Chapter Two: Getting Reaccquainted
Note: [...] denotes singing. Again, bah.
2nd Note: Guess which movie I got this song from. Can't figure it out, then e-mail me. ^_-
A black Chrysler Seabring sped down the busy streets of Honolulu. Ken Masters was behind the wheel, while Ryu was riding shotgun and Guile was in the backseat.
"So how is you family, William?" Ryu asked.
Guile shrugged his shoulders. "Jane and Amy are okay. I heard you stopped wandering and found a place near Osaka...with a certain female Interpol agent."
"You heard correct. Tokyo was too crowded for my taste, so I found this place and Chun and I fixed it up. She was a bit apprehensive about moving out of the city, but I brought her around."
Guile chuckled as he shook his head. "Amazing. The man who had defeated Bison and everyone else has finally decided to settle down."
"Speaking of which," Ken butted in, "Bison is somewhere in the city."
"WHAT?!" Guile screeched.
Ken was unfazed by the outburst. "I know. It caught me off-guard as well, but it seems our old buddy Bison doesn't know the meaning of the word 'quit.' He's acting as one of the judges in the pageant, as well as several more of his goons."
Guile sank back into the seat. "Just freakin' great," he muttered. "There goes my vacation."
"Bison won't try anything," Ken reassured his moody brother-in-law. "Aside from the number of military personnel from all over, we also have Interpol, MI-6, and several other security forces in place in case Bison tries something funny."
"And knowing Bison, he probably will," Ryu mused, looking out through the window.
Deciding to change the subject, Ken asked Ryu, "So, Ryu, what's Chun Li going to do in the pageant?"
Ryu looked at Ken. "You mean she didn't tell you?" When Ken shook his head, Ryu replied, "She's singing."
Both Ken and Guile looked at Ryu, who shrugged their stares off. "Yeah. She's singing. She's got an amazing voice. Soft, but amazing. I first heard her sing about several months ago when we were still rennovating the house back in Osaka..."
{Flashback}
Late morning in Osaka. Ryu, dressed in his usual karate gi (minus the headband), walked down the hall, mumbling to himself, headed for the bedroom to retrieve his fighting gloves.
Upon entering the room, he noticed the bathroom door was ajar, releasing steam.
That and music was coming from the radio that Chun Li uses whenever she was in the bathroom.
[Look into my eyes...]
Ryu blinked. 'Is Chun Li...singing?' he wondered. The door was open enough for him to peer inside.
Inside the bathroom, Chun Li, clad only in a bathrobe, was brushing out her damp hair. She continued singing, not knowing the fact that Ryu was listening to her sing.
[You will see...what you mean to me]
[Search your heart, search your soul]
[When you find me there, you'll search no more]
Her voice was soft, but clear. Slightly throaty, but enchanting.
[Don't tell me it's not worth trying for]
She places the hairbrush down and began to braid her hair.
[You can't tell me it's not worth dying for]
[You know it's true...everything I do...I do it for you...]
Ryu opened the door and stood in the doorway, as Chun Li continued to sing.
[Look in to your heart, you will find]
[There is nothing there to hide]
[Take me as I am, take my life]
[I would give it all, I would sacrifice]
Chun Li finishes braiding her hair and wrapping it into her trademark buns. Humming the rest of the song to herself, she reaches over to turn the tape player off, only to see Ryu standing there.
"Nice singing," he complimented.
Chun Li turned red. "How long were you standing there?" she asked.
"Long enough." Ryu enters the bathroom. "Since when did you sing?"
Chun Li shrugged her shoulders. "I got it from my mom. She used to be a lounge singer in a bar back in Shanghai. That's where my father met her. Plus, one of my past undercover assignmants was a lounge singer back in Hong Kong."
"I'll bet," Ryu replied. "You remind me of my mother."
"Oh?"
Ryu nodded. "When I was a child, she would sing me to sleep. Her voice was soothing." Ryu shook his head. "Anyway, what do you want for breakfast?"
