Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ When We Meet Again *~* ❯ Angel ( Chapter 12 )

[ P - Pre-Teen ]

12.) Angel

When We Meet Again by Lovely Videl

There.

Well, that was the last of it, the very last of it.

Van looked in a strange content at the bolted luggage case sitting perfectly amongst his fixed bed. Yes, it was done. He was pretty much sure that everything was in there, well, the little that he had anyway. It really wasn't much more than a few pairs of shoes, three or four outfits, and other appealing knick-knacks, which Shied had kindly given upon him to keep. Still, somehow the used baggage case managed to exceedingly bulge past his liking.

Van sighed a bit, feeling the wetness of his hair slick back handsomely dripping onto his new bathrobe, still breathing in the warm steam that floated in from the hotel bathroom. Yes, he had just enjoyed his last mesmerizing bath in that wonder of a hot tub, cursing the fact that he couldn't somehow just teleport that giant hunker of a thing along to Gaea. Well, he had managed to make it a personal goal to drag along each and every miniature shampoo or soap bottle he found lying around, although Van had adequately noticed Merle had practically hogged all of them. And with all the fur that girl had, Van couldn't help but groan over the thought of all the miracle shampoo vanishing within a day or two.

Standing and stretching his figurative arms above his head, he couldn't help but let his eyes somehow fall upon his luggage case once again. It was still there, still bulging, as menacingly as it had since he had first managed to bolt it shut. Damn thing. how could it be so plump like that? Van barely had any personal items to begin with; even Merle's suitcase wasn't as horrible looking as his was.

"Well, let's see here." Van muttered to himself, sitting back down on the bedside and working carefully to unbolt the latches. Almost instantly the lid of the case popped open backwards, automatically unleashing a flurry of unorganized disproportioned clothing items yearning to escape from the chaotic state they were in.

Van's face reddened sheepishly; happy to know there was no one else in the hotel room to notice his poor packing qualities. Well, seeing as he had a whole day to himself, Van knew he might as well repack it again. There was no need for an honorable king of a proud country to return to his homeland without even knowing how to pack his bags. Geeze. Van sure never realized how pitiful he could sometimes be. He would never take those handmaidens for granted again!

Separating a clean pile of socks and white dress shirts, and listening to the quiet race of clocks ticking against each other, Van's mind couldn't help but wander a bit. He had been alone for quite some time now. According to Earth time, Shied had dropped by four hours ago to pick up Merle; he had been planning to take Merle to the beach for a while now, despite the chilly weather. Merle always had some sort of fascination in shorelines; he had noticed her attraction to the sea since they had first visited Palas long ago. Van could never resist her cuteness when she would dig around through the sand, or build miniature castle forts, or race the waves endlessly during high tides.

Gosh. how he truly missed those days. It just seemed strange for it all to be so different now. Were things really changing that abruptly, or was it just that Van was still living back in the past? Was his mind too stubborn to accept the change time had brought about? Well, Van could be stubborn sometimes, but he was reluctant to notice just how stubborn he was with Merle. Honestly, as hard as he tried, Merle was still that kitten-girl to him. He couldn't get his mind to grasp her in any other way. She was still young, she was still exuberant with energy, she was still pawing for his attention and Van would have to drag her alongside wherever he went.

He sighed gently, pausing his movements for a second to reflect, and shove aside his stubbornness to allow a bit of sense to seep in. Van knew now that what was then was no longer true. Merle, his very best friend in the entire world (or appropriately universe in his case) just couldn't be viewed as a "kitten" any longer. She didn't build sand-castles anymore, she didn't race around dangerously in the castle halls on all fours, she didn't hang off upside down from the handrails, or shred the main dining carpets with her claws, and she no longer flung her arms around his neck in that rewarding joy every time she saw him. Well, that may have been for the better, with the young lady she now was, Merle would be fully capable of knocking him off his feet at that maneuver. But still. still. Van missed it. It seemed too different now; it was that difference which he couldn't bring himself to accept. It was like when he would return to the hotel after a hard day of researching and lugging around information for Shied, only to find Merle completely immersed into a book, training herself to read past the pictures, and stopping only momentarily to greet him in the form of a mumble if he were lucky. Not to mention that while on earth, she had grown even more accustomed on simply calling him "Van"; he had never been so fond of the little "Lord" title, but even then it had always been expected. until now.

He had actually tested her today. When Shied had arrived early in the morning, Van merely greeted him with the usual smile, listening to Shied explain their plans for the day to visit the Sea of Japan. He had said something about the sailboats being out, and that there was actually some sort of historical ship fest today. Merle had listened in with anticipation, packed her bags, left them aside, and simply smiled at Van as her and Shied made their way to the hotel lobby where Angela Ferentini awaited them. That was it, just a smile, and their usual morning breakfast of cereals and toast. There wasn't even much of a conversation then. not much more than a few words of what they were packing and what they would leave behind. That was it. Merle hadn't even asked if Van wanted to come along; why, she didn't even hint it in any way whatsoever!

Van's heart began to drag with it's own weight. feeling heavier upon the burden of letting his mind view things openly for once. Why was he thinking of this anyway? Why was he letting it bring him down? Maybe it was all in his mind. maybe he was just being overcautious or something. sure Merle was grown up now, and yes, she's only bound to become more independent. It didn't mean that she would abandon Van anytime soon, and just because she hadn't invited him for the day. it didn't go to say that she didn't love him anymore or anything. That would never happen! Never! Maybe she just needed some space was all. she just needed to be apart from him to explore life on her own. He would have to let her do so some time, right? He would have to. Things are always that way; you should always be prepared to let something go.

Van leaned back a second, hearing the bed creak under his weight, wondering why he had just thought that. It really didn't make him feel any better at all, as a matter of fact, he felt even more depressed than before! Why was it that it had to be that way? Why was it that eventually, you have to let everything go? Van had been letting go of enough lately. he had to deal with enough. but not Merle too? Wasn't there anything Van could hold onto? Wasn't there anything or anyone that would always be there. always and forever? It didn't seem now that there was much in life that Van wasn't bound to lose.

Sighing once more, Van ran his hand through the slickness of his hair, feeling that instantly it was drying and fluffing out the way he liked it to. Ha, he always loved how these Earthly soaps could make him feel so clean. Van was absolutely certain that he had never smelt better before in his life! That's not to say that he stunk of course. but heck, if one had to picture how a swordsman's scent is like after a battle, that would be your typical Van on a daily basis. He didn't even think there was anything that could make him smell so much like flowers without having to roll around pointlessly in a meadow or something, and he's seen that done before! All the poor women up in Gaea, what would they would only give for a drop of lotion or an ounce of conditioner. Speaking of, that was actually Shied's gift to his Aunt Milerna. He had bought her a whole expensive cosmetic and perfume case, filled with artsy looking things Van could never comprehend on using. Shied's only comment was that: "She doesn't need it, but she'll like it."

Shied had gotten just about everyone a present for their return home; his especially since he had been gone much longer than they had been. Van and Merle had accompanied him when they had gone "shopping" a few days ago. Van had never seen a more hectic scene in his life in comparison to a mall. Hell, even the core of Fanelia was a ghost town in comparision to Aimsa Ridge Shopping Centers. They had "sales" just like in the Fanelian markets, but they took the word SALE to an extreme! They calculated percentages and everything!! It was so bizarre! They had spent near to three hours alone just ogling the food court!

In terms of presents, Shied had also gotten Milerna a few pretty dresses that Merle had helped picked out, teasing Van about being "fashion- blind" since he couldn't tell one apart from the other, and held no interest whatsoever. All he knew was that they sure showed a lot more cleavage here than on Gaea. frankly, he didn't even know if it was legal for a woman to wear such demeaning items! And he was a king to top that one off. but he had to agree on one thing, Shied had bought his aunt some very beautiful and equally expensive gowns, which suited the princess quite nicely as a matter of fact.

Ha, but when the thought of what to get Shied's father came along, Van couldn't help but joke about renting a barber. He still laughed at the thought; Van just couldn't help but take the opportunity to ridicule Allen Schezar whenever possible (it was a mutual thing, they had grown fond of it). Shied had also purchased a violin strangely enough, which was much more expensive than Van had thought for a musical instrument. Still, Shied had insisted that his Aunt Selena was always dreaming of playing music, and they all agreed that the violin was a suiting piece for Selena Schezar. Selena. Van still had to hide his shudders from the sound of the name. Yes, yes, he knew, he knew, it's been over eight Gaean years since the errr. "transformation" had occurred, and he probably should be getting over it by now. But Van just couldn't!! He just couldn't! Don't get him wrong, he still found Allen's sister to be an incredibly nice person (she got along so well with Princesses Milerna and Eries) but Van wouldn't be caught dead with that woman alone in a room. NEVER in his life. Why? Well, he couldn't explain it really, how does one explain having a strange sense of discomfort around someone like her? He figured he was just afraid that while alone with the small woman she would suddenly go whacko on him or something. and .. and.

Van shut out his thoughts for a while. He was getting awfully rude, and less productive with his repacking. Actually, he hadn't even finished "unpacking" to begin with! Yes, he truly could be pitiful at times. really, awfully pitiful.

"Heeey." Van's eyes fell upon something interesting, as he continued to sort out the piles of socks, pants, underwear, and towels. "I don't remember having that."

His eyes continued to narrow as he dug through the amazingly growing piles of shoes in his case, trying endlessly to get to the bottom, where a slight brown fringe continued to daunt him. Gee, what was that? Brown? Van didn't own any brown clothing; usually just white, black, navy or maroon. But brown? Maybe he had packed something of Merle's by accident.

"Agh. stupid jackets!" Van cursed his new track jackets angrily, as he struggled to pull them out under a pile of corduroys, which was the only thing that was heavily weighing upon Merle's shirt, or actually it had looked more like a skirt really. When had Merle gotten that? He couldn't help but wonder. Shied must have bought it for her or something.

"Aha." Van breathed in relief as he finally managed to fold the damn corduroy pants and set them off to the left, lifting up the case hood again to fetch the last item within his case, which wasn't even his to begin with.

There it was.

Van just stared at it blankly for a second thinking to himself; that really didn't look like it belonged to Merle at all. It just didn't look like Merle's; and funny thing was, Van just had a feeling it wasn't Merle's. It was a brown skirt as expected, and when he lifted it up in his hands it came undone in little triangular like frills, which rolled into a petite brown kilt-like thing which looked like it could fit Merle, but it just wasn't Merle's. It just wasn't!

Still holding it, Van's eyes fell back downwards to spot another item which had laid hidden underneath the skirt; the matching overcoat to go with it, and underneath that, a crisp, white dress shirt.

Van cautiously placed the kilt aside, and picked up the beige overcoat with brown cuffs and a brown collar with a white stripe, and the buttoned down dress shirt accompanied by a pinkish bow, staring at them with a strange sense of disbelief. Now when on earth had he gotten those?? He didn't remember packing them! Van had just packed a few minutes ago. and if these things were at the very bottom of his case. it must have meant that they were the first things he had packed. But they weren't. Van distinctly remembered packing the huge corduroys first, only because they were so bulky and heavy, that they should be kept on the bottom of the case. He did NOT pack anything before that, he was certain of it. Absolutely Certain. When Van Fanel is certain of something, you may as well spell it all out in capital letters:

HE DID NOT PACK THESE THINGS.

Van's eyebrows darted upwards worriedly, as he continued to study the clothing with a rather forlorn expression. He had seen clothing like this before; a lot of young teenage girls wore them around here. Shied said that they were uniforms, school uniforms which were mandatory. Shied owned a boy's pair as well. But what on earth would Van being doing with these? Or Merle, for that matter? They had never purchased them, and Van doubted you could even buy school uniforms without being in the school.

His hands continued to glide over the rough material, looking slightly aged now that he thought about it. The dark and retired patterns resembled an older version of the school uniforms the girls of Earth were wearing now. This one looked older. it looked older and used and.. and slightly. familiar.

Van couldn't put his thumb on it, but it did. These clothing items: the shirt, the coat, and the kilt together. they reminded him of something. sometime or someone? But what or who?

Still frazzled by the puzzle, Van began to lay out the different accessories along his bed in a strange order, placing the dress shirt within the beige overcoat, and buttoning the overcoat together, flattening out the pockets. He gently pulled out the shirt collars from underneath the coat, and placed that bow on top, looping it together as best as he could, then finally adding the kilt. That must have been it. That must have been how the uniform looked like. Wow. holy crow, yes, yes! He did remember it. He's seen it before! From somewhere. But how? This didn't seem right. This didn't feel right at all. How did it get there? Why did he have this connection with it? Who had put it there!? Everything was so strange. just what was any of it supposed to really mean?

Van swallowed dryly.

He started to notice something. The room was growing hotter.

He shut his eyes twice, as they started to instantly moisten over, almost crawling against his skin like a dripping sweat. The vision of the mysterious uniform before him began to blur, the room instantly heating out of nowhere, the refreshment from his bath started to instantly disappear. It didn't feel calm and cool any longer, it. it felt hot, very hot, and almost. suffocating.

"Ugh." Van rubbed anxiously at his face, trying to get the wetness from blurring out his eyes, standing up momentarily to try to clear the air of the newfound humidity. Was this normal? Was it supposed to be getting this spontaneously warm? It felt sickening really. it felt really sticky, scary, sickening.

Van reached out quickly as his balance wavered, to steady himself by the nightstand. That notion was instantly reversed as Van yanked his hand back off the table's surface as the once cool wood scorched the palm of his left hand in a searing pain of heat he just couldn't understand. The surface of his palm continued to burn and stung like needles; the disorientation of his view continued to fog his mind like an intense migraine: pounding, circling, vibrating. The strange humidity in the room had grown to a suffocating level, making the sweat beads form so suddenly on his skin, his hair dampen and crown his face, his breath endlessly panting and rapid.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

Instantly, in his concerned worry, he noticed the sound of his panicked and frustrated heart instantly steal over the scene, deafening Van's paranoia as his footing continued to hesitate, his vision became blinded, his throat became caught in the gasps of his breath.

