Otome Yutashi sat on her bed one beautiful July morning. She was looking at her travel posters one by one, taking in every detail. Rome, Australia, Venezuela, Mexico, Paris, Las Vegas, Greece. She stared at them for a long time. Finally, she rolled them up and put them away. Otome's family was poor and she would probably never have the money to travel.
"Otome!" called her mother," Come try on your dress!"
Otome stood up and walked downstairs to the sewing room where her mother and grandmother were waiting for her. They wanted her to try on a wedding dress, because Otome was to be married in just over a year.
She stood very still as they tied and buttoned a beautiful dress around her.
"There now," said her grandmother. She set the little veiled hat on Otome's head and turned her granddaughter toward a full-length mirror.
"It's beautiful," Otome gasped. It was a long dress trimmed in satiny sea-foam green.
Her mother and grandmother stood there smiling proudly. Otome kissed them both on the cheek and said, "Thank you both very much."
That night, Otome was in her upstairs room looking through an old telescope. It was the only thing of value she owned. Otome loved the stars, because they, like her travel posters, showed promise of adventure and a far away place - an escape.
Otome jumped. An escape? Where did that come from?
She shook her head and looked through the telescope. She found Gemini, the Pleiades, and Saggita. Suddenly, one of the stars grew brighter. She looked up from the telescope, but the stars didn't look any different than they had before. She looked back through her telescope. Saggita looked the same. Hm, maybe she had imagined it.
She looked down into the orchard. Her little brother, Kiylo was down there, sitting under a cherry tree. He looked kind of sad, so Otome decided to go talk to him.
As she approached, Kiylo looked up. "Hi, Otome," he said.
"Hi, Kiylo," Otome replied.
Kiylo laughed. "Otome, you're still wearing your wedding dress."
Otome looked down. "I guess I forgot to take it off," she giggled. Then she sat next to Kiylo. "Kiylo, are you okay?" she asked.
"What do you mean?" Kiylo asked.
"You looked sad before I came out," said Otome.
Kiylo shrugged. "I was just thinking, what am I going to do when you get married to Koji and move away?"
"Well, you can come visit me whenever you want," said Otome.
Kiylo sighed.
"Besides," said Otome; "It won't be for another year."
Kiyo didn't say anything. Finally, he stuck out his hand. "Otome, read my palm."
Otome laughed. "Now you're talking," she said and took his hand. She began to peer into it.
"Well," she said, tracing his palm with her index finger, "This means you'll probably live to be in your eighties. And this means you're brave but . . . extremely careful. Of course, you already know that."
She looked at his hand for a long time without saying anything. Finally, she looked up into her brother's eyes. Her eyes were shining. "Kiylo," she said, "Something's going to happen. Something exciting!"
"Really?" he asked, "When?"
"Soon!" Otome exclaimed. "I can feel it."
"Wow," Kiylo breathed, looking at his hand. That had seemed to make Kiylo feel better. "Thanks, Otome," he said softly.
Otome stood up. "It's dark," she said. "We should go inside." Kiylo stood up then, and they started to walk toward the house.
Just then, a small light appeared in one of the trees. "Firefly!" exclaimed Kiylo. "Stay there," he said, "I'm gonna catch it."
"Okay," said Otome, "but hurry up."
"Okay," Kiylo replied. He began to climb the tree with the firefly in it. But as he reached the tiny light, he screamed, "Aa!" and fell out of the tree.
"Kiylo!" Otome exclaimed, rushing to help him up. "What happened?"
"That wasn't a firefly," he breathed. "It was a tiny person!"
Otome's eyes widened. She stepped toward the tree, and as she did, the light flew closer. "It's a fairy!" Otome exclaimed softly. It was a beautiful little creature with white hair and silvery eyes, which focused on Otome's clear, brown ones.
"Are you the Yutashi children -- Otome aged 15 and Kiylo aged 9?" she asked in a sweet, glittery voice. Otome and Kiylo nodded in awe. The fairy stuck out a tiny hand. "Hi! I'm Devon," she said.
"Hi," said Otome uncertainly.
"You guys have to come with me," the fairy ordered. "I don't know why, but we need you."
"Wait," said Otome, "Go with you where?"
