Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Heart of the Dragon ❯ Children are a Gift from God ( Chapter 24 )

Prince Ryu and Princess Malaika grew at a rate that astounded everyone, even their parents. Van was clearly besotted with the youngsters who's very existence filled him with wonder and joy. He was eager to share in both of their care. He thought nothing of fetching them when they woke in the middle of the night and bringing them to Hitomi to nurse them. He held them, rocked them, and talked to them as if the babes could understand every word he said. And truly, they seemed attentive enough to watch the elder and purse their lips as if they were waiting for their own chance to talk. Van even went so far as to scandalize the nursery maid by changing their diapers. Already the sight of Van and his children happily absorbed in each other was becoming commonplace among the palace.

Hitomi, although still confined to bed most of the time, found a joy in motherhood that vastly exceeded anything she had foreseen. Whether she sat with the babies at her breast, rocked, or merely sang a lullaby to them, she felt wonderfully complete as a woman. It was if she had become connected to some emotion that was infinitely precious, loving, and maternally fulfilling. When she was thusly involved, she was certain that all the other ordinary concerns of the outside world had dwindled to nonexistence.

By the time Nara came back, Hitomi was ready to jump out of the bed and do a dance. She felt like she was growing mold in the bed she spent most of her time in, and when Nara came rushing into the room, demanding to see her, she almost yelled with happiness. Nara apologized so sadly that Hitomi felt tears come to her eyes. She was begging her to forgive her stupidness for even thinking of leaving, but Hitomi made her stop, understanding. Already, the pain was a vague memory that she rarely recalled, or wanted to. She could tell that Nara would do anything for her, and she smiled, trying to make her understand. When Nara finally gave up, Hitomi asked her if she was allowed to leave the bed. Nara inspected her closely, asking her if she was sore still. Hitomi blushed such a dark red that Nara laughed.

"My dear, of course you are still going to be sensitive, it's natural. I'm just asking if it seems worse than it should be."

Hitomi raised her hands to her cheeks to cool them. "Yes, I am, but I can deal with it. Like you said, it's natural. Millerna said that I'm going to need weeks to heal, every woman does. She said that she took a month and a half, and since I went through so much, she decided at least two months."

Nara nodded, already knowing. "I will let you out, but you have to have someone with you at all times, specifically your husband, who I believe is with the twins down in the study."

Hitomi smiled. "He hogs them more than me." She crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm jealous."

Nara cackled and started helping her from the bed. "I see that you have finally moved into this room and had your old one transformed into the nursery. That was a very good idea. Who came up with it?"

"Me. Van looked oddly nervous, I don’t know why though. He seems so nervous around me, he doesn’t want to touch me if it's not necessary. I don’t know what's wrong. It's like I'm some sort of delicate china doll or something." Hitomi said, smiling at herself.

Nara stopped helping her stand and stared at her. Oh, no, she thought. She had to talk to his highness immediately. She walked over to the armoire and dug out a comfortable gown for her baby. She hoped it wasn’t too late.

After helping Hitomi into the gown and into a soft chemise that fit her loosely, she walked her down slowly to the study. Already from down the hall, Hitomi could hear the laughter from within. Merle, Allen, and Van must all be in there. Millerna had left the day before, complaining of queenly duties.

She smiled when she heard Merle say, "Look at that expression! Ah, how cute! They like each other!!"

She knocked on the door and a grinning Allen opened it, expecting a servant. He blinked a few times to clear his head when he saw Hitomi, and he opened the door wide to show the people inside the room who was standing in the doorway. Van jumped up from his seat on the floor, which was covered with a soft blanket.

"Hitomi?! What are you doing out of bed? I thought you were resting! Who said you were allowed down here?!" Van asked, nearly yelling. He didn’t think she was ready to get out of bed, and still needed to rest.

"Nara told me, Van, don’t worry. Now, can someone help me over to some place to sit?" Hitomi questioned, a sweet note in her voice. Van almost ran over to her, shoving Allen out of the way, who had a big smile on his face still. Van was ready to carry her over to the sofa, but she waved him away, just taking his arm for support. He set her down on it, and grabbed a blanket to lay over her legs and tuck around her. She thanked him and curled her legs underneath her. Merle immediately took a place beside her, much to the disappointment and annoyance of Van. He was almost pouting in his loss and chance to sit next to her, and when Hitomi saw it, a big smile came to her mouth.

Nara was still standing in the doorway, waiting for a chance to talk to Van. She politely asked to speak to him, and he sneered at Merle playfully as he walked over to the door. She just waved her hand at him, rolling her eyes. "You can't hog her all to yourself, Van, dear."

Nara closed the door behind him as he walked out, trying to wipe the smile off his face. "Yes?"

"First of all, your highness, I want to apologize for not being here when her highness needed me the most," Nara said pleadingly.

Van accepted her apology, for it hadn't been her fault, it had been his for letting her leave in the first place.

"Next, I want to know why you are acting so cold and distant to her. Does it have something to do with her almost dying?"

Van had not expected a question like this in a million years. How did she know about this?! "Wait a minute, from where did you draw this conclusion?"

