Chapter 5 Introducing Athrun Zala

Author's Note: Hi everyone! Sorry I've been MIA for over 2 years. Things happened and I didn't think I'd continue the story, but I was rereading it last night with the comments and remembered how much fun I had writing this. So I just couldn't give it up :). Hopefully I can keep it up this time and you'll forgive me for my absence. Please come back to continue reading and I'll continue posting. Thanks yous!

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam SEED or Gundam SEED Destiny along with its' characters. I only own the plot for this fanfiction.

This is dedicated to cagalliyulathha

"Oh Patrick, wake up! Wake up!" exclaimed Lenore.

"What? What happened?" Patrick shot up from bed in surprise.

"You won't believe it - Athrun's coming back next week! I'm so excited! Oh honey, it's been 4 years since he went abroad to study. I hope he ate well and took care of himself properly," said Lenore.

"I'm sure he's just fine, sweetie. Now let's go back to sleep. We'll let Mu, Murrue, Ulen, and Via know tomorrow. I'm sure they'll all be glad to see him again. Hopefully he'll get along with the girls too," Patrick said before lying down and promptly falling back to sleep.

Lenore sure did hope he'd get along with Cagalli and Stella, but something about their meeting next week gave her the chills.

The Next Day

"Athrun is coming back?" Mu, Murrue, Ulen, and Via shouted all at the same time.

"I was starting to wonder where that little brat had wandered off to," Ulen said jokingly.

"Yes, we forgot to inform you that he'd gone abroad to study for 4 years," informed Patrick. "It must've slipped our minds with all the things that have been going on lately."

Cagalli looked at Stella with a puzzled face. She didn't understand what was the big fuss about this so called 'Athrun'. Stella didn't reply as Cagalli expected because she was dazed and didn't even seem to be on this planet. Cagalli wouldn't be surprised if she had missed the whole conversation that had occurred. Cagalli shook her head and made a mental note to question her little sister later.

The adults were still conversing excitedly about this mystery cousin's return when Cagalli asked, "Who's this 'Athrun' person?"

Everyone looked at Cagalli in silence until Lenore said, "Ah, we forgot that you've never met him before. He's your cousin, and Patrick and my son."

"Ohhhhh, I see…" replied Cagalli. With that, she and Stella went upstairs to their room to pack some of their belongings for their short trip to another part of Plants.

In Cagalli and Stella's Room

Cagalli closed the door and turned around to face Stella, "So, what's got you on another planet?"

Stella blushed at being caught, but has never lied to her sister before and didn't want to start now. They were extremely close regardless of not being blood related.

"I met a guy last night," whispered Stella.

Cagalli had to strain to hear her properly, "And…"

"And I felt an instant connection. He told me his name and he had the most gorgeous ruby red eyes. They were soft, but sharp at the same time; gullible, but knowledgeable; funny, but…"

"Okay, I get it!" Cagalli interrupted. She never did understand love or falling in love.

Stella blushed again when she realized she had been rambling on about her secret crush.

"I can't help who I feel attracted to! And you can't tell anyone!" Stella defended herself.

"Don't worry, I won't tell…" Cagalli said until someone knocked on the door, cutting her off midsentence.

Soon after, Lenore walked into their room and went up to Cagalli.

"So I know that you've never met Athrun and your parents probably didn't tell you about him, so I thought I'd show you some pictures."

Lenore pulled out some small wallet sized pictures and passed them to Cagalli. Cagalli looked at them curiously and saw a beautiful boy who looked very much like a girl with shoulder length dark blue hair and emerald green eyes. He looked no older than 10 and she was disappointed that he was just a kid. Cagalli's curiosity was satisfied and unfortunately unimpressed.

But to not be impolite, Cagalli said to Lenore, "He's very…beautiful! And he looks like a great son."

Lenore stifled a laugh knowing how that word was a faux pas when describing Athrun, but knew Cagalli was trying her best to be polite.

"Thank you. He means the world to Patrick and I and we couldn't be more proud of him and his accomplishments. I hope you two and Athrun will get along well." With that said Lenore took the pictures back and went downstairs to help prepare dinner.

A Few Days Later

Cagalli woke up early in the morning. It was still dark out and as much as she wanted to go back to bed, she knew she had to get ready to leave on their trip to December City. She picked up her glasses, nudged Stella to wake up, and went downstairs to let her parents know that they were awake.

When Cagalli got downstairs, she froze when she saw a stranger sitting at the computer, their back towards her. She attempted to sneak up on the stranger, when they suddenly turned around. Amber crashed with Emerald and her breath caught. They were the greenest green she had ever seen and just couldn't look away.

"Cagalli…Cagalliii…Cagalli!" Cagalli broke the staring competition to look towards the voice who had called her.

"Yes dad?" asked Cagalli.

"What are you doing down here in your sleeping clothes?" questioned Ulen.

"Oh, I came down to let you know that Stella and I are awake and will be down soon," replied Cagalli.

"Okay, good. Go up, change, clean up, and bring your luggage down. We'll leave as soon as we have some breakfast." Ulen told her.

With that Cagalli ran up the stairs to her room and shut the door as if the devil were on her heels. She saw that Stella was still sleeping, so she jumped on top of her to wake her up and tell her all about the stranger in the living room.

"Stella! Stella! Wake up! Wake up!" demanded Cagalli.

