"Is this really the best decision, Lord Uzumi?"
Honestly, he didn't know.
So many factors and variables ensured no absolute answer.
Seated behind his desk, Uzumi Nara Athha looked down at the small bundle in his arms. The brunette baby slept peacefully. A state the representative enjoyed seeing upon the boy, unaware of the dangers outside, of the conflict his existence created.
Taking his gaze off the sleeping baby, he returned his focus on the two civilians. A woman with purple hair that stopped at the shoulders, her left arm wrapped in a cast. The other a man with short black hair slicked back and similar to Uzumi, he too was holding a small baby. An almost total opposite of the boy in more than just her blond hair, she was wide awake, her hazel eyes curiously darting around the office.
No, that wasn't quite right.
They weren't just civilians.
To him, they were heroes.
He read the reports. How a man named Haruma Yamato avoided detection during an attack by Blue Cosmos, the organization's target clutched in his grasp. Not just him either. In addition, how a woman known as Caridad Yamato received an injury to her arm thanks to the shrapnel of a nearby explosion from another attack, but continued on while carrying the two children.
They had no military experience. No training in any form of defense. The married couple knew nothing of combat, but didn't let such minuscule details interfere with their determination to save the children. Uzumi held their actions in the highest regard.
All three of them knew the cause for Blue Cosmos' extreme desperation to eliminate the child. Caridad had been well aware of her sister and brother-in-law's research, revealing information about the Ultimate Coordinator project to Uzumi. He readily agreed to her request in keeping such secrets just that… secret.
Of the twins, the girl received no genetic enhancements, making her no different than the average Natural.
The boy was a whole different story.
Involved in a secret experiment, unlike other Coordinators his birth was done outside of the mother's womb, the one obstacle previously blocking the idea of perfect manipulation in genetics. While he understood the rationale behind such improvements, Uzumi felt sickened by the head scientist, who forced his wife to use their own child for the project, whose resisting pleas fell on deaf ears.
Unfortunately, word of the project reached the ears of Blue Cosmos and they had no intention of ignoring such a threatening discovery. Suffering wave after wave of attacks towards the child, the Yamato family realized they couldn't protect him anymore. They only had one option: seek refuge with Orb's security, who could then decide the next course of action.
After weeks of deliberation, the most concrete idea was separating the children. Blue Cosmos was not an organization to be taken lightly. Asking two people with no training to constantly defend themselves against the ruthless hate group was suicide. He didn't like taking a child away from their family, but he saw no other viable alternatives.
When push came to shove, he asked himself one question.
Would the boy's safety reach the highest in the custody of the Yamato family or around the military of Orb?
The answer made up his mind.
He could only hope for the best.
"I believe it is. I mean no offense, but a child with an origin like Kira's won't be safe without the appropriate protection. Considering the circumstances, keeping him under my custody would be the safest course of action."
Caridad opened her mouth, only to close it immediately afterwards. She was well aware of her tendency to take matters a bit… overboard when children's safety was on the line.
"We understand, Lord Uzumi," Haruma spoke up, agreeing with the Representative, "and with all due respect, it may be better if we never meet again, for the children's sake."
Uzumi nodded. "Very well. Please take care."
Both husband and wife bowed slightly towards the man, then heading out the door with their daughter.
With any luck, the Yamatos would return to living peacefully.
Looking down once again, Uzumi smiled at the child, "From this day forth, your name will be Kira Nara Athha."
Disclaimer
I don't own any of the Cosmic Era Gundam series or any other works referenced in the story. I understand that's a lot to take in. It's ok, just breathe. Even crazier, not a single penny was made from this. Le gasp!
Note(s)
There will be male/male, male/female and female/female in this fic.
Kira: Prince of Orb
Heliopolis
Chapter 1: Time for a Switcheroo
By Big-Babidi
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
Groaning, he stuck his arm out from under the covers, fully intending to stop the rage-inducing noise. Still entangled in the arms of another, the awakened prince of Orb blindly reached towards his alarm clock with little care of anything in his path. His nightstand housing the clock had a number of other items between it and the teenager. As a result, fifteen year old Kira Nara Athha knocked over various papers, a half-filled can of soda, a remote for his television and various pieces of change all plummeted to the soft carpet below in a vain attempt to stop the racket.