"Well, it seems that when her majesty was talking to me about the rooms being moved for the nursery, that she told me that you appeared oddly nervous. If I remember correctly, you wanted to have her move in there more than anything, but you just never got the chance. And as an added bonus, I also seem to recall you never able to keep your hands off her."

Van felt anger roll through him and he clenched his fists, closing his eyes. "It is none of your business what I do or think. If I wish to do something, then you will not tell me otherwise. And yes, I am very terrified of the thought of even touching her, in fear of getting her pregnant again. She almost died. I can't lose her, not when I just got her back. Now please, do not talk to her about this. It is my problem, and I won't deal with it, considering that it isn't a problem yet. Maybe someday you women will understand that I can handle it perfectly fine. Just knowing that she is alive will have to suffice." Van paused his sarcastic speech and tried to be nicer. "I understand your concern. If Hitomi has a problem with it or finds out, we will deal with it together. She just has to understand that I don’t want her to die, and all because of me."

Nara's eyes softened, wondering at the love he felt for her highness. He was making a large sacrifice, even if he didn’t realize it yet. Knowing that her baby was a very passionate woman, she had no doubt she would have a problem with this. Nara nodded and curtsied, walking away and in deep thought. Van sighed gratefully and went back into the room.

Hitomi smiled up at Van and started to shove Merle away so he could sit next to her. Merle gave her a pathetic look and gave Van a mocking bow, saying, "Her highness has wishes of your glorious self sitting next to her. May I kindly give you my seat, your majesty."

Van didn’t even notice how much sarcastic language had been floating about him lately, he just sat next to her and she leaned her head on his shoulder, resting her hand over his heart. He jerked and she lifted her hand, giving him a concerned look. At her raised eyebrow, which she learned off him, he realized he had to be careful and not make her suspicious. He swallowed and grabbed her hand, setting it back into place. She gave him a seductive, yet happy smile and leaned her head back down on his shoulder. Her brow furrowed when she felt how hard his heart was pounding, and how fast he was breathing. She nestled closer and felt him jump. Upon touching her lips to the throbbing pulse in his neck and the way he stiffened in alarm, she knew that something was definitely wrong.

She looked over at Allen and Merle, who were playing with the tiny babes on the floor, and saw how they were completely absorbed in what they were doing. That gave her a chance to find out what was wrong with Van while they were unsuspecting.

Her hand drifted down his chest slowly, and she loved the way his hard muscles flexed and tightened. She could tell he was pretending that she wasn’t doing anything to him, and she became more determined. Her tongue flicked over the still pounding pulse in his neck and she saw his hands clench in his lap. He was still sitting there, trying to ignore her. She knew he wasn’t being unresponsive to her, for she felt a shudder move through him.

Her hand went down farther, resting on his lower stomach. She let it lay there, and gauged his reaction carefully. Scared, upset, nervous, but wanting more. She shifted closer to him and the blanket slipped. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and started showering light nipping kisses on his throat. His heart was pounding so hard it was a wonder it didn’t burst out of his chest.

Hitomi's mouth traveled up his neck and started nibbling on his earlobe. He sucked in his breath and started digging his fingers into the soft fabric of the sofa. At his response to what she just did to him, which wasn’t really much at all, she let her fingers go to the top of his pants and slip underneath them. He was breathing so hard she wondered if he was getting any air.

She tugged the blanket over them just so Merle and Allen couldn’t see what was going on underneath it. The fire that was burning offered the cover for any noises, for the crackling and hissing of the wood hid any low sounds. She touched him timidly and covered his mouth with her free hand when he moaned. He jerked his hips upward and she swallowed, wondering if she should keep going with Allen and Merle so close. She knew she was risking a lot, and they probably already knew what they were doing. She knew she should stop, considering she couldn’t do anything with him in the first place, but with his melting resistance, she couldn’t help it.

She stroked her fingertips over him and he groaned again, low and long. She looked up to see his eyes closed and his brow beaded with sweat. He was getting too frenzied for her to go much further, and if she kept going, he would get beyond angry with her. She slipped her hand out from under his pants and he went to grab her hand to bring it back, but she leaned away, dragging her hand behind her back.

He went after her when she started moving away. He took hold of her and slammed his mouth down on top of hers, forcing open her lips and savaging her mouth. He wasn’t hurting her, but she could just imagine what Allen and Merle were thinking now.

Just when she thought he was going to stop, he started hurting her. She could tell that he was very uncontrolled, and knew she shouldn’t have done anything to him in the first place. She started pushing at his chest to make him stop and he lightened a little, only to dive right back in to his punishing kiss. She felt a whimper come up, but she didn’t want Allen to attack Van, for she knew he would. Although Allen didn’t love her more than a friend, she knew he would protect her from anyone, even if it was her own husband. She shoved harder at his chest and he didn’t stop. She made a fist and hit him as hard as she could in his shoulder, which brought him up saying, "Ow!!"

Hitomi scowled at him and he gave her a blank look in return, which enraged her further. She wanted to hit him harder, and in other places!! She wiped her mouth off with the back of her hand in disgust just to make him angry. He growled at her and stood, walking out of the room.

Merle glanced over to the sofa which only held a now silent Hitomi. She hadn't even known something had been wrong until Van had left. Allen was still paying attention to the babies, he hadn't even known Van had left. Merle saw the muscle jumping in Hitomi's jaw, and realized she was angry. Her lips were looking rather red, and she could only guess that they had been kissing. She sighed, knowing that she shouldn’t get into it, especially when she would just embarrassed her and Van.

