Through Hell and Back
folder
+S to Z › Samurai Champloo
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
4
Views:
4,120
Reviews:
21
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
+S to Z › Samurai Champloo
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
4
Views:
4,120
Reviews:
21
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Disclaimer:
I do not own Samurai Champloo, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Pawns of the Game
CH 2: Pawns of the Game
The fanatical look in his eyes was unmistakable, their blazing garnet depths masking the scars and the pain that had always marred his unattainable spirit beyond recognition. As Fuu somehow managed to return the vagrant’s fierce gaze, the passionate stare began to invoke such familiarity within her being that she couldn’t help but utter his name.
“What did you say?” her scruffy-haired assailant demanded, clearly astounded by her vocalization.
“I-I said your name is Mugen” Fuu firmly returned, her resolve now considerably reinforced due to his apparent recognition. “Surely you can’t deny this?”
“Who are you!?”
Her eyes widening, it was at that very moment that Fuu realized he didn’t remember her, all the years of her pent-up frustration erupting deep within her soul as she vengefully lashed out at him amidst her irreconcilable fury.
“You stupid prick!” she screamed, now pummeling him fiercely against the chest with her fists, “How could you ever forget about me and Jin!? You both were my family!”
Mugen dumbly returned Fuu’s tearful gaze amidst her sudden hysteria, his hand subconsciously scratching the back of his head as he suddenly put two and two together. “No way…is that really you, Fuu?” Here he laughed before continuing, “Hell, you must be…how many other pushy broads do I know?”
Staring up at him with tearful eyes, Fuu promptly brushed off Mugen’s typical insult to the back of her mind, her tone now more defeated than ever as she questioned apprehensively, “You’re one of them now, aren’t you? After all Jin and I have taught you, you’re still warring against humanity?”
Mugen scoffed at this, the deep tremors of his voice now seeming to mock her as he returned, “Did you actually think that twenty years-a bein’ a pirate could just fuckin’ go up in a cloud-a smoke with the wave of a hand?” When Fuu just stared at him he continued, “Well guess what, bitch? My shitty life happened, and there’s no way that spendin’ all eternity with you and Four Eyes could ever change that!”
Hurt, Fuu promptly swallowed the painful lump in her throat as she tried her very best not to cry, her hands clenching and unclenching by her sides as she fought not to lash out at him like before.
“I wish you wouldn’t call me names like that” she finally whispered, now no longer able to meet with his intense gaze.
“What, you mean bitch?” Mugen demanded, a note of amusement lacing his voice as he smugly crossed his arms across his chest. “Well guess what, bitch? I’m a Rebel now, so if ya don’t like it you’ll hafta take it up with the rest-a us!”
That did it. In a flash of dark hair and blurred silk, Fuu rammed into the rogue’s midsection with the brunt of her shoulder, her furious cries sounding like that of a hissing cat as she clawed and bit at any bronze flesh that she could possibly reach.
Grinning over the adrenaline of possibly having a worthwhile fight, Mugen deftly lunged to the left and caught Fuu by either of her wrists, her aggressive snarls now quieting into pitiful sniffling as he slammed her up against the wall and placed the tip of his longsword against the soft column of her throat.
“You finally ready ta settle down?” the vagrant demanded, grinning broadly as he sensed the tremendous fear radiating out of her pores. Once she began to hurriedly nod in compliance he smirked before continuing, “There, that’s better, now, don’tcha think? All ya gotta do is be a good little girl an’ show me where your friend keeps all ‘er money.”
“You’re a bastard” Fuu sharply accused, her eyes wild and fierce as she proudly raised her chin. “Did you actually think that I’d willingly hand Ayame’s possessions over to Rebel scum at the drop of a hat? In case you haven’t noticed, Mugen, I’ve changed a whole lot, too – I no longer let overbearing assholes like you boss me around!”
“Why you ungrateful little-”
Crash!
