Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ A Country's Hope ❯ Dreams Come True ( Chapter 22 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Midnight wisps lifted off the young girl's shoulders as she sat on the porch step, staring absently into the distance. It was the day that all her male companions were leaving for the trials. She wasn't quite so sure how she felt about it. Of course, she didn't want any of them to leave Fanelia permanently, but maybe a little break from all that love she was receiving would do her some good. She still couldn't believe that no one had bothered to tell her until a couple days ago. Especially Viole. She thought they knew everything about each other...well, except Eiko's secret that she had shared only with Briassa. But, that little piece of truth was not half as important as the one he had hidden from her.

Eiko subconsciously reached up to touch her swollen earlobe. A visible wince hit those features and she dropped her hand at that point. The piercing didn't go over as planned. It had just been far too painful when Briassa made the first hole that Eiko couldn't stand going through it a second time. So, all she could do was wait for the irritated area to heal up and maybe someday she would have it done professionally. The two girls had shared quite the deep conversation about love after the trauma that night. Briassa said that she could tell even a long time ago that Eiko loved Van, and she encouraged her to pursue the Prince's affections. Though, it was Eiko's belief that boys should make the first move.

At the moment, Eiko just waited for the departure. As it was polite to do, she needed to bid them farewell and wish them the best of luck, whether or not she meant it. She couldn't very well guilt anyone into staying behind, especially Viole. Joining a military group like Zaibach had been his life long dream, and it would be selfish of her to get in the way of that. She just wished there was a way to compromise so that if anyone did make it in, they wouldn't have to leave permanently. Her knees were drawn up to her chest and she lowered her chin atop them. Atleast Van wasn't leaving. Her young prince would remain in Fanelia for the rest of his life, and that was where she intended to stay. The better her chances were of capturing his attention that way. But, surprisingly she didn't have time to think about Van right then. It was her friends who consumed the majority of her mind.

Maybe she needed to apologize to Jarnuth for the way she acted the other day. Hopefully, he wasn't too upset or angry at her. That was the last thing she ever wanted-to jeopardize her friendship with anyone. Friends were really her most prized possession at that point. Eiko sighed and pushed herself up to her feet, clearing her mind for a brief moment. The sepia spheres darted over the individuals in the town square, scouting relentlessly for those boys. She wasn't sure when exactly they were heading out, but she hoped that they would drop by before they went. It would just be wrong to not say good-bye before leaving for a long while. She continued to hunt for familiar faces until they finally came into view. Everyone was there, traveling together like a pack.

Karyn had his arm possessively around Briassa's shoulders and Viole walked on the opposite side of his sister. Sorien hung around beside Asantay and babbled endlessly to the boy who didn't even really appear to be paying attention. As for Jarnuth, he just tagged along behind, making laggard steps with shuffling boots. The boys all had a bag of sorts over their shoulders-containing clothing and other needed accessories, which Eiko couldn't imagine being that much. They weren't girls after all! Slowly, the group approached the teenage princess and she nipped on her lower lip in silence as she watched them. Asantay moved up to Karyn's opposite side, and Jarnuth slinked up in between Viole and Briassa. Eiko pushed herself forward and decided to say her good-byes one at a time. Her arms moved first around Asantay.

"I'll miss you, Asantay. Good luck, and...I'll be sure to read that book as soon as I can, just so that I can tell you about it when you get back, okay?"

"Heh...great! I can't wait!"

Eiko smiled and moved back, stepping up to hug Karyn. But, once she realized who it was, she cleared her throat, extending her hand for a good-bye shake, "Well, Kar...best of luck. I'm sure Briassa already took care of the mushy stuff."

Karyn smirked some, taking that hand with a nod. Though, he didn't shake it, instead he brought her closer for a tight hug, "See ya around, Eiko."

The girl blinked in surprise, but returned it with a slight sniffle. She pushed back and allowed her gaze to land on Jarnuth. She sighed and brought him close, leaning in to whisper in his ear, "I'm really sorry about what I did a few days ago, Jarn. I never meant to hurt you and...I'll miss you when you leave."

