Hi.
My name is bluetreeleaves. This is a story I've been working on for a long time and have been horrible with updating because life is ridiculous sometimes. It's nice to meet you. Oh? You remember me? Color me shocked because I'm so bad at updating my stories! GAH! I'm upset with myself. I've had this chapter half written for such a long time I should have just finished it and started this gravy train a rollin', but nooooo... I had to get fired from my job and go to Disney World and then New York and then get addicted to Fallout 4 all last week - super fun game, btw - soooo... yeah... that's my excuse. Not a good one, but it's all I got.
But here I am now. Ready to move this along and finish this story. Probably only a couple more chapters and I'll have it done. I'm saying a comfortable 5 or 6 more - here's looking at you, Arienhod. lol! It'll probably be like ten more!
Well, enough of my jabbering. Love to my awesome Beta Reader, Kerapal Bubbles, for her superior editing skills. She makes me make sense. :D *HEARTS*
Hitomi's cold hands instantly warmed as she grasped the deck of cards. She had heard of magic users attempting to call forth the future with crystal balls and fortune telling, but…these cards… She held them close, pressing them to her chest. It was as if these cards knew her. As if there was an invisible thread that had been pulling her towards them. She felt strangely complete; like a missing part of her had finally been found. A shiver ran down her spine as Grammy's wolfish snout curled.
Meanwhile, unbeknownst to everyone in the tent, Chordata's amber eyes were slowly opening. The white cat lay still, listening, as Grammy began to speak.
"The fate of Sel, Dilandau, the Dragon Slayers, BE READY, Strategos, Dornkirk, Zaibach, Fanelia; it is all webbed together in a tangle of realities. You'll get your answer through the cards, though they aren't actually yours. I know they probably feel like they belong to you, and that's because they do, in a sense. Your hands, having never touched them before, feel comfortable holding them, am I right? I'm sure if I had you do a reading right now you'd do it flawlessly. That vision you saw - the window and red-eyes - you hold her destiny in your hands. You hold her cards."
"To whom are you referring to? The window? Red eyes?" the king piped in, his deep red gaze staring down at her.
"I-I uhh…" Hitomi faltered under his obvious scrutiny. "I had another dream."
"It's called, 'vision', ya ninny," Grammy injected lowly. "Another one of you and another one of little pup here. How many sets of yourself have you met so far? How many you's and him's?"
"Ho-How do you know-"
"We'll get to that later. Just answer the question." Grammy waved her clawed hand apathetically.
"Three - I think. The first one appeared before me during a vision. She, well, I never noticed me watching, but the second one… we talked to each other. Well, I talked to myself, I guess. The other me was alone in that world. It was… sad." The memory washed over her of the young girl in the blue school uniform; her green eyes sparking with anger and confusion.
"And the third?" Grammy asked.
"I... I was her. I lived her life. I walked the halls of a mental institution. I stood obsessively by a window and waited for someone to speak to me through the thunder."
"You were lost." Grammy injected thoughtfully.
Hitomi shook her head. "No, it was more than that. It was as if all hope had been sucked from me and all I had to cling to was thunder and the possibility of seeing-" she cut off with a quick blush as Van's reddish eyes continued to burrow into her face. "…I-She wanted her tarot cards. Kept asking for them over and over." Her hand tightened on the thick deck. "Apparently, you found them, Grammy."
"BAH!" The old wolf barked so loudly Hitomi jumped in surprise. "You are Paper Man's daughter. The same strange sense of humor!"
"How do you know my father?"
Grammy's long hair flipped into her lined face and a quiet whining wheeze inflected into her throat. "Yes, yes, I suppose the cards can wait. There are still answers to give. I haven't always lived as a wild woman in the woods despite what this fat fool might think of me." She glanced pointedly at Bakura, who ducked his head down with low ears. "It might come as a surprise, but I was once a priestess in the largest Lupus Shrine in Guitoma. Granted, I wasn't the most devout to the Mystic Moon Goddess, but the Shrine was sacred ground for those who needed refuge – and trust me, I was a bad girl back then!" Grammy snored a loud dark laugh.
Van and Hitomi glanced at each other before giving strained, polite smiles to the chortling woman. Bakura silently winced.
Grammy continued after a full minute of growling chuckles. "After two years of squatting in that place, I was somehow convinced to join the priesthood by one of the monks who had befriended me. Skip to the next year and I am getting shaved for my last initiation."