"To Hitao," Devon answered. "Since it got taken over by Lord Tetsudai, the whole place has been a mess. We will be working for the former queen of Ariana, Raku. She's the only one who can fix it."
"So let me get this straight," said Otome with a glance at her brother, "You want us to go with you to fight this one evil guy because some lady used to be a queen?"
"That's right!" Devon replied cheerfully. "Raku says she needs you."
"But what about my family?" asked Otome. "Won't they miss us?"
"They won't even know you're gone," said Devon. She flew about three feet and began to look for something.
Otome asked, "What are you -"
"Found it!" Devon called. She did something that opened a silvery doorway thing. "Come on!" she urged. "We have to go! The others will be waiting!"
"Wait! What others?" asked Otome. But Devon was gone through the silvery thing. Otome took Kiylo's hand. "Come on!" she said, and they hurried through the silvery doorway.
They came out in a shady place surrounded by trees. There were people sitting at two picnic tables. A blond man was grilling something on the barbecue.
Devon flew over to a stately blond woman and said something. The woman stood up. She was tall. Then she walked over to where Otome and Kiylo were standing.
"You must be Kiylo and Otome Yutashi, " she said. "I'm Raku." Her voice was quiet, but without a trace of warmth.
"Pleased to meet you," said Otome. "But who are these people? And why are we here? And how did Devon make that silver thing?"
Devon laughed lightly. "Oh, all fairies can do that."
"And as for everyone else, I'll introduce you right now if you like," said Raku.
"But what about -" Otome began.
"Why you are here?" asked Raku, "you don't need to know that now." She turned to where everyone was seated. "Now," she began, pointing to the blond man who was taking something off the grill, "That is Tochi. He's from Jensui."
Otome didn't know where Jensui was, but she nodded politely.
Raku next indicated a boy of about sixteen with blue hair and brown eyes. "This is Hiyake. He's also from Jensui." Hiyake, who was playing with a lighter, didn't look up, but he waved.
"Hello, Hiyake," said Otome. Raku pointed to a boy about Otome's age. "And this is Neo Than from Earth. You don't have to be polite with him. He's American."
Otome looked startled. "Wait, he's from Earth? You mean we're not on Earth anymore?"
"Smart girl," said Tochi in a spoiled, whiny voice. He was passing out something that looked like hamburgers and wearing a frilly apron.
"Our next stop will be Hitao," said Raku. "Otome and Kiylo will come. So will Devon and Hiyake. I want Neo and Tochi to stay. Devon will be in charge of Kiylo. Now, make sure to eat before we go. You're not going to have another chance to eat for a while."
"And I suppose I'm in charge of her," said Hiyake, half-joking and pointing to Otome.
"No," said Raku. "Otome's fifteen. She can take care of herself."
Otome and Kiylo sat down at a table and Tochi put food in front of them. Otome lifted the top bun. "Do you have anything else?" she asked, "we don't eat red meat."
"No," said Raku. "Eat that. It's not cow."
Otome's eyes widened. She was almost afraid to ask what it was. She reached for the ketchup.
Raku didn't eat. She seemed uneasy. She opened the leather bag she wore around her waist and looked inside. Then she closed it and patted it nervously. Finally, she turned. "Devon, it's time," she said.
Devon jumped up and flew around the clearing in a large circle. She stopped about 3/4 of the way around and opened another large, silvery door. "Hitaoan outback," she called and flew through.
Without a word, Raku started through the door. Devon flew back out and sat on Kiylo's shoulder. Then Otome, Hiyake, Kiylo and Devon followed Raku through the door to Hitao.
CHAPTER TWO-- HITAO
They stepped through into a deserted, hot place with short, weedy grass. "We'll probably find him closer to his castle," said Raku.
"Castle?" asked Otome breathlessly.
"Yes. Cole is a prince," said Raku.
"Wow!" said Otome. She slowly turned around in a circle. Otome thought this land was amazing, and so big. It stretched as far as the eye could see, and with only the occasional tree breaking the monotony.
Otome turned back to where the others had been. But they were not there. Frantically, she turned in circles, but they were nowhere to be seen. And it was hot, and she was still in her wedding dress. Otome walked to the nearest tree and sat under it. But it was almost noon, and the tree gave very little shade.
