Lifting the Burden

By Snare-chan

Pairings: Hinted Folken/Hitomi – Hitomi/Folken, but you're going to have to squint really hard.
Ratings: G
Category(ies): General
Warning(s): Spoilers for episode 23

Status: One-shot, complete
Summary: Hitomi, caught in the moment, seeks advice from a rather unlikely source.

Notes: Nothing special, but more or less something to help get myself back into the Escaflowne fandom, as well as practice working with the characters. It's been forever since I've seen the series, and just as long since I've read anything from it, much less felt inspired enough to write something myself.

This is more or less practice for me to help get myself back into it, and hopefully get used to writing from a different set of characters (since writing Hitomi intimidates me x.x;) .

Also, this chapter takes place in episode 23: Storm Promotion. I especially wanted to do something involving the scene between Folken and Hitomi, because it was just so sweet and a wonderful bonding moment between the two characters that it simply begged to be written into.

Disclaimer: I dun own Escaflowne; wish I did like everyone else. They should put Escaflowne in stock, then I'd buy it all!

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Faster faster faster.

Hitomi panted softly as she ran. She continually quickened her pace, pushing herself to her limits. She had to concentrate; she had to think about each step, she had to forget.

"I'm partly to blame for what happened to the city…"

She couldn't go fast enough.

She frowned slightly, her mind still in a whirl as things continued to play back in her mind. If possible, her feet picked up the pace, matching that of the words and pictures that appeared inside her head. One after the other they came, invading every nook and cranny of her mind, making it hard to grasp one or another.

"Are you trying to pick a fight?"

She felt like she could run to the end of the world, wherever it may be on this planet, and rushed against time.

The wind pushed back against her as she continued to run with all her might, the wet, slick grass making her mental race peak as it challenged her ability to pace herself and make a good run. The world was suddenly nothing but a blur of colors and shapes around her, her body whizzing past it so quickly she felt like she was walking on air. Even then, she couldn't escape.

"That is none of your business."

"Don't hide anything from me, all right?"

Even while running, she couldn't stifle the slight sob that wracked her body. It was soft and barely noticeable, lost in the mix of quick, controlled breaths of air willed by the training she'd put into learning how to take the right amount of breaths while running at the same time. She still heard it, her ears picking up her own sound of despair and mentally went about going through the motions of controlling her breathing. In, out, in, out, in…out.

"I'll go back to the castle later. By myself."

With her eyes trained to the area ahead of her, she was easily able to spot the castle coming up in front of her. At first it appeared like a toy castle, like she could embrace it in both arms and carry it wherever she went. But as she kept her quick, steady pace, it rapidly increased in size until she was at its ironed gates; it was no longer a toy, but a rock solid fortress.

Shaking her head, she continued on, running circles in the courtyard until her lower thighs began to throb and her feet burned. Their protests still didn't stop her; only her chanced glance above her gave her pause, her eyes and thoughts now fixated on the largest thing in the sky.

Then her body's protests caught her attention. She winced, leaning over and resting her hands on her knees, allowing herself to finally catch a big, good breath of air. It was difficult to slow her breathing down, but she enjoyed the chance to distract herself. She put her mind straight to the task, commanding her lungs to take in precise amounts of air before slowly releasing it until soon her breathing was back to normal and her mind had calmed.

Slowly, as if fearing what she may see, she bent back up and tilted her head back. Arms lax at her sides she gazed up at the Phantom Moon - her moon…her home. Her eyes softened considerably as she watched Earth simply sit up there, looking no bigger than a beach ball that she could simply reach up and use to play volleyball with her friends.

"Do you miss your homeland?"

Hitomi started, startled almost out of her wits as someone spoke up behind her. She turned, though she had already sensed who it might be just by the sound of his voice. Even then, she couldn't help but show a bit of surprise at the other's presence, having assumed he'd be off working on something or other like he had been lately.

"Folken?"

The older man hinted at a smile before nodding slowly in confirmation. Hitomi couldn't help but return the smile tenfold, her body relaxing further in his presence now that she knew she wasn't being stalked or about to be kidnapped once more.

A silence spanned between them for a moment or two before she remembered that the other had asked her a question. She started once more as she remembered what it was he'd asked, "Sometimes…well, a lot of times," she answered honestly, her eyes trailing back to the 'moon' hanging in the sky.

The other 'hm'ed softly in acknowledgement of her reply before following her gaze, the two of them silently observing the sky at the same time. Hitomi strangely enjoyed the silence, her heart-rate from running finally starting to slow to a reasonable pace. It was so easy to loosen up around Folken, she realized.

He's like the older brother I never had, she thought absently, before feeling as if that wasn't quite right.

Though that thought wasn't as close to the feeling she had, she knew one thing for sure, and it was that Folken's cool, collectiveness washed over her in waves and was awfully contagious. She felt relieved from all the events that had happened up till now thanks to his presence; furthermore, she felt like she could say anything in front of the other. Why, she could probably admit that she talks in her sleep and is afraid of moths to him and not feel bad or embarrassed about it at all.

She absently smiled at such a thought, wondering just how the other would react if she admitted such things to him all of a sudden.

"Can I…ask you something?" Hitomi blurted out, forgetting to think about what she was about to say and wishing she could take it back.

