He was so tired. So goddamned
tired.
His eyelids were heavy from lack of sleep and he could feel the light stubble
already forming irritably on his chin. His shirt was open at the top, partially
exposing his chest as he sat, disgruntled in a chair in his living room.
His hand was up, supporting his weak head as he rubbed at his temple as
though it would help his stress. His blue eyes had lost their lustre hours
ago as he mulled over what had happened.
The wooden clock on his
wall read twenty-one minutes after five in the morning. He had officially
been awake for 22 straight hours. He pitied himself, an emotion that he
hadn't experienced in a very long time. It was disturbing. He shifted uncomfortably,
remembering what had happened last night.
"Where have you been?"
he demanded in an authoritative voice of the girl in his arms. He felt
her stiffen and released her so that he could interrogate her properly.
She sniffed slightly and refused to meet his eyes.
"I'm tired, brother."
she stated plainly. "I'm going to bed." with that, she turned toward her
room. Allen grabbed her wrist, wanting to at least see what was going on
in her eyes. What he saw shocked him. There was nothing. Her blue eyes,
usually sparkling with joy and light, were blank. Clear. Dead. Stunned,
he released her, and she resumed her mechanical walk to her room, slowly
and silently shutting the door behind her.
Something was wrong,
he
had decided at that hour, and he had spent the entire night and early morning
mulling over what it was to cause his sister to become zombie like. Few
things had come to mind, but the most prominent and likely one was the
most unpleasant one, something that the Knight Caeli chose not to accept.
His sister was too strong for an instance like that to reoccur. Wasn't
she?
Suddenly he rose, with
new intentions, and strode tiredly over to the kitchen. He reached into
the upper cupboard and pulled out a tin of little items that looked similar
to beans. They were a marvellous discovery on Gaia's part, there was no
doubt. He wondered idly who had uncovered this treasure and how. He wondered
if they ever felt as exhausted as he in the morning.
His mind was gibbering
again. He thought he had learned to control its unruly mannerisms. Apparently
he had been wrong. Stupid mind. Thinking useless things.
"All in all, the brain
is extremely stupid. Studies have proven that we use less than half of
it in everyday life. The second half is just taking up valuable space.
How dare it." he snorted, tossing his long blond hair over his shoulder.
He stumbled and laughed giddily as he realized the nonsense he had just
spouted out. The hour of the morning amplified to his laughter and soon
he was chuckling madly, trying in vain to get the cap off the jar. With
a heaving grunt, he managed to pry it open. He guffawed at his victory,
seemingly the first one all day.
"Then again," he reminded
himself. "the day has just begun, hasn't it." he pondered over this statement
as his elegant fingers reached into the jan and plucked one of the beans
from its shelter amongst the rest. He popped it into his mouth without
a second thought and immediately perked up to the shockingly bitter taste.
Gagging slightly, he reached for a glass to get water. He found one, filled
it, and drank gratefully. He exhaled loudly and set down the cup. He shook
his head, only slightly more awake than before he had swallowed the bean.
Footsteps padding stealthily
into the kitchen suddenly had him soberingly awake.
"Good morning." he greeted
carefully, not turning around. The footsteps froze, caught in the middle
of what was surely some heinous act. They changed direction and approached
the table. There was the sound of the creak as the chair was pulled out
from its place and then the shuffle as it was tucked back in.
Allen stared mournfully
out the window, wondering what he could say next.
She felt warm, secure. She was surrounded in
an emotion that was indescribably pure and serene. She was in the land
of the Sandman, but she didn't mind because the overwhelming sensations
were clouding all her doubt and nervousness. It was forever.
A bright, harsh light suddenly
invaded her peace. Her eyelids twitched, as if trying to become thicker
in order to prevent the girl from waking up. But to no avail. Defeated,
Hitomi's emerald eyes were slowly revealed to the world, blinking slowly
at first but then rapidly to cut out the impeccable morning sun that was
peeking through the cracks in the barn walls. She closed them again, rubbing
at them and yawning. She was back in reality, away from her precious warmth.
How cruel.
She yawned again, concluding
that it would be best for her to get up now, start the day. Lengthily,
she put in small amounts of effort to leave. She was doing pretty well
until she realized that there was something warm and more or less heavy
encircling her waist. She looked down and was surprised to find it was
an arm. She was even more shocked to see the face of the person who was
attached to this arm.
"Van?" she whispered, plummeting
down to the ground from her place in the clouds. She had forgotten about
what had happened the previous night. But how could she have? It was so...
right. He had kept his promise alright. He had stayed with her the entire
night, keeping her close, keeping her warm.