"Whaaaaat? I'm trying to sleep here!" Stella shouted back in return.

"Well you have to get up now because we're leaving soon, but that's not important! There's a stranger in our living room! And he has the most stunning eyes I've ever seen!" exclaimed Cagalli.

"…are you okay Cagalli? This is a guy we're talking about, and a stranger nonetheless," explained Stella.

"I'm perfectly fine, but just you wait! You'll see for yourself when we go downstairs. C'mon let's wash up, change, and bring our luggage down before dad comes up," instructed Cagalli.

They brushed their teeth, combed their hair, changed their clothes, and helped each other carry their bags down. When they got to the living room, the mysterious man with the green eyes was gone. For a second Cagalli actually thought she had imagined him until she walked into the kitchen to see him sitting at the table and eating breakfast.

Cagalli grabbed Stella's arm, pointed at the stranger and shouted, "SEE! I WASN'T LYING! THERE'S A STRANGER IN OUR KITCHEN EATING OUR BREAKFAST!"

Cagalli jumped at the sound of all the adults laughing. She looked at them all as if they had two heads. Did they not realize that they were feeding a stranger?

"Cagalli, this is no stranger. This is Athrun Zala, your cousin and my son," explained Lenore.

Cagalli now stared at Athrun as if he had two heads. Slowly she walked towards him and held out her hand. She swore she saw him smirk but it was gone just as fast as it had come. He took her hand in his for a long hand shake while they continued their staring contest from before.

Athrun's POV

I'm finally home after 4 long years. Suddenly, he felt an unknown presence behind him. He quickly turned around and Emerald clashed with Amber. It was such a beautiful and bright colour that shone with strength, courage, and innocence. When Ulen had called out to her, he laughed inwardly at her disgruntled expression. He then took that chance to examine her. She wore a silky tank top that barely covered her stomach and cotton short shorts that fit her snug as a glove. He groaned as noticed all the perfect curves that were accentuated simply by her pajamas. How he'd like to see her in a dress.

As she ran up the stairs, Athrun took his time to admire her little derrière. His stomach chose that minute to growl and he decided it was about time to get some breakfast. As he was eating he heard someone shout, "SEE! I WASN'T LYING! THERE'S A STRANGER IN OUR KITCHEN EATING OUR BREAKFAST!"

His parents, Mu, Murrue, Ulen, and Via all laughed at her exclamation. He had to bite on his tongue just to keep from breaking out in laughter himself. She blushed and he thought it was the most adorable thing in the world.

"Cagalli, this is no stranger. This is Athrun Zala, your cousin and my son," explained his mother.

Athrun was just as shocked as Cagalli to hear that this was one of the 'lovely ladies' his mother had told him about on the phone. 'Lovely' was not a word he'd use to describe her with her teasingly fitted outfits, perfect curves, and petite derrière that was just asking to be grabbed.

They simply stared at each other until she slowly made her way over to him to shake his hand. Her hand was incredibly soft and smooth, and he just didn't want to let go.

"Hi, I don't think we've been properly introduced. My name is Athrun. And yours is…?" asked Athrun knowing full well what it was because everyone was saying it, but nonetheless wanted her to say it.

"I'm C-Ca-Cagalli," she stuttered with a slight blush because he was still holding her hand.

"And this is Stella!" she said quickly pulling her hand from Athrun's grasp and bringing Stella forward.

Stella simply yawned, rubbed her eyes, and said, "Hi."

The little one named Stella who looked almost like a mini Cagalli, except with more femininity, amused Athrun.

"Good morning to you too," replied Athrun.

With introductions done, Ulen told the girls, "Okay, chop chop girls. Quickly eat your breakfast. We have a plane to catch!"

That said, the girls sat down and ate with speed while Athrun watched them some more.

"They sure don't seem that special - just two girls who are loved and spoiled. It's too bad they have to leave right away. I would've preferred to have some more time to examine them, but oh well, maybe when they come back," though Athrun.

Athrun got up from the table as the girls were finishing up and went to help bring their luggage outside. As he came outside, he heard Ulen shouting that their pre-arranged cab wasn't here yet. The cab was already 30 minutes late and they couldn't afford to wait any longer. Athrun then took it upon himself to drive the Hibiki's to the airport. It would also give him more time to watch Cagalli and Stella. Unfortunately, they were silent throughout the entire ride to the airport, but he understoond considering it was still dark out and no one in their right mind should be awake at this hour.

Athrun drove them to the drop off entrance and helped to unload their luggage from the trunk. He wished them all a safe trip with a handshake to Ulen, a hug for Via, and awkward half hugs for both daughters. But during the few awkward seconds, Athrun enjoyed the soft feel of Cagalli in his arms and couldn't help but take in her scent. She smelt of sunshine and roses. It was a refreshing and unforgettable fragrance.

Cagalli's POV

The hug was slightly weird, but he was all hard muscle under those clothes. Oh how she wished she could've stayed behind.

Author's Note: So that's the 5th chapter! Glad I finally finished it after contemplating for over 2 years. I really am sorry for that and I hope all my previous readers come back along with gaining some new ones. I'll attempt to update more often since I'm only working and taking an online course during the summer. I managed to write this chapter in a day, so I'm definitely overflowing with ideas.

Please Read & Review :D! Thanks y'all xoxo!