Hitomi stood too fast on her feet and wobbled where she stood, gasping at the sudden pain. That’s when Allen's attention was gained. He went immediately to her side, asking her what was wrong and if she was alright. She had her hand over her lower stomach and her eyes were closed.

"Nothing. Please, just bring me back up to my room. If the twins need fed, just send them up."

Allen had a concerned look on his face and was about to demand what was wrong, but he didn’t when he saw her eyelashes spiked with tears. She apparently had hurt herself upon jumping up like she had. He looked around for Van, but didn’t see him. He shrugged. He must have left to do something.

He picked Hitomi up gently, keeping her close. She held on tighter by putting her arms around his neck and she kept her eyes closed. Allen told Merle he would be right back and she nodded, wondering if she should go and ask Hitomi if everything was ok. She could tell she was tired and in extreme pain, for she never cried unless she was in pain. She wasn’t the softie she used to be.

Allen carried her up to her room and had one of the guards open it so he wouldn’t have to let her go and do it himself. He brought her over to the still unmade bed and settled her down. She had two tears streaks on her very pale face running down her cheeks that had slipped out from her eyes. She sniffed and turned over onto her side, away from him. He laid his hand on her head a moment and pushed back her hair from her eyes. She sighed and he smiled when he realized she was sleeping. He covered her with the blankets and left, closing the door behind him softly.

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Van stalked out of the room, his fists clenched at his sides. He knew it, damn it. He knew he wouldn’t be able to control himself if Hitomi would have done anything to him. He wasn’t strong enough to keep away from her womanly temptations and everything she had to offer. He didn’t know why he didn’t just give up and forget this whole charade. If she ever did anything remotely like that to him again he would just go crazy, and she knew it. Just the lightest touch of her hand on his face would have him racing for the bedroom, it always had. She was driving him insane, and now that he had what she had just done to him on his mind, he wouldn’t be able to get it out until he had sated himself on her all day long, and it still wouldn’t be enough. Forever wouldn’t be long enough, he muttered to himself.

What was wrong with him? He had heard that men got bored with their wives after a while, and as far as he was concerned, it was a while. It had been a year, and time hadn't assuaged his lusts, just made him want more. Why couldn’t he get enough of her? Just looking at her made him want her. And she didn’t even have to look at him in a tempting way!! There had to be something wrong with him, there had to be.

He rubbed his hand over his face in a frustrated gesture. He didn’t know where he was going, he just needed to think. He went through the halls, searching for a quiet room, but it seemed like every one was occupied. He just gave up and kept walking.

What should he do now? Should he really give up? He didn’t want to get her pregnant again, he didn’t want the chance of losing her ever again. He had to make sure he stayed away from her, even if he chained himself down and had someone lock him in a room, throwing away the key.

Did Hitomi know what he was trying to do now? Or did she just think that he was trying to stay away from her because she wasn’t healed yet? Nara certainly knew, and she meddled into everything he did, except when he got hurt. She always stayed away from him then, for she knew he hated being taken care of when it wasn’t necessary.

Did he need help now? Did she realize that and was trying to help him, but he wouldn’t except it? He wanted to beat on something, but with the snow coming down, he couldn’t very well go outside and demand all the samurai come out and fight him. He knew no one would like that.

Maybe he should get some help. But whenever he got an idea into his head, he didn’t get it out. He was just like his mother, and everyone else in his family. He smiled, wondering if Ryu would be like him. Some things would be alright, but not all of them. Like his attitude and stubbornness.

He still didn’t understand why he wanted Hitomi so bad. Was it some sort of chemical thing? Or what? He remembered how he had gotten sick of the same woman after a while, the same smell, the same technique, the same everything.

However, Hitomi wasn’t like them. She had some sort of shy way of knowing exactly what to do to him, and her being so shy in her willing way was the biggest turn-on he had ever had. All the other women had been so practiced in their movements and everything they did, it hadn't seemed as exciting or wonderful as it was with Hitomi. She was still discovering things, she probably always would. He had a zillion different things to show her, and he would never be able to learn them with her in a million years. He shook his head, smiling. It was like everything was new with her, like he had never done anything like this with another person.

He didn’t understand why she didn’t smell the same everyday either. Victoria had always smelled of roses, and he had gotten sick of it quickly. Hitomi always smelled of something new and exciting. Lavender, heather, lilies, grass, anything from outside. Even the soap she used worked on him.

And her technique. He could drool over hers. She didn’t even have one, she was different every time. She responded sweetly one moment and so enthusiastically the next that it had him wondering if he was the best lover in the world.

Her name even flowed over his tongue like honey, and tasted just as good. Oh, and her taste. He could never get enough of that. He could never stop kissing her, never stop running his mouth over her body. The other women he had been with he hadn't really kissed, or had never enjoyed it if he tried. But kissing his wife made him want to kiss her forever, and never stop.

He started when he realized he had just been leaning against a wall, thinking and staring at the floor. Amazing how he didn’t realize he was doing things when he was thinking. He walked down the hall some to a window, the window his mother and him had talked about Folken. Judging by the angle of the sun it was getting late. He had been walking around for more than two hours apparently.

