Magic Knight Rayearth Fan Fiction ❯ Magic Knight Rayearth III: Clash of the Mashin ❯ Ichi: Girl ( Chapter 1 )

A/N+Disclaimer: Hello! This is a story I started to write because I was sick and had nothing to do (not to mention I have a writers block on my other story -_-). Magic Knight Rayearth belongs to CLAMP (!!!!)--to which I bow down to. It is all for the better that Clamp owns Rayearth. If I did--I would hog Ascot and Eagle to myself. ^_^ However, Makato is mine, although she does appear in my stories under different last names, she is MINE!! Oh, and so are her sword Storm-Steel, and her Mashin Thunderfrost. ^_~ (I love Thunderfrost, I've used him in other stories too!) Now, ON WITH THE STORY!

Magic Knight Rayearth III: Clash of the Mashin
By: Grandsabre of Hearts

|| Ichi: Girl with an Attitude ||

Makato Arashi looked up at the city of Tokyo and sighed. The girl was albino, complete with white skin, silvery blonde hair, and red eyes and she was an orphan to go with it. She had come from America bearing an attitude of ill-will, discontent, anger, sadness, and rebellion. She dressed in a steel gray top with a long black short jacket; blue and red flames going up the sleeves, collar, and bottom of the shirt. She wore a short, pleated skirt with a black belt that rose on one hip and fell over the other. Black leather wristbands--plain but for holes in the shape of stares--adorned her wrists. She wore white socks with black, bulky hiking boots. Her hair, once long and thick, was now shorter, and parted far to the left of her head. Her hair stuck up on both sides of her head, and her bangs were pushed off to the sides, some falling over her pigment-less eyes. Many passerby's eyed her with distaste or fear. She looked, in short, like trouble.

People kept staring at her eyes, like she was a demon or some other evil familiar. She heard many whisper. "Look, an albino!" or, "I've heard of red-eyes, but they're usually with red or green-hair--that's just unnatural." In reply to that, "Of course not! That's not even red, its like some gross kind of pink-red."

Makato was disgusted. "Where's a pair of shades when you need them, eh?" She mumbled under her breath. Somewhere off she heard a honk. She looked over to see a teenaged guy, grinning and waving fiercely at her. She sighed hoisted her duffle bags a little higher on her shoulders and headed towards the car.

"Good day, kid. I'm Shun and I'll be your driver today." He said as she through her bags into the back seat of his Jeep.

"Aw, Shun, cut the crap, I'm your cousin, not your paying customer." She told him coldly.

Shun eyed her and shrugged. His step-mother, Makato's aunt on her father's side, had told him that Makato would be like this. Ever since Makato's parents had been murdered by the sword somewhere in America--Makato had become cold and sad. She didn't smile, and when she laughed, it was hollow and mirthless. Her voice, once musical and beautiful, was mechanical and flat sounding. Last of all her eyes--he shuddered. Makato's eyes were cold and so heartbreakingly sad it made one's heart ache to see them. They beheld a terrible aged sorrow and were the eyes of one who has grown up too fast and seen so much sadness. Most of the time, his mother said, Makato kept her eyes looking emotionless and distant.

"So, how's it been going, Arashi?" He asked conversationally, driving into Tokyo's traffic.

She looked over at him coldly. "My parents are dead." She said, voice flat.

"Don't you sound remorseful," He muttered to himself, turning on the radio.

"I shed all my remorse, sorrow, and tears a long time ago." She told him.

"Mm...Ok. You like AFI?" He asked, indicating his CD that was playing.

"Sure, whatever," She remarked, and took out a magazine--Popular Mechanics--from one of her bags.

"I think you're going to like going to our school, but you have to wear a uniform." He said after a while.

"As long as I get to wear pants." She remarked.

"Uh--I dunno," He told her, "I think girls wear skirts only."

She didn't bother to reply, just flipped a page of her magazine.

The rest of the car trip passed in conversational silence and blaring music and it seemed like forever when Shun pulled up to his mother's house. Makato eyed it casually from over her magazine.

"This is it!" He said, getting out of the jeep and walking to the front door. As Makato grabbed her bags, he rang the doorbell.

A woman, wearing a plain off-white kimono tied with a blue sash, wearing her black hair in a tight bun, opened the door. "There's my nice!" She cried, running out to hug Makato. "Seiji! Hitomi! GET OUT HERE! HONEY, SHE'S HERE!" She cried into the house.

