Strike Samurai
Summary: When a group of Samurai attempt to burn a village to the ground, Kira Yamato, know as the Strike Samurai, saves one girl from the flames. Now, they both set out to get revenge after joining up with the Rouge and Justice Samurai. KxL AxC SxS
Disclaimer:
Me: Hello friends! I'm very happy! Wanna know why?
Olivia: Dear Lord, no,
Alex: Please no,
Chelsea: What?
Me: Picup gave me a bag of SUGAR! And thanks people for Asuka! It helps lots! But as I am also happy, I'm totally pissed to the core.
Olivia: I hate you Picup! She's gonna be hyper for a long time now!
Me: Someone by the name of Bad $$ that everybody hates, You SUCK! And if you review my story again, I'll do something really bad! Your words don't affect me one bit! And Olivia,
Olivia: What did I do?
Me: Alien? Please Livvie, as if I don't know you sent that review from alien. And you reviewed my story, the one you Co Host!
Olivia: Well it's funny!
Me: Whatever, on a lighter note, Alexs, sorry, but I can't reveal that kind of information! You'll just have to read and find out! And Easy Company, thanks for the idea, but I'll bring them into the story in Freedom Samurai, (HintHintto kill Rau, he's gotta be alive and they are gonna kill him, sooo…) And you spelled Hukari wrong, and Samurai (-.-;) and I live in America, so I don't know squat about any Japanese story, I just know about the Band of Seven from Inuyasha and I came up with the Hukari on my own. And isn't it just amazing that Darien is alive? HAHA! Like I said, I laugh at your pain! Good story Angee! Mind if I call you Angee? No? Great! I'm still high on cough medicine so if I'm a little funky, don't blame me! Heeheehoho! P.S. If you see bold numbers in (parenthesis), read author's note at the bottom.
Chapter 16 Marriage Arrangement
The gang had started walking at dawn's first light, and Shinn was out of it. "Hey, where's Miss Murrue? She's so gonna kill me when she finds out I didn't cut the firewood yesterday," the raven haired teen said groggily. Stellar giggled softly, and hugged him, "Shinn, you're so funny sometimes," the red eyed teen glanced at the girl, and he asked, "Who are you?" sleepily. The girl let go, and stared at him angrily. Whacking him on the head, she faced directly ahead and ignored his cries of harassment.
Cagalli took in a big breath of the fresh and crisp morning air. Her golden eyes switched to Kira who was walking next to her quietly. Kira, she thought sadly, and felt something touching her lower backside. "Ath,RUN!" she shouted angrily and spun around to slap the blue haired samurai in the face. "What! You looked like you needed it; I was just trying to spark your attitude!" Cagalli turned red in anger, "Oh you sparked my anger alright!" and whacked him on the head with the hilt of her sword. "Ow!" the emerald eyed man shouted while rubbing his head. "That's what you get, pervert," the blonde grumbled.
Many hours later, they found a small town. Stellar looked around and figured what town it was. "Hey! We're in Aprilus City!" she said excitedly. Cagalli turned to look at the squealing blonde. "What's so special about Aprilus City?" she asked. Stellar smiled wide. "My brother lives here! I haven't seen him for ten years! Do you know how long ten years is? Including the two leap years?" she asked quickly. Athrun starred at her strangely. Stellar sighed, "It's 3652 days! I hope he still makes swords, I've been wanting one, you know, for close combat!" she said happily and led them to the smithy.
The small party reached the establishment, and a blonde man with magenta eyes and blonde hair down to his shoulders held up in a low pony tail was pulling water out of a well. Stellar ran forward shouting, "NEO!" The man looked up and dropped the bucket of water back into the well, "Stellar?" but the young girl jumped on top of him, and latched her arms around his neck. "Neo! I've missed you for 3652 days!" Neo struggled to breathe under his sister's grip on his neck, "Wow, Stellar (cough) you've kept count? Well (cough) I've missed you too," Stellar released Neo and got off of him. "Neo, these are my friends Athrun, Cagalli, Kira, and Shinn." Neo got up and smiled wide as he extended his hand to the Hukari and Shinn.
