Posted: Tue Jun 18, 2002 6:04 pm
I have no idea what I'm doing, but I got a vague idea. Anyway, I was persuaded to post this fanfic in this forum (and website) by a certain "Stefy".
**
<b>Escaflowne belongs to its respective artists and businessmen. Unfortunately, I am neither. The STORY does belong to me though.</b>
* *
<b>[ 1 / Moonlit Ponds ]</b>
* *
The tilted streaks of moonlight struck the pond with quiet precision, the earthbound brilliance seemed like it generated its own light source, it was the little known, but simple treasure of Fanaelia. This was the innocent pond of my short-lived childhood...the silvery glaze of its unbroken surface, the gentle, warm glow it gave to the surrounding trees; a soft, lush green underneath the faded light of the moons.
Against the luminous surface of the water, the clear reflection of Kanzaki Hitomi was seen, she stood beside me, her clear eyes mesmerized by the sight of my pond. She momentarily glanced towards me, delicate lips smiling with gratitude, as she sank down before it, looking into the shallow depth of the water. She looked sweetly innocent, caught in the silvery moonlight mirrored from the pond, her chin resting on her knees, while her arms hugged her legs.
I smiled faintly at Hitomi, leaning against the trunk of a tree, my hand naturally settling on the hilt of my sword. Not that it was necessary for me to carry it around, but I felt safer when it was at my side, although it felt nothing like Hitomi's reassuring touch. I considered plucking her from her peaceful position, confiscating her soft limbs in careful motion, and whisking her away into some far off place.
I explained to her that this was where my childhood had begun and ended, crossing my arms across my chest as I rested my head against the tree, staring at the rustling leafs above me. What I would've gave to go back to the days where we weren't stained by war, in a time where I had been allowed to be a child, instead of being pushed into the role of a warring king, back to the days where my brother swore to always protect me, instead of battling against me.
"I never asked to be king," I said softly, trying to keep myself from telling all things at once. "If I'd known that I would've been fighting against Folken...I don't know what I would've done."
How quickly silence fluttered into place, settling in at a perfect moment in time, it seemed natural to enjoy each other's company in utter stillness. The green leaves of the tree whispered at me, beckoning like a child to listen to it, a soft echo of a detail that had been there before any memory could remember. They flickered, the tame green cooled by the moonlight, almost mystical in itself.
"You couldn't abandon your country," she responded after a few moments, her words thoughtful and kind, almost hesitant to say them. "Someone needs to protect innocent people, Van, everyone makes an effort to do that. That's what we're all fighting for, right?"
"I don't know what I fight for," I replied tiredly, closing my eyes with sudden fatigue, reluctantly drawing my hands up to rub over the lids. "All I know is that I can't stand by and just watch Zaibach take control of everything...I don't even know if I'm even protecting innocent people. It's not that simple."
"You don't fight for yourself," Hitomi said carefully, her voice strong with determination, without turning to face me for emphasis. "You fight for others...it's that simple..."
The clouds floated by slothfully above us, ashen against the dark skies of night, not really gliding, merely lounging there. Surreal was the moons that the clouds passed softly, swishing by at the speed of a snail, but gracefully as that of a butterfly's light, airy wings. Consciously, I drew away the strands of ebony hair from my eyes, my attention turned back to Hitomi's sheltered figure.
"What if I fought for you instead?" I asked, tilting my head in thoughtful expression, smiling slightly. "What if I were to protect you from harm?"
I heard her sigh, a gentle wisp of air escaping from her lips, it was like having the darkness sigh. "I don't want anyone to die on account of me...it wouldn't feel right."
"Then I guess I'll fight for everyone's well-being..." I said with some disappointment, not that I expected her to fall for one of my more unpolished pickup lines, but it had been worth a try.
Hitomi turned to me, her lips tugged by a warm grin, and asked why I had brought her here. It was a startling question, but I didn't let it get the better of me, leaving my location against the tree, I knelt down beside her as I looked into the pond. I spoke with concealed insecurity and told her the answer in a quiet tone, my entire confident stature crumbling into dust as I spoke, while trying not to turn to her to glimpse at her reaction.
My hand broke the silver stillness of the water's texture, gentle ripples quivered throughout the pond's surface, shattering the serene moment I had with Hitomi. The water was achingly cool against my fingers, rough from the training and use of swords and guymelefs, I idly wondered if they were worthy of touching Hitomi. How could such hands, soaked with the blood of men, touch something as pure as Hitomi's soul?
