Disclaimer: I don’t own Escaflowne or the movie Bridget Jones’s Diary. I swear I have Colin Firth, though. Really.

Chapter Twenty-Four

Happy Endings

She gazed up into his eyes, a smile playing around her lips. He gazed down at her, his hair falling across his forehead, his eyes twinkling with knowing mischievousness. She was playing hard to get, and he knew it. So what did he do? He stooped down so his lips could better meet hers, his eyes lingering on her uplifted face…

“No, you idiot, don’t do it!” Millerna screamed, chucking a pillow at the screen and momentarily obscuring Hugh Grant’s smouldering eyes.

“Stop it!” Celena cried, throwing another pillow at her hysterical friend. “I’m trying to watch!”

“He’s an idiot!” Millerna hollered. “Why the hell would she let him kiss her?!”

“Because he’s handsome and fascinating and sexy and she’s lonely!” Hitomi shouted.

“But what about the tall, stuffy barrister?” Millerna whined, now glaring at the lip-locked couple in the T.V.

“Millerna, you’ve seen this movie about five million times. You know she ends up with the stuffy barrister,” Merle said through clenched teeth.

“I didn’t know that,” Yukari muttered sulkily. They ignored her.

“Oh no, oh no, the Shagging Scene!” Millerna screeched, covering her eyes.

“I prefer to call it the Giant Underwear Scene,” Hitomi said primly.

“Oh shut up, you prick,” Millerna growled.

“Is it just me, or are you girls way too interested in this movie?” They all turned to see Allen standing in the doorway of the living room, a bowl of popcorn in his hands.

“Oooh, gimme,” Celena said, reaching out for the bowl. Allen handed it over with a slight smile on his lips.

“Are the boys having fun with the Nintendo thingy?” Hitomi asked, half her attention still on the movie. Allen sighed.

“It’s called an X-box, Hitomi.”

“Right, right. Whatever.”

“In answer to your question, yes, we are having fun with it, although Dilandau seems to be unhealthily obsessed.”

“He’s a bitcrazy aboutgames,” Yukari said airily. “Leave him alone, he’ll fizz out after a while.”

“Oooh, ooh!” Millerna shrieked suddenly. “Colin Firth! Colin Firth!”

The girls all lunged back to the television, their eyes glued to the screen. Allen coughed, and left them to their entertainments.

By the time he’d returned to the basement, where the boys were gathered, Van had joined Dilandau in the game, and Mamoru, Amano and Dryden were watching appreciatively.

“Who’s winning?” Allen asked eagerly, settling into a seat beside Dryden.

“Dilandau is,” Amano replied with a slight scowl. “He just took the lead, see?”

“Oh no,” Allen said with a heavy sigh, his eyes twinkling at Dilandau’s tense back.

“Thanks for the support,” Dilandau said overly-loudly.

“Yes, thanks,” Van added with a laugh.

Why am I here? Amano wondered to himself for the dozenth time. It was a good question, and for the life of him he couldn’t figure it out. Well…actually, he could. But he didn’t particularly want to think about it.

The truth was, Yukari had invited him to this “get-together”, and once he’d discovered that the party was taking place at Hitomi’s house, and that she was friends with Hitomi Kanzaki, and old friend of his, he’d been eager to come. But now that he was here, he wasn’t sure it had been a very good idea.

“Swerve to the left! The left, the left!” Mamoru shouted.

“No, the right! To the right!” Dryden countered.

“Aaahhh!” Dilandau yelled as his car crashed into a wall.

“Hahahahahaha!” Van laughed triumphantly, and punched his fist into the air as his car crossed the finish line. “Take that, you pyro!”

“My turn!” Mamoru said, pouncing on Van’s abandoned controller.

“Me too!” Dryden added, every shred of his assumed adult dignity gone.

Amano sighed, muttered something about getting them some snacks, and rose to his feet and left.

As he made his way upstairs to the kitchen, he reflected that perhaps he should just give it up and go home. Really, what was the point in staying when the only thing he’d been able to say to Yukari was “Thanks for inviting me”, and the only thing he’d said to Hitomi, Millerna, and Celena was “Hi”? It was pathetic, really.

Running a hand resignedly through his hair, he entered the kitchen, only to halt two steps through the doorway, his lip suddenly trembling.

Yukari looked up from the plastic cup she’d been filling with Pepsi, and grinned.

“Hey,” she said, setting down the big bottle of Pepsi onto the counter. “What’re you doing up here?”