She sat up, gently removing
Van's arm from her, and got a good look at the sleeping boy. He looked
so serene and innocent as he slept, as though he wasn't plagued with nightmares
of death and destruction, and stressful thoughts about the destiny of his
kingdom.
She leaned down hesitantly,
brushing the hair out of his eyes, and jerked back, expecting him to be
roused by her touch. When he didn't even flinch, she leaned back over him,
her lips grazing his cheek. Hitomi then got up and quietly slid open the
bard door, stepping out into the early air.
Peeking over the horizon
was a brilliant display of luminance and color. It was the sun, one half
of it showing its face to those in Asturia who dared be awake at such an
hour. Hitomi guessed that it couldn't have been later than 6 in the morning.
But her thoughts on the time quickly retreated as she gazed in awe at the
display before her. The sun cast its marvellous rays on all the life in
view, giving everything a sweet and hazy glow. It seemed absolute; perfect.
Like it had granted this one morning of splendid feelings, calming everyone
who looked upon it. Hitomi's heart filled with a new appreciation for life,
for love, for everything. She felt... whole. As though nothing could ever
be ruined again.
"It's beautiful, isn't
it?" came a rich voice from behind her. She spun around to see a boy her
age in a red top, sharing the view as he leaned against the barn door.
"Van." she said, smiling
before returning to her observations.
Moments of silence passed
without a trace or concern as a pair of young lovers watched the birth
of a new day together. It was the most glorious morning Hitomi had ever
experienced. And to share the glory with someone she cared deeply for increased
the wonder of everything.
"The rise of the sun is
like nothing in the world." Van said suddenly, hesitantly, causing Hitomi
to turn and meet his eyes. "It is the dawn of the day. It represents truth,
light, and love. Nothing in the universe compares to the sun's brilliant
rays, and to have them shined upon you is an omen of good fortune for days
to come. The sun is omnipresent, like life. It lives and it dies, like
so much in this world and the one above us. The rising of the sun can symbolize
the beginning of something... but... it can also signify the beginning
of the end." he stopped. "My mother used recite that passage when I was
younger."
"That's beautiful," Hitomi
commented, finding her eyes begin to burn. What he had said provoked something
inside of her, the simple knowledge that Van was understanding more than
he was letting on. She felt it, within her soul, the sudden need
to be close to him. She rushed up to him, pressing herself to him, arms
circling up and around his back.
He was thrown off by her
sudden affection. "Hitomi."
Her head was buried into
his shoulder, knowing what she had to do. She felt Van's arms encircle
her waist, bringing them even closer together. Now was the time, the moment,
when she had to say it or the opportunity would never present itself again.
"Van?" she said softly.
"Hm?"
"I... I..." she stuttered
before managing to get the full sentence out. "I love you."
His heart stopping beating
and he froze, the words both filling him and startling him. She had told
him her feelings once before... but at that time it was as though he had
not recognized their full meaning.
"Hitomi." he breathed,
tightening his hold on her. At a loss for words that extended more than
this girl's name, he gently pressed his lips against hers in a kiss outlined
by the glorious rising sun.
He sat, head resting unmoving
in his hands as he tried to shove it all away, everything he had just come
to learn. "Ignorance is bliss" was the very phrase he predicted would haunt
him for the rest of his life, a malicious reminder of this bleak morning.
"Brother," pleaded the
blonde girl who sat across from him at the small table. "please say something."
He choked back a sardonic cackle.
So many things to say, so many more reasons to remain silent.
"I'm sorry." she squeaked.
He lifted his head from
his tired hands to look at her. His hair was mussed, his eyes bloodshot
from the lack of sleep. The normally pristine and gorgeous knight of Caeli
was in a most unpresentable and disturbing state, indeed.
"You should have told me."
he growled. "Evidently the power of the healers at the Sanctuary weren't
efficient.
"Dilandau is gone. We discussed
this already. He wanted one last attempt against Van and he got it. He's
not coming back."
"How can I know whether
or not you're lying to me? You say Dilandau used you to take revenge. How
am I supposed to know if this is Celena or... him that I'm talking
to?"
"Trust me."
He hated those words. Frustrated,
he slammed both hands on the table, allowing his tousled locks to cover
his expression as he stood quickly and walked away. Celena bit her lip
worriedly before carefully following him. She found her brother in the
bathroom, guiding a lavish comb through the neglected strands.
"Allen?" he caught her
perplexed gaze in the mirror but didn't put his important minstrations
on hold. He set down the comb after a few more minutes of uncomfortable
silence as he groomed himself. Then, he stalked across the hallway, down
to the entranceway. Hastily he plugged his feet--one of which, he would
realize much much later, was socked, and the other of which was bare--into
his boots.
