"For the family honor." Kasumi murmered as she sat up. "You won't gain much
honor by defeating them." Terry said chuckling as he helped Kasumi up her
feet. "That's your vision." Kasumi said, not looking at Terry. She started
to walk away. "Hey, kid! Be careful next time!" Terry said. Kasumi didn't
answer, but just continued to walk away, a tear rolled down her cheek. Her
father would not like this. When she was out of sight, Terry looked at
Mary. "What a weirdo." he said. "Well, she IS Japanese." Mary said as she
grabbed Terry's arm. "I hadn't noticed." Terry said. He looked at Andy, who
was supported by Mai. He looked like serious shit. "Hey, bro'. Do you, by
any chance, need some help?" he said. "I'm fine, I'm fine. Stop nurturing
me, big brother." Andy answered, who felt much more like being helped by
Mai than by his brother.
Mary leaned against the door-post of the entrance to Terry's small
apartment. The Lone Wolf was wearing only his jeans and his gloves and was
practicing against a self-made punching bag which hung from the ceiling.
Terry didn't allow himself any luxury at all. His room bolstered a shower,
an unstable bed and a chair. That was it. Nothing else. Safe for the
punching-bag, which danced about because of the hard punches and kicks
Terry delivered. Mary closed her eyes and sighed. Terry could think of
nothing else but fighting. All he did was train. He earned his money with
fighting, he spent his spare time with fighting. He did nothing else. There
was nothing else which interested him.
Since Terry's father had been murdered when Terry was still a kid, he had
to make a living for himself. His mother hadn't survived it either. She had
died of grief. Terry knew who had killed his father. Everyone knew. It had
been Geese Howard. Howard was a mighty crime-boss. Untouchable. The police
claimed they couldn't find him, but they were as corrupt as Howard himself.
Geese simply paid the chief constables enough to keep them off his back.
Terry fought against Geese and his cronies ever since the day he lost his
parents. For justice? For the lives wasted because of the drugs Howard
sold? For the lives taken because of the weapons Geese used as merchandise?
No. Not for others. But for Terry's personal vendetta. At least, that was
what Terry told himself.
But Mary had been starting to find a sensitive side in Terry. She had met
him one day when he was beating up some robbers who had been stupid enough
to try to rob him. Mary had helped him and Terry had been impressed by her
fighting skills. This had made him more open to her.
Terry's little brother had gone to Japan after his father's death to train
in the Shiranui Ninja Arts. His master also had a daughter. Mai. The two
had became good friends and Mai had travelled to America with Andy. Terry
was still not sure whether Andy loved Mai or not. His little brother had
never really expressed himself about the matter too much. But Terry figured
there was something going on.
Terry was going to try a new technique now. He concentrated his strength,
threw his arms quickly in the air, as if that brought his concentrated
strength into them and he punched the bag with one fist, his body following
as if it was actually being pulled by his fist. The punching-bag violantly
got seperated from the ceiling and shot straight through the window of
Terry's room, shattering glass all over the place. "Shit." Terry muttered.
Mary was stunned. She didn't know what to say as she saw Terry's fist
actually smoking a little. "What the heck was that!?" she yelled. Terry
looked at her. "I call it the Burn Knuckle." Terry said proud, his face
bolstering a huge grin. He looked back at the window. "I guess it's a bit
too powerful, though."
"What were you planning to do with that? Chop someone's head off?" Mary
asked indignant. "Yeah. Geese's." Terry said, walking to his chair and
picking up his clothes. Mary sighed. "Can't you forget about him and get a
normal job like everyone else?"
"No. That's too conventional for me." Terry said as he put on his t-shirt.
He put on a pair of socks and his shoes. He grabbed a brown leather jacket
from the bed and put it on without closing the zipper. He wanted to exit
his room, but Mary stopped him "Aren't you forgetting something?" she
asked, pointing at the window. Terry turned around and walked in the
direction of the window. "That's right." he said. He grabbed his cap from
the chair and put it on with the flap on the back. "We're off." he said as
he walked past the surprised Mary. Terry would never change.