“I – I – I’m…getting snacks!” he said in a much too squeaky voice. Yukari coughed discreetly into her fist, perhaps to mask a laugh.

“I…see. Do you know where they are?”

“Erm…they’re…” Amano looked frantically around the kitchen, his palms slick with sweat. “Um…”

“They’re right here,” Yukari said, reaching up to open a cupboard above her. Amano eyed the bags of chips and pretzels inside with something like disgust.

“Thanks,” he said in a strangled voice. Yukari smirked knowingly at him.

“No problem.” She picked up her drink and took a sip, eyeing him over the cup. Amano tugged at the sides of his jeans, wishing she’d stop. It was unnerving enough to be in the same room as her – did she have to rub it in?

“Are you having fun?” she asked, jolting him out of his reverie. Amano blinked, and before he could coordinate his thoughts into something acceptable, he blurted out: “No.”

He winced as soon as he said it, but Yukari surprised him by laughing out loud.

“I figured you weren’t.” She set her cup back down on the counter, and took a few steps towards him. Amano gulped.

“A – A – Are you having fun?” he asked desperately as she drew ever nearer. Yukari ran a finger down her cheek as she thought out her answer, a gesture that seemed astonishingly erotic to him.

“I am now,” she said finally, stopping two steps away from him, her eyes gazing into his. Amano wondered why Hitomi had the heat up so high in her house.

“I wanted to thank you,” she said in a low voice.

“For what? I haven’t done anything.”

She let loose a small, sad smile. “You heard Dilandau’s apology, didn’t you?”

Silence.

“What, did you think I didn’t notice?” Her smile grew slightly teasing, then she sighed and ran her fingers over her pale face.

“So now you know.” She didn’t dare look up at him, her voice a little unsteady. “You know that I…that I was…that I am…a slut.”

That last word was whispered so softly that it would have been difficult to hear in normal circumstances, but in this case, so much emotion and history was piled up behind it that it would have been impossible for Amano not to understand her.

“You’re not!” He wanted to scream with his indignation, but all he managed was a furious hiss. Yukari quailed as he took an angry step towards her, all of her barriers suddenly crashing down.

She was defenseless against human emotions.

“Just because you slept with someone you loved doesn’t make you a slut! I…I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone so beautiful!” For a moment, he towered over her, the one in control for once…but it didn’t last. All too soon, he allowed her to stumble into his arms, and he found himself kissing her hair, his shirt wet with her tears.

“Thank you,” she half-sobbed. “Thank you for…for not being repulsed by me.”

“How could I be repulsed by you?” he murmured, his arms tightening around her fragile form.

Yukari smiled into his warm chest, her right hand clutching at the folds of his shirt. What was she doing, she wondered? Yukari Uchida had never been the sort to ask for comfort. In fact, she had always been ridiculously independent, to the point of being destructive towards herself. She did not touchloved oneseasily, much less complete strangers. She had not known Amano for very long, and they had not had any really special moments between them…but for some reason, she trusted him. She trusted in his nobility and his strength, in his fervent desire to protect her.

Trust was a tricky emotion to follow. But…maybe, just maybe, she could get through this…maybe her life hadn’t ended the moment Dilandau had pushed her into that dresser. Maybe love existed after all, here, in Amano’s tender arms.

Maybe she didn’t need to be jealous of those clouds any longer.

---

The house was quiet, the silence broken only by the soft snores of the sprawled boy bodies curled up against the heat of the television. Van leaned languidly against a sofa, his legs crossed casually over the sleeping form of Mamoru. Half-closed, his eyes darted to the clock on the wall. Three o’clock. Good Lord, why was he still awake?

Actually, he knew why. It was because he couldn’t get the image of Hitomi avoiding his eyes out of his mind.

Millerna had been the mastermind behind this entire debacle. Seeing as how had Van refused to go along on her jealousy scheme, she’d arranged this “little get-together” (which, oddly enough, was taking place at Hitomi’s house rather than hers) to force the two of them to meet and talk.

Well, so far, they weren’t doing much talking. In fact, the only words they’d exchanged were “How are you?”. And when the guys and girls had split into their respective entertainments, he hadn’t had much chance to talk to her.

For some reason, he wished Folken were here, if only for comfort. Strange, how he missed his brother only when he wasn’t nearby.

Groaning, Van hoisted himself to his feet, accidentally kicking Mamoru in the side and causing the younger boy to growl in his sleep.

Unable to stop himself from grinning at this, Van picked his way through the basement to the stairs.

