Freedom Samurai

Okay, first off, I'M SORRY!!!!! I'M SO SORRY! I AM A TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE PERSON, AND I'LL DEPRIVE MYSELF OF CHOCOLATE FOR A WEEK IF YOU'D ALL JUST FORGIVE ME!!! I'm so sorry everyone that it took me more than three months to get this typed up, it's just that school work and evil teachers got me down. along with my summer vacation being a complete bore…and also I was really depressed when I realized that like, almost no one reviewed chapter 13. I mean, I get it that I hadn't updated in a long time, and people had probably forgotten about it, but a lot of people would have gotten the alert…I mean, I wasn't expecting a shockwave of reviews…but it made me really sad that I only got a quarter of the hits I usually get, and only 6 reviews from my usual 14-15 at the old lowest. But, I digress…The people that did review I am eternally grateful, and ask that you forgive me for taking so long with this chapter…before, the motivation just wasn't there, and now I've decided to get in the next chapter for you wonderful readers!

blueflamesofsadness, I really will get around to reading your story soon, I've just been a little crazy lately and haven't found time…sort of…sometimes my brain turns the memory off, and I forget things more easily…heh…And I suppose I could part with a home baked, extra chocolate chip, triple cocoa, chocolate deluxe chocolate chip cookie my Mommy made me! And yeah…I hate Naraku too…

And also, Noien, I'm really sorry! Looking back, I realize that I said something really harsh and uncalled for, I'm sorry. I was just flustered and most likely in a bad mood…But anyway, I want to apologize from the bottom of my heart, and I realize that if I really liked a story as much as you liked mine, I would be persistent as well. I'm really sorry, and I hope you accept my deepest apologies.

Well, without further ado, I present to you all chapter 14! (Please forgive me for my lateness! I was discouraged at first by the fact that so few people read the new chapter, and even fewer reviewed. It was just kinda depressing for me.)

Chapter 14 Old and New Acquaintances

The setting sun sent out a golden glow across the land, and brilliant yellow rays of light slipped between the tree branches and down onto the travelers below. The long haired woman sat on her knees as she continuously rolled a blue orb in between her palms. She looked troubled, and her eyes seemed to be a bit clouded. The other travelers stared over towards her in concern, but none dared disturb her solitude.

"Do you think Miss Lacus is all right?" Stellar asked Cagalli quietly.

The blonde woman stopped rubbing the smooth cloth over her sword, and sighed heavily. She'd become a little more relaxed earlier, when she believed that Lacus was really okay, but seeing the other woman like this…it was heartbreaking; but reassuring at the same time. She was still a bit envious of the Orchid Hukari, for holding such a high place in her brother's heart now, but she was happy that they really did love each other. She supposed, if Lacus didn't act as lovesick as she was now, she wouldn't have realized that specific feeling she had for the long haired beauty.

"She's just a little down right now." Cagalli answered, going back to cleaning her blade.

Glancing over towards the woman, Stellar watched with a concerned gaze as Lacus leaned her shoulder against the trunk of the tree. Looking back down at the Tiger Lily Hukari's sword, Stellar's eyes connected with her reflection's eyes. The Akatsuki's golden blade was now a golden mirror…and it made the entire forest reflection beautiful. It reminded Stellar of the way a setting sun will shower the earth with such pure, golden light on a clear afternoon.

"Are Shinn and Kitsu asleep over there?" Cagalli asked with a sad smile, trying to lighten up the mood.

Stellar looked up quickly, coming back down to earth from her thoughts, and hurriedly looked over her shoulder. The black haired archer had his back up against the trunk of a large tree, and he was fast asleep, his lips parted just ever so slightly. Sitting in his lap and laying against his chest, the little brown haired girl slept, one hand clutching the boy's shirt, and her other hand close to her face. Small yellow flowers were weaved into an unfinished wreath in her hair, and even Shinn had a partly finished crown of flowers. It was too cute really, and Stellar couldn't help but smile brightly.

"Don't worry too much about Lacus, she'll be fine." Cagalli continued, still staring down at her blade.

Rustling in the bushes brought both blondes to glance up in that direction as a figure pushed through the foliage. Athrun grumbled slightly when his kimono stuck to a thorn on one of the bush's branches, and had a little difficulty holding the pieces of wood he'd gathered as he tried to tear the cloth from the thorn.

