Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Reflections Of The Heart ❯ 3.5/ Machine Soldier ( Chapter 4 )

The Ambassador Diaries

<Aka "Celena's Journal: KEEP OUT! That means YOU, Allen!!>

*..Ok, so I really couldn't resist putting that in there... But oh well ^_^ As promised, here is the mini-chapter containing info on the boyz bgs. I'm sorry it's taken so long to get even this little thing out, but I'm afraid that at the last minute, my Japanese teacher told us that our midterm test was today, and not Oct 30 as planned >.< Suffice to say, I've been cramming. I don't think I did well, and then it struck me that now would be a great time to do some writing to sooth my nerves somewhat. So, if this is jumbled, weird, cranky or out of the ordinary *which is normal for me, right?* please forgive me. I'll edit it if people want me to, but since it's all pretty clear cut, I don't think I'll need to... And for those of you who've been trudging through my fics w/ trouble, I'm going to try shortening paragraphs for y'all, k? Lemme know how it worked!! *

Dear Diary, I haven't been able to write for some time in you, and for that I am sorry! Things have been a little crazy here as of late, but not in a bad sense. I mean, being ambassador and everything would be trying enough for anyone, but when I think about the morons who are my peers... well, let's just say that if they were to drop dead all of the sudden, no one would be sorry- except for Folken maybe, because then he'd have to explain how all seven of his advisors suddenly had heart attacks and keeled over. We'd be able to work it out though, but I don't think Folken would *really* let Dilandau kill them all... I don't think. I wouldn't blame him, but that's not the sort of thing he'd do, you know? He's too level headed and rational; unlike me, I'd probably have gone through at least twenty of them by now. But no one ever said I was patient.

Speaking of being impatient, Dilandau has *deigned* to speak with me, though it was still fairly heated with anger-I don't know what he thinks I did to our correspondence, but apparently Jajuka told him I did write letters, and that I was upset when I received no word from him. Unfortunately, I think Jajuka also told him how I called him all kinds of things when he'd blocked my call for the umpteenth time. Dilandau, that is, not Jajuka. But when he came to 'escort' me to my rooms, he apologized for being an asshole. Actually, he didn't say it *quite* like that, but he said that he was wrong to jump to conclusions, and as much as he'd like to sit up the night with me chatting away, he and the men had to get some sleep. Then he promptly kicked me out of the boys' common room so they could go to bed. When he dropped me off at my door, we passed fairly pleasant goodnights, then we parted. I don't think he's heard about tomorrow's little match, but as far as I'm concerned, the less he knows, the better for all involved.

Which brings me to why I'm really writing this in the first place!! After dinner and that nasty little run-in with Refina, I caught Ryuuon and Eric on their way back to the dorms, so we headed in that direction together. When we got there, everyone swarmed me- I don't think I've been hugged by so many boys at once in my life. Even some of the more reserved boys, like Guimel and Viole, came over and gave me a hearty squeeze. Allen would probably have had a fit resulting in a nosebleed. Hah!

When they'd said their hellos and settled down, we all chatted about how things had been going, and what they'd been up to. They all had their variations of the same story: they'd gone home, visited family and friends, then had come back to intense training under Dilandau's even more demanding drills. However, it would be cruel to say I didn't enjoy hearing their stories, because I did- immensely so. It let me see a side of them Dilandau had never really bothered looking into. But enough of my blabbering; here's a brief account of what they all said, as well as a quick explanation of their pasts.

Chesta, the first one I'd been able to talk to upon my landing (as well as the one who talked the longest with the most detail), had returned to his parent's mansion to go let them know that he'd been revived. He's the son of a fairly prestigious family of merchants, originally from Asturia, then moved to seek a better market in Zaibach's capital. Chesta had been sent to a military school by his father to "toughen up", however, Chesta didn't seem to think it as a punishment. True, he's a marshmallow, but in tough situations, he can be as fierce as any of the Slayers. Anyways, he went home, and apparently the maid- who'd been in the family for years- fainted dead away when she opened the door.

