Hey, back again! I hope this one doesn't take too long to get out. Happy reading, review, and make me happyyyyyy!
Oh, and yes, my dear reviewers, I do love you. Thank you for all the constructive criticisms – I know that they're to help me improve, and I do intend on improving. I'm actually planning to write a book with my friend – but I still have to finish the first chapter . ah well. That's life I guess.
Oh, and I'll be at AX2005 this year. I know it's old news, but I'm totally STOKED that Maaya Sakamoto is going to be there! Isn't it wonderful? Unfortunately I'm only going on Saturday, so if she's not there on that day…oh well -.-;
EDIT: OH HELL YEAH I'M GOING TO SEE MAAYA SAKAMOTO IN CONCERT:3 my mom is letting me go on sunday too, just in time to see her
Enjoy!
Chapter Eight
"What the hell…"
Her eyes took in the picture, and realization dawned on her. Footsteps soon followed, and a rather ruffled looking Allen, still clutching his groin and wincing.
The room was silent as they watched the rage build up in Merle. Her tail bristled, and her muscles tensed up. This was going to be a long one.
"I DON'T BELIEVE IT!" She screeched. "YOU WERE IN THIS TOO, WEREN'T YOU, VAN! DEAR LORD YOU ALMOST GOT US KILLED! HOW DO YOU THINK WE FELT BEING TRAPPED IN THERE! WE WERE IN DANGER, AND I SWEAR THAT BLADE MISSED ME BY INCHES. IF YOU EVER THINK OF PULLING OFF A STUPID STUNT LIKE THAT AGAIN, SO HELP ME GOD I AM GONNA HUNT YOU DOWN AND MAKE YOU SUFFER EVEN MORE THAN I WILL MAKE YOU SUFFER NOW! AND YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE THE GODDAMN KING! WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING? DO YOU EVEN REALIZE WHAT POSITION THIS PUTS YOU IN? YOUR ADVISORS WILL FIND OUT! AND WHAT WILL YOU SAY? 'Eeerrr…I thought it was funny' I DON'T THINK SO, MISTER. AND YOU!"
Merle whirled around to glare at Allen. "IT WAS YOUR IDEA, WASN'T IT? YOU STUPID DUMBFUCK DID YOU HONESTLY THINK THAT YOU COULD PULL IT OFF WITHOUT THE ME REALIZING THAT IT WAS YOU? AND FOR ONCE JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! I AM SO SICK OF YOU CHASING ME EVERYWHERE! CHIVALRY MY ASS, IT'S YOUR FAULT THAT YOU JUST AN OVERGROWN CHILD NOW! DON'T THINK I'M NOT GOING TO FILE A COMPLAINT TO GET YOU DEMOTED!"
Merle's words melted into a ferocious hiss, and her menacing claws were now extended. Allen didn't budge from the doorway, his expression completely blank.
"Move." She uttered with a deathly silence. Allen quickly obliged, and she stalked off angrily to the Western Gardens. An uncomfortable silence filled the room, as all of them contemplated whether to go after her or not.
"You know…" Van began, but Allen cut him off.
"Yeah, yeah, I know." Allen muttered. "But I guess she needs some time to cool down, no? If night falls, and she's still not back, I'll go look for her." Allen caught the uncertain look on Van's face. "And, this time I won't screw up."
"I hope you don't." Hitomi said, remembering her brief infatuation with Allen during the war. Allen shrugged, and left the room, followed by Van, leading Hitomi by the arm. The couple started heading towards the Northern Fields for a stroll, when Allen, who was heading for the training room again, turned and yelled, "HEY, VAN!"
They stopped, and Van turned around, giving him an inquisitive look. "What?"
"You don't screw up, either." Allen said, snickering. Van flushed slightly, and quickly led a confused Hitomi away.
Allen watched the two leave with a strange feeling in his heart. Was it jealousy? Envy? Grief? Or perhaps regret? In spite of the whirlwind of feelings he hid away, he smiled at their retreating back, and silently wished them happiness. The feeling lasted but a second, and soon he was off, spinning on his heel, and heading towards the training grounds, all the while contemplating what he wanted to say.