{End Flashback)
"Damn," Ken said. "Looks like Eliza has some competition. She's singing as well."
"So do you know who's judging this pageant?" Guile asked.
Ken thought about it for a moment. "Um...it's you, Ryu, and myself. Fei Long has signed on as a judge, so did one of Guy's friends."
"Who?" Guile asked.
"Um...his name is...what was it...oh, yeah. Haggar. Mike Haggar."
Ryu hummed for a moment. "Haggar. I remember Guy telling me about his exploits back in Metro City where he, a street fighter/ex-convict named Cody, and an ex-wrestler named Haggar took out the Mad Gear gang."
"Four of the judges are on our side," Ken explained, "while the other four are from Shadowlaw. The other two are wild cards, they can vote either way."
"Who are the wild cards?" Ryu asked.
"Rolento Schugerg and your old nemesis, Victor Sagat."
Ryu blinked. "Funny, I thought Sagat was working for Shadowlaw."
Guile shook his head. "Nope. From our mole within Shadowlaw, Sagat has left the organization and has returned to Thailand to train for his rematch against you. As for Rolento, he's--"
"--the insane commando who wants to build his dream military nation," Ryu finished. "I've met him. As I've said before, he's a complete nutcase, but a good fighter. He makes Bison looks sane."
Ken then remembered something. "Oh, Ryu. I forgot to mention that all of the hotels are booked so you're gonna be staying at the beachside villa with me, Eliza and Chun Li."
Guile frowned. "For crying out loud, Masters, how many houses you got?"
"Well, there's my old condo back in Seattle, the Masters Estate in San Francisco, the summer house in Japan, and this one which makes four."
Ryu shook his head. "You got way too much money, Ken."
Guile nodded. "I agree with you on that Ryu."
***
After dropping Guile off at the military base, Ken and Ryu went back to the beachside villa where they would be staying before the pageant. Like any other house that the Master family, it was impressive without being too showy.
Ken parked the car and Ryu jumped out, duffel bag in his hand. Ken followed suit. He opened the door and led Ryu inside.
The villa was a single story, spacious, but to Ken and Eliza, pretty cozy. Ryu took in the decor. "Nice place. Let me guess, this belonged to your parents, right?"
"Bingo," Ken replied. "They let me and Eliza have this as a wedding present."
"Ken," a female voice called out. "Is that you?"
A pretty blonde wearing a bikini and a pair of sunglasses on her forehead stepped into the living room. Ken grinned and swept his wife up in a hug and a kiss.
"Hey, beautiful," Ken greeted before letting Eliza go.
Ryu dropped his duffel bag and allowed Eliza to greet him with a hug. "Ryu. It's good to see you again."
"Same here," Ryu replied. "You've been keeping Ken out of trouble?"
Eliza glanced at Ken before turning back to Ryu. "He's been behaving...most of the time. I may have to get him neutered," she replied jokingly.
"Hey!" Ken objected.
"What's going on?" a second female voice asked.
A second woman--this time an alluring Chinese woman--entered the room. Unlike Eliza, she was wearing a dark blue spagetti-strap halter top, black denim pants, and tennis shoes. Her dark brown hair was tied into a ponytail, with several bangs hanging.
She took only one look at Ryu. Not saying anything, she smiled and ran full tilt towards him. Ryu caught her, laughing and spun her around, just as she lowered her head down for a kiss which lasted for quite a bit.
When they finally broken off, Ryu grinned. "If I wanted a greeting like that, I should have came tomorrow."
Chun Li didn't let him go. "What are you doing here, Ryu? You're not supposed to be here for a couple more days."
Ryu shrugged his shoulders. "I guess I wanted to surprise you."
Chun Li kissed him again. "I knew you would come to cheer me on."
"Urr...about that," Ryu said. "Somehow, Ken got me as a replacement judge for the pageant."
"How'd he do that?"
Ryu glanced at Ken. "He talked me into it."
