A Most Astonishing Well-Wisher

Note: Deepest apologies for this late entry for 2022's Escaflowne Pic'n'Fic, for gasexplosionatthescalpelfactory on Tumblr, who made a gorgeous fan art of Millerna during her wedding.

I had to re-watch the wedding episode to do the "research" for this piece and I ended up watching all the way to the end. It's been years since I last watched full episodes of Escaflowne and it was quite a pleasant journey down memory lane.

Initially, I was tempted to make this a conversation between Eries and Millerna, since I do love exploring that dynamic so much. But that would have been lazy for me and also logistically challenging, given where they both are standing during Millerna's wedding. The more I thought about who should surprise her, the more the idea of Marlene's ghost appealed to me.

Marlene's voice is a tricky one, which I have always tried to figure out, given that we know so little of her. One could argue that we know even less of Eries and I am always able to stretch that out. But maybe it's because we know MORE of Marlene that we are sometimes confined to her memories and experiences. I don't know, I'm rambling.

At any rate, I did not want this to be a case of a dead loved one giving a living one some advice from beyond the grave, only a tender moment between two sisters who never had enough time to get to know each other.

Hope you like it.

Happy New Year!

"My dear sister…"

That voice. It couldn't be.

"..you look so lovely."

Princess Millerna turned her head sharply to where she had heard the only-too-familiar voice compliment her on her wedding day. She had just boarded the vessel that would convey her and her betrothed to their wedding ceremony but for a moment, everything stood absolutely still.

She looked around her in alarm only to see that all her surroundings, from the excited crowd of well-wishers, to the Heavenly Knights gathered to protect her, to her father and second eldest sister watching her from the palace….everything was frozen in time. Not a sound, no movement, nothing.

And it was only then that she noticed the glowing figure of her late eldest sister, Marlene, standing in front of her on the same vessel, with the proud and gentle smile she had always remembered.

"My warmest congratulations, Millerna, on your wedding day," Marlene greeted, her smile widening as her youngest sister could only stare in disbelief.

"How is this possible?" Millerna cried, aghast, "How are you here right now?"

A thousands thoughts raced through the young princess's mind at once, various seemingly rational explanations for the vision before her. She needed to make sense of this somehow.

Clearly, she was seeing things. It must be the stress and exhaustion. After all, she had barely slept the night before, tossing and turning in her bed as she agonized over her decision. Her session with Hitomi had given her some reassurance but still not enough for her to get enough rest.

She had barely eaten anything for breakfast, not out of anxiety about fitting into her wedding gown, but just out of general anxiety for the future. Her body was weak and so she had become prone to strange hallucinations.

It didn't help that her own state of mind was unstable as well, which probably exacerbated the situation. She remained uncertain even after being told that she had made the right decision and that this wedding would be a happy one. Hitomi had always been reliable when it came to predicting the future, so why should she doubt the girl from the Mystic Moon now?

Or perhaps this was just the general nervousness experienced by any bride? What was the term Hitomi had used? Marriage jitters? Surely, this must be one of the side effects of such a heightened sense of apprehension and anticipation.

Was this vision of Marlene a projection of her own doubts and fears about marriage? Her eldest sister was the only other Aston princess who had gotten married before her, so she was a reference of sorts. Knowing what she knew of Marlene's tragic love stories, Millerna wondered if she was somehow destined to follow suit.

The specter of Marlene waited patiently for the young princess to reconcile what she was seeing before her with all her knowledge and experience. When it was evident that Millerna continued to find herself at a loss, Marlene finally spoke again.

"Don't overthink it, my dear," Marlene began gently, "I know that your rational mind is trying to find an acceptable explanation for my appearing before you today, and that is admirable. But surely, you've seen several unbelievable things recently for you to be open-minded about supernatural phenomena."

Millerna sighed and nodded. Her sister's ghost was very well-informed, it seemed. And she had to admit that Marlene was right. After all she had recently witnessed with Hitomi and Escaflowne, she really ought not to be too shocked. There were explanations for these wonders, certainly, but these were beyond her own, human comprehension, for the time being.