Damn, just what was going on?? Why was it so hot??

The questions barely filtered through his mind. barely even considerable with that loud sound, the persistent and rhythmic sound. unending sound.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

Van's moist hands brought themselves up to his face, continuously clawing against his eyelids, pleading helplessly with himself to regain his vision, falling to his knees in exasperation, heat draining him.. Slowly.

His pupils began to dilate. His breath began to slow. His mind began to think.

What happened?

Van's throat tightened with worry and confusion.

What in the hell just happened? What WAS happening? Why . why was it so damn warm? How did it even get that way?

Van lay himself on the ground in a frightened curl, the wooden tiles still eerily hot from the experience, his breath slowing but still far beyond normal, hands still stinging from the nightstand. eyes still blinking rapidly trying to clear the blur that constantly came over them.

He felt scared.

Van felt scared; it was a feeling he neither enjoyed nor experienced often. It was a new fear; it was the definite fear of the unknown. Though recuperating, his heart continued to madly echo in the walls of his chest, his fingers continued to tremble in his uncertainty, his mind too at debate to think clearly. Van couldn't think of much at the moment. He didn't know what to make of any of it. He couldn't make anything of it; he didn't even know what "it" had been. Van was confused, and scared and frightened. It was one of the only times in his life, and strangely enough, he had no clue why.

Van's eyes continued to dilate without him noticing, his pupils managing to blacken the reflection in his eyes, an overpowering feeling of fatigue drenched his already limp body, easing his paranoia, almost soothing his anxiety.

He was now so tired. Van was afraid, Van was confused, Van was tired. He was tired of the few seconds of strangeness he had unfortunately had to see through. He was tired.

His muscles began to loosen, his breathing became slower, his eyelids became heavier.

Then suddenly in the strange distortion of silence, Van blinked once.

Twice.

Then all went black.

They were so quiet that the words almost felt as if they were being whispered in his ear. They sounded so sweet, so solemn, so quietly hushed in the relaxing solitude, that Van couldn't even bring himself to think straight. He didn't seem to really comprehend or understand, or even care for that matter, where he was or what he was listening to. Van simply cared only to listen to that voice ring softly in his mind, listen to the soothing tone and envision the memories that slowly began to scathe his thoughts.

Round and round the words continued to flow, continued to enwrap Van in his unknown state of being, compel him as he floated without much thought in his mind, incapable of bringing himself to panic or worry. Instead, Van merely lay or stood or sat, not too sure but not too caring, just longing to remain silent and listen. All Van wanted to do was listen. He really didn't know what he was listening to, or more so to whom was he listening to, but whatever it was, it yearned at him to be heard. Van couldn't do anything much about it now, he was here with these whispering thoughts and persistent memories and all he could do was listen.

Blackness.

Nothing but blackness began to engulf him, nothing but blackness and sweet spoken words:

"I Miss You Van."

He shut his eyes, and let them rest, and felt his heart cool to a slow and contented pace. Van's palms no longer sweated with anxiousness and confusion, but he was now lost in the satisfying tingle of relaxation and quietness. All of this peace. and quietness.

Even amongst his closed eyes, the silent Van, the noble Van, began to see without his knowing. In merely instants he could see the rugged outline of a young person before him, just a blur amongst the black. But still, that strange calmness overflowed Van, and called to him in a strange sense. He felt himself stretching towards that dancing figure before him, movements gracious and fluent. He was drawn to it, drawn to its beauty and voice whispering his name.

"I've Missed You Van."

Then things began to change.

Van's surroundings began to grow lighter and lighter, until a gold glow seemed to illuminate the atmosphere as if being filtered in from a window. The voices continued to soften, continued to hush into his mind until they blended entirely with the new sounds that seemed to be appearing out of nowhere, that seemed to be constantly growing louder.

And there were new voices.

Van's eyes opened, and he quickly felt his feet land heavily against a ground, a floor, a surface, at last. The feeling of the impact seemed to knock the mystifying wind out of him, until Van could sense his senses returning. He could feel the strangeness of the room he was now standing within, the warmness of the afternoon sunlight split into rays by the window blinds, could hear the soft conversation of total strangers penetrating his ears and constantly growing louder.

Someone, or some others, were here with him.

Finally grasping the full extent of his presence, realizing for once that Van was now immersed into an unfamiliar and uncertain situation, it wasn't long before panic began to easily arise in his emotions. For one thing, Van didn't know where he was, he had no clue what had just happened, and he didn't know how he was to get back to wherever it was he had left. This strangeness, this unknowing, this mistrust, was beginning to get the better of him.

These voices. There were people. But who were they?? WHERE WERE THEY??

Van's breathing began to pick up his pace, his levels of alertness sharpened to a cue. Instinctively, his right hand jutted quickly down to his side, where normally his trusty sword and sheathe would have hung had the circumstances been different. But now, in these uncontrollable happenings, Van's hand was left only to collide with the air and leave him with the mere defense of himself.

"He was very important to you, wasn't he?"

The aged, male voice came in stronger now, alerting Van's ears from behind him. Quickly turning himself, Van couldn't help but notice in surprise the weight of his legs, feeling the thud like dumbbells crashing to the ground as he brought his feet around in lugging steps.

A man sat there before him, entirely aloof of Van's presence, or maybe even uncaring towards it. Nonetheless, he continued to have his hands clasped tightly in his lap, hidden underneath this thick, unappealing gray sweater vest, spending a few seconds each minute to adjust his thin framed glasses. His attention now was focused entirely in front of him, and Van could just about swear that this man was looking straight through him, completely unaware that Van was even there at all.

Nodding his head slightly, the young king finished his examination of the perpetrator, and decided that there wasn't much to fear here. Although Van was still in question on where he was or even how he had arrived here, it didn't seem to be possible for him to communicate to this man, even if he tried. The way that this man's eyes were totally undirected towards him even though Van was merely a few feet away signified that somehow in that unexplainable manner he was invisible. Van couldn't put a sense to the thought, but it was apparent that Van was everything but apparent.

"I guess so; I guess that's something no one will probably ever understand."

Another voice.

That voice.

It was that voice!

Van lugged his feet over once again, following the direction of the stare of the man's eyes, and found himself face forwards to another character, a young and melancholic looking girl, sitting only a few feet away. She possessed that voice which had unexplainably triggered Van the second she had spoken. Her words, her tone, so soft and mesmerizing. It couldn't be, could it?

Van's eyebrows rose with curiosity, straining his eyes to focus on this young woman more clearly. She didn't seem to see Van either, and with that, Van figured there was no reason to hold back. It seemed to them that Van was like a particle in the air, just there yet unnoticed. It was his opportunity. It was his opportunity to see for himself.

Fighting the strong lag within his legs, Van began to make his way over to where the desolate figure sat, basked to an almost golden color by the filtered rays through the office window. As closer as he became, the more he noticed her moistened emerald green eyes, the more he saw the hesitant way she tucked her chin beneath her coat collar, the way her slender fingers anxiously gripped the armrest of the chair she sat within, and the more he noticed how incredibly familiar she was beginning to become.

"They can never understand me, Dr. Teroka. I don't think they ever will."

"Who won't understand you? Why do you think that?"

Van paused for a second as he continued to listen to the conversation, which omitted him and involved him at the same time, continue to grow. He stood now so close to that girl, so close to her heartrending image that Van couldn't come to control all the thoughts burning into his mind, scorching into his being.

There was something about her.

Van didn't want to say, he didn't want to admit it, and he didn't even want to think it.

But the thought was definitely there.

Her sweet yet saddening voice, her once bright green eyes, the cropped mahogany hair that could never hide them, struck Van the second he had seen it all. Was he crazy for thinking it? Was he crazy for wanting to think it, to believe it even?

His hands clasped together, his breath seemed to leave him, and the thought remained to dwell. Just. could it be?

Suddenly, even against his will, Van could feel his arm outstretching; he could feel his hand reaching towards the dreamy image he couldn't believe. It was like that night, that fateful night not too long ago now, but long enough ago that Van could barely believe it had occurred. The more he thought about it, the more he figured the park and the dazzling display of snow was just another figment of the dreams he would always create. Everything that was too good for Van was much too good to be true. He couldn't have been here; he just couldn't be here again. with her. It was like a moment he had always anticipated but would've never thought to come true.

Then, it happened.

Van's fingers, gentle fingers, nervous in a way, graced over the fine skin of the girl's right hand on the armrest. Van couldn't believe it, but it was true. The no more than realistic feeling responded to Van's senses, informing him that yes, there was someone directly in front of him, and she was real enough to touch with his own hands. Just the experience, just the touch, sent rivets through him that he couldn't control.

Suddenly, the girl smiled. She smiled almost faintly, but in her day of gloominess, a smile as faint as can be was still well notable. She had gotten a sense, she received them often, but now it was more comforting than usual. Her left hand graced over the back of her right, and it made her stop and think for a moment. It made her think, remember and long.

"No one will understand me. They all think that just because I'm back everything's fine now. But it isn't. They don't even understand where I've been all this time, how much less will they understand who I truly am now."

"Oh Hitomi, I see what you mean. You must feel so isolated."

Hitomi. what a beautiful name.

Van let out a breath, and continued to watch her thinking of her name, thinking of her response.

She had smiled. She had smiled when he had touched her! Could she. could she have known?

He waited anxiously for her response to the doctor's statement, remembering suddenly about Shied mentioning to him about some sort of sessions Hitomi had had in the past. Did that mean. Did that mean that that was what Van was watching? Could it really be? Could it really be her in the time after they had last been together?

The thought struck Van strongly, and suddenly it seemed to be to him like his only priority. As he sat in front of this now younger girl, he couldn't help but notice that yes, this image, although more saddening than he remembered, was still the very same picture that had filled his mind and thoughts and dreams even against his own will. It didn't seem possible, but now it was the only thing that Van wanted to believe. He wanted to believe it. He wanted to know for a fact that this girl before him had been the same one that somehow seemed to fill his life, back then, back a few weeks ago, and even until that very moment.

He wanted to believe it.

He did believe it.

"Yeah, most of the time. But I. I know he does. He understands me."

The man opposite of the young girl smiled broadly.

"I'm sure he did, Hitomi."

"Yeah, Van was a great friend. I mean, I have great friends here too, but it's hard to say the same nowadays. They don't even seem to want to be my friends sometimes."

Oh Hitomi.

Van's eyebrows began to knit themselves with worry. The simple way the young girl seemed to lower her eyes, slightly glistening, began to inflict this sort of pain to him for some reason. For some unknown cause, Van felt his heart heavy, although he should have been happy to see his friend again after so long, to see what had become of her. But her sadness was so easy to sense, even when she had just mentioned his name. It was a lonesome tone that Van was beginning to direly worry about.

Still though, he was still trying to get all the facts through his head. This was the girl. This was the very girl on one fateful night he had just happened to crash into. It would never have occurred to him the impact she would have on the way he thought, acted and felt. Even after she had left him for good, Van would have never come to estimate the way his eyes would soar to the skies so often in his spare time. He would have never counted on the dozens of occasions when he would be out by the plains and just stare at the two rocks in the sky, wishing only, thinking only to himself what he wanted to keep for himself.

But yet, the days continued to be empty, and the only thing that he could ever see was that memory, that permanent vision of bright eyes and cheerful smiles, which he would run to in times of need. That was when Van would realize that he missed it. He just missed it all. He missed protecting someone, and guarding someone to the point where it would mean his life. He missed feeling that sense of pride each time he would wake to another day and see his new friend there, safe and sound, knowing that for another section in time, he had managed to keep her well. He missed feeling that urge, that mission, to keep her happy, to help her and serve her and care for her in a way that was totally unnecessary, but strangely, was his only drive for so long. That instinct, that newfound desire had grown in him secretly so much so that in the end, he had used it all to accomplish the last of his desires: To let go. Had it been his choice, it wouldn't have gone that way, but it wasn't his choice. His drive was to make her happy, and her happiness was not in his home, but far on her own. Van could understand that, and Van had thought then that he was fully capable of letting go. It was only until he learned that those emotions he didn't even know were essential to life were lost for good, did he understand that he had let it slip away. Opportunity passed him by so often, but it was always his reluctant and quiet style of life, which held him back. Sometimes, Van hated himself for it.

Look at her now; she's so young.

She was so young, and at the same time, she was just like him but different. Hitomi was different now. She had moved on without him. Van was too late.

"I know he meant a lot to you Hitomi, but I think everyone needs to know one thing. You've been so saddened lately you know. Hitomi, do you understand that everyone is just trying to help you out?"

"Yes," her answer was dryly cold, almost malicious even.

"Then, I only have one thing to ask: Do you feel that this relationship which you had with this Van, is strong enough to push you forward, or will it always seem to leave you dwelling in the past?"

The girl didn't answer, and the more Van thought about it, he couldn't bring himself to answer the question either. How could he, without blankly bringing out the truth? It seemed that this young Hitomi was the same.

As he lowered himself carefully, Van was at awe as he came near to face-to- face to his unaware friend.

There she sat, quiet and unresponsive, still ducking her head downwards with that tiny glisten in her eye. It saddened Van really, to a point where he had to salvage the courage to keep his head from turning the other way. It seemed the more he watched the mysterious drama play out; the more depressed everyone seemed to become. Her image was one so lonesome, so gone along a world of confusion, that Van began to sickly understand. He could almost see it now, he could almost feel that shared pain which had been thriving through the both of them for so long. Now, he could almost understand her side of the unending tale. He could feel the weight being so pressured on this young Hitomi, the doubt behind her stories that Van knew were true. But this man didn't seem to believe it, and judging by the expression on Hitomi's face, it looked as if no one did. It was that look, that hurt face, which made Van cringe inside.