Moments later, a boy, about thirteen, and a girl, about fourteen rushed out, followed by a man covered from head-to-toe in black dirt or soot, goggles at the top of his head, pushing his bangs back had come to the door. The girl and boy looked a lot like Shun, considering he was only their half sibling. (Shun was seventeen.)

"Well look who it is!" Makato's Uncle, Inejiro, cried, hugging her. "How ya doing, kiddo?"

Makato said nothing, letting herself be hugged and then led into the house, out the back door, and into a tiny house with one room. Hitomi, smiling, said that this was the guest house, and that this would be Makato's. "Makato, I know you're older than I am by a year and all--but we'll be in the same grade, I'm ahead in school by a year. I think we'll be really good friends." The younger girl informed the other, all the while smiling.

Makato surveyed her new home. Plain, white walls with a widow, wooden book shelves (no books), an oaken desk (with new writing utensils and paper packages), a chest of drawers, a CD-stacker light, and a small sleigh bed with gray sheets and a denim duvet was all the room held. Two windows let in the sunlight, giving the room a warm, comfortable feeling. Makato laid her bags on the bed and took out what little possessions she had. Four pairs of jeans, three pairs of shorts, seven shirts, many assorted underclothing, a packet of bathroom necessities (hairbrush, hair ties, and a toothbrush), some thirty odd books, and strange gadgets (with a portable tool set).

"So you like books?" Hitomi questioned as Makato put the books on the shelves.

Makato nodded. "Didn't have much, don't need much, so I packed books." She replied. "After my parents died," Her voice became extremely detached just then, "These people came into the house and took all of our stuff claiming outstanding debts and junk."

"That's ok! I'll take you shopping, we need to go get your uniform for school anyway!" Hitomi told Makato, still grinning her bubbly smile.

Makato continued to put her books on the shelves, kicked off her shoes, sighed, and fell backwards on the bed, grabbing a magazine and reading it.

"Well then..." Hitomi said, unsure of what to do. "I'll come and get you in a few minutes, I've go to go beggar some money out of my parents." And so she left.

"Curse it, but she's annoying..." Makato muttered, "I just want to be left alone. Can no one tell? Or is the world composed solely of idiots?" She took out her wallet and then looked out the window.

A tower, monstrous in height, rose into the sky, like a lonely tree on a plane. I'll have to ask someone what that is, Makato thought, fascinated. She peered into her wallet--four hundred and thirty three dollars and ninety-eight cents. Not bad for an orphan, She thought and smiled coldly, thinking about her summer job. As she flipped through her wallet a wage of sadness hit her and she became overwhelmed with it. "Oh mom, dad..." She whispered sadly to the air, feeling lost, hopeless, and alone. "What can I do without you, here in Tokyo? What can I do...?"

*

An hour late saw Hitomi and Makato in Shun's car, ready to drive to the mall so they could go to the uniform store and find Makato a uniform. As they drove on, Hitomi began to babble on about something and Shun was singing the chorus of some random song on the radio. Makato only ignored them, staring out at all the cars.

As soon as Makato walked into the uniform store, she was taken to the girls skirts section where they looked for a school called Kashiwagi Academy. Makato promptly protested on girls skirts--to which Hitomi equally protested, but when Makato turned her cold, glaring gaze upon the younger female, something in Makato's eyes made Hitomi shiver and retreat. In the end, they finally decided on two boys uniforms and two girls uniforms, a physical education outfit, and a Kashiwagi Academy sweatshirt.

They walked through the mall some more when Atsuko found a Mechanic Parts Shop for mechas and mecha models. Makato found and bought three Gundam Wing/AC (her favorite manga) models and some computer hardware odds and ends, like mother boards, sound cards, a CPU, and some other things. The next store the hit was a martial arts store. Once inside, Makato bought a bo (tall staff), a halberd-like weapon, and two swords (curved and straight) explaining to her cousins that she was a martial artist, and that when her parents died, those really weird people had taken stuff from her house claiming outstanding debts and et cetera. After leaving that store, Makato bought some more books and then Shun bought new CDs and Hitomi bought a new outfit and shoes.

As they were driving home, Makato suddenly remembered the tower. "Hey, Hitomi, what's that really tall tower called?" She questioned.

"Oh that? That's Tokyo Tower, all the tourists and schools go there, the lookout platform is supposed to be really cool." Hitomi said, waving a had dismissively as she and Shun fought over the radio.