Shinn shook Stellar's brother's hand first, a smile spread across his face. If this made Stellar happy, he was happy. "So, you must be Shinn," Neo said with a laugh. "Kind of scrawny aren't you?" Neo continued laughing and Shinn gave him a death glare. Then Neo pulled the raven haired boy into a head lock and noogied his head. "You try anything with my little sister and I'll smash your head between my hammer and anvil!" he said smiling before letting go of him and turning to the others.
Shinn stood up straight and rubbed his neck with wide eyes. Stellar walked over to him and ruffled his hair to make it messy, the way he liked it. "There you go!" she said like a small child and smiled. The two smiled at each other, when the door to a large house next to the smithy opened. "Hey Neo, I finished putting the finished swords away and I, STELLAR!" shouted a boy who looked around eighteen with long blonde hair and blue eyes. Yup, you guessed it, REY ZU BARREL! (Don't care if the freak's name is spelled wrong, cause I hate him and don't care!) Stellar looked over to him and smiled, "Hey Rey, I haven't seen you for 3-" but she was cut off as the boy wrapped his arms around her in a tight and loving hug, tooooo tight, and tooooo loving if you asked Shinn.
"Oh Stellar! It's been 3652 days since I last saw you! My, you've grown even more beautiful in these past ten years than I could ever have imagined," Stellar was blushing from embarrassment, just as Shinn stomped over there and pulled Stellar out of Rey's arms. "And just who might you be?" Shinn asked while sending evil death ray glares at the blonde. Rey looked at him funnily, and then smiled. "I'm Rey Zu Barrel. I'm Neo's apprentice in blacksmithing; in fact I've risen all the way up to a silversmith in the past ten years I've worked here. Isn't that amazing Stellar?" Rey asked pushing the black haired teen away and pulling the blonde girl's hands into his own.
Shinn's face was as red as his eyes as he trudged over to Rey. Just as he was about to punch him, Athrun and Neo had grabbed the fuming teen and restrained him. "Shinn! Where are your manners?" Athrun asked as he tried to keep the struggling Asuka under control. "Screw my manners! That pig is getting way to close to Stellar for me to keep my screwy manners-" but he was cut off as Athrun hit him upside the head. "OW! Athrun, that hurt!" he screamed at the blue head. The Lily Hukari sighed and looked back at the teen who had resumed sending glares at Rey as he stroked his girl's hands "Shinn, it might not be a good time to tell you this, but Stellar and I are engaged," Rey added with a huge smile on his face. Stellar and Shinn's eyes enlarged.
"WHAT?" or what they really mean to say is, ahem,"$&&&$#$WTF$&!"
Rey looked at the girl in front of him confusedly. "Stellar, didn't you know? It was arranged, oh wait," the boy grinned sheepishly. "It was five years after you left, sorry." Stellar turned to Neo, "You came up with a marriage arrangement behind my back! When I was thirteen years old!" she demanded. Neo shrugged embarrassedly.
Cagalli and Kira were just watching with stoned expressions, this was definitely going to take up valuable time in tracking down Lacus. Kira looked up and Cagalli could see that his irises had a thin red outline, though he wasn't in Hukari, or seed mode. Walking forward, he stood in front of Neo, and looked the man who must have been twenty eight in the eye. "We don't have time for personal problems. We needed to stop at this town to stock up on supplies before we went to search for a friend. And this is getting in the way." his voice was cold, not the voice of the gentle, shy boy everyone had known; heck even Shinn stopped struggling against Athrun and Neo's grip to listen quietly.
Rey stepped up to Kira and cleared his throat. "Sir, I'm very sure this doesn't concern you, or anyone else except the Loussier family and myself. You all can go on your way and find your little friend, but Stellar must stay here." the boy stated proudly. Kira's eyes narrowed. He drew the Strike and leveled it with the blonde's neck. "Kira!" Cagalli shouted, Athrun's eyes widened, Stellar was in angry shock, Neo was messed up, and Shinn was screaming in his head, DO IT! DO IT! DO IT!