Otome sighed. She should have been more responsible. Now she was going to be lost forever on a planet she'd never even heard of. Hopelessly, she put her head in her arms.
Then Otome heard a quiet thump and looked up. Standing there was a guy about sixteen years old with silvery-blond hair and violet-green eyes. "Need help?" he asked.
Otome gratefully took his outstretched hand and let him help her up. "Yes," she said, "I'm lost from my friends."
"Well, I can help you find them," he said. "I have a helicopter. It's just over there, behind that tree."
"Thank you," said Otome.
"By the way, what's your name?" he asked.
"Otome Yutashi," said Otome obediently.
"Otome. What a pretty name."
He and Otome began to walk to a couple of trees that were about a quarter mile away. At first they said nothing. "So," said the boy after a while, "Who are your friends?"
"Well," began Otome, " There's my brother Kiylo; Devon the fairy; Hiyake; and Raku."
"Ah, yes," he said. "I know Raku. She and I go back a long time."
"Oh," said Otome politely.
They were nearing the trees. "There it is," he said. "We'll just fly over the outback until we see them." They climbed into the helicopter, and the boy flew them in the direction of the castle. When it was visible on the horizon, Otome spotted Raku, Hiyake, Devon and Kiylo. The helicopter flew closer and landed just in front of them. The door opened and Otome stepped out.
"Otome!" exclaimed Devon.
"Otome," said Raku, "Where were you?"
"Some guy found me and flew me here in his helicopter," said Otome. "He said he knows you, Raku."
"I see," said Raku. "He doesn't happen to have silvery hair and evil greenish-violet eyes, does he?"
"Well, yes," said Otome. "So you know him?" Raku sighed. "You have no idea."
Suddenly, he stepped out from behind the helicopter. He was wearing a long gold cape adorned with a large black gem. He looked really evil.
Devon seemed to jump and hid behind Kiylo. The guy stepped forward and stood next to Otome. "Hello, Raku," he said.
"Hello, Tetsudai," said Raku, her voice colder than usual.
Otome jumped back. "Tetsudai? This is Tetsudai?"
Tetsudai laughed. "I see you've heard of me," he said. "But Otome, you did say Devon was traveling with you, did you not?"
Mildly frightened, Otome didn't say anything.
"So where is she?" he asked.
Raku stepped forward. "You know damned well where she is! Now, leave us alone."
"You're right, Raku. I do," Tetsudai replied. "Devon, come out."
"No!" Devon screeched. "Go away!" She held her hands over her ears.
Tetsudai laughed.
"Kiylo, help me!" Devon exclaimed.
Kiylo reached out and grabbed onto Devon. "Devon! I can't hold you! What's happening?" he asked.
Raku reached into her pouch and pulled out a pure topaz. "Aura," she said.
Suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew from the topaz and knocked Tetsudai over. Tetsudai glared at Raku. Raku put her topaz back.
Just then, Tetsudai's helicopter blew up. Hiyake was running from the explosion. He looked pleased with himself.
Tetsudai dusted himself off. He was mad. "Just wait," he said ominously. "I will see you all again. Especially you, Otome." Then he pulled a snake out of his pocket. It glowed slightly and before any of them could see what was happening, it became a bird. It lifted off the ground with Tetsudai holding onto its talon.
Otome was very scared. "Raku, what happened?"
Hiyake kind of chuckled and glanced at Otome. "You are so very naive."
"I'm sorry," said Otome.
Raku sighed. "It wasn't your fault," she said. "But Hiyake is right. You are far too naive. First of all, don't talk to anyone you don't already know. Hiyake, watch her. Make sure she doesn't get lost."
Hiyake smirked.
"But wait!" Otome protested. "I still don't understand what just happened!"
"Tetsudai," began Raku, "is extremely smart. He's got psychic powers, and he can manipulate people's minds into thinking whatever he wants them to think. This makes him extremely dangerous, but especially to people who are psychic or show signs of telekinetic abilities." She looked at Otome. "That 's how he so conveniently had a helicopter just when you needed it. He saw that you're a very naive Earthling, and projected the image of a helicopter into your mind because it was something you would understand."
"Oh," said Otome quietly, a flicker of understanding crossing her face. "So then he must have projected it into everyone else's minds, too."
Hiyake looked disappointed. "So I didn't really blow anything up?"