Beep. Beep.
Silence.
Kira's eyes snapped open. He didn't press the button. The insistent sound's quick halt woke him more efficiently than the alarm's intended process. Looking to the side, he saw and felt Vanfeldt continue holding him, so it wasn't him. Pushing the blankets aside, he saw a girl's finger pressed down on his alarm clock. Wearing the usual black maid uniform with a white apron, Setona Winters closed her green eyes and smiled brightly, pink hair falling to her back and kept out of her face with a ribbon of the same color but a lighter shade. When Uzumi Nara Athha decided on someone to support Kira, he'd chosen her without hesitation. With experience in cooking and cleaning and an unusually strong political intellect made her the ideal candidate, having skills that aid the prince in addition to being a constant companion around the same age.
"Rise and shine Master Kira!" Her smile waned for but a moment upon realizing the other male in bed, in addition to their overall lack of clothing.
"Ugh! Setona!" Kira groaned, "Do I really have to get up so early? Just give us another half hour and combined we'll be as strong as an ox on steroids."
The pink haired maid didn't bat an eyelash to his attitude. Same old prince.
"Heh. And good morning to you too." Came the sarcastic voice from the other person in Kira's bed, his blue eyes staring back at him. Vanfeldt Ria Lindsay brushed his shoulder length blond hair out of his face before smirking.
"Oh. Sorry." The prince sheepishly replied. He hadn't meant to forget about him. Swiftly, he moved his head down towards Vanfeldt, the other male eagerly meeting his lips for a quick kiss. "Good morning."
"Better." But the fun didn't stop there. Having Kira's attention, Vanfeldt sat up and relocked his lips with the prince's open inviting mouth.
Then again.
And again.
Setona cleared her throat. Loudly. Despite being employed as Prince Kira Nara Athha's personal maid for nearly two years, she never enjoyed viewing his romantic intimacy with others. Especially not with him.
Nervously chuckling, Kira separated from Vanfeldt and refocused his attention to Setona. "Oh alright, what's so important you need-" Kira paused, "Whoops. I'm sorry about that, Setona." When Setona tilted her head in confusion –'looking absolutely adorable, Kira thought to himself'– he gestured downwards with his eyes. The various objects he knocked over all resided near the maid. The papers and remote and change were no problem, but now the leftover pop had spread itself among small bare feet and beautifully polished toenails. Preferring carpet over tile, Kira applied the Japanese custom of removing one's shoes before anyone entered his room.
"Oh that's alright!" She beamed.
At her forgiving smile, he grinned cheekily, "Thanks. I could however, take responsibility and lick it clean for you."
She tried scrunching her face in disgust, failing to hide the blush almost covering her entire face. "Prince!" She whined, "that's so awful."
Vanfeldt sighed, not at all surprised by the prince hitting on his own maid so early in the morning.
Kira waved a finger at the blond, "Van, don't be the towel that doesn't dry people. I've got enough tongue to go around."
He scoffed, "Oh please. Like I'd worry about that."
Chuckling, Kira and Vanfeldt began dressing in a relaxed silence. Setona used this opportunity to get down to business.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Both of you have an appointment with Chief Simmons," She raised a finger to the side of her lip and looked to the side in concentration, "something about mobile suits and OS configuration," her beaming smile returned full force, "I didn't really get it."
Purple slacks on, Kira reached for the yellow shirt on the floor. "What do you mean?" He patted an unoccupied space in the bed for Setona. She complied, sitting down on the mess of tangled blankets. Her perfume's arousing scent didn't go unnoticed.
"I get that we have mobile suits now, but I don't understand what you do in there." Without thinking, Setona made herself at home, leaning back, her elbows resting on Kira's pillow and legs bent, bare toes pressing the comforter inches from his leg.