Rey looked startled, "Uh, we don't really have to turn to hostilities now, do we?" he asked while waving his hands in the air defensively. Kira kept his sword out, but inched it away from the boy's neck. Rey sighed and smiled at them all. "Why don't you just stay and we'll help you restock for your trip, I could even sharpen your swords," The three Hukari looked at the boy as if he was a fresh cut of meat, just asking to be chopped, diced, sliced, cut, you name it. Cagalli walked over to Rey, holding her sword in front of her; Rey had a victorious smile. "Would you be as kind as to-BUTT OUT OF OUR BUSSINESS!" shouted the Tiger Lily Hukari while the blonde ran behind Stellar, but Cagalli was still behind him, and hit him on the back of his head with the hilt of her sword.
"We can stay for the length of one day, but by then," Cagalli's eyes narrowed, "We're leaving. With Stellar." Rey nodded as he eyed the Rouge blade. Cagalli turned and saw Kira starring at her. Neo decided to break the tension. "Hey, you guys looked exhausted, why don't we head inside? The sun will be setting soon," Stellar nodded happily, and totally ignoring Rey, led Shinn and the others inside behind Neo, all the while holding Shinn's hand. Rey followed behind all of them and closed the door to the house. That Shinn and the Hukari will definitely be a problem. Glad he told me they would be coming.
Sitting around the table, the air was tense, and anger was shooting towards the one unwanted member at the table. Rey kept blabbering about things, about how his family was a very important family in Japan, and even had ties in India and Europe. Then he started talking about how the marriage with Stellar was going to be one of his greatest feats. "And the kids will all be like me, all nine of them. Or maybe more depending on how many you want to have darling," he added as he starred dreamily at Stellar across the table. Shinn watched from his seat next to Stellar and gripped his metal knife so tightly, that it bent. Athrun watched the angry, no-pissed-teen shape silverware into distorted circles. "Good thing we're not using chop sticks like regular people," the blue head grumbled under his breath and popped his spoon full of soup into his mouth. The only problem was, the soup was hot, not just 'Oh this is hot', but, 'HOLY CRAP! WATER! GIVE ME WATER!' hot. Looking to his right, he saw Cagalli swallowing noodles by the mouthful contentedly. She looked over to him while still swallowing the noodles; she raised an eyebrow.
By now, everyone at the table had looked over to the frantic Athrun, and Cagalli swallowed her mouthful. "Athrun, what are you-" but she was cut off as the man grabbed the back of her head and crushed his lips onto hers. The girl's eyes bugged and she grabbed her cup of water, made of stone mind you. (Stupid Neo) Then smashed it on top of Athrun's head. Shinn fell out of his chair laughing while Kira spit out the water he was trying to swallow and gave Athrun a death glare. Stellar was on the floor next to Shinn and holding her stomach laughing. Cagalli looked pissed as Kira and starred at Athrun dangerously. Athrun was looking at Shinn and Stellar with 'Don't piss me off' looks, but they were ineffective. Sitting back in his chair grumbling with his arms crossed, Neo got a good look at his face. The man started laughing hard. Athrun looked at him funnily and turned to the other Hukari. Kira and Cagalli forgot their anger and started laughing. The Lily Hukari had a noodle stuck on his face from his failed attempt to teach Cagalli French in Japanese. (I don't get it, hehe)
When everyone was able to look at Athrun with just a kooky grin, they sat back at the table to notice Rey had left. Neo sighed happily and got up and started clearing the table. "Finally that idiot is gone," he grumbled. Stellar got up and helped her brother get the dishes. Shinn, being the sweet, courteous boy that he is, burped loudly and helped the siblings. Stellar sighed playfully, and Shinn laughed. Leading them into the kitchen, Neo dropped the dishes into a sink (1) and grabbed a jug of water and poured it into the basin. Grabbing some dish soap (2) he set to work to cleaning the dishes. The black haired teen got up behind him and suggested, "Hey Neo, why don't you let me do those? You and Stellar have some catching up to do. So get to IT!" the red eyed teen said and pushed the man and girl out of the room. Then, when they were gone, Shinn turned around and said aloud, "Now! How do you wash dishes?" and walked over to the sink.
