Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Return to the Mystic Moon ❯ Chapter 1 ( Chapter 1 )

Well here's a new story from me. Most people who read my stuff on Fanfiction.net are probably grinding their teeth, thinking, “What is she doing?!” Well calm down. I would update SilentwingsVF except FF.net booted the story. I'm still not entirely sure why. Anyway, please enjoy this chapter and any that may follow. Thanks for reading!

 

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, the characters or even the room I live in… Boo dorm living!

 

 

 

“Congratulations Hitomi!” her mother cried, hugging her daughter as she stood in her cap and gown. “I'm so proud of you dear.” Hitomi flashed her mother a grin followed by a laugh as her brother tackled her around the middle, giggling his congratulations as well. She was happy to finally be done with school too. Probably much more than her mother and brother were. She hugged her brother back as she contemplated what her graduation entailed. Now she could go off into the world and… `What am I going to do?' he thought sullenly. Yukari pounced on her, not giving her a chance to dwell on her thoughts for the moment. Hitomi tried to smile at her friends as Yukari's boyfriend and now fiancé Amano swung the red-haired girl off her and into his arms. She was jealous of their happiness but not the fact that they were together. She didn't love Amano anymore, gladly encouraging Yukari to pursue a relationship with Amano before he left the country as he had planned to do before. The handsome track runner had changed his mind almost at the last minute and decided to finish school in Japan before going anywhere else. Hitomi was happy that she had given up on Amano and returned to Van that night in the stadium years ago.

Van. A sad smile settled on her features as the name grabbed a firm hold on her heart. So many times in the last few years she had been tempted to go back to Gaea. Tempted to give up school, the track team, her family, her life here on Earth just to be with him. But she couldn't. Before leaving Van she had given him her grandmother's pendant so that he would remember her and so now it was up to him when he came to get her. `If he ever decides to in the first place that is.' Hitomi's biggest fear had been, since the moment she left his sight, that the young king of Fanelia would forget about her completely and never even bother coming to Earth to see her let alone come to bring her back to Gaea with him.

She tried to shake off her melancholy thoughts but something about this day made Van's absence all that much harder to deal with. Hitomi wished that he'd been there to share this milestone with her like she'd been able to see him crowned king of all Fanelia, see him lead the army in the Great War and help him to bury his brother. All of which were momentous occasions in the young king's life, though each tragic in their own way. Her green eyes were sad a moment but she pulled herself out of her pensive mood to be happy. `Van wouldn't want me to be depressed,' she resolved. If she thought of him today then at least he was there with her in some small way. Hitomi allowed her friends and brother to surround her as her mother gave her camera to another parent and scuttled over to be in the picture as well. They all smiled and laughed after the picture was taken though Hitomi knew her own laughter was as false as the smile in the snapshot had been.

An unruly dark head caught her attention and for a moment she thought all her dreams were coming true. The young man was the right height and build to be Van. He turned and Hitomi slumped. It wasn't him at all. The boy's face was all wrong and his eyes were a light brown while Van's had always been the most captivating shade of dark brown and red swirled to match his brooding personality. `Stop it.' Hitomi scolded herself for hoping and turned her attention back to Yukari who was chattering amicably with her mother as well as Hitomi's. Throwing herself into the conversation wholeheartedly to keep her mind off her other concerns Hitomi missed the pair of deep brown eyes with a smidgeon of crimson in them smiling from beneath unkempt raven bangs as their owner slipped between the graduating class and their families.

Hitomi felt like she was being watched but decided it was probably her brother who had a rather obnoxious staring problem and instead listened intently to Yukari. “Come on you guys, let's all go get a soda to celebrate!” Hitomi laughed at her best friend's exuberant cry. She nodded at her friend as she, Amano and their families began to follow the bouncy redheaded girl until a voice caught their attention.

“Mind if I joined you all as well?” Hitomi froze, unable to believe her ears. The voice was painfully familiar though slightly deeper than she remembered it. She wouldn't turn around, even with the astonished look her family and friends were giving to whoever had spoken. She was terrified to turn and find that what she had heard had been entirely her imagination, the concoction of an overactive fantasy world that she had been creating. Slowly, as if giving herself time to wake up from her dream, Hitomi turned and found herself face to face with none other than Van Fanel. Her hand flew to her mouth as a small gasp of surprise left her. “You look awfully surprised to see me Hitomi Kanzaki of the Mystic Moon,” Van said with a small smirk. His smug look was gone as soon as the wind was knocked out of him, Hitomi flying into his arms and surprising him. He chuckled softly, holding her close while tucking his tan, slightly stubbly cheek next to her pale smooth one.