Celena slowly glided over,
cautiously, as though he was an animal that would attack if provoked. "Where
are you going?" she asked.
"The castle. And you, my
dear, are coming with me. You are going to apologize profusely to
both Van and Hitomi because of the chance that you ruined for them. Then
we are going to ask Van if there is a good psyche healer in Fanelia because
clearly the ones in Asturia are lacking in skills.
"But--"
"Do not argue with me."
he hissed gravely. "You have debts to pay for keeping something of such
severity from me."
With a malcontent look
in her baby blues, Celena Schezar pulled on her shoes and trailed her brother
out the door.
There were so many things
to ask, so many things she wanted to know. But he was impassive as they
strode down the path created by man having trampled along the same beeline
many times over. Several times as they travelled toward the palace she
would glance over at him, mouth hanging open to ask one of the scrolling
questions. But the words never formed and she would find herself closing
her gaping jaw and clutching her pendant.
They passed the guards
easily, and made their way up the steps to their rooms. Van silently opened
his door and glided in. Not quite thinking, Hitomi wordlessly followed
him.
There was only one guard
posted at the entrance into the palace via the garden, and he was roly,
old, and was merely sitting on the doorstep. However, as soon as he saw
two figures heading towards him, he stood at attention and held out his
arm across the doorframe.
"Tours begin in 3 hours.
Come back then." he said gruffly.
"I am no commoner. I am
Allen Shezar, Knight of Caeli. Please Let us through, Ruhos."
The guard lifted his helmet
and squinted at the blond. "Allen?" he gasped, seeming a bit appalled.
"You look like Hell! What happened?"
Allen popped a vein.
Sensing the rising temper,
Ruhos quickly stepped aside.
"Brother, wait, stop for
a moment and think about this!" pleaded Celena once they were inside. He
didn't stop his rushed pace. "It's barely 9 o'clock in the morning!" she
continued. "Van and Hitomi probably aren't even awake yet."
He froze in his tracks,
irritated by the girl's simple logic and even more so because he hadn't
thought of this factor. He ran a hand down his chin, which was slightly
scratchy., and could feel the burning in his tired eyes. The guard's bluntess
stuck with him and he wondered idly how bad Hell looked this morning.
"Do you want me to go see
if they are awake?" Celena's tiny voice broke through his self-concerned
thoughts.
"No." he said firmly. "If
you happened to wake them up, I doubt it is your face that they would be
comfortable seeing first. I'll go." nothing more to say, he trudged away
grumbling about the misfortunes that had presented themselves this morning.
She stood by the window, letting the warm rays
wash over her. The sun was completely above the horizon now, and it maintained
its strong beauty. Behind her, she could hear the scuffling of drawers
and the shifting of material. Mind you, it wasn't very much. Unprepared
for the stay, the teen had been forced to go ~~*SHOPPING!*~~ with Allen.
She doubted Van had enjoyed that experience, having to go out for clothes
with a man was close to flaming when the purchasing of items came in to
play. She didn't even want to think about what sort of ridiculous garbs
the 16 year-old had been forced to display before finding something more
suitable to his tastes.
The sounds ceased for a
moment and soon she found Van standing next to her in a companionable silence.
Moments passed before Hitomi finally asked the question that had been plaguing
her mind the most.
"What happens now?"
He didn't look at her when
he spoke. "That's up to you. You can stay in Asturia and use Dryden's method
to return home, or," he turned to face her, "you can come back to Fanelia
with me."
Hitomi inhaled deeply,
looking into his eyes and finding them unreadable. She didn't understand
him. Did he want to be with her or not? He hadn't returned her vocalized
sentiments when she had pronounced them so clearly that morning. She didn't
want to pressure him into saying anything he didn't mean... but it hurt
her to think that he didn't see this situation as any more than a few kisses,
seemingly used, Hitomi noted, for the purpose of keeping her quiet when
she might have said something. That notion wounded her deeply and she broke
eye contact with him.
"I don't know." she said,
and began walking away slowly. "I'm going to get into some other clothes."
Van's eyebrow twitched
at the downfall of her demeanor. Hesitating only so slightly, he reached
out and grabbed her wrist, pulling her to him and pushing his lips firmly
on her own.
Grumble grumble grumble seemed to be
the only thoughts that flittered through the Knight's mind as he made his
way up the steps to the rooms of the teens. Stupid
insomnia. Stupid Dilandau. Stupid stubble. Stupid bloodshot eyes. Stupid
stairs that take too long to climb. Stupid lack of coherent thoughts. Stupid
stupid stupid. When this is all over, I'm going to have a nap and then
take the day off to go shopping.