Neo led Stellar towards the smithy, and she followed him outside and into the small area her brother made tools and swords for various buyers. Picking up his tongs, Neo walked towards the large furnace where metal bars of steel were glowing orange from the immense heat. Picking up on of them with the tongs, he placed it onto his anvil and began to pound it with his hammer. Stellar sat down in the hay that rested in the corner and watched, the chime of the hammer hitting the fire hot metal soothing her. The hay was warm and smelled fresh, just like when she was a little girl and their father taught Neo the art of blacksmithing.
"I always kept it fresh, to remind me of you watching me work." her brother said over the soft din of the hammer. Stellar nodded knowingly, and looked down to her side when an old face appeared next to her. "Moebius!" Stellar said happily as she scooped the old cat up into her arms. The old cat struggled until the teen stroked under his chin with her index finger. A satisfied purr emitted from his throat as he settled down in the blonde girl's arms. Neo smiled, his similar magenta eyes changing to orange from the glow of the fire in the furnace. Stellar stroked the orange tabby cat lovingly as she bobbed her head slowly to the rhythm of his purring.
"Neo, how did it happen?" she asked quietly as she stroked the fuzzy head of the feline. Neo frowned angrily and struck the dimming orange metal harder than the other strokes. "A few years after you left with Harry, father went to the Zu Barrels and asked them for a loan. It was stupid of him and mother and I told him so, but he didn't listen. The Zu Barrels, being the money hungry people that they are, agreed. Father used the money they gave him quickly to replace the furnace, which wasn't such a bad idea, and fix the house up a bit, but then mother died." Stellar kept her gaze on the tabby's head where his orange ears with the white tufts of fur sticking out were flicking around. Their mother was always sickly; she knew that she wouldn't be around when she came back from Junius City.
Neo hit the metal hard and a clang rang out through the area softly between the other, smaller, bangs from the hammer. "Then he went to the tavern, and started a habit of gambling. The idiot. He got into debt, and you'll never guess with whom," Stellar spoke quietly, "Gilbert Zu Barrel?" she guessed absent mindedly. (I know Gilbert ain't related to Rey, but read it, and like it!) Neo grunted, "Who else? But when Zu Barrel got the old man into debt really deep, he reminded father of the money loan he gave him not to long ago." Stellar guess what happened. "And Rey had started being my apprentice around that time, and suggested to his father and arrangement. You already know what it is." Neo concluded while he smacked the metal again and lifting it; dunked it into a large basin filled with water. Steam floated quickly out of the basin and Neo lifted the metal bar to reveal a long and sharp blade for a sword.
Bringing it over to a workbench, he grabbed what looked like to be a black silver hilt for a sword, and black silver twine to wrap the blade into place with the hilt. "The marriage agreement." she said softly. Neo grunted to acknowledge her as he worked expertly with the sword. Moebius crawled up to Stellar's neck and curled around it on her shoulders. Getting up and walking towards Neo, she looked over his broad shoulder to see what he was doing. "The old man died at the engagement ceremony, from unknown causes. But my bet was food poisoning. It was for the better anyway, if he was still alive, he probably would have been drafted to the military." Stellar looked up to her brother. "Wouldn't you be drafted too?" she asked curiously as Neo turned around with the finished sword. Smiling with pride at his fine craftsmanship, he looked down to his younger sister. "Actually, I would have, if I wasn't the only blacksmith for twenty miles around," and laughed softly. Following him to a stool by a large bench where many different stones lay, she pulled a stool over for herself and sat down next to him.
Neo expertly grabbed a smooth looking bluish gray stone and began scraping it against the blade of the sword. Back and forth, back and forth, up and down, up and down. The girl watched with untainted interest as the steel of the sword began to shimmer and gleam with light. Minutes later, the man with his long blonde hair pulled into a pony tail held up the finished product of what could have taken days to finish. Stellar smiled. "Who ordered that kind of sword?" she asked. Neo looked down at her and smiled. "Want to see something even more amazing?" he asked. Stellar gave him a look that said, 'If I wanted to see something amazing, I'd look out the window while an elephant danced in the living room'. Leading the young girl to a locked chest, he bent down and took a key shaped like a sword and placed it in the lock. Opening the chest, he lifted two similar sheathes. One was black oak and had black silver vines at the opening with a star engraved into the silver; and empty. The other was made out of redwood and had normal silver vines around the opening and had a sword piercing a heart engraved into the silver. The sword inside of the red sheath's hilt was made of normal silver and had a blood red garnet in the center of it. Drawing the blade out of the sheath, Stellar gasped. It was practically the exact same design and steel as the black sliver sword. "This is the sword Impulse, Blade of Power. Beautiful isn't it?" her brother asked Stellar as she marveled over it.
