Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Angel ❯ Prologue ( Prologue )

Author's Notes: I don't own any part of Escaflowne. I do, however, own the idea of Angel and all character/places not mentioned in the series. I also do not own anything else not mentioned here that is owned by someone else/a company who/that will get mad if I say I own it.

Prologue

Angel looked around. Where was he? Angel had been looking for her best friend Rhyo all day. She sighed and decided to give up. She would tell him he had won, again, when he showed up at dinner.

Just as she turned to go home, she heard a rustle that could only have been made by someone hiding in the bushes. She whirled around and scanned the area. There was forest to her left and in front of her. To her right was a lake with a waterfall. Behind her, through the trees, she could see Fanelia.

If I can just get back to the castle, I'll be safe. Angel thought to herself. She turned back to Fanelia and began to run. She knew she was being followed. She could hear the plants moving behind her.

She broke out of the trees just as the guards started to close the city gates.

"WAIT!!" She yelled. The guards looked up and saw her running towards them. They held the gates open as they laughed.

"You're in trouble again." One said as she ran up. "You're mother's going mad with worry."

"Yes Little Princess," the other said. "And if you show up looking like that, you'll be lucky to get off with a fortnight's confinement to your chamber."

"Don't call me Little Princess!!" Angel yelled as she ran past. Unfortunately they were right. She looked down and saw that her forest green dress was ruined. It had been beautiful, made of the finest silk in Gaia with full sleeves and a high collar. Now the hem was torn and the sleeves ripped of. It was permeated with dirt and leaves, from crawling around the forest looking for Rhyo.

Actually, Angel thought, I like it better now.

As she ran through the crowded streets, she heard people gasping at her appearance. After all, she was Princess Angel Lazar de Fanel of Fanelia and was therefore expected to be at the castle, already prepared for the feast being held in her elder brother's honour. Her brother, Folken, was leaving to complete the Right of Dragonslaying the next day. If he got back,no, when he got back, he would be crowned King.

Angel had just made it to the door of the kitchen, the closest door into the castle, when she was knocked over by someone. She was tackled to the ground and pinned.

"Gottcha!" The figure hissed in her ear.

"All right Rhyo," Angel said, laughing. "You got me. Now get off. I got to go get ready for the feast." Angel shoved her best friend of. Rhyo stood up gracefully and helped her up.

Rhyo looked at her adoringly as he smoothed his blue-gray fur. Since he was an animal person, cat-human, he had fur covering most of his body. He was, as usual, dressed in a pair of brown pants that had been torn to make shorts and a green sleeveless jacket. Rhyo's large cat ears twitched.

"Margrette's coming." He said. Angel's face fell as the short, plump woman rounded the corner.

"Heavens!" She exclaimed. "Angel. What happened? Your mother is worried sick. Come now. We're going to get you cleaned up. Then you can tell Queen Varie where you were. And tell the truth, or I'll get Merle to force it out of your friend." Margrette said spitting out the word `friend' like it left a horrible taste in her mouth. Rhyo lashed his tail back and forth, unable to hide his dislike of this woman.

Angel sighed, "Yes Margrette. Bye Rhyo. " Then she added, "Don't worry, I won't let Merle hurt you." when she saw the look of horror on Rhyo's face. Merle was another animal person, a female cat-human, who was always with Van, Angel's twin brother. Her favorite game was tormenting Rhyo.

As Margrette herded Angel up to her chamber, Angel thought of what her punishment would be. She remembered what the guard had said. `A fortnight's confinement to your chamber.' Angel laughed to herself. If only they knew. More likely she would not be allowed to practice flying a fortnight. That was what had happened last time she got into trouble, when she was caught flying without permission. But it was okay then because she had broken her wing. Inherited from her mother, who was a Draconian, white, feathered wings were a part of Angel's, and her brothers', physical makeup. They could only practice flying in the forest though because, if they were seen, they would be tormented, or even killed. Luckily they could retract their wings into their backs. The only evidence that they even had wings were two thin white lines where they came out. On Angel and Folken those lines were nearly impossible to see against their pale skin while they were easily seen against Vans dark tanned skin. So while Folken could go around without a shirt on hot days, making many girls drool, Van was forced to wear one on even the hottest of days. Angel, when she could, would wear low backed dresses.