"She just kinda looked at me, then she got really pale and then fell over. I was afraid she'd had a stroke and died on such a shock, but she was breathing and recovered later on. Though every time she looked at me, she'd get this really tremulous smile on her face, then she'd burst into tears and try to hug me again. Mother and Father said she'd really been hit hard when I... well, you know."

Chesta was attempting to revive his old nurse-maid when his little sister Clara had come bouncing down the stairs to see what the commotion was. She'd shouted that Chesta was home, and then promptly latched herself onto her older brother. His parents had been in the sitting room, facing the fire, and didn't even look up when he walked in. His father had painfully said something along the lines of 'dearest, Chesta won't be coming back...', his mother bowing her head. Chesta cleared his throat, and they both looked up. His mother burst into tears and threw herself at her son, his father was white, but obviously overjoyed to see his firstborn alive and well.

They'd thrown a party to celebrate >after making sure that their maid was, in fact, alright<, and Clara had drawn him all sorts of pictures and wanted to know if he'd stay forever. But, he only had a week, so when it was time for him to return, there had been may tearful goodbyes, as well as promises to visit and letters. Chesta had said that he'd never felt so proud to know that he'd been fighting to protect them, and that his efforts had not been in vain.

Viole, however, had had less of a welcoming than some of the others. He arrived on his parent's surburban doorstep to find his older brother had died in battle, and that his mother, upon hearing of a second son lost to the war, had killed herself by throwing herself off of a bridge. His father had taken up drinking, and his only other family was his sister, who was being forced into a marriage she did not want. Viole's less than loving welcome by his father made him take up Chesta's offer of a place to stay. His sister refused to let him out of her sight, however, and they remained the rest of the week with Chesta, enjoying the family's hospitality and good humor. When it was time for the two to leave, his sister refused to be separated from him. She'd even gone so far as to following them to meet Dilandau, and berate him for stealing away the only good thing in her life. Dilandau had merely looked at her and told her to deal with it.

A black eye, wounded pride, and bloody nose later, Dilandau told Refina that the girl who had managed to give her a shiner was the material that they needed for their Nagasake no Hikari group. And so, the two siblings were kept together, and Valice >that's her name, I haven't met her yet though< was promoted from engaged middle class lady to elite female fighting group. And apparently, she and Refina hate each other- I think once we meet we'll become good friends.

Biore, who had grown up in the society of the Ispanos, was not able to get in contact with his adoptive parents, and so, had stayed with Dalet in his parent's estate. I had never understood how the boy had come to have such amazing skill with our technical equipment, but once I'd heard his past, it was no surprise that he was a genius with everything technical! He merely shrugged, saying he'd been able to phone his guardians, who had promptly sent him letters and care-packages with the promises of seeing him soon. "But Dalet and I were too busy living it up to really make it bother me. I mean, I saw them later, so I wasn't unhappy or anything. We had fun, didn't we Dalet?"

Dalet had nodded his agreement, though he'd looked a little nervous when he went into his own story. Apparently, he'd grown up not far from my own family's estate, and he'd snuck off the mansion grounds while they'd still been staying with us. And, upon his return to his family's estate with his friend Biore, he found something he hadn't really anticipated waiting for him: a fiancé. His parents had arranged a marriage for him, and "while she was pretty enough, there wasn't much else to her. What the fun of flirting if there's no challenge and there's nothing upstairs? I told them I'd taken a vow of bachelorism that was required by Lord Dilandau, and that I had to stick to it. They said they'd be able to pull some strings, but I convinced them that there was no chance-"

"He told them he already had a girlfriend, and that she was fairly wealthy and that he wanted to stay single so he could try his luck with her. You wouldn't believe who's name he threw in, Celena."

Dalet was blushing hard by this time, glaring at Biore who smirked triumphantly. I could guess who's name had been used, and Dalet seemed lost for a moment.