"Shaved?" Hitomi asked with a quirked eyebrow.
"'To bare all outside and inside. No secrets that fur can hide'. The last initiation into Shrine Priesthood. You come before the Mystic Moon Goddess to be judged. It's a dreadful tradition that they've recently dropped due to health reasons. I got a terrible rash for months afterward until my hair finally grew back all patchy and rough. Anyways, after a haircut that would make a Jokovian blush, I was led naked and pale like a newborn pup into the blessed sanctum of the Moon Goddess."
Grammy's furry eyebrows dropped. "Entering that blessed sanctum... the majority of those who enter the sanctum are bowing alone in the dark butt-naked for about a day. Naturally, I wasn't one of those lucky bastards. It was within an hour of my judgment that she came to me. A goddess with hair like black waves and wings of white feathers. She lifted my head from the floor and touched the skin of my forehead with her finger." Grammy reached up with a wrinkled claw and pointed at her forehead. "My inner eye was opened. It was then I knew in my heart that this was something more than a mere Shrine goddess. She was beauty. She was light. The room had turned cold against my furless body, yet she spoke words that gave me warmth like a hearth. She talked to me quietly; her voice ringing the bell within my soul. She told me the world had been deceived. I began to see images so clear I could practically touch them." Grammy's finger left her forehead and dropped to her lap. "I knew the truth through the stories passed down in my family, but… Sel… Dilandau… I saw her through Jajuka's eyes. The entire story spilled before my eyes. Much like you, little bitch. I was shown an intimate version of this damaged world."
"Who was the goddess?" Hitomi asked sitting forward.
"You think I know? I wasn't even aware of time passing when it happened. Apparently, after three full days of being in there and not coming out, my priest brothers and sisters decided I'd died and came to get my corpse before I stank up their precious Shrine. They found me unconscious on the floor. The cards you hold in your hand were next to me. I awoke four days later from a fever with the ability to see inside people's souls." Her yellow eyes turned to pierce Bakura, Van, and Hitomi in turn. The temperature in the tent lowered several degrees making Hitomi shiver. "I see inside you whether I want to or not. I see the deeds you have done, both good and bad. Many in the Shrine believed the Mystic Moon Goddess herself had greeted me in person and that I was a 'chosen one'. Chosen for what? I didn't know or care. I had an annoying new power that I wanted nothing to do with and useless cards that were considered my 'holy relic'. Ridiculous religious tripe. Bunch of bloody nonsense… or was it?"
"What does this have to do with my father?" Hitomi asked curiously.
"I was getting to that!" Grammy snapped. "I met Paper Man two years later. He had enough smarts to realize Guitoma was very unstable. Zaibach had their soldiers patrolling the streets at night. Like many people who came to Guitoma, his sanctuary was the Shrine. He was studying the ancient Samurai culture. Guitoma's historical records and vestiges had been destroyed over the years, but he'd dug his way through piles of scrapping manuscripts when he thought it was safe to chance it. Reckless idiot."
"He was researching Balgus!" Hitomi realized with a gasp. "He had to have been. He was already figuring things out about Fanelia! This must be when he discovered Balgus had motion sickness and couldn't pilot a Guymelef! This disproved the Zaibach Historical Archives that Balgus attacked the Winged Palace with a Guymelef while his men snuck through the piping system!"
The old wolf scowled at being interrupted. "He had broken pieces of a Fanelian puzzle that he needed to fit together. Much like you, little bitch, he was scrambling for answers to questions that didn't make sense. I found Paper Man sitting underneath the oaks at the back of our meditation gardens scribbling in a book. It was beginning to be a custom for the visiting humans to have their fortunes read by me for a fee. I was, after all, 'touched by the goddess' or whatever such nonsense. I remember the small distinct ringing in my chest. The same sound from the goddess who gave me the gift. It sang as I passed him. I suddenly found myself blurting out if he'd like a reading." The whine in her voice grew with intensity. She closed her feral eyes and placed her hands gently on her folded knees. "When he agreed, I kept telling myself it was a simple reading, but my inner eye was urging me on; with force, with fire."