He sighed and ran his fingers through his once again long hair. Hitomi, when she had been pregnant, had been so happy when she had noticed this, and had kept her fingers in his hair all day, for as long as she could. He smiled, remembering how they had spent most of that day in their room, Hitomi sitting in the rocking chair, him sitting between her legs and resting his head against her legs while she played with his hair. He loved that memory. He wished they had closer times like that more often, but with all his duties and her being pretty much confined to her room in bed, they hadn't had much of a chance lately.

He sat down at the window seat and rested his head against the glass. His hot breath fogged up the window and he started drawing designs on it, indulging in an old childish pastime that he hadn't done in years. He fought the urge to write 'Van loves Hitomi' and grinned when he did. He absolutely refused to draw a heart around it, the smile still on his face when he remembered Merle doing things like this when she was younger. He felt his eyes drooping after a while and was jerked out of his almost asleep mind when he heard a voice being cleared. It was Nara.

Van blinked his heavy eyes and rubbed them, making Nara smile. She curtsied quickly and sat down next to him. "Your highness, I was wondering about something."

"Yes?" Van murmured drowsily. He was still rubbing his eyes and he yawned, covering his mouth.

"How did her highness hurt herself?"

Van blinked at her and gave her a fierce questioning look.

"She had to be carried up to her room. She hurt herself very badly. She—"

Van stood and towered above her. "What? How and when did this happen?! What is wrong with her?!"

Nara calmed him down by standing and laying her hand on his shoulder. "I do not know yet. Merle said that she saw her stand and fall back down. She tore one of the still mending muscles in her abdomen. She isn't going to be out of bed for days. Merle just thought that it had something to do with you, since you always seem to have her upset."

Van paled. Had he done that? He swallowed and shook his head. "I don’t think I did this. Is...is she alright? Can I go see her? Or aren't I allowed to? No, probably seeing me would make her get worse and have some sort of relapse."

Nara had the intense urge to scold him like a little boy. He had certainly looked innocent enough when he had been almost asleep leaning against the window. "Of course you can go see her! She is your wife! And you are the king, right?"

Van frowned at her. She had forbid him before to see her, and why wasn’t she now? Was she scheming something? "Thank...thank you, for telling me," Van said and walked away, back towards his room.

Upon entering his silent room, illuminated by the fire burning brightly, he got a wonderful look at his innocent wife. She was sleeping on her side towards him, her left leg drawn up and her other stretched out. She had her head pillowed on her arms and her long, wavy, luxurious hair fanned out about her face that framed her delicate beauty. He felt at peace just looking at her. He walked over as quietly as he could and smoothed back a tendril that had fallen onto her cheek. She stirred and opened her eyes. She looked scared for a second at the sight of him, and then wiped it off her face, trying to smile.

"Hitomi, you don’t have to pretend with me. If your scared, I want to know," Van said quietly. He watched her smile become more real and continued to search her face.

"Van...I want to say sorry...for what I did...to you. I shouldn’t have done that. And I kinda forced you...for I could tell that you didn’t want me to touch you. But it made me want to all the more and I—"

Van pressed his finger against her lips to stop. "I understand, Hitomi. I'm not worried about that. I'm worried about you. Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine. Is something wrong?"

Van's face darkened. "Nara told me that you hurt yourself really bad when you stood. I thought it was because of me."

Hitomi sat up some. "Oh, I did sort of hurt myself, but not bad. Nara didn’t even come in here. Maybe she made it up."

Van, although angry, sagged with relief. "I thought I really hurt you bad. Hitomi, I know I'm a jerk, but can you forgive me?"

Hitomi smiled and bent forward, brushing his lips with hers. He was hesitant for a moment and then leaned into it, pressing harder. It was Hitomi who pulled away, and Van got a disappointed look on his face. Hitomi just smiled and started caressing his face with her fingertips, learning the texture and shapes that she was so familiar with. Van closed his eyes and let her trace his facial features. He felt himself relaxing in her presence and he sighed, a small smile on his lips. He knew he should give up the hoax of trying to stay away from her, for if he thought about it, the two months that she was supposed to heal was going to come quickly. He wasn’t going to have too much time to think about it, so he should just make up his lustful mind.

Hitomi's finger whispered over the curve of his ear and went down his neck, leaving a heated trail behind. Van opened his eyes and watched her. Her face was so full of concentration that he had to grin. He took hold of her hand and put it over his heart. She looked up into his eyes when she felt how hard it was beating. She wrapped her other arm around his neck and he bent towards her, but not kissing her. He teased her lips with his and she drew in her breath, holding it. Her tongue slid out and she licked her lips, grazing his with her tongue in the process. His eyes darkened so much that she continued to outline his mouth with her tongue, unable to help it. Her tongue slipped between his lips and he opened his mouth, covering hers. He didn’t devour her mouth like he normally did, he kissed her gently. His tongue stroked hers softly, twirling and drawing on it. A yielding moan came up from her throat and Van sat back, stopping and knowing that he should. She still had her eyes closed and they drifted open a moment later, half expecting to see him gone and out of the room. But he was still sitting there, watching her. They both smiled at each other, but Hitomi's seemed more happier.