Screaming, Fuu shielded her face from the shards of glass that came scattering all about her from the moment of impact, her eyes wide and fearful as she watched Mugen collapse before her with a loud and un-exultant ‘thump’. There, standing directly above him was Ayame, her gaze stern and unwavering as she clutched the broken remains of her vase to her chest.
“Are you hurt?” she finally demanded, never once removing her cautious stare from the unconscious Ryukyuan at her feet.
Fuu could only shake her head dumbly in return, her friend immediately crouching down alongside Mugen’s brawny figure before announcing, “If we hurry, we can get him into the backroom before any of his Rebel buddies figure out he’s missing. If you take his feet we should be able to do this in no time at all.”
Nodding, Fuu agreeably crouched down alongside her and took Mugen by the ankles, the emotional pain evident upon her features as she couldn’t help but wonder what horrors had so drastically changed the man she had held so dear to her heart.
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“Jin-sama?”
“Oh…Pazu” the hatamoto acknowledged, a soft smile coming to his lips as he motioned the boy inside his quarters with a wave of the hand. “Do you have another message for me from Kourumi-sama?”
“No, sir” Pazu admitted, suddenly rather shy, “it’s just that you’ve been so sad lately and I thought that…well…m-maybe I could help?”
Jin smiled, yet it never quite reached his eyes. “I am very grateful for your concern, Pazu, but you really mustn’t concern yourself with my affairs. In the long run, it can do neither of us any good.”
“Is it the woman, then?” the young messenger persisted, much to Jin’s complete and utter chagrin. “Ever since you were appointed to carry out her execution you’ve been a real downer around here. Was she someone special to you by chance?”
“Enough, Pazu” Jin ordered, his eyes uncharacteristically steely as he glanced down at his hands in disdain. “If I wish to discuss my past acquaintances with you, then I shall, yet as of this moment I am far too weary to do so. Please…leave me to meditate, Pazu.”
Pazu looked as if he wanted to say more, yet he meekly closed his mouth and mumbled a shamed apology instead, Jin’s gaze softening once the young man left him alone to his own devices.
‘Poor boy’ he thought, sadly shaking his head, ‘It’s not his fault that my carelessness has forced me into a most compromising position. I never dreamt that my assisting the Shogun in their quest could go so horribly wrong, yet Kami help me, it has. And now……now I must take responsibility for my irrefutable sins.’
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“And?”
“H-he wouldn’t tell me anything, Kourumi-sama” Pazu whispered, his head bowing in shame as the roju continued to gaze sternly upon his quivering form. “When I mentioned Kasumi Fuu Jin-sama became much more reserved than usual…almost as if he were angry with me. That girl must have meant a whole lot to him to make him act so strangely, huh?”
Tokugawa smirked in response, his tone smug and filled with self-assurance as he returned, “Now don’t you worry about a thing, my dear boy…right as we speak our men are hunting down the little harlot and are preparing for her annihilation. Before long Jin-sama will begin to see things our way……he’ll have to.”
Eyes wide, Pazu couldn’t help but wonder what the roju could possibly mean by such a statement, his fists subconsciously clenching at his sides as he suddenly found himself quite worried about his dark-haired friend.
A/N: Alrighty then, hopefully nobody’s TOO confused, because the point is to leave you in the dark until the end. Evil, neh? lol I’m trying to make this 13 chapters since the rumor is that there are 13 more episodes, and I assume that they’re all not so dark in nature, but judging by the storyline, who knows? I’m going to try to lighten the mood a bit with Mugen since he’s kind of a comic relief character, but don’t be expecting sunshine and bunnies in this fic. I’m sorry, but that’s just how the rumor is and I plan on following it nearly as accurately as I can.
