Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Escaflowne: All you need is Love, Isn't it?

Chapter 61

The palace courtyard

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Sir Beckett's attention was diverted from training his men when they all stopped fighting and stared in the direction of the entryway. Turning to see what they were looking at he saw the young lady from the Mystic Moon as she slowed to a walk, her arms folded over her head as she worked to catch her breath.

"Ah, Lady Hitomi!" The Minister of Defense raised his hand into the air.

Turning to see who was calling her, Hitomi smiled and waved back. "Good morning Minister!" After a moment she noticed the eyes of all his soldiers were on her. Blushing slightly, she waved to them as well. "Good morning gentleman!" As she reasoned, 'I bet their not used to seeing a woman wear clothes like these.' She looked down at her running shorts. 'Maybe I better make sure I take my warm-ups along from now on.'

Just then Merle came up the entryway followed a few seconds later by Van.

Gasping for air, the young king said. "I thought… you said… you were going… to… take it easy… …on the way… back." He placed his hands on his knees as he sucked in air.

"Keep walking Van, and don't stop until your heart rate returns to normal." She instructed him. "And that goes for you to Merle." She turned her attention to the catgirl who had already plopped herself down on the floor.

"Aaa!" The feline jumped up and started walking around casually.

Captain Cid, who had been practicing with Captain Leopold, stared with a look of indignation as he saw the woman walk up to his king.

"They make a handsome couple. Wouldn't you agree." Leopold said, smiling at the sight ahead.

"If you say so." Cid responded.

"I can only hope I can someday garner the fancy of a woman such as her." His eyes wandered from the young couple to the young feline who was still walking about casually.

A wicked smile appeared on the face of his fellow captain, who replied. "With your charms Leopold, I'm certain you will be destined to die a lonely old hermit."

Gasping at the insult the young captain turned to his friend and said with mock anger. "That is in insult Sir. You shall pay for such insolence." He raised his sword.

"Ah, perhaps now you will prove a more worthy advisory." Cid assailed him again as he too raised his sword.

"You mock me still." Leopold's expression grew more serious. "Prepare to fight." With that, the two young captains began dueling once again.

"You can bathe first if you like." Hitomi offered, standing just centimeters in front of Van.

"No, go ahead. It's time for my training now." He tilted his head in the direction of the soldiers.

"Oh, I see. A-all right. Will I see you at breakfast?" She asked hesitantly.

Van took a half step toward her and gently ran his hands over her lower back as he brought his face within a breath of hers. "Probably not. Training usually runs long. But I will see you at lunch. I promise." He smiled warmly.

The warmth of his smile brought back memories of the night before as she smiled back and slowly brought her hands up around the back of his neck. "Mmm, well. If I can't trust the promise of a king, what can I trust?" And she slowly closed her eyes as she pressed her lips to his, her hands mingling up into his hair.

Van slid his hands up slightly, pulling her into a tighter embrace as he opened his mouth and gently requested access with his tongue into hers. She readily obliged him, opening her mouth and receiving him willingly.

Their kiss lasted several minutes, only ending when the sounds of hooting and howling from the soldiers invaded their ears. Hitomi's cheeks immediately turned bright red as she turned her head away from the crowd and pressed her cheek against his chest.

Shooting a stern look at his men, they instantly stopped and went back to their training. He then turned his attention back to the young woman in his arms. "It's okay Hitomi. They were just teasing."

"I don't act like this, not in public. I never do anything like this. What's come over me?" She wondered out loud.

"Love has." Van answered.

She looked up into his eyes.

"Do you think I would have been capable of anything like last night if it weren't for my love for you." He smiled. "I haven't danced since I was a small boy and only with my mother."

Smiling back at him once again, she said. "Then I better watch myself. There's no telling what I might do."

Van's smile widened and he leaned in to kiss her again but she pulled back slightly, her eyes quickly darting over at the soldiers then back at him. Repeating her actions, the young king nodded his understanding then lean forward quickly and gave her a gently peck on the lips.

"I'll see you at lunch then." He said as he let his hands slide away from around her back and softly over her hands.

"I'll be looking forward to it." Hitomi's smile grew as she watched him turn and head over toward his men. She gave a quiet sigh as she bent down to pick up her track shoes then started heading for the castle entrance. "Come on Merle. It's time to take a bath." She said to her friend.

"It's about time you two finished being all mushy with each other." The feline teased. "Anymore if it and I think I might be sick."

"Oh shut up!"

"Hehehe."

"What, jealous?"

"Shut up!"

"Hehehe."

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AN: Okay, not too serious here but I didn't have the heart to make it serious while Van and Hitomi were still together. Sorry for the delay in updating this week, I hope to update more then once a week but work is really hectic right now. In my anime-viewing group, we just finished watching Escaflowne last Sunday. It's hard to keep from crying in front of 11 other people. *Sigh*

Again, thank you all for your reviews. It's always a joy to open my email and see the review alerts waiting for me to read. ^_^ They really make my day. And I'm so glad you all have been enjoying my story. I can only hope I can continue to entertain you.

Take care, I love you all.

A. Amishi