Neo smirked, "And this blade," he said grabbing the black silver sword and drawing it into its sheath, "Is the Gaia, Blade of Grace." Stellar looked at the hilt of Gaia closer and saw there was an amethyst in the center of the hilt. True, Amethyst stood for Grace, and the Garnet stood for power. "But the blades of Power and Grace must be used together to be balanced out," the blonde girl told him. Neo's smirk grew larger. "Yes, but instead of twin swords, they can be used together by two samurai with a strong connection." Stellar smiled, "Well I guess that makes sense." Neo sighed. "Stellar, these swords are for you and Shinn." The girl stood still, frozen, for a moment. "Wha, what?" she stuttered. Neo smiled. "Murrue-sama sent word to me that you and Shinn would be coming soon, so I began work on the Impulse, and have completed the Gaia now. They are yours and Shinn's." Stellar looked like she might cry. Hugging Neo, she buried her face into the chest of his shirt and could smell the scent of pine leaves. Neo hugged her back lovingly, and handed the blades to her.
Shinn laid on one of the futons the others had found in the spare bedroom they were sharing. Kira was sitting in the corner, sleeping while leaning against the wall with the Strike in his grasp. He could also hear Athrun's snoring, and knew he was dreaming about feeling up Cagalli without her hitting him. "Stupid pervert," Shinn mumbled as he turned over on his side. He heard the sliding door open and looked above him where his ruby gaze met Stellar's magenta eyes. "Stellar?" he asked as he stood up slowly and quietly. She smiled and led him outside into a garden in the back of the house. The black haired teen also noticed that she was carrying two sword sheathes.
They stopped underneath a large pine tree in a garden. They were facing a small pond and the girl sat down, followed by Shinn. "Hey Stellar, why are you carrying those swords?" he asked. Stellar smiled again and handed him the sword in the red sheath to him. "That is Impulse, Blade of Power, and this is Gaia, Blade of Grace. Neo made them, for us." Shinn took a minute to understand. "Huh? Whoa, that is so cool!" he said happily. Stellar smiled warmly at Shinn, and he noticed she had changed her kimono.
Now she was wearing a sleeveless white kimono with a red bow around the waist that reached down to her ankles. And there were two slits up her left and right side that reached up to her waist; showing off her legs. "Shinn? What are you starring at?" the blonde girl asked as she waved a hand in front of his face. The boy broke from his daze and chuckled nervously. "Nothing, it's just that kimono fits your beautiful figure, I mean your figure beautifully, uh, not that I was looking, but uh…" Great, she probably thinks I'm gonna start acting like Athrun now, uh! Scary thought, he battled in his head.
Stellar giggled. "It's okay Shinn, it's just a complement, and you know what? It's cute when you blush," she whispered as her face grew closer to Shinn's. Shinn watched as she closed her eyes and softly planted her lips on his own, and then closed his own eyes to deepen the kiss.
Kira woke and opened his eyes quickly. Getting up, he knew Stellar and Shinn were outside. Walking quietly out of the room, he slipped out of the house and into the forest. Not far had he gone when he came across a small clearing, bathed in moonlight. Stepping in the center, he looked up to the slightly larger crescent of a moon from last night. A small figure appeared in the sky, and Kira saw it was a bird.
Reads Japanese History…They didn't have sinks? Screw that! (Grabs pen and white out) Make a few marks here; write a little there…NOW THEY DO!
They didn't have dish soap either? Where's my white out?...
Okay, I got to go to bed like now! So review and tell me what you think about Stellar's family and problem! And the SxS fluff by the pond! The next chapter is called, Tori.Okay, gotta go, good night! Sam