'Normal' Voice 'italicized' Dilandau

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne or MKR (the OVA nor the series).

Chapter 6: Nighttime visitors and voices in the mind

Hitomi's room, Palace of Fanaila

Dilandau took long strides while the little one was having trouble catching up. This was strange that the fact that he couldn't help but stop for the little redhead. He felt more protective of this angel then he ever was with ANYTHING. He felt that he WANTED to protect her and wanted NOTHING to hurt her. They passed statues of dragons and unicorns. It was a pity that the unicorns had to die off.

Dilandau shook his head. WHAT THE HELL WAS HE THINKING! His head was screaming with confusion. Why was he feeling pity for that long forgotten race?

'God damn it! You're thinking exactly I was when I was alive, Dilandau,' a voice that was a huskier version of his own echoed in his head. 'But I'm surprise that you're thinking of the Unicorns. That's a shocker.'

Dilandau blinked. He had to be going insane. One way you can tell that you are is hearing voices in your head, right? This was giving him a headache.

'Oh, my boy, you're NOT going insane I can insure you. Of course you're the one that thinks that all those emotions that going through you are just mere things that just come and go. I was once like that, but now I'm not an idiot to think that anymore. Well that's since I'm DEAD now.' The voice sounded amused by this.

Yep, he had gone insane. Not only the voice sounded like him but also it was suppose to be someone to be dead. Oh what a dandy day to just stay in bed.

All of his thoughts were erased and the voice disappeared when Van stopped in front of a door that was just beautifully carved like the big doors to the meeting room. Dragons fighting and long ago seen Unicorns grazing. Yes, this would be a REALLY good day to stay in bed. All he wanted to do was to not think he was going insane and—

'Oh stop you're complaining and go back to reality, you dimwit!'

This pissed Dilandu, 'Well, sorry! It's not my damn fault that you just popped out of nowhere in my mind!' he shot back in his mind with an angry wave link and while walking into the room.

'Sheesh, talk about waking on the wrong side of the bed,' the voice muttered with an offended tone 'I guess that's a hit for me to get my ass out, isn't it?'

A grumble answered his question. 'I'll take that as a 'yes'.' And the voice fully disappeared, well for now anyways. Dilandau grunted and Van looked at him strangely.

Dilandau grimaced, "I was just deep in thought." Was all he could say.

It seemed a good enough answer, because Van turned back and was talking to Hitomi, who was lying in bed because she had the flu. Hitomi changed over the years; her brown hair was a lighter brown since she was outside more often then when she was on earth. Her eyes glistened with energy and were full of bliss then when she first came here, which were full of sorrow and pain at that time. She also became a very beautiful young woman and queen. Some of those damn politics once tried to convince her that they were better then Van, but to Dilandau's surprise, she told them off and said that she preferred Van over someone that had twenty wives before. This proved that she had more guts then those jelly-bellies of politics. He smirked at the thought of their faces when they heard that.

Hitomi looked at the young girl that was standing next to Dilandau. She looked familiar but she couldn't put a finger on it or where she seen her. She knew it had to be on earth, because of her cloths. But the eyes were full of excitement but something was hidden that showed sorrow. Her hair was flaming red that went with her eyes. She looked like she was only 14 of age.

The girl looked at her with wide eyes, "H-Hitomi? Is that you?"

"Huh?" how did she know her name?

"Don't you remember? You tutored me in Math."

This rung a bell, "HIKARU?" yes, that had to be her, it been 6 years but, she now remember her.

Dilandau and Van looked at each other and back at the two girls again. They knew each other? That was a shock. How the hell did they know each other?

Van cleared his throat, "Hitomi, you know her?"

"Of course she knows her, she wouldn't call out her name so loud if she didn't." Dilandau growled under his breath.

'You really need to learn to be more gentlemanly you know that, Dilandau?' the voice once again rung in his head.

'I thought you left.' This time this wave link showed his annoyance.

'Oh yeah! I forgot something so I'm leaving now.'

'Good riddance!' was the response.

Van was watching the two girls talking about what happened over the years. He was surprised that someone, who is also from the Mystic Moon, was able to get here by the same means. This made him think maybe something is coming up that would be worst then the raiding of the carriages. Maybe, just maybe, it eventually would get as bad were Escaflowne would have to be summon again. Could she be one of those angels of legend?

After the long talk, Hitomi sent for a servant to get some cloths to be used by her friend. Hikaru tried to protest, but she insisted. After a moment of more talking, the servant came back with the tailor. Hikaru was pulled out of Hitomi's room and into another. Dilandau tried to go in as well, but the door was closed in his face.

'Why did I even try? It's not like she would get hurt and it was not like I really care, then why the hell did I even WANTED to go in?'

..oo00oo..

On the borders of Fanaila: to the East

Ascot glared at the Rouge Knight. He was now singing, if not wonderfully, the most annoying song that was sung on Earth/Cephiro/Gaia. The song was "It's a Small World."

"It's a small world after all, it's a small world after all, it's a small world after all. It's a small, small world." Fario then started humming it with the worst tune he would think of.

Ascot had enough, "FARIO! SHUT THE HELL UP!"

Fario stopped and turned to look at his companion, "Oi! Talk about waking on the wrong side of the bed."

"Maybe if you don't sing, I would be in a better mood!" the Palu said grumbling under his breath.