Hitomi was hurt.

This girl, this girl whom Van had fought so solemnly for to protect from pain and needless suffering and sadness, was now caught in the depths of the very things he had fought against for so long ago. Van had worked so diligently in the short time she had been with him, the short and meaningful time, to make sure that the cheerful smile she seemed to always posses would be there day after day. And being the king that he longed to be, Van was the one to keep his vow. He did keep her safe, Van kept her as content as well as he could possibly, and he had accomplished his very mission of missions. Van's concern for her well being had stretched to such an extent that for her very happiness he sacrificed letting her go.

Then why?

Why on earth was she so sad?

If he had worked so hard to making sure she returned to her home of happiness, why was it that now, her image could almost render him to tears if he weren't careful? Why was it now that her tone was darkened, her smile erased, her vibrancy lost? Why couldn't he protect her from this sadness anymore? Why was sadness befalling her when he had worked so hard on making sure that wouldn't happen? Why was everything leaving her sad in the dusk? Just why?

This Hitomi looked as if she had lost her very soul within her. The expression so unwritten, which lay upon her face, clearly signified the bouts of emptiness that now began to rein her being. That tone, that look, that broken heart. just why did it have to be so sad? Just why did Hitomi have to be left with nothing at all?

But sadly, Van did notice that he had left Hitomi with something. There was only one thing in this world which this young, disheartened girl had managed to keep: the lone tear, the small glisten, in her right eye, for even now because of all her crying, most of her tears had left her all alone as well.


The seagulls cried noisily overhead, and the ocean currents rang a soft sound through the cool breeze. It was nice and warm out, refreshing by the waterside. The sun also was bright and cooperative for the day, shining proudly in the wake of the morning.

Van's feet touched lightly on the ground, and he stood still, and motionless for a few seconds too many.

Van knew the question that was now burning his thoughts: What had just happened?

He noticed instantly that the almost familiar surroundings of the small office and his friend of old times had disappeared without his noticing, fading so quickly into this new background of sunny marmalade skies, and a breeze with such an aromatic scent that could carry on for miles. It was much cooler and relaxed than where he had just been, but nonetheless, Van still had that longing to return. He had become so accustomed to seeing her right there before him, that even these few seconds of absence were already wrenching at his heart. He wanted to make her happy. He wanted to find her again.

"Oh Amano. don't you wish we could stay like this, forever?"

The soft voice caught Van by surprise, and instinctively, he brought himself around to face it.

But something else caught his eye.

For the first time, his vision befell amongst his still and beautiful surroundings. His mind had been so occupied on realizing what had just happened, that he hadn't even taken a good look at what was happening.

Van now stood solo in the bask of the morning sunlight, ankle deep in the mowed green grass center of a large oval of red. Van's eyes studied that strange continuous pathway split by the white lines, and instantly he began to recognize it, along with the towering willow trees, empty bleachers, and resting arena lights.

Van was within the center of the track of the school he had seen only twice before. As his eyes followed the unending trail, he came across the very spot, which had been burnt into his memories. There, off to his left, was the very spot where he had first met Hitomi Kanzaki so long ago. That small space of land in a world so large and unfamiliar could easily mean the world to him. Had he not come at the right time, had he not landed in the same place, how would his life have changed? Would Fanelia cease to exist without the aid of Hitomi so many times during the course of the battles. would Van cease to exist without Hitomi at all? And yet. who had planned this? Surely, something as wonderful as two friends from distant places meeting on a whim, couldn't just have "happened", could it? How was it that two spirits so far apart yet so close in need of each other, could just happen to meet out of the blue? Van was usually not the kind to play the game of luck, but he must have been winning it in that space, right there, that very night, long ago.

"Hitomi, you read my mind."

At the sound of the new voice, at the mention of the name, Van was reminded of his calling. Instantly, he continued his turn until his eyes fell upon two dark silhouettes surrounded by the light of the morning sunrise, staring out into the vast expanse of water of Tsutomu Lake, reflecting gorgeously the light of the bright sun before it.

There she was.

It was awfully bright, and the surrounding scene was still quite breathtaking, but Van wasn't slow to notice the prettiest aspect of it all. There Hitomi stood, further away this time, leaning herself against a wire fence near a taller figure. Her hair was much longer now, much more like the way he remembered seeing her. not too long ago, in that mystical park of lights. But it wasn't layered, it was fully down and shoulder-length in a way he had never seen her before. She still looked young, but older, and more serious than he remembered her from the past. But what made Van's day was the look on Hitomi's face. No longer were her eyes crowned with tears, moistening endlessly in a feeling of hurt and pain; but instead that friendly glow had returned to her, her smile lifting his spirits as it graced her beauty end to end.

She was staring at someone, the figure standing next to her.

Van lifted his head for a second, and spent a few moments studying the man that Hitomi was with. Van wasn't too sure, but he recognized this guy. from somewhere. But who was he?? Well. now that Van thought about it, he did kind of resemble Allen, and then again Van couldn't help but try to hide his conniving snicker. Well, poor guy! But in all seriousness, Van still couldn't exactly pinpoint just what about this man seemed to rub him the wrong way. Then Van understood. Yes, he knew he had seen that person before, now he remembered. It was that same guy Hitomi had been with the day Van had first met her. She had been with one other, that girl, and this was the guy who constantly referred to Hitomi as "Kanzaki" so long ago. But right about now, it was only him and Hitomi. The other girl was no where to be found, as a matter of fact, no one else seemed to be around at all.

"Oh Amano."

Van's look seemed to recoil as he observed Hitomi loop her gentle arm through Amano's, in a comfortable sort of way that Van couldn't help but strangely react to. He didn't know what it was exactly, but it was a feeling Van couldn't bear to repress.

That man, Amano, stared lovingly back down at the young lady, sharing that smile which she gave upon him. Her eyes seemed to sparkle like the water's crystal surface, and with a soft sigh she rested her head amongst him arm, and gazed out amongst the scenery alone with her thoughts.

Van just watched plainly, tucking his hands into his robe pockets (not even realizing that he was out in public in a bathrobe though thankfully somehow invisible), and lifting his head to the cool, ocean breeze as he watched the two romanticizing silhouettes. Van didn't bother pretending as if he didn't see them. He could see them plain and clear, and although that funny, teasing feeling still seemed to manifest within him, he did as he usually always did with emotions he couldn't understand. He hid them. He didn't want to ask himself what he felt when he saw Hitomi with this man, because it was something he didn't long to know or even to understand.

"You know Hitomi."

Van tried to hide his relief, as the man, Amano, slowly backed away from the beautiful girl, and instead faced her laying his hands on her shoulders and gazing his attention towards her.

"I may not be able to promise you 'here'."

He brought his hand up to her chin, and wiped away the bangs from her eyes. Hitomi herself seemed to freeze with time, holding her breath and staring the young man deep in the eyes, everything unmoving except for the breeze of the wind and the crashes of the waves on the shoreline.

".But I can try to promise you 'forever'."

Van held his breath and watched in stunned amazement, feeling that writhing envious passion continue to grow within him as the scene ahead continued to swivel in a twirl of unexpected romance.

The man, Amano, was now scrimmaging madly through his coat pocket as Hitomi watched with green eyes gleaming earnestly. Finally, his hand seemed to run against something, and his face lit up with a smile, and taking the object in his hand, the man, brushing a wisp of brown hair away from his face, slowly lowered himself to bended knee.

Van swallowed with discomfort.

He could feel that feeling at its peak now; feel the clench of his fingers within his robe pocket, the heat of his face fluster in this otherwise tranquil scene. Van couldn't explain it, but he recognized it. He recognized that motion, for it was the very same routine done over in Gaea. Plus, Shied had already informed Van of what would happen after this. Van already knew about the marriage, but to see it play out before him, to see it all for himself, Van was forced to experience that feeling of a strange pain and anguish that he couldn't honestly define.

"Oh my.!! Amano, you must be."

Hitomi's face paled and her hands instantly rose to cup her face, beginning to easily tremble with nervousness. Even the dancing rays of the sun couldn't blind out the surprise and sudden joy, which seemed to have been blessed upon her.

Amano took her hand carefully, fully balancing on his left knee and gazing still up to Hitomi's image, blended into the beautiful skies that shone with colour. His eyes grew with sincerity, and he had to pause himself to try to catch the intensity of what he was doing. Although he had already given it so much thought, still the moment seemed to catch him on a blank.

Van watched the seriousness behind the man's face, and observed the excitement that seemed to rivet his young Hitomi. Her hands were endlessly quivering now, and it looked as if she hadn't blinked in her suspense for the past few minutes.

Amano grappled the small, slightly velvety box in his hand, and closed his eyes in anticipation as he quickly opened it, hearing the satisfying creak as the box came apart revealing the shining gem within.

"Hitomi..."

Still holding her hand, he tried to control his voice from overpowering him, and gazed into her eyes, staring at the gems that lined his heart, and he had to think carefully to find those words he had planned for so long.

"Hitomi, I've loved you for what seems like an eternity, but I must ask it now before it's too late:

Hitomi Kanzaki, will you marry me and stay with me, forever?"



The breath seemed to depart from all three figures simultaneously as the words hung in the air like a faint scent. The only moving object was the sparkle within the diamond encrusted in a ring of gold, slowly being placed on Hitomi's slender finger, as Amano continued to look up at her with signs of hope and emotions of care.

Van blinked suddenly; there was something wrong with his eyes.

Hitomi stared at the beautiful object gracing her right hand, and tried to hide the sounds of her heart thudding madly in what she would have never expected or been fully prepared for.

Marriage?

Van blinked again. There was something definitely wrong, and he could feel it swelling in him like a sickness. He could feel the pouts of his face turning downwards like a saddened image; he could feel the wetness overcome his eyes, and the soft rasping breathing taking over his chest.

"Amano."

Hitomi, after long last, seemed to regain her thoughts and will, and finally stared back towards the young man which had held her captive for the last few moments. Her thoughts were burning and sizzling within her, but still, she tried hard to focus and concentrate them all. She was just so.

"Oh Amano, of course I'll marry you!!!"

In merely seconds, that once hesitant expression Hitomi wore had disappeared entirely into an outburst of joy and disbelief. Waking up from her state of shock, she flung her slender arms around Amano's neck, laughing merrily as instantly he stood up taking her with her, balancing her within his hands and lifting her in the cool air.

The two laughed and spun with cries of joy, Amano encircled the field grass as he lifted her up with the cool breeze, her face seemingly even more beautiful with the dance of the sunlight. Her smile was accented brightly, and her laugh rung out more soundly than the birds in the air. It was more perfect than he could have ever imagined.

Even as their laughs and renditions of joy seemed to quiet and fade. Van still continued to feel the wafts of jealousy and envy, which had been consuming him for a while now. But more so, on top of it all, he continued to sense that wetness crowd his eyes, that sniffle in his lungs, an uncontrollable urge of sadness and rejection that he had hardly known before.

He knew it was just a vision, he knew that these were happenings that were bound to happen or had happened already beyond his control, but still it pained him just the same. All of those emotions burnt down, the hopes extinguished, the dreams left discarded. It was loneliness, true and utter loneliness, and never had he experienced the true colours of the words until now. Until he felt left alone with nothing.

"But just look at her," The words billowed softly from his mouth, gazing in that sad contempt of his as he watched the loving pair slow down to an affectionate hug by the fence side. Yet, despite the pain that seemed to inflict upon him, he just couldn't get himself to tear his moistened eyes away. He couldn't.

She was so happy.

There she was. Hitomi Kanzaki, smiling from end to end. How could he stand to be upset? Just minutes before, her tears had rendered him helpless, but surely not her smile as well? No, of course not. Van wasn't that selfish; he could never be that selfish, even if he tried. After all, he had gotten what he had worked for. He had worked to keep her safe, to make her happy for as long as he was alive to ensure it. And now, no matter what Van felt or regretted, it looked as if he had done just that.

Hitomi's smile was immeasurable, and her laugh seemed like a melody to him. She breathed her sigh of relief with that look of content; lay her head down lovingly on Amano's arm. The breeze ruffled her auburn hair, making her eyes shut with happiness in the pleasing silence and wonder of the world.

Van continued to watch. Heartbroken.

Then suddenly, Hitomi lifted her head. She peeked her eyes just above Amano's shoulder, staring about her unsurely.

Van continued to watch. He held his breath.

Resting her chin above Amano's shoulder, Hitomi still continued to peer about her. There was something apparently bothering her, or indicating her, and it was obvious that she couldn't really identify what that was.

Van watched as the man, Amano, nudged Hitomi quietly and questioned her about something. Hitomi merely replied with a little smile and a careless shrug, yet it was obvious that her eyes were still trailing further, beyond what she knew she wanted to see.

Then, Hitomi's eyes froze.

Van watched in a clear amazement as the young woman, with eyes of earnest green, stared straight at him.

At first Van worried if he was just seeing something, maybe even envisioning something that he wanted to see, but actually Van was wrong.

She was staring straight at him.

"Hitomi, what's wrong? You okay?"

Amano stroked Hitomi's shoulder with concern, still gazing at her with that look of puzzlement.

Hitomi didn't respond. Instead her eyebrows furrowed with curiosity, and her eyes narrowed trying her best to focus.

Van continued to return her stare, feeling his heart begin to quickly race within him, feeling the burn of her eyes sifting through him.

She saw him.

She was looking straight at him.

"Hitomi! What is it?"

Suddenly, Van felt a chill as Hitomi's engulfed eyes quickly blinked and turned away from him hesitantly. In only moments, as she smiled at Amano and carelessly shrugged, it seemed as if nothing had happened at all.

Van's hopes instantly dimmed.

Then suddenly, his feet began to rise

Feeling that saddening throb within him, Van gave a last glance downwards in the beaming Hitomi's direction. He tried for a second, and managed to force himself to smile. After all, how could he be so down to see her so happy? It would be wrong of him to be so selfish, though he'd always feel that loving selfishness inside no matter how large his smile outside may be.


