There and Back again

GA1: Ah, and the evilness continues….

SD: That is only for you… though since you are making me edit stuff…. Frowns

GA1: Hey! They need to be!

SD: Here's a wronging, we're in the middle of reediting some of the first chapters… Trying to fix our errors… No promises though…no one is perfect…

GA1: Which includes you………

SD: HEY!

GA1: Grins

Disclaimer: We do not own Escaflowne… We do not own anything really… The car people have proven that when they took away GA1's car insurance. Under the age of 18 we own nothing, not even the dirt under our finger nails so there is no use in suing us. We do how ever own out respective characters:

Spirit Dancer: Aiko, Shiva

Glass Angel1: Ayane, Fira, Merlin, the Providence Children and any other character that I must create for the production of this story.

All rights reserved.

Summary:

Not just an ordinary retelling of Escaflowne. Two girl's wish away their lives of family abuse, only to find their wish answered. Destiny plays its hands hard as these two friends find themselves caught up in a war of a world they barely know, only to be torn apart along the way. Will they be able to overcome their trouble pasts, and save this new world for its own destruction? Or will their pasts become its means of destruction?

Category: Action/Adventure/Romance

xVxVxVxVx; same place different point of view

xXxXxXxXx ;scene change

italic; vision

XoX ; Flashback

Chpt 16 Without Me

He licked his lips as the Alseides made its way through the sky down towards the city below him. It was time for revenge; time to get the blasted little king back. O yes, and then he would return to the Vione to deal with that damn woman. Her face flashed through his mind, the one that he had saw after he 'kissed' her. Peaceful, true she looked damn well beautiful, but not like that when she wasn't forcing that smile. Shaking his head, Dilandau pushed all thoughts of the Mysticer aside. First the little king, and then her. The come crackled as someone turned on the other end. About time Folken, he half laughed to himself; I was being to wonder if you were going to let me burn this blasted city to ash.

"I didn't know you were such a light sleeper, Dilandau." Folken's voice was cool and calm as if echoed in his Guymelef. Dilandau just laughed chaotically as he pushed the flight controls down further.

"O, but Folken, I'm still dreaming…" He moved the scope down so he could locate Van faster. "And it's getting better by the minute. I'm dreaming of killing your little brother, Van…"

xXxXxXxXx

Aiko looked around, trying to find a way to cut her bounds. The three green things had taken the bag off of her head once they got into what looked like a submarine. Oh for God's sake, isn't there anything in here that has even a dull edge? Aiko sighed as a thought popped into her head. No………I'm not doing that………

But then no one would hear you… Aiko rolled her eyes.

No one could hear me anyways. She answered the voice that was talking to her. It sounded kind of like Ayane's. Her consciousness had seemed to take that tone after being with the girl for so long.

You never know until you try……… Sighing again, Aiko put her head down in defeat.

OK ok... fine…if it makes you shut up, I'll do it. Aiko started to hum softly, the pitch getting higher and higher. One of the green things looked at her. Aiko took a deep breath and hit the highest note that she could muster. Two of the three geckos covered their ears. The third one, who was steering the sub, closed his eyes and tried to block out the loud noise. Aiko kept it up as long as she could before running out of breath. Panting slightly, she looked up as the geckos rubbed their ears. Well, there goes my voice for the next week………

"Stupid Girl, no one can hear you……" One of the geckos told her with a smile, still trying to see if he had his hearing.

"…beside once we dive, no one would be able to retrieve you either…." The other said as he turned the wheel. Aiko sighed glaring at the floor. There……are you happy? Aiko asked the voice in her head, as she tried once again to struggle out of her bonds. Once again, she failed, only making them go deeper into her wrists. The voice was silent, as if it was never there. Just as Aiko was going to give up completely, the sub shook violently.

Yes………… The voice answered as the sub shook again.

xVxVxVxVx

The water poured into the Escaflowne's cockpit as Van moved it through the waterway, cursing himself for not following after the two of them. Merle couldn't find Ayane, and now Aiko had been kidnapped. This wasn't his night, everything was going wrong. Now here he was trying to move his Guymelef though the water, as it still was covered in the 'disguise' King Aston had put on it. In his opinion, it made the Escaflowne stick out like a soar thumb. Stopping his Guymelef as they came to another split in the waterway he looked down at the catgirl in the Guymelef's left hand.