The steady nighttime wind brushing against the floppy tent stopped. The chirping grasshoppers and cicadas went quiet. It was as if a silent bomb had been dropped over the clearing. And in the middle of it sat Grammy, her one fang glistening dangerously outside her thin long snout in the flickering lamp light. And then her voice came forth and it was no longer raspy. The muscles in Van's arms visibly softened as the old woman's quiet words rang smooth and easy. They flowed around the group. Hitomi felt the woman speaking inside of her; to the very core of her heart.
It was magic… true and controlled.
"His first card: the Present… I drew The Magician. A miracle weaver. A determined mind with the touch of magic in his veins. He was weaving his spells for years before he'd come to the Shrine. But I saw him as he was. As he truly was. A bright hope. But… it was the next card I drew: the Challenge he faced… I drew Hierophant." She lifted a claw and pointed at the cards. "I saw a vision within that card. It danced before my eyes. Hierophant, the Insurrection. The card of strong dogmas. A group was coming for him. A large hunt was being initiated: Zaibach."
"Zaibach…" Van breathed out. In Hitomi's lap, Chordata's body flinched.
"My visions continued. The third showed me the Hanged Man, broken promises. A broken home."
"Mom…" Hitomi whispered quietly. "They got a divorce. I… I blamed him for it. I blamed him for everything. He'd left us."
"The fourth was his future: The Star… A spark of unexpected faithfulness when all seemed dark. A trust in one who would remain devoted until the end of days. A shining hope that would keep the path ignited as shadows closed in. You're awake, kitty. I know you are. Stop acting like a fool and sit up already," Grammy chortled in her gravelly voice.
Her eyes slid to Chordata and Hitomi felt the cat shudder. Slowly rising, her wide amber eyes were staring, terrified, into Grammy's deep yellow. The old wolf gave a short nod. "It will be time soon, little cat. You knew this was coming. I gave you a moment to collect yourself. A secret cannot be held for long. Not a secret like this. I will finish my tale and you will begin yours."
The cat lady shook her head slowly not meeting their eyes. This only seemed to make Grammy more motivated, almost agitated even. She leaned forward and her jaw snapped several times with thick clicks of pointed canines. "Oh, yes, you are The Star. White, caring, and lovely."
Chordata's eyes flipped from Grammy to Hitomi to Van and ended on the ground in silent panic.
"A star," Van spoke up with a hint of a smile. "You found me, Chordata. You protected me. That is perfect for you."
"I am not who you think I am, Master Fanel…" her head bowed till her chin touched her chest.
"Oh, enough of this. I'm in the middle of something, if you don't mind. We will have plenty of time for you later, cat." Grammy's growling tone was back, but changed back to the smoother tone of the magic as she continued her story. Her lips curled at Van. "The fifth was Paper Man's best outcome: King of Wands. A man of pure fire. A leader. And then I saw you. The alleyway. The rain. You came from the beam of light, little pup. The young King of Fanelia. The one bathed in light and with a heart of fire. The one who would ignite his own path. You were coming with the Escaflowne. The legendary Dragon. And the Paper Man was to find you… but he never did." Van sat back with an unreadable expression. Beside Hitomi, Chordata twitched violently.
"The sixth card. The underlying feelings: Five of Cups. Disappointment. Despair. Your feelings, little bitch. Your pain reached to him even in Guitoma."
Hitomi clutched the cards harder, her fingers turning white. Her father, fighting all alone, knew what he'd done to all of them. He'd torn his family apart.
"The seventh was advice on the path: The Eight of Wands. A sense of hope in the midst of all this fear. His journey was important. More important than any of us could imagine. Even throughout the dangers of a looming Hierophant, he needed to keep going. He was on the right path.
"Paper Man's eighth card was his external influences: The Hermit. To learn more about yourself and the nature of your existence. What an appropriate card for that foolish long-haired idiot Thaioden Fassa. He is the Hermit in more ways than one. He was Paper Man's refuge as well as confident, but he was separated, alone; not just by choice, but by necessity. I met Fassa years after I'd left the Shrine behind me. He's an idiot." She gave a weary growl as she met Chordata's mournful eyes. "He didn't make it, did he? I can see it inside you, cat. Such a fool…"
"Wait. What do you mean?" Hitomi blinked several times and her heart gave a sharp twist in her chest. A raw burn ignited in her throat and she swallowed several times. "Grammy… what are you talking about?"
