~ Dear Reader, If you read this story you'll have to keep up with it because it very
complicated. The first set of chapters will becoming out fast because they already
written out, but not on the right program so I have to tranfer them which will take
a while so only the 1st chapter is out right now. Thanks!

~ Remember I do not own these characters. They are taken off of the Japanese series of
Escaflowne.

~This a really fluffy chapter so bare with me.



The Fate of Two Worlds
By Angel_Wings


Chapter 1 ~ Love Across The Distance

~ Earth ~
The grass swayed in the large open field in sweet sorrow. The wind cried out
gently for a sad secret. Flowers whispered sweet, sad words that flowed with the wind. Even
the invisibleworld that hung in the sky near the moon gave the expression of utter loneliness.
The only signof true life was a young girl with honey colored hair. Her silky hair was cut short
in a rather boyish style. She wore a blue and cream colored uniform containing a skirt and
matching jacket with a white tee beneathe. Her emerald eyes which use to hold so much light
and life were now dull and desolate. Hands of pale fingers were intertwined, her arms hugging
her knees. The only thought that invaded her mind caused tears to stream down her face. She
looked up into the sky at the earth's moon. She stared at it, concentrating hard. Her mind
focused on a past image. Before her eyes she saw, what can best be described as, an illusion
of a boy with raven hair and eyes of flames. He was rather hansom, but his face was that of a
sad expression, the same expression the girl felt. More tears watered her eyes as she
whispered a single word. If a soul had been close enough they would have felt the emotion
from the word that now hung in the air. They would have felt love, sadness, and longing all
rolled deeply into one. The word was not a thing, animal, place, or phrase. It was a name. A
name that was unknown on that planet, but known well on a complete different globe. A world
called Gaea, a world known to the dismal girl as a place of complete fantasy and mystery yet
very similar to her own beautiful home. Gaea knew the name well for it was a world renouned
name spoken on every tongue on the planet. It was a name that held no meaning to anyone
else, but it meant everything to this one person. "Van....." the wind echoed silently to the girl
bringing only more tears to her already reddening eyes.

Hitomi placed her forehead against her knees sobbing quietly. She often came to
this fieldto sit and stare at the world hidden unknowingly to billions of people except herself.
When she'd come she knew she could be alone. Ever since she was little she had ran in this
field and played games with herself. As the girl's eyes swept over the familiar place she could
almost seea younger form of herself running up a slope in the field laughing cheerfully. She
breathed in the lovely scent of grass and remembered he had smelled the same way. She
smiled sadly remembering the one person that always invading her mind; the smell of him, the
way his skin felt when he held her, the way his eyes lite up, or how his voice sounded. She
closed her eyes envisioning him smiling at her lovingly, his angel wings outstretched beautifully
against the darkness in her mind. The same figure she had left on that hidden world two years
ago.

She angrily began to beat her fist against the earth in absolute rage. Why was fate
so unfair to her? She had come back to her home because she believed she would be more
happy here. Not to mention the fact that she belonged here with her family and friends.
Unfortunately it had been anything, but happiness. The first couple of months she was
overjoyed to be reunited with her loves ones; to hold and hug their familiar forms had to be the
greatest feeling ever. She quickly went into denial though. She ignored the tears that came in
her sleep, she told herself that she would get over him, and she shook her head when she
daydreamed about the angel King. Slowly her body began to shut down, she would barely eat
or sleep making everything in her world topple over. If her parents hadn't started forcing her to
eat her daily meals and give her sleeping pills she might have gotten worse and look absolutely
horrible. To make matters worse everyone close to her acted like she had gone off the deep
end. "Well what were they suppose to think, Hitomi!" she shouted angrily at herself, "You
come home after you've disappeared for the second time and tell them unbelievable stories
about a whole 'nother world!" Tears stung her eyes as she remembered the faces she had seen
on her parents and two best friends when they had reacted to her tale. She had been
completely honest with everything she said (the only parts she cut out was Van being
Draconian and the love triangle between him, her, and Allen), but everyone had believed that
she had outright lied. Her parents had even gone so far as to consider a counselor for her, but
Hitomi literally begged her mother to not go through with it. For some unknown reason, her
mother persuaded her husband to give up the thought about help for their daughter. Hitomi
couldn't understand why. Her mother's attitude to Hitomi's fantasy had been completely blank
and unreadable. Hitomi couldn't understand why, but as long as she was left alone she didn't
push the matter further.