Right after they were out of hearing range, Hitomi give Van a strange look and asked, "What was that all about?"
Van quickly laughed it off, and said, "Oh, no, nothing," before quickly switching to another topic. Hitomi knew that he was lying – I mean, come on, how stupid do you have to be?
They quickly reached their destination, slowing down to talk and admire the scenery. Out of all four gardens, this garden, the Northern Fields, was Hitomi's favorite. Rather than endless rows of perfectly cultivated and planted flowers and bushes that lined all the other gardens, there were only fields of wild flowers that grew there naturally. Van had felt that its natural state was fine enough to declare it a garden, much to the displeasure of his gardeners. Finally, Van had to fence off the fields to keep out all the conniving gardeners who tried to sneak in at night to trim the fields. Hitomi had to laugh when she heard this story. It was almost hard to believe that someone would be so motivated to do work. Then again, this was a great country, not so cluttered and strict like the ones at home. There, workers demanded outrageous wages, and sometimes did no more than what they were told, out of laziness and spite. The Fanelians were grateful to have a kind family serve as the ruling leaders, and they showed their appreciation through their actions.
The weather was sunny, and the light scent of flowers and grass met them as they walked along the stone path. The fields were rather large, spanning even further than the eye could see. A few miles down the path, there was a small river, with a bridge that arched over it. They were still quite some distance from it, but they always managed to reach there in the end. The walked slowly, discussing various matters at hand, and laughing playfully.
Van had just finished retelling a particularly humorous childhood story, when he suddenly fell quiet. Hitomi ceased her laughter after noticing the change in his behavior.
"What's wrong?" She asked, watching his usually expressionless face. He look as if he was debating something, and finally he took a deep breath, turned, to her, and began to speak.
"My advisors, they've been pressuring me to start choosing a bride soon. If I do not acquire an engagement by the next new moon, they'll choose one for me."
Hitomi nodded, none of this registering in her head. Marriage? Bride? Hmm, her mind dimly thought. I wonder who it could possibly be…
They stopped in the middle of the bridge, and Van took her left hand in hers. He knelt down on the wooden planks, and kissed her hand lightly, his breath fluttering over her knuckles.
With eyes full of love, he looked up at her, and declared, "Hitomi Kanzaki, I love you, and I want you by my side for eternity. Will you marry me?"
Hitomi's right hand rose to cover her mouth. She was shocked – she hadn't expected this so soon. Her eyes filled with tears, as she nodded, too happy for words.
"Yes, of course I'll marry you." She whispered.
He brought out a ring from his pocket, and slipped it on her left ring finger. Then, he rose and kissed her gently.
The sun set slowly on the horizon, and the newly engaged couple walked hand in hand down the path towards the palace. No words were passed between them then, but it was okay. They already knew how each other felt.
Allen sat on the bench outside the entrance to the Western Garden, waiting for Merle to come out. There was no other way out of the gardens, unless you wanted to destroy a section of the garden in the progress. The Western Gardens was a large maze of hedges, with a large fountain at the center. Merle always found the center in less than five minutes. Allen knew this, and as he watched the sun set on the horizon, the stars twinkling down at him under the new night sky, he knew something was wrong.
He stood up to walk in to find her, when Merle suddenly came strolling out. He froze, and Merle, catching sight of him, spun on her heel, and started to walk right back into the maze, all the while mutter profanities under her breath.
"Wait!" Allen called, running after her. He had never had much of a good sense of direction, and he was quickly lost in the seemingly endless maze of greenery.
"Merle!" He called, but to no avail. The night responded with silence, without so much of a rustle.
"Merle…I like you." He said to no one in particular, assuming that Merle had ditched him and ran back to the palace. After all, that was the most obvious choice of action that Merle would take, knowing her, and considering the damage he had done.
"No…it's defiantly not love. It might not be the same feeling that I felt for Hitomi, but it's different." He laughed harshly, turning to a rabbit that turned to stare at him in the moonlight. "I'm such a screw up, huh? I can't even act like a gentleman when I'm around her. Not even during the war. She's like the little sister I should have had. If my real sister had not turned into that Dilandau, maybe things would have been different."