Fario grinned, "Na, really? I didn't know that was the reason." He was given a icy glare by the summoner of the beasts.

Then Ascot remembered something. He looked at the other knight who seem not saying anything at the moment. Lantis' ocean blue eyes looked like pools of lost thoughts. He was thinking about something that seemed to be bothering him.

He took a deep breath, "You seemed to be worried. What's up?"

Lantis snapped out of his train of thought. He looked at the Palu, "Hmm? Oh, I was just thinking about what Princess Emeraude told me."

"And let me guess, it was when me and Ascot—"

"Ascot and I!" Ascot corrected.

Fario rolled his eyes, "—Ascot and I had to be out of the room, wasn't it."

Lantis only turned his head. He was too worried about Hikaru to even notice there was something following them. Fario started sing again, with Ascot's glare. The trio didn't notice that a little pixy was spying on them for matters that can't be said.

"WHEN are we getting there anyways, Ascot?" this just came to the Rouge Knight's mind.

"We should get there by just a little after sunset." Ascot grinned when Fario groaned.

Then Fario stopped in his tracks, looking around, "Just wondering. Umm . . . Just . . . what happened to Gardina and that fluff ball anyways?"

"Good question . . ." just after Ascot, said that they heard a loud, ear-shattering scream, that came none other then Gardina herself.

Six seconds later, she was running out of the forest that she was in all that time. Dirt covered her from head to foot and she was running around like a chicken that just lost its head to a butcher. Then she ran straight to the now tall summoner and jump right in to his arms while smothering him with her breast. Of coarse, Ascot was confused by all this and just realized that Gardina was smothering him.

Fario looked at her like she just grew a second head, "What happened?"

"D-d-d-d-d-dr-drag-drag-DRAGON!" she was finally to spit out.

"Wmuf do you muff abomuf a dragon? (What do you mean about a dragon?)" Ascot was all he had mange to say, since he was suffocating with Gardina's over sized bust.

At that second, the dragon that Gardina was talking about emerged from the deep, icy-cold shadows. It looked sickly then normal land dragons. The thick hide was an ill-fated looking violet with a mixer with green an gray. Its saliva was an acid blue and it acted like toxics since everything it touched, died. The claws were like they were made by black glass and they dug though the rock-like-soil, like it was nothing more then beach sand. The eyes a dark maroon that looked like the moon when it was blood red.

Lantis drew out his sword; he felt that this wasn't a normal dragon. In fact, he could sense that it was some kind of summon that wasn't even Ascot's doing. The other two also might have sensed it too; Ascot summoned his own creature, while dropping Gardina at the same time, and Fario also pulled out his sword. The dragon snarled at the intruders that just took out their weapons. Ascot scanned it carefully. Then he froze, muttering under his breath.

"What's wrong?" Fario knew it wasn't good if Ascot acted like this.

"He's here, that bastard is here." The auburn-red head muttered darkly.

"Françoise?" Lantis growled.

Ascot shook his head, "No, Garrickwas the one who summoned this thing."

"I see, so he's working for that French snot is he?" Fario sarcasm sounded like they were in not on the best of terms.

"I have a feeling that would be the case." Ascot shifted to the left the see if the dragon was after one of them or all.

The dragon didn't pay attention to him, or to Fairo when he did the same thing. Gardina was in a corner, so it deafly wasn't her. All was left was Lantis. Lantis swiftly maneuvered around the summon. As he did this, the dragon also seemed to follow. Now everyone now saw that he was the target, but why? Ascot told his summon to block the other to give Lantis a chance. His summon, which was a mixer of a griffin and a sphinx, charged at the dragon, but to its surprise the dragon tripped it and slashed its claw into the chest of his summon. The gash was fairly fatal, and Ascot couldn't do anything, since he couldn't heal. Lantis somehow was able to get behind of the dragon, and his blade reared up to target the middle of the spine.

..oo00oo..

On the borders of Fanaila: to the West

Clef watch the scenery past by and the forest to Fanaila was becoming closer. He sighed, he knew that Lord Van wouldn't be expecting them, but he had to make sure that the other two knights get there, and then look for Hikaru, if she wasn't there already.

He looked at Fuu and Umi, "How are you two coping?"

Umi smile, "We're doing fine," then she had a worried expression, "But I hope that Hikaru is okay."

Fuu nodded, "Yes, I do hope we find her soon, I have a bad feeling about all this."

'It might be worst then we think, if we don't find her." Clef thought as they entered the forest.

..oo00oo..

Meeting room, Palace of Fanaila (Two hours before midnight)

Van paced across the floor. Dilandau was dosing in his seat. It was late, where were they? Why haven't they sent anything on their where abouts? The door opened Van looked up. One of the servants stood, almost stone like.

"Well?"

"They have come, Mi Lord."

Van walked over to the sleeping Dilandau, "Dilandau, wake up. It's time." Now shaking his shoulder.

"Wha? Oh, okay, I'm up." Came the sleepy response.

With that settled, both the King and the Commander walked into the great hall, to meet their visitors. Three hooded fingers stood in the middle of the hall, All three fairly tall. Two wore white and the middle wore black.

Van took a deep breath, "What took you three so long."

The one in the middle walked forward, showing his ocean blue eyes, "Some trouble came and we had no way to avoid It." came the gruff response.

A/N: Sorry again about the long wait. I have been very busy lately.