There was a silence where her green eyes rolled over each face with disbelief. A tight hitch in her breath was all she could muster as the reality sunk in. "No…" she whispered. "No. No, no, no, Thaioden… he didn't… he couldn't. He said he was going to be fine! You're wrong! He said he would escape, right, Van? He said he would!" Her mind was reeling in a desperate spin. Looking to the king for support and comfort, Van's expression looked just as stunned as hers. He ran a hand through his messy hair and exhaled slowly.
"Right, Van?" She cried, grabbing his arm with cold fingers. "Right? That's what he said!"
Grammy sighed. "It appears I've distracted us from my tale."
Shoving down the violent guilt that sliced her, Hitomi said angrily through bitter tears, "He was supposed to be okay! Thaioden was-!"
"He knew what he was doing. He always did," Bakura spoke up unexpectedly. His soft, good-natured brown eyes were uncharacteristically hard. "Meaning no disrespect, Miss Kanzaki, but I knew Tristan much longer than you. Better than you. If Grammy says it happened, then it did. He's dead." A small whimper escaped his throat and he attempted to cover it up by clearing it. "Y-You can be sure he made that choice on his own terms."
"Damn it…" Van cursed quietly.
Her fingers were still latched on his arm and she pulled him to face her. Her mind couldn't grasp the thought. Thoroughly rejected the possibility. "Van… he can't be… he promised me…"
The young king caught her desperate gaze and closed his eyes.
"He was ready to sacrifice himself to change the world. He fulfilled his purpose as I am doing now," Grammy's head bowed respectfully and her dreadlocks flipped over her bowed shoulders. "He'll be back; gods willing we play the cards right. He'll be back to run his little whore house with you by his side like a lap dog." Her words were hard, but she flashed a toothy grin at her grandson. "His sacrifice won't come for naught. Once destiny is changed, the world will right itself."
Hitomi's green eyes stared at the lightly swinging lantern and willed the burning tears away. She watched the light lazily sway in a circle. It reminded her of the Alchemy Bomb Martini Thaioden had proudly made for her. He'd let them both in freely even knowing that doing so could possibly kill him. Their journey… this destiny… it felt like they were leaving a trail of corpses behind them. Anyone who tried to help them - save them - ended up dead. Her eyes flickered to the dark bruise underneath Bakura's eye and the healing scratch on his face.
Who else would be sacrificed?
Grammy cleared her throat and the magic in her voice flowed once more. "The ninth card spoke of you, little bitch. How could it not? Paper Man's hopes and fears rested on his daughter: The Queen of Cups. The strongest card for insight. Intuition and fantasy. She sees through dreams. Past the physical world around her to focus on the spiritual world. She is flowing like the tide and yet she can fight the current." Grammy glanced at Van and Hitomi in turn. "Fire and Water. A violent, yet powerful combination Are you sure you two aren't mated yet?"
"Please continue," Van said through clenched teeth and Hitomi hadn't realized she was still holding his arm until now. Her fingers left his warm skin in an instant, but she regretted letting go of him as soon as she did. A chill ran through her.
"The last was the outcome. Throughout his journey, Paper Man's reason for his expedition continued to change. At first, he was a historian, digging small facts about his own life. His ancestors. Oh, how simple it began. And then facts came as the digging got deeper. Then the facts became questions. And then, Paper Man hit some bad shit. He hit corpses. He hit buried bones and lies and secrets and ghosts. He continued to dig deeper. The piles of rot kept trying to rebury itself, but he forced them exposed. His outcome of this journey… the card it gave me… Devil."
Hitomi couldn't stop the gasp that escaped her tight throat. Chordata let out a quiet yowl and covered her pointed ears with trembling hands. Van's face remained passive, but his hand touched his hilt.
"What did the Devil tell you?" he asked quietly.
"Most of the time Devil is not a physical being, but one of the spiritual realm. He preys on you from the inside. Like cancer, poison, and curses. But the cards showed both of us a face. One with clouded eyes and lovely white fur." Grammy leaned forward with an almost evil gleam in her eye and gestured to Chordata. Van, Hitomi, and Bakura turned as one to look at her cowering.
"You may begin your tale now," the old wolf growled. "The time has come."
"Chordata?" Van's voice shook slightly. "What is she talking about?"
His question hung in the quiet air.
