Amoro Revidi

Title: Coronation [Part Twenty-One]
Series: Vision of Escaflowne
Rating: PG-13
A/N: And this, friends and neighbors, is when the chapters start getting long again. We're finally getting out of Asturia and so the parts will either be longer with more focus per area/set of characters, or shorter and not as segmented as they have been. I haven't quite decided which to do. We're also almost done with this story. No, I know what you're thinking as you read this, the plot won't get concluded by chapter 30, but this is sort of a 2 or 3 part thing. Part One had certain goals, and I'm very close to achieving them. So I may take a little break after chapter 30 to catch my breath, and then we'll be knee deep in the second part, which will most likely start at chapter 31.

***

    The festivities began to wind down soon after the fateful duel and dinner afterwards, and concluded without further attack by anyone, though Kathis Calipse and Knight Caeli Schezar were never closer than ten feet from one another throughout the end of Jasper's stay in Austuria.

    Whatever had kept the king of Fanelia from sleeping, and brought Hitomi to his door went unnoticed by the rest of assemblage in Palas, and since she couldn't explain exactly what was wrong, Van quietly suggested to her that until she could, they not alarm their fellow party-goers unneccessarily. Whether it was his quiet suggestion or the warm arms that encircled her during that quiet suggestion that convinced Hitomi to go along with Van's idea was later hard for even her to establish later on.

    Jasper, newly betrothed, foung that he couldn’t keep his thoughts on the festivities, and though for a while he was able to focus on the thoughts of his upcoming wedding in Cesario and his fiance, he couldn’t bring himself to get over one thing.

    Though he knew Kira would make an excellent queen for the country, mother to his children, and focusing point with his mother’s decline...

    ... Nileyah wasn't going anywhere.

    And she was always present.

***

    “So your things are nearly packed, Prince Jasper?” she asks him in a quiet manner from her post near his doorway as he looks out the window at the long patio where the coronation would shortly be held.

    He nods wordlessly.

    “Are you certain? We will depart directly after the coronation, be sure not to leave anything behind.”

    “I am aware,” he says quickly, the phrase cracking like the snap of a whip through the still, placid air of the suite, and he instantly regrets his shortness with her. After all, she didn’t get me into this mess, he reasons with himself.

    “If Your Highness is most certain, I will see to my own things,” she bows stiffly and turns on her heel in the crispest of military maneuvers, striding purposefully from the room.

    Jasper hangs his head and looks down at his ungloved hands on the windowsill, the ring on his left hand mildly disturbing to him against the unadorned stone, and the further lack of jewelry on his person. A knock on the door brings his attention back to the moment.

    “Enter.”

    Come to think of it, Nil's been acting a little oddly since I proposed to Kira... but she didn’t-

    “Jasper, are you in here?”

    Think of the devil.

***

    In the hallway on his way to attend the closing festivities, Allen freezes in his tracks to see her moving at a quick pace in the opposite direction. For a moment she looks up and sees him, her brown eyes flashing angrily.

    “Oh, I-” Allen begins, trying to think of a graceful way to apologize for his behavior that evening, but as soon as he opens his mouth, it seems, she turns her eyes away from his and steps past, unspeaking.

    Puzzled, Allen turns and continues to speak, “I wanted to apologize for my behavior...”

    Her voice, not sounding quite the same as he brokenly remembers it from that evening, grinds out a terse and tense, “Apology accepted,” before she starts forward once more, disregarding whatever words he might have said in addition.

    And I alone share the blame? You may have been broken up over something, Kathis, but that does not excuse goading someone into a fight...

    Allen starts to follow after her, wherever she is going, but hears the trumpets outside begin to call the Knights Caeli and the troops in to formation, and frowns as he continues on his own way.

***

    “So what do you think of the set up?” Hitomi asks Van as he leads her forward to her seat next to his in the shaded booth of the grand stand.

    Van does not, at first, respond to the query, eyes seeking out and examining the security for the event - the posting of the guards and the gates in the arena.

    “Van?”

    “Hmm?” he responds absently as she queries him, until Hitomi reaches over a few inches and lays her hand on his forearm.

    “Van, look at me?”

    He turns puzzled crimson eyes on her and his anxious expression softens as his eyes meet her jade green ones. “I’m sorry, Hitomi.”

    “What are you so engrossed in?” she asks with casual interest.

    “It’s nothing...” he begins, but seeing the slight narrowing of her eyes he leans a little closer, glancing around momentarily, and says, “But this would be the perfect time to attack Asturia, everyone is gathered in one place. And since...”

