-Catgirl-of-Bavaria- : .:rises once more from the grave to update:. OMFG, I'm back!!
I am so sorry about how late this is, you guys, I really am. So many distractions have kept me from updating this. Let us see, there have been familial issues concerning my brother and a behavioral class he's taken at the psychiatric ward of the hospital, Major financial issues(this is more recent) in my family, my own hunting for a job(curse you, Sonic!!) hanging out with my friends once in a while, a touch of writer's block, obsessive manga-hoarding and reading, my usual degree of laziness, my Computer's growing grudge against me… and let us not forget the obsessive guild-going on Gaia! Yesh, that's right, my Oban Star Racers guild is officially 3 weeks and 2 days old! Thanks to the Easter event on Gaia, me and Spellcaster Hikaru were able to set the thing up so much earlier than anticipated :D I urge all you Gaians lurking about in here to go join us! We're growing quite happily! –And we have pocky… BTW, just PM me or Hikaru-chan if you want a quick way to find us and join. Just say you saw the announcement here and we would be glad to send you an invite! I'm TehSheba on Gaia, and Hikaru-chan is SpellcasterHikaru!
So, anyhow, I am deeply sorry about how late this is, and don't believe it for one minute that I've abandoned this story, I am having way too much fun spewing out a big ball of Mokka fluffiness! Like I'll ever quit…Sorry, you guys are stuck with me! X3 Gomen Nasaii!!! .:Goes all Ritchan-san on y'all:. Omg, Fruits Basket reference in an Oban fanfiction section….
Moving on to the chapter, we got…well, a bunch of people to meet! Ok, not really a bunch, but I thank Tolkein's The Hobbit for giving me that chapter name .:bows to Tolkein-san:. As for the welcome that the humans receive from Nourasian palace-dwellers, well, let's just say it's mixed. And Aikka finally admits to himself his real feelings for Eva, as well as his realization of the hard truth concerning those feelings…
Shout-outs!
Spellcaster Hikaru: .:Uber-glomp of DOOM!:. Thank you, thank you, thank you Hikaru-chan for helping me with my guild!! Rawr! Lol…Now that I have this done, I should be working on writing some things up for our RP! Ooh, and you still haven't joined DestinyDestroyer's Rp have you? 0o .:drags you over to the guild:. Oh, music! Yes, I usually write to the sound of music. Lately I've been obsessed with Keane, and I actually love envisioning my story to 'Somewhere Only We Know' by them. It fits, specially the past when the trident crashes into her house and Aikka's protecting her, in fact I had the song on repeat while I was writing that chapter. Fits well with the part of the lyrics that say 'this could be the end of everything'…I've declared it as this story's unofficial theme song :D Yeah, I've always got some music going. It's good stuff for inspiration. Oh! Have you heard the new Linkin Park song? It's called What I've Done, and it's such an Aikka song. Look it up, I love it. Yay! Seppuku! Me and Aki-chan saw a shirt on J-list that says, 'In case of Emergency, commit Seppuku here' with a samurai pointing to the stomach area of the shirt(or some thing pointing there anyway, not sure if it was the samurai) But yeah, Savin does say that there is some Samurai influence to the Nourasians, so who knows? XD I'd probably have fun hijacking a trident, myself. You know, after flying it into a few walls and accidentally shooting things up, I'd probably get the hang of it XD OMG, I agree, Janni for president!!
Shrouded View: Lol, a Canaan/Don showdown would be interesting…This chapter shows a little of the Nourasian reaction. It will vary, however between people. But that will come later :)
RedMageSalyre: I love Nourasia, it's so awesome, the way I see it in my head X3 I'm greatly influenced by Tolkein's elves, too. Nourasia sort of allowed me to use it and throw in a bit of my own taste to Nourasia. And as for Rick, yeah, I really hate what happened to him(curse you, Canaletto! .:shakes fist:.) but it'd definitely still be around and in that situation, I'm guessing it would pop up again :( So, anyway, thanks for the review, and sorry to have kept you and the others waiting for so long!
Sekai Nerah: Hmm, I still wonder why they even skipped…I wanted to watch those ones on the TV, Youtube doesn't have the greatest quality…Ah well. Thanks, and here's my update, sorry for the lateness!
Crazyvegimab: Hey Mabs! .:huggles:. I'm really looking forward to writing Nourasia, too. X3 Hope you like!
APurpleAvacado: Ack, I'm so sorry, I've probably kept you waiting even longer this time around! Gomen Nasaii! I hope this one's worth the wait, I'll be better with the next one!
Whitehitsugaya: Hey there, you changed your name on me! Oh, what happened to 'Feelings'? I was looking for it the other day, but I couldn't find it…O.o Nyow…anyhow, thanks for the review, and sorry for the wait, hope you enjoy:D
Isabella of the Night: Read to find out, hope you like!
Frubaforever: Nyah, the Crogs won't be bothering them…quite yet….:shifty eyes:. Enjoy the update:D
IchikoKitsuneKoumori: I hope I do a good job! Please enjoy! .:bows:.
Wild Child 15: Lol, don't worry about it, I'm not mad or anything. In fact I agree with you that I should have updated sooner! Gomen again! Ooh, Aikka/Molly story! .:sparkly eyes:. I'll be waiting for it, hope to read it soon! X3
xYuna: lol, doin' my best! Hope you enjoy the update!
Crystal Persian, Fushica, dolphingurl08, thechickenlittle: Thank you all! Hope you love it:3
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-Chapter 13-
Many Meetings
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"We will meet again soon, I promise. You must see my kingdom."