"I am not a star," Chordata finally whispered. "I am the Devil. I was in the shadows. I was the one who hunted Kanzaki during his journey. I finally was able to take him after he left Joko for the last time. We wanted the journal, but it wasn't on him. Fassa had taken it. I didn't know where it had gone and he never broke down and confessed. I took him for Zaibach. I was one of the few granted permission to torture him for information. I was the one who learned his secrets. And ultimately, I killed him. I was the one who killed Kanzaki. I… I…"
Hitomi's hands covered her mouth and Van's fingers dropped from his hilt. Chordata fell forward and braced her palms on the filthy ground. Her forehead pressed into the flattened grass in a submissive bow. "Why?" she whispered quietly to the dirt. "Why would you call me a star? Why would you call me…? I have so much to atone for. So many sins I can barely live with. My only hope lies with Master Fanel and Lady Hitomi. They are my future. I serve to redeem. I serve to redeem!"
"Tell them why you had to kill him, little cat," Grammy said softly. "Spit out all the poison. They need to know."
"I was following orders. I was blind. I thought I was important to the cause. I wanted to be, no, I had to be the best. I loved my Strategos. I was so blind." Her voice quivered like she was crying. "I took Kanzaki from Joko and gave him to Strategos Hatchet. 'He was a man who knew important information.' That's all I was told. Strategos Hatchet rewarded me by letting me handle the way we'd …extract the information from him. I wanted to please him so much. I was so happy. I carved. I burned. I even tore with my own claws." As if stuck in the memory, inch long nails extended slowly from her fingertips. "I listened to his story. I listened to everything. And I closed myself from the truth… that was until the day he told me of Fanelia's story. I didn't believe him at first. How could I? But his words hit me. As a kitten, I knew my family was originally from Fanelia. It was ironic how twisted I'd become. Not realizing the ones I wanted so desperately to impress, to love, were the very people who had destroyed my country. His story couldn't be true. It couldn't. But I doubted anyway. I had to know. What he was saying made so much sense… So, I went to the Historical Archives. None of it cleared my growing uncertainties. The next time I was with him, I requested a private session. Strategos Hatchet said he didn't believe there was much more the man could give. But I knew it wasn't true. He was holding on to something. Something I needed to learn. He came to me barely recognizable. He was chained to a chair. He was missing parts of his face. He was going to die soon despite Zaibach's efforts to keep him alive. His body was failing. He was delirious. He said… he said I was an angel. I remember I slashed him for saying that. But then he said it again. And again. I screamed angrily and slashed him again. 'Why are you saying these things? Why are you calling me angel? I am the one who has done this to you.'" Chordata let out a strangled laugh against the dirt. "He said that he had faith in me. That I wasn't really like this. That things are not always as they seem."
"And The Star was born," Grammy growled lowly.
"I listened to his words and something broke. He told me I needed to go to Fanelia. Someone was coming in a beam of light and that I was needed to take care of him. To teach him. To protect him. The young King of Fanelia was coming from the sky very soon. As crazy as that sounded, I believed everything he said. He had given me the truth and I realized it. I urged him to come with me. I'd help him escape. We both knew he wouldn't make the trip. He was dying and it was all my doing…"
"You went to Fanelia." Van's deep voice cut through the confession. "I never knew how you found me. You told me it was coincidence. I never knew…"
"My life… my world in Zaibach... I left it behind me that day. After he told me exactly where Master Fanel would appear, Kanzaki requested two things more from me: to send his last letter to his family back in Austuria and… to put an end to his suffering. I gave him a merciful death and left that night. I arrived in Fanelia two weeks later and sent his precious letter. I followed his instructions and waited where he told me to. I waited for months. I began to doubt. I was scared I had listened the crazy ramblings of a man under torture, but then… it began to rain one night. And that piece of me who had believed him wholeheartedly knew! I raced to the alleyway where Kanzaki had told me…. Lightning, thunder, ferocious monstrous crashes attacking the clouds and city. And like a celestial bolt… Master Fanel appeared to me… He was moaning, clutching the pink stone in his fist."
Chordata paused her story for a few seconds and the silence fell hard and solid. Her fingers curled lightly on the grass.
"It was like a dream… A gift from heaven. Master Fanel, you were sent here to save the world… And I am here to help you. The atonement for my terrible sins. And Lady Hitomi came forth. The one to seek forgiveness from. I care for the both of you so much. I would die for you."