"I didn't know what else to do!! I'm sorry, Lady Celena..." He then brightened, an odd smile on his face. "But there are plenty of pretty, rich ladies out there- heck, some of the hiki's are good looking!! -No offense or anything, Aaron, Viole."

Aerin, Aaron's younger twin sister, had been put into the "hiki's" shortly upon their return from their leave. They'd come home to find it still being rebuilt from the attacks that they themselves had participated in. Their family welcomed them home, however, and much was forgiven- though not, Aaron said morosely, forgotten. They had asked Dilandau if they could remain outside of the Fanelian city as the attack had commenced, but Dilandau had refused, and instead put them in the attack squadron that was to appear from behind the castle. I flinched at the memory, but Aaron reassured me that all was well. They had made their amends with family, and people were getting back to their ordinary lives. They even had a queen now, with a prince or princess on the way. So, while people were of mixed feelings towards the two, their parents said they had not regretted sending them off to Zaibachan school, though if they were ever in danger again, they demanded the two return home at once.

As for Ryuuon, his family >also on the outskirts of Fanelia, closer to Freid than the twins though< had been unharmed, though they'd lent a hand in the reconstruction of the capital. I was beginning to wonder why they were all from different places on Gaea, but remembered that Dilandau had gone around picking the best of the best, and that some of them *had* been from remote places like Ryuuon's village. Though how on earth the boy was discovered in the first place still remains a mystery to us both... Anyways, Ryuuon ended up going on a dragon hunt with his father and brothers- some sort of tradition, which made sense, considering how close they were to the nesting sites. So, in a sense, his family had a party too. It seems like the boys did nothing but party when they went home.

Shoji, a peasant-born Zaibachan, went home to find two new members of the family- a little boy, and an infant girl. His parents rejoiced in seeing him, and, though they didn't have much to spare, offered to keep Migel and Gatti as well. However, the two declined the offer, saying they had friends in the city they were staying with. Shoji returned to the palace, and was able to find work for both of his parents; his mother was the one who had set up my room, in fact, and his father was helping in the reconstruction of many of the public buildings around the city. So, Shoji promised he'd introduce me to his mother one day, and his father and two siblings if I had the time. I'd love to meet them, though by the time I meet everyone's families, I'll have been found out by Allen and sent back.... maybe. He's probably not even noticed that I've gone. So much for the over-protective brother act- not that I'm complaining. ^_^

So, you know how I'd once thought Gatti and Migel were brothers? Well, apparently, they pretty much are. They were both orphaned when they were young, and they grew up in the same orphanage together. And- get this- when old enough, they turned to the black market to earn their keep. So much for moral superiority, Gatti-my-dear. In this, 'ahem', career, they made many contacts with people of the 'underground' and places that Allen would never in a million years even mention in my presence. So, the two shared a small room above a busy inn, doing their business, until Migel was hired out by the government to do some undercover work. Migel was eventually invited to join the elite Dragonslayers, while Gatti continued on. However, when the latter got bored without his partner in crime always about, he came and tried to enlist in the group. Dilandau lost one of his slayers that day, but ended up with a better soldier in the end. So, the two might be opposite character-wise >Migel, the cocky ladies' man, and Gatti, the refined gentleman<, but they are part of the reason that Zaibach's crime-rate plummeted after they were assigned to root out problems. Gatti and Migel: crimefighters and minions of Dilandau. The boys all seem to have very interesting backgrounds, don't you think?