Smile getting just a little wider, Kira refrained from commenting on the action, "Ever since someone really awesome," she giggled at his boasting, "made our OS compatible for Naturals, we've been working our little behinds off making sure the machines are installed with 'em and Naturals like Vanny over there," he gestured to the now fully dressed and scowling blond while enjoying his maid's laughter, "test pilot to make sure they're workin' right. Obviously, during this process, we sometimes munch on little honey biscuits, braid each others' hair and watch ancient American movies like Mary Poppins." He paused for her to settle down, finding his blatant stupidity hilarious. One of Setona's most enduring traits. Oftentimes, those around him groaned at his idea of humor.
The instant she calmed he took action. He placed two fingers on the top of her foot, gently sliding starting from her toes to below her knees, slowly and soothingly. Setona shivered in delight and exhaled deeply.
"I gotta better idea. You go ahead Van. We've got epic serious business to take care of first," He kept his eyes locked onto Setona's, taking note of her flirtatious smile while grasping her ankles and gently placing them on his lap, "Oh, and make sure the door is shut."
Vanfeldt rolled his eyes and shook his head before leaving the room, mumbling all the while.
Kira entered one of the observation chambers with a hand on his mouth, yawning.
"Where have you been?" Arms crossed, chief engineer Erica Simmons did her best to look intimidating.
Those unfamiliar with the prince figured his appearance only meant he'd slept late and hurried to the meeting. His programming skills and hours spent in Morgenroete were no secret, so many could assume his unkempt hair and unbuttoned, wrinkled shirt represented a night he spent working on various configurations while abandoning slumber.
Those familiar with Kira knew better.
"Funny thing, on my way over when I noticed Myrna had fallen over and broken her hip. With the safety of others consuming my mind, I rushed her to the hospital." He wiped imaginary sweat from his brow, "Thankfully, I made it just in time before things got ugly. So, in conclusion: I'm sorry for the late part, but shouldn't I get a medal? Or perhaps about a big pretzel? One dipped in cheese would be nice."
She pinched her nose, "That's full of so much crap I don't know where to begin. Anyway, where's your maid? I sent her to pick you up over an hour ago!"
He blinked, "Don't blame Setona. It wasn't her fault."
Eye twitching, Erica resisted the urge to strangle him, "I wasn't going to. The only person who makes you late is yourself."
At that point, Kira had already ignored her comment, walking around the room and exchanging pleasantries with the other engineers and technicians. While most appeared disturbed, a few laughed at his jokes.
"Oh golly Prince! That's a good one! Hahahaha!" Hunched over, a Morgenroete engineer repeatedly slapped her knee in laughter, having a grand time from an incomplete joke. 'Really Yoon? It hasn't even got funny yet.' Kira thought, his expression tight-lipped. Throwing her head back revealing a face full of freckles and messy brown hair, Yoon Sefan's cackling continued, sounding like a human and hyena fusion. Kira tried waiting for the clumsy, kooky lady to finish before slowly backing off, walking away and moving on with his life. 'If there's one person here I'm confident would fail a random drug test…' he left the obvious trail of thought incomplete.
Eventually, he approached the large panel of glass separating them from the testing mobile suits. The model that seemingly appeared overnight, a trio of M-1 Astray mobile suits moved around the area, practicing various cardiovascular exercises. He quickly noticed one machine performed far more sluggishly than the rest. Finally, finally he returned his attention to the senior engineer, noting her miniature scowl had grown tremendously. "So what's on the menu today, jefa?" He asked, proud of his crappy Spanglish.
Mentally counting to ten, Erica stuffed her hands in her pockets and took a deep breath. She'd recently gotten a haircut, ripping it out would be counterproductive. "There's a slight problem with the OS for one of the mobile suits. Sure, I could've taken a look at it myself but silly me, I figured you'd want to deal with it since OS configuration is your specialty."
The prince nodded, "Indeed. You are quite silly."
'Happy thoughts. Happy thoughts. Remember my wedding. Remember Ryuta's first step. Remember what Kira was like before his breakdown.' She chanted mentally. Before Erica's mugshot appeared on the front page of the paper tomorrow, Kira looked out the window again, "So who's piloting the mecha tortoise?"