"I knew you could control yourself," Hitomi said, the grin still on her face. Van looked so surprised that she laughed.

"I have some gentlemanly qualities in me still. But most of them have disappeared since I married you."

Hitomi giggled and kissed his cheek, letting her lips linger. He pulled back and Hitomi understood why. "Don’t tempt me further, Hitomi. You know I can't control myself sometimes."

Hitomi nodded and fell back onto the bed. She wasn’t tired, but she didn’t know if she should get out of bed. Van sat next her and she laid her hand over his stomach, resting her head next to his body on the pillow. "Van, I think the twins are going to need fed soon. Maybe you should go get them."

"But I thought I was going to have you all to myself for a while. Those two eat every fifteen minutes!!"

"Actually, they haven't eaten for almost forty five minutes, so they are probably driving Merle and Allen up the wall."

Van sighed, giving up. He kissed her brow and walked out of the room to go get them, a smile on his face.

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Dilandau sat stiffly in his high-backed lord's chair as he eyed the progress of his new samurai. So far, they were pathetic. He could have killed them all with one swipe of his newly made sword, which his wife had gotten made for his birthday.

Right now, inside the castle that they had stolen from some pitiful overly rich lord, they were practicing. The hall had been completely redone and turned into more of a luxurious battlefield, for there wasn’t any dirt, sticks, rocks, trees, snow, wind, anything that could distract a warrior from his target and kill him. There was only marble, which was now indented and marked from fallen swords or other implements of battle that one would use.

His army was growing nicely, and increased everyday. Except today and yesterday.

Dilandau stroked the scar on the side of his face, his constant reminder of how much he wanted to kill Van, make him suffer and lose everything that was dear to him. His anger and power grew everyday, but it was never enough. He wanted to make sure that no one could overthrow him, no one. He knew about the pitiful attempts of Fanelia, Freid, Asturia, and the other countries of Gaea to stop him. He snorted. He couldn’t believe how ignorant they all were. Did they think that they could stop him once he activated the power of Atlantis?

He heard another high-pitched scream come from down the hall that led to the practice hall. He stiffened and tried to relax. His men stopped and looked at him blankly, wondering if he was going to let them cease this endless practice that he forced them into. He looked across the hall to see all of Seibu's Angelslayers gathered together, although their swords were drawn. He wanted to scowl at them, for they were better than half of his men, besides his own Dragonslayers. They were looking anxiously down the hall, wondering when the midwife was going to come and tell them the good news. It had been almost eighteen hours, and it wasn’t just driving them crazy, it was driving everyone crazy, but more so her husband.

He waved away his men and they dispersed, going into the other corridors that branched off the hall and to their large bunkrooms. He was sitting by himself, except for two guards standing attention next to him, and the lingering Angelslayers. He ordered them over and they went down on one knee, their hands fisted over their leather covered chests. He stood and glared at them. "Go get your guymelefs. I will give you further instructions from there."

They hesitated for a moment, but were almost grateful to leave and not hear their beloved mistress's cries of pain. The nodded and ran out of the hall, heading for the newly erected guymelef docking area.

Dilandau dismissed the Dragonslayers next to him and walked after the eight women. He got to the enormous storage chamber and saw them suiting up as quickly as they could, for their training didn’t allow anything but the best, even if it wasn’t time for a fight or war.

He stared at his new accomplishments. Bigger, better, more intimidating than any guymelef on Gaea. He wouldn’t be surprised if his own was better than Escaflowne. He glared at the women who were departing into the freezing air of outside and walked to his guymelef. He suited up quickly in his new model, one that he himself had designed. He hadn't named it after anything Folken had made, like the Alseides. They were called Stormsaiders now. The giant, black and dark silver armor plates were thicker, stronger, and looked better. Stormsaiders could fly, become invisible, use liquid metal, and shoot fire. But one of his favorite additions; acid. They could fling acid, just like fire and liquid metal, but with a much better advantage. It melted everything it touched. It liquefied anything as far as he could tell, but he hadn't tried it on everything. The acid was still experimental, but nothing had gone wrong so far.

He stalked out of the docking area and followed the women, who were standing in the barren field that surrounded the castle. All of the battle implements had been removed far deep into the bottom of the castle, which he had ordered a deep cave built under.

It had stopped snowing, but the wind was freezing. It blew hard and stung any bare or exposed skin. He was happy he was isolated inside his melef, or he would have froze. He stood next to the women, who had their own designs. His wife had insisted on it. Their guymelefs had something he had never seen on any other melef on Gaea. They were black and dark green, pretty much the same way his was made, except they had tiny little sharp blades covering the model. If touched, it would rip apart the hands of a guymelef, or tear up a sword fast, no matter how good.

He switched to flight mode and smiled at the women. Another of his accomplishments that he had made was he could be invisible during flight mode. He could see the women looking around for him and shouted, "We are going to scout out some territories that we might capture soon. We have to check them out and see what is going on!"

The women switched to flight mode and at the command of Dilandau, they went invisible. He flew to a checkpoint, at which he stopped and became visible to tell his men stationed there that he was leaving the invisible shield. The men nodded and shut it down, making everything inside become evident and clear upon breaking the spell that Seibu's sorcery had brought to life. When on, nothing from inside was visible; it looked just like a forest. But when off, everything was in danger and could be seen.

