A/N: Hey, guys. I'm currently having a bit of writer's block for my other Metroid fic, so for now, I'm taking this story off hiatus. Besides, this seems to be the more popular of the two, so I guess I'll give the people what they want. I hope you enjoy this chapter.
-o-
Ayame sat up in bed, stretched, and let out a loud yawn. It had been ten years since she had been adopted by the renowned bounty hunter, Samus Aran. They lived in a cheap, yet comfy condo on Earth. The windows had a good view of the cityscape, which was a beautiful sight at dawn and dusk. Ten years ago, they had lived in an old apartment that they had to move out of for the reason that it didn't have enough space.
Over the years, Samus had become more of mother figure to Ayame. The veteran bounty hunter trained her in the Chozo martial arts - which she had learned from the Chozo that had raised her - and how to shoot. It turned out that Ayame was natural with a gun. She wasn't quite at Samus's level, but she still showed a great deal of promise.
"Ayame!" called Samus's voice from outside the bedroom door. "Are you up yet? It's almost time to go for training!"
"I'll be out in a minute!" Ayame called back. She quickly got some fresh clothes on and swiftly brushed a few knots out of her dark hair. When she finished, she rushed out of her room and arrived in the kitchen where Samus was just finishing a bowl of cereal. Hard to believe that the most highly paid bounty hunter in the galaxy would settle on plain old cereal for breakfast. She had never been a very frivolous spender. At least not for herself. When Ayame was younger, she practically spoiled the girl rotten. All Ayame had to do was give the saddest face possible, and sooner or later, Samus would completely fold.
"Good morning, Ayame," the bounty hunter said as she went to rinse her bowl in the sink. "Did you sleep well?"
"Yep." Ayame went over to the refrigerator and pressed a button. A holographic display appeared, revealing the large cooler's contents. This allowed one to decide what to take out before opening the fridge, preventing unnecessary waste of electricity and saving the food from potentially going bad.
She soon took out a carton of milk and then got a bowl from the nearby cabinet and a spoon from the drawer. She would just settle for the cereal that her adoptive mother had for breakfast. She would likely eat at least three bowls. She always had an indomitable appetite, probably because she burned so many calories training with Samus, who wasn't exactly gentle.
"Ayame," Samus said, catching the younger girl's attention. The bounty hunter was currently drinking a cup of coffee. "I have some good news for you. I've got a new mission lined up for next week."
Ayame stopped eating and laid her spoon on the table. "How is that good news? You never take me along on any of your missions." It was true. Even though she had always been ready and able to help on Samus's missions, her mother never let her come along. She had always been told that she wasn't ready yet, and was always left in the hands of Anthony Higgs, one of Samus's old friends.
"That's true," Samus replied to Ayame's statement. "But I think you'll like this: you'll be coming with me."
Ayame gawked. Had she heard right? "You're taking me with you?"
Samus smirked as she sipped her coffee. "If you don't want to come, I'll understand. I'll call Anthony and have him watch you until I come back."
"No!" Ayame shouted. "I want to go with you. I'm just surprised is all."
"Really? You always said that you were good enough to go on real missions, so I figured I'd take along on this one. It's just a small job. We'll be escorting a group of nomads to their next destination, and they'll be going through some fairly treacherous space. It shouldn't be too difficult."
Ayame sighed. She had personally always hoped that her first mission would be a bit more dramatic than an escort, but she knew that complaining would only get her sent to be babysat by Anthony again. She eventually nodded. "All right. But the next mission better be more exciting."
That made Samus chuckle. "We'll see, kiddo. We'll see."
-o-
The two of them entered the Federation HQ, where a pair of Marines stood guard. When asked for identification, Samus let them scan her personal ID card. The Federation soldiers then let the pair head into the building, which only grew more impressive every time Ayame saw it.
"Whoever designed this place must've been compensating for something," she commented with some of the dry humor she had unfortunately picked form Gear, Samus's ship's AI program. Samus couldn't help but chuckle at her adopted daughter's comment. At least her jokes were better than Gear's. More tolerable, too.
"I'll bet," she said. They made their way further into the facility, heading for the holographic training hall. Because of Samus's connections to the Federation military, she was allowed access to all facilities within the HQ, but she spent most of her time in the training hall.
They turned a corner, and a running body literally ran into Ayame, forcing her to the ground. The blow given to her head by the hard, metallic floor made her see stars momentarily, but she was quickly able to once again make sense of her surroundings. She felt something laying on top of her, and she look down to see… a boy about her age… with his face her chest. She promptly screamed, "PERVERT!" and smacked the boy, who went reeling from the blow. Samus broke into full-blown laughter at the scene.
"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR!?" the boy asked, but his face softened when he realized who he was yelling at. "Ayame? Oh, geez, I am so sorry for that!"
"Connor?" Ayame said in surprise. She suddenly broke out into a huge smile. "Connor! Oh, man, I haven't seen you in forever!"
Connor Mercer, who was actually two years older than Ayame, smiled at her. The two had been friends for years. About a year after Ayame was taken in by Samus, she was brought to the Federation HQ for her first lesson in martial arts. They met when Ayame wandered off in boredom, nearly giving Samus a heart attack. Ayame and Connor met when the girl ran into a group of students at a nearby school who were on a field trip. Connor had stood up for her when a bully started picking on her, and ended up getting into a fight. After that, the two had become close friends.
"It's been a while, hasn't it?" Connor said, scratching the light brown hair on his head, a habit he performed whenever he was surprised or embarrassed. He was currently feeling both emotions at the moment. "It's only been a year, but it feels like forever."
"What are you doing here?" Samus asked curiously.
"Oh. Well, I signed up to join the Federation military," Connor answered. "I'm officially starting today." He then checked his watch. "Oh, crap! Sorry, I gotta go! I'll see you later Ayame!" With that, he ran off, Ayame looking in his direction rather sadly.
Samus chuckled. "Obvious, much?" Ayame turned to Samus, who smirked. "Well, I guess it's only natural for a girl your age to be interested in a boy."
"What!?" Ayame shouted, completely taken aback. Her face became beet red. "C-Connor's just a friend! You know that, Mom!"
"Amazing how you only call me 'Mom' when you're upset," Samus replied with a grin, to which Ayame huffed. "Come on, Ayame. Let's get to the training hall." She began walking away. Ayame gave one last glance in the direction Connor had left in. she could no longer see him. she sighed and followed her adoptive mother.