When Aikka had told her that, back on Oban for what would be the last time in nearly a year that they'd see each other, she truly believed he meant it. She entirely trusted that the prince would keep that promise and she'd someday be able to meet the planet known as Nourasia, a planet told of beauty, as per her sources on Earth. She knew in her heart that he'd bring her there.
But still, it seemed, surreal, really, that she was actually standing there in this moment, like it was too good to be true. She'd just escaped hellish circumstances of her home world, an attack bent on retrieving her for further purposes she cared not to contemplate, and now she was suddenly in a place she'd been dreaming of seeing for the past year. Talk about opposite ends of the spectrum.
The bronze color of the stone gleamed at her, along with the shine of the blue stones, both inherent icons of Nourasian culture, as she could only begin to imagine. Aside from these two dominant features, the etched beetle designs on the ceiling and the winding, swirling fashion of the sculpted stone did nothing less than confirm that this was where Aikka came from.
"Molly?" Aikka's smooth voice called her out of her trance, and she looked at him with appreciative crimson eyes. "Are you alright, Molly?" She found the prince looking at her, concerned.
She smiled at him, finding his blue eyes drained from the excitement, the injury that still cursed his arm, but still filled with concern for none other than her. The thought made her blush lightly, but she nodded.
"I'm great, I'm just…" she trailed off quietly, just as Stan and Koji peeked out in awe from the back hatch of the Phantom before venturing out. "I'm just happy to be here, I've waited for this day for a while now,"
With that, Aikka couldn't stop the smile that graced his face, nor the slight darkening of color that overtook his tan cheeks. This little expression was short lived, however, as a loud thrum of a vibration overtook the stable, and Aikka looked towards the track-side double doors just yards away from them. Janni, meanwhile, took the sound as some sort of threat, and hoisted her hand cannon into firing position.
"Great, take us to where the war began, brilliant!" Janni growled as her gun started charging to her command. "There's probably more Crogs here than at home!"
Aikka quickly came up beside her, setting a hand on the cool metal of the weapon and pressing it slightly downward.
"Janni, hold your fire, that was no Crog you just heard," he then grinned towards the doors just as a shadow descended from outside the open doorway and into the place.
Eva watched, awestruck, as she felt the forms of Koji and Stan coming up on either side of her, protectively. In, through the doors, flew a gigantic beetle, almost identical in size to G'dar, but with a more of a greenish-blue color to grace the shells that covered its wings, whereas G'dar had the brilliant cerulean blue. On this new insect's back, sat a Nourasian, who simultaneously noticed G'dar's presence in the stable as the royal bug came up to greet the green-blue beetle in friendly beetle chatter.
"G'dar, I thought you were missing," the Nourasian said to the beetle, thunderstruck at its appearance.
It didn't take him long after that to notice the glaring presence of the Phantom, something that he'd never seen before. In turn, he then noticed the aliens, and the crown prince at the head of them. Then, he further noticed, one of the aliens had a weapon, and it was definitely loaded. Leaping off of his mount, the new Nourasian shouted to the gathering while poising an arrow directly at them.
"Stand away from the prince, or I shall shoot," Koji and Stan backed away slightly, bringing Eva with them with grasps on either of her shoulders. Meanwhile Janni could have sworn she heard the prince next to her laugh slightly.
"Takai, lower your weapon," Aikka said plainly, not moving to or from the other Nourasian. The one called Takai looked a little stunned at Aikka's smiling words, but obeyed nonetheless. "It is alright for you to come nearer, my friends will not bite," Aikka said, before giving a sideways glance to Janni, who was keeping her eyes on Takai. Well, most of them wouldn't bite. Takai gave apprehensive glances to the humans near Aikka, but approached anyway, before sinking to a bow before his prince.
Up close, it was clear that this Nourasian looked not too much older than Aikka's age, whatever that was, but he looked quite different than the prince. Though he was currently wearing something similar to Aikka's racing outfit from the great race, he was a bit more of a brown tint to his tan. His eyes, to match his long and pony-tailed hair, were a light shade of brown. He was even a bit taller than the Prince, once he stood again after his bow.
"My prince?" Takai asked uncertainly, not really knowing where to question him first. "My father told me of your escape, but I wouldn't think you'd have brought the target here," Aikka shut his eyes and nodded darkly.
"Drastic times require drastic measures," he said plainly. "I would have hoped that my friends' visit would have come under lighter circumstances, however things do not always work to plan."
"The Crogs have expanded their attack, have they?" Takai asked with a grimace, seeming to read between the lines of Aikka's statement. Aikka nodded.
"It is no longer safe for my friends, especially Eva, to remain on Earth, so I did what I had to." Aikka began to walk closer to Eva. "They need shelter now that their own has been destroyed."
Takai looked reluctant, but nodded. He knew as much as the next Nourasian that the history of Earth was not a spotless one. Their ventures in colonization throughout the galaxy had bought them this profile, along with some hefty enemies. For Takai also knew that the reason the Crog Imperium had attacked Earth in the first place was in retaliation of the humans' landing on their planet without warning, with ideas of colonies in their heads. They'd bought their relationship with the Crogs, and it gave a warning to the Nourasian council for years to come to stay away from that entire mess, for fear of worsening their own. They had enough troubles without putting hope into a species that they weren't sure could fulfill those hopes.
How the prince himself had gotten so entangled in their world was practically a mystery to him, his father never spoke much about it. All he knew was that this girl, named Eva, was the pilot for Earth during the Great Race, and that she had somehow gotten through to the prince. How far she'd gotten, though, he didn't prefer to think about. The fact that she was a target of the Crogs did not go unobserved either.
Janni had been watching this new Nourasian for a time, and even she sensed that he wasn't exactly excited for their presence. Though, he seemed ready enough to serve the prince to not make a scene about it, so she let it go, turning back to her group, shifting her cannon to a resting position under an arm.