Once upstairs, he headed quickly to the front door, intent on a little fresh air. Maybe that would cool his head.

But that night was full of surprises, as Van found out as he walked onto the porch.

Hitomi was sitting in one of the plastic chairs, her bare feet resting lightly on the seat, her arms wrapped around her knees. She hadn’t noticed him yet.

For a moment, Van wondered if he should head back into the house; but the way she was glowing, like an inner light was radiating through her skin, was too much to resist. Man has always been weak-kneed when it comes to heavenly messengers.

He let the door swing shut. Hitomi jumped at the sound, and she turned her emerald-bright eyes on him.

The world hushed as it watched the silent exchange between a scared little boy and a scared little girl. Even the wind slowed to a sweet trickle of air, playing gently with the ends of Van’s moon-dark hair. As Hitomi looked at him, she was strongly reminded of a scene in Bridget Jones’s Diary, near the end of the movie when Colin Firthwalks towards Renee Zellweger through the snow.

I’m in a movie, Hitomi thought, feeling slightly dizzy.

“Hi,” he said, breaking the ice-thin silence.

“Hi,” Hitomi echoed.

“Why aren’t you sleeping?” they asked together. Both proceeded to chuckle nervously.

“I couldn’t sleep,” Van said simply, taking an unconscious step towards her. “You?”

“Me neither,” she agreed. Why couldn’t she move her eyes away from his?

“Tough luck,” he said with an attempt at a smile, somehow ending up in a chair beside her. “Mind if I keep you company?”

“Not at all,” she whispered, her heart thundering softly in her chest.

“Nice night,” he commented.

“Mmm-hmm.”

Van turned his head to hide a smile. Ironic, really, how a confession of love could cause two friends who could never say enough to each other before to become complete strangers. If love was supposed to bring two people closer together, he still needed proof of it.

They sat in silence for what seemed like hours to Van. Why couldn’t he think of anything to say? Why did his chest seem to tighten with every nervous breath he took?

He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. There was a strange wistfulness on her face, a gentle tightening of her lips.

Kiss her, kiss her, kiss her…

“You don’t have to pretend, you know.”

She looked at him, confusion and panic mingling in her shadowy eyes.

“What do you mean?”

Kiss her, kiss her, kiss her…

“You don’t have to act like nothing happened.” He forced a smile onto his face. “I don’t mind if you complain.”

Hitomi shivered involuntarily, and wrapped her arms more tightly around herself. It felt…wrong…to hear Van utter those words. It felt out of place.

“I don’t want to complain,” she whispered.

There was a pause. The serenity of the night air seemed to be mocking the turbulence within their hearts.

“Then…what do you want?” His heart was pounding so quickly that it was a struggle just to say those words.

She took an eternity to say it. An eternity of hesitation, confusion, loss, and finally, an overwhelming sense of love that blurred all those other emotions into oblivion.

Hitomi looked at him, the faint light from within her blossoming into full radiance.

“I want to be with you.”

Kiss her.

The expression in her eyes deepened, giving him permission. Van leaned over, his body tingling with something new, something fresh, something that made him sense that his life would never really be the same.

As he kissed her, Hitomi reached out one hand to gently stroke his cheek, her heart overflowing.

It has to be a sin to be so happy, she thought.

---

A dark silhouette against a window, a hand cradling the cold glass. Folken gazed out at the night, at the city full of lights and people, full of dreams and opportunities.

It was good to be home.

“Folken?” He felt a slim hand rest on the bare muscles of his back. He turned, and allowed Naria to wrap her arms around him. “What are you doing?”

“I was just…thinking.”

“What were you thinking?”

He held her tightly to his chest, inhaling the mind-numbing scent of her shampoo.

“It’s a beautiful night.”

---

Balgus Fanel bounded out the door in the early morning for the newspaper, his large white robe swishing around his thick ankles. He paused for a moment in the middle of the cement path, beaming at the sight of the sleepy neighbourhood bathed in the deep light of the rising sun.

God, he loved mornings.

After taking a deep, lung-filling breath, he whispered in a voice that caused the rooftops to shudder: “Good morning, world!”

Next door, Van stirred in his sleep, and cracked open one eyelid with a sigh.

“He really has to stop doing that,” he muttered. He smiled for a split second, amused – then his eyes widened as sleep dashed away, and he realized the situation he was in.

He and Hitomi were lying together on the couch in the living room, him on his side on the outer edge, facing in, her with her arms curled up so they rested on his chest, one leg over his. Her head was resting on his arm, and her face was uncomfortably close to his, her eyes still shut, her lips brushing his chin.