Dilandau went back to using his stealth cloak and they flew from the barrier. As soon as they all got out, the men turned it back on, and nothing inside could be seen. Dilandau had always thought it odd and wimpy, considering he thought they could take on anything, even a war upon the small castle.

He knew where they were going even before he had thought about it. The women were following behind him. He didn’t know why he brought them when he could have brought his Dragonslayers.

It took them three hours alone to get even close to their destination, and when he recognized familiar markings, he felt his blood thrum. He could almost picture the city burning again, except with fire and acid. He stopped outside the city borders and glared. How could Van have done so much to Fanelia in such a sort time?

"Damn it!!" he swore to no one. He could see so much happening all at once that his brain couldn’t take it all in. He wanted to rant and rave at everyone. How could he had overlooked Fanelia thinking that they wouldn’t be making any preparations, doing anything at all for the war?

His gaze darted back and forth to the guymelef production, where he could see a large field being crammed full of guymelefs of all kinds. He could see men operating them in the newer battlefields for it wasn’t snowing and they could practice. In the other arena's, just men practiced and fought. Battlements and fortifications were chock-full of men pacing back and forth, on watch.

Archers were favored on the walls surrounding Fanelia, and he could see major additions being added onto the walls and the borders of the booming city. Outposts and towers were being built outside the walls and more towers filled with archers, oil ready to be boiled stored inside, spears, large rocks to throw down, and other things that Van and his little queen had probably thought of that he hadn't, inside of the walls. He saw buildings just reserved for recruits and men to stay, sleep, and practice.

He stopped over the gate and the women halted behind him. "Check out the rest of Fanelia. I heard that the city is growing so much that towns are branching off and are being built at farther distances in this pathetic country."

The women flew off without saying a word and he was left alone. He felt his jaw flex in anger and jealousy. Van, I am going to kill you, he promised himself.

*******************

Van was outside on the balcony outside of his room, overlooking Fanelia. It was just starting to get dark, and the sky was starting to turn light pinks and oranges. Hitomi was inside feeding the twins while he thought and cleared his mind outside. He felt uneasy right now for some reason, and he just needed to make sure his country was alright.

He heard Hitomi grumble behind him and he looked over his shoulder, wondering what was wrong. Apparently someone had knocked on the door and disturbed their rare peace, for she was giving a burning glare to the entrance.

He walked back into the room and left the door open, letting a cool breeze waft inside. It was stifling within the room. Hitomi asked him to take Ryu who was fussing to be held, since he always did after he ate, that was if he didn’t fall asleep. She was still nursing Malaika, and he kissed his wife lightly on her lips and caressed the small head nestled at her breast fondly before he took Ryu from the crook of her arms and rubbed his back, trying to get him to burp while he answered the door.

It turned out to be Merle, who was lonely for company, considering her husband was off checking out things in Fanelia. Van let her in, bearing in mind she was a woman and not a man, and they were usually together when they fed their babies. He didn’t like the thought of even Allen in the same room as Hitomi when she was feeding the twins. I'm too possessive, he thought with a smile. Merle had Aleta cradled against her and the baby was gurgling, forcing his grin to get wider. Merle held her out for him to take and he was forced to take the burden of both of them. She gave the excuse, "Babies feel safer and more secure when they are enveloped in strong manly arms."

Van just shook his head and walked into the nursery, cutting through the bathing room. Vera, the eighteen-year-old nursery maid that had been stationed there when Van and Hitomi were too busy or just needed a break, stood from her seat by the window that led out onto another balcony. Ryu, who had fallen asleep in his arms, stirred and started fussing and wailing when shifted into the young woman's arms. Vera shushed and cooed at him, rocking in a smooth back and forth motion. He calmed and let out a tiny yawn, causing Vera to say, "Such an adorable little prince. He'll have the princesses and ladies chasing after him when he gets older."

The proud smile on Van's face when he walked back into the room with Aleta induced Hitomi to ask, "What is that grin for?"

He walked over to the bed and sat down next to her, Merle on the other side. He pressed a light kiss to her smooth cheek. "I am so proud sometimes of both you and our children that I have to smile my face off."

Hitomi blushed at the compliment; something that she realized Van was giving her more often. She had finished feeding Malaika, and had already redone her dress and buttoned it back up. Merle demanded her child and Van gave her over, almost unwilling. Hitomi laughed at the expression on his face, depicting his loss. She handed his daughter over to him and the little girl turned her face into his shirt, breathing in deeply and sighing, falling asleep slowly, but peacefully. Everyone was quiet for a while, and when Van walked back into the nursery to hand over his precious daughter to Vera, they started talking again.

"I can't wait for it to start getting warmer again. Already, the snow is starting to melt and the sun is heating this country. Fanelia receives the warmth of the sun after winter before any of the other countries on Gaea, or at least I think so. That is probably why this country is so lush and green all year round, except during winter. Fall comes and goes so fast sometimes you don’t even notice it. But you certainly know it when winter does, for it's usually harsh, but not so much as it was this year. Hopefully we won't have anymore snow," Merle said. Hitomi was shocked that she had said so much, but she didn’t say anything against this.