Stan and Koji had meanwhile left to retrieve Don Wei upon news from Aikka that they were going to be on the move back to the palace, and Eva took to looking back at Takai, who simply frowned slightly as he caught her gaze, before turning to supposedly busy himself with settling his mount in. She got the distinct feeling, as well as Janni, that he wasn't as thrilled to have a guest as she was to be one.
It led her to wonder how her welcome from the rest of the kingdom, more so from the king and queen themselves, would be. Surely the batch of humans would have to meet the approval of Aikka's parents to remain in the kingdom, let alone the palace…She suddenly became very nervous.
"Molly, put this on," Aikka called her once more out of her thoughts, and he found him holding out a neat, bronze-brown bundle of fabric to her. At her puzzled look, he explained. "It's a racing cloak. I'd think it would be better if your true identities were concealed, for the time being at least. Until we get to my parents, you and the others should blend in, for your own protection,"
Eva looked speechless at him, and a glance to the others told her that they were already finding their ways into their own. She'd obviously been dazing off again. With a nod and a quiet word of thanks, Eva took the bundle from him, and unfurled it, finding it familiar, then recalling it as almost the same as the cloak Aikka had worn when he'd 'kidnapped' her during the race. The hood had a strip of designed material trailing over the center, and at the crest of the hood, she noticed the Nourasian insignia, just like the design of Aikka's head piece.
The cloak was complete with the red inside, including the wrap-around that concealed the bottom of her face, once she was properly concealed in it, with Aikka's help. Hooding herself as did the others, she certainly felt safely locked away in the material. She took a step forward, though, and it quickly became obvious that this cloak was at least a few sizes larger than her. Managing to catch herself from tripping over the hem, she gathered some of the material into her hands and held it to her chest to provide her feet with proper mobility.
She was relieved to notice that Rick had joined them since they'd all gathered, and he seemed to be doing better, though she could see on his face that he was drained. He obviously needed some sleep to recuperate, and her father still needed some medical assistance for his ankle. Hopefully the Nourasian hospitality Aikka spoke about once in the rain would hold true for them.
Aikka was currently off to the side, discussing matters of Crog occupation with Takai, to prepare them for what may wait for them on their way to the palace by way of the bridge hallway. Aikka visibly sighed in relief as Eva watched on; it seemed the Crogs had kept back, even since his talk with Canaan a few nights before. The shield over the city was doing its job, and repairs were still being tended to through out the city and in the palace.
After shutting the hatch to the Phantom, and Janni stowing her weaponry into her duffle bag that now hung at her hip, the troupe prepared to make the journey to the palace. Aikka took the lead, followed by Eva and a very alert Janni. After the girls came the two mechanics and the injured racing manager, then came Rick. Lastly, Takai patrolled the back of the train of cloaked figures.
Through the large double doors, they proceeded out into the bridge hall, the same that Aikka recalled as having collapsed behind him during his escape. To their luck, however, that mess had been cleared out, though it left an open sky above them instead of ceiling.
Eva couldn't help but switch between glances at the ground to ensure her footing on the broken floor and glances to the Nourasian sky. The color was actually a hazy looking shade of red, contrasting to Earth's sky, and she could see a large orb that looked the shade of light bronze, standing out from the color of the sky and almost a played down version of the bronze that graced the stable they'd just come from. It was the Nourasian moon, and she smiled at it, thinking that it was even larger than her own silver moon.
The end of the hall brought Aikka to be more cautious; this was where he'd met Toros, and the rubble from that battle still littered the place. His sapphire eyes narrowed as he found no form of a Crog, living or dead, in that area; meaning Toros had escaped, or he'd been removed.
'Takai, did anyone find any Crogs at all in this exact area?' Aikka sent directly to Takai using telepathy. Takai's own brown eyes flashed towards the rubble Aikka had somehow indicated, over where the stairs once were.
'No, I think I can honestly say not,' was his nervous reply. Aikka grimaced under the shadow of his own cloak, wondering what had become of the former Crog Colonel.
The humans simply followed Aikka, all the way through unknown, but beautiful hallways, unaware of the conversation that had just taken place between the two Nourasians. After a time that made the humans think the journey was never going to end, when Stan and Koji (Koji more so) were finally reaching their limits of strength for helping Don along, Aikka motioned for them to stop outside a rather lavish looking curtain, spreading in deep crimson from the high ceiling to the stone floor. It certainly looked quite regal, with threads of shining bronze embroidered in swirling designs throughout the material's lower portion, and Eva knew beyond a doubt, there was probably Aikka's royal family on the other side of it.
They saw on either side of this veil, more Nourasian knights, who happened to be simultaneously looking the hooded figures over, sensing easily that they were strangers. However, the fact that the prince was there escorting them seemed to keep the human group safe from questioning.
"My prince," one of the knights said, as he and the others sank to courtly bows. "May we be of any assistance to you and your…guests?" the Nourasian cast another nervous look to the cloaked humans, wondering if he chose the right word. Aikka merely smiled and returned a bow.
"Actually you may, I wonder, are the King and Queen available?" He asked them politely, with every air of a prince and heir. The Nourasian gave a decisive nod.
"I will announce you," the knight bowed again, and then turned his gaze for another time at the prince's guests, this time Eva in particular. "And what of these newcomers, my prince?"