***
-Royal Pacific Hotel, on the other side of Honolulu...-
The Royal Pacific Hotel, one of Honolulu's most elegant hotels. Unknown to most patrons, it was also a Shadowlaw safehouse, used to house Shadowlaw's elite. Bison, Juli, and his henchmen, or women were staying there during the pageant. Bison's room was the penthouse on the top floor, while Juli, being the guest of honor, was given the presidential suite.
Under orders from Bison, the Shadowlaw dolls were given some time off to enjoy themselves. Righ now, Marz, the resident computer hacker, was walking down the hall, towards Juli's room. Instead of her ususal Shadowlaw uniform, she was clad in a blue summer dress. In one hand, she was holding a folder. Earlier in the day, Juli had asked Marz for information on the other contestants and judges, something that Marz was good at.
She stopped in front of Juli's door and knocked.
"Who is it?" Juli's voice came from inside.
"It's Marz."
"Come in. It's open,"
Marz enters the room and closes the door behind her. Inside the suite, Juli was finishing getting dressed. She was dressed in a simple white tanktop and a pair of hip-hugging pants. Bunching her hair together, she tied it into her ususal bun.
Marz hands over the files. "Here's the information you asked for."
Juli took the files and nodded in appreciation. "Well done. You may go."
Marz took her leave. Juli sat on the edge of the bed and began to leaf through the files, which were complete with their pictures and dossiers. "Let's se what we have here on the judges...William Franklin Guile, fighter pilot, commando, youngest man ever to be promoted to the rank of Colonel..."
She flipped the page. "Rolento Schugerg...former member of the Mad Gear gang, broken off in order to build a military nation..." She flipped the page again. "Ken Masters, Pan-American karate champion, Vice-President of the Masters Foundation, brother-in-law to William Guile, interesting."
She went to the last page. "Well, well, well. Ryu Hoshi...so that was you at the airport...they got you as a judge. Expert in Shotokan style karate, fluent in English and Chinese, avoided numerous attempts at capture by Shadowlaw forces..."
Juli closed the folder and placed it aside. Rising to her feet, she grabbed a denim jacket and exited the room.
Note: [...] denotes singing. Again, bah.
2nd Note: Guess which movie I got this song from. Can't figure it out, then e-mail me. ^_-
A black Chrysler Seabring sped down the busy streets of Honolulu. Ken Masters was behind the wheel, while Ryu was riding shotgun and Guile was in the backseat.
"So how is you family, William?" Ryu asked.
Guile shrugged his shoulders. "Jane and Amy are okay. I heard you stopped wandering and found a place near Osaka...with a certain female Interpol agent."
"You heard correct. Tokyo was too crowded for my taste, so I found this place and Chun and I fixed it up. She was a bit apprehensive about moving out of the city, but I brought her around."
Guile chuckled as he shook his head. "Amazing. The man who had defeated Bison and everyone else has finally decided to settle down."
"Speaking of which," Ken butted in, "Bison is somewhere in the city."
"WHAT?!" Guile screeched.
Ken was unfazed by the outburst. "I know. It caught me off-guard as well, but it seems our old buddy Bison doesn't know the meaning of the word 'quit.' He's acting as one of the judges in the pageant, as well as several more of his goons."
Guile sank back into the seat. "Just freakin' great," he muttered. "There goes my vacation."
"Bison won't try anything," Ken reassured his moody brother-in-law. "Aside from the number of military personnel from all over, we also have Interpol, MI-6, and several other security forces in place in case Bison tries something funny."
"And knowing Bison, he probably will," Ryu mused, looking out through the window.
Deciding to change the subject, Ken asked Ryu, "So, Ryu, what's Chun Li going to do in the pageant?"
Ryu looked at Ken. "You mean she didn't tell you?" When Ken shook his head, Ryu replied, "She's singing."
Both Ken and Guile looked at Ryu, who shrugged their stares off. "Yeah. She's singing. She's got an amazing voice. Soft, but amazing. I first heard her sing about several months ago when we were still rennovating the house back in Osaka..."
