Amare Dividere
Title: Needless Captivity Part Thirteen
Series: Vision of Escaflowne
Rating: PG-13 for some violence.
The reports come that Norte has suffered a defeat, and Allen, having set his mind on retrieving Millerna, takes it as a sign of a good time to attack. He has his men prepare themselves, the small group of them that are going, and Gaddes stocks the Crusade for its journey. Celena rides with him from their home, removed from the city, where he gathered his personal supplies, and to the palace.
"Celena, I want you to stay here," Allen says.
His sister shakes her head. "Brother I can be of use to you. The things that I remember…"
"Are not enough to keep you safe. I know you want to help Millerna, Celena, but I will not risk your life for it."
"I do not want to see you injured either, and I can protect you," she protests, but Allen waves her off, having none of her pleading.
"Celena, I mean it, I do not want you along, and that is that. Now, if you will excuse me, I have to meet with the King in order to notify him of my departure."
"The princess is more liable to meet you," Celena says, cunning in her voice, and hope. "She's running things, not Dryden. He's a wreck without Millerna."
"That's why I'm going to retrieve her," Allen says, closing the carriage door on his sister and patting the side of it to signal the driver to head back to their home. "I will come home as soon as I am able on my return," he said as the carriage made a slow circle. "Keep things in order."
Celena glares out the window at her brother and then sits heavily back against the cushions of the seats in the carriage.
Allen turns and enters the castle, heading to the library.
But he notices Eries leaving the library as he enters the hallway intent on going in to see Dryden. "Allen," she says, voice a wavering uncertainty of happiness and wariness at seeing him.
"I came to inform the king that I would be departing in the morning, is he in?" Allen asks, stiff and with his heart in his throat. He is puzzled by his reaction, having never been as nervous around a woman as he finds himself with Eries.
"Dryden has just fallen asleep again," Eries says. "I am headed…" Allen takes her hand and puts it on his arm, leading her down the hallway, and out of earshot of the two guards at the door of the library. "Allen… what are you doing?"
"I want to speak with you," he says, leading her out towards the nearest courtyard.
"I do not see why. You have decided it is time for you to go. I disagree, of course, Norte is well protected now, but if you have made the decision, there must be some reason for it-"
Sitting her down on the edge of the fountain, Allen lifts a hand to her lips through her veil, and kneels before her. "Princess Eries."
Eyes widening in fear, Eries gets to her feet and turns quickly to walk from him. "Allen what's gotten into you?"
Rolling his eyes, Allen gets to his feet. "Princess," he says again. "Wait."
"What is there for me to wait upon now?" she asks softly. "I waited on you since I was a child."
"Nothing," Allen says, stepping over to put his hands on her shoulders. "Princess."
"There is still much for me to wait on," she says softly, her cheeks flushing slightly. She keeps her head straight towards the doorway she was headed for, and hopes that he does not turn her to see her expression, or the weakness in her eyes, "if you still only see me as a princess. Allen, you are leaving in the morning. This is not the time for any such discussion as the one you are proposing."
"But we will have the discussion?" Allen asks, watching the fall of her pale blond hair intently in the afternoon sunlight.
"I am a Sister of the Convent, Allen," Eries says, lowering her head.
"Pledged," Allen says, "but not dedicated. Princess, and I call you princess because I have not yet earned the right to call you by your name only, though it was no fault of mine that I never got the chance..." Slowly, he turns her by the shoulder to face him. "All I ask is the chance I did not receive when we were younger." He lifts a hand and tips her chin slowly up so that she is looking at him.
Staring, afraid and transfixed at him, Eries nods slowly, once. "As you wish."
Allen bows his head. "Thank you, Princess." He releases her shoulders and kneels again. "I must report to the Crusade to secure the final preparations."
"May Jichia guide you, Sir Schezar," Eries says, closing her eyes.
Allen takes her hand and kisses the air over it before rising and heading out of the courtyard. Eries sinks down onto the rim of the fountain, chastising herself mentally.
It is days of hard travel before Van and Arik reach the palace in Godashim, Freid, and when they arrive, they look nothing like the King and Kathis that they are. They are greeted by guards, and taken to the dungeon.
"We need to speak to Duke Chid," Van says to the guard, "he will recognize me. I am Van de Fanel. I need to get back to Fanelia."
"Save it for someone who will listen to you," the guard says in response, turning. Like the military men of Freid, he is shirtless, with armor adorning his neck and shoulders, and then stands naked to the waist. In his hands is a large spear, and at his waist is a sword that is just out of Van's reach.
The dark hallway of the dungeon is lit with torches, and the stone is dark with moisture. Van sighs and sinks down against the wall heavily.
Arik peers at him. "What is your problem? You got depressed, suddenly."
"I've been here before," Van says with a snort. "And it will be days before we are listened to."
"Perhaps," Arik says, glancing at the guard, "perhaps not." She steps over, brushing the thick braid of her hair over her shoulder, "I want to speak to Fariah," she says. "Send me the Duke's Kathis."
The guard starts, stiffening his spine, and whirls to look at Arik before drawing his sword. "How do you know that name?" he asks.
"I want to speak with her."
The guard snaps back to attention, and does not say a word.
"Nice idea," Van says.
