Hello people! I'm so sorry for not updating yesterday, but my computer kept doing stupid things, and it was just impossible.

However, everything is almost mixed now, so I won't have any more problems. Anyway, exams are starting again. They are

not as heavy as the last ones, but I won't update very fast. If you see the bright point, though, I will update, not like last

time. And please don't kill me after you finish this chapter. I swear next chapter makes up for this one.

The pain of loving you

The mirror within

Me gustan más los sueños del futuro que la historia del pasado.

The pendant kept moving in circles. She could see it in her mind, the pink glow that shone through the darkness that surrounded it. Its movement was hypnotizing, but she didn't care. She only had one though in her mind, only enough energy to find one single thing.

'Where is the Valley of Truth?' she asked it silently. It kept moving in circles. Hitomi frowned in concentration, but the pendant didn't stop moving. It didn't signal in any direction. In fact, it moved faster. She calmed her agitated nerves and gathered all the patience she had left in her. Her resolve to calm herself down did not work.

'Bloody Valley of Truth, of course it couldn't be located in a bloody easy spot with signs to show where it was!'

Hitomi took a deep breath. She had been trying to find it for over four hours, and she still had no idea of where it was.

'The bloody place is probably in a cave or at the bottom of the ocean or, why not? Up in the sky, hidden in the clouds so no one can see it or get to it!'

Hitomi was so immersed in her cursing that she didn't realize that the pendant had stopped moving. When she noticed, she felt like throwing it as far away from her as she could. The stupid thing was pointing at the ground. No north, south, west, any direction, no, it was pointing at spot where they were. She looked around herself, as if trying to see if she had missed anything in the landscape. They were in a clearing that was surrounded by mountains. They seemed to isolate the place from the rest of the world. Sure it looked like a valley. She didn't deny that the air felt different, the colors seemed to shine brighter, and the birds sang in the middle of the day. Yes, the place had something different about it, but it definitely wasn't the Valley of Truth. There was nothing there but plants, animals, and tons of mountains.

"Stupid pendant!" She yelled indignantly at the pink tear that stood between her fingers. "Why won't you show us the way?"

The pendant kept shining in her fingers. It didn't voice its answer.

"What's the problem now?"

Hitomi turned to look at Van. He was sitting on the grass, both arms lying on the grass, giving him support, and his legs crossed in an Indian kind of way. The bloody idiot looked relaxed! Relaxed! When she was so frustrated! When she had been working her ass for four eternal hours! And all he did was sit and ask her what was wrong! The nerve of him.

"This thing," She put the pendant right in front of his face, "won't show us the way, and all you're doing is sitting there and watching me struggle with it… and you do nothing!"

She turned her back to him, raised her head, and crossed her arms. Van thought that she looked like the princess she was in that position and a ghost of a smile appeared on his face.

"Well, you are the seer." Noticing the glared she sent his way, he added "Where is it pointing?"

"Nowhere, it's pointing nowhere. It does circles and then it stops, right here, where we are."

"Oh…"

His answer made her angrier. She looked at him over her shoulder, ready to yell at him, when she caught a real sight of him. His bangs covered his eyes, and she could only see his nose and mouth. He was acting so calm it unnerved her, but there was something about seeing him so calm that made her happy. It seemed like he had no worries.

"Why do you think we fell here of all places?"

His question raised her anger again. He knew bloody well why they were here. They had arrive here because…well, because she had accidentally tripped and fell all the way down.

Flashback

Hitomi was riding the horse while Van walked besides her. They were going up the mountain because going around it would take too much time. They didn't have time to waste. She got off the horse to stretch her legs and let the horse rest for a little. She went to the edge of the 'road'. She looked down and immediately felt dizzy. It was so high! She turned to go back to the safety of the road when she'd stepped on a rock and lost her balance.

"Van!"

"Hitomi!"

He grabbed her hand and tried to steady her, but her weight pulled him down with her, and they both ended up falling down the mountain.

End Flashback

Van had used his body to protect her from the rocks. They had fallen until they'd reached the end of the mountain. Luckily for them, it had been the smallest of mountains. Hitomi looked at the bruises Van had, and her angered wavered a bit. He had gotten them because of her. Hitomi stared at him; he had removed his shirt so she could bandage him where he was injured. She blushed when Van turned to look at her.