Raku rolled her eyes. "Nothing but a strong mental picture," she said.
A slightly enamored, faraway look crossed Hiyake's face. "It sure looked great when it burned, though."
"I'm sure you'll have plenty of other opportunities to blow something up, Hiyake," Raku sighed.
"So why is it worse for psychic people?" Otome asked.
"Because with most creatures," Raku explained, "Tetsudai can read their conscious minds and project images. In psychic people, he can also get in their unconscious thought and control them. Make them do things they don't want to do. And there's nothing they can do about it."
"How terrible!" Otome gasped.
Raku let that subject sink in before continuing. "Now, the second thing I want you to remember, Otome, is don't talk to animals. Do you remember the snake?"
"It was a snake? I thought it was a falcon or something and I saw it wrong at first."
"That was Tristan," said Raku. "He's a sorcerer and a shape-shifter. He can take on any form except human. So stay away from animals that talk."
Just then, a little cat-boy scampered up behind Raku. "Hi there," he said cheerfully.
"Like that?" Otome said, backing away from him.
Raku looked down. "Oh, hi Cole," she said.
"Hi," he said again. "So what brings you here?"
"I'm going to get back Ariana, and I need your help," Raku explained.
"Yay! We're going to beat up Tetsudai!" He sang joyfully. "Yes, I'll help you. But I should probably tell people, seeing as how I'm Royal. Come on!" he cried, and with that, he began to scamper toward his castle.
Otome, Hiyake, and Kiylo began to run after him. Devon flew. Even Raku was running, although Otome suspected that running was extremely uncharacteristic of Raku.
Before long, the six of them had arrived at the walls of the castle. Two guards guarded the door, but they immediately parted upon seeing Cole. "Hello, Your Highness," they said.
"Hello," said Cole. He led Raku, Devon, Hiyake, Otome, and Kiylo past the guards and into the castle. Then he told them to sit down in the parlor. He turned to one of the servants. "Will you get my parents?" he asked the servant. "I need to talk to them." The servant bowed and started to hurry away.
"Cole," said Raku, "Do you think somebody can find something for Otome to wear? She's in a wedding dress."
"I'm sure my mom has something," Cole replied. "I'll ask her when she comes down."
They didn't have to wait long. Several moments later, a handsome man and a beautiful cat-lady glided into the parlor. "Cole, what is it?" they asked.
Raku stood up and bowed her head. "Queen Katherine and King Gabriel," she said politely. The others stood up and did the same thing. Then they sat back down.
"Hello, Raku," said Queen Katherine sweetly. "How are things?"
"As a matter of fact, Your Majesties, I would like to talk to you about Cole," said Raku. "You see, I am planning to take back Ariana, and I need his help."
The King and Queen were listening intently and nodding. "Of course you can use Cole," said the Queen.
"Just as long as you take care of him," said the King. "Remember, he is the heir of our throne."
Raku started to nod, but then she remembered Otome. "Oh," she said, indicating Otome, "And also, do you have something for this girl to wear? She's in her wedding dress."
"Of course," said Queen Katherine. "Bridget!" she called, and a maid rushed into the room. "Could you get this girl something to wear?"
The maid nodded and motioned for Otome to follow her. Otome stood up, and they left the room and went upstairs.
"Now, is there anything else you are going to need?" asked Queen Katherine.
"Oh, I don't know," said Raku, "we have been traveling with Devon, and we have built our headquarters on Trent. I think we'll be okay."
"I think they should take Cole's dragon," King Gabriel piped up.
"Oh, yes," agreed Queen Katherine, "after all, there's only so far you can go using a fairy. Especially when dealing with Lord Tetsudai." She delicately picked up a small bell that had been sitting on the end table next to her and jingled it.
The servant who had summoned the Queen and King earlier came rushing in.
"James, bring Hiryuu around to the front," said the Queen. "Cole is going to need it."
James bowed his head. "Right away," he said and rushed out.
"Thank you, Your Majesty," said Raku.
Just then, Otome appeared. She was wearing a very flattering cream-colored dress with a sage green trim. It had short sleeves, and the skirt was much shorter than she was used to, but Otome realized it would probably be more practical.
Queen Katherine nodded in approval. "You look nice . . . um . . ."
"Otome," said Otome.