I also apologize for taking so dang long, but for some reason reunion scenes stump me into terrible writer’s block, so obviously just starting CH 2 was a kick in the teeth for me. For some reason the conspiracy scenes flowed a lot easier for me…and…well…hopefully you’re enjoying this. I LOVE YOU ALL for your nice reviews and support for only the 1st chapter – hopefully this is substantial enough for your liking! Mwuah! ;0)
P.S. Christmas day is my birthday (I’ll be 19, yay! :-D) so show me some love or give me a “birthday present” by leaving me a review. Tee-hee, I love using that as an excuse. :-P
The fanatical look in his eyes was unmistakable, their blazing garnet depths masking the scars and the pain that had always marred his unattainable spirit beyond recognition. As Fuu somehow managed to return the vagrant’s fierce gaze, the passionate stare began to invoke such familiarity within her being that she couldn’t help but utter his name.
“What did you say?” her scruffy-haired assailant demanded, clearly astounded by her vocalization.
“I-I said your name is Mugen” Fuu firmly returned, her resolve now considerably reinforced due to his apparent recognition. “Surely you can’t deny this?”
“Who are you!?”
Her eyes widening, it was at that very moment that Fuu realized he didn’t remember her, all the years of her pent-up frustration erupting deep within her soul as she vengefully lashed out at him amidst her irreconcilable fury.
“You stupid prick!” she screamed, now pummeling him fiercely against the chest with her fists, “How could you ever forget about me and Jin!? You both were my family!”
Mugen dumbly returned Fuu’s tearful gaze amidst her sudden hysteria, his hand subconsciously scratching the back of his head as he suddenly put two and two together. “No way…is that really you, Fuu?” Here he laughed before continuing, “Hell, you must be…how many other pushy broads do I know?”
Staring up at him with tearful eyes, Fuu promptly brushed off Mugen’s typical insult to the back of her mind, her tone now more defeated than ever as she questioned apprehensively, “You’re one of them now, aren’t you? After all Jin and I have taught you, you’re still warring against humanity?”
Mugen scoffed at this, the deep tremors of his voice now seeming to mock her as he returned, “Did you actually think that twenty years-a bein’ a pirate could just fuckin’ go up in a cloud-a smoke with the wave of a hand?” When Fuu just stared at him he continued, “Well guess what, bitch? My shitty life happened, and there’s no way that spendin’ all eternity with you and Four Eyes could ever change that!”
Hurt, Fuu promptly swallowed the painful lump in her throat as she tried her very best not to cry, her hands clenching and unclenching by her sides as she fought not to lash out at him like before.
“I wish you wouldn’t call me names like that” she finally whispered, now no longer able to meet with his intense gaze.
“What, you mean bitch?” Mugen demanded, a note of amusement lacing his voice as he smugly crossed his arms across his chest. “Well guess what, bitch? I’m a Rebel now, so if ya don’t like it you’ll hafta take it up with the rest-a us!”
That did it. In a flash of dark hair and blurred silk, Fuu rammed into the rogue’s midsection with the brunt of her shoulder, her furious cries sounding like that of a hissing cat as she clawed and bit at any bronze flesh that she could possibly reach.
Grinning over the adrenaline of possibly having a worthwhile fight, Mugen deftly lunged to the left and caught Fuu by either of her wrists, her aggressive snarls now quieting into pitiful sniffling as he slammed her up against the wall and placed the tip of his longsword against the soft column of her throat.
“You finally ready ta settle down?” the vagrant demanded, grinning broadly as he sensed the tremendous fear radiating out of her pores. Once she began to hurriedly nod in compliance he smirked before continuing, “There, that’s better, now, don’tcha think? All ya gotta do is be a good little girl an’ show me where your friend keeps all ‘er money.”
“You’re a bastard” Fuu sharply accused, her eyes wild and fierce as she proudly raised her chin. “Did you actually think that I’d willingly hand Ayame’s possessions over to Rebel scum at the drop of a hat? In case you haven’t noticed, Mugen, I’ve changed a whole lot, too – I no longer let overbearing assholes like you boss me around!”
“Why you ungrateful little-”
Crash!
Screaming, Fuu shielded her face from the shards of glass that came scattering all about her from the moment of impact, her eyes wide and fearful as she watched Mugen collapse before her with a loud and un-exultant ‘thump’. There, standing directly above him was Ayame, her gaze stern and unwavering as she clutched the broken remains of her vase to her chest.