"Your fiancé." Erica couldn't hide the smirk from her face. Approaching the console nearby the window she pressed a button to establish communications, "Your mechanic's on the way."
All traces of humor immediately left the prince. "Really Erica? Really? I think Palpatine just called and said you could keep his throne."
"I have no idea what that even means," She replied, positively beaming. The power of payback gave her strength. "You'd better hurry along now. You're beloved's waiting."
"FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF-"
On the other side, the fiancé cut off communication from her end.
Upon reentering the chamber on the opposite end, Kira noticed the mobile suits had each taken kneeling positions, the cockpits wide open and each pilot exited the machine, standing on even level. To his left, Vanfeldt Ria Lindsay gripped his M-1's leg, internally debating whether to feel annoyance or amusement. A mixture of the two won the battle. To his right stood blue-haired bespectacled test pilot Juri Wu Nien staring nervously at the prince with her hands behind her back. She'd no desire to view the inevitable argument, and only her ongoing shift prevented her from running out the door.
Another female stood at his destination. A woman with long, black hair and orange eyes and pale skin gazed at the prince with her head held high. She wore a luxurious purple jacket over a fancy blue shirt and after their engagement, a purple skirt replaced long pants of the same color. An already tall woman, a pair of extra long high heels housed her feet, an action Kira suspected was made to showcase their height difference to the world even further, reinforcing the point of her being an adult while he still a boy. Altogether an absolutely gorgeous woman, but as far as Kira concerned her beauty was only skin deep.
"Ya know, I'm thinking about leaving this room and walking back in, just to see the great Rondo Mina Sahaku in need of my skills a second time." If he grinned any harder, Kira would lose his face.
Mina sighed, appearing none too pleased about sharing oxygen with her betrothed, "Yes. The first and last time I require a child's help. Drink in this victory to your heart's content. It'll never happen again."
"And to think you spent so much time waiting faithfully for me. I'm touched, really."
"And to think you spent so much time with others," her eyes flickered to Vanfeldt for a split second, who averted his own, having no intention of crossing a noble family member, "being completely unfaithful to me. As mature as ever, your highness. I'm touched." Eyes closed, she placed her hand on her heart.
Mirth fading quickly, Kira took a deep breath. Debating with Mina usually resulted in failure. Best to get on with it. "Alright, Mina, what are you doing here anyway? Last I checked, Mayura should be in that mobile suit, not you."
She snorted, "That commoner managed to damage one of our precious mobile suits. She won't be coming back to work for at least a week. Be grateful someone who knows how to operate this technology was available this morning."
Juri subconsciously tightened her fist, but otherwise remained silent. She valued her job far too much to challenge a member of the most aggressive noble family in any way. 'At least Kira can argue with her.' All smiles in public. All scowls in private. Most people who watched the couple interact without a nearby camera tended to sum up their relationship in those two sentences.
"Mina dear," he earned a hard glare from the lady in question, "if you wanted to see me that badly, you could've just asked. Taking out your anger on Mayura is just plain mean." Before her witty retort left her mouth, Kira raised a hand, "But anyway, enough of how bad you secretly want me. What do you think of these machines?"
One long, deep breath later, the black-haired woman could safely answer, "It's both fast and strong," a smirk formed, "the OS has a long way to go however, as its creator is clearly an unstable child."
Kira rolled his eyes, and for once didn't retaliate, "So how's it fare against the competition?"
"The suits in Heliop-" she froze momentarily, then quickly cleared her thought, "My apologies. I'd lost my train of thought. In any case, this mobile suit far surpasses the ZAFT Ginn," pausing, she raised an eyebrow, "but you already knew that."
"Ya know, you could've just said you didn't know," Kira narrowed his eyes. 'What the hell was that?' Mina's odd slipup didn't go unnoticed. He'd figure it out later. A mobile suit needed his aid. "I know you want to impress me, but there are other ways of doing so."
Mina shook her head, "I tire of your blatant stupidity. Do your job and there won't be any problems. Now if you'll excuse me, I've no interest in dealing with anymore fools." In a heartbeat, she left the room, the loud echo of her clicking high heels reverberating long after she left their line of sight.
