Hibiki silently observed his companion through the corner of his eye.

Hugging both of her knees to her chest, she sat, deep in thought; her expression unreadable to the young man. Yet it wasn’t her usual calm and confident one, no, it seemed uncertain, almost as if…

Almost as if she was sad…

Then again, he understood. He wasn’t exactly jumping for joy tonight either. Absently picking up another stone, he tossed the smooth grey pebble into the lake- almost as if trying to throw his own pain into the luminous blue depths.

*Plop*

Once upon a Christmas Eve – A Vandread Fanfiction by KW

Disclaimer – I don’t own Vandread, the characters of vandread or any other trademark of the series. I do however own this story and will look very unkindly on plagiarism of any sort.

A.N. -Bold, centered text is the spirits/pexis talking

          Italics are memories

*Plop*

The ripples fascinated her. How something so small could affect something so much larger than itself…

Meia idly wondered whether if she was a stone, how big the effect of her passing through would be.

*Plop*

“Would I make ripples, or would I just fall unnoticed…” She whispered to herself, yet loud enough to catch the attention of her companion. He turned his head slightly to face her, a silent question on his face- sufficiently vague so that she understood without having to be obliged to answer.

She chose not to.

“It’s quiet, I can’t hear the others anymore…” Meia said softly, changing the subject. She did not particularly feel like sharing her thoughts with anyone, especially given the intensity of her emotions earlier that night.

“Yeah, they finished about an hour ago.” Hibiki replied, brown eyes studying green for an instant before returning their gaze to the water. “You should head to bed as well. Christmas or no Christmas, there’s still many things to be done.”

Meia hesitated for a moment, worried that she had somehow insulted him by what she had said, or rather what she had not said. The moment passed however, as she realized that there was no anger evident in his voice.

“Good night Hibiki.” Meia said quietly as she stood up and walked slowly away, Shaking her head slightly, she couldn’t help feeling as if she had just missed out on something very important, but what exactly that important thing was, she did not know.

“Meia would make waves.” Hibiki whispered once he was sure she had left. “Just like Dita made waves.”  Another stone was sent flying into the blue expanse of the lake.

*Plop*

*****

.

It was a dream, one that He’d not had since the Harvest war.

He found himself floating in endless myriad of green, almost as if he was within the Pexis itself- the place of the spirits.

Lost… something irreplaceable…

Images of Dita suddenly surrounded him, a blur of all his memories of her, flashing by as if someone was holding down the fast forward button. Yet out of the blur, one stood out, one that he had forgotten.

“Dita’s going to protect Uchuujin-san! Because Dita loves Uchuujin-san! That’s why… That’s why Dita’s going to protect Hibiki!” 

He gasped as those simple words reopened a scar untouched by the previous night’s musings.

Trials forgotten…

The image of Dita faded as a new one took its place. Hibiki now watched as a younger him made his way up a mountain, the first time he had gone to the place of the spirits.

“It’s pitiful, but I can’t live alone. I can barely scratch out a living being supported by a lot of people.”

Those are you friends, something precious

“Yes, they’re all troublesome, but because they’re there I can be myself. I can’t lose any of them because I wouldn’t be myself anymore.”

Hibiki shook his head, trying to stop the dream, but it continued…

“If I were stronger, If I had more strength, I could help everyone.

And as it continued, he found his very own words tearing at his soul…

“There are people who believe in me! For them… to protect them… I’m going to fight!”

That is why you live, that is your proof of life

“Yes! That is the proof that I live!”

The proof that you live… so what if you fail?

Hibiki did not know what to say in reply. He couldn’t deny the truth of the simple statement. He had fought, yet he still failed, he had not been strong enough to protect her.

Vengeance, is that what you seek?

“Yes!” Hibiki roared in reply, the answer obvious, “I want to destroy them all!“

Red the color of doubt, the color of your enemy.

Hibiki gasped as a form appeared in front of him, one that he thought he would never see again. So shocked was he, that he did not realize the voices of the spirits becoming silent, and in their place, she spoke.

“Red, the color of your very own soul.”

*****

The wooden dummy groaned under the assault, yet Meia did not relent. She had always retreated to the gym when her emotions had threatened to spillover, yet last night…

“Why?” She puffed out, as she struck the dummy with another solid punch to its midsection.

Why did she choose to stay at the lake with him?

Another solid punch…

She could have very easily have turned around and left. Could have gone to the gym and worked off her emotions…

And another…

Or had she been lonely, could have gone to the party, to be surrounded by people….

And another…

So why?

