Disclaimer: I do not own Escaflowne, nothing more to say.

Forgotten by Destiny

By Ryoko Porter

Part Nine

Van followed the woman through the streets of his city, though he hardly paid attention. The small girl in his arms had wrapped herself around him, clutching his neck and waist with her limbs. She seemed scared being held by him, yet oddly content. And he was happy to hold her in his arms.

This Namir was so much like he and Merle were at her age, like a mix of the two. Of course, she was a mix of the two of them, wasn't she? A product of the abuse he'd done to his friend. Over the years, he'd come to recognize that he'd been raping Merle for the four years that they were together. Only that last morning had been of any purity, and fate had made it probably the cruelest of their time together. Part of him always wished she hadn't left, but he knew that if she'd stayed there probably would've been a lot more heartache. Though now that he had this bundle in his arms, he wondered if that was correct.

The three finally came to a park where a wagon train was parked in a circle, made into their own sort of neighborhood. Where the wagons didn't connect, sheets were hung, so that others couldn't see within. Van put Namir down, as she struggled. She then disappeared behind the sheets, presumably to see her mother. The woman in black turned to the king then, and it was the first time that Van realized that she'd uncovered her face.

'Your highness, are you sure you wish to see her? She does not speak to anyone but Namir,' the black-panther faced lady asked. Van merely nodded his answer. So she pulled back a sheet and let him inside.

Once inside, Van saw that there were a few burning fire-pits, with small stations around them. His escort called to Namir, and he saw the child come out from a wagon that was for some reason, within the circle. Van took that as his clue to where she was, and headed in that direction. There were a few other children and elders who watched him, curious as to why he was there, but he paid them no mind. At the base of the steps that led to the entrance of the wagon, he took a moment to collect what was left of his nerves in a heavy breath.

Climbing up the steps and opening the flimsy door, Van entered Merle's room for the first time in years. The wagon was full of supplies and even dried food, not the kind of place Van had hoped to find his friend in. Yet there in an old rocking chair was the depressing form of his broken Merle. She'd changed a lot since he'd last laid eyes on her. She was dressed in a long wisteria colored dress, but it didn't cover the scars on her arms. In her lap lay a bundle of herbs that she seemed to be tying, careful with her nearly inch long nails that were more like claws. Her hair covered her face, falling down to her waist with white feathers tied as decoration. Van couldn't help but imagine that they were his.

'Hello Merle,' he finally spoke after a long silence, but she didn't look up. Van began to feel uncomfortable as he realized that he didn't know what to say. He wasn't even sure what he'd planned to do when he got here. There was nothing he could say that would fix the past. So he looked at her for what he expected to be the last time in his life, and then turned to leave. 'I'm sorry,' and he opened the door.

'She's beautiful, isn't she?' Van swallowed the lump that came from hearing her voice. It was sad and quiet, but almost musical in it's misery. Seeing Namir, he nodded his agreement. Turning he saw that she was standing behind him. Her face was finally visible, showing in all of its tired glory. Though she was younger than him, she seemed at least another ten years his senior. The lines in her face told of her stresses, and the bags under her eyes, of the tears. And around her neck still hung the little rose jewel she'd stolen from Hitomi.

Van wondered if his happiness was worth this sacrifice.

End Part 9.