Magic Knight Rayearth Fan Fiction ❯ Magic Knight Rayearth: Medieval Mystery Series ❯ You Can Open Any Door... ( Chapter 20 )

Chapter 20

Sorry for the LONG delay. We finally got high speed internet and I went nuts on a downloading spree for about two months. However, thanks to friends and fans (It's hard to believe I have fans, I'm probably just imagining it.) I'm back on track!

This is a difficult part for me to write, mainly because it involves the entry of Rayearth 2 characters, who I am not at all familiar with. Their personalities are only known to me through a translation of the Manga I read on-line, which didn't include the characters actions or insight into the characters thoughts. Therefore, I may change characters to suit my personal needs.

Also...I'm looking for someone with a web site who would be gracious enough to post some fan art for me. Among them will be some of the sketches I've done for this fan fic. If you want to help, please e-mail me at my address.

*~*~*~*~*~*

It had seemed like an infinity. She had drifted in and out of pale visions and strange memories, less than half of which had been her own. Something had overwhelmed her mind, seeped in through unseen cracks, bubbled up and completely drowned her consciousness. It seemed so long since anything had been real. A world had come into being before her eyes, a beautiful, pure, surreal place. Something that was impossible to believe.

And then there were people, Umi, Hikaru, Mother, Father, all these faces. Clef, ascot, Louis, and here again, Ferio. He was bending down over her, concern and warmth flowing from his golden eyes, but she knew it wasn't real. Real didn't exist anymore, everything was a dream...

"Fuu?" He asked, hope shining in his eyes and lighting up his face. "Fuu?"

"A dream, just a dream." she told herself. Something shifted below her, she felt strange...uncomfortable, what was this? Dreams shouldn't do this, dreams shouldn't feel. The weight of her own body slowly came back to her, motion, smell, touch, pain...why was there pain. Where was this?

"Fuu? You awake? Fuu?"

Ferio was still there, why? Wasn't this a dream? Or maybe, this was something else. Yes! A reality, and not a dream at all. She opened her eyes and things began to come into focus. The dam broke and her thoughts became solidified, focused, real. She was somewhere, and that's all that mattered.

"Hey!" Ferio's smile was genuine, welcoming her. She smiled back, like a child.

She moved to sit up, that was the mistake. Pain instantly shocked her body and mind, and brought her crashing down from her gentle buoyant dream. She remembered everything at once, and the shock only forced her again to try and move. More pain followed and she quickly gave up, sinking back into Ferio's arms.

"Take it easy, you don't have to move yet." He protested, but she wasn't going to listen. Where was she? What was going on? Where were....

"Umi-san, Hikaru-san!" Her voice sounded shaky, even to herself and it surprised her. She took a good look at her surroundings and discovered she was in a forest, a clearing to be exact, with a little campfire in the middle. She and Ferio were alone.

"Where's Umi-san and Hikaru-san?" Fuu fought with Ferio and her own pain to get up. She didn't have time for this! They had failed, and now their only hope was finding the key and Princess Emerald's brother. Or else...

"Healing wind!"

She summoned the spell absentmindedly and stood up, completely refreshed and free from her previous wounds. Ferio looked on surprised at her quick recovery.

"Hey! Calm down now. No need to rush, what's wrong?"

"Where's Umi-san and Hikaru-san?" she repeated, almost to the point of panic. Ferio looked at her confused by her urgency.

"They-They're not here." He stammered, slowly getting up. It was obvious Fuu wasn't herself. "You were the only one here when I arrived."

"The...only one...?" the words echoed hollowly in Fuu's head. "How was I the only one? Did they not come back? Where are we any ways?"

She said the last question out loud. Ferio answered.

"We're in the Loire province, about a week's walk south of the castle. Why?"

"A week?" She repeated. How could it have been a week? Had she been asleep for that long? "I have to get back!"

And with that she began walking off in a randomly chosen direction, only to be stopped by Ferio before she could reach the edge of the clearing.

"Fuu! Look at me!" He said sharply. She snapped back to attention. He put a hand on each shoulder and gazed steadily into her eyes. "Calm down Fuu." he said slowly, "I don't know what's going on, but you just woke up and should take it easy. Besides, you can't go anywhere without a plan, right?"

She stared at him a moment and took a deep breath. He was right, of course he was right. She needed a plan and before that she needed facts. Slowly she calmed herself and regained her composure. This was no time to panic.

"There, better?" Ferio asked. Fuu nodded and he let go of her shoulders. She took another deep breath and followed him back to the campfire.

"Thank you." She said as she sat herself down. "I lost myself for a bit there."