"They will come with me, they are refugees of their own planet, and they are in my escort." Aikka told the man. "I believe an introduction is in order,"
The Nourasian knight bowed again. "Yes, very well. I will announce you at once," with that he turned to the draping curtain, and Aikka looked to the massive entrance with a slight feeling of nervousness. His parents would accept them, right? They simply couldn't turn them away, they had nowhere else to go! Not even his strict father would be so harsh as to reject them in such dire straits…
Takai, meanwhile, decided that he really didn't care about the humans' presentation. Surely the King would see that having them here, having that human girl there, would endanger them all the more. So, he wondered off, deciding that he should alert his father as to the prince's return.
"Their majesties are ready for you, Prince Aikka," the same knight returned, bowing once more. "You and your charges may enter."
Bowing back to his fellow knight, Aikka looked back towards the group of humans, and silently drew in a large breath. Motioning them to follow, Aikka proceeded through the curtain, which was being held aside gracefully by the other knights.
Eva stared around nervously, feeling her heart racing. Aikka's parents, the king and queen of an entire planet, and she was about to meet them. Their surroundings were now dimmer, torches lined the walk to the location where the thrones were, and blue stones glittered from the light shadows, catching somehow the light that just barely reached them. The columns in here actually seemed to curl in such a fashion as to give the feeling that they were walking down a magnificently beautiful tunnel. She couldn't even begin to describe the awe she felt just from looking at it all.
Aikka finally held out a hand to pause the humans where they stood, and strode a little more forward. Eva saw in front of them, another crimson curtain, draping to frame the bronze and blue stone decorated thrones. Hanging bronze colored lanterns provided more light to the throne, casting swirling shadows from the design of the things along the walls and curtains. Standing, rather than sitting, there were two regal looking Nourasians on the elevated floor of the throne. Aikka sank to a knee before his parents, bowing his head as well.
"Mother, Father, I am sorry to have worried you, and left without warning," he told them humbly.
"You are forgiven, my son, we are relieved to see that your fate has not rested with the Crogs as we had feared," His mother said kindly, coming down the steps to greet her son who was just getting to his feet. "By the spirits, you look dreadful, all scratched up…" She said, doting over the prince's face, which was indeed a little scratched and bruised from the attack that was on Eva's house. "And what's this, you are injured!" the queen suddenly noticed a slight tinge of blood on the bronze-brown fabric of his cloak.
Aikka looked at the stain himself, and suddenly recalled the wound. The king joined the reunion stoically, giving a gaze to the humans, the small form of Eva being of particular interest to him.
"Nori, my queen, we are not alone in this reunion," The king said in a deep voice, indicating the collection of aliens behind their son before the woman had more of a chance to dote over her son in the presence of strangers. Nori looked curiously, and found indeed that they had company.
"Mother, Father, these are my friends, if I may be permitted to introduce them?" Aikka suggested, looking back to Eva, showing her a message in his eyes as if to tell her to not be afraid. Lao gave another look to them, and nodded.
"If I may request that they reveal themselves from under their guises, then yes, you may." Aikka nodded first to his father, then to the others, who quickly obeyed in unhooding themselves. The only one really having trouble was Don Wei, standing on his good foot and using one hand to support himself on Stan's shoulder, the other guiding his hood over his streaked hair. Eva watched over her father worriedly, but shook herself out of her own cloak.
"These are sirs Rick Thunderbolt, Stan, Koji, Don Wei," Aikka indicated each as he said their name, and each bowed, somewhat awkwardly, not knowing what else to do, but wanting to be respectful. "And this is lady Janni Wilde, the sister of the avatar, and lady Eva Wei, daughter of Don Wei and the winner of Oban." He finished with a smile. Nori immediately lit up.
"So this is the young lady that defeated the Crog general in the final race and Canaletto in the Temple of the Heart?" Nori's smiling features looked over Eva softly. "Aikka has only ever said endearing things about you, it is an honor to finally meet you, lady Eva," Eva couldn't hide her surprise as the queen then bowed smoothly, in a similar, but more feminine manner than she'd seen Aikka do when she first met him. It was a light bow, but still; the queen was bowing to her.
"Th-thank you, it's an honor to be here," The young human managed to squeeze out a response as she gave her own bow, that was only stiff out of her nerves at the moment. Aikka smiled softly at the exchange; now all that remained to be seen was how his father would approve of Eva.
'You would do well to not become too attached to this girl, Aikka,' His father's voice came a bit harshly in Aikka's mind, seeming to know his very thoughts. Looking to the king, he found hard eyes gazing sideways at him. 'You know who you are, and you know your responsibilities as such, my son.'
Aikka grimaced and looked back to the girl he knew as his one true friend, the girl he was coming to find was tugging at all his emotions. How she felt all this time he'd spent with her over the last few days, seemed to reflect onto him; when she had felt the joy from riding the winds with him on G'dar, he felt just as elated just to see that side of her. When she'd been frightened for the fates of her friends, he'd wanted nothing more than to hold her protectively from the world, to not allow it to hurt her any more than it already had. And then, just hours ago, it became clear that he was not the only one slipping into the feeling of something more between them. That alone made him feel more elated than ever…
No.
No, he could not continue to think that way, and he knew it. His father was right, as much as he hated it; there were responsibilities that he had. Responsibilities that would eventually catch up with him. And if he was anymore involved in slipping into these new feelings, it would make it that much harder to pull himself away.
"Father, I apologize for not receiving your blessing in bringing them here, but I ask that they may be permitted to stay," Aikka brought up, fighting the knot in his chest and only wanting to return to the matter at hand, rather than dwell on dark thoughts. "Their planet is no longer safe, and they have nowhere else to go." Lao nodded thoughtfully.
"So the Crogs have indeed expanded their attack," he assessed grimly. After a short while of silent thought, in which Nori looked imploringly at her mate, the king spoke again.