Hitomi couldn't speak. She could barely breathe. The blood in her ears pounded thick and tight. All this time, all this time, Chordata… that woman had been there beside her. The very one who she looked up to. Hitomi couldn't bring herself to look away from the lovely white fur of the woman she'd trusted. All the times Chordata had saved her life, had served her with kindness and gentleness, had given her advice.
All this time… Chordata was the Devil. The Devil in her father's fortune. The one who'd captured, tortured, and murdered her father.
"She is also The Star." Grammy's yellow eyes zeroed in on Hitomi and her green eyes grew hard at the old invasive wolf.
She suddenly couldn't stand being in the tent anymore. It was smothering; an asphyxiation of unthinkable truths. With a strangled sob erupting from her taut throat, the short-haired girl stood shakily despite the screaming pain in her leg and violently flicked aside the tent flap. She limped as the blades of fresh grass brushed her ankles. The clearing was cool with sweet air, but Hitomi breathed like she was suffocating. The world swam around her eyes. Stopping to suck in more air, she unknowingly dropped the tarot cards from her hand and they floated to the ground like feathers. She wavered, but hardly noticed the weight of her body throbbing her injured leg.
She heard soft footsteps coming closer.
"Hitomi."
Van had followed her.
"She never said anything." Her voice was unsteady. The words fell unnaturally loud from her lips as she kept her back to Van's approaching steps. "That woman… she could have said something to me or you or anyone, but she deceived us. Lied to us. She lied to both of us! She kidnapped… tortured… she killed… How do we know she didn't kill Thaioden?! How do we trust her ever again?!" The burning erupted and she hated the tears that slipped past her guard. They continued down her face and she wiped her cheeks angrily. They poured harder and she wanted to scream with frustration.
"Hitomi."
"She knew who I was. She never said anything to me, but she knew who I was from the very beginning and the journal and-" A tight gasp escaped her chest and she looked up to the black, star-studded sky. Her short hair tossed around her green eyes as she stared at the two moons looming down at them. She wrapped her arms around her chest protectively. She felt as if she was breaking apart. Everything that had finally seemed so certain was once again tossed into the raging sea of confusion and hurt. A broken trust.
This night had been filled with too many horrible endings. Sel's destiny to hunt the machine that was poisoning the world, Thaioden's destiny to lead her father's path, and her father's destiny to uncover the truths and eventually die by the hand of someone his daughter would come to trust… to love.
Heavy footsteps came closer; one step at a time until she felt his presence just behind her back. A small lick of warmth came from him and made her skin rise in goose-bumps. It was silent between them. He didn't say a word and she concentrated on her uneven breathing. They stood together, the universe slowly turning; destiny continually shifting.
The two pinnacle points that were destined to save the world.
"If she had not met your father, I would have been dead, Hitomi. Chordata saved me. When I first came here, I was lost in fever and delirious. She took care of me for months, nursing me back to health. If she had not done what she did, I would not be here now."
She turned around sharply and gave a small gasp of pain as her leg stung with protest. Tilting forward, she grabbed his arm to keep standing and he moved instantly to steady her. His hands moved to wrap under her arms and she instantly wished she didn't have to rely on him.
"You should not be on that leg."
"I'll do whatever I want!" She glared into his dark eyes. "You're defending her! How could you? Didn't you hear what she just said?"
Van fell silent.
"If Chordata wasn't here, my father would have found you! She was the one who took him to Zaibach! He would still be alive and would have taken you back home to live in Austuria! You and I… we would have met a long time ago, Van. We would have probably grown up together. If Chordata wasn't here, we would have fixed this world by now! We would have my father to guide us and not some stupid journal I have to decipher! He would be alive and I'd have a family again!"
"Chordata is my family."
"Chordata's a murderer!"
"She is. And so am I."
Hitomi stopped in surprise at his blunt declaration.
"Chordata taught me to survive in this place. I had the sword training I learned from General Balgus, but wars are fought differently here. There is no battlefield. There are no legions or troops to command. I had to learn stealth. To pinpoint weaknesses and exploit my enemies from the shadows. Chordata is the reason you are alive right now. If I had been found by your father, I would not be able to protect you like I have. You very well would have been tortured in your father's place, Hitomi. I would be helpless. Because of Chordata, I have the strength to take care of myself and others around me. I can fight in this world. Because of her, I can say the words, 'I will never let you die' and be able keep that promise."