"Otome," agreed the Queen, smiling.
Raku stood up. "Well, I think we must be going. We need to get to Gandlen. How long do you think it will take to get there on Hiryuu?"
"Oh, it should only take a couple of hours," said Queen Katherine as she and the King stood up.
"Thank you," said Raku.
Cole stood up on his two legs. "I'll take them out to Hiryuu," he said. "Bye, Mother and Father."
"Goodbye, Cole," said his parents, hugging him. "Be careful."
And with that, Raku, Hiyake, Devon, Otome, and Kiylo followed Cole outside.
In front of the castle, James was petting a very large, purple dragon. It was easily large enough for the six of them to fit on the dragon's back with room to spare. "Raku," said Cole, "you can handle Hiryuu, right? You can steer him."
Raku just nodded once and walked toward the dragon. James helped her up without saying a word. Then he helped up Kiylo, then Hiyake, then Otome, and finally, Cole. Devon flew up and sat in front of Kiylo. Raku was holding Hiryuu's golden reins. She bent her head close to his ear and whispered, "Go". And the great creature flapped his enormous wings and began to lift off the ground.
Otome was holding onto Hiyake's waist, and Cole was holding onto Otome. Hiryuu was climbing higher and higher into the air. By the time he reached the right altitude, Otome could see very far. Hitao looked like a map of the Earth, but the water was a pinkish color.
"It's so beautiful," Otome gasped. "It looks just like maps of my planet."
"It should," said Hiyake. "This solar system is parallel to yours, and this planet is parallel to Earth with only a few minor differences."
"Like the water," said Otome.
"And the oxygen concentration," said Hiyake. "You wouldn't be able to breathe at this altitude on Earth. But, you can here."
"But then how do you know more about everything than me?" Otome asked. "You're not even from this planet."
Hiyake shrugged. "I guess our solar system is more highly educated. And also, Jensui is the parallel planet to Mars."
"Oh," said Otome. Then she turned to Cole. "Cole, How do you know Raku?"
"We're distantly related," Cole replied. "I could tell you more, but I'm not sure Raku wants me to." Otome looked at Raku. She didn't seem to be paying attention to them, but Otome could already tell that Raku was pretty good at hiding her feelings.
"Basically," said Cole, "Tetsudai took Ariana over when he was ten and she was thirteen. She didn't have anywhere else to go, so she came to live with us. All of the original royal families on Hitao are distantly related, but ours was the only original monarchy that still worked."
"So, wait," said Otome. "How old is she now?"
"Nineteen," said Cole.
"Nineteen!" Otome couldn't believe it. Raku was less than four years older than Otome, but she had such a cool personality that she seemed much older than that. Otome looked at Raku quickly. Cole was right. She actually looked very young. She could probably pass for seventeen. There was just something about her- her eyes, perhaps.
"So that means that I was right -- Tetsudai is sixteen," said Otome. "But how did a little ten-year-old take over an established government?" she wondered. Cole looked slightly insulted. "We're not so little. Ten-year-olds can do a lot."
"Sorry," said Otome with a smile.
"Besides," Cole continued, "Lord Tetsudai was already a prince. He was the second son of a king on some other planet. So he had a very loyal army. Tristan was impressed, so he found Tetsudai a couple of months later, and they kind of became partners. Or something."
"I wonder why he saved me," said Otome. "He could have just left me there, and then Raku would be one person short for whatever she has to do."
Raku had been listening all along. "Who knows why Tetsudai does any of the things he does," she said. She still stared straight ahead, carefully steering the dragon toward Gandlen.
"So, how old is this Adrienne," said Hiyake, who was tired of talking about Tetsudai.
"Seventeen," Raku replied. She seemed to be getting impatient, and the thin stretch of land on the horizon didn't seem to be getting any bigger. She sighed. "No, I mustn't," she said under her breath.
"Mustn't do what?" asked Otome.
"Mustn't use one of her spirits," said Hiyake, who was not really paying attention.
"Hiyake!" Devon exclaimed.
"Spirits?" asked Otome.
"Yeah," said Cole from behind. "She has four spirits. Each one can... control one of the four elements. Earth, air, water, and fire. She keeps them inside precious stones. I think they were handed down from her ancestors."