{Flashback}
Late morning in Osaka. Ryu, dressed in his usual karate gi (minus the headband), walked down the hall, mumbling to himself, headed for the bedroom to retrieve his fighting gloves.
Upon entering the room, he noticed the bathroom door was ajar, releasing steam.
That and music was coming from the radio that Chun Li uses whenever she was in the bathroom.
[Look into my eyes...]
Ryu blinked. 'Is Chun Li...singing?' he wondered. The door was open enough for him to peer inside.
Inside the bathroom, Chun Li, clad only in a bathrobe, was brushing out her damp hair. She continued singing, not knowing the fact that Ryu was listening to her sing.
[You will see...what you mean to me]
[Search your heart, search your soul]
[When you find me there, you'll search no more]
Her voice was soft, but clear. Slightly throaty, but enchanting.
[Don't tell me it's not worth trying for]
She places the hairbrush down and began to braid her hair.
[You can't tell me it's not worth dying for]
[You know it's true...everything I do...I do it for you...]
Ryu opened the door and stood in the doorway, as Chun Li continued to sing.
[Look in to your heart, you will find]
[There is nothing there to hide]
[Take me as I am, take my life]
[I would give it all, I would sacrifice]
Chun Li finishes braiding her hair and wrapping it into her trademark buns. Humming the rest of the song to herself, she reaches over to turn the tape player off, only to see Ryu standing there.
"Nice singing," he complimented.
Chun Li turned red. "How long were you standing there?" she asked.
"Long enough." Ryu enters the bathroom. "Since when did you sing?"
Chun Li shrugged her shoulders. "I got it from my mom. She used to be a lounge singer in a bar back in Shanghai. That's where my father met her. Plus, one of my past undercover assignmants was a lounge singer back in Hong Kong."
"I'll bet," Ryu replied. "You remind me of my mother."
"Oh?"
Ryu nodded. "When I was a child, she would sing me to sleep. Her voice was soothing." Ryu shook his head. "Anyway, what do you want for breakfast?"
{End Flashback)
"Damn," Ken said. "Looks like Eliza has some competition. She's singing as well."
"So do you know who's judging this pageant?" Guile asked.
Ken thought about it for a moment. "Um...it's you, Ryu, and myself. Fei Long has signed on as a judge, so did one of Guy's friends."
"Who?" Guile asked.
"Um...his name is...what was it...oh, yeah. Haggar. Mike Haggar."
Ryu hummed for a moment. "Haggar. I remember Guy telling me about his exploits back in Metro City where he, a street fighter/ex-convict named Cody, and an ex-wrestler named Haggar took out the Mad Gear gang."
"Four of the judges are on our side," Ken explained, "while the other four are from Shadowlaw. The other two are wild cards, they can vote either way."
"Who are the wild cards?" Ryu asked.
"Rolento Schugerg and your old nemesis, Victor Sagat."
Ryu blinked. "Funny, I thought Sagat was working for Shadowlaw."
Guile shook his head. "Nope. From our mole within Shadowlaw, Sagat has left the organization and has returned to Thailand to train for his rematch against you. As for Rolento, he's--"
"--the insane commando who wants to build his dream military nation," Ryu finished. "I've met him. As I've said before, he's a complete nutcase, but a good fighter. He makes Bison looks sane."
Ken then remembered something. "Oh, Ryu. I forgot to mention that all of the hotels are booked so you're gonna be staying at the beachside villa with me, Eliza and Chun Li."
Guile frowned. "For crying out loud, Masters, how many houses you got?"
"Well, there's my old condo back in Seattle, the Masters Estate in San Francisco, the summer house in Japan, and this one which makes four."
Ryu shook his head. "You got way too much money, Ken."
Guile nodded. "I agree with you on that Ryu."
***
After dropping Guile off at the military base, Ken and Ryu went back to the beachside villa where they would be staying before the pageant. Like any other house that the Master family, it was impressive without being too showy.
Ken parked the car and Ryu jumped out, duffel bag in his hand. Ken followed suit. He opened the door and led Ryu inside.
