The Legend of Liocorna

Disclaimer: I do not own Escaflowne! But they could still make a continuation *g*. And since there isn't one yet, I'm going to write this one my way. Be prepared!

Chapter 2: Back Again

Darkness...

Nothing but darkness...

Darkness all around her, pushing and pulling at her, screaming at her to leave before it was to late, yet begging her to stay. It was chilly cold and hot. It felt wet and yet was dry. A darkness, which seemed to have it's own kind of life.

Hitomi was confused. She didn't know, where she was or what to do as panic slowly started to spread inside of her, making the darkness seem even darker then before. She wanted to run away. Run away without looking back. Run away as fast as she could to a comfortable and sunny place.

But there was something in the darkness, calling to her, asking her to follow. Hitomi could feel it.

She pushed away the spreading fear as best as she could and started to walk. Hitomi didn't know where she was going and what was awaiting her, but she kept on walking and never stopped.

After a long time (to her), the darkness slowly vanished and made room for the picture of a huge temple, surrounded by blue.

As Hitomi entered the temple, amazed at the fine structures all around her, she heard a voice repeating over and over again:

"Find the origin of our clan... the one who was banned from the clan has awakened again... go to Gaia... find the origin of our clan... the one who......."

The words here mother had said to her were repeated over and over, the echo bouncing of the walls, the sound increasing with each rehearsal.

Hitomi held her ears tightly shut as the sound became to much for her.

She made out in one of the fare corner a figure covered in shadow a laugh escaping his lips, that send chills up her spine in fright. Then the world went black once again....

~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~

Hitomi slowly opened her eyes, but shut them quickly again as the light from the sun was hurting her and the pain in her side was so strong, that she nearly fell back into unconsciousness.

She stayed quiet for some time, not moving as the pain slowly subsided, but kept her eyes closed.

Hitomi assumed that she had to be lying on a very soft bed. Although there was something else...

Something or someone seemed to be holding her hand tightly.

Panic started to consume her again, but Hitomi pushed it down with all the will power she had. It felt somehow familiar, like leather. But not just like leather from the animals she used to know. Like... dragonhide?!?

Hitomi carefully opened her eyes again and looked around.

As guessed, she was lying in a bed, a canopy fit for a queen, sunlight pouring through the half closed curtains. It had to be still morning from the position of the sun.

She let her eyes drift around the rest of the room. It was big! The walls were a simple white and the floor was covered with a deep red rug. On the other side of the room stood a huge closet. There was also a table and two chairs, a desk with a mirror and a basin to wash, a half empty bookshelf a screen to change and a door which let to a balcony completed it all.

There were also two other doors. She assumed that one led to a bath while the other, bigger one led to the floor outside.

As her eyes travelled to the left. She gasped. She closed them again, only to open them and still see the same image as before. Tears of happiness started to sting at the back of her eyes as Hitomi stared at the gorgeous boy with black, messy hair. His upper half of the body was lying on the bed, his breath deep and even. His hands with his standard dragonhide-gloves were claps around her left one as if he could prevent her in that way from any harm.

Hitomi smiled.

She had somehow made it back to Gaia... and to Van. He must have found her and brought her here.

He hadn't changed much. Van still wore the same standard red shirt and beige pants. His hair was a messy as ever, but his shoulders were broader and the muscle on his arms more definite. In Hitomi's eyes, Van was more than handsome and would be even more, when he had grown up totally.

She had missed him so much on the mystic moon, where she had lived with only her mother to support her.

That was when the memories of the previous events started to consume her mind. She closed her eyes again as new tears, this time out of sadness, rolled down her cheeks. She tried to hold them back, but it was no use as the picture of her dead mother, all covered in her own blood, sword sticking out of her stomach and those soldiers chasing after her came again.

Hitomi suddenly felt fingers gently brushing away her tears and brushing over her cheek. She opened her emerald-green eyes to be met by reddish-brown ones, looking at her with care and worry.

Van's voice was as soft as a feather:

"Why are you crying Hitomi? Is everything okay?"

"Is that really you Van? Or is this only another one of my dreams?"

"No, this is no dream. It's me, I'm here and I wont leave you again just like that."

Van smiled a genuine smile he hadn't smiled for so long and carefully seated himself on the bed beside Hitomi:

"But tell me, what happened? When I saw the pillar of light and found you, you were unconscious and bleeding heavy."

Hitomi breathed in deeply as she once again recalled the event from last night and felt new tears staring to well up. Van noticed this and slowly picked her up into his arms, letting her head rest on his chest, rubbing one hand gently over her back to calm her. Hitomi slowly started to talk:

"I was walking back home, when the ground started to shake, but it soon stopped. I didn't think much about it and walked on. But when I came to my home, the door was open and everything inside was a mess. My... my mother had been stabbed with a sword... it was so horrible... She...She said to go back to Gaia... finding my origin and... and something about someone banned from a clan, who had been reawakened... Th...Then those soldiers... I have never seen them before... they started... to... chase me... a... and ... one stabbed me... in my side... that's all...I.... remember... My mother didn't... deserve... to die... like that... She... was ... always so kind and.... understanding... I....I..."

Hitomi couldn't go on anymore. She cried onto Van's shoulder, grabbing the back of his shirt fiercely. She had given into the pain and the mass of tears coming out of her eyes, drenching Van's shirt.

