Disclaimer: I do not own anything of Escaflowne…If I did, that series would have continued.

To everyone who reviewed: (tears up) OMG! THANK YOU THANK YOU! You don't know how happy you've made me! You guys are amazing! Your reviews have given me insight on my writing! I had to start writing again! OMG! THANKS!

Reviews from Chapter Six
aan: Thanks for your comments!
mysisterisasquijum: Yeah, I love to make things complicated. But, I swear, it'll all get straightened out! I know, the princess is a b---!
Macky: Thank you!
pure hope: Thanks! Don't worry. There will be some gruesome stuff, but everything's gonna be okay!
kelsey: Thanks! I hope I feel better soon too!
Cev:(glomps) Thanks for you comment! I'm glad I'm that exception and that you're finding the plot/characters are believable! It's what I strive to do, ESPECIALLY when I have my own characters muddled in there!
Storm-Maker: (glomps) Yeah, that chappie wasn't my favourite either…Anyway, thanks for your comment on my tangibility for descriptions! (tangibility? Is that a word?) Oh, there is quite a plot in store for all of them!
TO ALL: Thanks for your well wishes for my surgery! It makes me feel giddy inside! (Storm-Maker, seriously, I probably am going to be drugged up to the point of drooling. LOL!)

Chapter Seven

Hitomi lost all track of time. She heard nothing, saw nothing and felt nothing but Van's protective grasp around her. She held on, as tightly as she could, not wanting to know where she would fall…or how long it would take her to reach ground.

Encased by the white column, it did not allow them to see outside its walls. They had no idea where they were. And that frightened Hitomi a little bit. What if we don't end up on Gaea? What if 'it' sent this portal to send us somewhere else?

Van continued to strain his eyes in hopes of finding out where they were going. He could not see anything, but, nonetheless, continued to beat his wings to fly faster…to an extent that they were getting tired. No! Come on! Hold out until we land!

Even though the column appeared ever lasting, Van saw a field with grass as tall as he was through the thinning white column of light. "Hitomi!" He shouted at her, but she did not respond.

He prepared for landing, angling his wings to act like a parachute they slowed down and soon Van felt the tip of his boots hit the ground. Land…Once Hitomi's and his feet touched down completely, the white column dissipated and vanished, leaving sparkles of light to linger for some time after.

Hitomi's eyes were not accustomed to the sudden darkness of a Gaea night, so she squinted her eyes until they stopped hurting. Ah! Everything's still so blurry! The brightness of the column to the darkness of the night was a hard adjustment to her eyes.

"Hitomi?" Van whispered, also squinting a little bit. "We're here. We're home."

She looked up slowly and saw a faint mesh of familiar colours: black, maroon and tan. "Ugh…" She mumbled and placed her head back on his shoulder. The blurry, dizzy feelings her eyes sent to her brain were making her tired. Closing her eyes softly, she rested on him.

"Hitomi?" Van repeated, smiling. She fell asleep…He relaxed his back and let his wings disappear. Feathers flew everywhere from the warm autumn breeze. He looked up at the starry night sky to see that both the Mystic Moon and its neighbouring rocky planet there… They were here. In Gaea. Where we should be…

Carefully, not to wake up Hitomi, Van lied down on the grass and positioned her body so that she lied down beside him. The grass was tall, obstructing his view of the sky a little bit and it tickled him as it swayed with the wind. He placed his hands behind his head and sighed. No way are we walking at night…I'm not even sure who's fields we are in…We'll start in the morning, since we'll be better suited to walk back to Fanelia.

The stars danced in the sky and he could feel sleep coming to get him. But he forced it to go away. We have to prepare for whatever danger is going to happen here…If we play a part in all of this, we have to be ready. But what is going to happen? Gods, I wish I was having those visions too! He shut his eyes and sighed again. Why did this have to happen? I would have rather our reunion been over something less…less…upsetting.

He turned his head at looked at her peaceful sleeping. Hitomi…I don't think you know how deeply my heart feels for you. He blushed at his thoughts. He knew that they had said 'I love you's' after Zaibach was destroyed, and he knew that they both meant it. But, they were older now. Van had grown up, courting many women. However, none of them could compare to her.

The women he had met were intelligent, pretty…but they lacked something that Hitomi had. Every time he would meet the women, they would be missing something… something special… Van was never sure what made him stop going any further with his female friends. They just couldn't compare…

Hitomi was the first girl he had blushed over, wanted to kiss so badly, wanted nothing more but just to spend the day with her. Hitomi, you're so special to me. It kills me to watch you hurt.
Watch you bleed
I know I said this to you before, but I'm older now, and I've realized that… I…love you; it's not some stupid little boy crush anymore…I mean it from the bottom of my soul. There's something about you that makes me feel good. I don't know what it is, but it only comes from you…

His eyes wandered over her sleeping form. Hitomi…I know we've had our years a part, but even after all this time, no matter how many new women I met, no matter how much work I put myself in, you were still there. You may have been faint, but there. I love you so much.