The brown-haired youth closed his eyes briefly, before he nodded and whispered back, "I'll miss you too, Eiko."

She retracted with a sad smile. All that emotion had grown with each hug and she wasn't even sure she could handle the very last one as it was going to be the most painful. Eiko lifted her eyes to lock with Viole's glittering topaz spheres. Tears rushed into the brown oculars and her vision blurred for a moment until she batted them away with lashes. The girl flung her arms around the Arem twin and she felt his own rise up comfortingly around her. She released a sob which was muffled by his shoulder, and Viole raised his palm to stroke over her silken strands.

"Eiko..."

"I-I...I'm scared of you going. When you make it...if you make it...I just...I don't know what I'm going to do."

"Shh...it'll be okay, Eiko. I'll be back within a couple months. This isn't a final good-bye. You'll see me again...I promise you."

Eiko nodded softly and was hesitant to let go of the embrace. She felt that if she let him go, he would be gone to her forever. Trying to convince herself that this was what Viole wanted, didn't exactly work out as she thought it would. Viole held onto her for a few more moments and then he eventually broke free of it, only because he had to, definitely not because he wanted to. Eiko whimpered and her stomach took a sickening turn as Viole no longer hugged her. She raised her hands to sweep away droplets as she watched the boys move back. Briassa and Karyn hugged for the last time for a while as did Asantay and Sorien. They all offered a final wave, turning away to head out of the country. Eiko could only stand back helplessly as the four disappeared from sight.


* * *


The seasons shifted one into the next and eventually Orange came around. Eiko spent the time passage attempting to sort out those feelings of hers. She was positive there were some strong emotions for Viole. Everything seemed so empty and vacant without his presence. The birds sang songs of melancholy and the sun's light was never as bright as it should have been. But, this couldn't be the result of love. She loved Van. She loved Van her entire life. Oftentimes, she pretended that she was in the arms of her prince. Her imagination was so vivid at points that it even felt real to her. And in the morning when she woke up, nothing had changed. She was alone and Van was elsewhere...oblivious to her love. But, Van was still in Fanelia...so why was Viole's absence making things so desolate?

Eiko had been walking along for quite a bit. This walk was mainly to allow thoughts to roam free. Could she just have been wasting her time and love on Van? Was she foolish in ever believing that she stood a chance? Wishes for the impossible to come true have really only been in vain and they had been the only thing that kept her thriving. Perhaps that was the reason she sought out comfort from Viole. She never really realized how lonely her life was without him. But, he promised he would return and waiting for him to do so would not be an empty hope. Viole was her reality and Van had only been a fantasy. Her dreams of the Fanelian Prince were absolutely wonderful, but they were only in her mind. Just a result of a lifelong game of pretend that could never in anyway come true. If she wasn't around, Van would still live the same life. Things would never change for him and he would not even notice if she had left. So, with that knowledge...why was it that she couldn't get her heart to forget about him?

Her steps caused twigs to snap beneath and her gaze lowered as she realized she had wandered the woods near the river. Brows pressed together as she glanced around. Two voices sounded in the distance, but Eiko couldn't see who they were. She stuffed her hands in her pockets as she moved to the bridge. One hand moved forward so that digits could curl around the rope railings. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she looked after the rambling waters. Her chin lowered silently to lean on her knuckles as a few drops of saline plummeted off her cheeks and cascaded to the river below. The voices started up again, and Eiko lifted her gaze to the direction of the field. So, that was where they were! She rubbed away the moisture, and curiosity dragged her along the bridge. The young princess eased along the boards and paused at the entrance to that area. Her eyes widened slightly as she caught sight of just who it was.

Two horses were tied up on the tree stump and the lumbering Balgus stood above the young Prince Van, towering over him, which wasn't very hard to do considering how tall the man was. Van had his back to Eiko, though she could tell it was him just by the way those coal spikes fell. He had a dark brown bow in one hand, and the other carelessly held onto an arrow, making small holes in the ground as he half-listened to Balgus's lecture about the importance of archery. Their target had apparently been an oversized oak tree. Eiko reached forward and lowered the branches that clouded her sight some, just to get a better view of the two.