'Stop watching him.' She ordered herself. Her eyes did not follow her command, and kept delighting in his vision. She glimpsed from the corner of her eyes so he wouldn't notice. Her eyes trailed along his muscle arms and defined stomach and torso. How could anyone have such a great body? Her anger and frustration disappeared as she watched him.

"Did you even listen to my question?"

Startled, Hitomi turned her whole attention to him.

"What?"

"Do you know why we landed here?"

To her disappointment, he stood up and put his shirt back on.

'Stop thinking about him that way. You are engaged to Allen. What you feel for Van is just attraction, nothing more. What you feel for Allen is so much more…' As much as Hitomi tried, her thoughts felt like a lie, but she ignored the feeling and answered his question.

"We are her because I tripped. You don't have to remind me."

"Sometimes," He began, "you are too stupid for your own good."

Hitomi opened her mouth to protest with all her might, but Van started talking before she could.

"Don't you feel the aura of this place? It radiates magic, just like in Glendalough, but in a different way."

Hitomi closed her eyes, and she suddenly felt it, weak at first, but stronger as she concentrated. It seemed to hide its power for the people that were too distracted to notice. The magic of the place didn't feel evil, just old. Hitomi felt another blush cover her face.

"So?"

Van sighed. "Hitomi, this is the Valley of Truth. For been a supposedly powerful seer, you are way too dense."

Hitomi should have answered back. It was her nature to yell and scream every time he insulted her. She never kept quiet, but this time she did. Van looked at her. Her eyes were fixed in front of her. He followed her gaze. Right there, before them, the ground was opening in two, and for some weird reason, it didn't make a sound as it did, and they didn't make a movement as the earth swallowed them up.

Dornkirk sat in a circular table. All his advisors, wizards and important people, were seated beside him. They were all patiently waiting. Their eyes locked on the center of the table. None of them made a sound. They were scared of angering the already mad Dornkirk. They knew that whatever he was going to tell them wouldn't be pleasant. They knew that if any of them made a wrong move, they would have to pay with their lives…So an unnatural silence and stillness stretched between them. A knock broke the quietness of the room, making the hair on the back of everyone but Dornkirk's neck rise.

"Come in."

A terrified messenger came through the door. It was obvious he brought bad news. He was trying to maintain his face as emotionless as he could, but he was doing a miserable job. It was contracted in fear.

"What is it?" Dornkirk's cold, angered voice only unnerved everyone in the room more.

"Dilandu has arrived, Lord Dornkirk."

Dornkirk's back went rigid. His mouth went into a smile that chilled even the bravest.

"Let him come in."

The messenger left the room. He seemed more than happy to, and minutes later, Dilandu appeared. He was able to maintain his face emotionless. He looked calm, but if one looked close into his eyes, they would be able to see the fear that he hide so well.

"You called me, master?" His voice was carefully neutral. He didn't let out any emotion.

"You failed to kill Van and capture the girl."

It was a simple statement, but it doomed Dilandu forever.

"You will be punished for your failure."

Dilandu's face paled, but to his credit, his face maintained expressionless.

"I know."

"Would you like to know what will happen to you?" Dornkirk's voice sounded happy. He was enjoying this.

"I…"

"You will know anyway." Dornkirk looked straight into his eyes. Dilandu's mask fell. "You will be tortured in the cruelest ways my men can imagine. You will be beaten until you beg for your life. You will be emotionally hurt until you wish you had never been born. Your life will turn into your living nightmare, and when you think nothing could get worse, you will be proven wrong." His voice had risen as he said all these things. He had stood from his chair and had walked towards Dilandu, so he now stood in front of him. His last words though, were said so only Dilandu could hear them "But you will not die. I still have a use for you…" He broke eye contact with Dilandu, and left him shaking. He was a pitiful sigh. "Take him away." Two soldiers came for him. Dilandu did not fight as they took him away. He was preparing himself for what was to come.