"What are you women talking about?" Van asked as he strode back in, getting ready to go back outside, one of his favorite places lately since the weather was just starting to warm up. Hitomi got up with Merle and they walked out with him, just to look over Fanelia and talk. That was when Van saw it.

The slight distortion in the darkening sky, a smear almost. He stared harder, trying to identify it. He could have sworn he saw it before, but he couldn’t place it. It was moving slowly, so slow that it was barely noticeable.

"Hitomi, what is that?" he asked, pointing. Her line of vision followed his finger and she strained to see what he was pointing at.

She gasped and her hand went over her heart. Her eyes went blank and she stared in front of her, seeing nothing. Van didn’t know what was wrong with her, and he waved his hand in front of her face, trying to snap her out of what he guessed was a vision. Her eyes closed and she promptly collapsed. Van caught her just before she hit the balcony floor. Merle was nearly hysterical, wringing her hands and yelling at her and him, wondering what was wrong. He hurried and carried her back into the room, placing her gently on the bed.

She was already awake by the time he set her down, and he bent down on his knees and brushed back the hair on her forehead. When she gained her bearings, she shot up in bed. "Van, that was Dilandau!! He is over Fanelia!!"

Van paled, wondering if he was planning on attacking. He jumped up and ran out of the room, shouting orders down the hall and throughout the palace. Hitomi got off the bed much to Merle's dismay and she ran over to the balcony. She could still see the blur in the sky, although it was dark out now. It was moving faster and closer to the palace. She stood still, almost imagining Dilandau staring at her. The vision she had seen hadn't been much, just Dilandau flying over Fanelia and checking out how to attack it best and find weak spots. It was just that she was so unused to them, that even a minor one like she had just gone through would make her black out.

Merle wasn’t having any trouble seeing the guymelef, in fact, she could see it better than anyone in all of Fanelia, unless there were other animal people, which there were. Especially since so many people were migrating to Fanelia. Van had been getting upset lately because the city was jammed packed, and all of the construction for the houses and buildings was done, the only thing that was being built was for the war. Because all of the housing was full and done being built, people had been going off in enormous groups and making their own villages. Already three were forming in this country. No doubt if people continued coming like they were, those villages would become towns, and towns into cities. She hadn't had a chance to see any of the growing villages, but Van and possibly Hitomi were going to go and check them out tomorrow. He needed to make sure that everything was alright and what was really going on. If there were growing villages, he had to elect village elders to run the town for smaller things, or when he wasn’t needed. He really didn’t need this to happen to him now, he was too worried about the possible upcoming war.

Merle sighed and watched the thing start to move away from the center of the city. She hoped Allen was alright.

Hitomi watched men file in out of buildings in masses, especially the palace. She hoped nothing bad would happen. She especially hoped that Van wasn’t going to use Escaflowne.

At that precise moment, Van was thinking about it, particularly if Dilandau didn’t leave when he got to Escaflowne's shrine. When he got there, he cursed, remembering how he had deactivated Escaflowne when the Great War had ended, and had kept him that way. Escaflowne had started the war, and could possibly start another one. He just didn’t know if Dilandau had been lying to him when he had said he had only needed the pendant. Was he planning on capturing it now? Was that why he was here?

He twisted around when he heard shouting, and couldn’t find the source. He looked to his right to see Hitomi, her gown ripped off from above her knees running towards him, waving her arms wildly. He started towards her and she ran into his arms, nearly knocking him down. He held her tightly for a moment, then pushed her away, swiping the hair back from her forehead that had been in her eyes. "Hitomi?! What's wrong?!"

Her death grip on his arms loosened and she fell against him, sagging and gasping for air. "I...am...out of...shape," she gulped. When she regained some of her air, she said, "There are guymelefs of unknown origin scouting the villages being built, Van! Allen just came racing back from one, and the guymelefs aren't even trying to hide themselves!! He doesn’t know if they plan to attack, but he said they were the most wicked looking melef's he had ever seen. He didn’t give me a description, just pretty much ordered me, the queen of Fanelia to go find you as fast as I could."

Van smiled at her and kissed her lips before thanking her and running back off to the palace. A man stopped him and gave him a horse, which Van mounted quickly and took off again.

Hitomi stood there, still trying to breathe right. She was really out of shape. Now that she wasn’t pregnant anymore, she could start running and practicing again. She would start tomorrow, that was if nothing happened today. She would get up before the sun rose, and she would stretch and run for a good three hours before she stopped herself. She didn’t want to get fat, which, although she had given birth, she hardly doubted would happen.

She started walking back to the palace, seeing the raid of people starting to calm, for Dilandau had apparently left for places unknown. No one offered her a horse, but offered her congratulations on the new prince and princess. She smiled and thanked them back as they bowed, nodded, or curtsied to her. The compliments and praise were getting old by the time she got back. She almost kissed the marble floor in the hall for thanks that she was back in non-compliment giving areas. Everyone in the palace had already done that.

She smiled when she saw a herd of men, Van's generals, Van himself, and Allen, walking around and talking, all waving their arms and yelling. She walked over to them, and they were immediately all silent, the generals bowing their heads in respect and shame that they had been arguing in front of the queen. Hitomi didn’t particularly care or understand why they were ashamed, but she saw the pleading look Van gave her, begging her to take him away.