The two would go to a friend of Terry, pick him up for a game of
basketball. That was the only thing Terry liked to do besides fighting.
Mary had always been surprised how someone like Terry could have time to
make friends. But she had also never met Kyo before. Kyo's family had been
in some kind of war with another family for ages. The Yagami family, of
which Kyo's greatest enemy, Iori, was a member of, hadn't done really kind
things to the Kusanagi family. Stealing, swindling, rape and even murder,
nothing seemed bad enough for the Yagami's to use against their rival
family. Terry hadn't heard from Kyo how the 'war' had started, but he had
met some Yagami and he didn't like them. And when Terry disliked someone,
it was for life. He could feel people perfectly. He could almost sense if
they were up to no good. Was it a sixth sense? Was it his experience? Terry
couldn't tell. He just felt it.
Mary and Terry soon neared Kyo's house. It was a small one in a quiet part of town. Terry was at one side surprised and at the other side not at all when he saw several man trying to bust in the door. "What the heck?" Mary said. She wore her green jacket over her top. Terry and Mary got noticed by the oriental-looking men. One of them did a few steps in their direction and Terry noticed it was Iori. The Lone Wolf recognised the disturbed look in the red-haired man's eyes anywhere. "What's the big idea, Iori? We're not going to break into people's homes, are we?" Terry said. "Keep your annoying ass out of our business, Bogard!" "Family-business, right? I'm very sorry, but I just can't do that. Kyo is my friend. You either leave or get your ass kicked. It's your choice." Terry was getting the feeling this was going to turn into a cliche. "And you think you can defeat the three of us?" Iori asked challenging. Terry sighed. "I've had worse odds, slimefucker. And besides that, Mary is here with me. And you know Mary, right? She twisted your left leg behind your right ear last time we met." Iori looked at Mary. "Still with that poor loser, Mary?" Mary's face turned grim. "Yes." she merely said. "Why don't you ditch him and join me? We can... use such a strong girl like you." Iori suggested, grinning. Mary grinned back. "I'm sorry, but I prefer men with hair on their balls." she said, making Terry chuckle. Iori's look left nothing to the imagination. This latest comment enraged him. Why did Americans always had to be such smartasses? Or had Terry's big mouth jumped over to her? Suddenly, Iori grabbed Mary at her throat and squeezed his long fingernails in her skin. "I can break your puny neck anytime I want, little girl." he said with a growling voice. As a natural reflex, Mary raised her knee and hit Iori between his legs, making him nearly drop to his knees. "Duck, honey." Terry quickly said. Mary swiftly ducked, just in time to feel the movement of air caused by Terry's foot sweeping over her head and crashing down onto Iori's head. Iori stumbled to the ground because of Terry's kick and he looked up at him dazed as his cousins came to his aid. "Honey?" Mary said to Terry, looking at him with a questioning look on her face. "Hey, then he at least knows I'm not talking to him, right?" Terry replied. "Yeah, but you never call ME honey, either." Mary protested, catching an incoming fist with both her hands. "Please don't start THAT again, Mary." Terry sighed, blocking a blow from the left with his right hand and a blow from the right with his left, forming a cross with his arms. "Hey, I happen to be a very sensitive girl, Terry." Mary said, encircling the man's neck with her arm and performing a neat neck throw on him, making him fall with his back on the pavement. "Yeah, right." Terry chuckled, pushing the man away from him before punching him in his face. Mary let herself drop onto the