The rabbit turned away from him, and Allen scoffed. "Don't turn away from me, little rabbit. Maybe my kind of affection isn't as logical as everyone else's. Maybe it's not perfect. Maybe it's not even affection at all. But I know I feel something. I just haven't figured it out yet. Maybe….just maybe…and you know, I can't even find my way out of this stupid place, and I think Merle left me for dead. I mean, I can't blame her for that, after what I did. But I guess I was being stupid. Irrational. A complete imbecile. I even risked destroying Hitomi and Van's relationship. You know, maybe she's right. I should be demoted. Maybe I'll even be transferred back to Austria. Yeah, Austria…"
He sighed, and brushed himself off. "Well, I guess I should really apologize to her. I feel kind of bad. If not for all that training, I guess I would have hit her. But then, how would I feel if she did get hit? Would I be losing my sister all over again?"
The rabbit ran off, and a voice echoed through the maze. "No. You'd never lose me." Allen turned in time to see a darting shadow, flicker down a passage.
"Merle!" He shouted, running after it. He chased it down various paths, until finally, he found himself outside of the maze.
"What took you so long?" A voice asked to his right, and he looked down to see Merle lounging on the bench, her nose turned up.
"How long were you listening?" He demanded.
"Long enough."
He sighed. "Well, I think we should be heading back…"
"Not yet. I think you owe me something."
Allen hesitated, and sighed. "I'm sorry. I really am."
Merle hopped off the bench, and walked off. "Apology accepted," floated over her shoulder, and a wide smile spread over Allen's face. He started running after her, but she whirled around, holding out a hand to signal him to stop.
"Don't think I'm going to let you off the hook that easily!" She said firmly. "I expect you obey me over the next week. If I want a manicure, I'll get a manicure. If I want peeled oranges, I WILL get PERFECTLY peeled oranges that are NOT SOUR. Understood?"
Allen just nodded. Merle's eyes softened, and she beckoned for him to follow. He did so, and they walked back to the palace, a friendly atmosphere restored.
At dinner, things were oddly different, Hitomi and Van noticed. For one, Merle was ordering Allen around. No surprise there. But the real shocker was that Allen was following her every order, and stumbling over himself to get it as quickly as possible.
"Since when did you become so nice?" Van asked in the middle of the second course. Allen had just returned from retrieving an extra fork for Merle.
"What do you mean? I'm always nice!" Allen said, flashing a perfectly innocent smile.
"Fine. Allen, get a bowl of onions and chives from the kitchen, please." Van commanded, skeptical.
"Get it yourself, you lazyass," was the snapped reply.
Hitomi and Van raised an eyebrow simultaneously. Interesting…
Van led Hitomi to her bedchambers later that evening to bid her good night. He kissed her gently, and left. Hitomi walked into her bedchambers, shut the door, and leaned back against it, sighing. The past few hours had been like a dream. She felt so much freer to express herself, much more comfortably than before, that she should tell him anything, and he would not think any less of her.
After finishing the final preparations before bed, Hitomi pulled back the covers and slipped into bed. Sleep overcame her almost instantly, and the next thing she knew, she had dove into a deep, dreamless sleep.
The next morning, Van woke up earlier than usual. Problems had been haunting him all night, preventing him for getting any real sleep. Proposing had been the easy part, but now there were his advisors to deal with. They still saw Hitomi as a commoner – even worse, with the status of no more than a peasant. His father's old advisor was head of the team, however, he was becoming too old. He had accepted the pair out of sheer determination to stop the fighting. The rest of them were a different story. He had no way to know how they would react the same issue again. Of course, they were fully aware that the old coot had to retire soon, so now, they were becoming more and more outspoken. Naturally, the old man was concerned, but it really was his time to go. As he spoke, the old man was on leave, recovering from a sudden sweep of illness that had overcome the palace. Naturally, Van was fine, but some of the staff hadn't fared so well.
There was a soft knock on his door, and Van turned in surprise. It was far too early for his wake-up call, and no doubt Allen was still asleep, sprawled in a mess of blankets and snoring loudly. Woe to the servants who had rooms next to his.
"Come in." Van said, without turning around. The door creaked open slightly, and shut with a small click. Van turned around, and was greeted with a surprise.