When Margrette finally got to Angel's chamber, she called Marie, Angel's personal maid, to clean her up. Marie had Angel sit on the king-size bed while she pulled out dresses from the closet. Finally Marie decided on a simple dark red silk dress that matched Angel's eyes. It had short sleeves and a low neckline. Angel couldn't have cared less, and refused to take part in the decision. Marie then brushed Angel's shoulder length silver hair. Everyone had tried to get Angel to keep her hair long, but she would just hack it off when their backs were turned. So they finally gave up and let her keep it short. It was now cut to just above her shoulders. Marie had just finished putting burgundy clips in Angel's hair to hold her fringe back when someone knocked on the door.

"Come in." Angel said and sent Marie to open the door. A servant stepped in, her head bent.

"Your mother wishes to see you in her chamber, Little Princess."

"How many times do I have to tell you people not to call me `Little Princess'?" Angel sighed and relented. "Tell Mother I will be with her shortly."

"Yes Little Princess." The servant ducked to avoid a hairbrush thrown at her and left.

"Did Mademoiselle sneak out of zee castle again? Mademoiselle knows zat she will be in trouble...oui?" Marie asked.

"I know I'm not allowed outside the castle without a guard, but Rhyo and I just wanted to have an adventure." Angel replied.

"An adventure? Mais, you are only five years old. Zere iz plenty of time for `adventure' when you are older. Ah, zere now. Zat necklace is marvieux on you."

"Thanks Marie." Angel replied, reluctantly looking at her reflection. Marie was right. The necklace did look marvelous on her. It was made of rubies and diamonds and the light they reflected shone in her eyes.

"I guess I had better go and meet Mom."

As Angel walked to her mother's room, she heard laughter coming from Folken's chamber. When she looked in, she saw Folken and Van talking and laughing on Folken's bed.

"What's so funny?" Van and Folken promptly fell off the bed laughing.

"What are you laughing at?" Angel was not in the mood for this.

The boys looked at each other and back at her. "You!" They yelled, laughing again.

"You are in so much trouble!" Folken said with tears running down his cheeks, mixing with the sweat that plastered his blue-white hair to his face. He had probably just returned from a long day of sword training with Balgus.

"Yeah, Mom was really worried `n' now she wants to talk to you in her room." Van said between giggles, pushing his pitch-black hair out of his eyes. "`N' that only happens when she's really mad `n doesn't want anyone ta see her yelling."

"I know that." Angel yelled back. "And I know that it's happened to you too."

"AndI know you'd had better get going, or you're going to be in even more trouble than you already are." Folken said with a smug look on his face, his purple eyes sparkling mischievously.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm going." And with that, Angel stormed out of the room.

When Angel got to her mother's door, she took a deep breath, and knocked.

"Come in."

Angel quietly pushed open the door and stepped in. She saw her mother, Queen Varie, sitting at her mirror, looking at her reflection. Her back was turned to Angel.

"Close the door."

Uh-oh. Angel thought. I'm in real trouble now. She silently shut the door and took a few hesitant steps forward.

"I'm very disappointed with you." Angel's mother said, her back still turned and rigid. "I thought you had more sense than to go out into the forest alone. What if you had been hurt? Or attacked by wild animals." She stopped Angel's attempt to explain. "I know Rhyo was with you, but he is only a year older than you. He could not have protected you. Especially if you were playing that silly game you two made up." Queen Varie suddenly turned to face Angel, tears welling up in her eyes. "I was so worried. Oh, my baby! You could have been hurt! What on Gaea were you thinking? I was so scared!!! I thought you had disappeared! Like Celena Schezar." She declared, running over and throwing her arms around Angel.

Angel just stood there, letting her mother hold her and cry. She was surprised. She had expected her mother to be angry with her and was ready to be scolded. She hadn't expected her mother to cry. She especially hadn't expected her to bring up Celena, one of the many children who had disappeared from Asturia, a country by the sea. Queen Varie had been very close to the Schezars and, to her; it had been like losing a daughter.