Ferio stopped poking the fire and looked up at her. "It's no problem," he said, concern in his eyes, "but what happened anyway? You've been out for a good hour and a half since I found you. What's going on?"

"Well, you see..." and she began telling him about everything that had happened. When she had finally finished, Ferio whistled and looked at her with wide eyes.

"That's pretty incredible, and you say it didn't seem like more than a few hours?"

"Yes," Fuu was getting worried again. Her tense face seemed thin and worn as she stared at the fire. Ferio looked at her.

"Don't worry!" he said brightly. "I'll get you back to the castle, and from there we can figure out what to do next."

Fuu looked up and nodded slightly, but she still looked worried.

"And don't worry about your friends," he added, "They're strong girls. I'm sure they're fine. You just make sure to look after yourself."

At this Fuu nodded again and her mood brightened a bit. He was right, after all. They were probably fine, and worrying herself sick wouldn't help anybody.

*~*~*~*

"What do you mean Fuu's not here?!!" Yelled Umi as she beat the table in frustration. "She has to be somewhere, it's not like she could just vanish!!"

"Shhhh, shhh, Calm down Chere. 'itting the table won't 'elp." Caladina soothed. It was early morning and a meeting had been called in the library to discuss what was the best course of action. Umi and Hikaru had just been informed of their friend's disappearance, and as could be expected, neither of them took it well. Umi had instantly flown into a rage and Hikaru had simply stared in total disbelief. After fighting a moment with Caladina, Umi turned on her heel and began storming out of the room.

"Where are you going?" Asked Ascott, Umi kept walking.

"I'm going to find Fuu! She has to be somewhere! What if she's hurt, or captured? I can't stand here and do nothing!!"

"But where would you look?" Clef stopped her as he appeared in the doorway. Umi stared at him a moment, as if she didn't quite recognise him. He seemed older, worn, tired and sad. Her gaze moved from his face and down to his neck where Presea's ring hung on a thin chain. Her eyes softened, and for a moment she said nothing, but turned and walked back into the library and stood beside Hikaru. Clef entered the room, followed closely by Lafarga and Lantis. Hikaru looked up in shock at Lantis, but said nothing. Her eyes, however, became a little bit sadder.

"Now that everyone's here," Said Clef "let's begin."

"Everyone's not here! Fuu's still missing!" Umi shot in, then stopped as Clef gave her a look.

"First order of business is to find out what happened in the well." Clef said. Caladina gave him a reproachful stare.

"Now see 'ere. dsese girls just got back and they may not feel like..."

"That's enough." Clef barked. He knew he was acting more and more like a grumpy old man by the minute, but it couldn't be helped. There was no time to be gentle.

Hikaru and Umi fell silent as all eyes turned to them. They fidgeted as they tried to collect their thoughts, Hikaru casting nervous glances in the direction of Lantis. At last the latter approached Hikaru, and, getting down on one knee so as to be level with her height, put a hand on her shoulder.

"You promised your family you'd be back as soon as you saved Cefiro. The faster you tell us what happened, the sooner we can sort this out, and things can all go back to the way they were." After a brief pause, he stood up abruptly and moved to the side of the room. Hikaru took a deep breath and began telling the tale.

Throughout it, there were several gasps, and a few interjections from Umi. She concluded by telling everyone what Princess Emerald had told her. Find her brother and find the key.

"You heard that too?" asked Umi, rather surprised. Hikaru nodded and there was a awkward silence in the room.

"Well," said Clef, "that at least explains what we do with the box."

"The box?" Umi repeated.

"It was found on the floor by the fountain when you returned." Lafarga explained, "A plain wood box, with a few carvings."

"Pandora's box," Clef said, "If we can find the key, then perhaps we can re-seal the power of man's will and reverse all the damage done thus far, however..."

"Damage?" Hikaru put in, suddenly returning to life again.

"Didn't you know?" Ascott asked innocently, while Caladina instantly hushed him. The girls turned to Clef expectantly.

"Let me explain," said Lafarga, "You've been inside the well for about a week, and in that time, monsters have begun appearing and attacking people at random. Also, our border guards are reporting that our neighbouring countries have activated their armies." He finished. Umi and Hikaru looked at each other in disbelief.

"A...a week?" Umi stammered.

"That's not important," Clef cut in, "It's obvious what the countries are seeking is Pandora's box. Legend says that any royalty that possess the box will have an ultimate power of will capable of controlling anything. We can't allow that to happen."

"So dsen all we 'ave to do is find Emerald's little brother and get 'im to seal dse box. Oui?"

"It's not quite that simple." Lantis spoke for the first time. "We don't have any idea that such a person even exists, let alone where he might be."

