Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ When Escaflowne Rescued Trilladen ❯ Hitomi's Good Day ( Chapter 4 )

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

CHAPTER FOUR
********
HITOMI'S GOOD DAY
*********
Hitomi was sitting next to Yukari on the bus. Today was the field trip to the Shinto Shrine in Tokyo. She was lost in her own world as Yukari and Amano who was sitting across from the girls were flirting with each other. The first eighteen months after she had returned from Gaea had been bearable because she always felt Van was near her in spirit. She would always 'talk' to him through her thoughts and he was always there. Once, when she was being harassed by a boy at school and was scared and annoyed, it was through Van's prompting that she got out of the mess.
But lately she felt utterly alone. The link that had sustained her in the past was broken or gone. She worried that Van didn't love her anymore, and tried to scoff at her insecurity. The ache in her heart was immense, and as the months passed by she settled into a depression which left her too thin and very tired. Yukari tried to help her snap out of it, but Hitomi silently cried herself to sleep each night after trying to communicate with Van and failing yet again.
The bus rolled to a stop and the kids were starting to shuffle out of it when Yukari spoke up.
"We're here! I can't wait to see this place. Last year's students said it was spooky! Come on, Hitomi! Today is going to be the best day you've had in ages!" Yukari took her by the arm and strolled with Hitomi, chumming it up trying to bring a smile to Hitomi. Amano grabbed her other arm as if to say "We are the three Musketeers!"
As the three followed the line of students filing past the information center and into the Grotto, a reverent monk bowed to the students to begin the tour. Yukari and Amano soon realized how bored they were going to be. Hitomi didn't even pay attention. Her heart was broken by all counts. She just wanted to be alone and enjoy solace at the shrine. She even thought about praying to her ancestors, but she was a Buddhist.
She felt herself being dragged along by her two best friends. As the body of students filed quietly along a path into the woods and out of the Grotto, the three stayed behind to escape the crowd. Amano stopped them from going any farther. He and Yukari had conspired to find a way to get Hitomi to open up. Today was going to be that day, at a holy place. Amano led the girls to a bench to sit down in the darkly shaded woods.
"Hitomi, we've been really worried about you lately. Ever since you returned from wherever you were you haven't been the same. It's as if the old Hitomi is gone and a sad one took her place. How can we help you? You know we care about you." Yukari spoke gently.
"We are your friends, and we wanted to let you know you aren't alone. You can talk to us. Whatever you say we will believe you. No one knows how terrifying it is to face a dragon the way we do. We were there when you were spirited away with that guy with the sword who killed the dragon. PLEASE TRUST US!" Amano pleaded with her just as gently.
Their combined love and concern was the cannonball that broke down her wall of silence as pain covered her entire body like a hot blanket. She covered her face with her hands as her head went down. Embarrassed and miserable she muffled her sobs. They both hugged her and each other quietly, almost holding her up from falling off the bench. Yukari began to cry as empathy forced her to feel Hitomi's pain.
Amano looked very worried. He felt he had to be the strong one, but it was hard. He knew something was terribly wrong with Hitomi or she wouldn't act this way.
Eventually Hitomi calmed down and they waited patiently for her to talk to them. She did. She told them everything; well, almost everything. The part with Alan was hers alone forever. But her love for Van was finally out in the open and it felt so good to say his name out loud and tell her best friends about him. It somehow made everything come back to her, all the memories. They sat there through the whole thing in silence as they listened to her talk about Gaea and the Great War and all the people she missed.
She felt better after that. "My mom always said that a good cry can work wonders." She said jokingly.
Yukari laughed with her, but Amano looked troubled so he asked her a question. "Are you going to be happy without this Van?"
Hitomi quieted down a bit, still smiling a little though it had faded somewhat from the question. Then she took her time answering him. Finally she said no she wouldn't, but she would manage.
"Then we have to get you back to him! There is no other way. You want to be happy. We want you to be happy, and when there is a will there is a way. We just have to believe that, I 'm certain of it!" He said.
Both girls stared at him in wonder. This was a side of Amano that wasn't seen too much, but it was his best quality. They nodded their heads in agreement and the world was a better place for them in their hearts. They got up and decided to walk to the shrine quietly, avoiding the crowd, the three of them held hands as if they were a family. In their hearts they were. They were each other's family at school away from home and that was all that was needed for them to get through the years.
Amano didn't leave as he had planned to go. The experience with the dragon had shaken him up. He didn't know why at the time, but he couldn't bring himself to leave Yukari after Hitomi's strange disappearance. They had grown close as they jointly worried about her.
