#kingofanything

Nodding, Van was already off in Hitomi's direction, dodging imbibed guests in his way. Seeing her stand there staring at the mess on the ground, visibly confused and frozen, made his movements urgent. Though she'd been rather bold with him before and confident with Millerna later, she now looked very lost.

As Van placed his hand on her shoulder, he immediately noticed that her skin was cold through the thin material of her blouse. Despite the high collar, the thing was doing nothing to keep her warm even in the steamy environment of the Mystic Moon where people were grinding and twerking on the dancefloor not far away.

"Hitomi. Are you alright?" Van asked when she slowly turned and inclined her head to face him. Her eyes had trouble focusing, causing her to shake her head slowly in an attempt to get rid of whatever was clouding her mind.

"Mmmh. Fine." Was all she responded while placing one of her hands against the front of his suit jacket to steady herself.

Millerna wasn't far behind them. "Let's get her away from all the people."

Van nodded. "Right," but didn't take his eyes off Hitomi. Her mascara was smudged and had settled into the creases around her eyes, giving her a haunted look.

"Hitomi, be a dear and come with us," Millerna instructed politely.

"Ooookay," was all she replied while smiling dreamily.

Van sucked in a deep breath. She sounded weird. Too readily complying.

Hitomi didn't resist at all when he guided her to the area where the private tables and couches were, secluded by a row of tight, sparkly crystal bead curtains. His hand was on her lower back as he nudged her in that direction with Millerna right by their side, making sure nobody was watching too closely. Good thing most of the people here were drunk at this hour.

Having anyone witness that the king and the princess of Asturia were ducking into a private area with a strange woman would surely prompt some juicy rumors. The area where they had all started out the evening earlier was still deserted. Save for some empty bottles of Champaign and glasses- a few of which had been knocked over by the girls in their haste of getting to the dance floor- there wasn't much around.

A bit clumsily, Hitomi tripped over her own feet and nearly crashed into the glowing glass table but a strong arm around the waist steadied her before something could happen. "Sheesh," Van huffed when her arms still flailed, holding her carefully until she seemed steady enough again.

Millerna wasted no more time and stepped up to cup Hitomi's cheeks in her hands. "Look at me, Hitomi."

Hitomi complied obediently. Millerna observed her for a moment, then asked her to follow a finger as she moved it left and right in front of her face. Hitomi's reaction was way off.

"Just what I thought. She's not drunk."

"She isn't?" Van asked while unbuttoning his suit jacket and removing it to drape it around Hitomi's shoulders.

"Mmmh," Hitomi closed her eyes and smiled, snuggling into the garment. She pivoted to face Van, then proceeded to slip her arms around his waist, lean into him, and bury her face in his chest. "You smell good," she announced quietly but happily, then mumbled, "like pet...pet-richor and charred wood."

Van gulped when he felt her nose nuzzle his pectorals through the black dress shirt. "She-she isn't?" His hands were hovering in the air near her waist uncertainly.

Millerna studiously tapped her chin with one finger, the other hand braced on her hip. "She isn't," Millerna confirmed. "She's high on some drug, and…I mean I've only just met her today but judging by what little I know her, would say she didn't take anything on purpose."

That set a part of Van's brain on fire. "What?!"

"Somebody must have slipped her something," Millerna theorized.

His hands suddenly settled onto Hitomi's sides, almost protectively. He bunched the fabric of his jacket in tight fists there, instinctively pulling her closer. "What do we do?" Van asked while regarding the woman leaning against him so contently, his anger dominating any uneasiness. Safe. She was safe here with him.

"Well," Millerna continued but certainly didn't miss her friend's atypical behavior. "It will wear off but it's best if she is brought home so nothing happens to her."

"Right," Van readily agreed again. He was unbelievably thankful to have a friend like Millerna. Out of all the royal pains, she was by far his favorite and always able to keep a cool head in situations where he'd be out for blood by now. He could really use some of that talent.

"I'll go find Allen. Pretty sure her friends are still with him near the bar. Do not let her out of your sight for even a second. Who knows what kind of weirdo is out there, waiting for her to be alone again. Pliable as she is right now, you could probably make her do anything you want," Millerna advised before straightening her dress and leaving.

Pliable? Make her do? Van glanced back down to Hitomi who then lifted her head away from his chest and stared at him dopily, mouth slightly agape as if waiting for something. He hissed through his nose when he realized what Millerna had implied. Not on his watch!