Hitomi had recognized him instantly despite his much more mature appearance. He was more muscular now, his shoulders broader and his face had a more masculine line to it. He still had his proud chin and his eyes still made her want to melt along with that wild dark hair of his. “Van!” Hitomi could say nothing more than that as he continued to hold her in his strong embrace. She suddenly felt so at home, so at peace, that she began to cry. He pulled away to look into her face, his dark eyes questioning her tears. “I didn't think you'd… I'm so happy that…” She laughed softly at her own inability to complete a thought and hugged him again. Van smiled sheepishly at her obviously confused friends and family as he gently pulled the blonde girl from around his waist. He kept one hand on the small of her back as she turned to face her family.

“Hitomi?” Yukari questioned.

With a laugh Hitomi began to introduce Van to everyone, unable to contain her excitement. Fanelia's king bowed deeply to Hitomi's mother, praising her daughter openly for helping him save his entire planet from destruction. Yukari's parents were the only ones who seemed truly confused, for obvious reasons. Yukari and Amano vaguely remembered Van to be the boy who had whisked Hitomi away on his dragon and greeted him semi-neutrally. Yukari seemed peeved about something and Amano had instantly reacted to it, making him much quieter than normal. Hitomi was far too wrapped up in seeing Van again to even think about them.

The entire group ended up at the local malt shop, laughing and generally enjoying themselves. But none glowed with happiness as brightly as Hitomi. She didn't know if Van had just come to tell her goodbye forever but at the moment, all that mattered was feeling his warmth by her side and knowing that he was really there. He seemed to be equally happy to see her and it made her heart swell with giddy pleasure. She felt herself touching his arm lightly every few moments to make sure he was still there then flushed in embarrassment when she realized it might be annoying him. He only smiled gently at her which made her heart flutter even more than before.

“Hitomi,” Van whispered in her ear when it seemed like everyone was enthralled with Yukari and Amano's plans to move to England where his father and now Amano himself were working. They were getting married here in Japan and then leaving the country at the end of the month, probably never to return except for visits few and far between. Hitomi turned deep green eyes to him and he felt his breath catch. She was so beautiful. Even more so than when he'd last seen her. “Might I speak with you alone?” She only nodded, equally caught up in the moment. With a smile Van raised them both from the bench they sat on, leading her out onto the sidewalk. He was nervous for a moment, unsure of where to go to have a relatively private moment with Hitomi. Luckily a park lay across the street and down the way a bit. It would have to do. Van allowed Hitomi to lead him there since he didn't understand the lights that allowed or didn't allow people to cross the busy traffic. He was trying to ignore the nervous energy flooding his system but was having a hard time keeping his jitters at a minimum.

Once within the somewhat calmer atmosphere of the park Van allowed himself to relax a bit. There was less noise here and he felt like he could breathe easier. Hitomi sat quietly in the grass, idly pulling the blades between her fingers. Van could feel that she was nervous and for a moment he wondered why. He slid to the ground next to her and took a deep breath to settle his own nerves since he knew exactly why he was anxious. “I'm really glad you're here Van.” He smiled, glancing at the girl next to him out of the corner of his eye.

“Did you not think I would come?” he asked her, obviously confused.

“Well I was beginning to wonder. Either way, I'm still glad you came.”

“As am I. You finished your studies for good today, did you not?” Hitomi nodded silently. “What do you intend to do now?” Hitomi laughed quietly.

“I've been asking myself the same question. I don't really have a profession in mind and I can't be a professional fortune teller or anything stupid like that.” She looked up at the trees, smiling at the way the leaves danced in the breeze and the sunlight filtered through them to make them glow. Falling back she rested her head on her hands and watched the clouds drift through an opening in the trees.

Van nodded solemnly to himself and opened his mouth to say something a few times but seemed to decide that none of them were what he wanted to say. Eventually he lay back in the grass as well, a heavy sigh leaving his lungs. “You are not engaged to be married like your friends?” he finally asked. Hitomi's heart gave a small jump and she turned her head to look at the raven-haired young man who lay beside her. He wouldn't look at her and she could see how tense he was by the shallowness of his breathing.

“No. I… I never forgot about you Van. Just like I promised,” she admitted in a voice no louder than a whisper. He nodded to let her know he'd heard, still not looking at her. “Are you married now?” Hitomi asked the question but quickly realized that she almost didn't want to know the answer. She had always assumed that Van would forget her quickly and marry some princess, no matter that they had professed feelings of affection to each other before she left Gaea. It would have made much more sense than marrying a scrawny little seer from the supposedly cursed Mystic Moon. Not that she was anywhere near as scrawny as she'd been all those years ago. She had filled out nicely if she did say so herself.