Frantically, he tried to remember how they had gotten to the couch from the porch. Dimly, he recalled suggesting they go inside to sleep, only to have Hitomi insist on one last cuddle on the couch, and…oh Christ, they must have fallen asleep. If Mamoru or her parents walked in now…

Slowly, Van tried to remove her head from his arm (which felt stiff and sore), but she growled – yes, growled – and held onto it tightly with one hand. Van let out a soft groan. This was by no means a time for clinginess.

He should just wake her up. Yes, that would be best. But…she looked so angelic, sleeping there, with her lashes resting snugly on her cheeks, and –

Oh God. Her lips were slowly inching upwards, her body moving closer to his, her arm reaching out to encase his shoulder, her leg tightening its hold…

Van swallowed, and prayed for the willpower to just leave. Unfortunately, she seemed to have amazing strength for a sixteen-year-old girl with no interest in sports.

“Van,” she mumbled sleepily, and his heartbeat quickened to new levels as she leaned up against him and touched her lips to his.

There was no helping it. Was Van a healthy teenage boy, or not? With a low moan, he returned the kiss, his hand trembling as it gently cradled her face.

Hitomi let out a returning moan, and her eyes fluttered open.

In an instant, she was scrambling up the back of the couch, screaming bloody murder as Van tumbled onto the floor.

“What are you doing?!” she shrieked in a style reminiscent of a fisherman’s wife.

“Nothing!” Van cried as he scrambled to his feet, cheeks flushed. “You’re the one who –“

“You do not attack innocent, sleeping girls, okay?!”

“Innocent?” Van was highly affronted. “I hardly think –“

“You scared the shit out of me!”

“Well, you scared me, too!”

“What’s going on here?”

They froze, and turned dreading eyes to the doorway, where Mamoru stood, looking puzzled and half-asleep, his hair resembling a bush.

“N – Nothing – “ Van began, but for once in her life, Hitomi jumped to the rescue.

“Oh, Van just scared me a little, that’s all,” she said with an amazingly believable laugh, climbing down in a dignified way from the couch. “I was just sitting here because I couldn’t sleep, when Van suddenly walked in and startled me! That’s all.”

She beamed at her brother, who looked as though not a word of what she had just said had entered his brain.

“Okay then,” he said with a shrug, and he turned and trudged off back to bed.

There was silence between them for a moment as they listened to Mamoru’s retreating footsteps. Then Van turned to Hitomi, and said admiringly: “You are too good to be true, Hitomi Kanzaki.”

She blushed, the incident forgotten in the light of his compliment. “Thanks. You’re not so bad yourself.”

They eyed each other, hormones pumping – then Van cleared his throat and said politely, “Shall we go make breakfast?”

It was a little disappointing, Hitomi reflected as she followed Van into the kitchen, but then again, that was life.

---

Celena peered up at the cloudless blue sky with a sullen expression. How dare the weather be so beautiful when she was feeling so miserable? It was downright rude, that’s what it was.

“Celena?”

Scowling, she turned her gaze on her older brother, who stood by the front door of the house, a lone bag slung over his shoulder.

“What?”

Allen smiled. He knew his little sister too well to be annoyed. He knew that this façade was her way of showing how much she cared. So, on that logic, he felt he was completely justified in leaning down and kissing her on the cheek.

Celena’s eyes were soft as he pulled away, but they hardened again as soon as she realized he was watching her. Allen suppressed a chuckle.

“You’ll write?”

“Naturally.”

“And call?”

“Of course.”

“And visit?”

“When I can.”

Celena couldn’t help but sigh. Allen gathered her into his arms, and whispered into her hair: “I’ll see you soon, then. I love you.”

“I love you too,” she breathed, blinking back tears. Allen smiled, pulled away, chucked her lightly on the chin, and went to bid a tearful Encia farewell.

Celena angrily wiped the tears from her eyes, and looked up to see Leon watching her.

“What do you want?” she said gruffly. He smiled, a gesture that was remarkably Allen-like in nature.

“I was just memorizing your face, that’s all.”

She snorted, but softly. For some reason, Allen’s words kept reverberating through her mind.

You’re going to regret it.

Leon’s eyes met hers. His smile widened, and he said softly, like he always did: “Be well, Celena.”

Her usual retort rose in her throat, choking her. I will be as long as you’re gone.

But somehow, she didn’t want to say it. Not this time. Why?

Good Lord, she hated being mature.