Van carefully removed Hitomi's arms from around his waist and maneuvered her to the couch. When she plunked down, the velvet shorts she wore hiked up another good two inches and bared the whole length of her lithe legs. Van definitely was glad Millerna and him had found her before anybody else because, at that moment, he had a few pretty good ideas for what kind of X-rated things someone might want to make her do.

He felt extremely bad for even thinking about it while she was in such a delirium. What if they hadn't been there? Hitomi's upper body swayed as she sat, completely zoned out. A few moments later she almost fell off the couch too, slowly beginning to fold forward at the waist.

Van hadn't taken his eyes off her, so he quickly dropped to one knee and grabbed both her shoulders, steadying her. Hitomi giggled. He didn't feel like giggling at all. Even though Millerna said the drug would likely just wear off, he was wholly uncomfortable with her having to go through this.

Concern etched onto his face, Van looked her over again. Some part of him wanted Hitomi locked in a room. Now. Until she was stone cold sober and very much in control of her wits again. So sober she'd be able to slap him or anybody else hard for attempting to do anything at all she didn't approve of. It made him feel doubly bad again for the stolen kiss. Although, at least for that she'd had her retribution.

A small crease appeared between Hitomi's brows and one of her hands slowly crossed the space between them. Van was too dumbfounded and intrigued to stop her when she wove her fingers into his hair and combed it forward so that it fell in a messy angle across his forehead. "Better," she announced with a weak smile. "I like this better."

So some part of her did know who he was. Maybe that also meant she was aware that she was safe. Or maybe not, because…well…

"Yeah,…" Van sighed quietly. "Me too." He wanted to entertain the illusion that he could have a normal conversation with her right now. About his hair. Because at least it meant she was somewhat okay and in control of herself, but…

"Why are your eyes red?"

…that question, out of nowhere, surprised him. She'd spoken quietly and was still playing with a few wisps of his hair.

The color of his eyes was a bit of a sore spot for two reasons so he never talked about it. Flaming red irises was the prominent feature both his mother and brother had shared as well and thinking of his family was never not going to be painful. It wasn't difficult to explain either but nothing exciting at all, so none of the tabloids ever wrote about it.

She likely wouldn't even remember if he told her now. "Lack of pigment in my eyes passed down by my mother. She and my brother had it too. I'm really just a freak," he stated, then shrugged lightly.

At the word 'freak' Hitomi frowned again but quickly recovered, even smiling a bit after. Her fingers traveled down the side of his head where they threaded themselves into his hair again, disheveling it some more while he could only stare back.

Despite the smudged makeup, she still looked lovely. The dreamy expression on her face, although drug-induced showed him her gentle side again. He'd seen it before during their other encounters, along with the strong-willed side that wouldn't tolerate any nonsense- not even from a king.

He wasn't doing anything to her though, was he? He wasn't making her do this, or…? It was difficult to focus with her so close. Her cheeks were tinted a bit red by now, this hopefully because she was finally warming up under his jacket.

After drawing a shaky breath, Van swallowed heavily while tightening his hold on her shoulders, subconsciously hoping that it would make her aware of what she was doing. He really, really should stop her from touching him but the way her fingers caressed the side of his head and nape was distractingly lovely. Even more so when her second hand moved to his neck, dipping a bit into the space where the shirt's collar gaped open. It made a shiver trail down his spine.

Hitomi's face drew nearer even and Van backed away a bit in an attempt to keep them out of trouble. She was still close enough for him to feel her breath fanning across his face when she whispered, inching closer with every word, "they are so...so...so beautiful." Van's heart skipped a few beats when he saw her eyes falling shut as she drifted further toward him yet, her mouth brushing his, soft as a feather.

His own eyes crossed in shock despite the ample warning signs. He really should have seen it coming but had been too mesmerized to comprehend what she was up to. Or maybe he was full of shit and had been secretly hoping for it. Either way, he'd not fully realized just how much he was craving the feel of it.

Who could even blame him? Behind the title and responsibilities, he was still a guy with wants and needs. No matter how aloof he appeared on the outside in the role of the monarch- protector of his realm- he couldn't just shut off the craving. The craving felt by a very simple fraction of his brain. The one that wanted to immediately reciprocate what she was offering, hollering at him to pull her close, savor the moment, and see how far they could go.

