From: Kit Reece  [email protected]
Date: Wed Feb 3, 1999 2:27pm
Subject: Second mail of Part One


Hello!
Okay! Second bit of Part One
(Confusing, isn't it?)
Questions, comments, etc...I'll take 'em all happily. :)

Author's -other- note: I'm writing this from my perspective, which
means language on both planets is modernized and Van and Hitomi are
best friends. Not cliche BF, but BF to a very deep, nearly sibling (if
you have a good sibling, :) ) level. No real romance, just the love of
friendship. (But I'll still put in a little mush, although I'm not
very good at it.) :)

Oh, and the story will eventually contain ALL of the characters. :) I
have it all worked out...(oh please oh please...) (Well, at least the
detailed plot is written out so far)

Enough! On with the stuff you want to read!

DISCLAIMER is on the first mail....
______________

Worry and dread that in the near future, he was again to risk the life
of someone he loved.

*******************************************

"Good Luck Hitomi, you can do it!"

---'i can do it. i can do it for van and merle and allan, millerna,
serena, dryden and'---

"RUNNERS take your marks!"

---Her heart leapt, adrenaline pumping icily through her blood. No
matter how many meets she ran, how much practice she'd had, how hard
the training was, she always felt this was. This cold, horrible ache
as she shook out her legs and bent to adjust her starting block. 
'one foot length, half a length. even.'
She stretched again, kicking her feet out behind her habitually,
hearing the gritty sound of her spikes clawing at the track.
'kneel forward...'
She settled, cocked as the gun would soon be.
'...for everyone, for myself...*relax damnit!*'---

"SET!!"

--- 'oh God oh God'---

BANG!!!

And she was not herself.
She was flying, her heart leaping along with her body, stretching soft
feet ever speeding, skimming over the ground.
Brief touches to the earth, her arms pumping.
...All in less than thirteen seconds...

And she threw herself over the finish line, then slowing, coming to a
stop, peering first down at the red track, than up at the blue sky.

"Hitomi! Twelve point three four! You did it!," Yukari called from the
sidelines.

She grinned; her race was over, euphoria encompassing her as the
adrenaline slowly drained.
'I did it...I -did- it!'
The grin widened, and she absently began to pull on the sweat-pants a
portion of her mind distantly realized had been thrown at her.

--*--*--

"Twelve three four, that's so cool, Hitomi! And fourth in a -varsity-
meet! You not only qualified, but you also placed!" Yukari's mouth
sped onwards, the content Hitomi lying languidly curled up in a blanket
in the grand-stand bleachers beside her.
Her races were over, and she had finished well. And now her parents
were going to take Yukari and her out to dinner to celebrate after the
meet, seeing as how it was Friday and all....
Life was pretty good.
'It could be better.'
'No,' she chided herself, 'It can't happen that way. As much as I miss
them, miss -him-, what we did was the right thing. And at least we can
still see each other, and share this bond.' She reached out in her
mind to feel his presence.
There it was...like her blanket, warm and safe. Familiar and
comfortable. Dependable.

"And you beat Tenchoi Senior too; that's great!"
Yukari was still at it,...it -was- nice to have to have someone so
supportive, though. Yukari and Van were the best friends anyone could
ever wish for.
....And Merle was pretty cool too. Sometimes.

She was lucky.
And she also had an unsettling gurgling sensation in her lower stomach.
'No. I don't want to move.'
Her lower regions insisted.

Sighing, she untangled herself from the blanket, rolled to her feet
and began to hop down the metal bleacher steps, her arms spread for
balance.

"Where are you going?"

"Bathroom."

"Oh.... Be sure to wash!"

Hitomi threw a lopsided smile over her shoulder.
"Track managers...ai! And I'm using your blanket."

"You're running twenty for that!"

Hitomi chuckled, knowing fully well her friend was teasing. Now where
were those darned bathrooms anyway?

She neared the facility, 'located more by smell than by sight,' she
ruminated darkly, and entered the cement structure, being careful to
watch her step and to avoid various stains.
And such stains...
'Boy...some people must get even more nervous than me.'

Gingerly she entered a stall and prepared to undo the cheap drawstring
on her sweat-pants.
She never made it.