Many people told me to forget about you…Telling me that you would never come back. Part of me believed them. I knew we'd be close friends until forever…even if I never saw you again. If you never returned to me, I would remember the times…Your return has brought back feelings I've forgotten about. You've reminded me of my happier times, Hitomi…Thank you…No other woman has done that to me.

He felt his eyes get heavy. This time, he could not fight it. Van averted his head to stare back at the stars. He watched them glisten and shine through the blades of grass until all he saw was the darkness of his closed eyelids. Before sleep could claim him, something told him that he should tell her exactly what passed through his mind moments before.

Because something told him that their happy reunion on Gaea would be interrupted.

The sun rose past the horizon, shining brightly and turning the night sky from blue to orange. Its light crept through the grass and fell onto the sleeping pair. As it gained more intensity, Hitomi finally stirred and opened her eyes. My first dreamless sleep in a long time…it felt so good.

She turned onto her back, and watched the sky changed colours. This is something so simple, but so touching. Feeling that someone was watching her, she turned her head to see that Van was also awake, looking at her. "Morning." He said, with a grin once their eyes met.

He sat up and pulled her to sit up with him. Hitomi was about to bombard him with questions about where they were, what happened, where they would be going, how far away from Fanelia was…but he held up a finger to her mouth to silence her. "Just, shh, for now. Watch the sky…"

Slightly taken back, Hitomi closed her mouth and watched the sky with him. They sat side by side with their hair being tossed lightly by the wind. Orange was turning the blue into purple, red, then orange again. After these colours, the sky turned yellowish-white…then, the white became a faded blue colour. It wasn't too long until all of the sky turned a calm blue.

The air smelt sweet with dew and flowers. Hitomi breathed it in heavily. I've forgotten what Gaea smells like…No pollution, just clean air…The wind picked up a little bit, sending flower petals and pieces of grass over to them, but not a word was spoken. The silence was better…Unspoken words were better…

Once they heard the sound of people coming close, they realized that they should get going. The farmers would be quite shocked to find two people lounging around in their fields. Van stood up first, brushing off the grass off his pants and shirt and then lent his hand out to pick Hitomi up. She used his aid and did the same cleaning job on her clothes as he did. "Come on. I don't want to cause the locals any hardships." He said, with a smile.

They walked through the fields and once they got to a sandy makeshift road, Hitomi broke the silence. "Van, where are we? In Fanelia?" They just reached the top of the hill where they rested on that night. It gave them a good site of the city below.

"Close to. I recognize these fields. They're on the outskirts of my borders…Fanelia is over there." Van said, pointing to the cluster of buildings and roads and markets up ahead. "That's my land. It stretches all over; to the north, east, west and south. My living quarters is that large sand-coloured structure over there. See it?" He pointed to one of the bigger buildings sticking out of the land.

Hitomi nodded. "How long do you think it'll take us to get there?"

"No more than an hour." Van said, judging by the steep hills and ravines they had to get through to get down there.

"That's good."

Without another word, they were off towards Van's castle.

Merle suddenly stopped what she was doing and rotated her ears around the room. "Merle, what are you doing? Come on and help me fix Shina's room!" A female servant hissed at the cat-girl.

"Shut-up. I hear something…It sounds like…VAN!" The last part of her sentence was screeched loudly as she ran out of the room towards the entrance of the castle.

"Come back here, you stupid lazy cat!" The woman shouted, running after Merle with a broom but not able to catch up.

To Merle's sensitive ears, the footsteps of Van's were coming closer. There were others, but his were the only that she recognized. As she neared the entrance to Van's castle, her sense of smell verified that she had run out of the room for the right reason. Van was coming!

She made the guards open the doors for her and in a flash, she was outside, running on all fours towards Van's scent. He's back! He's back from the Mystic Moon! As she continued to run, she found that there was another scent accompanying Van's, but she paid no attention to it.

Merle focused her eyes on two bodies coming towards her. It only took her a brief moment to realize that one of the bodies was Van. Without a second thought, she bolted towards him, ready to encase him in one of her famous hugs. "Lord Van! You've returned!"

Van was ready for her. He braced himself as she collided into him to hug him fiercely. "Lord Van! Lord Van!" She continued to yell. Merle paused to lick his cheek affectionately.

"Merle!" Van smiled and hugged her back.

Breaking the hug slightly, Merle looked at him. "How was the Mystic Moon! How's Hitomi?"

Van looked at her, still smiling. "It was very beautiful. And so was she."

"Why are you so happy? Aren't you sad that you left Hitomi?"

"I'm not sad because she's still with me."