"Though I understand the gravity of their situation, I cannot let the fact that this girl is a target of the Crogs go unnoticed," The king's deep voice filled the chamber, almost with a sense of finality which the Prince stiffened at, holding a breath. "So, it of great importance that my standards are followed whilst they are here. I'm placing responsibility of this group into your hands, Aikka."
Eva looked up again, finding the king built to his full height, looking every bit the part of a powerful ruler. His eyes were hard, his face stern. But he still carried a sort of welcoming attribute, as though she could tell from looking at him that he truly did care.
"They are to be rooming in the guest wing, and they are not to leave that wing unless given a proper escort. They are not allowed outside the palace walls, but these circumstances may be changed given the situation with the Crogs and their occupation of our city, but only upon my word." His eyes then fell on the injured human, Don Wei. "The injured one may be taken to the healing rooms, for the night, if he so wishes to remain there that long." Don blinked a few times, but said nothing of the address he'd been given.
"I understand, Father. Thank you." Aikka said smoothly, bowing deeply to his king and father. "I will escort them there immediately, by your leave."
The king nodded. "Very well, you are dismissed, my son."
Rising out of his bow, Aikka then turned a smile to his companions, and motioned for them to follow him. They all tilted their heads towards the royal Nourasians respectfully, however, Eva gazed upon them a little longer than the rest, and gave them an actual bow before turning and heading after the others, insisting on taking Koji's place in assisting her father the rest of the way.
Watching as their son led the humans back out of the chamber, the king and queen both bore quite different expressions. Nori wore a little smile on her tan face, while the king wore one of vague apprehension. The queen then looked to her mate, and gave a little grin.
"What troubles you about this group, my love?" She asked quietly, as soon as the crimson curtain overtook their sight of the humans and their son. "If I recall correctly, those other males are the ones that helped Aikka when he was unconscious during the race, and apparently again after the attack, we owe them shelter at the least for their deeds,"
The King shut his eyes and let out a sigh. "I am simply worried of what Aikka thinks of this young human girl…It appears to me that he is digging himself in a dangerous hole for a young prince to be in."
"You are afraid of his feelings for this girl," Nori suggested, taking the king's hand into her gentle ones. The king simply looked at his queen, before turning off to find the inner chambers of the room.
"Aikka must remember his duty to his kingdom," Lao said lowly. "And I'm afraid this girl is making him forget. Indeed there is reason to be cautious of his feelings towards her." He said this with a bit of a grimace on his face, and though Nori couldn't see it, she could sense it in his voice. To the king, the thought that his son was becoming involved with a girl from another planet, a human, no less, wasn't exactly a welcoming one.
Nori simply smiled sadly as Lao disappeared behind a crimson curtain to the inner walls of the throne room. She couldn't deny that there were duties the prince owed to the kingdom, but she also was in tune to what her son really wanted; companionship. And perhaps it was only maternal instinct that made her glad that he'd found it, even be it in the company of a human girl.
"Hmm, but Aikka, as well as every other being, also owes a certain duty to his heart, my king…" Nori replied to the empty throne room. "Surely you'd understand this, if only a little…"
Smiling warmly at the image of the Earth girl Eva, the queen of Nourasia then turned to exit the room the same way her mate had. It wasn't hard to recognize her son's true feeling for the girl; she'd once been through the same, unpredictable ride of emotions herself, which had essentially led to her holding the highest crown of Nourasian royalty. Luck only had it that in Aikka's case, it had transcended the barriers of race.
"Or could it be fate?" Nori narrated to herself in the silence between her and her royal chambers. "I'm looking forward to seeing more of this Earth girl." She then concluded with a chuckle as she smiled serenely at her stone surroundings. Blue stones winked back at her in the lantern light, and she readily accepted this as agreement from the gems.
--
The hospital wing of the palace, or rather, the healing rooms, as it were, seemed nearly a stark difference from the ones Eva and the others knew from Earth.
Whereas the ones from their own planet were usually white and sterile, for lack of a better word, the Nourasian version seemed contrastingly more welcoming. Eva felt warmth in more ways than one when she walked in. For one, there was a cozy looking fireplace on one wall opposite the beds. Torches and lanterns provided the same dancing patterns of light on the walls as she'd seen in the throne room, and daylight poured in from tall and narrow windows.
For another, there were Nourasian nurses, or healers, rather, walking about with trays of either food or herbs and balms, depending on what their respective patients were in need of at the present time. The patients, it seemed, had a much better quality of life here than did the patients of Earth hospitals. They didn't seem to even be injured, from some that Eva spotted. Then again, given the healing methods that she'd already seen a small bit of, this wasn't exactly surprising to her.
Once Prince Aikka had explained the situation of the humans, the healers were more than ready to assist the injured Don Wei, and agreed immediately that he could remain in the healing rooms for the rest of the day and overnight.
"What exactly will this do…?" Don asked cautiously, eyeing the substance in a goblet that he'd been handed by a healer. Luckily he'd waited until the only Nourasian in hearing distance was the Prince to say this. All of them had been gathered near the bed Don had claimed in the corner of the room, while the man sat on the thing, his injured foot set on a generously stuffed pillow.
"It is used to help stimulate the healing process within the body. I imagine that your injury will be completely healed by morning," Don still eyed the liquid, not liking the green shade it took in the cup. He'd learned well about the strange properties alien drinks sometimes took when he was on Alwas. How Rick had downed all of those drinks with those odd little creatures in them back in the Alwas pub was a mystery to him to this day.
Stan and Koji looked with amused looks at each other as the racing manager downed the drink in one swig, a distorted look on his face. Wiping his mouth with a sleeve, he assessed the taste of the stuff. It wasn't bad, but he'd tasted better remedies. Even Eva had a laugh at her father's reaction. Aikka smiled as he took to his feet.