The blackness swallowed him again.

It still seemed warm, and awfully damp.

Van was returning back to normal life, or at least he thought he was, he hoped he was. After all of this, he started to honestly wonder just how much more could he possibly take. All of these mind-boggling "journeys" to the past he wasn't a part of, was just so damn incomprehensible. It couldn't be real, could it? And even if it were, why would he need to see all this? He had known about it anyway, but what was the urgency in having to have to see it all play out for himself? Why didn't Van want to see it all play out for himself? Why did he feel so discarded, so afraid to know anymore?

Suddenly, the sound of a large horn flooded his mind, to a deafening scale whereas it rang through his whole body.

It wasn't over yet.

The sound began to grow louder, and Van could already make out the high shorts of screams in the background, piercing and warning.

"Hey watch out!!"

The horns continued to blare, like the horns of cars outside. The screech of tires flooded Van's ears although before him lay nothing but darkness. Still, he could hear the piercing cry of metals shearing into each other, he could make out the horrible aftereffects of collisions, one after the other, screams of mortality and pain.

Just what in the hell was going on?

He continued to hear it. Wails. Siren wails, loud and echoing, panicked voices exchanging worried thoughts and concerns. He could hear the sounds of the streets of the Mystic Moon almost die down to a scary silence, surrounded by nothing other than the resonance of flames licking away at something, burning something, and faint screams and pleas from elsewhere.

Something horrible had just happened and Van was blind to it all.

What was he seeing, or more so hearing, now? This couldn't have happened before, could it? What was this accident, if it was an accident, was this why it was so hot? The drenching heat from the flames of death? But why couldn't he see it, why couldn't he see what he couldn't prevent??

In his worried sickness he couldn't understand, Van blinked once.

Then twice.

Then all went white.

The streets seemed too empty.
Everything just seemed so quiet today.
Or then again, maybe it was just because Hitomi didn't seem to be a part of the scene at all. Although she was physically waltzing on down Mikako Ave., there didn't seem to be a part of her that realized it. Things just went on, things just happened and she was perfectly unaware of it. For instance, just where was Hitomi going? It was a thought that had been bothering her ever since she had left her home more than two hours ago, and it was obvious that even now she still hadn't gained the answer to her question. Usually, Hitomi would never just go out and travel all the way from Meadow Gardens to downtown Aimsa on foot without clearly losing her mind. She barely enjoyed the trip on train, so what on earth could possibly compel her to walk the whole distance? Then again, Hitomi wasn't so sure if she'd already lost her mind! Maybe she had. It was pretty chilly, very lonely, and probably even dangerous. She didn't even know where she was going. She must've lost her mind somewhere along the line.

Directing her gaze to the sidewalk ahead of her, Hitomi still couldn't bring herself to stop. Nothing seemed to compel her to move forwards and nothing seemed to hold her back. And so, with that strange underlying thought, she just followed the path her feet made despite how tired and hungry she started to become. The spring chill was starting to get to her, but she simply tucked her hands further into her pockets and that already seemed to be the answer to her problem. She didn't notice the coldness anymore.

The scenery began to change.

The commercial buildings began to grow taller and taller, towering over her reflecting the morning sun with the beautiful glass casing. The traffic on the streets began to grow denser, although to the vague Hitomi, it still seemed just as desolate as before. Crowds of all kinds of people began to brush by her, fending for sidewalk space, and the signs around her grew large and more detailed with either English words or kana characters. Hitomi found herself pausing more often at red streetlights, still unnoticing to how crowded it was becoming. Finally, after long hours, Hitomi had left behind the residential suburban areas of her home and straight into the heartland of Aimsa, where so many of her memories rested within. On and on she continued to travel, gazing unconcerned at the busying environment, walking on still to a place or desire she did not know.

Then, minutes later, something began to burn at the back of Hitomi's mind.

For the first time in her long journey, she forced herself to stop entirely, and no longer pushed to continue on.

There was something here. She had reached it.

Standing amongst the throng of people, Hitomi had to fight them off to keep standing still, instead of being washed away with the crowd. She found herself standing in front of Yuuksuke's Diner, where her, Sophie, Fuy, and Eric would often stop by during their lunch hour. The CGU office branch in the Star Gaze office building wasn't very far from here, and Hitomi knew that it wouldn't be long before her three companions would be arriving for the usual baloney sandwiches at the usual 11:20 time slot.

Hitomi couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt for not being with them without reliable excuse, but she could make up her seven and a half hours another day. She'd work overtime or something; it really wasn't too much of her concern at the moment. Still, she felt uncomfortable with the thought of being spotted, so she quickly followed the flow of the crowds until she was about a block away standing outside a used jewellery shop.

That feeling began to grow stronger.

Hitomi continued to have that strange sense, the same one that had brought her to finally stop walking after long last, and she continued to try and focus despite the business of her surroundings.

There was something about this area.

Her instincts wouldn't have forced her to come all this way without good reason. She had to figure it out. She had gone too far and worked too hard on this riddle to let it just slip her by. Hitomi wanted it over with, she wanted ALL of this strangeness done and gone from her life. There were too many other things to worry about, and now because of this, she found herself more lost from reality than she had ever been before.

There.

Suddenly, Hitomi jolted her head upwards, coming face to face with shadowy buildings filtering the blue afternoon skies. Her eyes began to quickly search and scan them, pulling her hair back away from her face and standing closer to the jewellery shop to avoid the rush of traffic on the walkways.

Hmm.

Hitomi stopped a second, and focused her attention when instantly her senses alerted her. Her eyes paused and fixed their gaze on a medium sized white building off to her left, about only one or two city blocks down.

The Ramada. Aisma Ramada Hotel.

Hitomi was very familiar with the place; after all, she had been the one scanning through the brochure not too long ago. Many of her wedding guests were staying there, including her cousins Alexandra and Tim from Poland. To Hitomi's surprised realization, she figured that they would be flying in in only down to what, three weeks and two days? It didn't seem possible, but it was true. And her favorite cousin, San, should be arriving the next weekend where they had been planning to have a large pre-wedding family get together on Hitomi's side. With all of everything that had been happening, Hitomi had forgotten all about it. It just didn't seem right for her to be so irresponsible, but she couldn't help it. The subject of her nearing wedding had completely slipped her mind.

But Hitomi's concentrated thoughts didn't last for very long, as once again, her other intuition interrupted leaving Hitomi slightly annoyed. There always seemed to be something else to worry about, and with her past continuing to catch up with her, where did that leave her future? Just what was she doing anyway?

Still, despite the pestering thoughts of Hitomi's earthly side, she continued to wait until she could cross Fifth Avenue, waiting impatiently as some red Civic flew past her at way over-the-limit speeds, then made her way down the packed street sides. It wouldn't be long now until she would answer all of her questions. Wherever her feet were taking her, wherever fate was guiding her, lay just at her fingertips.


"Would that be all Scott?"

"Yep, sure, it's good for me Diane. Thanks eh?"

Scott Darwood held up his large double sugar coffee thankfully, giving an appreciative nod in Diane's direction as she returned the smile then continued to pick out some fresh doughnuts for the next customer in line. The little cream-filled ones with the Aimsa Same, or Shark logo, were disappearing fast after the Sharks' feat over the Tigers just the other day. He still had the ninth inning emblazoned in his mind. That had been one fantastic game!

Scott arranged his faded jean vest against the happy red flannel of his shirt while carefully balancing the hot beverage, wishing that he had only brought along his coat instead of leaving it on the driver's seat. He had parked the large trailer truck quite a ways away and now he would have to endure the strangely chilling spring temperatures for a few extra minutes.

But it didn't seem to matter too much really; he noticed that the weather was quite manageable as he stepped on outside of the Drink & Dunk doughnut shop, and out into the April weather. It was actually quite suitable for him since he did have that sweltering hot drink to carry along.

Edging around the mills of people, and carefully sipping the coffee on his way, it wasn't long before he spotted the large trailer behind the Ay-Ay gas station, where the station owner Bill, had allowed him to keep it each day while he went out for lunch on the deal that he would fill up his constantly emptying tank at Ay-Ay's each time he parked. It was a well worth it compromise, and it was comforting to see the large "Exco" logo on the side of his truck always there to greet him from so far away. He'd have to hurry up; the company sure was getting on him about shipping schedule accuracies. He still had about another six-hour drive to go to reach Yokohama, and he wasn't counting breaks within that either. At the rate he was going, he doubted he'd have many more "breaks" anyway.

Passing by the small station cubicle, Scott Darwood gave a wave to good ole Bill Ayazawa, who simply nodded, pointing at Scott's gas tank smiling proudly. Yup, Bill had given him another free gallon for who knows what reason, Scott figured he just was some kind old guy with time on his hands and friendships to make.

"Aah," boarding the driver's seat comfortably, and resting his drink in the cup holder, he adjusted his rearview mirror, fixed up his mat of brown hair hidden underneath the faded red cap, gave a quick glance at the region map then started up good old Exco, as he comfortably nicknamed the truck he almost always drove. The roar of the beast came along loudly, and smiling contented on how well the day had started, he quickly began to pull out to carefully blend into the traffic of the downtown Aimsa streets.

Thankfully, although it was still packed, it was much more clearer than usual allowing Scott to maintain a quicker speed. Ha, maybe he wouldn't face any troubles with schedule accuracies today! It looked just so promising for him to make it on time.

Then suddenly, as the innocent driver struggled to make a turn on Fifth, he was rudely cut off by a blaring red Civic tearing past him, swerving on down the streets.

"HEY!! Learn how to drive asshole!!!!"

Panicked and very anguished, Scott didn't even have much more time to show the back of the red car his favorite finger, because it seemed he was quickly losing control of Exco. The trailer behind him didn't realize the need to stop so quickly and pressed its weight against him until the whole truck began to edge ever dangerously closer to oncoming traffic.

It looked as if he'd have to speed this one; there was no other choice.

Feeling his heart rate liven, Scott quickly eyed the oncoming traffic on Sherman, realizing he had only a few seconds to do this, and he had to do it right.

"Come on Scott, GO!"

Pushing madly on the acceleration pedal and adjusting the gears, he felt the instant thrust of the truck moving quickly forwards, hurrying endlessly to beat the rush of cars. He pulled at the string above his head and let the horn give it's loud blare against all the other angry horns against him, signaling that he had no other option than this.

Quickly, he spun the wheel around like mad, feeling the large monstrous vehicle hurriedly taking it's new course as it spun entirely left, only the back of it still remaining dangerously on the wrong path.

The turn began to grow narrower and he felt the driver's wheel reach its maximum and start to fight with him to spin the other way, and in an almost paranoid sense, Scott worried that the sixteen-wheeler would begin to tip over, but he tried to silence his panicking thoughts. It would take much more than a narrow turn to get the truck on an angle. He was just losing it.

Finally, barely scathing the sidewalk to many pedestrians' protest, Exco found itself on it's new course on Fifth merely seconds before the raging cars on the opposite lane came near close to hitting him horning loudly like there was no tomorrow. And to think, he was receiving the ugly end of the blame for just trying to keep from killing someone!

But, unfortunately, it wasn't over yet.

The narrow turn was just about complete when the tilt of it started to disturb many objects in his little driver's area. Magazines began to slide towards him, including other things placed on the dashboard; his keys, schedules, pens etc. began to topple over and lose themselves in the unknown areas of the truck floor. Then suddenly, one of the front tires quickly bumped over a wooden box that had been in the way though entirely unavoidable, and even more things than before came tumbling down towards him, including one very hot large cup of double sugar coffee.

"AY!!! FUCK!!"

Scott unfortunately let out a yelp of pain and obscurities as the scorching liquid came pouring down and drenching his jean legs, burning his lap straight through and sending sparks from his once wonderful CB radio. Jeans weren't very much help though, and the coffee steamed through him like boiling water, and he felt his eyes shut with pain, feeling it so immensely that it felt as if his skin were being torn off and his flesh sliced to shreds. In an agonizing reaction, Scott's right foot came down and came down hard on the accelerator pedal trying to relieve himself of any ounce of hurt that he couldn't escape.

The truck came back to life with a roaring thrust, sifting on down the thankfully empty street, the nearest traffic still being about a block away. It took Scott about three seconds of unendurable pain before he realized his risky mistake. Despite his stinging burns, he tried to find a way to slow the beast down. and then. he heard it.

"Hey watch out!"

There was a cry from somewhere, somewhere close around him.

Still wincing in pain and raspy with shear dread, Scott Darwood darted his eyes around worriedly, forcing his weight against the brakes.

But he was too late.

Scott was too late to notice the coated figure suddenly appear out of nowhere, cut threateningly across the street.

He was too late to hear the loud shrieks of warning and the panicked blares of horns around him.

He was too late to change anything that was going to happen.

But he was early enough for one thing. He was early enough to know what was going to happen.

Some one, some woman, had cut straight across a truck out of control and a driver in agony. Even as he swerved madly, ignoring his pain to the best of his ability, Scott Darwood knew it was as futile as could be.

Scott was going to hit her.

The truck was going to hit this woman.


It was gone.

Van scrimmaged all throughout the bed sheets, and tossed his suitcase aside as the contents came flying downwards to the ground.

But it was obvious now.

It was gone. The uniform had vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

Groaning in disbelief, Van quickly brought up his hands to his face and smeared them down, feeling so totally confused.

Where in the hell could it be?

First of fall, it had only been a few seconds, or maybe even minutes now since he had just "awaken". It had felt as if Van had just escaped from a bad dream, a horrible nightmare, finding himself tossed within his once- arranged bed sheets and sprawling around in a cold sweat. For a few seconds after, Van had been entirely convinced that it had been nothing more than a bad dream. He had felt for certain that somehow, someway, he had fallen asleep without knowing and everything just sort of "happened" from there. That is, he believed it, until now. Until now when where that uniform had so surely once lay was nothing but a blank space.