"Lord Van! You must learn all sorts of techniques for battle. A King of Fanelia must always be prepared!" Balgus scolded.

"But I'm not the king yet...I don't see why I have to waste my time--" Van started, only to be cut off.

"This is not a waste of time, Lord Van! You must learn these skills so that you can improve them. Why...when I was your age, I had to--"

"I know! I know!" Van sighed and turned to face the target as he nocked the arrow on the bow's string. "You had to forge your own weapons and train yourself. But...Balgus...this is all I do. Training...I don't like it..."

"But this training is essential to a King's destiny. And although you aren't the king yet, you must train so that you can defeat the dragon and succeed where your brother has failed..."

Van furrowed his brows as his teacher said those words, "You know that's not true! My brother did his best and died trying. It wasn't a failure!"

"Stop, Lord Van! Holding such sentiments for your brother will only make you lose concentration...now remember these words...point, aim, and shoot."

Eiko blinked and watched quietly as Van raised his bow. He drew back the string slowly and then released. That arrow sailed through the air and eventually embedded itself into the bark of a tree. Balgus moved in to commend the young prince, giving him a firm pat on the back, which Van stumbled forward slightly because of. He twisted around to look up at the man, only to allow those bay spheres to settle on Eiko. At first, he appeared surprised, but then his eyes narrowed some.

"How long have you been there?!" Van demanded.

A choked cry caught in her throat and she searched frantically for an excuse. This was hardly the sweeping her off her feet, whispering romantic words meeting she had dreamt of, "I-I...I'm sorry."

"Prince Van!" Balgus shook his head as he caught sight of the girl. "That is hardly anyway to talk to her. I apologize for the prince's rudeness, young lady. You are more than welcome to watch if you wish..."

"Balgus!" Van began to complain, though it sounded almost as though he was whining. "I can't concentrate with someone watching."

"Lord Van, you must learn to be able to combat no matter what the situation. The young lady's stay will do you some good..." Balgus shifted his attention toward Eiko again.

"I-I..." She swallowed her nervousness. "All right..."

Eiko curtseyed politely and then brought the branches aside so she could move in slowly. Was that really happening? It felt almost surreal, though it seemed Van wasn't the 'Prince Charming' she had hoped. But, that was all right; for the first time in months, she felt happy. Her heart danced every time a glance was sent in her direction from the young Fanel. Maybe, she shouldn't give up hope right then...maybe...just maybe there was a chance for Eiko and Van in the future. A sigh of content skipped past her lips and she let her eyes roam over Van's form as he struck the archer pose. He was very handsome and could probably become increasingly so. She loved the way those jet shards fell floppily over his left eye and the way the red fabric of his shirt collected at the ends; the way his muscles tensed and flexed with each shot of the arrow and especially the way he could appear so magnificent and important without even trying. If Eiko could have died right then, she would have been at her happiest.


* * *


A few days had flittered by since Eiko got to see the private training session. Unfortunately, no more words had been shared between the two, but atleast Van knew she existed. That was the most important thing in the world to her. It kept her cheerful and allowed fresh daydreams to start up inside her head. Her love may have been one-sided, but that didn't mean it would be forever. Her wishes could bring her love and she wouldn't give up hope. There was no reason to so...fate had shown her a glimpse of things to come and she firmly believed that it would. Though...one should know better than to tempt fate.

The ground suddenly began to rumble and Eiko glanced upward, catching sight of the reason. A large levi-ship loomed overhead, covering the majority of the sky. The ship was quite loud and it drowned out most of the other noise. Eiko squinted somewhat as she studied its patterns and markings, though the sound of her name forced her to look downward. She spotted Briassa and Sorien racing toward her excitedly. They waved jubilantly and Briassa cupped her hands on the sides of her mouth to amplify her call.

"It's the guys! Eiko!! The boys are back!!!"