As Kira began fixing the problem, Valfeldt and Juri hurried to his side –the former getting a kiss and the latter a high five– and began conversing about the recent verbal exchange.
"Today's date is January 22, Cosmic Era 71. I'm Dennis Kemp with the afternoon news-"
'I already watched the news. Sorry Dennis.'
Sitting on his bed, Kira held his TV remote while channel-surfing. Purple suit back on a hanger, he wore clothing of more comfort, a white t-shirt and jean shorts. The humming at his side showed he wasn't alone, as Setona –who'd since cleaned herself up, preventing the spread of saliva– slowly but merrily dusted his room's entirety.
Click.
"Having trouble finding a stable job to support your loved ones and/or yourself? I understand your pain, and it's through this understanding that I've decided to offer my services to you. Hello, I'm Gilbert Durandal, coming to you with the highly acclaimed, successful non-profit program of getting you the career you're guaranteed to excel at for the rest of your life. Through a fast, no-hassle, perfectly safe and absolutely free scan of your genes, we can uncover-"
'There's an old commercial. Hard to believe that's been going strong for so long. Mr. Durandal's a great guy.'
Click.
"Rukia? Orihime? I must have them BOTH!"
'Hey, that's the movie we watched the other night. I'm kinda surprised Ancient Anime is showing it again.' He glanced towards his maid and after a few seconds diverted his eyes up to meet her own, greeted by her usual beaming smile. "Remember what we did at this scene?" he asked playfully, grinning at her resulting blush, "Until then, I didn't think the human body could bend like that." Laughing, he returned his attention to the television, allowing his embarrassed maid to regain her composure.
Click.
"ThunderCats! Hoooooo!"
'Now that's what I'm talkin' about. Yes!'
The prince of Orb spent the next half hour in a magic world of swords, cat-fighters, epic music and undisputed pure awesome. Setona sat closely beside him halfway through for a short break. His goofy grin never left his face.
"Coming up next on Ancient American: Mortal Kombat Annihila-"
'Er…yeeeaaahh-no!'
Click.
With the television off, Kira fell backwards, his head perfectly landing on the pillow at the front of his bed. He sighed softly at the comforting touch. Fixing the M-1 had been easy, but it still deserved a lengthy break. Adding to his relaxation, an arm snaked towards his nightstand for a candy bar he bought the night before. When his hand touched open paper, the teenager lightly frowned. He had forgotten to eat it after waking. Kira usually tried having solid food in the mornings, but whenever he found himself running late to assist with the software, a breakfast of chocolate and peanut butter was not an uncommon occurrence.
"Master Kira," She turned around, a frown on her normally sunny face, "If you're hungry, don't hesitate to ask me for food. I'm more than happy to fix something for you."
Eyes widening slightly, Kira blinked, "Oh yeah. I forget about your master chef skills." Unwrapping the treat, he took a bite. "We should host a cooking battle sometime. That'd be pretty spectacular." Swallowing the candy, he took another look at it before scrunching his face in disgust, "Yeah, why don't you go ahead and make something. Anything's fine really. As long as it sends my taste buds on a fantastic journey of conquest and self-discovery, I don't care if you come back with sautéed eiwok."
Her face lit up with joy. "Sure!" She nodded, leaving the room with such haste she nearly forgot to put on her shoes.
His hunger and desire for delicious food made from experienced, sexy hands put Kira in a position most despised.
By himself.
When alone, unwanted thoughts flowed through his mind. When alone, he thought of the future or much worse, when alone he thought of the past. Of childhood and expectations. Of politics and failures. Of arranged marriages and feuding families and annoying ceremonies. Of an consistent stream of disappointment.
Kira reached for another item on the nightstand, his laptop.
"Maybe I'll see if someone cool wants to chat online." He needed occupation. Fast.
Miniature computer opened, he noticed an alert from his favorite chat program. Apparently, someone wished to speak with him. Checking the username DontNeedAngerMgmt, he learned the other person had recently logged in as well.