"I believe the guest rooms will be ready for you all soon, we should start heading there," He told the group, who in turn nodded. Eva looked to the prince as the others got to their feet, had they been already sitting down.
"Aikka, I'm gonna stay with my dad for a little while longer, if that's ok," the Earthen said as blue eyes turned to her. "You guys can go ahead. You probably need rest," She looked specifically to Janni and Rick, who looked the most worn out of the group. Despite herself, Janni let out a gaping yawn as a response.
"You sure, Eva? You're probably pretty tired yourself," The gunner said, scratching a spot on the back of her head absently. Eva nodded certainly.
"I'll catch up, if Aikka doesn't mind coming back for me," she gave a questioning look to the prince, who immediately smiled.
"Very well, I'll arrange something with Canaan if I cannot make it," He told her serenely, with a nod to signify a bow. Turning to look at the girl's father, he gave a hospitable smile. "Rest well, then, Mr. Wei,"
With that, the group separated, leaving the Weis where they sat, Eva in her own chair that she'd pulled from the side. As the last view of the other disappeared out the wide doorway, Eva turned back to her father.
"So how's that stuff working for ya, dad?" She asked with a grin. Her father gave an amused laugh, and then assessed the question himself.
"Well, it feels like my foot's gone to sleep, but I suppose that's a good thing…" He said, peering at said foot as it lay on the pillow at the end of the bed. "The pain's gone at least. Alien medicine is still a mystery to me."
Eva laughed at this, while her father smiled at the sound.
"I'm just glad you're alright, Eva. I can't tell you how worried I was once Rick showed us all the attack on the news," Eva shrugged, but smiled as she took the emptied goblet from her father.
"Well, I was pretty worried about you myself. I thought the hangar'd been shot out when I saw the offices in the condition they were." She said, setting the cup on the bedside table. "And I guess it's lucky I even made it there. If Aikka wasn't with me, I don't know what would have happened…" Don responded with a deep yawn.
"I'll have to thank the boy," He said groggily, leaning his head back into the generous amount of pillows behind him. If he had to guess, the things were filled with whatever the Nourasian equivalent of down was. "He's done more to protect you in these last few days alone than I have during your whole…life…" He finished over another deep yawn, his voice fading with every word.
"Don't say that, dad…" Eva mumbled with a slight blush and a downward look at her father's remorse. After a few seconds of silence from her father, she glanced back up from her hands. "Dad?"
Finding him silent as he lay into the pillows, Eva first thought maybe something was wrong, him having fallen asleep so quickly. It certainly looked like the deepest sleep she'd ever seen.
"Dad, are you ok?" She asked quietly, leaning slightly out of her seat. Seeing his chest rise and fall at a relaxed pace, though, made her smile and sit back down. Just then, a healer came up beside her, a bundle of thick-looking white linen in her hands.
"Do not worry, drowsiness is a common side-effect of the medicine he was given, even to those used to consuming it. He should wake by tomorrow's star-rise at the least." With a bow, she then held out the bundle. "I'll leave this with you, so he does not wake in chill during the night."
"Oh, ah, thanks," Eva said, hastily taking the bundle and adding a bow of her own.
With a smile, the healer then disappeared behind some curtains to tend to some other patients. Eva looked back to her sleeping father with a fond smile. Standing up, she spread out the generous provision of the blanket, finding it quite lightweight, but thick enough to indeed protect her father from the chill. Feeling the material between her fingertips, it even felt so much more welcoming than the linen she knew of from the hospital wing of the race track back home that she'd just slept in days ago.
The blanket in front of her sank slightly at the thought of her home world; the track where she'd raced for the past year, possibly destroyed, her father's hangar shot out and badly damaged, her house, practically in ruins…
The blanket corners she had a hold of suddenly gathered into tightly formed fists, as the scene from that attack flashed into her mind. She felt her eyes scrunch shut, but she could still see it, clear as day. She could still hear the trident ripping through her bedroom walls.
A lone tear pearled down her starry cheek as the blanket pooled on the floor from her lowering her arms. She was right, if Aikka hadn't been there, she doubted she'd have had the courage to run away. She had always considered herself a brave girl, but even then, there were things she was terrified of, and at the time, one of them had been tearing towards and into her house. Hearing Aikka shout for her back then was probably the one thing that saved her from being frozen in place.
"Sorry, daddy," She then said with a sad smile, spreading the linen out again and tossing it to glide over her father's bed. "Looks like we'll have to start over again…" Making sure that all the corners had made it to their proper locations around the bed and that her father was reasonably covered, Eva leaned in to give her father a kiss on the forehead.
"Sleep tight," she said quietly, before turning and looking around at the rest of the room. It seemed pretty empty, even though she knew some curtains surrounding the beds hid away sleeping patients, and even the crimson curtain on the wall that led to some area for the healers, as she'd seen when the woman who gave her the blanket wandered off behind it.
Sighing, she mused to herself about how quiet it was. Even for a place that had just been attacked, with casualties, a few days previous. Looking out the hallway door, the one she and the others had come in through earlier, she noticed some sort of adornment on the wall opposite that door.
With a last glance around the room, she made her quiet way towards the thing. Out the double doors with a glance to either empty hallway on the sides, she wondered across the wide corridor.
'Wouldn't hurt to look around a little,' she thought to herself with a look back towards the healing rooms.
Turning back to the wall of interest, she found what had caught her eye; a decorative bow, about identical in size to Aikka's, but a little different in design. Hanging a bit higher than her own height on the wall, the symbol of Nourasian royalty, the swirling pattern she knew of from Aikka and the king and queen's headpieces was carved proudly above it into the stone of the wall.