"Which way?" She looked up at him, before turning back to the split paths in front of her. He watched as her ears twitched a bit, trying to pick up some sort of sound. It only took her a moment before she pointed to the left.

"That way! They're underwater!" Taking a step forward, the Escaflowne was nearly submerged in the cold seawater. Quickly he moved the left hand of the Escaflowne to the shore so that the now wet Merle could jump down. Without even being told, the catgirl jumped off and twitched her ears back to pick up another sound. "Right in front, they're moving away fast!"

"Alright!" Van shouted back as he moved forward again, but not before taking in a deep breath of air. The cockpit was submerged with cold water, and it being night, there was not light source beneath the water to help him see. But he could hear them moving in the water; the loud sound of the engine bombarded his ears. Taking a chance he swung a hand forward. Not expecting to hit anything, the arm controls shook when did. Success! Gripping down on the object with the second hand he pulled it up out of the water. It took him a few seconds to get back to where the Escaflowne could stand up again, but he moved quickly. He wasn't use to holding his breath that long.

xVxVxVxVx

Aiko looked up as the door opened (or well more like the whole top was being torn off) revealing her rescuer.

"…..Van…?" She shook her head to make sure she wasn't seeing things. But then again, after talking to herself, she wouldn't put it past her. Escaflowne's hand gently lifted her up out of the sub.

"Hey!!! Put her back!!!!" the green people, if you can call them that, yelled as Van started to put them back into the water.

"We need her!!!! Give her back!!!!" Another yelled as Van placed them into the water and gave them a push to send them on their way. As the Escaflowne moved closer to shore Merle jumped up on the hand that she was on, chuckling.

"Man, Aiko….you have to be pretty dumb to be kidnapped by geckos…." Aiko glared at her as she jumped up onto the hand, and cut her bonds. Aiko instantly started to scratch her wrists, making them even worse.

"Hey…. I'd like to see you escape someone who holds you in place from behind…" She retorted angrily, still scratching her wrists till one started to bleed.

"Hey!! Stop scratching them or else I'll hurt you!!" Merle yelled trying to stop her hand. Aiko hit her hand a little hard, and continued to scratch.

"Like I care!!" Then she stopped when something flew over the Escaflowne, and the ground somewhat shook now that the Guymelef was out of the water. There it was the chaotic laughter of what could only belong to that little prick. Dilandau's red Guymelef stood just a ways off, down on one the roads in the Austria city.

"Shit!" Van cursed as he looked to the sides of his Guymelef, the only part he could see. The disguise was gone, and now the damn insane general had found him again. Was this night ever going to have a better tune? Putting the left hand down, Merle pulled Aiko down on to the ground so that they wouldn't be in the way. Now he turned his attention to this insane kid. Van was going to have to figure something out fast; they could not battle in the heart of this city.

xXxXxXx

"Ha-ha! The city is burning!" Dilandau laughed as he set fire to the buildings around them. Little King Wonder was trying so hard to get him to stop, but it didn't matter. This was a battle he was going to enjoy; tormenting the kid was just the thing to make his night complete. "The city is burning because of you!"

"No, Dilandau, Asturia is burning because you keep setting fire to it!" Folken's voice came over the com, he sounded a little anger. But Dilandau didn't care. The man had been yelling things like that for the past ten minutes. Didn't the blue haired baka ever shut up and let him do this is own way? "Would you stop trying to burn the city down?"

Guess not…

"Where the hell is the god damn off switch?" Dilandau growled as he took his left hand off the controls to hit the button. While with his right, he made a long shot around the white Guymelef in front of him, missing but o well at least he made some building fall down. This was fun, now if only he could shut up that damn blue haired baka. Even though he was slamming his fist against the right thing, he just couldn't get the com to go off.