    “Not here,” she says with a forced smile, hoping against hope that she can simply will the unpleasant fortune out of existence. “Nothing will happen at Exeter’s crowning...”

    Van eyes Hitomi a little suspiciously and then, covertly, moves his arm to take her hand in his own. “I pray you are right.”

***

    Millerna smiles at her reflection in the mirror, preparing to start down to the coronation when a quiet knock comes to her dressing room door. “Come in,” she says in a pleasant voice.

    A chilling rush enters the room as the door opens, and Millerna sees the tall form in the mirror for an instant before she turns to regard the towering figure in person. The dark hood shrouds his face from view and she opens her mouth to scream, but he is upon her before she can get out a single piercing breath into the air.

    “I would not do such things if I were you, Queen Millerna.”

    Terrified at the tall, lanky figure, Millerna shakes her head, fearfully aware of the strong hand clamping down on her mouth hard enough to bruise her cheeks.

    “Now, come along quietly and no one has to be hurt.”

***

    Chid stands next to Exeter, who fidgets slightly in the stuffy, traditional garb of Asturia. He smiles pleasantly, remembering his own coronation not so long ago, both of them. First to Crown Prince Chid of Freid, and then into his Dukedom. With a slight frown he stops the boys hands from fidgeting with the stiffly starched linens and thick brocade, glancing up into the sky for some hint of help from the sun to warm them on the chill morning. He finds none, the chill winter breezes sweeping mercilessly through the arena, as the stands fill up.

    Dryden stands just beyond Exeter, if anything, more fidgety than his son. "Uncle Dryden... what's wrong?”

    “Millerna should be down by now.”

    Chid smiles. “Aunt Millerna is a woman of exceptional taste, Uncle, she is probably adjusting her gowns for her grand entrance. This is a very important day in her life... and yours.”

    Dryden blinks and glances down at Chid with new eyes, feeling, yet again, that the wisdom in his nephew's immature form is beyond his years, and wondering if it was from Marlene or Allen that he inherited that bit of himself. He quickly shakes off the thoughts as Chid gives him a puzzling look with his crystal blue eyes, so familiar to Allen's own, and Dryden wonders how much longer it will be before someone notices that the shade of hair and the twinkling blue eyes are not exactly the shade native to the Asturian royal family, but are near exact replicas of the features common to both Schezar siblings.

    Certainly, he reasons, it will not take long for that state secret to become common knowledge. And as he thinks these words, the stands seem to finish filling up, and the trumpeters announce the Queen's entrance from the side of the arena.

    His first thought is of how beautiful she looks in the veiled garment with long flowing sleeves, her older sister Eries following demurely behind her.

    The second, as she stops across from him and their eyes meet, only for an instant, is that those are not Millerna's eyes!

    Before he can say a word, however, the not-quite-right blue flashes a moment and then adjusts to the proper color, Dryden, stupified for various reasons, extends a hand mechanically which the not-quite-right Queen of Asturia takes and the two turn to face the seating of the other royals, and bow formally.

***

    “Well that certainly was an impressive coronation,” the Egzardian queen comments as the arena stands empty out and the monarchs wait for their own escorts to take them to either their suites or their means of transportation homewards.

    “Certainly something worthy of Palas’ reputation,” another speaks up as the first group of guards shows up to escort them away.

    “What did you think, Lady Hitomi?” Xachary asks, turning to the young woman seated to the Fanelian king’s left.

    “Lady Hitomi?”

    She still does not respond, and Van touches her hand on his arm and squeezes it gently. “Pardon me, what was that?”

    “I was asking about your views on the coronation, but the ceremony obviously didn’t impress you so much if you can be so easily distracted, it seems, by the commoners.”

    Hitomi would very much like to scowl and retort to the Basram monarch, but Van’s hand covering her own reminds her that even though she would very much like to, it would cause the condescending monarchs to look down even more on Van and Fanelia for bringing such an “unmannered” guest to the festivities, and so she smiles pleasantly and says, “You must remember, King Xachary, that on my planet, I am one of those commoners you speak so disdainfully of,” her comment wins a few disdainful looks in Xachary’s direction, and Van smiles proudly at her, winking once as he catches her eye.

    “Alright, well what did you think of the coronation then, Lady Hitomi?”

    “I thought that it went well,” Hitomi begins, half afraid her true thoughts are written across her face as she speaks, “Queen Millerna looked as beautiful as ever, and the ceremony went seamlessly. I’ve not been a party to many such coronations, but I did greatly enjoy this one.”

    Now if only I could get over the sinking feeling that that wasn’t Millerna… Dryden paused and then seemed so… forced after he started moving again.