Moving a little downward from this, in a sort of trance by the carefully designed and adorned walls, Eva came to a stop in front of a particular carving, placed in a rounded alcove of a hall, which spread all around the curvature of the place. She made her way over to it, and found it seemed to tell a story with its expanse.
Among swirling decorations, she identified something that seemed to be a planet with two moons, then two Nourasian women, by the looks of their long and pointed ears. Each seemed to have signs of magic in their hands as they surrounded a large orb. Then there were other Nourasians, but only a few, and each had the swirling marks on their foreheads which signified royalty. And beetles, not unlike G'dar. The royalty and the beetles stood upon another large orb, with two smaller orbs floating above.
"It must be some sort of fable, or something…" Eva told herself quietly, stepping back a bit to take the carving in as a whole. The sound of footsteps coming behind her, though, finally seemed to bring her back to the real world. And she suddenly realized she had been wondering off without an escort.
"A-Aikka?" She asked hopefully, turning in a whirl. Instead of the prince, however, she was surprised to find herself in the presence of a different knight. "Oh, ah, Takai, was it…?"
For only a brief moment, he stared at her, expressionless. Eva suddenly felt nervous under his stern gaze, and looked around at the blue stones on the walls. There was definitely something familiar about the hard look she was receiving…
"Ah…Do you know if...Prince Aikka is around?" She suggested quietly to the Nourasian. Instead of answering her, he came one step closer, just enough to make her have to look a bit upward to look at him.
"You don't belong here." His voice finally came, and it sounded cold to Eva. She then glanced nervously to the ground.
"I-I'm sorry, I guess I have wondered a bit far from the healing room…" She said awkwardly. Takai narrowed his brown eyes and retorted, crossing his arms across his chest.
"That is not what I meant. Having you here, in the palace, is a danger to the king and queen, and to the people of this planet." Eva suddenly looked up at him with wide crimson eyes. His brown ones were still as hard as ever as he glared down at her.
"I-I'm sorry??" Eva stammered, hoping she hadn't heard correctly. Takai opened his mouth to respond with another terse argument, when another presence joined them in the alcove.
"Takai," A deep voice claimed resonance in the corridor, as well as causing Takai to turn in place. Eva nearly let out a gasp to see who had just saved her from this interrogation.
"Takai, my son, you know better than to speak to guests of the palace in such a manner." Canaan, the Prince's own fencing master, came up next to the younger Nourasian. The elder gave the knight a stern look and Eva suddenly understood why Takai had seemed so familiar to her. "This girl is under the Prince's protection, and you shall treat her and her kin with respect as such. Is this understood?"
The look on his son's face truly bordered utter surprise as Canaan spoke. With a quick glance towards the Earthling, Takai nodded stiffly, but sank to a deep bow.
"I am sorry, father." He then looked at Eva and nodded. "And my apologies to you, Lady Eva. It will not happen again." With that, he turned and headed back from whence he came, leaving Eva alone with Canaan.
"I apologize again on Takai's behalf, youngling." Canaan said with a light bow. Stern grey eyes then found her again and he stepped away and towards the hallway leading out of the fable alcove. "Come, Prince Aikka has sent me to retrieve you and bring you to your room. He will be waiting."
Eva quickly nodded and hurried after the man, only glancing up enough to ensure that she was following him. The whole walk was quiet as Canaan coursed the hallways of the palace (which seemed more to Eva like a maze the further they went,) but it wasn't the sort of comfortable silence as she so often shared with the prince. In those silences, nothing needed to be said. In fact, the only similarity to that version that this silence shared was that nothing needed to be said; in this case, she knew that Canaan didn't really prefer the company she provided, her first meeting with the elder had made that part clear.
After what seemed like an eternity, if only the silence made it seem that way, Canaan's form finally stopped in front of her. She paused behind him as he came to a bow in the newest alcove that they'd come to. It seemed like a rounded area, though much bigger than the one she'd found the fable-carving in, with several doors along the curving wall.
Rather than the curtains she'd seen dominating the doorways in previous areas of the palace, these sported large wooden doors. There was even a pair of double doors set in the head of the alcove, and those were presently opened to let in some scarlet light. Just outside Eva could glimpse a fraction of Nourasian scenery beyond a stone balcony. Her eyes widened at the thought that she was so close to being able to sightsee. Was this the guest wing that she and the others had heard about?
"Prince Aikka, I now leave her in your charge," Canaan was saying as Eva brought herself from her trance out the doors. Finally spotting what was in front of her, she found Aikka leaning against the frame of one of the six bedroom doorways, the one located on the right side of the hall, and one the end. Though it seemed again that she'd found him with out a shirt, as he massaged a hand over his injured arm, no doubt rubbing the balm into it.
Aikka looked towards his master and his human friend, and smiled, despite whatever disapproving look Canaan was dealing him for his 'indecent' exposure before a guest. To say nothing of the odd glances he was given for the pair of jeans he was left in.
"Thank you, Canaan, I'll take over from here," Aikka nodded with a slight bow. Canaan gave another odd look.
"Shall I not be showing you to your new chambers?" the fencing master enquired with the raise of an eyebrow. Aikka blinked, but then smiled again.
"No, that will not be necessary, I have already claimed this as my new residence, for the time being." Aikka turned slightly and held out a hand to indicate the room just beyond the doorway he occupied. Eva leaned slightly as to see inside, curious and a bit confused. "But thank you nonetheless,"
Canaan looked hesitant, and rather surprised, actually, but nodded anyway. Bowing out, he gave his regards to the prince and Eva, and disappeared to leave the two teenagers alone.
