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M E N U
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 blue + green |
| ©2002 aoi-midori |
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BACK TO NOWHERE by: bluegreen13
previously: in chapter 4, visions, hitomi and megumi both have the same visions. megumi is hitomi's daughter who is introduced in this part of the story. it is sixteenth birthday when a bright light appears. . .
chapter five: the girl from the mystic moon
Megumi’s eyes fluttered open. She sat up and straightened her skirt. She was still in her uniform. “Where am I?” she asked out loud. She remembered the bright light. “Mother?!” she cried, half-expecting her mother to respond. She looked up at the sky and saw earth. "Gaea,” she whispered, before someone hit her on the head. --- When she opened her eyes again, she wasn’t in a forest anymore, where she first found herself. She was not lying in the grass. Instead, she was in a soft comfortable bed and she was in a big room. Now, that was only the first thing she realized. The first thing she saw was a little purple haired fairy hovering around her face. “She ‘s awake!’ cried the fairy in a shrill little voice. She heard footsteps and then saw a pretty woman with pink hair. She slightly resembled a cat. Megumi figured that she was probably Merle. “Are you okay?” the cat said with a slight purr in her voice. “Yeah, I am,” Megumi answered. “Prince Kale found you in the forest,” the woman explained. “Some of the men he was with thought you were dressed strangely and kind of attacked you. But Kale pointed out that you were only a harmless girl; and they brought you here to be treated.” *Harmless? Who’s harmless? I can defend myself.* The woman pointed out a boy standing by the doorway. He looked like her age, with straight black hair and blue eyes^. He looked so familiar. “What’s your name?” the woman asked. “My name is Merle.” So, she was right about the catwoman. “Megumi,” she answered. “My name is Izawa Megumi.” “My name is Shayla!” the shrill voice fairy butted in. “And lay your hands off Prince Kale, he’s mine!” “Well, I just hope you’re all right,” Kale said then went out of the room immediately. “Wait for me!” Shayla hurried on after him. “Well, rest peacefully for now, Megumi,” the catwoman smiled. “The king will surely ask for your audience tomorrow.” “Are you the queen?” Megumi suddenly asked. Merle smiled. “Once upon a time I wished to be,” she said. “But not anymore. Go to sleep now.” Megumi smiled at her. She seemed nice. She wasn’t able to sleep immediately. She was thinking about her mother. And Sakura. And of course, Takako. She opened the lights. She saw her backpack. *That’s weird,* she thought. *I didn’t have my backpack when it happened.* And then she remembered her mother’s story and about the duffel bag coming to Gaea with her even thought she didn’t have it with her. On top of her bag was the rose that Takako had given her. She remembered that she never had the chance to put away her things earlier. “Takako,” she murmured, sniffing the rose. She rummaged through her pack and saw the pictures that she always had with her wherever she went. One was a picture of her family. Another one was of her mother when she was her age. They looked so alike that it seemed as if they were identical twins. And of course she had a picture of her, Sakura and Takako. She looked at the pictures, missing them. Homesick since she was in such a strange place. --- Kale walked through the palace corridors. He couldn’t sleep. He passed the strange girl’s room. The door was slightly ajar. He peeked through the door and saw the girl, sleeping, face illuminated by the moonlight. “Who is she?” he wondered. “And what is she doing here?” He entered the room and found some photographs on top of her bag. She looked at the one on top. It was a picture of her with another girl and a boy. He guessed that the boy was probably very close to her. It only brought him thinking about the girl that Lord Pascha wanted him to meet. The princess from Asturia. Before he could look at the other pictures, he heard Shayla’s voice calling out to him. “Prince Kale!” she cried. “Prince Kale!?” He returned the picture where he got it and went out the room. “I’m here Shayla,” he said in monotone. “Prince Kale!” the fairy cried in excitement, fluttering around him and taking her place on his shoulder. --- “Van,” Merle said. She had went to the king’s room before breakfast. “Megumi looks so much like Hitomi!” Merle cried. “If I didn’t know better, I would say that she was Hitomi herself!” “Merle! She is not Hitomi okay!” Van cried. “Hitomi isn’t here! It was probably just a coincidence. She does not even have the same last name.” “It could be her father’s last name!” “Merle, I will ask her myself if she knows Hitomi. But why would Hitomi send someone else? Why not come herself?” Van asked. “Lord Van she might be. . .” Merle trailed off, she didn’t want to say anymore. Van glared at her. “Hitomi is not dead!” Van exclaimed. Merle sort of slinked away from him. He was scaring her. She had never seen him act that way. Well, not to her anyway. There was that episode with Pascha sixteen years ago. “Oh I’m sorry Merle,” Van said. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. I’ll talk to the girl when I please.” Merle just nodded and slinked out of the room. *After all these years,* she thought. *he still loves her. And still aches for her.* She sadly shook her head to herself. --- “Will the king see me now?” Megumi asked Merle eagerly after breakfast. Megumi had figured out for herself that this king was her father. Her mother had said that her father was a king and Megumi had heard Merle refer to him as “Lord Van.” “Oh I’m sorry Megumi,” Merle said. “Lord Van is too busy.” “Oh,” Megumi just smiled. “I guess I’ll just go off and wander around.” Merle watched as the girl went off. She sighed. She had a strong feeling that she was connected to Hitomi. If only she could be sure. She sighed again. --- It was painful to remember Hitomi. And it was painful to know that she never exerted effort to communicate with her for the past 16 years. For all he knew, Merle could be right. Hitomi could be dead. Allen had also seen the girl and noticed her uncanny resemblance to Hitomi. He had also come to her asking him to give the girl a chance. For all they knew, she could be related to Hitomi. Allen had come to him that morning. To speak to him about that and to tell him that he was ready to leave. When his sister, Celena and Gaddeth had married 14 years ago, they had moved back to Asturia. Allen had decided to stay at Fanelia and help the king. But lately, he had decided to go back too. He wasn’t that young anymore, he was getting old, and he knew that it was time to retire and live a quiet life, and not a soldier’s life of war. Van looked out the window of his library. It overlooked the royal garden. She saw the girl. What was it Merle said her name was? Megumi Izawa. It was true how much she looked like Hitomi. She was writing in a little notebook. “I wonder what she’s doing,” Van said out loud He sighed, “Maybe I should go talk to her.” --- Megumi looked at the pond in the royal garden. She could see the fishes swimming about it. She looked at her journal, sitting on the floor beside her. She sighed. She didn’t know whether to be relieved or disappointed about the fact that the king refused to meet her. She didn’t know if she was ready to introduce herself about his daughter yet. She eyed her journal again and picked it up.