"Here, let me help you," Cagalli stated with a chuckle as she stood and went to Athrun to retrieve the wood from his arms.

The blue haired samurai nodded in gratitude, and withdrew Infinite Justice from the sheath, and proceeded to commit 'Total War' on the poor, innocent bush. When the man was done, he smirked in victory and re-sheathed his sword. He then turned to walk back towards Cagalli, but stopped when he felt a tug on his kimono. Looking down, he saw a thin fragment of the bush's branch was still stuck to his kimono. His left eye twitching, Athrun ripped his pant leg from the thorn, creating a good sized tear at the bottom of his pants, and then proceeded towards Cagalli, who had arranged the wood to make a fire while he was 'busy.'

"Smooth move," Stellar mused as she took a sip from one of the water flasks.

Athrun merely grumbled and situated himself very close to Cagalli. The blonde woman smiled over at him and leaned over to brush her lips against his cheek. The Justice Samurai's face turned a modest shade of pink, and slowly and discreetly moved his left hand from his lap to behind him and between him and Cagalli.

"I guess we'll all need new clothes once we get to Novemberus City," Cagalli said with an amused grin on her face.

"Uh…yeah…" Athrun mumbled absentmindedly, leaning over slightly to his left, and stretching his left arm a bit as his hand slowly…

Cagalli's eyes widened and her lips parted slightly when she felt Athrun's hand. Turning ever so slowly to her right, she narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips into a thin line.

"Athrun…" she growled out, her voice dripping with venom.

"Heh…yes?" Athrun asked, his eyes taking on a fearful look. During this time, the poor idiot still neglected to remove his hand from the woman's…ahem…you all know what Athrun uses his hands for by now.

"I'm going to break you…" Cagalli hissed.

Athrun broke out of his intimidated expression for a moment to say, "That's hot." before returning to cowering.

Cagalli narrowed her eyes and stood up, pulling Athrun up with her by the hair. She then proceeded to drag him off in a random direction in the woods around them, ignoring his pleas for mercy. Just before their noise disappeared behind a large area of dense foliage, Stellar heard Athrun cry out.

"Please Cagalli! Not like this! And during the day time!?"

Afterward…it was an eerie quiet in the area, and Stellar sat a little closer to the fire. She really didn't want to get on Cagalli's bad side. Turning to glance over her shoulder, Stellar saw that Lacus still hadn't moved from her spot. Guessing she was asleep already, Stellar just turned back to the fire, and tossed grass blades into the flames out of boredom.

The black clad figure ran through the forest with amazing speed, avoiding any and all obstacles in his way. Jumping up on a fallen branch, the figure stood still for a moment, looking around the area as he searched for specific landmarks. The forest was strange and foreign to him, since he'd never been in that part of the country before. All he had to go by for directions were a river, a few unmistakable rock formations, and the final piece of terrain, also his set destination: the Sea of Tears.

But, the young man was easily becoming confused and disoriented. He still was not used to such large trees growing nearly everywhere. He missed the desert-grasslands of his home village, and the red dirt roads that led you to where he'd once thought anywhere. No such paths were made through the thick forests he was constantly being left in by his Master, and he had no way to navigate through them without some difficulty.

Temperatures had also become stranger to him over the past six years. The hot, sometimes dry weather he was used to did not seem to exist in the Martius region of the country that bordered with the kingdom shielded by the sea. The weather was usually cool and humid, often becoming quite cold and frigid during the night. It was almost unbearable for the sixteen year old boy.

"Damn," the boy cursed as he walked by a large pine tree.

There was a scar across the tree's bark, looking very fresh and jagged—as though it had been cut with a kunai. The boy growled, and pulled a kunai out of a pouch tied around his thigh before slashing at the tree harshly with the small blade. Venting his anger and frustration out on the tree for a few minutes, the boy stepped back, panting and breathing heavily. The trunk of the tree now had multiple scaring and bark was slowly chipping off in a few places.