Eiko paused a moment as it took a bit for the news to register. A wide grin crossed her lips and she pushed away from the steps, dashing toward them excitedly. The trio of girls giggled happily and hurried off to the main gate, skidding to a clumsy halt. All three glanced up at the levi-ship as it approached. A gush of air rushed up to hit them all once the landing began. Eiko looked up intently as the hatch opened. Footsteps were heard and first Asantay emerged. Sorien beamed and raced forward to wrap her arms around him. He twitched somewhat, but returned it. Karyn and Jarnuth moved out afterward, which made Briassa scurry over to her boyfriend, hugging him tightly. Eiko lifted her gaze to Jarnuth and offered him a smile. He gave her the same and then glanced over his shoulder. Viole walked downward, his thumbs were stuffed in his pockets as those eyes swept the area. The azures slowly landed on Eiko and he appeared to slump some as he stepped down the rest of the way. The group watched in silence as the levi-ship took off again.

"Well...Arem made it," Karyn motioned his head toward the lad.

Eiko's eyes widened and she sent a quick glance to Viole, "Did you?"

He nodded in response.

"That's great!" Sorien grinned. "Did anyone else?"

"Nope," Jarnuth shook his head.

"What was it like?" Briassa looked toward Karyn.

"Pretty lame...I'm impressed Arem made it over me. I did pretty damn good in that sword skill test," Karyn replied.

"Ha! Right...I bet even that boy...um...Guimel something or other coulda beat you," Asantay chuckled.

Jarnuth smirked, "He did actually. He was one of the ones who made it in."

"So...Viole made it..." Eiko started up absently and then looked at him slowly. "What does this mean? When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow..." Viole sighed. "I have a day to pack up my things and head out."

"I'll have the house all to myself. Gee...this is just great!" Briassa gleamed.

"Thanks a lot, Bri..." Viole commented sarcastically.

"Not a problem, dearest brother," The blonde winked playfully.

"Well...we should do something to celebrate, right?" Sorien glanced to the others in question.

"Actually," Viole began, looking toward Eiko. "I think I want to spend the rest of today with Eiko."

"Heh...yeah, I bet--" Karyn was swiftly cut off.

"Kar! Shush..." Briassa shook her head.

Jarnuth sighed, "Well then, why don't we give these two sometime alone?"

"Yeah, let's get going," Asantay agreed, waving toward them both.

Eiko looked on quietly as each went off, saying their good-byes before doing so. The preteen smiled and exchanged the same words, before turning back toward Viole, "So, what is it you want to do?"

"Heh...um...I have a very strange request..." Viole rubbed the back of his neck.



After hearing her friend out, Eiko had gone home to gather the windcatcher and put on the lavender dress Viole had told her to. She didn't quite understand what he wanted her to do in them, but she would find out once she returned. The young princess bounded down the steps and headed toward the river as instructed. She watched the spinning pinwheel with a smile. The colors glistened and reflected in the daylight; it was truly a remarkable sight. Eiko raised her attention to the forested area with a small sigh. She and Van shared their first words around there. True, they weren't the most romantic words in the world, but she was simply excited because...well...he had spoken to her. There was nothing quite like a teenage girl 'in love.' She was blinded to everything but Van, and those boys who claimed to love her knew exactly how she felt.

"Well there you are..."

Viole's words snapped her out of thought, "Oh...um...yeah. Now what's going on?"

"Stand right there..." Viole pointed to a spot beside the river as he kneeled, searching through his knapsack for something. "I'm going to take a shadow graph of you..."

Eiko followed his instructions, "Shadow graph?"

"Yeah...it's a device they use in Zaibach to create images. Unfortunately, they're all in black and white, but so long as I can take one of you, that won't matter. I gotta make sure it's perfect because the guy is only allowing me to take one. Heh...I had to bribe the guy like there's no tomorrow. Ah ha! Here it is!" Viole fished out the machine.

Eiko blinked as she studied it, "Hm...that's going to make an image of me?"

Viole nodded, "Uh huh...you'd be surprised at what they can do in Zaibach. The technology is amazing!"

"Sounds like you really like this place..." Eiko commented halfheartedly.

"It's really great...if I could show you, I would. Now, stand still...I gotta make sure this is perfect."

The girl giggled, "You go through way too much trouble for me, Viole."