She glared at the men and walked over to Van, wrapping her arm around his waist and dragging him away. The men kept their heads down until they were gone, since they weren't supposed to watch royal affection, why it simply was unheard of to watch it. It just wasn’t done.

Allen sneered at them all, they were pathetic. The generals had been suggesting an all out full scale attack on one single guymelef that could hardly be seen, and then send the whole army to the small villages, meanwhile leaving Fanelia, the capital, unguarded and all by herself. He walked away, wanting to beat on them all, and relishing the idea when he would have his chance, when the weather started getting even warmer.

******************* 

A new day, Hitomi sighed and tied her sneaker shoelace tight. She walked out of their room and down the halls, telling the guards where she was going. Their eyes nearly bugged out of their heads when they saw the queen in a pair of very short shorts, and a white, odd looking T-shirt, and some weird shoes. The king was still sleeping, exhausted from doing so much planning and arguing with his generals. They had been up late into the night, possibly into the early morning.

Hitomi strode out of the palace, to the gardens, which were just starting to get toiled. The snow, which had been almost a foot yesterday, had completely melted, and the sun wasn’t even up yet. It was five o'clock in the morning, her favorite time to run, when the air was even fresher, and wasn’t dry, it was moist with the morning dew.

She started stretching, pulling, rolling, tugging, whatever to get loosened up. No one was awake, and everything was quiet, except for an occasional noise from an animal or bird. She walked past the garden, exiting the high stone walls that had just been recently built around it, for even more protection. Considering the garden was huge, the palace was looking rather small by the time she exited and left the garden through a secret hidden door that only palace residents knew about.

She stared at the forest in front of her. It looked surprisingly sunny, not gloomy, although the sun hadn't come up yet. She headed into it, still stretching. She quickened her pace to a fast walk, getting her muscles prepared for an assault. When she came to the end of the small forest, she came to the cliff, where a rocky strewn path was. She started climbing it with ease, which she thought was odd.

When she got to the top, she smiled. It was the field and the ocean that she had first used her wings. She felt a longing to use them again, but she had to practice first.

She scanned the area, checking for danger. Nothing appeared out of place. The only snow she could see was along the tree line, which led into a much bigger forest. Along the coast it was completely gone.

She stretched a little bit more before she dug her foot into the dirt and got set to go. She rolled her neck and ankles quickly before she yelled, "Go!!"

She started off not as fast as she could run, but got faster and faster until she got to her "out of shape" top speed. The line of trees still looked far away, but they were approaching fast.

When she got closer to them, about one hundred yards, she stopped, remembering the arrows that had come flying out of the trees like bats out of hell. She turned back and started running again, doing funny little twists in the air to make herself laugh.

Van cocked open one eye at the beam of light coming into his room through the pulled shut curtains. He grumbled and rolled over to Hitomi's side of the bed, planning on taking her up into his arms and burying his face in some place on her body to hide the annoying light. He found an empty space, long gone cold. He shot up and jumped out of bed, throwing on his pants and ripping open his double doors. The guards jumped and he ordered to know where she was at. He was scared shitless that something had happened to her, or that someone had taken her.

"Your highness, do not fret so. The queen left for the grass field on the cliffs, I think she said she was running," a samurai said and nodded to his rumpled looking highness. Van's shoulders slumped with relief, and he sighed, rubbing his hand over his face as he went back into his room and closed the door. He collapsed onto the bed and curled up under the blankets, hugging his wife's pillow.

Try as he might, he couldn’t go back to sleep. His hackles were still raised from the panic, and he couldn’t get the thought that she might be in danger out of his mind.

He sat up in bed and prepared himself to leave the palace and find her.

******************* 

Hitomi stopped after the three hours were up, and the sun had rose. She loved the feel of the warming sun on her skin, and she closed her eyes, letting the heat rays flow over her.

She hadn't realized she had even done it until she opened her eyes and saw feathers floating in the air. She grinned at herself and folded back her wings, still just standing there and soaking up the sun.

She suddenly felt the urge to hurl herself over the cliff, and she started running towards the steep edge, flinging herself over and spreading her wingspan, soaring high up into the air. She couldn’t believe that she was flying, something that she herself never thought she could do on her own.

She flew down low, flying right above the dark blue choppy waters of the ocean. Her fingertips grazed the freezing water and she laughed, gliding back up, higher and higher. The warm air blew through her long hair and she turned around in graceful circles, laughing and grinning her face off at the glorious feeling she was enjoying.

Van stepped up to the edge of the cliff to see his wife sailing through the air, using her lustrous white wings that he was completely taken by awe at. She was just so beautiful, and she looked free. He smiled easily when he noticed she saw him. She came over to him, touching down lightly and gracefully on the grass. Without further encouragement, Van closed his eyes and his wings broke free from his back. They wrapped each other in their arms and wings, hidden in their own private white world.

Hitomi took his hand and they both jumped up into the air, climbing up high into the clouds. Van had one of the most loving smiles she had ever seen before on his face, and she held onto his hand tighter as they flew away from Fanelia, flew away from Gaea and their problems, soaring into the welcoming light.