The tears were silent now; dripping slowly off her chin.
Hitomi opened her mouth, but was instantly silenced as Van's hands moved over her back and lightly grabbed her shoulders. He took another step forward and her cheek fell against his chest. Her green eyes shut as the warmth of his body pressed compassionately against her. It was unexpected. It was weird. And yet it was strangely right. Her arms automatically reached to wrap around his neck and they were hugging.
But no, it was more than just hugging.
She felt it in the very heart beating against her ear. That strong, fast-paced pulsing made her wonder what would happen if he did ask her to be his mate. Made her think of the possibilities of what would happen between them once all this was over. Made her feel the beginnings of the heat in her stomach - the 'fire', as Grammy so elegantly put it. Made the words he just said all the more true. He would protect her. He would fight for her.
A tear slipped down her cheek and she reached to wipe it away. His right hand got there first, moving from her back to travel to her cheek. His thumb brushed her skin, warm and callused.
She felt his heart kick into an even faster rhythm.
"She also taught me the truth. Everything your father believed in, I learned from her. That day I saw you in Fanelia during the tour of the Winged Palace; I listened you berate the guide on his lies. Lies that everyone knew as fact. I thought you were an impossibility. Another person in this world who believed in the truth. Ultimately, I saved you because I heard Chordata's words from your lips."
"It w-wasn't for m-my good looks?" she joked darkly with short gasps.
His thumb stopped stroking her cheek and moved down to her chin. He nudged her head up gently. Hitomi looked into his eyes and they were lost in the shadow of his long hair. That familiar deep heat tossed in her stomach; hot and wild.
She felt suddenly exposed; uncomfortably open with him so near. His neck bent lower and she finally saw his mahogany eyes behind his thick hair. A quick blush tinged her cheeks and his mouth gave her a lopsided smirk. She used to hate that look on him. She had called it pompous and arrogant. He shot it at her in the heat of arguments he knew he'd win.
The thing was – he was usually hiding behind that navy cap.
He had lost it in Joko.
Now that Hitomi had full view of his eyes, it was a completely different smirk. It was wistful and uncalculated. It was given to her with a shiver of affection – admiration. She could see it so clearly in his eyes.
"Long years in this timeline and I have lost sight of many things. It is a world where man fights against man. Where every living thing fights to take the life of another. I have killed beasts and men. Fighting begets fighting. The slaughter never ends. I was alone all with the exception of Chordata. Until…" He exhaled slowly and his heated eyes raised to focus above her head. His smirk grew into a grimace. "Until I met you. My battles are deadly and I fight against an entire country. I asked you when you first touched the pendant if you would help me. Hearing Chordata's story… seeing how it has hurt you so deeply… I realize too late my world is difficult for a gentle soul to bear… I was asking too much from you back then."
"I was going to follow you anyways, Van." Hitomi gave him a short nod and sniffed back the residue of tears in her eyes. "I am just too curious for my own good. Learning about Chordata… it's heartbreaking. I will never see her the same."
"But could you forgive her?"
Her words caught at the back of her throat. The mental image of the white woman ripping her father apart. Her unsympathetic amber eyes glowing with malice and delight as another cry erupted from him. Her mind left the disturbing image to see the Chordata she knew. The kind, quiet woman who attended her like a submissive servant; whose humble nature was something Hitomi wished she could copy. Her white fingers clenching on the grass. Her lovely face planted in the dirt with shame and fear. She had held on to her sins for so long.
"I… I don't know. I don't know just yet. It's still too soon for me." Hitomi shook her head slowly and Van's hand left her chin to go back to her shoulders. She saw his lopsided smile was back. His open eyes gave her their prideful shine. "I-I will try. I will."
"Thank you."
"If you two are done with your love jabbering out here, it's time for your card reading, little bitch." Grammy's silent approach made both Van and Hitomi jump in surprise and Hitomi to hiss in pain at her leg. The old wolf glanced at the ground with an almost painful scowl. "And look at what you've done! The cards are all over the ground! You think magical tarot cards are something you can toss willy-nilly?! They came from another dimension, ya stupid, useless fools! Pick 'em up!"