"What will you do know?" The question came from one of his wizards. Dornkirk turned towards him, and he seemed to get little edgy under his gaze. Dornkirk didn't say anything for a while. He called out for a messenger and whispered something in his ear. He quickly left, and everyone was left to wait. Finally, the knock on the door was heard, and two cat women came in.

"May I present to you" Dornkirk said, signaling to the two warriors that had knelt besides him "Naria and Eriya. They will be essential for our victory." He turned towards them. "Prepare the Draconian. As soon as we know where Van is, we will send him to kill him and bring the girl back. The twins stood up and left the room without a word. One question united in all the heads in the room, but only one person voiced it aloud.

"What other Draconian?"

Van desperately tried to grab Hitomi's hand, but all he found around himself was air. He looked around, trying to see any hint of her. Nothing, there was pure darkness around him. He tried to get out his wings, but the magic of the place didn't let him. He felt vulnerable. He could do nothing to make the situation better. He closed his eyes and relaxed his body as much as he could. That was all he could do; go along with the situation. He tried not to think about Hitomi. He had seen her face the moment the earth had parted at their feet. Unlike any other situation in which they had found themselves in, she hadn't expressed any emotion. She had stayed right where she was, her eyes fixed to the front. She hadn't yelled. She hadn't turned towards him. She hadn't even tried to run. She had simply stayed there and had let the earth swallow her. Van's hands turned into fists. She hadn't listened to him.

"Hitomi, run, grab my hand, do something!"

Why had she done none of the things he had told her to do? What was wrong with her? Why had he treated her so badly today?

'Stupid Hitomi, you always get me and yourself in trouble…' he opened his eyes, and they soften 'How will I be able to save you if I'm not close to you?'

Hitomi stopped falling. She opened her eyes. Her green orbs widen with surprise. Before her, a place like she had never before seen laid. Trees the color of silver with golden flowers adorned the valley. Fountains of the clearest waters were nicely place in the middle of it. Flowers of every color one could think off made up the ground of the valley. She looked up. To her surprise, the bluest of skies could be seen. She tried to go towards the flowers, and she gave a little yelp as she realized that she not standing, but floating.

"What kind of place is this?" she voiced out loud.

"The Valley of Truth, of course" she hadn't expected an answer, so the voice startled her. She gulped. The owner of the voice laughed. It was a kind laugh, but it sounded a little old. "Turn around, child; I'm not going to eat you." Hitomi tried to move her body towards the voice, but she found the job to be impossible. The man laughed politely. "I'm sorry about that. I forgot." he snapped his fingers, and Hitomi fell to the ground with a crash. "Oops, I'm sorry about that too."

She slowly stood up and turned towards the voice. Her head went to one side, and she looked at him in a curious way.

"You don't look mean…"

"I'm not mean."

"There is no evil aura around you…"

"I'm not evil."

"You are old."

He chuckled. "That I am."

"Are you very powerful?"

"I'm very wise…"

Hitomi thought about his answer. "Is it better to be wise or powerful?"

"It depends on what you want. In my opinion, power without wisdom is as good as nothing, but of course, one can't be wise and powerful at the same time."

"Why not?"

"Because the world has to have a balance."

"Why?"

"What do you think would happen if someone was as wise as powerful?"

"That person would take advantage of the rest…?"

"Exactly, only gods are as powerful as wise and not all of them."

Hitomi looked at the man before him. He had a long white beard. He had wrinkles in his hands and face, and a stick was in his left hand. He looked defenseless.

"Who are you?" The question left Hitomi's mouth before she could think about it, and she put a hand on her mouth.

"It's ok. Having lots of questions is natural. I am one of the keepers of the Valley. I am wisdom, eternity, intelligence, and maturity."

"What should I call you?"

"A long time ago, my name was Barton."

"It doesn't seem to fit you…"

"It never did."

"Why am I here?"

"You? For no reason. It is not you we are interested in, but your companion, Van Fanel."

"Van?" His name purred out of her lips guiltily. "I'd forgotten about him for a moment."

She felt terrible. He was probably worried sick about her, and she had totally forgotten about him.

"Don't worry, it happens to everyone. Come, why don't we go sit under a tree and enjoy the day?"

She shook her head. "No, I have to find Van."