The daylight in the darkened stall suddenly intensified, then
brightened to glaring. A familiar feeling overtook her.
"What the..."
And her feet lifted off of the ground, emblazoned in a light blue
glow. Startled, she looked up to see the concrete ceiling before the
light blinded her for a moment.
Time stopped.

Suddenly she was lowering slowly, no breeze, no sound, just lowering -
onto a rocky pass that overlooked a bowel shaped depression surrounded
by temperate forest on all sides. People scurried beneath her, trying
to move out of the way.
As she landed, time and space returned to normal and immediately
Hitomi glanced up to see what she'd expected; two faint moons in the
daytime sky.
"Gaea-," she whispered.

Something else came into her line of vision, and she focused on it as
it reared up to block her view completely.
Ruddy brown eyes suprisedly met hers from under a shock of black
gleaming bangs.
"Hitomi?" he whispered.

"Van!," she yelled, the shock wearing off and excitement overtaking
it. Climbing to her feet from her ungainly sprawled position, she
opened her arms and they came together in a mutual embrace.

Actually, it was more like a bear hug, both laughing like giddy
children and spinning a bit.
"How?..." he questioned, his eyes bright with joy.

"I don't know," she breathed back softly. "I was just...and then
-here-!"
They smiled at each other in silence for a moment before a soft "ahem"
caught their attention.
Looking past Van, Hitomi found Dryden, Millerna, Allan, Serena and
Prince Chid all standing, grinning, a little further down into the
Ampitheatre like structure which spread out before them.

With a little squeak, she pounced down the incline towards them,
laughingly hugging each in turn.
Still giggling, she turned around to look for the one she was missing.

Too late.
Something hot and furry attacked from behind and knocked her to the
ground with an "Oumph!"

"Hitoommmmiiiii!!! You're back, why are you back? I'm happy to see you
Hitomi, are you back for good? How long can you stay, a day, a week, a
month? Tell me Hitomi, tell me!!!"

Merle was batting at her victim's now shoulder length brown hair as it
flitted across her face.
"Hitomi?!"
Her face fell and she began to whimper a little.
"Uh-oh! Van-sama, you don't think I killed it, do you?"

Hitomi regained the use of her lungs.
"Merle-chan," she wheezed, "Would you mind getting up?"

Merle smiled her cat-like smile.
"Okay." Digging into Hitomi's back for traction, and partially for the
"chan," she wiggled her rump and leapt lightly onto a nearby boulder
where she sat content for the moment.

Hitomi sat up dazedly. "That's better. It's uh, nice to see you too,
Merle."

Dryden made a sound and took a step forward, rubbing his chin
thoughtfully. "Now that we've all been...re-acquainted, I believe we
have important matters to discuss. And the fact that you are here at
all, Hitomi, lends proof that they are even more important than we may
have originally assumed. I suggest we all move to my airship to
begin," he offered and turned to lead the way.

The others silently agreed among themselves, and Hitomi accepted Van's
offered hand to help her up.
Once up, she threw a sisterly arm over his shoulders and began
walking; Van followed suite.

"You've grown."  "Your hair is longer."
They laughed at their synchronization.

Hitomi ran a hand through what was left of her short ponytail and
turned to him. "I guess, besides that, not much has changed about us,
has it?" 

"Who says that's a bad thing?"

"Not me," she grinned.

"So, do you have any idea why the light just picked you up and brought
you this time?"

A cold wave washed over her. "No," she spoke softly, trying to shake
off the feeling.
She mumbled something under her breath.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Oh c'mon, spill it!" he commanded laughingly.

"Later Van...," she turned away.
'Abducted from a public bathroom, how embaressing.'

Sighing, she blushed a little, then gave in and whispered something in
his ear.

He smiled.
"Once inside,...third door to your right. You're lucky; I had to ask
Dryden."

She bit her lip and blushed again, then laughed with him out loud,
ignoring the more than curious glances from the others.
Despite that ugly feeling, it was good to be on Gaea, -with friends-,
again.

___________________________________________

END PART ONE


So, write me please! I want to know what you think so I can
accommodate accordingly or not.
Also, I have probably made technical mistakes in relation to Gaea, but
I'm still unsure about a lot of the details. And the track color; I
couldn't remember, so I guessed. If it's wrong, it's a meet at another
school. :)

Bye!



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