"It won't take so many days now," Arik replies, settling herself on the wooden bench in the cell with all the grace and nonchalance she can muster. Her mind is far away, in Ispano, with Tristan and Skan, and she worries, silently, though she gives no outward appearance of it. It had hurt her to leave Tristan, and she consoles herself only with the thought that she had at least gone to help someone who knew without asking what she felt about it.
But it offers very little comfort, in reality.
Climbing wearily from her horse, Fariah makes her way into the palace from the stables and reports directly to Chid, who greets her with a warm smile.
'Is this what always happens to a returning lap dog?' she asks herself as she lowers herself respectfully to one knee. "I have returned, my Duke Chid," she says in a firmer voice than she had thought possible when she entered the palace.
"You look exhausted," Hathei says, narrowing his eyes. Chid had been sitting in a strategy meeting with his three military advisors, the sons of Voris.
"I ran across one of the supply lines from Egzardia to Norte while I was returning. It runs north through Basram, and dangerously close to the pass leading into Asturia on our northern border," she reports, too tired to rise.
"What happened?" Chid asks, halfway out of his seat before he catches himself and returns to his throne.
"I was attacked, and managed to escape and avoid being followed… I apologize for my tardiness," she says, looking down at the ground.
"You are a day early," Chid says, standing, this time without hesitation, and crossing to put his hands on her shoulders. "Get some rest Fariah, when you are recovered from your journey we will speak again."
"I must not…"
"I insist," Chid says, a command in his voice and a smile on his face. "I need you well."
Standing on the landing ground in the early morning hours is the royal entourage, watching the men that Allen had selected board the ship, and finally, as the last of the supplies are lifted up, Allen crosses to the group of standing people.
Eries feels her pulse quicken as Allen and Gaddes kneel before her. To her side, Dryden clears his throat to startle her out of her inner reverie. "Sir Allen Schezar," she says, her voice steady though her throat feels thick. "May Jichia grant you success and protect you on this errand. The well wishes of the king and the country go with you."
"And you?" Allen asks in a voice almost too soft to hear as he straightens up from his kneeling position, Gaddes an amused mirror behind him.
Eries blinks behind her veil, and then says, "And of course myself," she says, forcing herself not to take a step back from the two of them.
"Then I will take my leave," Allen replies, bowing at the waist and stepping over to embrace Celena. Whatever words pass between the two of them are lost from Eries' ears as she stiffens her spine.
"You seem troubled," Dryden says to her in a soft voice, more collected than he had seemed recently. "Is anything the matter?"
Glancing at her brother-in-law, Eries finds that she cannot, at the moment, read what he means in that statement. "Some day, when you have several hours on hand, I will explain to you what the matter at hand is," she says, eyes turning back to watch as the Crusade lifts from the landing ground. "But until that time, I will bide my silence and my matters alone."
"As you wish, sister," Dryden replies. He gazes at her, the pale hair dark in the shadowy light of dawn, and turns to return to the carriage that brought them up the hill from the city. He had little reason to remain watching as the ship lifted and crossed the mountain.
Celena and Eries, however, stand in their still positions, watching the Crusade until the ship disappears from sight.
In the morning, Fariah realizes how late she has slept, and scrambles out of bed and into her boots to jog to find Chid in the reception hall. Before she enters, one of the guards coughs.
"Yes?" she asks, turning to look at the man, brushing her hair from her face.
"There are two prisoners that were recently taken into the dungeon. One of them asked for you. By name."
"Thank you," she says, a little puzzled. She takes a moment to straighten her clothing and then steps through the arched doorway into the reception hall. The guards tense at the sight of a new figure entering, and then relax when they realize who it is that has come in.
Crossing to stand in her usual spot, Fariah folds her arms at attention behind herself, sword hanging from her hip. The entire room seems to relax. She smiles to herself at the thought of that.
"Other news," the steward asks, standing on the other side of Chid.
"None."
"Then this audience is adjourned," the steward says, taping his staff on the stone floor. Chid stands off his throne, and the rest of the advisors and peasants rise, taking three steps backwards before turning and filing out of the chamber.
Once the room is clear, he turns to Fariah. "Did you have a nice trip?"
"Nice trip?" she asks, confused. There had to be some reason that no one had brought up the prisoners in the dungeon. There had to be. She just couldn't figure it out.
"Yes. To Asturia. Did my aunt send any word?"
"Allen Schezar will be going after Queen Millerna."
"I was fairly certain that would be the case." He turns and heads towards the dining hall, Fariah following behind him.
"Princess Eries also said to remind you not to forget her when the Queen is brought back and she returns to her convent." Fariah was certain that was what Eries had meant, if she had couched her words differently, that was her choice. She continues, "And I would like to know why it is that no one brought up the prisoners that are in the dungeon."
"Prisoners?" Chid asks, pausing. "It is not customary to bring up such things in a daily meeting. It takes until the weekly meeting on defenses before such things are brought up."
"I'm starting to dislike the tradition and custom more and more," Fariah said. "But so long as it pleases you," she shrugs. "I've been asked for by one of them… if they know me then I figure there may be some reason they are here."
"I would prefer it if you wait until it's brought up."
"And if they have word on assassins out to kill you?" she asks as the doors to the dining hall are opened before them by two guards. "And I were to wait until the meeting and you were attacked when it could've been prepared for?" Fariah snorts. "Thank you but no, my Duke. I'll see to it while you are at lunch. If you will excuse me."