Throwing the kunai into the tree from a fit of rage, the boy stalked off towards the trees once more. He'd passed that spot hours ago, and had only gone in one large circle. Nightfall was slowly approaching as well, and his thin black clothing wouldn't be enough to keep him warm through the night. This would be another of the many nights where he barely got through without freezing. But in a stroke of luck, just as the boy was resting his forehead against a tree while he tried to clear his head once he'd gotten himself deeply lost within the confines of the trees, he heard something. The delightful sound of fast moving water brought him to full alert, and his lips pulled into a grin. He could hear the river.

Running a hand through his short blonde hair, the boy then began running in the direction of the river. It only took him a few moments to get there, and when he did, he almost felt like stopping to congratulate himself. But the boy knew better than to get cocky and overconfident over the small feat of finding the river. He'd have to follow it down to the Sea, and then find some sort of shelter to stay in till morning before his Master came to find him. Hardening his gaze, the boy pulled his black haori tighter around himself, before walking quickly along the bank of the river. He couldn't run because not only did he not want to slip on a wet patch of mud, but he was also tired out and his body was screaming for rest. But the exhaustion was usual and almost second nature to the boy because his Master was quite cruel and merciless when it came to his wellbeing.

After nearly half an hour, the young man came across an old wooden bridge. It didn't really look all that old, but it was fairly weather-beaten and the wood used for it had become a lighter color from what he guessed to be years of withstanding the rain. He crossed it, seeing that the beach shore was more smooth-looking on the other side. But as he walked along the pearl white sand, illuminated by the new moonlight, he saw what looked to be a young woman, not very much younger than he.

Silently, he continued to approach the girl, and as he neared her, he was able to see her more clearly. She had very long, thick, black hair that was almost down to her waist. The kimono she wore was also like that of a summer kimono, which surprised him because it didn't feel warm enough for clothing of such thin material. Her clothing was also a bit small and old looking, clinging to her thin frame loosely. She seemed to be standing before something, but he wasn't quite sure what. It also seemed that she was deep in prayer, and when the boy had snuck nearly right behind her, he was able to see the three gravestones that sat before her. They were small, and the inscriptions of names upon them looked ragged, as though cut by an untrained hand.

But, before the boy had time to react, the girl had suddenly turned around to face him, gasping with a shocked expression on her face. The blonde young man stepped back out of surprise, and the girl fell backwards, landing on her back on the sand.

"Miss, I'm sorry for disturbing you," the teen began, taking a step forward with the intentions of helping her up.

But the girl stared up at him with immediate distrust and panic as her eyes fell upon the sword at his hip. When he extended his hand to her, she growled and kicked sand up into his face with a fast reflex of her left leg, and she scrambled over the sand as she tried to stand up. The black-clothed young man rubbed at his eyes after he cried out, the sting from sand painful, and when he was able to open his eyes again, he watched as the girl stood, only to take three fast steps, and seem to collapse back onto the sand. A cry of pain issued forth from her lips, and her hand flew to her right leg as she gripped it tightly through her kimono.

"Miss!" the young man called out in concern, not angered by her panicked behavior as he hurried over to her side.

But upon taking her arm as though to help her stand, the girl hissed and tried to pull her arm away roughly.

"Don't touch me!" she screamed, her voice trying to sound tough as she seemed to panic as though caged.

"I'm not going to hurt you!" the blonde cried, grabbing both her arms and pushing her down onto the sand, trying to hold her still.

The girl struggled as much as she could, but she wasn't strong enough to push the boy off of her, though she put up more of a fight than a cat could when being threatened with a bath. After a few moments, she finally calmed down, and her breathing just became long, deep breaths as she glared up at the boy.

"I'm not going to hurt you," the boy repeated, releasing her arms as he stood. "Now here, let me help you up," he offered his hand to her as he spoke.

The girl leered up at him untrustingly, but nonetheless accepted his help. But once she was standing, she slapped his hand away from hers, and tried to walk away. Only, just like before, she crumbled back to the sand after only walking a few steps. The young man hurried over to her, and held her shoulders as she stood up.

"Are you all right? Your leg seems like its hurt," he asked, concerned.

"I-I'm fine," the girl spat out, her voice sounding as though she was in pain. Her ruby red eyes narrowed slightly as she glanced over towards him. "Why would you care anyway?"