But then again, Van wondered as he ran his hand through his raggedy black hair and picked out one of his pairs of jeans from the clutter on the floor. What if the uniform had been part of the dream too?

That thought seemed to be even more unbelievable than the thought of the uniform simply just vanishing into thin air. His reasons for thinking that was partly because Van knew that when he knew something to 110% off the bat, that meant he was absolutely positively certain of it. Van was certain of it, the uniform had been there just before the nightmare, or "thing", or whatever had occurred. He had felt it for himself, he had felt it's rough textured fabric and even remembered putting the whole thing together. But then again, Van also remembered the chilling sensation he had received when he had brushed his fingers over that girl's hand. He could still remember the rivets that had spiked through him when that girl, that Hitomi, had stared at him as if she had eerily seen him. If he could remember all of those things, then, couldn't they all have been real?

Feeling the intensifying feelings of the doubts and questions returning to him, Van couldn't help but wonder what he was to do next as he zipped on his jeans underneath the bathrobe, only partly aware of what he was doing and the total fashion understatement he was making. Nonetheless, there lay all of his stuff, sprawled on the ground in a careless fashion after his flurry of post-vision panic to search for that blasted uniform. But it wasn't here, and he didn't even want to try to figure out how to find it. Frankly, there wasn't very much that Van could figure out. His mind was too lost. His mind was caught adrift on a thousand thoughts blurring a second, worrying, analyzing, thinking.

Just what did any of this mean? These sensual nightmares, these disappearing clothing items, that wonderful girl.could it all mean. but dearest, why now? Why on earth now? Van didn't need this now! He didn't need these thoughts bothering him!! Just look at him, he was such a mess. He had things to do today, stuff to plan, people to call, yet he couldn't even leave his bedroom within falling headfirst into a well of problems! But why couldn't he just let it go? Why couldn't he just ignore it all and leave it behind him? Maybe because that's what he's been doing already for so long? Maybe, but still; what was Van to do, just what on earth should he do now? His days here were quite strictly numbered.

Sighing in the confused state he was apparently in, Van picked up the scattered items off the floor and threw them onto his bed. Never mind about those, he'd have to worry about them later. At this rate, he couldn't even concentrate enough to fold clothing.

He dragged his lanky and fatigued body to the bedroom doorway, and sort of rested himself against the frame of it, just loosely folding his arms in that way he always did and directed his eyes upwards.

Van couldn't seem to clear his mind.

Sighing, he could tell, that no matter how hard it was he tried, he still couldn't draw his mind away. It was thinking, it was analyzing and now it was beginning to worry. Van couldn't accept things without reason. And this was one of those things. Just what was the reason? Where was the logic behind it all? What was the point of reincarnating those feelings that he had hidden so well earlier on? There didn't seem to be much sense in him having to see it all again, feel it all again. Van just couldn't understand. What did he have to understand?

Then, just then. Van got that feeling; it hit him with such impact like a brick through a window.

The warmth seemed to crawl up his spine. and the familiarity of it all instantly answered one of his questions: What he had just experience minutes before had not been a "dream". All of it, the scenes, the clothes, were real. He could feel the heat begin to burn through the doorway wood confirming that fact, and suddenly Van's stomach began to grow queasy.

Now, not only could he feel it, but also he could hear it.

In seconds, Van heard the familiar screech of tires whisk by his open bedroom window. The awful sound of it ringing in his ears as it once had not long ago began to thriven his heart rate until he could already feel sweat begin to build upon his palms.

Not being able to take it much longer, Van finally quickly edged over to duck his head outside in the cool air high up above Fifth Ave. below. The sounds of the city were there normal rate of loudly and lively as it usually was each day. But that sickening feeling wouldn't leave Van. There was still that difference, that imbalance in his knowingness that he needed to understand.

Something was very wrong.

Then suddenly Van focused his glare, wind carrying his black bangs around crazily, and the sunlight warming his tanned skin, he finally spotted the approaching menace of a red vehicle scoring towards him with the sound of it roaring louder and louder as it approached.

Van's claret eyes narrowed considerably, studying the car as it noisily came and left. Vehicles around it honked angrily in their displeasure as it passed around the next corner and disappeared from his sight.

But there was still something very wrong.

Something was not right and whatever it was, it would have to happen soon. Van just knew it. Something terrible would be happening very, very SOON. The horrible premonition seemed to creep up his skin, wrap through his mind, and sink through his very well being. Van had to do something, and he had to do something now.

Without much thought and more worry to his actions, Van quickly ducked his head back into the hotel room and scurried himself through the bedroom door and to the hotel living room where Van instantly began to wrestle with the stubborn balcony doors. Finally, after thrusting himself madly against the screen door (which neither him nor Merle ever successfully managed to unlock without damaging it) Van found himself standing in the small surface of the balcony, fresh on the outside pavement.

From here, Van could still make out the roar of the car from before fading quickly, and the angry murmurs of crowds down below. Everything looked as if it were somehow returning to normal, but still Van knew that was far from the case. Van knew in any second now something was bound to happen which he couldn't-

Then suddenly, Van spotted her.

His thoughts blanking out entirely, Van's whole self seemed to stiffen as he watched the tiny little figure quickly waltzing around seven floors below him. The coated figure with flowing, short hair of birch brown amber, was quickly edging around all of the peoples that filed through the sidewalks. That figure got around surprisingly quickly in the skirt and heels, and seemed to be in a hurry. Hitomi seemed to be in a hurry.

Van's throat caught itself in disbelief, to a point where he felt like choking. He could still sense that awful sensation of misfortune weighing strongly against him, and the thought of seeing Hitomi at a time like this was not very comforting at all. Despite all that had happened concerning his "vision", and understanding his emotions, still Van couldn't really say he was very happy to see her at the moment. Right now the world seemed to be raveled in negative vibes, which could only mean one thing:

Hitomi Kanzaki was in danger.

And that automatically meant Van, being Van, would have to risk everything in order to keep her safe. Van's desire, Van's burn, Van's mission had finally returned to him after all.

It wasn't long after before the stumbling Mack tractor-trailer appeared out of nowhere faltering clumsily down the corner, wavering dangerously then suddenly picking up a vast increase in speed. Its large and unstoppable image plowed away any hopes for a peaceful ending, and easily signified what Van needed to hear, needed to know, without even fully understanding.

It was now.

Everything that was everything was now. Van didn't understand it, he didn't get, and he didn't even want to try. The more seconds he wasted even thinking, the less time he would have to perform this action and to do it right. There were no second chances. There were no gambles on life. Once he failed, Van would fail for good. It was just one of those challenges that he had begun to miss.

It was now.

Almost smiling in that competitive sense, Van felt his hands quickly remove his bathrobe, dropping it by his side on the balcony floor leaving him in nothing but the underwear and jeans he had thankfully put on. Instantly, he moved forwards until his bare abdomen reached the cool rail, and he gripped the railing tightly in preparation. Even until now, even when he was much older, Van still had to bear himself with what would happen next. In all honesty, no matter how critical the situation, Van had a feeling he would always never be prepared for this part of anything.

Shutting his eyes quickly, knowing there wasn't much time to agonize, he let out an impulse, a signal, and in a second, they reacted.

A flurry of white sparkling objects like snow crystals, feathers, came glistening downwards all around him as in seconds his magical wings sheared through the surface of his back, sheared through the very surface of his skin. Automatically he felt the clasp of his enormously beautiful wings attach themselves to the muscles in his shoulders and strengthen the flesh near his spine, then unfurl themselves so carefully as their wingspan grew and grew, until Van stood in the center of just about four metres of white purity which even had to fold outwards in order to escape the limits of the balcony space. Even now Van couldn't quite grasp the fact that as he had grown, the invisible yet wondrous limbs of his body continued to grow within him.

But Van did know one thing, despite the pain he had to still grow accustomed to.

It had felt good.

No matter how much he would never get used to doing just that, to relate back to the actions of his deceased ancestors, Van would still enjoy the feeling of these massive wings of power that gave him that sense of highness, a true feeling of royalty and heroism. With these wings, Van could always seem to defy the limits of any ordinary man that he would ever encounter.

With these wings, Van could always somehow find a way to accomplish what he could never do otherwise.

With these wings, Van would always be capable of rescuing those who needed it. With these wings, Van would rescue Hitomi one last time.

Feeling his new sets of nerves control the white lengths of satiny feathers; Van quickly crawled himself upwards until he was merely balancing on the thin rails with his bare feet. Narrowing his eyes, Van knew there was no more time to kid around. He had to focus.

It had to be now.

The Mack truck was not slowing down, instead it almost looked as if it was picking up speed. The character below him was still running. She was getting so close now. She was getting too close now.

It was time. It had to be now.

With that last thought, Van's heart thumped loudly once more as he stretched outwards, wings unfurled, and dived off the balcony rail.




She was close.

She could feel it; she was very close now.

Hitomi couldn't quite catch her breath. The Ramada stood now directly above her and everything in her mind just seemed to click. She knew where she was going, she knew what she would find, and she knew her desire to find it.

She was close enough to taste it.

Still running through the packed street sides and weaseling around pedestrians everywhere, the only sound running through Hitomi's head was the loud clickety-clack of her heels smartly smacking against the cement floor. On and on those sounds went, almost rhythmic even, signaling each beat when she came just a second closer to her final destination.

She was close now.

Panting, she reached the street curb, and gazed over quickly to the hotel entrance, where many people were still bustling around.

She was here. She was here at last!

Heart racing, thoughts racing, feet racing, Hitomi Kanzaki quickly found herself spluttering onto the road, dashing quickly and thoughtlessly. She seemed to just run across the street, as if she were blind, as if she were deaf.

It sure did seem that way, for Hitomi never noticed until she was mere seconds too late.

Hitomi, finally feeling her vanished sense of reality return to her, suddenly could now hear the massive blares of an angry horn ahead of her, the piercing screech of tires, the jolts of weight burning through the road's pavement and the dark shadows being cast from it all.

It all happened too quickly, but to Hitomi, it was nothing but pure slow motion.

It was coming.

The truck, the massive forest green truck was headed straight at her.

It swerved slightly off to the left trying to avoid her, as Hitomi merely watched helpless and too much in shock and even too late to budge an inch.

But a swerve would not help very much, if only make it worse. It looked as if either the front of it would crush her on impact head-on, or either she would be dragged and mercilessly decapitated underneath if the side of it would hit first.

Wow, Hitomi didn't even know she would be spending the last seconds of her life thinking about possible death scenarios. In all honesty, she was thinking such stupid things because she didn't think she would die. It was just a truck, just speeding ahead of her. Even until now, the reality of impact still hadn't occurred in Hitomi's rather clouded mind.

Until half a second later, it did.

Hitomi was going to die.

Hitomi was going to die.

Hitomi was going to die.

Instantly, in a wave of disbelief and pure fright, Hitomi fell to her knees and passed out.



It was cold here.

The chilliness had already caused her last drying tear to cake against her face.

Hitomi shuddered, and brought the comforters up higher, still crowding herself in that balled immobile position in which she had remained in since she had awakened. Since then, her soft sniffling had ceased, and the blur over her eyes had cleared at long last. Now Hitomi just lay in this strange bed in this strange room, eyes shut in a realm of self-pity; tucked underneath the thick blankets as if to escape from reality, the reality she could not understand. And so she lay, alone from her tears and alone with her thoughts.

What was she going to do?

It was the same question that had plagued her since the second her blaring mind had come to full operation; and even now she had not found a solution to her countless array of problems. For instance, why on earth was she now waking up in a strange hotel room of the Ramada? She didn't know why or how she had gotten here, but at least she had figured out she was in the Ramada Hotel simply by judging from the noisy downtown Aimsa environment she could hear through the open bedroom window, the source of the chilly breeze.

Asides from that, Hitomi began to wonder: who had brought her here? It was an obvious curiosity to have in her conditions, and even lying on the bed she could easily spot the clutter of men's clothing strewn upon the floor escaping somehow from an empty suitcase sitting off by the foot of the bed. In the reclusive dimness, she knew she was here with some man somewhere off in the apartment, but Hitomi was too afraid to face what she thought. There were plenty of scenarios that came to mind (some terrifying yet some rather intriguing) but Hitomi did her utmost best to ignore them all.

A part of her was too fearful. She was too afraid to know just who had brought her here. Why was she afraid? Simply because Hitomi knew when she figured out who had rescued her from her stupid mistake, Hitomi would instantly come to remember her long journey here in the first place, her disturbing visions early this morning, and everything else that had happened to result in that "someone" to come to her mind. She didn't know why exactly that all of a sudden, her fear was keeping her from the truth, but maybe it was because Hitomi hadn't decided on just how prepared she was to know. Hitomi didn't feel she was prepared to face it at all, to face it all to an undeniable certainty. Hitomi was afraid of all that she would come to remember, all the thoughts restored within her, all the feelings replenished. That was why she was so afraid. She couldn't bear the thought of feeling that indescribable feeling because she knew if she did, there was a strong chance that she could never let go of that powerful emotion all over again.

The winged image began to fill her mind once more.

Obviously her "attempts" on forgetting were simply an invisible introduction to remembering. It was futile. How much longer could Hitomi Kanzaki live a lie anyway? There was only so much time before Hitomi would be reborn in the truth. She had been ready before; she had been ready and willing to face the facts not long ago. Backing out now would simply be cowardly.

With that thought in mind and her senses awakening, Hitomi pulled down the warming sheets and slowly sat herself up allowing the draftiness to take her, running a faint hand through her cluster of bed-hair. In the lonely darkness she stared down plainly at her favorite knee-length skirt, and noticed the two runs in her panty hose that were not there earlier on. Obviously, it was just one of the marks to remind her of that troubling life-and-death scenario she was trying to forget altogether.