lying man's stomach with her elbow, making him cry out in pain and gasp for air. "Yes, I am, Terry Bogard. I need affection and all that sorts of stuff." Terry punched the dazed man in front of him in his stomach before grabbing him and throwing him over his shoulder. "YOU need affection?" Terry asked surprised. He noticed the man trying to get up, so he struck him hard with his elbow in his face, knocking his lights out. "Yes." Mary said, kicking her opponent in his face as he tried to get up, knocking him down and unconscious. "And I just KNOW you have feelings for me, Terry." "Do we really have to discuss our relation problems in front of strangers?" Terry sighed. "What relation!?" Mary asked indignant. "Yeah, yeah." Terry said, kicking a recovering Iori back to his lying position. "Let's just get Kyo and play a game of basketball, okay?" Mary grabbed Terry at his arm. "Not before we settle this." she said, sounding more angry than she wanted to. She noticed Iori trying to stand up again. She kicked him back down. "Would you stay down? We're discussing very serious problems here." "Listen, Mary..." "No, you listen, Terry." Mary said, turning back to Terry. "I know you're always acting tough and stuff, but just admit that you're crazy about me and then we can go shoot some hoopes." "What!? I am crazy about you? I think it's the other way around, missy!" Terry said, pointing at Mary. "And what if I just go with cute little Iori here?" Mary said, placing her hands on her hips, a challenging smile on her lips. "You better be joking." Terry said with an offended voice. "But he's kind of cute." Mary said, feeling Terry was getting upset. "When he looks at me with his dreamy eyes, I..." Mary started, but Terry ducked and grabbed Iori at his collar. "Are you looking at Mary?" he said threatening. "Huh?" was all Iori could say, his mind in a foggy state because of the punishment he had gotten. Terry punched him in his face and stood up, dropping Iori's unconscious head on the pavement. "NOW he looks dreamy." Terry said, placing his fists on his hips and looking at Mary. "My cute little Terry..." Mary said smiling as she caressed one cheek of him and kissed the other. Terry looked at her surprised. She turned around and walked to Kyo's door. Terry put his hands in his pockets and followed her. "Women." he muttered. Mary knew Terry was crazy about her. He proved it over and over again. And he nearly punched Iori's head through the pavement just because he would've looked at her. Terry indeed gave Mary the attention she needed. The attention every girl needed. But he gave it in his own special way. At that moment, the door opened and Kyo exited his house. "Oh, good afternoon, guys. What was all the noice about?" he said. He wore black jeans, a white t-shirt and a black jacket with short sleeves. He had a basketball in one hand and closed the door behind him with his other. He noticed Iori and his eyes narrowed. "He again." he said with an angry voice. "Doesn't he look dreamy to you, Kyo?" Terry asked. "Eh... Yeah, I suppose so..." Kyo answered. "But seriously, how are you feeling?" Terry asked his friend. Kyo knew what Terry was aiming at. "I left it behind me. I don't like to think about her anymore." he answered softly. "Okay." Terry said with an excusing tone in his voice. Kyo's girlfriend Yuki had died not too long ago. She had been murdered. By who? No one knew. Kyo had been a wreck ever since and Terry kept on trying to chear him up. But alas, to no avail. Kyo had been seeking the murderer and the reason why Yuki had to have been murdered. But he hadn't been able to find any answers. The police had said they would find the killer, but that would probably never happen. So Kyo just tried to forget it. But he couldn't. He had loved her dearly and her death had left him... alone.