He
rounded the corner and saw that the door to Van's room was wide open. Thinking
nothing of it, he waltzed in. "Va--" he stopped short, seeing that Van
was rather busy at the moment, his mouth against Hitomi's in a chaste kiss.
Both their eyes were closed, but as soon as the presence of the intruder
was make known, they snapped open and the lovers rapidly drew apart, faces
red.
"I... I'm going to get
changed." Hitomi stuttered, racing out the room and into her own, slamming
the door behind her. When she was out of sight, Allen sized up the raven-haired
boy in front of him, who was looking away.
"Sorry," mused the blond.
"I didn't mean to interupt."
No reply.
"Well then. When did this
all happen? Or is the fact that Hitomi was still in her gown from yesterday
and was in your room this morning enough evidence to answer my question?"
The boy glared at him.
"Nothing like that happened, pervert. We were stuck in the windmill during
the downpour and fell asleep."
"That's all?"
Van moved over to the window,
looking out. "She told me she loved me, Allen."
"And you told her you felt
the same."
"No.. I didn't say anything
at all."
Hitomi came out of her room
shortly after, her canvas bag slung over her shoulder and her face a perfect
shade to match her schoolgirl bowtie. Van was leaning against the opposite
wall, alone, Allen having left earlier in a giddy fashion. His eyes opened
to meet Hitomi's as she faced him. Part of a smile began to form on his
lips but he pushed it back, a force of habit.
The girl looked nervously
down the hall.
"He left a few minutes
ago." Van informed her, breaking his lean into a stand.
"Oh..." her fingers danced,
fidgeting over the material of her bag.
Sensing the tension, he
reached out to touch her but drew back. "Let's go down for breakfast,"
he suggested, his dark locks falling over his eyes, concealing their verity.
He walked past her, ahead of her, expecting her to follow. When he didn't
hear footsteps behind him, he turned, finding that the girl was still in
her place outside her door. She looked remorseful, anxious, scared.
"Hitomi?" he murmured in
a concerned tone.
"Van... I want to go back."
His heart froze.
"...to Fanelia, with you."
she finished, an uneasy smile gracing her lips.
He was stunned, and after
a moment remembered to close his gaping jaw. "I would be honored." he finally
replied, slowly and in disbelief.
Breakfast was eaten with
a certain air of uncertainty, everyone there realizing some of what
had come to pass, relieved but dubious. Celena apologized at this time
to both Van and Hitomi, Hitomi saying she was forgiven but Van refusing
to speak. When the plates were clean and the glasses empty, slowly they
walked outside to where a carriage sat, the driver a familiar face.
"Rum!" Van exclaimed, genuinely
surprised.
"Master Van," he returned,
tipping his head slightly. "Lady Hitomi. Kayulo was the one who suggested
I come here, as you would be waiting for me. An odd one, he is. I never
received word of it, yet he seemed to know."
Hitomi and Van exchanged
knowing glances.
"So you're going back with
him after all." a deep voice mused behind them, and the teens turned to
see Dryden standing next to Millerna, arms crossed. "Man, if only I'd known."
Hitomi bowed, apologizing
profusely, but the older man just laughed it off. "I'm just glad to see
you're both finally getting what you deserved. It's about damn time."
The young king stole a
glare over at the knight, who was desperately trying to look inconspicuous.
Warm embraces and kind
words of encouragement were whispered as the pair were bid farewell. Without
further comment, they hoisted themselves into the comfy hay-filled carriage.
It was much less extravagant than the one they had used to travel to Asturia,
but nonetheless, suitable. The carriage rolled slowly out of the wonderful
city, past the windmill and disappearing gently behind the hillside.
"Rum," began Van once the
glorious city was out of sight. When there was no reply, he repeated the
name, louder.
"Sorry Master Van. But
you'll have to really shout. I've had ear troubles lately and they've yet
to pass."
The raven-haired boy had
already forgotten his question. Defeated, he flopped back onto the hay
next to Hitomi. She was smiling.
"What?" he asked.
"Nothing... I'm just...
happy." she said, closing her eyes and letting the breeze whisper gently
through her sand-colored hair.
He looked up at the periwinkle
sky and then turned his head back to her. Her breathing had become deep,
she had fallen asleep. Brushing a few strands of her hair aside, his lips
brushed her forehead. "So am I," he murmured. "So am I."
____________________________________________________________________
A/N: This is NOT the final chapter. It is
a PART of the final chapter. The rest is coming later, this is jut to keep
you interested! I've been really busy, gomen nasai!