Sighing, she felt her heart weaken with burden as she stared lowly out through the window beneath the flustering drapes. She must have been asleep longer than she had expected, for the familiar night glow had already stolen the scene of the city, and left her in this room, in this hotel of darkness.

Finally, finding some reappearing energy to stand herself, Hitomi stretched upwards and stared down at the bed before her. Her rest had been so undisturbed, and although she was concerned about her whereabouts, she still felt reluctant to leave that state of peace. In those few moments of sleep, she had at least been free from the restlessness and puzzles of the world. It was that normal state of life she was beginning to miss. When did things start to become so confusing and complicated anyway?

Oddly finding herself arranging the bed sheets, a smile couldn't help but trickle on her somehow. It had been a nice rest, a nice getaway from the rush of all that had happened. Whomever it had been who had rescued her, whether Hitomi was ready to face them or not, obviously cared enough for her to not only keep her safe, but comfortable as well.

The winged image approached her mind a second time.

With the bed made, Hitomi's eyes wandered themselves in the dimness, until they fell upon the bedroom door, slightly ajar. A flutter of apprehension and nervousness surged her at the awareness of it.

Quietly and almost edgily, Hitomi in her stocking feet crept over to the bedroom door, the wooden floorboards underneath the carpeting hardly creaking despite her weight. With the dreary silence and darkness of the hotel room, she felt too repressed as even to utter a sound.

Her fingers graced over the painted wood slowly, her eyes befalling nothing but darkness on the other side of the door. She breathed deeply.

There was no more time to delay.

If Hitomi wanted her life to return to anything near normal, it just had to be now.

She was ready now.

She knew well that there was no way out of this place without meeting the unavoidable. According to her knowledge, Hitomi had no real way home. She had no money, she had no car, she had no phone and not to mention it was a very long trip, and a cold and dark one if she were to walk. Even if she somehow managed to call anybody, Amano most likely, Hitomi knew in seconds she felt too much in shame to request anything. What was her excuse for all of this anyway? What was the reasonable and logical explanation she could give for someone like Amano Nekuchi to understand? She knew there were none. She knew she could not find a sensible way to justify her actions, and so now, even consulting her own fiancé seemed a strange and unlikely thing to do. She simply felt that even Amano could not understand her at this time.

Breathing slowly at the heavy thought, Hitomi drew back the bedroom door, alarmed suddenly at the noisy creak erupting from the door's hinges.

She held herself dormant in tension, but still, not a sound of response was emitted from within the hotel walls. It seemed an odd thought to think after all the thinking she had already done, but what if Hitomi didn't need to be prepared for anything after all? Just what if, no one was actually here? Could that be?

Deciding not to fret about it until she knew for certain, Hitomi pushed herself past into the docile living room. It was dark and rather cold in here as well, the whole place looking as if deserted for not even a light was lit anywhere she could see with the exception of the light peeking in from the hotel hallways or the city glow through the balcony doors.

She paused, feeling suddenly indicated by something.

Brushing back a lock of mahogany from her eyes, her vision befell a single light amongst the blackness.

The pink beams from her radiant original pendant danced lightly against the bare of her skin as it hung from her neck as always. At first she was taken aback by the glow, but soon her eyes became accustomed and again she began to remember the days when a glowing pendant would be entirely normal. When had she forgotten her childhood anyway? How did she not remember those dear times when she would sit alone in the closets every now and then, just staring at it? Her heirloom had constantly fascinated her, but she figured that the length of time she had been without the original had gained her less knowledge of the powers she had forgotten she possessed.

Feeling her fingers grace upon its warmth, she remembered the reasons behind a lit pendant. It meant something much more than merely illuminating magic. There were reasons behind it that signaled her to understand. Now with the pendant's safe return, it was once again guiding her as it usually always did before she had given it away.

Feeling her eyes adjusting, she redirected them once again to her mysterious surroundings. Instantly the outlines and shades of numerous appliances and basic apartment surroundings filled her eyesight.

But this was not what she wanted to see.

The pendant had reacted to something, no better yet, someone. Hitomi was not alone. She knew it and she knew it well. How? Well, she didn't care how she knew. The bottom line was she was certain that her hero had not left her here all by herself. He was here. He was here and there had to be a good reason why she had not approached him yet, but there was no doubt that she would soon.

Still gazing amongst her, Hitomi took a step forward only to feel her stocking toes grace over something, something maybe even moist.

Recoiling at the revolting tingle, she stared downwards quickly, trying to see to the best of her ability as her jade eyes reflected against a dark stain-like thing dotting the carpet by her feet.

Intrigued by curiosity, Hitomi decided to inspect the mystery.

Lightly, she dabbed the strangeness with her index finger, a part of the moist substance glazing her skin. Bringing it up to the faint light of her necklace charm, Hitomi submitted a silent gasp at the sight of the redness coating her finger.

Instantly, a sickening chill ran through her.

It was blood. Fresh blood.

Then as if on cue, Hitomi received a lingering sensation, a lingering knowing of the origin of the blood, of the holder of the wound. The thought seemed to bother her and interest at the same time, half afraid to know but only knowing she would have to know.

Her eyes darted upwards, instantly accustomed to the darkness feeling the mood intensify, signaling her of the dire need of the situation. Something needed her. Hitomi could sense it crawling at the back of her mind. This strange blood was a sign of it all, it was a sign that-

Then Hitomi's thoughts blanked out completely.

No words filled her mind, no ideas formed. Instead, the stock-still Hitomi just held her breath and stared trying to comprehend it all; the blood on her finger, the darkness of the room, the figure lying helpless before her.

She felt her breathing catch still in her throat, invoking an almost choking impression.

He just lay there. Unmoving.

For countless seconds, her eyes scanned his frail and thin body, searching the bare palette of wounds and scratches for any sign of hope.

She couldn't blink, she couldn't breathe.

But at least he was. He was breathing, she could tell but barely. His chest seemed to heave upwards and downwards at the slowest pace possible, each time threatening as if to breathe his very last.

She couldn't even come to think; instead her eyes studied him with an overpowering empathy and compassion. Before her, lying sprawled against the gray of the sofa, was a young man exactly her age with eyes shut and head backed against the arm of the couch. His berry black bangs hid his expression of pure agony, but Hitomi didn't need to see it to know it. His pain was already obvious enough just by being in his presence, never mind paying heed to his countless scratches, deep wounds and…

Hitomi felt a revolting churn of her stomach, as if lunging her heart through her esophagus as her eyes befell it. The sight of it, the sight of the wound surged her with a sickening reaction. Feeling her eyelashes beat against her skin as she tried to blink it all away, Hitomi knew the facts still lay there before her.

His leg, it was so badly… ruined. Hitomi didn't know how to describe it, but the feeling of it impacted her intensely that she could barely find the courage to remain standing. She could almost smell it even, smell the stench of that deep gash, that deep cut searing to the bone on that young man's left leg, searing so deeply that it had tinted the towel around it to a frightening shade of red.

Through those watering eyes, Hitomi felt herself draw closer to him. She felt herself willingly approach what she could not bear to see, but what she could not bear to turn away from no matter how hard her heart wrenched inside.

She felt so upset, she felt so alone, she felt so responsible.

Only inches away now, she felt her index finger wipe away the renewed tears lining her cheeks, then felt her fingers lower themselves as she could not take her eyes away. In seconds, she felt her hand take his, felt her small feeble fingers drape over his cold skin, felt her take him as she fought to keep herself from erupting in sadness.

She bowed her head in shame, in realization, in responsibility.

She watched slowly and painfully as the young warrior continued to live in nothing but this realm of misery.

Face of guilt partly hidden within coarse bangs, she felt her lips move to a soft whisper:

"No, I'm sorry, I can't help you," Hitomi wearily gave the inquiring middle-aged woman another fatigued glare. She didn't care whom this woman was, she may have been the Queen Amidala herself (what with all that makeup on), but Hitomi could not give much more than an unenthusiastic shrug.

Under the dim lighting of the hallway, it wasn't hard to notice the pestering lady flash the shorter, faired haired man by her side a skeptical glance. Then seconds later, she returned her demeaning stare to Hitomi, sapphire eyes piercing through her with not only doubt, but also impatience.

"I'm pretty sure of what I saw young lady," her voice came out annoyingly shrill, in Hitomi's opinion. "And there are about ten or fifteen people downstairs in the lobby you can go talk to that would say the same thing."

"That's very nice," Hitomi's reply was strangely dry and frozen cold. It almost seemed as if any trace of friendliness had vaporized completely. She was only left with this longing to escape from the two strangers to get to what she really wanted to do, and needed to do even.

"I didn't say I didn't believe you, ma'am, I'm just saying that I never saw or heard anything peculiar. Now please…"

The man off to the woman's left of which had stayed rather silent lately, shifted his weight and peeled his small, speck-like eyes to Hitomi, prying with the same look of suspicion as the woman shared. He was obviously raveled in a state of discomfort, not so knowing about how to go around this awkward situation.

The woman stared at him, as if urging him to help out the ailing confrontation.

"Well, what do you think Lec? Should we call the investigator up here or what? She's wasting our time."

Hitomi felt her ears burn with anger and a new level of annoyance, flashing the hag of a woman with a viscous look and sealing her lips in a thin, unappealing gesture. Although having just awakened, the two bustling intruders had already keened Hitomi to a new sense of alertness.

"Are you sure that you saw them come up here, Mrs. Hein?" The man clenched his hands in an apparently nervous manner, constantly keeping his eyes away from staring at the flare in Hitomi's.

"Of course I'm sure," Kasher Hein granted the small superintendent a near-to-evil look, seeming more certain of herself that doubt didn't even come to fringe her thoughts. "Everyone is sure! My son saw it too if you'd like to ask him!"

Hitomi watched the feud with a bored glance, still utterly irritated by their incompetence. She could feel the itching drag to flee away from these menacing people, to escape from their suspicion and get to more important concerns. After all, he lay just beyond their view, securely hidden because of the way Hitomi only held the hotel door ajar by only about five inches. Any wider and the wounded victim she had been so earnestly caring for would be exposed to prying eyes like theirs.

"All right then," the slightly heavy man, Lecward Bargera, gave one last heave of a sigh and directed his attention back to the thwarting Hitomi, who fired at him invisible darts through her glaring green pupils. He furrowed his brows and cleared his throat respectively.

"Well then, if you are certain, we must call upon the investigator… there doesn't seem to be much choice…" he flaunted Hitomi a knowing glance.

Sensing on their intentions, Hitomi's curiosity instantly sparked.

"What on earth do you mean? What investigator?"

"Well then young lady, if you don't consider listening to Mr. Bargera and I, we will call upon the detective," Kasher Hein threw her chin back triumphantly, as if also tuning in to Hitomi's sudden weakness: higher authority.

"You don't seem to understand the importance of this situation."

"I told you I didn't see anything!"

"That's not the point!" Kasher Hein, with slightly frayed pale blonde hair flurrying about in the abandoned 80's style, stomped her foot aggressively in the entrance of the doorway, expression challenging Hitomi's ever so daringly.

"The point is something rather significant has occurred here, and if you won't allow us to investigate, then we'll get someone who will investigate whether you like it or not-"

Then, Kasher's voice quite dimly trailed.

Hitomi observed her, slightly amused from the satisfying aggravation invoked from her newest archenemy but also in wonder on why the old bag's verbal attacks had so quickly cut short.

Kasher Hein brought her aged hands to her hips, loosely flinging back a ringlet of curls as if pretending she was young enough to exhibit her retired looks. She continued to lay her eyes upon the anxiously impatient Hitomi, scanning her from head to toe as if a light bulb had lit somewhere.

Furrowing her brows with a sort of contemplative conclusion, she leaned downwards to Lec Bargera and hastily hushed something into his left ear.

Hitomi gazed at their secrecy, feeling the annoyance burrow deeper within her until it was close to scathing the line of "hate". Hitomi didn't need this at this time, and it was obvious that her patience was close to worn out.

Tapping her foot and squirming intolerantly, a fogged thought quickly jabbed into Hitomi's mind.

A secret?

What did that woman, that Hein, say to the small man? The superintendent of the Ramada…There wasn't much doubt; it had to do with Hitomi, but what about Hitomi? What kind of conniving stupid things could this woman be concocting?

Then… Hitomi came across to a far-out but easily reasonable explanation.

This woman, this Hein, continued to insist that she had seen "it", she had seen "them" return to this place. If that were so, if Kasher Hein had been one of the few selected witnesses to accurately describe what had happened maybe even hours before now, then wasn't there chance that…

Hitomi swallowed dryly.

That must have been it. Kasher Hein must have recognized her. She probably knew Hitomi had been the one directly involved in the "incident" and thus knew that Hitomi was simply lying her way out of things.

Kasher's eyes didn't seem to blink as they glazed with sudden knowledge. Lec Bargera, alongside her, seemed to nod supportively as he too examined Hitomi inquisitively.

"Very well," his voice came out somewhat weak, hardly glinting with as much authority as his shrill, female companion. "That detective or whomever Kaaya called should probably take a look up here, I hope you're aware of this."

He gave Hitomi a serious look.

"You really should listen to us. We know this is the exact apartment we're looking for."

Hitomi, feeling quickly judged, was just about to rush back with some sort of creative excuse when she felt the presence of Hein urging Lec to hurry on down the corridor back to the hotel elevators.

"Don't waste your time," Kasher's voice portrayed no sympathy. "This arrogant girl has made a mistake, and we'll be the ones to prove it."

Lec gave a doubtful glance in Kasher's direction, one last look at the confounded Hitomi, and headed on down the carpeted hall, pants swishing in that usual annoying manner. Kasher Hein wasn't slow to follow, but not before turning herself once more to face the not only perplexed, but now worried, Hitomi Kanzaki.

"Before we go young rude miss, I'd hope you know that Lec here is in charge of the Ramada, and the second we go downstairs we will be checking the register to find out just why you're here. Not only that, but I'll personally make sure the investigator gets a good look at you. Don't think I'm stupid lady, I know who you are."