“You too.” The words came out strangled, but they came out nonetheless. Leon’s eyes widened with momentary shock…then he smiled again, but this smile was warmer, and his eyes seemed to sparkle a little more.

“Thank you,” he whispered, and in spite of herself, Celena felt her heart thaw a little. It didn’t melt, of course, but the rise in temperature was at least a start.

Later, while Allen and Celena were packing a couple of extra bags into the trunk of Leon’s ratty old car, the man himself cornered Encia by the porch.

“I guess this is goodbye for now,” he said, gazing into her unfathomable blue eyes. Encia gave him a smile.

“Try to visit more often. A mother can’t live without her children, you know.”

“Fair point,” he said gruffly. “I’ll miss you, Encia.”

There was a pause. Encia lifted her chin slightly, a wisp of hair falling across her cheek, and unveiled her eyes just the slightest bit. For a moment, it was like Leon had been granted a glimpse through the pearly gates of Heaven – but like all things, the moment passed, and she was once again his aging, bitter ex-wife.

“Drive carefully,” she said in polite, measured tones. “Don’t kill our son.”

“I’ll try not to.” Leon smiled wryly. “I’ll call.”

“Don’t. Let Allen do the calling.”

It was a well-deserved sting, and Leon knew it. He shrugged slightly, as though to brush it off, and touched her shoulder gently in farewell.

“Take care.”

“You too, Leon. You too.”

Allen watched his mother and father out of the corner of his eye, an ironic grin on his lips.

Oh well, he thought. Maybe it’s all for the best.

---

“Van?”

“What is it, Dilandau?”

“I want to ask you something.”

“Go ahead.”

“Are you sure? You’re not sleepy?”

“Well, you destroyed all chance of that, didn’t you? Just ask the question.”

“Okay.”

“…”

“…”

“Ask the damn question!”

“Okay, okay! Geez, there’s no need to shout…”

“Just. Ask. The. Question.”

“Fine. Are you happy here?”

“…”

“Van?”

“…”

“Are you happy here?”

“…I don’t understand the question.”

“What’s so hard to understand?”

“Elaborate, please. What do you mean, am I happy here? Why would you ask that?”

“Well, I am leaving tomorrow, and I just wanted to…well…make sure, I guess.”

“What are you, my keeper?”

“I’m just being a good friend, you loser.”

“Thanks, Dilandau. Thanks a lot.”

“Are you being sarcastic?”

“…”

“Oh, shut up.”

“…”

“Answer the question.”

“I thought you wanted me to shut up?”

“I changed my mind. And quit dodging the subject.”

“Fine. Well, the answer’s obvious, isn’t it?”

“It is?”

“Of course it is, you dunce.”

“Oh. So…you’re happy?”

Van rested one arm over his eyes, a grin evident even in the gloom of the night-filled room.

“Yes, Dilandau. I’m happy.”

Dilandau leaned back against his pillow, his hair gleaming softly against the warm fabric. He traced the design on his sheets with a white finger, his teeth flashing with a relieved smile.

“I’m glad.”

---

“It’s a little sad, isn’t it?”

Mamoru looked quizzically at Merle, a strand of his hair falling across his eyes.

“What is?”

“Everyone’s leaving,” she explained with a slight pout, her eyes on the bus roaring away down the sunlit road. Mamoru grinned, and slung an easy arm around her shoulders.

“You’ve still got me, haven’t you?” he asked, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. Merle elbowed him gently in the side.

“Who says I even want you?” she teased, smiling up at him. Mamoru leaned down and kissed her neck, causing a shiver to ripple through her body.

“Don’t you want me?” he whispered against her skin. Merle rolled her eyes heavenward. He was evil, that’s what he was. Pure evil.

“Stop that, or I’ll have to maim you,” she said as calmly as she could. Mamoru laughed, and pulled away.

“Fair enough.”

Merle’s eyes roamed lazily over the small clusters of people at the bus station, eventually landing on a couple standing a few feet away. She smiled, and leaned against Mamoru, her heart pulsing gently with joy.

Hitomi tucked a strand of sun-bleached hair behind one ear, her gaze on the sky. It was a truly lovely day – one of those warm, breezy summer days that stuck in your memory, a day when even the scent of the wind seemed fresh and magical.

“I’m gonna miss him.”

Hitomi grinned sidelong at Van, who was watching the now almost invisible bus with a mournful expression on his face.

“Is Van Fanel actually getting emotional about something?”

Van looked stiffly at her. “I’m not a rock, Hitomi.”

“You sure make a good impression of one.”