Otome remembered Raku pulling the topaz out of her bag and saying, "Aura." A gust of wind had come out of it and knocked Tetsudai over. "Oh!" breathed Otome.
"Cole! That's supposed to be a secret!" Devon admonished.
But what did Aura mean? Otome wondered.
"That's her name. The spirit's," said Devon.
Otome jumped. "Did I say that out loud?"
Devon was blushing. "You were probably mumbling," said Raku quickly.
"Maybe," said Otome. But she didn't think so.
The air below started to get dark and polluted. Otome squinted. She could barely make out a large city through the grime.
"Finally," Raku murmured. She led Hiryuu down into the pollution.
Otome coughed. "It's so big," she managed to say. "How are we ever going to find her?"
Raku landed Hiryuu outside of the city at the base of a couple of low hills. Then she reached into her pouch and took out a brilliant emerald. "Shadren," she said quietly, and a brown breeze came out of the gem. It blew loose dirt around and covered the dragon.
Otome thought she could faintly see the face of a young man in the breeze as it blew back into the gem.
Raku put it back. "Devon and Cole stay here with Hiryuu," she ordered, "The rest of you hurry up. We have to be back on Trent in three hours."
Raku walked quickly toward the city. Otome, Hiyake, and Kiylo had to all but run to keep up. They found themselves on the main road of the city about twenty minutes later. Raku put her hand inside her leather bag and closed her eyes for a brief second. Then she closed the bag and looked up. "Adrienne should be on the next street over," she said. The four of them hurried down the busy street until they had reached the next block.
At the intersection, there was a girl playing a violin for money; a hobo sitting on the curb sleeping; another girl standing on a corner in a very skimpy dress batting her eyes at every man in sight, and countless people hurrying past, not looking at anyone.
"So which one is she?" Otome asked. But before Raku could reach into her pouch again, Kiylo pointed to the trashy girl on the corner.
"That's Adrienne," he said.
The others looked amazed. "Kiylo, how do you know?" asked Otome.
Kiylo shrugged. "I just do."
Raku put her hand in her pouch again and closed her eyes like she had before. "Kiylo's right," she said.
"Hiyake, go get her to come over here."
Hiyake sighed and did what he was told.
"Hi," said Adrienne in a contrived sexy voice.
"Hi," Hiyake mumbled. "Um . . ."
"Are you here about business?" Adrienne had what sounded like a Cogney accent.
"Not in the way you mean," said Hiyake.
Adrienne tried not to look confused. "But what other way is there?" she asked with a giggle.
Hiyake sighed. "Look, I'm not here to use your ... services," he tried to explain. "The truth is, I'm not quite sure why I'm here at all. I'm kind of here for a friend, I guess."
Adrienne picked up her short-sleeved, feathery coat. "Okay ..." she said. "Um, I guess take me to him." Hiyake shook his head and led Adrienne across the street to Raku.
"So where is he?" Adrienne asked.
"Here," said Hiyake, gesturing to Raku.
Adrienne looked at Raku. "Oh, dear," she said.
Raku looked sternly at Hiyake. "Hiyake, what did you tell her?"
Hiyake smiled.
Wearily, Raku looked at Adrienne. "I hate explaining this," she said. "Okay, here's the deal. We are going to overthrow a government and we need your help."
Adrienne laughed bewilderedly. "I don't know much about governments, I'm afraid," she said.
"It doesn't matter, Adrienne," said Raku with a sigh. "Look, I don't know why I need you, but I do."
"I'm sure I didn't tell you my name," said Adrienne, "and I'm sure I didn't tell him," she added, jerking her thumb toward Hiyake."
"This is harder than I thought," said Raku.
"Oh, I didn't say I won't come," said Adrienne. "I really think I got to, for some reason." She pulled up her already short skirt revealing a blue and black garter on her left thigh, and then she pulled a gold cross pendant out from inside the elastic. She put the necklace on and said, "so are we goin'?"
Raku and Hiyake were raising their eyebrows at each other. Otome just looked shocked.
Adrienne noticed their faces. "Oh, I wear this when I'm not working," she explained.
Raku shook her head. "We don't have much time," she said briskly. "Let's go." She began to walk quickly out of town to where Cole, Devon and Hiryuu were waiting. "I can't wait to get back to Trent," she sighed.