Assaulted with questions she could not answer, she engrossed herself on using the wooden dummy as an outlet for the frustration. So focused was she on her own inner turmoil that pain did not register to her, the bruising to her knuckles a testament to this fact. So engrossed was she that she didn’t even notice as someone walked into the room.

Didn’t notice the sad expression on the other person’s face…

“Ara, ara,” Gascogne whispered.

*****

Magno sighed as she switched off the view screen. The decision had been made, yet for all her worth, she wondered whether it was the right one.

Even the memories of the Christmas Eve party the night before did little to alleviate her mood, and that was saying something. The party had been one to remember, quite possibly the greatest that had ever been held in the Nirvana, but that had been the idea after all. It was a party that Dita would have been proud of; mirth filled the bridge, and smiles found aplenty as the crewmembers reminisced about Dita’s exploits of old.

Still, two people who should have been there with them were absent. But she understood their reasons.

“You two are more similar than you realize. The only difference being whether you let things out or not.”

She had said that in what seemed like a long time ago, but it still rang true. Especially after last Christmas… Out of all the crew, they had been hit the hardest, and among the crew, were the two least able to handle their pain.

Ever since it happened, Meia had retreated back to her old shell, minimizing contact with everyone, and when conversation was necessary it was sharp and straight to the point. It had gotten so bad that the newer crew members, especially the men who had come aboard after the war, had referred to her as the “ice queen”.

Hibiki’s reaction on the other hand had been as extreme as Meia’s, just on the other side of the spectrum. Where Meia’s had isolated herself from everyone, he had just been downright explosive. Vengeance became the driving force in his life, the very same vengeance which remained unfulfilled as the monster that killed Dita had destroyed itself with her. So it turned itself towards the next possible target – Earth.

After the incident, he had spent as much time as possible to gather information on Earth. Every possible source of information he could get, he hunted down. Time passed, and Magno had hoped that he had given up his vendetta and allowed himself to grieve as he should. Yet it turned out otherwise as almost ten months after that fateful Christmas he had calmly walked into her room and confronted her.

“I want to call a meeting of the elders.” Hibiki said in a cool and collected tone, yet as Magno looked at him, she realized how false a disguise that tone really was. Shining though his eyes was anger so intense it stunned her.

She had been very thankful at that moment that he had decided to seek her out in her office. The others were still dealing with their own grief, and did not need to have Hibiki’s anger added upon that. More so as he had an uncanny habit of causing people to follow after him..

“What is this about?” Magno replied nonchalantly, “Meetings are only called in times of utmost need, and there hasn’t been such need since the harvest war.”

“Don’t play games with me. I’ve long outgrown the age where they work.”  Hibiki bit back, anger seeping into his words. “You know as well as I do what this is about.”

“And so what if I do?” She replied, meeting his anger with irritation of her own, “Who do you think you are? Calling the first generation into council just so that you can fulfill some personal vendetta?!”

“The threat is real Magno” He said simply, all anger leaving his voice, and his face taking on an expression which made him seem much older than his nineteen years, “We’ve already lost someone special and I am not about to sit back and let those fuckers kill the people I care about..  I will not have someone else I know die right before my eys thanks to those monsters. “

Magno remained silent for a moment studying the man who sat in front of her; realizing for the first time how much he had changed since the time, years back, where he had tried to persuade her that Meia was not a good leader. All that had got him was a stint in the register.

“Fine, so be it.” Magno relented, looking at the young man before her, her opinion of him changed, “But you, and you alone will bring the topic to the council. “

He simply nodded.

Magno sighed; the discussions were long, and it had come down to a deadlock- with her holding the only remaining vote. Days became weeks, and weeks, months until she finally decided and her vote made. Thus it was done, the decision won by a majority of one.

And now she had to inform the crew of the monumental event which had occurred, a task that brought her no joy. She was old, and had only wished for her final years to be ones of peace. Yet this dream was crushed as events and consequences demanded otherwise.

Hibiki had gotten his wish, and preparations had to be made- the offensive had begun

Authors Notes – And now we really begin. This chapter isn’t as much chapter two as it is a finishing of chapter one. It sets out the direction that my story will be taking, and basically serves almost as a prologue along with my first chapter.

Either way, rest assured the next one will be longer, and I will definitely begin on the foundations of the romance, although this chapter covered an important part as well.  Oh and you can all look forward to the battle scene that I have planned for next chapter, it’s going to be a doozy!

I hope you’ve enjoyed my latest installment, and once more I say, till next time! The story has only just begun

K