Just because you feel like you can say anything to him doesn't mean you have to! She mentally scolded herself, her head darting to look at Folken to take in his response.

He did the same and inclined his head to look at her, showing that he was willing to listen. She knew without words that she could speak up about anything that was bothering her in that moment, and she had to admit she was a bit surprised at herself for knowing such a thing.

"Um…well, now that I actually think about this maybe I shouldn't say anything. It's kind of silly," she laughed nervously, feeling just about as silly as she thought her current thought was.

"You can tell me, I won't think it's…'silly'," Folken said coolly, his voice sounding every bit sincere.

Hitomi absently shifted from foot to foot, taking his words to heart and deciding to just be out with it. Her mother always did say she should be more open and stop bottling up so many things before they weighed her down, so maybe this was a good step forward.

"Do you think that…I'm, well, not being helpful?"

There, she thought triumphantly, feeling for all the world like she'd just beaten a new track record, I said my worry out loud. I'm feeling better already!

She looked up hopefully at the other, worried that while in thought she might have missed his reply, but all she received for her action was a couple blinks. A blush suddenly covered her cheeks, thinking that maybe she had said the wrong thing.

"I mean, lately I just feel like I've been doing nothing but bothering everyone or making them worry. I don't mean to do that, really I don't, it's just that…every time I try and do something good or say the right thing it goes all wrong. Maybe it would be better of me to just-"

"No."

For the second time that day, Hitomi was startled, her eyes blinking up at him curiously as to why he'd interrupted. Interrupting wasn't really a 'Folken' thing for him to do (as far as she knew), so she couldn't help but be just slightly bewildered at the cutoff.

Gently, Folken laid a hand, his good hand, on her shoulder before speaking, "No," he spoke more softly this time, watching her shoulders relax before continuing on, "You've been very helpful to everyone. Why would you think otherwise?"

"Well…" she started slowly before moving over to the fountain just a foot or two away and sitting down, "Like I said, lately it just feels like I'm a burden. Deep down I know I'm really not, but I can't help but feel like… Well earlier, I said something to Van that I probably shouldn't have. He's just been so withdrawn lately, that I felt compelled to say..."

Folken nodded slightly, the motion making Hitomi feel slightly better. The feeling of having someone listen to her problems for once was helping to take the weight off her shoulders considerably.

"To say…?" Folken prompted, reminding Hitomi that she hadn't finished.

She ducked her head slightly, hoping that Folken wouldn't take it the same way as Van had, and said, "I asked him what kind of games you two played when he was little. He got really upset, which I can understand, but I was only…"

Hitomi trailed off softly, her head lifting just enough so she could peek at the other through her bangs. He didn't appear mad or upset, which relieved her some, but she was still a bit worried that she might have offended someone else that day.

"I see. Van…"

"I just thought I ought to straighten things out between you two, that's all," Hitomi blurted, not sure what exactly she was talking about, but it seemed like the right thing to say.

To her delight, it actually seemed to work and have a good effect on the other, because Folken hinted at another smile, his eyes closing as he spoke, "Van never changes, does he?"

"Why can't I get through to him?" she whispered softly, the question having been plaguing her for a while now.

Another momentary stretch of silence went between them, Hitomi absently wringing her hands together in her lap as she eyed her dirty fingernails.

"You aren't scared of me?"

The sudden change in subjects had Hitomi momentarily reeling, and she couldn't help but look back up at him curiously. He seemed to read the expression on her face quite clearly, and added on a bit.

"I'm the man who used the Intensified Luck Soldiers to try to kidnap you."

She pursed her lips slightly, seriously taking what he said and thinking deeply about it. She didn't have to think too hard or long about it, because the answer was quick in coming.

"I can't say I'm…okay with it. But…" she trailed off, not sure how to word her next thought.

"But?"

"If I were scared of you, you'd be on your guard, right?" she didn't pause this time, even as a peculiar expression crossed Folken's features, "I don't want that. If you don't trust people, they don't trust you."

Even though she'd put every bit of truth she had in her into those words, Folken still seemed skeptical, "My seeking refuge here may be part of a plot, you know."

It was true, and she knew it. All of Folken's hard work could just be a ploy, lies to get them to fail, however…she couldn't bring herself to believe that. Blame it on her powers of insight or her woman's intuition, but she just knew in her heart that Folken wouldn't sink so low.

"Even if it were, I think you'd return that trust. It might not come across clearly, though."

Then something happened that Hitomi thought she'd never see. She almost didn't believe her eyes, and was tempted to raise her fists to them just to be sure she wasn't dreaming.

But it was real; Folken was actually smiling at her. Not a small, hinted smile, but an honest-to-goodness smile. A bubbly feeling similar to that of the time she accidentally drank too much wine in Asturia started in her gut as she stared up at him and took in the sight.

No, she thought tenderly, it's much nicer than that time. This feeling is so much better.

That's when she smiled back at him.

-Fin-

A/N: The order of who said those italicized quotes in the beginning of the story are as follows: (from top down) Hitomi, Merle, Van, Allen, and Hitomi. Just wanted to state that in case anyone got confused and was like, "Wtf? Where did she get those from?" XD;