"What!" Merle cried. Peering over his shoulder, she noticed that the other body was… "HITOMI!" She jumped off of Van and raced towards her.

Unfortunately, Hitomi had not braced herself as Van did and fell on her butt when Merle collided into her to give her a death-gripping hug. "HITOMI! HITOMI!" Merle buried her head in Hitomi's shoulder, nuzzling happily. "Goodness! HITOMI!"

"Merle!" Hitomi had gotten the wind knocked out of her, so it was the only word she could squeak out.

They're both—both of them! They're both HERE! In Gaea! Merle's thoughts were on the brink of falling over. She just could not contain her excitement. Her arms held tightly around Hitomi's torso and were not letting go. She's here again! She was rambling on about something a mile a minute that her brain had no time to process. Merle was barely breathing in between sentences and Hitomi struggled to keep up.

"…We've all missed you so much! You stupid girl! You should of never-ever-ever-EVER left! All of the things you've missed! Oh! Everyone's gonna be SO happy that you're back! Allen and—and Millerna and Prince Chid and everyone else! Ah! The stories to tell! I'm almost nineteen, Hitomi! Did you know that? Probably not. But, word around the castle is that there's gonna be a party for me! Nineteen is a very special year. I can't wait to—!"

"—Merle!" Van interjected, cutting her off. "I think Hitomi would like to breathe in deeply for a moment." He had noticed that Hitomi's face was turning pink and red from lack of air.

At once, Merle let go. "Oops. Sorry." She mumbled sheepishly. Once Hitomi had gotten her breath under control, Merle latched on again in a less life-threatening hold. She had entwined her arms around Hitomi's forearm.

Finally standing, Hitomi—along with Merle—followed Van back into the castle. As all three passed by the large entrance doors, Van turned around to face them. With his arms outstretched, he smiled. "Hitomi, these are my living quarters."

­­­­­­­­­­­With Van giving her a quick tour and Merle talking her ear off most of the way, Hitomi absorbed nothing that either were saying to her. Oh gosh. I should of brought a tape-recorder or something…I can't listen to both of them at once. She sighed mentally. I should have known that Merle was going to be talkative. Her personality sure hasn't changed!

Hitomi looked at Merle. She was definitely looking the age of a nineteen-year-old: Merle was taller, but did not quite pass the height of her shoulder. Hitomi guessed that she was five feet-four inches. She had a womanly figure, but it was not easily seen under her attire. Her body was covered in a long simple tank top that was yellow in colour. It hung straight down to mid thigh with large triangular cuts at the side. A black pattern of black dots and stripes lined the hem at the top and bottom. Underneath it was a pair of black shorts, with a hole for her tail—longer and more pointed—to poke through.

Merle's pink hair reached just past her shoulder blades and was held up in a loose ponytail. Her eyes were still big and blue and her fur had not changed at all. "Hitomi?" She asked, finally stopping mid-sentence.

"Yeah?"

"Why are you staring at me?"

"Just looking at how much you've grown…that's all." Hitomi then noticed Merle looking at her clothes and hair, giving her a full look-over. "Why are you staring at me now?"

Merle turned away quickly. "Just looking at how much you've grown…" She repeated. Smiling, she pulled her forward. "Come on! We don't want to lose Van!"

Van had indeed vanished behind a corner without the two girl's knowledge. Running frantically at the thought of being lost, Hitomi ended up dragging Merle around. I really should have been listening to him and his directions! "Hey! Not so fast, Hitomi!"

Scanning an unfamiliar corridor, they had no sight of him. Heck, they're all unfamiliar! Hitomi grumbled. "Merle! Don't you know your way around?"

"Yeah, but I don't want him to worry about—" Before Merle could finish, Van poked his head out from behind a door left slightly ajar. He blinked several times. Weren't they listening to my directions at all?

"Come on." He sighed, pulling them towards the door. "This time, we are NOT losing sight of one another."

This time, Hitomi tried her hardest to remember which door lead to which room and what area they were currently in. Van was showing her around, telling her everything, but it was getting harder to focus with Merle still talking a mile a minute. Ah! I'm so going to get lost later. I don't even remember where the restroom is! Do they even have toilets here?

Distracted by her own thoughts, she almost bumped into Van when he stopped walking. They were standing in an oval room that had five doors placed systematically in it. The decorations were beautiful. All rustic and elaborate with different types of paneling and designs carved into each piece of wood and stone. There was a painting of the sea going around the room with Gaea's own type of aquatic life. At the very top was an opening to let light in.

Hitomi hadn't paid much attention to the architecture or the art in the other rooms Van had showed them, but now that both Merle and him were quiet, she had the silence needed to take it all in. So beautiful…So delicate…

"These are the sleeping quarters of guests. I presumed that you would want a room, right?" Van asked, turning to Hitomi.

"Uh…Sure!" She replied, startled because she was brought out of her trance.