At that moment, Megumi stopped writing because she felt movement behind her. She looked up to see a man with unruly black hair and huge brown eyes. He had gray hair around his temples and a thin band of gold around his head. She place her bets that this was the king. “Sir,” she said standing up. “Megumi, isn’t it? Sit down,” he said, sitting down beside her. They sat in silence together for around ten minutes. “Megumi, what is the name of your mother?” he asked. Megumi was taken aback at this question. “Your highness. . .” her voice railed off. She realized how unprepared she was for him to find out the truth. Van smiled at her. “Maybe that isn’t such an appropriate question,” he looked up in the sky. The sun was setting. Earth could be seen in the sky. Megumi figured that it was that he was looking at. “It’s just that you remind me so much of someone I once knew,” he said. “She was from the Mystic Moon. How about you Megumi, where are you from?” Megumi pointed up at the Earth. Van looked down. “I see you are from there too. . .” Megumi looked at him, admiring her father’s face. She realized that he was the man in her vision and that Kale was the boy. “Too. . .?” she hid a smile. “You look so much like her,” he looked at her. And that was when she realized that she needed to come out with the truth. She was about to speak when Van stood up. “Well, I better go now,” he said. Megumi watched him go. “So much like who sir?” she whispered softly. “So much like Kanzaki Hitomi?” She sighed and lay down the grass. Yes, people always say that. How much she looked like her mother. Maybe this was a sign. Maybe it wasn’t yet time to reveal her true identity. “What should I do mother?” she looked at earth longing to see all her friends again --- Kale had seen his father talking to the girl from the Mystic Moon. That was where she was from according to Merle. The Mystic Moon. He had always wondered what was there. He knew that a girl from that place had helped save Fanelia during the Great War. He also knew that the same girl who helped save Fanelia was also the girl his father had fallen in love with. “Prince Kale?” he heard Shayla say at his ear. “Prince Kale?” Shayla, the little playful fairy. He had found her while playing in the woods one day, 6 years ago when he was eleven. She was only a child-fairy then and she had fascinated him. She was lost and could not find her parents. In a way, he had saved her life. At least, that was what Shayla believed. Ever since then, Shayla had stayed at his side, never leaving him. He sighed. “Prince Kale are you okay?” Shayla asked. Kale just smiled. Shayla beamed at him and sat on his shoulder like she usually did. --- Megumi looked up from. She had been taking a walk under the moonlight that night. The Mystic Moon. Earth. She wondered what her mother was doing. And Takako. And Sakura. And all of her other friends. She looked straight ahead. It was Prince Kale. As usual, with Shayla. She thought about approaching him. She almost decided against when she saw him look at her. She smiled at him and waved. She could tell that his winged companion was a little peeved. Nevertheless, she approached him. “Hello!” she smiled, sitting down next to him. He mumbled a greeting. “So,” Megumi started, always enthusiastic. “I never got around to thanking you for bringing me here. That was the equivalent of saving my life you know.” Kale nodded. Megumi smiled again. She was like that. Always smiling. Always eager to make someone feel good. “That’s where I come from,” she said, pointing to the Mystic Moon. “I know,” Kale muttered. Megumi looked at him again. He didn’t seem to be getting better. She rolled her eyes to herself. This guy was numb! “What’s it like here in Gaea?” she asked. “I think it’s pretty nice.” She asked a couple more of questions but it seemed that she was also the one who was answering all the questions. “So can you please leave me alone now!?” he suddenly snapped at her. Megumi looked hurt. This was the first time he said more than two words to her and he had to snap at her like that! But then she glared at him. This guy was crazy! She was only trying to make him feel good! Feeling bad about herself, she walked away, slightly pissed. Who did this guy think he was anyway? --- Kale looked at the girl walk away. What he had with her was more than a conversation. He hardly said anything to anyone. His whole life, his whole seventeen years of existence, he never was much of a talker. He knew that when he was young, everyone came close to thinking he was mute. He never said his first words until he was 5. It wasn’t that he could not talk. It was that he did not want to talk. He looked at the girl walking away. He sighed. He knew that she only meant to do good. He could sense that she wanted to make him feel better. But after telling her away like that, he felt even worse. Shayla seemed unaware of his feelings. She just sat on his shoulder, feeling triumphant that he sent that girl away. Shayla was a nice girl. But he knew that he could never feel for her what she expected him to. He shook his head. He didn’t want Shayla to expect anything. He just needed someone to remind him that he was still a part of Gaea. To be continued. . .
notes:
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| four // six |