Van gave a soft laugh while rolling onto his side to look Hitomi in the eye for the first time since they'd arrived at the park. “Me? Of course not.” His eyes met hers and he begged her to understand his line of questioning. She had always understood him better than anyone else. Her eyes softened dramatically and a blush formed on her cheeks. Van brushed his knuckles down the side of her face, reveling in the feel of her soft skin against his much rougher fingers. “Hitomi,” he sighed. She smiled shyly up at him, closing her eyes as his hand traveled down her neck, along the length of her arm to clasp her small hand in his own. He could tell now that the nervousness he'd sensed in her before was really the giddy excitement he felt himself. “If I asked you…”

“Yes,” she breathed without opening her eyes. Van smirked.

“You don't even know what I'm going to ask you yet.” Hitomi flushed slightly, hoping she was right in what she thought he was asking her. They'd been through this type of situation once before when Van was preparing for the war and he'd told her he wanted her. Hitomi frowned at the memory. She'd been so angry at him for making her believe he wanted her for herself only to tell her he needed her power. After that had been the fiasco with Allen on the bridge. She regretted not stopping Van before he ran off but she felt she had been able to make it up to him at least a little afterwards. He had come to save her from the Zaibach capital after all. Van squeezed her hand, more because he was twitching with nervousness than to actually gain her attention but it had the same effect. “I don't want you to answer right away because you have the right to tell me no. Hitomi… Would you come back to Gaea with me? Be… with me?”

It was obvious to Hitomi that this question had been both difficult for Van to ask as well as it meant a great deal to him what her answer was. “I know you want me to think about it, and I have, since before I left Gaea,” Hitomi responded honestly. “I don't think anything could happen that would make me say no Van.” Van's deep brown and red eyes grew wide and his gaze snapped to her face. Hitomi could see the shadow of an incredulous smile on his lips. She pulled her hand from his to reach up and ruffle his bangs from his eyes. His face relaxed into a gentle grin before Hitomi was pulled tightly against his chest. She didn't know what to do other than try to hold him in return.

The Fanelian king was speechless. Even with all they'd been through, with all the pain and fear, the lengthy separation, the perceived betrayal and uncertainty… `She said yes.' Van held her as close to his heart as physical bounds would allow, burying his nose in her soft hair. He heard her giggle softly and felt himself smile. He felt at home here with Hitomi's arms wrapped tightly around him. He pulled away slightly, looking down into Hitomi's bright green eyes, which smiled up at him from the depths of her soul. His hand pressed to her cheek, raising her face to his own. A small smile played at his mouth and his nose brushed hers tenderly. He saw Hitomi lick her lips expectantly and took that as a sign to continue. “Hitomi!” a female voice cried. “Mr. Van?” The young king growled low in his throat but slowly untangled himself from his love's arms, standing up. He helped Hitomi to her feet and the two of them turned to see who could possibly have audacity to bother them.

Hitomi knew exactly who it was but she couldn't think of why. Granted they had wandered off without telling anyone where they were going but it wasn't like they had been gone all that long. Yukari came around a bend in the path and found two faintly frustrated individuals who would have wished her away could they have done so. “Yukari, we're over here,” Hitomi shouted tiredly. She had been tempted to pretend they weren't there and pull Van somewhere to hide but had refrained in lieu of the fact that Yukari wouldn't be likely to give up so easily. “What could she possibly want?” she muttered under her breath. Hitomi glanced up at Van when she heard him chuckle. His eyes sparkled and he placed his hand on the small of her back once more.

“There you two are. Your mother was worried Hitomi,” Yukari stated with a small frown at the pair's appearance. They both had grass in their hair and on their clothes. Hitomi looked particularly flushed and Van's hand lay possessively against Hitomi's back. The redheaded girl kept her frown from deepening and smiled almost sullenly at the two. “Come on then. It's time to head home.” Hitomi frowned at the tone of Yukari's voice but shrugged and ignored it for now. The pair trailed after Hitomi's friend and out of the park. Van was once again assaulted by the hustle and bustle of Hitomi's world. Hitomi wrapped an arm around Van's waist to support him, noticing his bewilderment. A grateful smile was shot in her direction and the two continued on their way back to the malt shop to meet up with Hitomi's friends and family.

 

 

 

 

Well that's the first chapter. Thanks again for reading, provided you did, and please review. It helps me make myself a better writer.