"He is fine. Trust me. The other keeper is probably taking care of him right now. You have nothing to worry about. Come one, it is a beautiful day."

Hitomi was about to protest, but there was something about the place that called to her. The sunrays caressed her skin, and the sky and trees and everything was so…perfect. It was impossible to not want to stay for just a moment, to relax and forget for a simple second. Nothing wrong could come out of enjoying such a beautiful day.

"I guess…if Van is fine, then I can stay for just a few minutes. After all, it is a beautiful day."

She followed to old man under a tree and took the apple he gave her. She smiled at him in gratitude and bite it. She instantly felt better, and she started talking cheerfully with him. Slowly, without her noticing, Van started to slip out of her mind, slowly going to the deepest part of it.

Van stopped falling and, with a loud noise, submerged into freezing water. The impact had come without warning, and Van felt the cold water hit him hard. It was like a thousand daggers were been put inside him. He quickly swam his way out and went to shore. Once he was safely on ground, he got into a fighting position. His eyes traveled over every angle of the clearing he was in. Nothing moved. He looked at the black trees, but there wasn't even a shadow. He looked at the moon above him. Dark clouds hid part of it. He turned to look at the lake he had fallen into. It was still, and black as any abyss. Van got a bad feeling. The place had no movement. The trees didn't have a shadow. The clouds were as still as…hey, why were there clouds and a moon? He was underground. He had been falling for hours, and now, there was a sky above him? That was impossible.

"Where the hell am I?"

No one answered him. A shiver ran down his spine. Even in Glendalough there had been noise. The worst places had noises, as uneasy as they were. This one didn't. It was as quiet as a tomb, as death. Van slowly started to step towards the lake. It seemed to be far safer than the woods in front of him. He stepped on a stick, and he felt it brake, but not a sound was heard. He stopped moving. Where the hell was him? Was Hitomi alright? If she was in the same situation he was in, she was probably terrified. He had to find her, but how? He tried to get his wings out again, but again, magic forced them into him.

'What should I do? Hitomi, please…'

A chuckle.

He had heard a childish chuckle.

He turned his head towards the noise. There, as if out of nowhere, a little girl stood in the middle of two trees. Van focused on her, but he could not feel anything evil in her. Instead, he found that the aura that surrounded her was pure. There was no hint of malice in her.

"Who are you?" The little girl asked him.

"My name is…" Who was he? He used to be the Dragon, but since Hitomi had come into his life, everything had changed. He had become Van Fanel, heir of Fanelia, a draconian, and yet, deep down, the Dragon still lived.

"I don't know who I am anymore." It was the most honest answer he could come up with.

"Doesn't it feel lonely to not know who you are?"

It was a question that had no hidden meaning. It had not been asked to hurt, but it had.

"Yes, it feels very lonely."

"Have you always been lonely?"

Van closed his eyes. Yes, he had always been lonely. His family had been taken away from him, and he had had no one since then. He had been lonely all his life until…

"Hitomi"

The little girl laughed. "You have someone. You are not as lonely as you think."

"How do you know…?"

"About Hitomi? She is with my friend. She will have to pass her task on her own. You will have one too."

Van looked at her. For been such a little girl, she seemed to know a lot. "Who are you?"

She smiled at him, pleased at being asked. "I am one of the two keepers of the Valley of Truth. I am innocence, hope, dreams, and illusion, but you can call me Lila. That used to be my name before…"

"Before what?"

"Before I came here, of course."

"How long have you been here?"

The little girl thought about it for some time. "Well, I don't remember. It seems like forever."

Forever

How long was forever? How old was she, really?

"Anyway, how long I've been here is not important. What is important is why you are here."

Van looked at her blankly. He didn't trust her, no matter how innocent she looked. He had to hide his emotions from her.

"You are hiding from me"

"How…?"

"It is obvious. There is no expression on your face." She walked towards him, and put her little hand on his head. "Who are you? What have you done? What is your past?"

Van tried to get her away from him, but he felt magic coming from the girl. She was the one that had stopped his wings for coming out, and now she was controlling his body.

"You can't leave without knowing the truth about you. I can't let you go if you don't know what you really are, who you are, what you've done. I know about your past."