"It's alright Mom. Nothing happened to me. I'm fine. So, I'll just be going now, all right? Bye now." Angel said wiggling out of her mother's hug and backing towards the door.

"Oh no you don't! You aren't getting off without some kind of punishment."

"Aww! But Mom!"

"Don't you `but Mom' me young lady. You made me worry. You know how hard it's been since your father…" her voice cracked. "…Died. I almost sent Balgus out after you. You would have had me waste his time, and mine. You must be punished. You will not be permitted to attend the ceremony tomorrow or the feast tonight.

"WHAT!!! What do you mean I can't go to the feast tonight."

"I mean just that. You are not going. I will explain everything to Folken. I'm sure he will understand. Now, go to your room! You will stay there for the rest of the night."

"But Mom-"

"Go. Now. Or I'll have the guards escort you there and then stand outside your door all night." And with that Queen Varie turned back to her mirror and ended the conversation.

Angel sighed and left the chamber. When she passed Folken's chamber, the door was closed. But through it she could hear the muffled voice of her brother. The same at Van's chamber, only Van's voice was considerably louder. He was obviously fighting against wearing his formal clothes. He preferred to wear his red shirt and white pants all the time.

When Angel reached her own room, she dismissed Marie and closed the door with a sigh. She flopped onto her bed and buried her face in her pillow.

This is so unfair she thought. I didn't get hurt. And Rhyo was with me, and he wouldn't let anything happen to me. I've been looking forward to the feast all week. `N' it's my birthday tomorrow. Mom is so unfair!

Angel's train of thought was interrupted by a knock on her door.

"It's me. Can I come in?"

"Come on in Rhyo." Angel said, wiping away the tears that had formed in her eyes.

Rhyo pushed open the door and poked his head in, a concerned look showing on his face.

"I heard what happened." He said, coming completely into the room. He closed the door behind him. "I'm sorry. It was all my fault. I should've known the princess of Fanelia wouldn't be allowed to leave without an escort."

"No. It wasn't your fault. Sometimes I hate being a princess."

"Maybe you should run away from all this then." Rhyo said jokingly.

Angel jumped up suddenly, her eyes sparkling. "That's not a bad idea." She said happily. "I could leave tonight. Everyone's at the feast, so they wouldn't know I was gone `till tomorrow."

"Angel!" Rhyo exclaimed. "I wasn't serious!"

"But it's a perfect idea! You could sneak into the kitchen and get me some food while I pack in here."

Rhyo seemed to think. "Why do I have to go get your food?"

"`Cause I can't leave the room right now. If anyone saw me before I snuck out, I would be sent back `n' guards would be posted at my door. I'd never get out then."

"Fine. I'll go `n' get the food, but I'm gonna be a while."

"Why?"

"I gotta stop at my room. I'm coming with you." Rhyo added when he saw the confused look on her face. "Well, I can't let you go out alone. You could get hurt. And you need my knowledge of the wild."

"Yeah right." Angel replied laughing. "You've never been in the real wild before. You don't know a thing about surviving there." She paused and got serious. "But thanks for coming. It's really nice. Now, hurry up and get your stuff. And don't let anybody see you!"

After Rhyo had left, Angel started packing, She found a bag that could strap onto her back and was just about to fill it with clothes when she realized something.

I've only got dresses! Angel panicked. And I can't wear those if I'm running away. It's too easy to tell they belong to a princess… and it'd be too hard to walk through the forest with one on. What`m I gonna do?! Her thoughts were interrupted by Rhyo's return.

"I got my stuff. `N' I didn't see anyone in the halls at all. They must all be at the feast already." He stopped and looked at Angel. "Hey what's wrong?"

"We've got a problem. I don't have anything to wear."

Rhyo laughed. "Typical girl." He continued before Angel could hit him. "That's why I brought these!" Rhyo pulled out some clothes from behind his back. "The top and boots're Merle's and the pants are Van's, so they should fit you."