'Talk about epic timing,' he thought, activating the chat program. On the other side of the screen, a black haired, red-eyed kid around the age of thirteen wearing a red t-shirt and baggy jeans quickly noticed he'd established connection to his friend's laptop.
Kira immediately spoke before he could even say hi.
"First things first Shinn, did you watch ThunderCats? Do note that your answer decides if this conversation goes on any further."
"Really Kira? Really?" Following a few seconds of silence, he could hear Shinn Asuka's sigh from the other end, "Fine. Yes and no. I was trying to do some homework-"
"Nerrrrd!" Kira shouted.
Unsurprisingly, it went completely ignored, "-but Mayu wanted to watch TV and I didn't feel like getting up. Anyway, I thought it was pretty good. She thought it was, in her own words, super awesomely awesome."
"And you've once again reminded me why your sister is so much cooler than you." Kira stated calmly, as if he was simply explaining a basic fact of life.
Shinn's expression turned hard, "Now don't get any ideas. Prince or not, I can still bitch-slap you all the way from here to PLANT if you ever hit on her."
"Oh Shinny McShinshin, don't be a half-empty bottle of fat free ranch. We've been over this at least like two thousand eight hundred and seventy one times already. Mayu is way too young for me. You on the other hand," he smiled flirtatiously, repeatedly raising both of his eyebrows, "the jury's still out on that one."
"I'll stick to girls, thanks. Case closed."
Kira shrugged, "Your loss. Seriously."
"Anyway," Shinn was eager to change the subject, "I wanted to ask you about something homework related."
Smirking, Kira rested his cheek on his palm, "Oh really? Well this is a new development. Nice to see you're asking for something original."
"I'm serious."
"So am I." He decided his friend had had enough teasing for a minute or two, "Kato again?" One of the professors at Heliopolis' technical college had a penchant for assigning Shinn additional assignments.
"You know it. Me and a couple others get this honor all the time. It fuckin' blows."
"So what am I lookin' at this time?" Kira asked, knowing the drill.
"It's the coding for… something," he shrugged, "I haven't figured that part out yet. Here I'll show it to you." He raised a small datapad, its contents visible to Kira through the screen.
The prince froze.
He recognized this code. No, not just that. Shinn's other homework had always been familiar. He'd been shown analysis's for joint movement of small household robots, the programming for certain household appliances and the operating system for the miniature silly HARO bot typically beside Coordinator pop idol Lacus Clyne to name a few.
But this type of program analysis? He'd seen it before, recently in fact.
'Like in the M1 I just operated this morning,' he thought bitterly, as dangerous implications flashed through his mind at an alarming rate. Now that he thought of it, the M1 Astray had been shrouded in secret. Even he knew little of its origin. Why would parts –even something as minor as its software- end up in the hands of a thirteen year old civilian? What did Professor Kato hope to gain with Shinn working under the radar and under the guise of additional schoolwork he needed to pass his class? Before the Asuka family moved to Heliopolis, Kira had given his friend a significant amount of pointers and advice on programming when Shinn mentioned a slight, kind of sort of interest in the subject. Considering conversations between Kira and Kato in the past centered on mobile suits, the prince of Orb had an awful feeling about this revelation.
"Now, you're absolutely sure it's Professor Kato and only Kato that gave you this assignment?" Kira asked a second time, wanting no chance for misunderstandings.
Shinn nodded again, his confusion growing by his friend's suddenly serious expression, "Uh, yeah. He keeps shoving this crap on me right after I get a second to breathe and saying I need it to graduate and be ahead of everyone else or some shit like that. He actually gave me a whole week to finish this one which is more than usual, but it's still annoying as Hell."
Closing his eyes, Kira sighed. The possibility of someone above Kato pulling strings still stood, but at least no one else approached Shinn directly.
The sound of a loud ring came from Shinn's side of the conversation. The black-haired teen looked to the right, "Oh, they're here already?" At Kira's questioning gaze, he continued, "Now that I finally have a day to chill, Jessica and Misha wanted me to hang out with 'em and some of their friends today. We're swinging by Flay's first."