"Don't I know it...heh."

Eiko fastened her fingers around the pinwheel and watched him until he was ready. He motioned her to stay there and she offered a smile for him, just as though she were getting her portrait painted. Viole pressed down on the button and in a matter of moments, a brilliant flash shined in a blinding manner. The boy nodded as he set down the device and Eiko blinked a few times to allow her eyes to adjust after that. Viole watched her in slight amusement.

"You okay?" He questioned.

"Yeah...just let me regain sight first..." Eiko rubbed at her eyes.

The girl was able to see for the most part and she stepped forward, raising that pinwheel. Her lips were puckered as she released some breath, watching as the 'petals' spun. Viole looked on, regarding the formation of her mouth in temptation. He moistened his own lips, but shook his head quickly to snap out of the trance he had been put into. One hand deposited itself in his pocket, curling around a small item within, before he looked toward her.

"Eiko...when the sun gets about halfway through the sky, could you meet me at the church tomorrow?"

"Church...? But why the church?"

"Oh...you know...I want to go to the last service of the day with you. Before I leave for Zaibach and all."

"Well...sure thing, Viole."

"Great...well...I'll see you then."


* * *


Church bells rang in the distance and the large doors were open in invitation to anyone who wished to 'better their soul.' It took a lot of convincing on Eiko's behalf because it was really her only standing routine with Daynus and Fanis-to go to that place of worship every morning of the last day in the week. But, she eventually got them to agree. Dressed in one of her best outfits, the raven-haired princess moved up the rickety steps and into the building. Pews were filled with the elderly, which made Viole really stick out amongst the crowd. He glanced up and acknowledged her presence by making eye-contact, only to motion her over afterward. She smoothly eased over to the Arem twin.

"I wasn't sure I'd be able to save you a seat any longer if you didn't get here soon..." Viole whispered.

"I know...I'm sorry. It was hard to get out of the house..." Eiko replied quietly.

The priest moved up to the altar, clearing his throat, "We are going to sing O' Blessed Dragon...so for those of you who don't know the words, you can find them on page three..."

Eiko reached forward and grasped the hymn book, flipping to the written lyrics. It wasn't that she didn't know the song, she just wasn't certain of all the words in the chorus. Besides, she didn't want to make a fool of herself in front of Viole. The background music struck up and after a few seconds of the repeated melody, the various voices began to carry the tune. Eiko sang along softly, her voice following the others in perfect key, drifting over the notes with graceful ease. Viole looked over at her, quite impressed by the soprano and her use of vibrato. He smiled faintly; there was no better time to do what he had planned but then. Eiko held the end of a word and then followed along with the rest of the sung sentence. But, out of no where, her vision was shifted to a shimmering, diamond ring. A gasp caught in her throat and that hymn book was immediately released from her grasp, slamming against the wooden floor boards. Quite a few people jumped, being startled and Eiko only offered a sheepish apology, before she glanced up at Viole in shock.

Allowing the song to back up his words, Viole spoke, "Marry me, Eiko...after I get back from Zaibach...marry me..."

"V-Viole..." Eiko was still surprised as well as awed by that ring. It was the first time she had seen something so expensive up close. "Where did you get the money for that?"

"I used my savings that I've been collecting from chores for years. I knew it was the right thing to do, because I know...I want to spend my entire life with you. Yeah...I know we're young, but Eiko...I love you."

She winced at his words and shook her head quickly, "I...I can't, Viole. I...can't make that big of a commitment with you now."

Viole took her hand in his and set the ring gently on her palm. He closed her fingers around it and kept his digits wrapped around her own, "Then...keep it...until you're ready, or just as a symbol of my love for you. Whether or not you do marry me...that ring is yours forever. Just...like my heart."

The warm tears stung the backs of Eiko's eyes as her lower lip quivered. Such poetic love...the type she had dreamt of with Van. Why couldn't she get rid of those delusions of the prince and agree to Viole's proposal? No, it wouldn't be fair to him, to not love him with her whole entire heart. The rest of the sermon was spent in silence and after that...after a heartfelt embrace, Viole walked out of Eiko's life forever...