Makato sighed and sank back into the seat of her cousins Jeep, and began to sink into her reverie. Tokyo Toer. I will go there someday. She told herself.

*

When they arrived at home, Makato and Hitomi went off to Makato's room to put all of her new things way. Then Makato went outside into the back courtyard with her weapons to practice her martial arts forms. She was unaware that a neighbor watched her with wondering eyes.

~ * ~

Hikaru Shido watched as the new girl next door practiced a staff-form and then kicked up her sword and practiced with both. 'Wow, she's really fast--and good!' Hikaru thought to herself as the other girls hands and the weapons became blurs in the air. 'I wish Umi and Fuu could see this. They'd be amazed! I should go introduce myself!' Hikaru stood up from her kneeling position and decide to walk next door, putting on her happy smile.

~ * ~

The doorbell rang--everyone was upstairs, so, rolling her eyes, Makato went to open the door. As it swung open, a girl about her age, red-haired and red-eyed was grinning widely. "Who're you?" Makato asked, none too politely.

The other girl was undaunted. "I'm Hikaru Shidou--the neighbor, we've got a Kendo Studio next door and I saw you--you wanna come practice?" My brother would love to have a go at you." Said the girl.

Makato studied the girl carefully. Her eyes--they were the doorway to her soul. A heart innocent, trustworthy, loving, and eyes stronger than most people in this mortal world. For the first time in what seemed like forever, Makato smiled a true smile, "I'm Makato "Koori" Arashi, Mrs. Nakagawa's niece, and I'd love to."

*

So, although still a little cold towards people, Makato quickly became friends with Hikaru and Hikaru soon knew why terrible sadness hid in the eyes of her new friend.

School began for Makato and it turned out that Hikaru went to the same school as Makato. Makato was learning to become a warmer person, because she spent most of her time with Hikaru, but Makato could not rid her eyes, and deeper feelings, of the sadness she felt. Makato fell into step with her new school quiet easily and was at the top of all of her class, although she was a freshman, and although she was taking Honors Biology, she helped the Science teacher teach chemistry and physics, her favorite subjects.

As the weeks went by, Hikaru and Makato became more busy, and Hikaru was never home on Sundays. The only time they really ever talked was at lunch, and Hikaru was almost always called away for something, whether from her friends or a school function. Makato began to spend more time in the library, feeling lonely, but very thankful for her friendship with Hikaru, and as the end of Saturday came, Makato decided that since Hikaru wouldn't be around the next day, Makato would go visit the Tokyo Tower.

~

On that Saturday night, between the time that was one day, and the next, a terrible storm had befallen Tokyo. Makato had woken up to hear the thunder and the storm, and was not afraid. In fact, she laughed in delight. She had always loved storms. Yet, something this night called her to the Tokyo Tower, it tugged at her very being and told her to go to the tower. She needed to be at the tower. Rather involuntarily, she dressed in her favorite pair of clothes--the ones she had worn on her first day in Tokyo, and packed her books and random gadgets and walked off towards Tokyo Tower.

~

Makato walked nearly a mile in the rain towards Tokyo Tower and then climbed the many steps to get to the fabled Observation deck. Once she stood there, she knew it was worth while; the view took her breath away. She had hear so many things about the Tokyo Tower, myth and fact until her curiosity amounted to so much that she wanted to visit there--and consequently, she was here because some invisible force had called her here this night. The night held a stillness to the air that even the storm could not touch. It felt eerie and--magical. Makato shivered, but for some reason, she found pleasure and happiness in just being alone and watching this storm rage.

'I'm so sick of this world... I wish I could stay frozen in time, forever like this, just the storm, me, and my books. I want to go to another world, one where there is no sadness, somewhere where I can start new. Please, I want OUT!' She thought subconsciously.

It was then that the ground beneath her grumbled and fell and suddenly she was enveloped in bright white light and warmth, and she was falling. 'Falling,' She thought giddily, thinking she was dreaming--for what else could this be, but all just a dream? She felt herself spiraling--she was was sure she had screamed, but no one was here to listen.... Where was she going? She fought blackness. She was so tired...

GH: There we have it, the first chapter is now complete! Oh--I feel bad for this, but I'm going to a camp for 10 days.. sorry!! I'll try to get another chap up tomorrow to hold you over. ^-^

ryuKON: So click the purple-blue button on the bottom left of your screen and make an author's day!!