"Well, you have no belongings with you…I'll ask a maid to give you a change of clothes."

"Change of clothes? For what?" Hitomi asked. There's nothing wrong with my sweat-pants, is there?

"I don't think you'd want to eat lunch in your dirty night clothes."

Before Hitomi could ask anything else, Merle pulled her away. "Hitomi! I'll show you your room!"

Almost thrown off-balance, Hitomi staggered to one of the doors that Merle led her to. "Van! Call us when the meal is served!" Merle shouted before pulling Hitomi into the room and shutting the door.

Hitomi sighed as the next words out of Merle's mouth were, "Hitomi…I think you need a bath. You smell like a farmer's field…Not to worry though! I'll get you all set up!"

Blue eyes snapped open. Hmph. I did not intend for her arrival here. Getting up from her meditative position, Shina frowned slightly. No matter. I'll just make sure that she wants to go home.

Opening the door to her room, she heard another bang shut and saw who she knew to be Lord Van. Peeking through the crack, she saw him stare at the door that contained her. She frowned slightly again. Lord Van must have a liking to this girl.

She shut the door quietly, not alerting the King of her presence yet. She figured that one of his 'trusted' advisors would tell him soon enough…

Shina realized that her presence was going to make things difficult.

Or more fun.

"Thanks Merle! I'll call you when I'm finished." Hitomi said, closing the door to her own private washroom.

"Okay!" Hitomi heard trailing footsteps and the door being closed. Finally…quiet. Slipping off her pants, T-shirt, bra and underwear, she stepped into the small bath. It was a small rectangle with rounded edges. Although it was made of wood, none of the hot water spilled out from the cracks. There must be a sealer in here…She figured.

Once fully submerged, Hitomi breathed in the hot water vapour. It was calming to her nervous senses. Van and her still haven't figured out what's going on and this whole trip back to Gaea just felt weird…Just relax…Breathe in…Breathe out…Grabbing the sponge and soap she scrubbed out the 'farmer's field smell' as best as she could.

The warm water was starting to get to her. It was making her too relaxed. Giving in, Hitomi dropped the sponge and sunk further into the water. The heat was a good thing against her tired muscles. That one-hour trek here was killer! I've never hiked on such rocky terrain before! Hitomi shut her eyes for a moment, but that was all it took for her to fall asleep.

She was running again…even though she could of sworn she was lying down a second ago. Hitomi heard the pendant's pulse and realized where she was. Oh no. Not again…This time, I'm going to catch you!

It was odd to her that she was placed in the middle of the vision, but that didn't stop her from picking up her pace. She watched for movement and soon was on the trail of something that was most likely human—
Most likely?
—that was walking casually in front of her.

Hitomi knew she didn't have much time left, so she reached out towards the shoulder that she touched last time. She felt that same force wanting to push her backwards, but this time…this time…

…she held on tight. The same trick doesn't work on me twice! Her wrist was flaring up with pain, but Hitomi kept holding on. She soon used both of her hands to hold on. I'm not letting go without…without answers! She thought, in a pained voice.

It turned its head to a profile. Hitomi stared at the glowing blue eye staring back at her with anger. Her grip loosened.
You have no right to touch me
The element of surprise was all it needed to distract her and throw her away. Hitomi flew backwards to where the ground was breaking up and was soon, like always, falling.

No! I need to know! Hitomi tried to resist the strain of gravity and tried to meet up with it again. She frantically began to climb up the falling rocks but she felt those hands wrapping around her and pulling her down to the dark water below—

Hitomi awoke with a start. Oh my God…Her breathing was laboured and she barely had time to think anything through when she realized that the bath water was…red?
Blood
Oh my God! Eyes wide she tried to scramble out of the tub. But, she was stuck. Something's holding me down! She scanned the water for something that she could be stuck to but the coloured water was not allowing her to see anything past the cloudy surface. What's going on?

Something bubbled in the water. Something was rising from beneath. Hitomi's breath picked up. Oh God! Before she could call out for help, long, bloody hands broke the surface quickly, splashing water everywhere…and pulled her head under the water. No! Let me go!

She tried to fight them off, but it seemed more sprung up after she managed to pull one off of her body. The hands began to wrap around her waist, neck, arms and legs, drawing her deeper into the never ending bath. Help me! Someone please!

Hitomi looked up at the surface of the water and did not see the distorted ceiling of the washroom in Van's castle…just saw darkness.

With the faintest silhouette of the thing with the glowing blue eye.

Help me…Please… Hitomi watched as the last bubbles from her lungs never reached the surface.

YES! After one month, I'm finally done this chapter! Hope you all enjoyed it!

My surgery went well. (Thank God) and hopefully, I'll be able to update more frequently since I'm no longer in pain and afraid of climbing the stairs to get to my computer!

PLEASE REVIEW!