realized why he had been chosen to retrieve the Hope Stone. He had been the keeper the whole time, and his king had known that. He had passed the test and now all he had to do was get Hikari and bring her back to his kingdom, where she could live with all the other keepers.
Takeru then headed back for the orange castle with both the Hope and Light Stones with him. He did not know how he was going to bring her with him, but he would find a way. When he returned to the castle, everyone was surprised to see him. They took off all his armor but he kept his sword. Daisuke came out and hugged him and greeted him as if they hadn't seen each other in years.
"My dear friend, you have returned to us. Did you not complete your task and come back here to live?"
"No, Lord Daisuke. I have done what I had come here to do. I have retrieved the Hope Stone, and now I need one more thing from you." Takeru said with no happiness in his voice. He knew that he could not avoid a fight if he wanted to get Hikari.
"What is that dear friend?" Daisuke asked not noticing the solemn look on Takeru's face.
"I need to take Hikari back to my kingdom. She is the Keeper of the Light Stone and my Lord would want her with all the other keepers. My lord would not be happy if I left her here."
"You can not have Hikari. She is mine and only mine. I don't care what she is or whom you king is. You will never take her." Daisuke pulls out his sword and a battle begins.
The two trained swordsmen fought, both were able to avoid any blows from the other. Everyone else had left the courtyard so the two were able to move around without hurting anyone else. Takeru started to get tired and was worried that he would not be able to win the battle. For the first time that he could remember, he had given up hope. And at the moment that he did, Daisuke was able to get a blow in and hit Takeru. Blood dripped down his leg from the cut right above his waist. Takeru then heard Hikari's voice in the distance, and it gave him strength. Takeru was able to strike Daisuke with a deadly blow. Daisuke shrank to the ground and looked up at Takeru.
"I'm sorry we had to end on a bad note my friend. Please, take care of her." His eyes shut for a final time and Daisuke moved on to another world.
Hikari came running out of the castle and hugged Takeru. In the short time that the two had known each other, they had fallen in love. When she saw his wound she became worried, but Takeru told her not to clean it or help it heal. He wanted it to become a scar so that he would always remember not to lose hope.
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"And that my Lord and Lady, is the story of how I met my beautiful maiden and how I realized that I was the Keeper of the Hope Stone." Takeru bowed low, still feeling the scar left from his battle with Daisuke.
"I must say, little brother, you are a great story teller. You have kept Sora and I entertained until the sun came out. Now return to Lady Hikari and have a Happy Easter." King Yamato said while looking out the window. Takeru looked outside and saw the sun shinning through the clouds, and it looked like it was going to be a beautiful day after all.
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A/N: This was a class assignment where we had to write a story with medieval love being the style. That's why everyone acts like they do and its all so formal. I hope everyone liked it. Review please.