All her life now was poured into running. It was the only thing that she could be
happy in. When she ran she didn't have to listen to the whispers from her peers or see people
point. She could escape the emotions she denied in her soul. Escaping everything around her
was what she wanted for so long and with running she could do the very thing. In fact she ran
so fast that she was doing better in running than ever before. The only reason for her speed
was because she was afraid....., afraid all torments, emotions, and words would take over her
if she slowed down. Even at the end of the race she had to force herself to stop because she
knew as soon as she halted the world would surge forward and surround her once again
almost drowning her completely.

It was at that moment she heard the rustling of grass from behind coming towards
her. The heart within her skipped a beat as a hopeful thought crossed her mind. Sadly though,
the thought was in vain for when she turned around she was faced with a young girl with red
hair about her age was staring down at her. Hitomi tried to hide her sadness at her friend for
not being the one she hoped for.

It was no use, Yukari could automatically tell she was not the one who she
expected. "Oh Hitomi.....why can't you give up that fantasy" her concerned friend thought
sadly. She wanted so badly to believe her friend was okay, but her mind wouldn't let her. It
was obvious her friend was insane. How could she not be? She believed in every word she
spoke about the imagined land of dragons and knights. It sounded sort of like some fairy tale
from books your mother would read to you before you went to sleep. After everyone had
confirmed the fact of disbelief of her tall tale she had become secluded. Avoiding everyone
and everything around her. School had been her hardest to endure for she could barely
concentrate. She was always day dreaming or doodling sketches in her notebook of angels,
dragons, and knights. Her grades had plummets in every subject, save one. In art she had
perfect 100's. Every project was of her imagined world. They were excellent pieces of
artworks in painting, sketching, chalk, and color pencils.

Yukari's absolute favorite was a painting of a rather hansom boy with unruly ebony
hair, red shirt, and cream pants. He stood in a field of long blowing grass while beside him
stood some cat-girl of brown fur and pink hair with an orange dress. Nearby a couple, both
with long blonde hair, stood together with hands clasped. A young boy resembling a lot to
Hitomi's younger brother except with blonde hair was running toward the cat-girl and dark
haired boy. In the night sky were two moons, one that held the shadow of a dragon in flight.

Yukari came out of her distant memories when Hitomi spoke, "Hey Yukari. Did
you want to talk to me or something?"

"Oh yeah!" the red haired girl said in remembrance of why she had been looking
for her lonely friend, "Did you forget this afternoon is the Regional Track meet! If we don't
hurry will miss everything! Including the race your supposed to compete in!" Hitomi's eyes
grew wide in recognition and she quickly jumped to her feet. She bolted to a nearby tree
where a blue duffel bag laid beneath its shadow. Fingers urgently unzipped the opening to
search for the old shorts and shirt that the honey haired girl wore for running to make sure
she had them.

"I completely lost track of time" the girl yelled over her shoulder as her hand
closed on the faded outfit inside the bag.

~ Gaea ~
Rain pelted the stone castle of Fanelia as though the heavens were crying........
crying for the lone figure standing within the main bedroom of the building. The figure was a
man of seventeen rotations (seventeen years in earth terms) with ebony hair that held it unruly
status for the last two years. He however was no longer the lanky teen he use to be for he had
become the muscular male with broad shoulder that all men become. He stood at a glass
french door watching the rain slide down its surface lazily. A single lantern gave a soft glow
causing the young man to see his reflection in the door's glass. He stared at himself studying
what he had become. His eyes of fire no longer held their inner flame. Dull black hair had
replaced the shiny black on his head. A sad foreign face stared back at him and he had to stare
hard at the face to actually see himself in it. He presently wore black night pants with a white
short sleeve shirt that were both of the finest silk.

His soul felt dead and adrift as he stared at the night surroundings behind the glass
doors. He no longer smiled or if he ever did it was a sad smile which was rarely seen. The first
few months hadn't been bad after she left. He had poured his entire soul and effort into
rebuilding his lost kingdom. He worked hard to reassembly the kingdom's scatter citizens and
bring back their lost homes. He had focus on nothing else, but after his home had been
resembled he had gone into deep depression. He couldn't forget his past adventure with the
girl from another world, the girl from the mystic world.