"Oh?" From bits and pieces he'd learned from Shinn about his classmates, Kira was under the impression the Allster girl would be far from okay with that. "I thought she was a Coordinata hata."
Rubbing the back of his hand, Shinn smiled nervously, "Well, she didn't like me much once she found out, but I think she's comin' around. The other day, she asked for my help studying up for a test."
"Oh really?" The subject of Kato's mysterious intentions temporarily went to the back burner as Kira's lips curved upwards, a mischievous, teasing smirk, "I can't believe what I'm hearing. Shinn Asuka studying alone with an engaged woman?" The prince laughed out loud, "If Mina heard that, she'd really hate you!"
Shinn's face immediately scrunched in disgust, "Ugh, can we not mention that annoying gorilla and her 'commoners' bullshit? Besides, even if something like that happened with Flay, her fiancé would ki-, well on second thought," He placed a hand on his chin, gazing upwards as though in deep thought about Sai Argyle's fighting prowess, "no, I'd probably kick his ass, but it'd still be ugly."
Both boys laughed.
"Oh Master Kira! I'm back!" Closing the door behind her, Setona carried a tray of scalding hot shrimp scampi on a plate, flavored with exquisite sauces and seasoning from around the globe. She set the delicacy on the nightstand and turned to leave, but the prince wasn't having it.
"Thank you Setona. Oh yeah," Grabbing her hand with his own, he gently pulled her down to his side. She yelped, landing atop of her master. He glanced back to Shinn, "You know something that really annoys Mina? This." Arms around his maid, he engulfed her mouth in a deep kiss, missing out on Shinn's facepalm and the sound of an opening door. When the pair refocused their attention to the screen, they quickly noticed Shinn was no longer alone, now accompanied by young Mayu Asuka and two others. Of the girls, one had short black hair and eyes while the other was a brunette in pigtails wearing a formal shirt with a tie. Luckily, Shinn's body covered the screen, preventing the others from watching the lip-locking session of master and maid.
"Hey you two! There's someone I want to you to meet before we go." Shinn gestured for his friends while Mayu tried to look over their shoulders.
"How do ya do there ladies? I'm the prince of Orb, Kira Nara Athha," he greeted with his most charming smile, "and this," gesturing to Setona, "is my favorite maid, Valentine Candycane, she prefers to go by Mo." Shinn groaned while the maid kept smiling, both quite familiar with the prince's habit of introducing others with absolutely ridiculous names. The girls didn't care or notice, but squealed.
"Holy shit, you really are friends with Prince Athha!" The girl in question glanced at Shinn, "I thought you were making that up to try and be cool."
"Well yes and no," Kira grinned, "we are pals but his certain uncoolness was no myth. I've been trying to get my dad to give it its own monument." Noticing their laughter, his smiled only widened. Jessica and Misha. He would have to remember those names.
"That's so cool! How did you guys meet?" Of them asked, hands clasped behind her back.
"Oh, that's one heck of story full of twist and turns. Believe it or not, I've also got baby pictures of Shinn to prove it."
"No you don't! Screw this, let's go you guys," he turned to his sister, "You deal with him for a while."
"Yeah, yeah. Get outta here."
"Heya Kira! Wasn't Lion-O great?" Mayu waved enthusiastically the instant her face popped up on the screen. The others within the Asuka household left the premises.
Small talk ensued between them for another half-hour, and while Kira certainly enjoyed conversing with the girl (while Setona fed him his lunch), Shinn's "extra homework" remained at the forefront of his thoughts.
A/N
As eluded earlier, Setona and Kira are about the same age. Luckily, with Setona's canonical suspended animation, she's one character whose age can be altered quite a bit without contradicting canon. So for this fic let's just say her transport to Earth was a lot faster than in Delta Astray, allowing her to be around 15 at this time. As far as Kira's character is concerned, remember that he's grown up in a completely different environment than in the anime, not to mention no mother and no Athrun. Sexuality wise, I don't think it's too much of a stretch for Kira to swing both ways, given how close he and Athrun are in canon. Feel free to drop a review and tell me your thoughts. It's much appreciated.