"Because I don't like seeing girls get hurt," he answered simply, not letting go of her shoulders. "Now, do you live near here? I can help get you home, and your parents can look to your leg,"

"I can do it myself," she interrupted. "And I don't need help getting to my home either," she growled, still wary of the stranger as she tried to shake his grip.

"Please, let me help you," the young man asked, his violet eyes filled with worry.

After a moment, the girl sighed and looked down towards the sand, almost looking ashamed.

"All right, you can help me. I live in the building down there," she explained, pointing to a medium sized structure a few hundred feet away. "My name is Raine, by the way." she added as they began walking, both being careful as to not make her put any weight on her right side.

"You can call me Dearka," he replied back with a grin, stopping for a moment to keep her balanced.

The girl nodded, and the two continued towards the wooden structure Raine claimed to be her home. Dearka helped Raine up onto the elevated porch of the house. The structure seemed like it had recently been built, because the wood looked new and not weathered.

"My younger brother is asleep, I have to ask you to not speak above a whisper," Raine said as she opened the sliding door that led into the house.

"A-all right," the young man replied, stepping inside with her.

Once inside, Raine slowly stepped out of his grip, and used the wall to walk herself slowly over to the low rise table in one corner of the room. Her feet on the tatami mats made as much noise as one would make walking through grass, and the boy looked around curiously. The front room was actually quite large, and the small fire burning in the hearth in the center of the room gave it a cozy feeling. Two doors were set in the wall farthest from the front sliding door, and Dearka guessed them to be other bedrooms.

"So, where are your parents?" Dearka asked, turning around to find Raine sitting beside the table, her kimono pulled up to her waist over her right leg with bandages in her hands.

The young man turned around quickly, a slight blush on his cheeks.

"Our mother died when my little brother was born. About a year ago, we both ran away from our father, and came to live here," Raine explained. "There used to be a family living here, and the old couple and their son took care of us."

"Thos the gravestones outside…they were theirs, weren't they?" Dearka asked after a moment.

"Yes," Raine answered, her head bowed. "The three of them died from sickness, and my younger brother was also ill. He's still recovering, along with a girl we found wandering lost through the woods. I was the only one not affected," Raine added, almost sadly.

"I see, I'm sorry for your loses." Dearka said quietly.

"Thank you, Dearka." Raine replied softly.

After a few more moments, Raine sighed and told Dearka he could turn around again. When the blonde boy did, he saw that Raine was gesturing towards the table. The young boy walked over and sat down across from her.

"Thank you," he mumbled, before the sound of his stomach growling reached both their ears.

"Would you like something to eat?" Raine more stated than asked as she stood up, leaning to her left.

Before the boy could answer, the girl walked slowly towards the hearth where a large pot was hanging over the fire. She picked up a bowl from the edge of the hearth before grabbing a spoon as well, lifting the lid off the pot to pour a steaming soup into the bowl. She closed the lid again, and slowly walked back towards the table, keeping her eyes on the floor as she walked.

"Here, it's not much, but it does have enough fish meat to be considered a dinner," Raine told the young man kindly as she handed the bowl and spoon to him.

"Oh, thank you," he said again, taking the soup and setting it on the table. "Um, I'm sorry for asking, but could you tell me what happened to your leg?" he asked after the girl had sat down.

"Oh, it's actually quite funny," the girl began with an embarrassed smile. "It was when I found the lost girl in the woods, it was raining, and we'd gotten closer to the river bank than I'd have liked without my noticing. When I realized we were slipping, I pushed her out of the way before I fell into the river. But when I fell, I landed on a rock that was submerged under the river during the storm. I ended up nearly breaking my right leg from the hip to my knee, but luckily my bones didn't break. I was able to get out of the river since I've become used to the fast currents, but it was much more difficult to get the girl all the way back here. It was only after I'd tended her small wounds and laid her down to sleep did I realize just how much damage I'd done to my leg. Once it's fully healed in a few weeks, I'll just have a limp. But it'll be easy to manage once my body becomes accustomed to it," Raine added, rubbing her leg with her hand absently.

"But, doesn't it hurt?" Dearka asked, his tone and gaze sympathetic.

"All the time," Raine replied with a saddened smile. "You're welcome to stay for the night," she said after a few moments. "You can stay in the room to the right; the left is my brother's and the girl's while she stays here."