Being friends with Yukari had become very important to Amano. He was surprised at himself. He wondered if he was falling in love with her. He felt fiercely protective of both girls, but when Yukari entered a room, his heart began to pound hard and fast in his chest. He was afraid to say anything to her about it though. He wasn't sure of her feelings. What if she just felt friendship for him? He didn't think he could bare it.
As they approached the shrine, the path opened up to a garden that was utterly beautiful and peaceful. They were awestruck by it and suddenly felt the same reverence that seemed to exude from the monk that had been their guide. Every rare and colorful flower they could name was placed perfectly in a harmonious setting that soothed the soul and Amano's words came back to each of them in the form of reassuring hope. They remained quiet and reverent and grateful just to be there holding each other's hands.
Their union of friendship was surely a gift from Heaven and each was aware of that fact in some form or other in their hearts. Life was good. It was painful and frightening, exhilarating and stressful, invigorating and instructive. It was a wonderful perfect moment that would carry each of them through many rough times ahead. It was a matter of feeding faith with prayer and purity of heart.
And then it was over. The sky exploded and crackled with lightening bolts that sparked frighteningly too close to them. Amano tried to shield them with his jacket expecting rain, but it never came. Instead a giant metal dragon burst through an eddy that formed in the folds of another dimension. A glimpse of a different world filled the eyes of all three young friends as Escaflowne roared over head. Hitomi began jumping with excitement as the other two held her as if she were quite mad.
"You were right! Amano, you were right! When there is a will, there is a way! He's here! He's really here!" Hitomi squealed in delight. Leave it to the dragon and Van to make the world right again.
***********************
Tokyo went berserk! All eyes were heaven bound as everyone and then some witnessed the most astounding event in the history of Japan. Within minutes police sirens announced in their shrill manner that all hell was about to break lose. The media would be close at their heals bringing along their garish circus of voyeuristic hedonism.
The dragon swooped and looped through the air as Van looked for a place to land. He was quite terrified of this strange world he decided. And what the hell were those metal wagons with black ugly wheels with that loud annoying piercing whining awful sound. How was he going to get to Hitomi in all the confusion? He wasn't sure he wanted to land Escaflowne anymore. Didn't seem prudent. Damn it, but this place stunk! He was almost insulted by fumes of carbon monoxide wafting up from that gray river that the wagons with the black ugly wheels were rolling along on.
A loud popping noise sounded off and something whizzed by his head. He wondered if this world had wispy moths in it. It happened again and in the distance he heard a girl scream "STOP!" That was definitely Hitomi! He prayed for her to scream again so her could follow the sound of her voice. He cried out her name to gain a response from her. He glided close to the treetops waiting for her to answer him. And she did!
The loud popping noise sounded off again and then something ricocheted off of the breastplate of Escaflowne that caused a quick spark. Van realized that they were throwing some kind of metal up at him and he knew he was in trouble. Just then a bullet lodged into his calf and he cried out in surprised agony. What kind of a world is this?! Hitomi!
His pain was making him light headed and he knew he had to land the dragon. He found a clearing where colorful flowers bejeweled the ground below. There! He would land Escaflowne right there! Damn his leg hurt like nothing he's ever felt before. A slash from a Samurai sword was nothing compared to this! How was he going to get to Hitomi? He landed his dragon and fell off in a stupor.
Hitomi had been running this way and that, her two best friends close behind her. Hitomi watched Van get hit by a bullet, she cried out in terror. What if he came to her only to end up dead? She was running as fast as she could to get to him before the police and all three of them did.
Amano was quick on his toes as he stopped the bleeding on his leg. Hitomi's body was draped over Van's as Yukari watched for the police. "They're coming! We've got to get him out of here!" As if on cue a bright beam of light reached down from the heavens and embraced them all.
As they were lifted upward, Hitomi held onto her man protectively just as Yukari and Amano were hugging each other in a desperate attempt to get through this together in one piece. Escaflowne was on its own, but floated upward just the same. And then they were whisked up and gone in a flash just as the police cleared the path to the garden entrance.
They all landed safely, except Yukari twisted her ankle in the descent. She was in pain and Amano lifted her up onto his back as he yelled for Hitomi. Van and Hitomi were by the river that ran through Fanelia's capital. They quickly rejoined each other. Within moments a posse thundered up to the group and Allen quickly dismounted from his stead.
"It worked!" He exclaimed. He was overjoyed as he scooped Hitomi up into his arms and swung her around as joy infused his whole body.
Prince Edward, Merle and all three generals were there to welcome the returning king, and all witnessed the scene. Hitomi was squirming to get out of Allen's embrace and yelled, "He's hurt! Stop!" Allen froze. And looked down at Van. Then everyone there sprang to action to help the injured king.
***********************