"Thanks Rhyo!" Angel cried, taking the clothes from Ryo's hands. The top was pale orange and came to just above her knees. The pants were white and a bit long, so Angel had to roll the legs up. Merle's boots were brown and laced up. They fit perfectly. When she finished changing, she grabbed a belt from her closet.

"Uh, Angel, are you sure about that belt. I mean, it has the crest on it."

Angel looked at the belt. Rhyo was right. It did have the combined crest of Fanelia and the Draconians on it. The silver Draconian wings flanked the red and gold insignia of Fanelia.

"I like it. `Sides, no one will know what it means unless they look closely and see Fanelia's crest." Angel looked away and quietly finished the sentence. "And it'll remind me of home."

Angel buckled the belt on defiantly.

"Okay, I guess it can't hurt. Just keep it hidden under the shirt. And don't let anyone see the engraving. Now here. I stopped at the armoury and got a couple of bows and some arrows. `N' I grabbed your throwing stars from my room. You can take half the supplies. Okay?"

"Sure." Angel said, stuffing half the food and arrows into her pack. She slung the pack on her back and the bow over that. She placed her throwing stars in her belt and was ready to go.

Angel slowly opened the door and tiptoed out of her room, Rhyo just behind her. They crept through the halls and made their way to a stairwell that winded up and out of sight. Rhyo climbed up ten stairs then stopped and bent down. He pushed in a brick on the side and the bottom five stairs retracted quickly to reveal another stairwell going down.

"Great," Angel whispered, her eyes shining with excitement. "It's still here."

"Of course it is." Rhyo said. "No one knows `bout it but us `n a couple of the old guards."

They were talking about the secret passage Rhyo had just revealed. He had found it when he was running away from Merle. It was originally used as an escape route for the royal family but it hadn't been used in fifty years. Most of the people who knew about it had passed away. The passage led out under the castle and up in the middle of the city.

As Angel and Rhyo climbed down the steps, torches suddenly burst into flames and the door above them closed. As Angel took a torch from its bracket, she silently thanked the sorcerers of Fanelia. They had enchanted the torches so they would light when a member of the royal family came near. While a member of the royal family held the torch, it would never go out.

Angel and Rhyo talked as they made their way through the passage. They decided they would go to Fried, a country bordering Asturia. They couldn't decide what to do once they got there though. Rhyo was fast and agile, but, because he was a cat-human, he wouldn't be able to get a job. Angel was amazing with her prized throwing stars, stolen from the armory a year ago, and had the amazing ability to seem to disappear into a crowd. Unfortunately, because she was a five-year-old girl (even just a girl), no one would let her use her talents in a job.

Angel and Rhyo talked and walked all night. They were out of Fanelia by sunrise. They stopped at a large tree in the forest for a rest before going on. Angel and Rhyo sighed in relief as they realized no one would be able to catch them now. They were safe.

Meanwhile, in Zaibach, another country on Gaea, an old man sat watching the people below him. He was Dornkirk, the emperor of Zaibach. He was trying to change the fate of all of Gaea, but he had decided to start small. That was why the people below him, the sorcerers, were trying to change the fate of Celena Schezar.

"Commence fate alteration." Dornkirk's voice echoed through the room.

"Commencing fate alteration." The sorcerers echoed as they pulled levers and pushed buttons on the machines attached to Celena. They were supposed to change this sweet, five year old girl into a perfect warrior. A bloodthirsty killer.

The sorcerers jumped back as the machines started to spark. There was a bright flash of light. When it faded everyone saw that nothing had changed.

"Uh…fate alteration was unsuccessful."

"I can see that you fool." Dornkirk replied angrily. "Find out what went wrong and try again."

Back in the forest outside Fanelia Rhyo was just settling down when a bright light blinded him.

"What was that, Angel?" He asked. When he got no reply he looked over to where she had been resting and saw…nothing. Angel was gone.

"Angel? Angel, where are you?"

It was quite clear that she hadn't left. Rhyo couldn't see her down the path, and she couldn't have run far enough to be out of sight. Angel was gone, and Rhyo had no idea where she went. Only one thought crossed his mind.

Uh-oh!