    “Well I’d love to stay and allow you all to cross-examine the Lady Hitomi all day,” Van says with a wry grin, “but we’ve got to get on our way, Fanelia is far from here.”

    Several murmurs of approval and several others of intermediate opinion go through the small assembly of monarchs, and Van rises, helping Hitomi to her feet.

    “Certainly you won’t keep the charming young woman all to yourself from now on, Fanelia?” the King of Daedelus asks with a twinkle in his eye.

    “That, my fellow King, is entirely up to her. If you all will excuse us, we’ve got a journey to prepare for.” Van turns and leads Hitomi from the shaded platform into the hall where several Asturian royal guards headed by Allen Schezar.

    “So, Hitomi, I trust your stay in Palas has been blissfully uneventful?” Allen asks offhandedly as he leads Van and Hitomi down to where the rest of the Fanelian party awaits them to board the ship that will take them on the first leg of their journey back to their country.

    “Quite,” she responds warmly, “I can hardly believe it’s over already.”

    Allen, distracted, doesn’t comment further on her response, but smiles back, drawing the guard up to attention on either side of the gangplank to the ship as the other nobles from Fanelia board the ship, and he is surprised when Hitomi gives him a chaste, brief hug before accepting Van’s steadying hand as she boards the ship.

    “Take care, Allen,” Hitomi says with a wistful smile, “I hope Celena feels better soon.”

    Allen nods politely to Hitomi and then again, stiffer, to Van as he gives his own parting salutations to the Knight Caeli. As soon as the ship has made a decent distance into the harbor, Allen turns and heads back to his sister, to see how she is doing. Hitomi’s words having reminded him of her current frame of mind.

    Ever since the duel-spar in the courtyard, Allen found himself much more distracted from his duties and forgetful of his sister. Something about Nileyah’s attitude, her style… had been off since that evening. And after his attempt at an apology failed, he found himself annoyed at her very shortly impending absence from Asturia.

    Something isn’t right with her, he reasons to himself.

***

    Kira climbs into the carriage with the assistance of Jasper’s hand, and then Jasper follows her into the sturdy contraption bound for Cesario, and her new future. She glances out the window to see her father standing with stern pride at the edge of the gates, and from the corner of her eye she sees Nil mounting her horse and moving into position to accompany the carriage on its way.

    “Move out!” Nil orders the driver in a stern tone, and the carriage starts to move forward, slowly at first as the horses gain their footing on the cobbles of the road, and then quicker, and Kira watches as her father’s powerful figure fades from view.

    “Afraid to see him go, after so much time?” Jasper asks quietly, green eyes peering at her from under his black bangs.

    “It… will be different, not having him ruling over me from just over my shoulder. I feel as though he is still there…”

    Jasper leans forward and takes her hands in his. “He isn’t,” Jasper assures her tenderly, “and he won’t be in Cesario.”

    She smiles, “No, instead it will be your mother.”

    Jasper laughs slightly, “My mother is nothing like your father… and she rarely leaves the castle.”

    “And you expect me to?”

    “Well a queen certainly must know her people. And as my companion, I expect you to accompany me when I leave the castle.”

    Kira smiles, remembering for the first time in a while the happy days of her childhood, before her father had been elected King of Basram, and had only been a very important senator and council member. Back when her own mother was still alive and well and would play with her and her sisters.

    She blinks, pausing.

    “Kira? Darling?” Jasper asks, concerned.

    “Will I… be able to send out a letter or two… once we get to your country?”

    “Our country,” Jasper corrects, “and most assuredly. Who will you write to?”

    “My sisters.”

***

    Tristan storms his way back into the small room, having just come from a meeting with the Bikathian Council. He does not glance back at the door, as he knows that his escort will have closed and locked it from the outside, but he feels Arik’s soothing presence at his back.

    “I can’t believe these people! What is it that they want from me? From you!”

    “Tristan,” she says in a maternally soothing voice, “it is the way things are, and always have been. I am only sorry that I did not mention these things to you before, but I did not believe, despite the circumstances in Ispano, that this would be required of you.”

    He turns to face her, seeing her familiar face softened with kindness, and it almost sickens him, “Arik, what? Did you, then, expect that you would still be required some day to-”

    “What I am required to do is of little consequence to your duty. Now, tell me what they said to you.”

    Tristan, disturbed by Arik’s dismissal of something he can hardly stomach to think about, sits down on the bed and runs his fingers through his hair, “I managed to talk them into only making us try once a week… other than that, you’re not required to train, merely to accompany me wherever I go…”

    “Like I always have.”

    Tristan ponders that thought, looking up at her, “True,” he says, his expression clearing slightly, “just as you always have.”