It took another three minutes for Van and Hitomi to gather all the cards off the ground - her awkwardly holding his neck for support - and another full minute for Hitomi's blush to calm down from her cheeks. Her heart still pounded in her ears as she let Van help her back into the tent. Entering through the flap, Hitomi's eyes immediately fell upon the white cat. Her head was buried in her arms and her knees were to her chin. The trembling of her shoulders confirmed that her sobs were being forced into silence.
"Chordata," Hitomi said her name with more firmness than she felt. The cat lady stiffened and slowly lifted her head. The tracks of wet tears were running down her soft face. Her wide amber eyes looked frightened and sad.
To Hitomi's surprise, she spoke: "I h-heard what you said outside. I heard you c-call me a murderer. And I am...was… I'm not anymore. I want you to know that."
Sitting down gently with Van's steady hand for help, the green-eyed girl sighed to contain her strangled thoughts. She felt him settle beside her, but kept her eyes on the cat lady.
"I'm not that person anymore. There are many things I regret in my life. There are many people I have killed – your precious father included. But I swear - I swear I did not kill Thaioden, Lady Hitomi. I did not. He forced me to leave. He told me that you two were more important. More important than anyone else in this world. I did not want to leave him. Just like I did not want to leave your father behind. I will protect you, Lady Hitomi. I will protect you and Master Fanel to the end and beyond. This I will swear. I will die for you both. I will…" she trailed off with a quiet sob.
Hitomi's stomach lurched and she grasped the cards in both hands to collect herself. The claustrophobic feeling came over her once more, but she knew this time she couldn't escape. She had to face the truth and the answers she had been seeking for so long. Even if it was difficult. Even if her world no longer held the simple black and white - good and evil - that she'd imagined. Hitomi swallowed thickly in her throat and said the only words she could muster:
"I know, Chordata."
Unknown to her, Van turned his head away and a small smile lifted his lips.
"Excuuuuuse me," Grammy's bangles jingled as she stepped between Van and Bakura back to her spot on the other side of the tent. "So," she growled after she was seated, "now that the drama of the past has been settled somewhat, let's get into the drama of the future." She gestured to Hitomi and her yellow eyes lit up on the cards in her hand.
"Time to show your mystic side, little bitch. Show me how it's done."
Hitomi's eyebrows furrowed together. "A reading? Now? B-But who will I do the reading to? How do I even-"
Grammy's long jaw dropped open slightly, effectively silencing the beginnings of her rambling. Several seconds of silence followed with Hitomi's face growing brighter and brighter in the lantern light. "Are you that dim? Who is the one person destined to save the world with you?"
With her blood rushing swiftly in her head, Hitomi whispered, "…Van?"
"Goooooooood!" The old wolf slapped her knee with a wrinkled claw. "This world may be doomed, but at least we know who to blame. Now, turn towards him and start."
"Okay," she breathed quietly. "Okay, I can do this." Shifting gently to face him, she saw Van do the same. She looked at him, the long dark shadows covering the side of his face, his tan thin jaw – and wondered where to begin. The fringe of his hair brushed over his dark, steady eyes. The red eyes. Her lost self trapped in a world of white walls. Calling to him from the thunder.
Don't disappear...
And suddenly, the familiar heat erupted from her chest and the words spilled from her lips: "Take the cards from my hand and cut them. Your fortune is a half and not a whole. You are only one side of a much bigger coin."
Even Van looked startled as he took the cards from her hand and cut them in half. Handing them back to her, she swallowed as the heat continued to swirl inside her body.
Watching the two of them with gleaming yellow eyes, Grammy's snout curled into a satisfied grin.
"Now let us begin."
Too short?
Too short.
I know, I know... the chapter should be longer. After taking a break for several months, I thought I should at least post something. This chapter was heavy with plot and I'm curious to read your reactions. Show of hands: who saw Chordata's backstory coming? :D
I am once again so sorry about the wait. I'm sorry about being such a bad updater on my stories. My sweet Beta wanted to add a note to this chapter, but do not believe her! She is amazing and so patient with me and her life is crazier than mine. I love her to bits!
Here's her note:
The beta would like to add a note and say she is SO SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG TO EDIT! BAD DOBBY! Ok, now that that's over, props to blue for continuing to have faith in my editing abilities! Hope y'all enjoyed it!
- kerapal bubbles
Now forget she ever wrote that. She's awesome and she knows it.
Thank you always for reading and loving the story. It is so good to post something again! I am so happy! :D
Until next time - which will be soon! I promise!
blue...