Her eyes dimmed with surprise as I continued to speak quietly, her cheeks grew rosy with sudden realization, as I struggled to keep my composure. The stars seemed to brighten when I rose my gaze to admire them, the constellation of the stars abnormally clear, while fear obscured my thoughts of appreciating them.
"Why did you bring me here?"
"There are a lot of reasons, Hitomi - - so many that I don't know if I can name them all at once. But...the most simplest reason would be that I wanted to share this place with someone I loved, someone that I admired and trusted. You've saved my life so many times before, Hitomi, I lost track of how many lives I owe you now. I know that it's my duty to protect you as a king, but it goes much deep than just royal rules, I want to...I want to protect you as a man who loves you.
"Everything that you've shown me has changed me, everything you've ever done for me has kept me going to live another day, and you're the only person that I could ever share this place with. I've never felt this way about anyone before, for a whileI began to think that you're the only one that I could love for eternity, but I never had the courage to tell you. Until...I remembered a promise that I made to my mother before she died..."
* *
<I>"Van?"
"Yes, mother?"
"Promise me something..."
"What's that?"
"Promise me that when you find a girl you love, take her to that special place we have, and ask her...ask her to be your wife there. I know it's ridiculous, but promise me...that one thing. It was where your...your father asked me..."
"Okay, mother. I promise."
...
"Mother? ...Mother!"</I>
* *
"Although we made that strange promise when I was at a young age, I remembered it because it was the last moment I spent with my mother before she died. I never really understood what it had meant...but as I grew older, I finally began to realize what our promise had meant to her...she meant for me to be happy by marrying someone I loved. I'm not asking you to be my wife, Hitomi, I only wanted to show this pond to you, because I want you to know that I - - that I love you."
The sudden silence was nearly enough to topple me over into insanity, how everything had grown mute after my last four words were spoken, I didn't have the bravery to even look at her. The pond's mirror-like surface grew calm once more, and from there, I could see the dazed countenance on her delicate features.
How beautiful she appeared in the moonlit pond, her entire secure figure somehow trembling, though not as hard as my heart was. The beat against my chest was nearly painful, my ears throbbing from the silence that ensued, I began to fill up with terrible dread of what she would say next. I could almost hear the echo of her soft rejecting voice...
"Van..." her voice was dainty, somehow quivering with the spreading ripples that once more filled the pond, by the mere brush of my hand on its texture. My eyes slipped away from the pool to glance at her, suddenly finding myself caught in the warmth of her gaze, how her smile showed the happiness in her eyes. It became dreamlike somehow, how every detail became vivid in my memory...
How her arms found their way around my neck, my own arms wrapping around her waist like a gift from heaven, a few words were spoken but none that I remembered. I somehow stood on my feet as I lifted her from her feet, our eyes locked on one another's with fulfilment, perhaps even infatuation by the way our entire atmosphere looked.
The moonlit pond sparkled around us, how everything faded into the background, and then nothing else existed but the girl who was in my arms. We stayed in embrace, our lips against each other's necks, breathing softly in simple bliss. Her skin was sensuous to my cool mouth, as I planted a kiss on her throat, where her pulse was fluttering against my lips like the flap of a bird's wings.
"Let me take you to heaven..."
My own wings, pure white like snow, spread through my red shirt, soon we were climbing the air, as she held me tightly in fear of falling. I smiled as I whispered into her ear, "do you think I'd ever let you go?"
Hitomi murmured a single word that was inaudible to me, it was a quiet mumble that was filled with content, as her arms drew me even closer to her. I heard her sigh, considerate and delicate from her lips, as her head was placed against my shoulder while I drew us up even higher.
I stopped at some point, pulling away to look at her, high above the world. So close to the sky that we could have reached up and touched the stars, we could have felt the moons' cool surfaces on our faces, could have breathed in the clouds dusky scent. I smiled at her, indeed satisfied with her reaction to what I had said, while her own eyes grew bright with gratification.
I leaned to place my lips over hers.
While she tilted her head to meet them.
Then...