Van didn't say anything. He didn't know what he could have said. He just held Hitomi close to him, letting herself cry out until there were no more tears to cry.

What Hitomi had said didn't make quite sense.

Why would anyone want to kill Hitomi and her mother? Which clan did her mother mean? And who had been banned from it, only to awaken again? And what was that with Hitomi's origin?

He held her closer to himself as those thoughts consumed his mind and confused him. But he knew that whoever had caused Hitomi this pain and had killed her mother would pay with his life and if Van had to do it with his own bare

hands!

Hitomi's crying slowly decreased as she started to question herself:

"What am I supposed to do now Van? Who where they and what do they want from me? Why did this all happen?"

"I don't know, but you are safe for now and I'm glad. I don't want to think about you being hurt anymore. You don't deserve this. You should rest a bit more. The healer said, that you have lost much blood and the wound will also take some time to heal fully. Merle will bring you something to eat and drink and if you need anything else just call one of the servants. I'll have to go now and get some of my work done, but I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Thank you Van. Thank you. For everything."

"You're welcome."

Van helped Hitomi to lie back down on the pillow and she noticed how their noses were only inches apart. She stared into those depths of his eyes, not finding a way to break the spell. But did she really want to?

Her eyes travelled from the eyes to his lips and back again, curious and also a little nervous of what was going to happen. She let her eyes flutter shut as she waited.

Van had also noticed the situation and tried to push down the lump forming in his throat. He didn't want to rush anything or to hurt her again in some kind of way, but the time felt so right. Should he? He saw her eyes travel down his face and up again only to close them slowly. Throwing all negative thoughts away, Van also let his eyelids drop and closed the gab in between them.

When Van's lips brushed gently against her own she inwardly shuddered at his touch. It was so soft and gentle as if he were afraid to hurt her.

Then his lips softly locked with hers. It was as if thousands of little fireworks had started in her head. It felt so wonderful and so unbelievable right.

Hitomi's hands slowly went around his neck, pressing him closer to her, not wanting him to stop. He obliged and deepened the kiss a bit.

The two parted after some time, slightly gasping for breath. Hitomi smiled as best as she could up at Van, but the sadness didn't leave her eyes. He smiled comfortingly and pressed his forehead against hers lightly, clasping one of her hands in his.

"I'll have to go now. Rest a bit. Everything is going to be all-right."

"Okay."

Van got of bed and made his way to the door, letting her hand slowly drift out of his just so he could feel her touch a tiny bit longer. At the door he turned one last time to glance at her, then opened the door and went out.

Hitomi let her eyes close again and drifted back to sleep.

Hitomi awoke, when she heard a knock at the door. She must have slept for some hours more, for the sun was now standing high in the sky.

"Come in", she called out and a second later was hugged to death by an orange and pink blur with fur all over. "I'm glad to see you too, Merle. But could I get some air again as not to collapse?"

"Sorry, Hitomi. I still can't believe you're back again! Lord Van gave me quite a shock, when he just flew of like that, but when I saw the column of light, I knew you had to be it. And when he came holding you with your wound... oh I was so scared, but Van was much more worried. He didn't leave your side the whole time and even when the healer had taken care of your wound, Lord Van stayed with you through the whole night."

Merle didn't notice the blush adorning Hitomi's face as she heard this all. Although she had thought something like that, when she had seen Van at her bed soundly asleep. Merle kept blabbering on:

"But where are my manners? You must be totally hungered out after all this and you need to get your strength back. I brought you some things to eat and drink. I made them myself, extra for you!"

"You didn't have to make such a fuss over me. I did nothing to deserve this."

"Nothing? Oh please? You don't even believe that yourself, do you? You famous on Gaia, because you helped Lord Van so much in the Great War. You're even called by some `Heroin of the Mystic Moon´!"

Hitomi blushed even more at that as Merle got the food. Hitomi hadn't noticed how hungry she was until she saw all the delicious looking food and her stomach gave a rumble. Merle only smirked and handed Hitomi the food:

"Hitomi?"

"Yes?", came the reply from an already stuffing Hitomi. "What is it Merle?"

"Well... could you... could you tell me something about the Mystic Moon? How the life there is and what you do all they up there? It's all so interesting and you told so little about it, when you were here last time. PLEASE???"

Merle made those watery puppy-dog-eyes and Hitomi couldn't suppress a giggle as she started to tell Merle everything that came to her mind as she continued eating. Merle's mouth grew wider and wider with every new thing she heard about the Mystic Moon and asked at least a docent questions in one minute, eager to understand everything Hitomi told her. By the time the food had been eaten all and the drink had gone also, Merle's head was swimming with all the new things:

"Man, that was a lot you told me there. No wonder your so weird if you live in such a crazy place."

Merle earned herself a pillow in the face at that comment:

"I'm not weird! How weird do you think, you would look when you would travel to my homeland? On the Mystic Moon there is nothing such as Cat- or Wolf-people or something like that."

"See, I told you it was weird", Merle only shot back and threw the pillow at Hitomi, but she ducked it. "Anyway, you should rest some more, so you're not sleeping when Lord Van is coming again."

"Alright, alright. I'm as good as asleep already!"

And with that Merle left again with an empty tray and Hitomi went back to sleep.

Chapter end