"And just who do you think I am?" Hitomi, although feeling her insides tearing like weak jell-o, managed to somehow retain her icy stare.

The tip of Kasher's lip curled in an almost malevolence manner, as she turned to face Bargera, already impatiently waiting by the hotel elevator.

"I guess we'll find out soon enough, now won't we?"

And with that, the boastful woman turned the small of her back towards Hitomi and minutes later disappeared from the corridor avec Lec Bargera, at least for the time being.

Gazing in an almost stunned manner, Hitomi's thoughts came hitting back at her too many at a time, until she was left shutting the door madly and leaning her drained weight against it.

She laid her head back, eyes shutting.

What was she going to do???

Hitomi had seen it in Kasher Hein's malice expression. That woman knew. Kasher Hein not only knew, but also saw for herself, what had happened just hours before. Even Hitomi barely remembered the clear details, having fogged it out to the best of her ability. But still, never did she guess that Van's, heroic act could leave them now hanging in a state of federal jeopardy. Only now did Hitomi realize that there weren't any possible or logical explanations she could come up with in ten minutes' time. What was she to say? To a detective even! In front of ten to fifteen witnesses??! Hitomi was done for. She could never deny it; the most she could accomplish to do was to play stupid and pretend as if had been totally unaware of what had happened, which is partially true since she had been in some sort of state of sub-consciousness. Even then, how much more of her fabled tale would they by? Hitomi was sure of it. They had seen the wings. All of those eyeballing spectators must have seen everything: Hitomi, the truck, the cars, the wings, the flying, and Van.

Van…

The name brought her head to lower once again, and reduced her breathing as her eyes befell the saddening image still lying almost motionless on the sofa. He didn't look as wrenching as before though, seeing as Hitomi had been spending her last few minutes cleaning encrusted blood off his wounds, and transforming the sofa to be as comfortable for him as possible. Even then, she couldn't have hidden her disappointment upon seeing that he had not awaken yet. Although she was gentle with him, she still somewhat hoped her movements would jostle him just enough to regain his ability to speak with her. Hitomi needed to speak with him. She didn't know what to do. She didn't even know if he was okay.

As she peeled herself away from guarding the doorway, Hitomi slowly walked over closer to Van, thinking she may as well spend her last few minutes with him in solitude. Hitomi was confident that it wouldn't be long before he would be discovered, wound and all, and then things would merely go downhill from there.

He was breathing softly now, looking to an almost contented state of sleepy peace. She smiled sitting alongside him and brushing a black bang away from flustering his closed eyelids… it was almost adorable really. If you put aside the graphic cuts and scars, the darkening bruises, and the permanent gashes, you were really left with not a warrior, but the man in the warrior. Almost like a young boy, a young boy of innocence.

But soon, too soon, Hitomi's smile left her.

She could not just sit here and watch this, thinking happy thoughts that weren't really relevant in this situation. Hitomi longed to do nothing but stay here with him, just observing the way this mysterious yet impacting stranger graced her emotions inside to a point she didn't understand but grew fond of. Then again she also knew that not only her time, but also his time as well, were running deeply slim. She couldn't take the chance, and wouldn't take the chance on his life. Hitomi didn't care if that stupid Hein and her partners in crime came back after her; maybe it wasn't even such a bad thing. At least that would guarantee that Van would receive the medical assistance he needed, and Hitomi meant needed. She had been considering somehow finding a way to take him to a hospital, or somewhere, anywhere, to receive help. She was no medical expert, but she knew a deep wound like his could easily attain infection, not to mention he was also in risk for his large account of blood loss. For minutes now she had been earnestly panicking about Van's situation, thinking of solutions but each time running into a larger obstacle than the last.

Then, as Hitomi's hand slowly took his weak fingers in her hold, a thought occurred in her mind. It seemed absurd at first, but she knew out of all her options, it was probably a reasonable one and maybe even held some sort of advantage. It should have occurred to her earlier, but now was now, and if Hitomi was quick enough, maybe she could pull it off. Maybe at last, Hitomi could find a real answer to the desperate crisis, which plagued her. A crisis she had not asked for and had not predicted, but now was so easily enveloped within.

His eyelashes fluttered beating rapidly against the surface of his cheeks. As dim light seemed to filter his view, the remnants of a migraine appeared to form itself again out of nowhere.

Van lay perfectly still, not wishing to aggravate his aches and pains any more than he had to. As the drag of his previous sleepiness began to finally leave him, he couldn't help but wonder on just how long he had been awake, or better yet, how long he had been asleep. It was as if time had abandoned him altogether, for just lying here he had absolutely no clue on exactly "when" it could be. As far as he was concerned, seven months could have passed without his knowing. Time could only partly worry him at the moment though, for it seemed as if his ailments made it to the top of his list of priorities.

Slowly, carefully, Van decided to raise himself, at least to the point where he could see past the ceiling. It was a slow and painful procedure but by squirming just enough Van managed to rest his back against the sofa arm finally sitting upright. Gosh, how that had hurt. How could it be that his muscles ached so much? It was like an unquenchable fire searing through his flesh, to the point that breathing became a hassle in itself. He didn't know how much more he could take. No matter how tough Van was, it didn't deny the fact that he was a mere mortal, thus pain so easily registered.

Grimacing considerably under his slow breaths, Van allowed his vision to gaze upon his massacred leg, securely wrapped three times in what he recognized were hotel towels. Each towel however looked nothing as they originally were, now blotched deeply with red markings that made Van's stomach recoil rather sickly. It all instantly reminded him of the vast amount of blood that he couldn't control losing not long ago. In just seconds he could remember the dizzying sensations, his body growing weak and his thoughts becoming faint until he figured he must have just blacked out completely. It was honestly a frightening sensation, one too close to a deathly edge that he would do anything but relive it again.

Settling still, Van swallowed deeply trying to grow accustomed to the acute spasms of pain, and focused on letting his mind clear. After avoiding the topic of his physical suffering, Van adequately noticed how cleanly his surroundings were, including himself. Where once stained scars and deep cuts lay, were now cleaned scabby skin and patches of bandages made up of a gauze cloth material and attached to his skin with medical tape. He dabbed at the appendage curiously, slightly intrigued having not seen the contents of a first aid kit before in his life. The pain reacted, as expected, but at least not to such a hurtful extent as previously before.

The bloody stains around him on the carpets and cushioning seemed to have faded away as well, either having dried or were cleansed. Van really didn't know what to make of it, but it did make him feel a little reassured inside. It filled him with the knowledge that whatever was happening now, he was at least safe and being taken care of. He could tell that whomever was with him was here recently, for the open medical kit still lay partly used on the coffee table alongside.

Then Van's thoughts abruptly silenced himself.

There was sound. It didn't take too long before Van could sense it, but he was quick to react. There was sound here, that someone was here, in a room off to the left.

As Van gently twisted himself to face the bedroom doorway, he became certain that he could hear footsteps from the inside, and strange, alien beeping sounds.

Seconds later, Van familiarized with the beeps, remembering them from what the earthlings referred to as the "telephone". But Van knew only one other that was here with him before his mind had left him, but she couldn't have awaken already as well? Could she? Could she have been the one who had helped him so without his knowing?

Van frowned, finding that rather ironic, seeing as he had been the one who had figured he should be taking care of her, not vice-versa. Hitomi had looked well when he had last seen her, absorbed in her sleep. Van figured she was exhausted, probably would be out for a couple of more hours. If that was her awake in there, it was either she had gotten up earlier than he had expected, or else he had been asleep longer than he knew of. Whatever it was, Van was not going to take it lying down. He knew then he'd have to investigate.

"…. come on, please pick up…."

At the sound of the enchantingly familiar voice, Van nearly jumped off the sofa, hardly paying heed to the rendering amounts of pain catching him at the action. He did everything with the expected awkward limp but also with an added sense of silence, for some reason not wanting her to know right away of his awakening. He couldn't help but feel slightly curious, and a little repressed at the idea of meeting Hitomi so suddenly. It just seemed awkward to face her like that, so unprepared on what he was to say or do. Frankly, he still didn't know and doubted he ever would, but nonetheless he wasn't going to just outright jump in there and say "Hey, how ya doin'?" - That just wasn't Van. He really didn't know what he was going to do just yet, either that, or Van was something that he would never admit on being. But the fact still lay there somewhere around the way: Van felt incredibly shy.

"…Amano…"

Van, inching and tiptoeing the short distance not only because of silence, but also in prevention of pain, listened at the sudden sound of disappointment clash against Hitomi's voice. He could hear her quite well now filtering from the opposite side of the bedroom door, speaking of the name he remembered quite easily. It seemed strange now for him to imagine Hitomi and Amano in real life. To Van, the two figment creatures were like objects of his memories, but instead he was now being presented with a present day situation. Once again, the thought made him feel funny inside, a sort of selfishness and anger resembling jealousy in an oddly harmonious condition.

As his eyes peeked through the small space the door left open, he directly spotted her very near by, the back of the young woman facing him with a cord phone nestled on her right shoulder. Van's throat caught itself immediately, in surprise and sudden nervousness.

Another sigh floated from Hitomi Kanzaki, as she looped an additional series of cord curls onto her index finger. On the opposite line a loud beep rung to Hitomi's worry and disappointment.

"Amano!" Her voice seemed to be filled with a sort of inflicting panic overwhelmed with a kind of sadness and urgency. "Look, if you can here me, please pick up! I tried calling our cell line but I guess you're recharging yours. Amano, listen to me, I need your help. It's bad. It's an emergency, and I don't know who to turn to! YOU NEED TO HELP ME!! Amano please, pick up! Look, I'm in the Ramada downtown, I have a friend here who was in an accident and is going to bleed to death if I don't do something! I can't take him to the hospital, it's hard to explain but-"

The suddenly Hitomi's wailing voice lost all tone.

The line on the other end had beeped a second time, then hung up.

"Shit!" Hitomi, angered incredibly and also inflicted by feelings of pure anxiety and a sort of fright, yanked the telephone straight out of it's jack and flung it madly against the hotel wall, watching as it came crashing to broken pieces scattered against the hotel carpet. It reminded her instantly of the radio that had undergone a similar attack earlier that morning. Why had she gone so crazy then? At least Hitomi had a good reason to be crazy now, a very good reason. She wasn't dreaming about Van, she wasn't having a vision of Van, Hitomi was WITH Van. She had pinched herself countless times now but each time was as useless as the last. It was no dream; there was nothing synthetic about it all. Hitomi knew it was all too real and if she didn't do something now she was putting the sake of her meaning to life in jeopardy. She had no clue on how that was so, but she figured it was so.

Thus, that thought frightened and angered Hitomi even more. She began beating on things, deciding to destroy anything that wasn't a fabricated part of her imagination. It all seemed unfair to her, how was it that all the odds lay stacked against her favour? Why did she have to be so damn foolish? She shouldn't have come! She shouldn't have come and attracted all that negative attention to herself, and above all she shouldn't have done something as stupid as wandering in the middle of the road like that. What would she have done if it weren't for Van? She would be dead. Hitomi would be nothing but a giant clunk of human roadkill. She owed her life to him, as she knew she did countless times before. But now what? All because of her stupid mistake the very person whom had sacrificed everything to rescue her was now about to lose his own life in the process. Well, Hitomi didn't think Van was in that much of a critical condition physically, there was still a very good chance that with the right attention he would be just fine despite maybe an injured leg. But that wasn't what worried Hitomi. It was everything else that equally panicked her, the thought of earthly "reality" that could not be avoided. In her dreams, in her visions, even in her memories it was alright to think of "Gaea" as this sanctuary place she could run to. But now, now when the thought hit her like a bullet she understood the fine line "Gaea" treaded between being nothing more than a dreamworld and reality. That was just what it felt like. It felt as if somehow, someway, Hitomi's most vivid fantasies and dreams had crossed that boundary of reality, and stepped flat into the actuality of her life. Now, everything was blended together, present day emotions, past emotions and growing worries. Hitomi was left all alone to find the medium of two worlds she couldn't explain.

Even lying slightly ruined on the floor, the phone continued beeping in that way to alert someone that it was off the hook.

"SHUT UP!" Hitomi easily angered at it interrupting her thoughts thrust a heavy suitcase in its direction, breathing furiously trying to conceal all of it, trying to calm herself down. But it was to no use; Amano couldn't even help her. He had been her very last hope of hopes. He could have came over quickly, used his medical knowledge to assist Van and with his devotion to Hitomi, he wouldn't tell a soul about what had occurred. Hitomi very much doubted that Amano Nekuchi would be the type to believe anything about Van's real identity, but that really didn't matter. The important part was that he would at least keep the information confidential, whether he acknowledged its authenticity or not.

But no, there was no Amano, there were no friends, no people she could trust. The only ones left with Hitomi were those cruel spectators that were like bloodsuckers, only out to destroy what they didn't understand. They would take Van from her. They would steal him away from her grasp and would never set him free. What would she do then? How could she protect him? How could she keep those with such evil intention at bay? The truth was she couldn't. Things have been revealed to the world now, things that mere earthlings didn't know of and would easily probe into. People of the everyday could not just accept "dreamworlds" and "angels"; it was too much of a far-out concept. They would take him from her, and it would all be Hitomi's idiotic fault.

Feeling her writhing passions of anger weaken, Hitomi was overwhelmed with a blow of self-pity. With her body going limp, she sulked to the floor and fell into a well of tears. Hitomi was nothing but a sorrowful figure, only wishing to cry all of her miseries away.