The villa was a single story, spacious, but to Ken and Eliza, pretty cozy. Ryu took in the decor. "Nice place. Let me guess, this belonged to your parents, right?"
"Bingo," Ken replied. "They let me and Eliza have this as a wedding present."
"Ken," a female voice called out. "Is that you?"
A pretty blonde wearing a bikini and a pair of sunglasses on her forehead stepped into the living room. Ken grinned and swept his wife up in a hug and a kiss.
"Hey, beautiful," Ken greeted before letting Eliza go.
Ryu dropped his duffel bag and allowed Eliza to greet him with a hug. "Ryu. It's good to see you again."
"Same here," Ryu replied. "You've been keeping Ken out of trouble?"
Eliza glanced at Ken before turning back to Ryu. "He's been behaving...most of the time. I may have to get him neutered," she replied jokingly.
"Hey!" Ken objected.
"What's going on?" a second female voice asked.
A second woman--this time an alluring Chinese woman--entered the room. Unlike Eliza, she was wearing a dark blue spagetti-strap halter top, black denim pants, and tennis shoes. Her dark brown hair was tied into a ponytail, with several bangs hanging.
She took only one look at Ryu. Not saying anything, she smiled and ran full tilt towards him. Ryu caught her, laughing and spun her around, just as she lowered her head down for a kiss which lasted for quite a bit.
When they finally broken off, Ryu grinned. "If I wanted a greeting like that, I should have came tomorrow."
Chun Li didn't let him go. "What are you doing here, Ryu? You're not supposed to be here for a couple more days."
Ryu shrugged his shoulders. "I guess I wanted to surprise you."
Chun Li kissed him again. "I knew you would come to cheer me on."
"Urr...about that," Ryu said. "Somehow, Ken got me as a replacement judge for the pageant."
"How'd he do that?"
Ryu glanced at Ken. "He talked me into it."
***
-Royal Pacific Hotel, on the other side of Honolulu...-
The Royal Pacific Hotel, one of Honolulu's most elegant hotels. Unknown to most patrons, it was also a Shadowlaw safehouse, used to house Shadowlaw's elite. Bison, Juli, and his henchmen, or women were staying there during the pageant. Bison's room was the penthouse on the top floor, while Juli, being the guest of honor, was given the presidential suite.
Under orders from Bison, the Shadowlaw dolls were given some time off to enjoy themselves. Righ now, Marz, the resident computer hacker, was walking down the hall, towards Juli's room. Instead of her ususal Shadowlaw uniform, she was clad in a blue summer dress. In one hand, she was holding a folder. Earlier in the day, Juli had asked Marz for information on the other contestants and judges, something that Marz was good at.
She stopped in front of Juli's door and knocked.
"Who is it?" Juli's voice came from inside.
"It's Marz."
"Come in. It's open,"
Marz enters the room and closes the door behind her. Inside the suite, Juli was finishing getting dressed. She was dressed in a simple white tanktop and a pair of hip-hugging pants. Bunching her hair together, she tied it into her ususal bun.
Marz hands over the files. "Here's the information you asked for."
Juli took the files and nodded in appreciation. "Well done. You may go."
Marz took her leave. Juli sat on the edge of the bed and began to leaf through the files, which were complete with their pictures and dossiers. "Let's se what we have here on the judges...William Franklin Guile, fighter pilot, commando, youngest man ever to be promoted to the rank of Colonel..."
She flipped the page. "Rolento Schugerg...former member of the Mad Gear gang, broken off in order to build a military nation..." She flipped the page again. "Ken Masters, Pan-American karate champion, Vice-President of the Masters Foundation, brother-in-law to William Guile, interesting."
She went to the last page. "Well, well, well. Ryu Hoshi...so that was you at the airport...they got you as a judge. Expert in Shotokan style karate, fluent in English and Chinese, avoided numerous attempts at capture by Shadowlaw forces..."
Juli closed the folder and placed it aside. Rising to her feet, she grabbed a denim jacket and exited the room.