Only, responsibilities would always take precedence over such a longing now that he was king, especially in a situation like this. Hitomi's warm, soft lips slowly moved against his, tasting of bitter gin, tonic, and lime. She was searching, desperate for something he realized he couldn't- no- shouldn't give her.

Van groaned when Hitomi's grip on him tightened fractionally. Under different circumstances, having her grab him like this, demanding him to respond to her kiss while pressing her slightly moist lips against his would certainly have been more persuasive. After all, she was really pretty and intriguing in several ways. However, knowing that she was doing all this under the influence of some drug made it feel all kinds of wrong.

Hating himself for having let it even come this far, the king tapped into hidden reservoirs of sheer will and pried her hands off his head. His gut twisted sickly when a small noise of surprise and protest escaped Hitomi's mouth after they parted. Carefully but deliberately, he pushed her back into the cushions and drew in a deep breath of sobering air but that hitched in his throat halfway when he heard all his names.

"Van Slanzar de Fanel, what on Gaea do you think you're doing?" Millerna hissed behind him while roughly pulling him to his feet and, for a lack of a more acceptable retribution, pinched his upper arm where she knew the large welt of a scar was.

"Ow! What the..! Millerna, I didn't do anything!" Van exclaimed in exasperation while running both hands through his disheveled hair, combing it back again.

"Yea, exactly!" Millerna poked his chest with an accusing finger while, with her free hand, gesticulated towards Hitomi. The woman in question was resting against the back of the couch, looking like she was going to fall asleep any moment. She didn't need to say anything else. Van's eyes darted back over to Hitomi, staring at her ruefully.

"I…," Van began to speak but a frustrated growl escaped his throat instead. His hands balled themselves into fists at his sides and pure anger washed over him. Anger for his own stupidity and for whoever was responsible for this mess in the first place. If he got his hands on whoever slipped her the drug, they'd pay.

"Hitomi!" A frantic voice heralded the approach of her redheaded friend. Van was glad to see her rush to Hitomi's side with only a quick side glance at him and Millerna in passing. It was good to know she had a friend nearby now. Two actually, when Allen's brother rounded the curtain with a few swift strides, followed by Allen, who kept a respectful distance but looked thoroughly concerned nonetheless. More concerned than he ought to have been.

"Hitomi, what happened to you?!" Yukari and Amano fretted while inspecting their friend only to find that she was physically unharmed. Yukari's shoulders slumped in relief when she realized that her friend was alright.

Meanwhile, Millerna and Van were arguing quietly for a minute before he stormed off, his face a mask of fury.

"Don't do anything rash, Van! You don't even know who did it!" Millerna tried to calm him down, the words barely audible over the music.

Yea she was right, but he was downright pissed when he stomped out from behind the secluded seating area, fuming and wishing he had his sword on him. He stomped aimlessly into the crowd, scanning it for anybody who looked even remotely guilty.

He was just about to explode when a small voice piped up beside him. "Excuse me, your highness," Celena's melodic but confident voice reached him through the boom of the bass.

"Van," Merle joined them. They seemed to have been dancing up until now, as far as Van could tell by his sister's labored breaths and loosened buns with strands of pink hair framing her face.

"Van," Merle repeated his name firmly to make sure he was listening. "Celena thinks she saw something. We just only heard from Allen what happened in passing."

That, of course, got his attention. "Tell me!" Van demanded.

"Well. There was this guy," Celena began. "He was sitting at the bar the whole time but now he's gone. He dropped some pill into a drink and then a waitress came and took it. I don't know where she went with it, though. Could be that she gave it to that lady."

"What did he look like?" Van asked, already mentally skinning a faceless guy alive with the razor-sharp, royal sword.

"Silver or white hair. Similar length as mine. Very pale and sort of rude," Celena described him and Van didn't need to hear anything else.

"Dilandau," Merle blurted out his thoughts, confirming it. "His looks are uncanny. Van," she immediately grabbed him by the sleeve of his shirt, knowing him too well. "Don't do anything dumb."

Both Millerna and Merle were very aware that an enraged Van was nothing to be underestimated. As much as his sense of honor was his strongest virtue, it also became his biggest weakness when stretched too far, turning into stubbornness which translated to rash and thoughtless actions.