Heaven had been beautiful, in my arms I held a sensitive creature made of all beautiful things, how wonderful it felt to be held so close by someone you love. Kisses to be placed wherever she pleased, her touches brushing against my skin, as her lips inched closer to mine. Nothing could be compared to this moment I had, for once in my pathetic existence did I have what I wanted, and it was only Hitomi.
My eyes were only for her. ...My heart belonged to her alone. ...My soul was hers to mold...
Then...in my own rapture, the spell was broken when she spoke mindlessly, her entire appearance filled with lust and love. But...it was not for me...
". . . Allen . . ."
If it was possible for the world to shatter before you, with only one word spoken, then the whole universe shattered like glass before me. It felt like a sword piercing through me, through everything that caused me to care...she might as well have stabbed me herself.
I pulled away quickly from the near kiss, my entire soul withering inside my chest, as I turned to look into Hitomi's own bewildered gaze. My eyes searched hers desperately, fear and pain filled me at once, the thought of not having her love was threatening to tear me limb from limb.
"Van...I can--"
We descended back to the ground, my arms loosely falling from her as my wings folded, taking a step back from her. I could see my hurt expression written in her eyes, not wanting to look away, wanting her to say something that would undo it. But no words poured from her mouth, there was no comfort for me to fall into, only the speechless look on her face was all I saw. All that I could see as my eyes filled up with involuntary tears, turning away from her with a sense of betrayal.
I walked back from her, into the darkness of the forest, to where Escaflowne knelt. Fighting back the pain that threatened to consume me whole, the feeble hope of having Hitomi express how she really felt utterly vanished, and it was replaced with uncontrollable fury.
"VAN!"
I tried to block out her voice from my ears, but I heard her cry out my name in desperate explanation, but now I was filled with too much rage to want to listen to her. Her continuing cries fell on deaf ears, falling silently like a leaf in autumn, maybe on the pond, rippling in the quiet monotones of her voice. The same sweet, innocent voice that betrayed me...sending me into a shuddering frenzy of emotion, while I crawled into Escaflowne, perhaps the only thing that I could truly trust.
Once my brother told me that the pond had the powers to put the soul to ease, once he told me it had the power to heal, how could I have been such a fool to believe him?
...Hitomi...
* *
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Flamer on 2002-06-18 19:07 ]</font>
**
<b>Escaflowne belongs to its respective artists and businessmen. Unfortunately, I am neither. The STORY does belong to me though.</b>
* *
<b>[ 1 / Moonlit Ponds ]</b>
* *
The tilted streaks of moonlight struck the pond with quiet precision, the earthbound brilliance seemed like it generated its own light source, it was the little known, but simple treasure of Fanaelia. This was the innocent pond of my short-lived childhood...the silvery glaze of its unbroken surface, the gentle, warm glow it gave to the surrounding trees; a soft, lush green underneath the faded light of the moons.
Against the luminous surface of the water, the clear reflection of Kanzaki Hitomi was seen, she stood beside me, her clear eyes mesmerized by the sight of my pond. She momentarily glanced towards me, delicate lips smiling with gratitude, as she sank down before it, looking into the shallow depth of the water. She looked sweetly innocent, caught in the silvery moonlight mirrored from the pond, her chin resting on her knees, while her arms hugged her legs.
I smiled faintly at Hitomi, leaning against the trunk of a tree, my hand naturally settling on the hilt of my sword. Not that it was necessary for me to carry it around, but I felt safer when it was at my side, although it felt nothing like Hitomi's reassuring touch. I considered plucking her from her peaceful position, confiscating her soft limbs in careful motion, and whisking her away into some far off place.
I explained to her that this was where my childhood had begun and ended, crossing my arms across my chest as I rested my head against the tree, staring at the rustling leafs above me. What I would've gave to go back to the days where we weren't stained by war, in a time where I had been allowed to be a child, instead of being pushed into the role of a warring king, back to the days where my brother swore to always protect me, instead of battling against me.
"I never asked to be king," I said softly, trying to keep myself from telling all things at once. "If I'd known that I would've been fighting against Folken...I don't know what I would've done."
How quickly silence fluttered into place, settling in at a perfect moment in time, it seemed natural to enjoy each other's company in utter stillness. The green leaves of the tree whispered at me, beckoning like a child to listen to it, a soft echo of a detail that had been there before any memory could remember. They flickered, the tame green cooled by the moonlight, almost mystical in itself.