Maveric tried making his story a love story- though knowing him, who's surprised? After several tries to get the truth out of him, Guimel finally nudged him and said there wasn't anything to be ashamed of- considering we'd heard Gatti and Migel's story. The flirt finally broke then, and told us how he grew up all over the place in- this is a 'big surprise'- a band of musicians. He admitted to knowing how to break locks, but he refused to admit to ever doing it- more that a couple of times. I have a feeling that if we heard all the times he's done something illegal, he'd make the other two blush in shame. Anyways, he found his family in Freid, and ended up helping them put on a few shows while he was there. He refused to dance for us though, even when Guimel offered to play on his flute. He grudgingly admitted to having a girl back home too. A girl he was serious about- or as serious as he could get. He then apologized profusely to me, saying he was sorry he wasn't up for grabs, but that he'd be there if I needed him. He then sauntered over to where Talin sat, and tried to get the quiet boy to say where he'd gone for his leave.

Talin is one of the quieter boys in the whole group- he even makes Guimel look talkative! He mumbled something, but the boys wouldn't stand for that, and made him speak up. He'd gone to stay with his aunt, he said, since his father had died in battle. There had been rumors about who Talin's father was, but most thought it was too personal to ask, and so did not <though they really, really wanted to>. Talin simply shrugged and said he was glad that his father had died, because he had been a cruel and unfair general. No one pressed him for anything more, but he squared his shoulders and said that he was the son of General Adolfus and a Zaibachan peasant woman. He'd loved his mother, but hated his father with a passion because he had used his mother. In fact, the only reason he'd joined the army was so that one day he'd be able to kill his father, but Fate had intervened, and he hadn't been able to do it.

Everyone kind of stared at him for a minute, which made him laugh. "Well, we're all giving out blackmail material, so I thought I'd put in my two cents. No one liked him, so it doesn't matter, right? I just got really lucky in that I was put under Lord Dilandau and not Adolphus, because I think I would've done something rash. Besides, I like being a soldier- for the most part." Never say you know a guy.....

I think Guimel's story has got to be one of the funniest though. You know how we all said he probably grew up with sheep, hence his hair? Well... he did. His family lives towards the southern border of Zaibach- close to the front, in fact, probably only a few days ride from Cyriell. But that's not the funniest thing. He got home, and his younger brother was out in the fields with the sheep. He said that his brother took one look at him, shook his head, and promptly ignored him. He tried talking to the boy, but the child wouldn't raise his head. Frustrated, our slayer went down to his house, where his mother was baking in the kitchen. Once again, he greeted his relative, but was ignored. He went the day tracking down all eight people of his household, just to have the same reaction- a start, then complete disregard. When they all sat down to dinner, he stood there, rather frustrated and not in the best of moods- can you imagine gentle Guimel in a temper? I can't!

He said that to get their attention, he had to pick several things from the table and drop them with loud noises before they all finally looked up at him.

"I was bright red by that time. And to top it all off, they looked scared- Scared! Of me!! My little sister asked my mother why they were ignoring me, and Ma said it was because it was bad luck to greet a ghost. My little brother came over to me and tugged at my clothes, and said I felt real enough. It took me almost the whole night to convince them I wasn't dead and come back to haunt them. I could've screamed, it was so stupid! I don't think they really even believed me when I said I was alive again until I cut myself accidentally on a knife and I started bleeding."

After things were cleared up, they- you guessed it- threw a party. I think that Guimel' s story, though humorous, has got to be one of the queerest things I've ever heard. I supposed you get superstitious like that when you live out in the middle of nowhere though. And with sheep as your only means of entertainment... Well, now I understand why he was so wide-eyed the first time he went through the city with the others.

So, there you have it- the quirky, bizarre, and downright funny stories of the boys. I can't believe Dilandau never really got to know them- despite the fact that they spent years together in the same bunker before becoming an elite group. Oh well, his loss.

Look, I'd love to write more, but I'm afraid It's rather late as it is and I've got that skirmish in the morning... I really hope I know what I'm doing. And I hope even more that Dilandau doesn't find out. Goodnight- Celena S.

*and there you have it- the boyz history in a nutshell. Exciting, ne? Lemme know what you all think, it might take me longer to get the next ch out because I've got two essays and a midterm to study for. Bleh, school >.< Anyways, Please review- you know you want to ^_^ 10-23-02*