"Millerna!" Van said in surprise. He had not expected her, out of all people, to come knocking at his door so early in the morning.
Millerna smiled, and said, "Nice to see you again. I just came to inform you that I had returned, and that I have a few propositions from Freid.
Van blinked, confused. "What? Where did you go? I didn't hear that you had left."
"Sorry. I had to leave on short notice. Something came up back home, and I had to go back to help sort it out." Millerna explained. "It took longer than I expected, but it's fine now. They wanted me to give you a few papers to sign. Marriage papers, I believe, concerning my aunt's daughter. You do remember, that they took over the family line?"
"Yes…" Van's eyes clouded over. "Send the papers back. I won't sign them."
"But…well, there were certain conditions that my aunt set." Millerna said, adverting her eyes. "She told me that if you did not sign the papers to marry her daughter, Freid would cut off all trade with Fanelia, and my title as Princess will be stripped from me. Furthermore, I will be exiled, and if I am caught even one toe in the country, I will be executed in public."
Van winced. "Nice family."
"Yeah, I know." Millerna looked frustrated. "And that was the best of what I managed to negotiate. They originally wanted to declare war, those damn bastards."
Frowning, Van remembered what had happened back then. The advisors had revolted against Millerna and Dryden, feeling that they were far too young to run a country. When they realized that they could not control the country through them, they backed up Millerna's aunt, and placed them in power. Millerna had tried to fire them, but her country's law clearly stated that the Fried Parliament had to be in consensus of this decision.
Obviously, they weren't. Millerna smelled a rat.
As it turned out, Millerna's aunt managed to overthrow them, and kept Millerna as a princess. Dryden was framed and convicted of treason, but he left the country and was currently residing in the woods of Fanelia. Millerna kept him company often, but her real home, she felt, was the environment she grew up in – a palace. Surprisingly, their bonds grew stronger through separation, and everything was well between them.
"What do you want me to do?" Van asked her, "Out of all seriousness."
Millerna chewed her lip for a moment before answering. "The logical answer would be to force you to sign them. My birthright is unrightfully being taken away from me, and it's just not fair in my eyes. As an exiled, I can't do anything about it. Even now, in the hands of my aunt and my uncle, my people are suffering. I can't stand by and let that happen. However…I do understand how you love Hitomi and I strongly support your desire to marry her."
Van nodded. "We're in a quite a predicament, aren't we?"
There was moment of silence, as both of them tried to think of something. "Hey."
Millerna looked up from her silent pondering. "Hmm?"
"Are negotiations still open?"
"I'm afraid not. I've gotten all I could out of them already. Trust me when I say that their current negotiations are extremely magnanimous as it is, considering what kind of people they are."
"Hmm…and how many allotted days will I have to consider?"
"I managed to worm a few more days out of them, so they're giving us a week."
"I see." Van nodded absentmindedly, a plot already forming in his head. "I'll talk to my advisors, and we'll see if we can't do something about it. There has to be some loophole in there."
Millerna nodded. "I understand. Excuse me; I must go make morning preparations. Dryden's been expecting me." She bowed out of the room, and her footsteps soon died as she walked down the hall.
Van turned, and leaned against the stone handrail of his balcony, and watched the sun rise. The early morning mists dissipated slowly, revealing the mass of foliage below them. Even further out, he could see the distant spires of Freid. It was hard to believe that their ways had changed this much in such a shot span of time.
His gaze darkened, as he continued to watch the distant horizon. He had to do something. For the sake of his people, and for Millerna. Most of all, for Hitomi.
Turning and walking back into his room, he hurriedly got dressed, and strode towards the conference room with short, brisk steps.
Let the games begin.
e.e I wonder what will happen next :3 Don't worry, I'll try to think of something creative : AHa few more chapters, and this story is OVERR! So watch for the ending, kay? I know I've been slow on updates, but I'm doing my best to catch up . So REVIEW REVIEW and make me proud :
Oh, and I threw Millerna in because I realized that I hadn't included her in a while. So if it conflicts with what I wrote before, SORRYYY ;-;
In the name of peace,
Kyoko