Van met her light brown eyes. They were sad.

"How can anyone be as cruel as you?" She asked him.

Van tried to look anywhere but at her, but the magic didn't allow him to turn away. He couldn't run away from his past, from all he had done, it was finally catching up with him.

"How could you not regret all the pain, the hurt, the suffering, the anguish you caused?"

Van tried to block her words from coming into his ears, but it was impossible. He fell to his knees.

"Do you know how much pain you caused?"

"Why did you do it?"

She leaned to his ear. "I'm sorry, but I have to do this." Van didn't listen to her last words. Children could be so cruel without wanting to be. They could hurt without meaning too, and somehow, everything a little child said always turned out stronger, more direct, truer…

Lila let her magic go inside him and moved to the side. He was just starting the easiest part of his task.

For a moment, Van was disoriented. He didn't recognize the place he was at. One moment, he had been at the clearing with the girl, and now, he was in a village. The odd part was that it did seem familiar, but it couldn't be his memory... After the massacre of Fanelia, he had never celebrated another birthday. Still, here he was, in the middle of a party, surrounded by people he had never seen but that seemed to care about him. A cake was brought, and everyone told him to blow out the candles, but just as he was about to, yells were heard. Every head turned towards them.

"Merle…" A cat-man said to him, "Stay here." He then went out with the rest of the men.

'Merle, who is Merle?' His thoughts were interrupted as a woman dragged him and hid him under some sacks.

"Stay here, Merle. Whatever happens, don't come out."

"But mom…" The words left his mouth without him wanting to say them. His body did as the woman had told him. He didn't understand a thing. He could hear yells, and smell smoke, but he didn't know what caused it. After what seemed like eternity, everything went quite, and he went out. All around her, dead people laid in pools of blood. The pretty town had been burned to ashes. He suddenly saw someone, and hid behind some pieces of wood. He slowly raised his head towards the person. White wings sprung form the back of the person. A bloody sword was in his hand. Van suddenly realized he was looking at himself. He was inside of someone's memories. And he finally understood.

"You slaughtered my people and burned our village."

"I still have nightmares of that day…"

"You looked like an angel in the middle of hell".

His other Van turned towards him, but he didn't see him/her. He had tears in his eyes.

"I forgive you for everything you did to me."

The first time he had ended someone's life, the time when his innocence had completely disappeared. He had killed his hopes and dreams that night. He had squashed his future. The first time he had enjoyed killing. Before anything else happened, everything in front of him disappeared and he found himself inside another of his victims.

Fear, desperation, confusion…

"Angels are supposed to be good", he said to the cruelest eyes he had seen, his eyes. "They are supposed to take care of us". His vision blurry as tears came to his eyes. "Why?" He asked himself as he fell to his knees. "Why?" he repeated.

'Why did I do it?'

The other Van looked at him, and he trembled. There was nothing in those brown eyes. They were as empty as his heart. The Dragon drew his sword high above his head and brought it down. Van's world ended. The last thing he saw were the eyes of his killer. The empty eyes of someone empty. Van came back to his senses only to realize that had been his last slaughter before meeting Hitomi, but he was not able to think more as he was pushed into yet another one of his victims. He could do nothing but live every single experience he had caused others. He stopped wishing for it to end. No one would hear his pleas. No one helped mercenaries. He was alone, lost in all the suffering he had caused.

"Something is wrong" Hitomi told Barton.

"Nothing is wrong. You are imagining things, Hitomi."

"I…I feel like someone I know is in danger."

Barton looked at Hitomi "But you know no one but me, Hitomi." "I…"

She was uncertain for a moment, but then made up her mind. "You are right. I know no one but you."

The pink light that had started to glow with intensity suddenly went off. The two heroes had lost their ways. The future of Gaea had never been more uncertain, then now.

So…do you want to kill me? Please don't, I swear I don't do cliffhangers on purpose. They come naturally on me. Anyway,

I'll try to get next chapter out fast because I think this is a mean cliffhanger. Oh, and you can't kill me or you won't know

with whom Hitomi stays with (Allen or Van) what else do I have to say to you? Review, please, please, please. I just love to

read your reviews. A big thanks to my editor again. What would I do without you?