"You're staying in the guest wing? What about your old room?" Eva asked curiously, striding up to level with Aikka, who had returned to nursing his injury. He looked up from his arm at her question and gave a slight laugh through a grimacing face.
"My old chambers happened to be where I was when the Crogs attacked. Kross saw to it that it was turned into a pile of rubble when he came after me." He said, causing Eva to blush slightly at her asking the question in the first place.
"Oh…I'm sorry…" She said awkwardly, at which the prince waved it away, settling his balm back into the medicine pouch on his belt.
"Don't be, it is not your fault in the least," Aikka told her. She then looked around him and into his new room.
"So then why here?" She asked, confusedly.
"Well, first of all, I am still your guardian, so I thought it would be favorable to, ah, as you put it…'Stay in the area?'" He leaned a smile towards her as he used her own term from a few days previous. Eva nodded with a blush grinning at how the prince was bringing back her own words to use in the new reversal of roles.
Aikka chuckled at this as he motioned her to follow her in whilst turning into the room himself. Once inside, she looked around, finding the place as beautifully and similarly decorated as the rest of the palace, with a four-post bed made from some dark shaded wood, with bronze-brown and white linen. Off to the side, a curtained door led to what Eva could only guess(and hope) was a bathroom. But what really caught her eye was the expanse of windows on the opposite wall. The whole window even seemed to be a bay expansion, as well, with crimson pillows lining the thing and providing a great potential for sitting and gazing over the city.
If this was the guest room, then she could only wonder how lavish the royal rooms were.
"It is also nice to get a change in scenery once in a while," Aikka said as Eva made a beeline for the window seat with a grin on her face. Leaning over the seat itself to get a glimpse at Nourasia, Eva took everything in. The city itself looked gorgeous, from what little she could see around the haze of trees and their lavender foliage that seemed to surround the palace. Even now she could see the Nourasian star, burning a fiery red, sharing the sky with the moon she'd seen earlier. Aikka watched her shift every which way to get enough of a view amusedly as he picked his discarded shirt off of his new bed.
"It's so beautiful," Eva gasped, even knowing she'd not even seen the half of it. Aikka smiled broadly as he sat next to her. "So this is all gonna be yours one day? Heck, I wouldn't mind that at all…"
"I was hoping you'd like it. Hopefully I will be allowed to show you more soon," Aikka told her, leaning against the windowsill. Eva settled down onto the bench herself and rested her chin on the arm that had folded along the windowsill as well. "How is your father doing?" Aikka then decided to ask, once he pulled himself back into his white human-made shirt.
"He's fine, he fell asleep not too long after you guys left…" Eva said softly, her eyes that were fixed on the outside world of lavender trees lidding slightly. "Where are the others, anyway?" She wondered vaguely.
"I advised them all to get some rest in their own rooms before the evening meal. I suppose I should tell you that Janni has insisted she share your room with you," Aikka informed her, leaning forward in his seat and toying with his hair, trying to take it out of its arrangement. It even still felt damp to him with the rain it had acquired back on Earth. "I hope it will not be a problem, this was actually the last room in the guest…Ah…"
Aikka trailed off as he turned back to look at the girl, finding her just he left her, but more slumped over the window ledge, and apparently fast asleep. The racing cloak he'd given her earlier still draped around her as she sat with her legs folded up against her chest, head resting on her folded arms.
He smiled down at the girl next to him, feeling his hair finally slide onto his shoulders as he finished removing it from its holdings. For a few moments, he just sat and watched her with warm blue eyes, seeing her shoulders rise and fall gently with her breath. How thankful he really was that she could be here with him, in his own kingdom, but even more so that they were all so lucky as to escape the assault on her own home without any hard losses. How grateful he was to see the little smile on her face as she slept there before him.
"Pleasant dreams, 'Princess'," Aikka said quietly, leaning in slightly. Delicately moving some of her damp black bangs aside, he just barely pressed his lips to her forehead, hoping that the gesture would protect her from nightmares in her slumber.
Getting to his feet, he went to retrieve an extra blanket from his bed (the maids who had assisted him earlier with the readying of the rooms insisted that he take extra blankets, just in case) and returned to provide her with some more warmth. With a yawn, he then decided to retire himself.
Flopping backwards and haphazardly over his bed, covering included, Aikka brought a forearm across his tired blue eyes. Sighing, he realized he really didn't know what he was going to do. It seemed that the he was falling even more into something that he shouldn't be feeling, according to his father, and even according to something called common sense. The thing was, he wasn't sure he didn't want to fall into it, either, which was just another problem to add to his list. He was falling in love with his human friend more and more by the day, and he knew it.
The prince rolled over with another sigh, looking over at Eva's sleeping form. He supposed he'd figure out what to do with himself later, as long as he could just have this time with her, however long or short that would turn out to be…Even if he couldn't allow his feeling for her to progress, he just wanted this time with her.
-Catgirl-of-Bavaria-: There you guys have it, my too-long awaited update! XD And with a big mass of fluffiness at the end. Hope that, among the rest of the chapter, makes the wait semi-worth it! .:sweatdrop:
Like I have said many times before, So sorry for the lateness! Ack, I have no one to blame but myself DX and my computer, just to be fair…At one point it even felt like deleting a small portion of this chapter while I wasn't looking. .:glares at computer:. But no worries, that's long since been taken care of. And also like I said before, go check out my guild, peeps! XD
Next chapter, I have a little Nourasian creation legend to share with y'all, (which actually has a corresponding picture lurking around in my sketchy-book, that's gonna be in DA when the time comes) and now that she's rested up, Eva finds herself in the presence of the king and queen, telling her side of the story of Oban. And what about this upcoming Nourasian ceremony that she hears about?
Love you all, I'll be back!