Suddenly his reflection disappeared in the glass and in the same moment another
reflection of a totally different figure appeared in the glass. The new reflection was of a young
girl with golden hair and emerald eyes. She no longer had the same lean figure, but a fuller
form showing she had become a young woman. Her emerald eyes didn't appear to twinkle like
they use to and she bore a sad smile on her tearful face. She wore the same uniform she had
always worn when she had been with him by his side when they had traveled all over Gaea. He
brought one of his hands to the glass as his fingers tracing the features on her face. "Hitomi...."
he breathed. He placed his hand flat against the glass and in the same motion Hitomi's
reflection did the same. Their hands were perfectly flat against each others' and their sad eyes
locked together. A twinkle of life within the depths of their eyes sparkled. This was the closest
they had been to ever seeing each other again. Van could almost actually feel her.

"Lord Van~sama?" a young voice from behind asked in the darkness.

Van returned from the illusion and no longer saw his beloved, but his own lonely
reflection. His eyes lost the small glowing sparks and became dull as his mind realized the girl
no longer was there. He wanted so much to see her again,............to hold her, to comfort her,
to hear the laugh that could brighten the darkest situation, to hear that voice of sweetness, but
importantly to wake up to that face of beauty every morning for the rest of his life.

"Lord Van~sama?" the voice repeated a little louder than before.

Van turned his attention to the new figure reflecting beside his. A young cat-girl
with a concerned face watched him carefully. Her pink hair was still in the short cut she had
always kept. Bronze fur was dull from sadness and her bouncy tail laid lifeless on the white
marble floor. She wore a long pink dress that matched her hair. He closed his eyes sighing
heavily.

"I'm sorry Merle, but I can't seem to forget her" he muttered, "It wasn't so hard at
first because I was so busy rebuilding Fanelia, but now.......I can't concentrate on anything
anymore. All can see is her face staring at me. I wish I could have her with me once more by
my side even...." His breathe caught in his throat and he nearly choked on the last word, "even
if she stayed for only a little while and never returned again after that."

He felt warm arms hug one of his arms like she had done over all of their lives, just
like a younger sister holds an older brother. He glanced down at her face with her closed eyes.

"You say that" she whispered sadly, "but you know deep within your soul you
would die if that would happen,....if she left again." She looked up into her foster brother's eyes
and gave him a small smile. "Lord Van~sama, all I want is for you to be happy and I know you
can never be happy without her. Lord Van~sama I hope for your sake she returns and soon."
She glanced around the large room absent-mindly looking at several paintings that hung on the
wall. Van had dove into painting almost instantly after Hitomi left. Each work was of a single
theme of a young figure. Several were of the golden haired girl running happily in a field, others
she held a smile as the wind teased her hair, a few held her in a sad profile, but the most
beautiful of all of his paintings was one where she sat in a field of flowers. She was wearing the
uniform she had worn during her stay on Gaea. Her face bore a sad smile and a red pendant
laid against her chest. The sky held two moons which she was staring at.

Merle sighed sadly knowing how depressed he had gotten after her return home to
the Mystic Moon. She looked up at her King and saw him looking outside the window, past
the rain at the world that had his love. Van refused to retrieve Hitomi from her world. He
respected her wish to be with the ones she loved. More than his happiness, he wanted her to
be happy. Merle gave him a small hug and then left his side going toward the door to go to
sleep, but just before she closed the door on her way out she stuck her head through the
opening. "I know for a fact Lord Van~sama that she cannot live without you either, she will
return and if I'm sure she'll return soon. Goodnight, Lord Van~sama." she whispered before
shutting the door the rest of the way.

He watched the large wooden door shut with a small creak. He knew she was
right about himself. He felt a small glimmer of hope in his lonely heart at the thought that she
would return to him. His hands fell upon the golden chain around his neck and he gently pulled
out the only connection left of her to him. The red pendant shaped like a teardrop only with a
slight size difference glimmered in the lantern's light. He could feel her by his side almost. The
thought of her return brought shivers of joy down his spine. He placed the bond gift back
beneath his shirt and turned out the lantern. As he made his way to his bed he thought, "All I
can do is wait, hope, and wish for her to return" He then fell into a dreamful sleep that was
plagued by the image of a honey haired girl with emerald green eyes.