There was a tight silence in the room.

"You...you mean you don't know if he...exists?" Umi asked in disbelief. All eyes turned to Clef. At length he spoke.

"If Emerald gave the key to her brother, then that would mean that she herself possessed it at one point."

He remembered Emerald's words. "The key was by itself was powerful enough, but now…"

Clef, "The key held the same power of the box, but on a different level. The box conforms the world to the user's sub- conscious as well as their conscious thoughts. The key required a strong will to use, and granted only the users conscious wishes. That means, whatever Emerald wished, she could make happen. Even if it was a wish that we would forget..."

"About her little brother..." Umi finished. "That's what she meant about setting him free."

Hikaru, "But that would mean that he also forgot who he was, and probably doesn't even know he has the key..."

Another heavy silence filled the room.

"So, we have three objectives." Clef said at length, "Find the key. Find the Prince, and protect Pandora's box. If someone were to get their hands on it, there's no telling what would happen to this land..."

"What about Fuu?" Umi interrupted stubbornly. By the look in their eyes, neither Umi, nor Hikaru were going to let this go.

"If she's alive, she'll turn up eventually, either through the well, or somewhere else." Clef answered flatly. Everyone in the room stared at him. It wasn't like Clef to be this cold.

Umi's eyes flashed and before anyone could stop her she walked right up to Clef and smacked him across the face. Then, while he was still shocked, she grabbed him by the front of his robe and dragged him close enough so she could whisper in his ear.

"That was from Presea." Was all she said. Then she turned on her heel and stormed out the side door towards the chapel. Hikaru recovered from her shock first and quickly ran after her.

"Umi wait!" cried Hikaru, "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to find Fuu." She said. "I'm going back into Eterna." Hikaru was going to say something, but stopped as she noticed tears in Umi's proud, angry eyes.

"That jerk," Umi whispered.

They reached the end of the short hall and rushed through the doors into the chapel. Umi walked up to the stone basin resolutely and held out her left hand.

"Open up!" She demanded. There was no answer.

"OPEN UP!" She yelled again. "I want my friend back, now OPEN UP!!"

"Magic Knight!" A voice rang inside her head. She stopped surprised. Hikaru heard it too. "What is it you wish?"

"I want to go get Fuu back and make sure she's safe." Umi said, only slightly daunted.

"Umi!" The others cried as they rushed into the room. They stood still as they watched her, seemingly, talk to herself.

Umi drew in her breath as Ceres appeared in the water before her. "Your friend is not here." The dragon informed her. "She left at the same time you did."

"What? But how?" Umi gaped.

Hikaru ran up beside her friend. "Then where is she?" She asked. "We have to find her."

"We cannot be sure," said Rayeath, "but Windam knows she is alive and well, in your world."

"Windam," Umi repeated. "Fuu's spirit god."

"Magic Knights." Ceres spoke, "You must focus on the task at hand right now. You must strengthen your wills and not let them waver."

"Though we cannot exist in form in that realm, our powers are always with you. Will you use them? Will you fight with your heart, mind, and spirit?" Rayearth's question seemed like more of a challenge.

"Yes," Answered Hikaru without a second thought. "I won't let anyone else get hurt." She clenched her first and grit her teeth as proof of her determination. Ceres' eyes glowed at Umi.

"And what about you? Magic knight of water, will you too, fight again?"

Umi hesitated.

"If Hikaru fights, so will I." Umi said at length. The dragon turned it's head quizzically at her and then nodded slowly.

"Very well then. Our powers are with you. Whenever you need us, just call out our names." And like that, the rune gods vanished. Umi stared blankly at the calm waters of the well.

"Well, at least we know Fuu's alright." Hikaru said softly. Umi didn't respond.

"Um....Umi? Hikaru?" She glanced down as Ascott tugged her skirt. He suddenly puffed out his chest raised himself up as high as he could go, "You don't need to worry 'cause I'll fight too. And Hikari, and all my friends. We'll all fight."

"Dsat's right," Caladina put a hand on Umi's shoulder, and one on Hikaru's, "We'll all fight, until Fuu gets back dsat is."

Hikaru jumped up, full of energy once again. "Yeah! We'll beat 'em, and find the prince too! Isn't that right Umi!"

"Y...yeah." Umi said, coming back to herself. They were such good friends, she wasn't going to worry them. She smiled and returned to her usual confident self.

"But you can't save the world on an empty stomach. TO THE KITCHEN!!" She declared, and started leading the procession out the door.

Clef watched from the side entrance, still rubbing his cheek, a stunned expression on his face. Slowly, he brought his hand up to his chest and fingered Presea's ring. After a moment, he returned back to his study.