"You couldn't abandon your country," she responded after a few moments, her words thoughtful and kind, almost hesitant to say them. "Someone needs to protect innocent people, Van, everyone makes an effort to do that. That's what we're all fighting for, right?"
"I don't know what I fight for," I replied tiredly, closing my eyes with sudden fatigue, reluctantly drawing my hands up to rub over the lids. "All I know is that I can't stand by and just watch Zaibach take control of everything...I don't even know if I'm even protecting innocent people. It's not that simple."
"You don't fight for yourself," Hitomi said carefully, her voice strong with determination, without turning to face me for emphasis. "You fight for others...it's that simple..."
The clouds floated by slothfully above us, ashen against the dark skies of night, not really gliding, merely lounging there. Surreal was the moons that the clouds passed softly, swishing by at the speed of a snail, but gracefully as that of a butterfly's light, airy wings. Consciously, I drew away the strands of ebony hair from my eyes, my attention turned back to Hitomi's sheltered figure.
"What if I fought for you instead?" I asked, tilting my head in thoughtful expression, smiling slightly. "What if I were to protect you from harm?"
I heard her sigh, a gentle wisp of air escaping from her lips, it was like having the darkness sigh. "I don't want anyone to die on account of me...it wouldn't feel right."
"Then I guess I'll fight for everyone's well-being..." I said with some disappointment, not that I expected her to fall for one of my more unpolished pickup lines, but it had been worth a try.
Hitomi turned to me, her lips tugged by a warm grin, and asked why I had brought her here. It was a startling question, but I didn't let it get the better of me, leaving my location against the tree, I knelt down beside her as I looked into the pond. I spoke with concealed insecurity and told her the answer in a quiet tone, my entire confident stature crumbling into dust as I spoke, while trying not to turn to her to glimpse at her reaction.
My hand broke the silver stillness of the water's texture, gentle ripples quivered throughout the pond's surface, shattering the serene moment I had with Hitomi. The water was achingly cool against my fingers, rough from the training and use of swords and guymelefs, I idly wondered if they were worthy of touching Hitomi. How could such hands, soaked with the blood of men, touch something as pure as Hitomi's soul?
Her eyes dimmed with surprise as I continued to speak quietly, her cheeks grew rosy with sudden realization, as I struggled to keep my composure. The stars seemed to brighten when I rose my gaze to admire them, the constellation of the stars abnormally clear, while fear obscured my thoughts of appreciating them.
"Why did you bring me here?"
"There are a lot of reasons, Hitomi - - so many that I don't know if I can name them all at once. But...the most simplest reason would be that I wanted to share this place with someone I loved, someone that I admired and trusted. You've saved my life so many times before, Hitomi, I lost track of how many lives I owe you now. I know that it's my duty to protect you as a king, but it goes much deep than just royal rules, I want to...I want to protect you as a man who loves you.
"Everything that you've shown me has changed me, everything you've ever done for me has kept me going to live another day, and you're the only person that I could ever share this place with. I've never felt this way about anyone before, for a whileI began to think that you're the only one that I could love for eternity, but I never had the courage to tell you. Until...I remembered a promise that I made to my mother before she died..."
* *
<I>"Van?"
"Yes, mother?"
"Promise me something..."
"What's that?"
"Promise me that when you find a girl you love, take her to that special place we have, and ask her...ask her to be your wife there. I know it's ridiculous, but promise me...that one thing. It was where your...your father asked me..."
"Okay, mother. I promise."
...
"Mother? ...Mother!"</I>
* *
"Although we made that strange promise when I was at a young age, I remembered it because it was the last moment I spent with my mother before she died. I never really understood what it had meant...but as I grew older, I finally began to realize what our promise had meant to her...she meant for me to be happy by marrying someone I loved. I'm not asking you to be my wife, Hitomi, I only wanted to show this pond to you, because I want you to know that I - - that I love you."
The sudden silence was nearly enough to topple me over into insanity, how everything had grown mute after my last four words were spoken, I didn't have the bravery to even look at her. The pond's mirror-like surface grew calm once more, and from there, I could see the dazed countenance on her delicate features.
How beautiful she appeared in the moonlit pond, her entire secure figure somehow trembling, though not as hard as my heart was. The beat against my chest was nearly painful, my ears throbbing from the silence that ensued, I began to fill up with terrible dread of what she would say next. I could almost hear the echo of her soft rejecting voice...