"Dilandau, stop turning to shut the com off, I had that disengaged so you couldn't do that anymore.." Damn it… Stupid Shesta, that's the last time I let you anywhere near the Alseides…Dilandau growled, making a mental note to make the Dragonslayers training tomorrow extra hard. He had missed something that the damn Little King Wonder had said, and now he was looking at the Dragon in its dragon form. It jolted to the sky using him as a leverage to do it. Dilandau frowned at the empty space in front of him before deciding to turn around. O so you're gonna try and fly away huh?

"That's Enough! I will not allow you to do anymore damage to Asturia's capital!" Dilandau nearly banged his head against the headrest, as the damn Heaven Knight's voice came through the metal around him. Turning the Alseides around fully, the Scherazade stood in his path. Not that he could really stop him from taking to flight mode to chase the damn king. It was just, on top of this annoying bastard's 'attempt' to stop him, Folken was ordering him back to the Vione. Sighing he leaned back in the controls looking at Allen.

"You know…. Standing like that he makes a pretty good target. Can I kill him?"

"No Dilandau. Back to the Vione.." Folken's calm voice came over the com. But was it just him, or did it sound like the man was trying not to laugh?

"You're such a party pooper, Strategoes….." Dilandau flipped the controls on the Alseides, setting it into flight mode. "You luck out this time, pretty boy! But you won't next time."

xXxXxXxXx

The high winds battered against the wind as Van piloted the Escaflowne away from the half burning city. No longer safe for them to stay in Asturia, they were flying away from it. Aiko clenched her hands so hard, that she was sure that her nails had cut them by now. Merle had wrapped her wrists so that the bleeding would stop, and so that Aiko wouldn't scratch them. Only problem was that the wraps were wool and that only made the itching worse. Aiko unclenched one of her hands, and slowly made it to her wrist. Before she could scratch however, Merle slapped her hand away.

"Don't make me tie your hands together…." Aiko glared at her and when back to thinking about something, ANYTHING besides her wrists. She looked at the moons and stopped for a moment. Well, no matter how bad it seems…………anyplace is better then there………Dad's probably searching all of Tokyo for me just so that he can beat the crap out of me later. Sighing Aiko looked down at her wrists again. The small white slits seemed to glow in the moonlight. Damn……I'm sure gonna get a hell of a beating when I get back…Aiko's thoughts took her to her own little world, and she didn't see Merle looking sideways at her.

Man……That girl is so weird………I didn't know she could be this quiet. Merle was tempted to poke her to see if she was alive, but thought better of it. At least she's bearable when she's this quiet… Sighing, Aiko pulled herself out of her own little world to look back over her shoulder to the disappearing city of the country that they had spent the last few days in. Was it her, or every time they came somewhere on this planet that it ended up in flames later? From where they were now she could see the outline of the Zaibach floating fortress. Something tugged at her heart; once again she and Ayane were separated. This time though, it felt like they may not get to see each other again for a long time.

"Ayane……….."

xXxXxXxXx

He leaned back on the small throne, over looking the woman in front of him. She was no longer in the multicolored dress that he had seen her in before, now it was a solid black one. This one revealed the front half of legs, from the mid thigh down. From the looks of it she had gotten dressed in a hurry, for she worn no shoes. Her black, blue tipped hair was mangled slightly, and she looked somewhat tired. There was, however, a black scarf tied around her neck. The chocker of hers was still wrapped around his left hand. Her bare arms were wrapped around her body; the sleeves of the dress she wore fell away from them. Dilandau could see the small scar on her hand identical to the one on Shesta's only. This one was much darker then the one fading away on his second-in-command's hand though.

After the LONG lecture he had received in the Hanger from Folken, about not burning down 'allied' countries, and that other lecture of 'If you disobey my orders again, you will suffer the consequences' (which normally meant being confined in his room, and not being able to use the Alseides for a while). The only thing he had been happy about to hear from that blue haired baka, was that the girl had been left in his charge. Something that Dilandau wouldn't have any other way. The room was empty except for her, him and maybe Folken, if the man had followed him here. Setting the small wine glass down, Dilandau stood up. Shesta had reported (after getting hit for undoing the turn off switch for the com) that the woman had willingly come with them. It didn't really matter if she had refused she was now His. Anything he said to her from now on she had to do, her freedoms no longer existed.