"But, where will you sleep?" Dearka asked after a few moments.

"I'll sleep out here, but I'll be working on something, probably all night, so it doesn't matter." the black haired girl answered simply.

The blonde man nodded, smiling.

"Thank you for your hospitality, I can't thank you enough." Dearka told her warmly, standing up.

"It really is my pleasure, I like to help out when I can," the red eyed girl explained quietly.

As the young man walked towards the bedroom door to the right, he glanced over his shoulder to see the girl pulling out what looked to be the blade of a sword, but he couldn't tell because the object was wrapped in sailcloth.

"The next morning when I woke up, she was already awake with breakfast waiting for me," Dearka went on to explain to the five at the table. "She gave me the sword blade as a parting gift, before I left."

"You made a sword blade!?" May asked, her voice raised and incredulous. "How did you do it, Raine!?"

"Well, it was just made out of crystallized minerals and steel…it was really nothing," the black haired young woman mumbled, looking down at the table.

Kira's eyes were on the girl, narrowed and calculating. He remained silent, and Mizu sat beside him.

"So, you two met four years ago? How could you never have told me about Raine and your sword?" Yzak asked, curious and a little surprised.

"Well, it just never came into the conversation," Dearka mumbled, scratching the back of his head.

"Well, it's good to see you again, Dearka," Raine said, smiling towards the blonde haired ninja. "And it's nice to meet you all as well, Kira, Mizu, Yzak," Raine added, giving the silver haired ninja a warm smile.

Yzak felt his face become warm for some reason, and his eyes widened slightly. When Raine looked away, Yzak found that, surprisingly, the feelings faded away. He continued to watch the black haired girl as she and Kira spoke, not listening to the conversation but just watching Raine. She confused him, greatly. Mainly because, the only time he'd ever felt the feeling from before was almost five years ago, when he'd been with her.

"Yzak?"

The silver haired man snapped out of his thoughts when he heard Kira's voice repeat his name.

"What?" he asked quickly, a bit embarrassed to be caught off guard.

"Kira asked you if it would be all right with you," Dearka explained with a grin.

Yzak raised a confused eyebrow, and glanced around the table to see that Mizu and May were both smiling brightly and Kira and Dearka both were grinning—thought Kira's grin was more of a small smile. Lastly, his icy gaze fell upon Raine, who was gazing at him thoughtfully with a small smile placed on her pale lips.

"Well?" Dearka asked, "What do you say? Is it all right with you?"

"Um, yeah. Sure," Yzak answered, not really knowing what he was agreeing to.

"Well then, I guess Raine and May will be joining us on our travels," Kira explained, causing Yzak to mentally fall over.

"I see, that's what I agreed to…" Yzak stated, his voice nervous and not seemingly entirely certain.

But when he looked over to Raine again, the silver haired man felt the feelings from earlier return upon seeing her smile, and his mind began to wander through his thoughts aimlessly again.

The black haired woman turned to Kira and grinned.

"Thank you for allowing me to join you on your travels. I know the forest around here quite well; I could take you to Novemberus City easily and quickly." Raine explained.

"Thank you very much, it would help us greatly." Mizu chimed in with a grin.

"Well, I've been meaning to leave this place for a long time now, and I'm sure May would like to be traveling again." Raine said.

"We're glad you're coming with us, then." Kira added, smiling warmly.

"But, won't you stay for the night? It becomes very cold during the night in the Forest of Crows. There will be plenty of dinner, and there's enough room," the woman explained graciously.

"Oh, I just remembered." Dearka mumbled. "Raine, I never did meet your younger brother, is he here?"

"Oh," Raine's eyes had widened for a moment at the mention of her younger brother. "Actually, he and the girl left once they'd gotten better, all those years ago…he wanted to take her to the place she'd originally been traveling to, and decided to stay their with her and work by her side. I haven't seen either of them for some time, and up until last year, I stopped receiving letters from him."

"Oh, I see," Dearka mumbled quietly.

Opening her eyes, Lacus looked around, realizing that it'd become dark. Sighing, she looked over her shoulder, and saw that the others were asleep; well…she'd thought they were all asleep. Shinn and Stellar, she saw, where lying in each other's arms with Kitsu between them. Athrun and Cagalli, surprisingly, were sleeping beside each other, but the oddity was that Cagalli seemed to have slung her arm over Athrun's chest, much in the way Kira would after they…well…no need to go into that. But, sitting beside the small fire that was still slowly dieing was Miriallia.