It was too late anyway. Dilandau was gone. His white hair would have been easily visible in the glow of the black light, even in a big crowd. Luckily, that wasn't a problem at all, Van thought. The dishonorable bastard would pay and he had a good idea about how already.

"Don't worry. I won't," Van promised. At least not tonight but nobody needed to know that.

The three then returned to the back area where everybody was still gathered around Hitomi. To Van's discontent, Allen was now hoisting a dead-to-the-world Hitomi into his arms. The king was a bit confused about the severity of his displeasure when seeing this. He stayed at the back of the group, jaw locked and arms crossed.

Millerna announced that Allen was instructed to make sure the three friends got home safely. "Allen, don't let go of her until you're inside their apartment. That's a firm order."

"Not to worry," Allen assured nobody in particular, donning an expression of chivalry. "My arms have and always will be the safest place on Gaea for any fair lady."

"Odd flex, but okay," Merle stated a bit dryly.

Allen, with Hitomi in his arms and flanked by Yukari and Amano made his way out of the club. As directed by Merle, they used the back door which the royal entourage had entered through earlier, so as not to draw attention.

After they were gone, Van snatched up his crumpled suit jacket from where it had been left on the couch. The garment created a puff of air when he roughly straightened it around his shoulders. For a brief moment, it smelled sweet. Sweet like her, which calmed him by a small measure before his blood began to boil anew.

Yeah. Dilandau, the cretin, was going to wish he never set foot into the Mystic Moon tonight. He'd regret it by tomorrow afternoon at the latest.

When Van was finished with the last button on his jacket, he was back in charge of his temper again, the façade of a pure in-control king. "Celena, would you and the rest of security please make sure the princesses get back to the palace? I need some time alone. Escaflowne is outside. He will escort me back."

Celena nodded confidently. "No problem."

Millerna shook her head slowly.

"I'm coming with you," the princess answered while indicating that she was ready to go and would accept no debate about the matter. It seemed like the incident had sobered everybody up quite firmly.

Van looked at her with a neutral expression and said, "fine." He knew that arguing with her was pointless.

Dilandau smirked mischievously while ambling through the narrow alleys of old town. One hand was tucked into a pocket while the other held his cellular phone. The screen glowed brightly as a video clip played. Although a bit blurry and filmed from a weird angle near the bathroom hallway, one could make out the king and a woman in an intimate encounter.

Sylphy had really hit the jackpot with her choice. Never in his wildest dreams had Dilandau thought he'd still be able to enjoy entertainment of this caliber tonight. As far as he was concerned, nobody was safe from this kind of fate, not even the king. Spreading chaos and disorder was were where Dilandau felt most at home- it was his own, personal mission and he didn't much care who was affected by it.

He was glad to have slipped out at the right moment. Although he wasn't afraid of the king, he wasn't up for dealing with the shit this all could stir up in diplomatic terms. Relations between Zaibach and Fanelia had never been great, even though they were connected by some of the longest-standing trade agreements in history. Despite decades of peace, everything between them was frosty, to say the least.

Escaflowne marched along behind Van and Millerna, down the cobblestoned pedestrian area of old town. He'd wisely remained fairly quiet as various groups had exited the club with his master and the Asturian princess returning last. Although usually never shy, the machine knew when a situation was too serious for his witty remarks.

Van's hands were shoved deep into the pockets of his suit jacket while frowning at the ground. Millerna floated next to him, refusing to be affected by the foul mood he was emanating. Neither of them had spoken a word since they left the club. Van was obviously deep in thought even though he had put up a good show of being unmoved towards the end.

Escaflowne continued to keep his distance, scanning the area for danger as they went. It was a quiet night otherwise and Millerna let her childhood friend fume in silence some more until they reached the elevators. The guards positioned there snapped to attention when the king neared and one of them pushed a finger to his earbud while speaking into the small mic by his uniform collar, giving his colleagues upstairs a heads up that the royals were approaching.

Escaflowne's frame was too large to fit inside the brightly-lit box so he had to climb the steps. Nothing new. Van leaned against the brushed metal walls on the inside while the doors slid shut, arms crossed and eyes closed.

"You like her don't you?" Millerna finally interrupted the companionable silence since they were finally alone.

Van opened his eyes but didn't respond, only frowning back at her.

Meanwhile, the elevator was ascending swiftly.