That invoking choke clasped on his throat tightened and swelled, to a suffocating point. Van had reacted surprisingly to each of Hitomi's aggravated emotional outbursts, but then again to see the fine, young woman reduce herself to a sobbing form caught him off guard as it often did. Van realized that just like previously in his startling visions, Hitomi was raveled once more in that strange bout of sadness. She was obviously so very upset, angry but also sad. Van also knew quickly what she had been trying to do. Hitomi had been trying so earnestly to find help for him. She had called that man; her fiancé Amano, to come to aid her but apparently that cry for help had gone unheard. And now, all of that left her so saddened, so worried about him. It didn't make much sense at first, but then Van understood. Hitomi was worried for him.

Slowly, Van gently opened the door, hearing the creak escape loudly from the door's hinges, alerting the poor, sobbing figure sitting helpless on the bedroom floor.

Hitomi raised her face away from her moist palms, drying her cheeks slowly on her blouse sleeve and fighting hard to control the wheezes seizing her. Supporting herself in a half-stand position, Hitomi turned her direction towards the comforting silhouette illuminating from the bedroom doorway. She allowed her shaky hand to grasp the warmth of his... and observed in surprise as the young and handsome man drew Hitomi to her feet with a comforting smile written upon him. Without words, without need of words, the person whom Hitomi now worried so much for and cared so dearly for returned that affection, holding her still within his embrace. And thus, in the humming silence of the empty hotel room, Hitomi fell into that embrace as her tears began to dry once more.

"Can you describe the man that was with this young woman in detail?"

"It's like I told you a dozen times," Kasher's voice showed no patience, much the less the stressed expression upon her face. "He was in his early twenties, no top, faded jeans, no shoes nor socks, and black hair. I really don't like to repeat myself. Didn't everyone else already give you the exact same description?"

"I'm sorry Mrs. Hein," Upon pushing up her ever slipping glasses, Inspector Motoko flashed the elder woman a false smile also bearing with the same point of irritancy. "It has been a long day for me as well, but never the less someone called me to the premises and I have to do my job here and I will do it properly. It is my duty to interrogate you all the exact same way, so I'm afraid things may need to get repetitive."

Shifting her weight, Kasher nodded aimlessly shushing young Peiter Hein who tugged at her skirt seam in his pure boredom. It was hard to blame such a young child however, for practically anyone would be un-enthralled to be stuck within a hotel lobby for the past few hours while supposedly touring Aimsa, Japan. And to top those matters off, poor Peiter was merely four and a half years old, with an aunt that did not exactly favour the idea of watching over him for two weeks straight.

"Anyway," Kusanagi Motoko bowed her head momentarily to get a good look over the many notes she had jotted down, each resembling the last fairly clearly, except for one detail the young Motoko still had a hard time grasping.

"Now Mrs. Hein, correct me if I'm mistaken, but you too mentioned this presence of 'wings' upon the male character?"

"Yes, yes wings," Hein's head bobbed agreeably, as if the subject of people with flying obscurities upon their back was a daily issue. "How else could he fly? He flew with wings. I'm sure of it, those kind of things you don't see everyday."

"I'll say..." Motoko shook her head still reading over the notes unbelievingly. Wings? Honestly, wings? She didn't expect this situation to be much of a hassle; truthfully she had been in quite some wonder on why they would call upon a detective for such a civilian case but apparently there was more to the simplicity of this issue than she thought. Still, wings? Maybe she had not seen it for herself, and maybe she did have a good dozen witnesses who did, but each time she heard the tale she became more and more doubtful. Wings? Why not just call upon the department of paranormal activity why don't ya...

"Look detective," finally wearing with patience because of young Peiter's insistent whining, Kasher decided that her stay here could not be for much longer. "I already told you where that apartment is. I'm assuming you're still going to visit it, are you not?"

"Right, unit 754, I remember. What did you say I should look for?"

Kasher Hein gave yet another exasperated sigh; sometimes these employed adolescents could be so darn ignorant.

"I told you already. I believe that the woman who had been with the man-"

"The one that nearly got hit by Mr. Darwood's truck, am I right?"

"Yes, yes her. The brown haired one. I think she was the one I spoke to at that apartment. It's worthy checking out... she sounded as if she were nervous... trying to hide something maybe."

"Well then, I'll see into it," Motoko relieved to see a heads-up in her path, nodded her farewell. "Thanks for the tip, and your time Mrs. Hein. Hopefully this will all blow over nicely."

"I'd hope so," Kasher brushed back a curled, pale blonde bang. "Or else I'm not staying in this hotel for one day extra... now get on with it Peiter, where's that damned candy machine already..."

Kusanagi watched it a strange awe as the sniping woman disappeared further into the lobby of the Ramada by the checkout, the young adorable boy caught within her grasp. She was only lucky Kusanagi didn't work for Children's Aid or their talk would have had to be extended....

"Well anyhow," here eyes befell her notes once more. "Can't think of that right now. I have things to do and fairy tales to explain."

And with that final connotation, Inspector Motoko made her way to the hotel elevators, waiting patiently for one to arrive. She had been here for quite a while now (what with the day having slipped her by) with not much of a speculative conclusion. Everything she seemed to stumble upon almost complicated things even further! Kusanagi didn't like the sound of how things were going, especially since she was alone on this one. Being fairly new to the local police force and also a young woman, it was Kusanagi's pure goal and ambition to carry out each of her duties successfully and efficiently. But never in her wildest expectations did she think she would come across something that could literally not be explained by her knowledge, or any for that matter! What was she to do now? How could this case ever close at this rate? Nothing here really was a crime, but nonetheless it still remained somewhat "unsolved". It seemed as if Kusanagi's very hope lay simply on what she would happen to find in this room, room #754.

It had all happened too quickly, then again, it's not like good things ever last. Everything that could have possibly come together had just swirled in this confusing palette of elements and events that in the end assembled a perfect picture whether it was for the better or for the worse. It was hard to deal with it really, the "reality", the actuality behind every second that passed. That consistent knowledge that all of these sub textual things which had come together so vividly was coming to an end…. Or was it? It almost seemed as if every inch of effort that had undergone to get this day where it was- this small yet defining moment in life - absolutely useless. What or where was the point? Just where was the moral of the story if things were just to go vanish as they had once done? It certainly cannot be that way a second time, can it? No, what a very foolish thing to say. One time was more than enough for Hitomi Kanzaki, but twice was not even an option. She had been given the miraculous opportunity to recollect what she could not bear without, and dammit, hell itself would have to freeze over before she would ever let such an awe-inspiring past slip her remembrance a second time.

It had all happened too quickly, it just couldn't end now.

But even at that almost meaningless hope, Hitomi knew that some things just couldn't be run from. Even standing here amongst the April chill, cold street lights providing little light and noisy Aimsa environment droning through her ears, she knew it was already too late. The ambulance was nowhere to be seen now, lost behind the common street sides and curves that a downtown area would obviously have. But even then, the commotion of Hitomi's once everyday world lay far from her concern. Although surrounding her at every single step and breath, it was this that she could no longer notice. She could not "see" reality; she could barely even feel it. Even when that detective woman had beckoned and argued with her to return to the seclusion of the hotel lobby, Hitomi couldn't bring herself to move. It was then that she wondered: if she was so stubborn now to leave where she stood, then why hadn't she gone? Why hadn't she gotten on that damned ambulance with him, why hadn't she remained so faithfully by his side as she deeply longed to do? If it was her only and strongest desire, then why wasn't she there, with him, close to him, caring for him? Why was she here? Why were they apart once more?

It was a trivial question, one neither embellished nor factual in any way. There didn't seem to be any if many logical answers to her inquiry. The only thing Hitomi knew was that she was right. She longed to be there. She longed for nothing more than to hold him again, to see his sweet face, to know that just for one extra second she could have him near… just for one extra second.

But it hadn't gone that way. Things just didn't go that way. Time had been short, sweet and now ended. There was no turning back on decisions already made. Even standing here amidst the night, knowing that that precious "moment" had been only minutes ago, it still didn't deny the fact that it was gone like a quick breath. Things came and things went, whether she was strong enough to accept it or tough enough to live through it. Had it been her choice, time itself would have frozen right over when that moment had been. Every passing second would seem to stretch to an impervious end of infinity, far beyond the simple comprehension of time. Everything that was everything to her would remain dormant in those few and tender seconds that had passed her too quickly. If only it had been her choice. But instead, Hitomi Kanzaki was left with what even had been denied from her before: memories. At least she had them this time, those sensual vivid memories. They each came back to her, painted with a palette of detail, mixed with emotion, colour, voice and the sweet tinge that each memory would bring about. Just by standing here, staring out in what seemed like a city of nothingness as the chilly night breeze flooded her without knowing, she knew that she could not escape those memories. They drummed through her now, blending in to be something real and something not… to a point where she could just stand and stare, thinking, reliving, longing and hoping, constantly confusing what was now and what was then.

"Is she going to be okay? We don't need to call a paramedic for her too do we now?"

Lecward Bargera gave a hesitant glance in the familiar woman's direction. She gave no response even as his speck like eyes glared inceptively towards hers waving his hand deliberately in front of her face trying to catch her fogged attention.

"Umm…. No, I doubt it," Kusanagi gave an inattentive glance towards the short superintendent, frowning as the ringing tone on the other end of her cell phone line just didn't seem to cease.

"Dammit," she uttered miserably flipping it closed while dropping it into her coat pocket, then taking a long breath as she arched her neck back then spotted the concerned Lec still sitting by that woman and incessantly trying to catch one second's response. She couldn't help but let out a groan inside her mind - Kusanagi's shoes were too tight, this girl was too strange, this hotel was too stuffy, these crowds were too nosy, this whole damn case was too complicated … in other words: this would be one very, very long night.

"She's not in shock is she??" Lecward gave a slightly frantic glance in the detective's direction, eyes darting with concern. Out of everything that happened today, he wouldn't have surprised if this young lady was going into cardiac arrest or something. It seemed everything that had happened didn't seem to account to any sense at all, and he doubted whatever was happening now made much sense either.

Motoko Kusanagi gave a soft sigh, watching inquisitively as Lecward continued to prod at the Hitomi-woman's shoulder, as if still in feeble attempt to awaken her from that literally deadlocked state as they had both been doing for the last ten minutes or so now.

"She should be fine, she walked inside here with us all on her own after all," Motoko then plopped down on the waiting seat next to Hitomi, trying to avoid all the strange stares coming from just about everyone else in the hotel lobby. There didn't seem to be one soul at the moment who didn't know of Hitomi's paralytic state, and Kusanagi couldn't as well shoo them all away. This was a public place after all, and now everybody surrounding them was exposed to dozens upon dozens of unanswered questions that somehow managed to fall most heavily upon her shoulders. Here she sat now amidst one of the strangest and without a doubt "most unique" cases ever, with too many witnesses, too many problems and too little time.

"I'm worried, detective," Lecward Bargera stood himself taking in a deep breath and staring with pure perplexity out towards the vague hotel windows, where Hitomi Kanzaki's stare was fully fixed. "I mean, is this even normal? How much longer do you think she'll stay this way before she comes to?"

"I wish I knew…" Motoko laid her chin in her hands miserably, suddenly realizing her own youthful incompetence. Surely an official elder of hers wouldn't be so transfixed on such tribulations, only a little league agent like her could face such numerous dead ends.

Raising herself, trying to gain some ideas, she removed her heavy coat and instead placed it on Hitomi's shoulders, noticing that the girl had looked somewhat cold after standing out there aimlessly for so long.

But really, what was Kusanagi to do now? Why did it seem as if everyone was depending on her anyway? It's not like she was a stupid expert in this kind of stuff… she just couldn't explain the unexplainable. Her job was to work with solid clues and facts, placing together a picture with everything she absorbed. But what was to absorb here? Every piece of the puzzle was like a piece taken from different jigsaw boxes… none of them fit with any of the others because each was a new picture in itself. That was like what it felt like: pure frustration. Nothing added up, nothing would add up, and she doubted nothing could add up and everything was simply meaningless upon itself.

"Ms. Motoko, you don't have any ideas of what to do at all?" Apparently, whether Kusanagi was confident or not, Lecward was still depending on her every thought and move.

"Well," Kusanagi put away the exasperated face and turned to stare at Hitomi, hoping for a second the girl would return the stare and just zap back into reality for just a second. A second was all she asked. But Kusanagi had already been shaking the life out of Hitomi's shoulders a few minutes ago and nothing seemed to catch her attention. It was behaviour unlike Kusanagi had ever encountered before, and now it caught her bewilderment pretty well.

"I got someone at the department to run a check on her for me just a few minutes ago," she continued to explain to Bargera what she at least 'did know'. "They told me that Kanzaki Hitomi lives just off the suburbs near Greenwood station, roommates with somebody or other. I also found out that our unstable friend here underwent three years of psychiatric treatment starting when she was only fifteen."

"Fifteen?" Lecward drew himself back towards Kusanagi after letting his eyes wander as he observed the Ramada, then glancing at Hitomi in disbelief. "My, that's awful young and awful long! Is that what you think is going on here… with her I mean? Some sort of psychological side effect or something?"

Kusanagi bit her lip, staring at the inane and stilled Hitomi from the corner of her eye eerily wondering if she could hear each word they uttered. It was an equally strange thought to think of where Hitomi's mind was now anyway… lost adrift on the brink of human sanity..

"That was my guess too. They said she was attending sessions because of some sort of runaway case with her in high school. I also learned that Kanzaki here suffered from paranoia, emotional outbursts, major depression and even hallucinations."

"Hallucinations…." Lecward seemed to repeat every word, as if thinking of it constantly would help him understand it even more. But as he gazed upon the young woman, he found it hard to think of her as mentally challenged in such ways because even though she was in that "fixed state", she didn't look like the kind that would be needing such treatments at such a young age. To him really, she looked kind of sad, as if trying to absorb something dramatic and successfully managing to block out her outer surroundings in the process.

"Yeah, poor girl," Kusanagi sighed barely within earshot half in sorrow for the frozen Hitomi and also for her achingly tired self. "For all you know, she's suffering from some sort of crazy flashback as we speak."