Standing, Lacus dusted herself off from sitting on the ground for so long and walked over towards the auburn haired woman. Sitting down beside her, the long haired woman smiled softly towards the other.

"I'm guessing it's pretty late, what are you doing up?" the pink haired girl asked.

"Oh, well…I guess my mind's a bit too cloudy for me to sleep right now," the Princess answered, staring into the fire.

"Oh, well, if there's something you'd like to talk about, I'm here to listen," Lacus offered kindly.

"Thank you, that's very gracious of you," Miriallia said. "But, it's because of the incident a few days ago, with those Shadow Warriors…" Miriallia began.

"Um, what about them?"

"On their tunics, they bore my father's old family crest…" the other woman stated, her voice low and almost sad.

"Really!?" Lacus cried, keeping her voice a whisper as to not wake anyone.

"I believe that my parents sent them after me, to kill me…" Miriallia went on to say, her hands clasped together tightly. "I was beginning to have suspicions about my origin, because I don't remember living them before I was nine or ten years old. It's just a blank to me really, except for a few flashes I sometimes get of an old tree, and many miles of desert. It always confused me so much, that I had suspected I was even adopted, but that was silly," Miriallia added with an unsure expression on her elegant face.

"I'm sorry," Lacus murmured, not really sure what to say. What would you say to someone who just said they couldn't remember their childhood, and suspected the life they did remember to have been fake?

"It was around the time that I began to question my mother and father about my younger years that I slowly became sick. It started gently, and I would just become very tired suddenly. But it soon escalated into what could become days, to weeks, and sometimes even a month or two at a time of confinement to my bed because of illness." Miriallia explained, tracing circles into the dirt at her feet.

Looking up at Lacus, she smiled warmly, and turned to stare back at the fire, "You know, I really do have to thank you, you've saved my life, and even given me something to do, something that can help the people of this country. There's no way I can repay you, other than giving you material rewards, and I know that you and your companions would never accept such a gift,"

"That's true," Lacus admitted with a small laugh, a gentle grin on her lips. "Kira, and everyone else, including me, only want to keep this land we call home a safe place free from the evil of one man," Lacus explained in a wise tone, her eyes taking up a deep and thoughtful expression. "My father and brother…my old village…my destiny…and everyone I've met on this journey, especially the man I love, have all taken a hold of my heart, and the only reward that can bring me happiness will be to know that one man is gone from the face of this land, this earth…At any cost, my only wish is to bring peace and safety to this world, and he is the one man standing in the way," Lacus said quietly in a deep, serious tone as her gaze became fixated on the fire.

"I cannot fight, even though I hold a sword, but I can heal…and with that power, I want to heal the wounds of this land that have been caused by that man," she continued, pulling her knees closer to her body as she embraced her legs.

"Lacus…" Miriallia murmured softly, gazing at the younger girl with awe and admiration. "You know…when I was suffering from the cursed sickness, I remembered something just now," Miriallia began with a more lighthearted tone. "I can't remember if it was a dream or not, but I do remember seeing an entity whose power seemed to course through my veins like a burning ember, but it didn't harm me at all, it was only warm. I thought I would surely become burned or scorched from the heat, but instead, it made me feel safe. It was in the shape of a bird or some kind of ornith-morphic (bird-like) creature. The only word that comes to mind would be…a phoenix…just now, you reminded me of that beautiful, powerful creature…" Miriallia explained in a soft, hushed tone, as though speaking of the creature without a voice hushed in respect was sinful. "You're a very strong woman Lacus, a beautifully strong creature. Kira's lucky that his love can tame you," Miriallia added in a semi-playful, but still serious tone.

Lacus gazed at the other with a blushing face, and quickly looked away, her mind reeling with thoughts of Kira once again. 'Kira…I hope, no, I know you're all right, wherever you are…' Looking up at the starry sky, the Orchid Hukari smiled just a bit. 'I know, because my love will protect you, and return you to me safely,'

Well, finally got that chapter done…I only wish I'd gotten it done sooner…