Ornery mule of a man.

Millerna jabbed the emergency stop and Van's eyes sprang open when the elevator came to a sudden halt.

"What the…," he unwound his arms and braced them on the railing on either side of him. Now it was Millerna's turn to cross her arms and regard him inquisitively. She couldn't help but permit one corner of her mouth to rise. Looks like that accusation finally got under the reserved king's skin. His unguarded, startled expression was all the confirmation she needed.

"She's smart and pretty," Millerna assessed while Van stood unmoving, eyes trained at the floor.

"What are you talking about?" Van responded in irritation.

Millerna rolled her eyes dramatically. "Van, you're usually stubborn about the right things but this isn't one of them."

"Your point being?"

"That you don't have to pretend like you're made out of stone all the time!" Millerna clapped her hands in front of his face to emphasize her point.

Oh if only she knew. If only she knew that he'd given up on that twice before already when making his excursions incognito. A third time really, tonight, when he'd been stupid enough to let a woman under the influence of a drug kiss him. He shouldn't be making mistakes like that.

Then, a voice came through the intercom by the control panel. "Majesties, is everything alright? The elevator seems to have come to a stop. This must have been a malfunction. We will have it going again in a minute."

Millerna pushed the button near the microphone to answer back, "yes, thank you. Everything is just fine."

Then she turned her attention back to Van. "I'm only dropping that issue for now because I want to give you this without anyone seeing it," she said while digging around her small purse. She produced a small thumb drive and Van accepted it with a curious look on his face.

"It's from a friend. He thinks it could help you access those recordings in Escaflowne's storage you've had issues with."

Van's eyebrows rose when he remembered. He'd been meddling with it for a bit since Escaflowne's activation but not being an expert with machines, he had limited options. Just to be on the safe side, this would remain his own little project for now. Who knew what he'd end up finding.

When Hitomi came to, she felt positively nauseous. Either she was on a ship or had traveled back in time to when she was a baby because whatever she was in, rocked her like a boat or a cradle. Everything inside her stomach curdled like sour milk and burned in her throat, trying to claw its way back up before something tickled her cheek and distracted her enough to swallow the lump. When she reached for her face, her hand came away with a bunch of soft, blonde hair- definitely not her own.

"Hitomi," Allen's smooth voice was very close and it took her a moment to gather why. It's because she was being carried by him. Even though she seemed to be sort of awake, now cracking her eyes open a bit, it was difficult to move. Even her hand felt funny as she let go of the man's hair and flexed her fingers. Whatever liquor she'd had at the end had hit her like a sledgehammer and for a while, she'd been so impaired she forgot how she even ended up in his arms.

She remembered dancing with Allen for a good while before they'd entered the VIP area. Then talking to Millerna with Van- oh gods- standing next to them. She remembered drinking something and the alcohol in it being stronger than anticipated. Starting then, everything became very misty. A bit of panic but mostly confusion was what she remembered. After being lost for a while, she'd been enveloped by something warm and it'd finally allowed her to relax and feel safe.

That's when all the worry went away and was replaced with something new, exciting. Her heart hammered against her ribcage when she tried to remember but the visuals in her memory were oh so blurry- her impaired mind not able to fathom the sensory overload then. That's when everything must have become too much and made her sink like a piece of lead into deep, dark waters. Had Allen found her and saved her from getting into trouble? It sure looked like it.

"Wha…t-hap…," she tried to ask but Allen silenced her with a tender glance.

"Shh, it's okay," he soothed her. "Somebody spiked your drink with a party drug but nothing happened to you. I'm making sure nothing happens to you," he explained. "There's nothing for you to worry about. You're safe with me and we're almost there."

He was right. Safe. She couldn't imagine anything bad happening to her when Allen was near. He was princess Millerna's personal bodyguard after all. Hitomi then recognized the awning of the small corner store as they passed by it and Yukari had already run ahead on the walkway to unlock the tall front door of the old building they lived in. She could hear it creak as it swung open while Allen strode down the short gravel path through the small garden in the front.

Feeling safe enough again, Hitomi gave up and let the exhaustion win over once more. She nestled her head against the side of his chest, inhaling his scent. He smelled like cologne, a bit of his own musk, and shampoo. Not entirely unpleasant but distinctly different from what would have made the foggy images in her mind clear up.

Tbc…