"I am happy to see you again, Marlene," Millerna said, tearfully, "and I do wish this was under better circumstances."

"This is the best the world can offer us, I'm afraid," Marlene replied, "I would not even be able to tell you why this moment was chosen for me to speak to you. That is something that concerns powers beyond my reach. I am simply grateful to be able to wish you happiness on this important day."

"I am grateful for your presence," Millerna said, "Have you come to offer some advice for a soon-to-be married woman?"

Marlene shook her head. "Nothing like that, I cannot see the future nor do I wish to dwell on the past," she said, "Marriage is a different journey for different people. And I know that you are kind and wise and courageous enough to forge your own path to success, not just in your marriage but in your life. I am confident that you will find your happiness."

"Thank you, sister," Millerna said earnestly, more tears spilling down her cheeks, her wedding makeup be damned, "I only wish that everyone felt the same about me."

"Eries believes in you, more than you know," Marlene reassured her, much to Millerna's surprise, "She simply worries too much, as is her way, and she can be as stubborn as you when it comes to protecting you from the dangers of the world. I know she tried her best to do so for me too."

"I suppose we are both stubborn, in our own ways," Millerna admitted with a smile and looking towards the distant figure of her second eldest sister, "Will you be speaking to her today too?"

"Not today," Marlene said, "Today is your special day. There will be another opportunity for me to speak to her."

"And I am sure you will have much to discuss," Millerna said.

For a moment she wondered if dead sisters' ghosts only appeared at their sisters' weddings and if this meant that there was a wedding in the future for Princess Eries. It was a tantalizing thought but she was not sure if if would ever happen.

She turned back to Marlene and then looked towards the other wedding vessel, still frozen in time, bearing Dryden Fassa towards her. Millerna's expression was unreadable but Marlene sensed some confusion.

"Your heart is still torn, I see," Marlene said sadly, "And I suppose we might as well mention the dilemma that only the two of us would be painfully familiar with. I am, after all, in a unique position to have known what it was like to love both Allen Schezar and my husband."

Millerna started at this and a blush spread across her cheeks. She knew that no one else could see her reaction and somehow, this entire conversation with her sister was as private as anything ever could be. But she could not help but feel embarrassed.

"It is a complicated business, I'll admit," Marlene said somberly, "And for your sake, I hope that you do not suffer as much as I did. But again, it all boils down to the fact that we are different people so even if we both loved the same man, I am sure we loved him differently. And that he loved us both in different ways as well."

"I sometimes fear he only liked me because I reminded him so much of you," Millerna said, "And I tried to deny this possibility so much because I wanted him so badly."

"I can't speak for him but even if a little of that was true," Marlene said, "I would give hims some more credit for being able to differentiate us both. He admired you for your own rebelliousness and love for science. He loved me for my other qualities. And if there is anything I learned from my short life, it is that we can give our hearts to more than one person."

"Just like you did with the Duke?" Millerna asked.

Marlene nodded, a wistful smile spreading across her face, as she remembered happier days.

"Do you think that is how I feel about Dryden?" Millerna inquired anxiously, "That there really is hope for us to be happy together?"

"My dear Millerna, I cannot pretend to know how either of you truly feel," Marlene explained gently, "And I do not think it would be wise for us to compare the strengths or weaknesses of our own romantic relationships. All I can say is that, when you are fortunate enough to share your life with a good person who loves you, and from what little I can see I know that he loves you, and you choose to open your heart to them, there is the possibility of domestic bliss. Your happiness is in always your own hands."

Millerna pondered on this for a moment and was so lost in thought that she did not immediately notice that the specter of her sister was fading away.

"And here I said I would avoid giving you any advice," Marlene said with a tone of amusement.

"It was my fault for pressing you," Millerna said, finally looking at her sister again and realizing that the brief encounter was coming to an end, just as inexplicably as it had begun.

"I wish you all the happiness in the world, my dear sister," Marlene said, her voice an echo in the wind as her figure all but disappeared.

"Thank you, sister," Millerna replied earnestly, "I look forward to meeting you again someday."