“Are you hurt?” she finally demanded, never once removing her cautious stare from the unconscious Ryukyuan at her feet.
Fuu could only shake her head dumbly in return, her friend immediately crouching down alongside Mugen’s brawny figure before announcing, “If we hurry, we can get him into the backroom before any of his Rebel buddies figure out he’s missing. If you take his feet we should be able to do this in no time at all.”
Nodding, Fuu agreeably crouched down alongside her and took Mugen by the ankles, the emotional pain evident upon her features as she couldn’t help but wonder what horrors had so drastically changed the man she had held so dear to her heart.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Jin-sama?”
“Oh…Pazu” the hatamoto acknowledged, a soft smile coming to his lips as he motioned the boy inside his quarters with a wave of the hand. “Do you have another message for me from Kourumi-sama?”
“No, sir” Pazu admitted, suddenly rather shy, “it’s just that you’ve been so sad lately and I thought that…well…m-maybe I could help?”
Jin smiled, yet it never quite reached his eyes. “I am very grateful for your concern, Pazu, but you really mustn’t concern yourself with my affairs. In the long run, it can do neither of us any good.”
“Is it the woman, then?” the young messenger persisted, much to Jin’s complete and utter chagrin. “Ever since you were appointed to carry out her execution you’ve been a real downer around here. Was she someone special to you by chance?”
“Enough, Pazu” Jin ordered, his eyes uncharacteristically steely as he glanced down at his hands in disdain. “If I wish to discuss my past acquaintances with you, then I shall, yet as of this moment I am far too weary to do so. Please…leave me to meditate, Pazu.”
Pazu looked as if he wanted to say more, yet he meekly closed his mouth and mumbled a shamed apology instead, Jin’s gaze softening once the young man left him alone to his own devices.
‘Poor boy’ he thought, sadly shaking his head, ‘It’s not his fault that my carelessness has forced me into a most compromising position. I never dreamt that my assisting the Shogun in their quest could go so horribly wrong, yet Kami help me, it has. And now……now I must take responsibility for my irrefutable sins.’
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“And?”
“H-he wouldn’t tell me anything, Kourumi-sama” Pazu whispered, his head bowing in shame as the roju continued to gaze sternly upon his quivering form. “When I mentioned Kasumi Fuu Jin-sama became much more reserved than usual…almost as if he were angry with me. That girl must have meant a whole lot to him to make him act so strangely, huh?”
Tokugawa smirked in response, his tone smug and filled with self-assurance as he returned, “Now don’t you worry about a thing, my dear boy…right as we speak our men are hunting down the little harlot and are preparing for her annihilation. Before long Jin-sama will begin to see things our way……he’ll have to.”
Eyes wide, Pazu couldn’t help but wonder what the roju could possibly mean by such a statement, his fists subconsciously clenching at his sides as he suddenly found himself quite worried about his dark-haired friend.
A/N: Alrighty then, hopefully nobody’s TOO confused, because the point is to leave you in the dark until the end. Evil, neh? lol I’m trying to make this 13 chapters since the rumor is that there are 13 more episodes, and I assume that they’re all not so dark in nature, but judging by the storyline, who knows? I’m going to try to lighten the mood a bit with Mugen since he’s kind of a comic relief character, but don’t be expecting sunshine and bunnies in this fic. I’m sorry, but that’s just how the rumor is and I plan on following it nearly as accurately as I can.
I also apologize for taking so dang long, but for some reason reunion scenes stump me into terrible writer’s block, so obviously just starting CH 2 was a kick in the teeth for me. For some reason the conspiracy scenes flowed a lot easier for me…and…well…hopefully you’re enjoying this. I LOVE YOU ALL for your nice reviews and support for only the 1st chapter – hopefully this is substantial enough for your liking! Mwuah! ;0)
P.S. Christmas day is my birthday (I’ll be 19, yay! :-D) so show me some love or give me a “birthday present” by leaving me a review. Tee-hee, I love using that as an excuse. :-P