"You do understand that you are now a prisoner of war, Miss Ayane Umizo?" He said slowly as he walked down the few steps to the main floor. Slowly making his away towards the quiet woman, her head slowly nodded up and down. "Emperor Dornkirk has kindly let me be the one to see to you welfare, and not have you sent to the capital to be contained." Not really, Folken hadn't told him that, just she was to stay on the Vione under his watch. Well, it didn't hurt to exaggerate a bit.

"I am grateful for that…" Her voice was low, and seemed a bit strained. Frowning he took a few more steps closer to examine her. Light bruise merited her face and peaking up from beneath the scarf around her neck. This of course, made the frown deepen into puzzlement. He was going to have to 'speak' to his slayers about this. They had reported she had come willingly, yet she had bruises of a struggle. She didn't look at him when he stepped closer to her. Ayane looked to the side, gray eyes beneath long eyelashes. Unconsciously, he moved his right hand to place his index finger under her chin and lift it up so that she would be looking at him. But his hand immediately dropped when the large doors behind her opened and Folken stepped into the room. He looked a bit displeased by something.

"What is it, Folken?" Dilandau said, skipping the title that he was 'suppose' to addressed him with. The man didn't even frown at him this time in that way he normally did, this made Dilandau a little more puzzled. After a moment lost in his trail of thought, Folken look finally up at him.

"General Adelphos wishes to speak with you, about the attack preparations." Growling Dilandau took one last look at the girl in front of him before taking a long sigh and walking pasted her. Without a second thought he continued past the cloaked man to step outside the large doors to the dark hall.

"See her to her room, Strategoes…." Was the only thing he said to him, Folken waited silently for the white haired boy to disappear down the hall before looking at the young woman that still stood with her back to him. At least the higher general's call had given him the excuse to get Dilandau away from the girl. With the three slayers' ragged report about the girl's capture, something about it didn't seem right. Running away from her friend? A dispute maybe? He shook his head slightly. There was too much for him to be doing, and so little time for him to do it all. He hadn't slept in the past forty-seven hours, and his brain was finally too tried even for this. Better to get the young woman to her room to rest, then maybe he could 'disappear' a few hours himself. Dilandau thought he never slept, the Dragonslayers all had him labeled the 'work-alcoholic'. Ayane sighed lightly, bringing him back to the reality of the world around. She whirled around on her bare feet and look at him. A light smile on her face, with a tilt of her head to the side she stuck her tongue out at the empty doorway.

"Is he always that 'I am in charge' kind of person?" She asked him, Folken chuckled slightly. She was covering up whatever had happen to her with false smiles.

"Sometimes… Sometimes he can be plain annoying…" Folken nodded as she walked up to him, hands behind her back. Other times he can be really quiet, and absorb in thought.

"I have my own 'room'? It's not that little box without a window is it? Please tell me, I get a window this time…?" He waved his hand towards to open door, and began to walk out of it with her following behind him.

"It's not the same…" Was all he said as the continued to move down the dark halls in silence. There was not much he had to ask her that couldn't wait until later. It would be best if she was well rested before he began to ask things about her world. The Mystic Moon, there was so many things to find out that interested him. His only link to it all was one girl. But there were other things that had to be seen to first and that was the power Empire Dornkirk was seeking. So lost in his own thought again he didn't notice the girl studying his face in the darkness, when he finally looked down at her. She snapped her head down to look at the floor, tucking her hair behind her ear. He could see her face slightly darken. Why was she….blushing?

"He called you brother…. but, you too don't look much alike." Her voice was almost whisper that didn't echo against the enclose corridor. Folken's heart nearly skipped a beat. He had been hoping she would not ask about that until later, that maybe she had asked Van. "I tried to image why two brothers would belong to different countries. Then I remember Van was crowned King, and yet you are the eldest son… Did he take the right of succession away from you? Is that why you are fighting?" He looked away from her, not answering her question right away as he looked down at his steel right arm. Closing and unclosing the clawed hand, he sighed inwardly.