He let loose a low growl from deep within his chest, and lunged at her. Hitomi uttered a soft scream as he wrapped his arms tightly around her, so tightly she could hardly breathe.

They stayed that way for an eternal moment, Hitomi memorizing the soft scent of his T-shirt. Then Van relaxed his grip on her, and she clutched a handful of his shirt, her forehead resting against his chest.

“Can we stay this way forever?” she whispered. Van smiled sardonically.

“I’ll invent a time-stopping device just for you.”

“No,” she said, suddenly changing her mind. “I don’t want time to stop. I want to grow old with you.”

It was a very sweet thing to say, and Van firmly ignored the voice in the back of hismind that said high school romances never last. Instead, he placed a warm, lingering kiss on her brow.

“So tell me,” she whispered, her eyes glittering with a warm inner light. “Are you my Prince Charming?”

Van placed both hands on her shoulders, and pulled her away so she looked up into his face. With a start, Hitomi realized that she loved that hateful, expressive eyebrow that he was so dramatically cocking.

“Hitomi,” he said with a smile that seemed to light the very air, “I’m no Prince Charming.”

“Then what are you?”

He leaned down and brushed his lips against her nose, causing her to screw her eyes closed.

“Silly.” His breath tickled her cheek. “I’m just me. Van. Isn’t that enough?”

Hitomi reached up and kissed him lightly on the lips. Van suppressed the urge to crush her body to his, to force the two of them to meld into one perfect being.

“It’s more than enough,” she breathed, and her eyes sparkled with truth.

Above them, the sky shifted, becoming a deeper shade of blue. Nestled snugly amidst the rays of darkening colour, the sun allowed its light to melt down onto the couple locked in a stubborn embrace, and smiled with the perfection of that one summer day.

Who says there’s no such thing as a happy ending?

THE END

Author’s Note: I’m sure many of you are disappointed with that ending. I know I left a lot of bases uncovered – Hitomi and her dad, Celena and her dad, Encia and Leon, Millerna and her dad, Millerna and Dryden – but hey, that’s life. Not everything is resolved so easily. Some things take time. This was my way of trying to make my story a little more realistic (I’m not sure it worked, but oh well). Will Hitomi and Van stay together? Will they get married and have little babies? I honestly don’t know. Some high school romances work, some don’t. I’ll let you, the reader, decide that.

It’ll be hard to forget this story. I learned so much while I was writing “And Along Comes Prince Charming”, not only about how to improve my future writing, but also about myself. So I suppose my first thanks must go to the characters in this story (who became real people in my mind), and even the story itself – I think I’ve become a little wiser because of it.

My other thanks must, of course, go to all my readers and reviewers – without you, much of this would not have been possible. My sincerest thanks to all of you.

A special thank you to my sister, who goes by the name Tommi Gurrl here. She provided a few priceless ideas, and even helped me edit a little bit here and there. She has been a huge source of support, and for that I cannot thank her enough. She has even agreed to be my beta reader for my next story, for which I’m extremely grateful.

On a lighter note, it was interesting to see what province a few of my reviewers guessed I was from…Ontario, B.C., and Alberta seemed to be the predominant guesses. Well, I’m not exactly willing to tell you where I live, but I’ll just say I’m from one of those provinces, and that all of you who guessed now deserve a cyber cookie. ::offers plate of cookies::

AnimeLoverTori: I’m not exactly sure what you meant when you asked me to reply to your review. What exactly did you want me to reply about? ::scratches head:: I’m glad you’re a fellow writer, and that you love writing as well. Writers of the world unite! ::laughs:: Well, thank you very much for liking my story. I’m so flattered whenever anyone bothers to review, or even to read. I’m not sure I deserve that kind of compliment. ::grins:: Thank you!

I’m not exactly sure what my next story is to be called (my sister and I are still deciding on it, but many of our ideas are incredibly stupid). But I can tell you this much: It will be an Escaflowne Van/Hitomi story (of course!), and it’s in diary form. Yeah, you read that correctly. I’ve read so many of those types of stories that I decided to try one for myself. And yes, there is a plot – a somewhat complicated one (I hope). ::prays that none of you will be disappointed with it:: It should be posted fairly soon.

Oh, and if there's anyone out there who can give me tips on how to write a diary from a guy's perspective...I would be eternally grateful. ::sweatdrop::

Well, thank you for reading (if you even bothered to), and I hope you enjoyed my little story.

Sayonara, and an early Merry Christmas to you all.

-Dahee Fanel-