"Van..." her voice was dainty, somehow quivering with the spreading ripples that once more filled the pond, by the mere brush of my hand on its texture. My eyes slipped away from the pool to glance at her, suddenly finding myself caught in the warmth of her gaze, how her smile showed the happiness in her eyes. It became dreamlike somehow, how every detail became vivid in my memory...
How her arms found their way around my neck, my own arms wrapping around her waist like a gift from heaven, a few words were spoken but none that I remembered. I somehow stood on my feet as I lifted her from her feet, our eyes locked on one another's with fulfilment, perhaps even infatuation by the way our entire atmosphere looked.
The moonlit pond sparkled around us, how everything faded into the background, and then nothing else existed but the girl who was in my arms. We stayed in embrace, our lips against each other's necks, breathing softly in simple bliss. Her skin was sensuous to my cool mouth, as I planted a kiss on her throat, where her pulse was fluttering against my lips like the flap of a bird's wings.
"Let me take you to heaven..."
My own wings, pure white like snow, spread through my red shirt, soon we were climbing the air, as she held me tightly in fear of falling. I smiled as I whispered into her ear, "do you think I'd ever let you go?"
Hitomi murmured a single word that was inaudible to me, it was a quiet mumble that was filled with content, as her arms drew me even closer to her. I heard her sigh, considerate and delicate from her lips, as her head was placed against my shoulder while I drew us up even higher.
I stopped at some point, pulling away to look at her, high above the world. So close to the sky that we could have reached up and touched the stars, we could have felt the moons' cool surfaces on our faces, could have breathed in the clouds dusky scent. I smiled at her, indeed satisfied with her reaction to what I had said, while her own eyes grew bright with gratification.
I leaned to place my lips over hers.
While she tilted her head to meet them.
Then...
Heaven had been beautiful, in my arms I held a sensitive creature made of all beautiful things, how wonderful it felt to be held so close by someone you love. Kisses to be placed wherever she pleased, her touches brushing against my skin, as her lips inched closer to mine. Nothing could be compared to this moment I had, for once in my pathetic existence did I have what I wanted, and it was only Hitomi.
My eyes were only for her. ...My heart belonged to her alone. ...My soul was hers to mold...
Then...in my own rapture, the spell was broken when she spoke mindlessly, her entire appearance filled with lust and love. But...it was not for me...
". . . Allen . . ."
If it was possible for the world to shatter before you, with only one word spoken, then the whole universe shattered like glass before me. It felt like a sword piercing through me, through everything that caused me to care...she might as well have stabbed me herself.
I pulled away quickly from the near kiss, my entire soul withering inside my chest, as I turned to look into Hitomi's own bewildered gaze. My eyes searched hers desperately, fear and pain filled me at once, the thought of not having her love was threatening to tear me limb from limb.
"Van...I can--"
We descended back to the ground, my arms loosely falling from her as my wings folded, taking a step back from her. I could see my hurt expression written in her eyes, not wanting to look away, wanting her to say something that would undo it. But no words poured from her mouth, there was no comfort for me to fall into, only the speechless look on her face was all I saw. All that I could see as my eyes filled up with involuntary tears, turning away from her with a sense of betrayal.
I walked back from her, into the darkness of the forest, to where Escaflowne knelt. Fighting back the pain that threatened to consume me whole, the feeble hope of having Hitomi express how she really felt utterly vanished, and it was replaced with uncontrollable fury.
"VAN!"
I tried to block out her voice from my ears, but I heard her cry out my name in desperate explanation, but now I was filled with too much rage to want to listen to her. Her continuing cries fell on deaf ears, falling silently like a leaf in autumn, maybe on the pond, rippling in the quiet monotones of her voice. The same sweet, innocent voice that betrayed me...sending me into a shuddering frenzy of emotion, while I crawled into Escaflowne, perhaps the only thing that I could truly trust.
Once my brother told me that the pond had the powers to put the soul to ease, once he told me it had the power to heal, how could I have been such a fool to believe him?
...Hitomi...
* *
<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Flamer on 2002-06-18 19:07 ]</font>
did she say Allen.... ewww... If I were her I would go with Van. But it was beautifully written. (Shudders from Hitomi saying Allen.) I don't think I'm going to get over that lol. No it was really good. very romantic.