"No… He has all the rights to the throne now… Folken of Fanelia died ten years ago when he faulted the succession ceremony..." Folken shook his head lightly as he looked down at her questioning eyes that lay on his metallic arm. It did not take him long to figure out that she didn't understand him. "I couldn't slay the dragon…" Ayane's head nodded slowly and she looked away from him to the ground once again. Her eyes looked slightly sad, but she did not press any further. The walk continued in silence. Once they had reached the upper floor of the Vione, to the door of her room, he punched in the code for the door on the small pad lock. As it slide open Ayane stepped into the room, but not all the way. Straddling between the hall and the room she looked up at him.

"Good night…my Lord." The door slide shut leaving him secluded once again in the shadows.

xXxXxXx

She leaned back heavily against the door in the darkness. The long drawn out sigh left her lips, too many things ran through her mind at once she wasn't sure what was going on anymore. Remembering the lay out of the odd room she once held on this floating fortress, Ayane moved her hand along the wall to her left until it hit a round like disc that was next to the door. Moving the disc around clockwise, the familiar blue lights began to illuminate the room. Even though she was turning thought over thought in her mind, her non-attention to the world around her was short lived for the room awaiting her in the shadows was breath taking. Her hand dropped to her side as she stood up and took a few steps into the room.

"Wow…." The only thing she could find to say. The floor was of a cold type of black, navy blue mixed title. The patterns in each were memorizing. Across from her was a large wooden table that was slightly of a reddish wood. Around it was two chairs, that matched the small wood, but there was a style on the backs that reminder her of olive leaves. A top of the table was a red vase full of different kinds of flowers that she had never seen before. She smiled lightly as she smelled them before looking about the rest of the room. To the wall nearest the table was a dresser, made of a different kind wood, a lot darker then the one that table and chairs were made of. There was a door next to the dresser that Ayane could only image that opened up into a small closet. She walked away from the table, to open the door a little ways from it. Again she was greeted with darkness. Fumbling for the 'light' disc on the side of the wall again, she illuminated what she though to be a small bathroom, and was taken back. Unlike the smaller room she had occupied before this on was not only larger, but the bathroom was as well.

To the far back was a large black bathtub, which oddly remaindered her of a hot tub. It was decorated with candles, ranging from the colors of a dark blue, red, and black. There was a large sink near the door way, the countertops were of a black marble. Behind it was a large mirror. Different types of bottles lined the counter top, each with a small label on them with someone's neat handwriting. Half hidden behind it was the only thing that looked familiar from home, the toilet god made of white porcelain. The blackish blue tile from the main room lined the floor. Ayane ran her hand over the cold surface of the countertop. Her gray eyes lifted up and froze as they caught hold of her reflection in the mirror. Her hair was in a mess, tossed about a bit here and there. Her right cheek was slightly swollen there was also some coloration on it. Pulling the small scarf off of her neck, she could see the bruises forming. Dropping it onto the floor, she turned quickly, shut off the light and half ran out of the bathroom back into the main room.

Ayane turned her sights on the last thing in the room that she had missed purposely. The bed was quiet large, looking to be about a queen sized. Though she couldn't see much of the frames for the black curtains that fell around it, pushing one of them aside she looked down at the blackish wood. Well, more of a blackish red, had someone thought her favorite color was black or something? Sighing, she ran her hand over the silky blankets on the bed.

"Well… It's an improvement over the last room…." Ayane shook her head before looking back at her discarded bag on the table. Fumbling with the ribbons in front of her dress, in the rush of getting dressed before hand, she had managed to knot some of them up. Her mind lingered for a moment on her friend, back at the palace before she shook her mind clean as she slipped out of her dress. Folding it, she laid it on the back of one of her chairs. "She'll be fine……………….without me."

GA1: And it begins……

SD: The start of the major notices in plot change…..

GA1: tee-hee

SD: O lord… The next chapter isn't what I think it is!!!?

GA1: Hugs Dilly-sama plushy

Editing: 12/14/06