Mary watched how Terry and Kyo danced around the ball and tried to get it into the ring. They were both very skilled at it and they had trouble outwitting each other. Kyo was leading by just one point and Terry furiously tried to even the score. Basketball was HIS game and he wasn't going to get beaten by some Japanese guy here! But this Japanese guy was more than competent and he even managed to score another point and Terry trailed by two points now. Kyo was tired and took a break. He sat down on the bench next to Mary and Terry continued to shoot some hoops. He didn't feel very much in shape. Or at least, that was what he tried to tell himself. "So, Mary..." Kyo started. "How's things between you and Terry?" "Boring. But it's patching up." Mary answered with a slight grin. "Really?" "Yeah. Sort of." Mary then noticed a girl walking past the court. It was Kasumi! She wore some casual clothes and walked slowly. She looked very tired. Mary stood up and walked to her. "Hey, Kasumi!" she said. Kasumi looked up. She didn't really want company at that moment, but she didn't want to be rude either, so she stopped her pace and gave Mary a weak smile. "Hello. You're Mary, right?" Mary, who reached Kasumi, nodded and noticed that the girl had cried. Her eyes were red and held a sad look. Kasumi looked at Terry and Kyo, who came walking towards her. "Hi there, kid." Terry greeted. "Hello, Terry-san." Kasumi said respectful as she made a slight bow. "Hey, I like her already." Terry said grinning. "Kasumi, meet my friend Kyo, the worst basketballplayer I've ever met." he said. Kyo and Kasumi shook hands as Kyo said: "Pleased to meet you, Kasumi. Don't pay any attention to Terry. He can't stand losing." "Hey, now that we're with the four of us, we can play a match." Terry said cheerful. Kasumi startled. "No, Terry-san. Please not! I have never played that game before." It was a poor excuse. She just didn't want to play basketball. She wanted to be alone for a moment. Away from the Sakazaki's, away from her father, away from everything... "You're never too old to learn, kid." Terry said, walking to the middle of the court, followed by Kyo. "It's a great game, Kasumi." Kyo said assuring. Mary walked a little closer to Kasumi and said, softly enough for the guys not to hear it: "I don't know what made you cry, Kasumi. But you can forget about it by just playing a little game. It'll help you get your mind off things." Her comforting voice really raised Kasumi's mood. Mary appeared to be a person to talk to. Perhaps Kasumi could tell her a lot. Get things off her heart. As if Mary had read her thoughts, she said: "And if there's anything you wish to tell me, anything at all to release it, just do so, Kasumi. I'll listen." Kasumi slowly nodded. "Thank you, Mary." she said softly. "Hey, would you two hurry up?" Terry yelled. "We're coming." Mary returned. She turned to Kasumi again. "Shall we?" she asked. Kasumi hesitated for a moment, but nodded and walked with Mary to the two impatient boys in the middle of the court. "Finally." Terry sighed. "Okay, so we're going to play America versus Japan. I'm gonna show you something, Kyo." he said, putting his finger against Kyo's chest as he said the last sentence. Kyo grinned. "You're SO going to lose, Terry." He turned to Kasumi. "Right, Kasumi?" "Er... I guess..." Kasumi said carefully. The only thing she knew was that the basketball had to go through the ring attached to the board... Terry, who was holding the basketball, twirled it around on his indexfinger. "Losers begin." he said as he tossed the ball behind his back towards Kyo, who caught it neatly. "We'll see." Kyo said with a grin. He threw the ball to Kasumi, who caught it a bit clumsy. She swallowed. She felt ashamed amidst the people who could play the game so well. But she didn't notice any laughs or humilating comments. "Okay, Kasumi. We're using one pole. You have to get a 'right of offense' at the middle-line before you can shoot at the ring. So if we got the ball and Terry steals it, which his highly unlikely, he has to get back to the middle-line to get right of offense." Kasumi nodded as a sign that she got it. "Okay, just stand in the middle- circle and make the pass." Kasumi did as Kyo told and quickly threw the ball towards him before Terry or Mary could intercept it. "Nice ball." Kyo said as he caught it and started to dribble towards the pole. Unfortunatly for him, he found Terry on his way. "It's not going to be so easy, Kusanagi." Terry said, watching the ball carefully. Kyo tried to outmanouvre Terry, but it wasn't possible, so he just threw the ball with a high angle towards Kasumi. But Mary was quicker. She jumped up and snitched the ball away before Kasumi could even get a shot at it. She was a bit uncareful, though and accidently bumped up against Kasumi, who made a nasty fall on the asphalt. The three friends startled and Kyo was the first to reach Kasumi. "Are you alright, Kasumi?" he asked concerned. Kasumi carefully stood up, helped by Kyo. "I'm f... fine." Her knee hurt terrible, so she stumbled to the bench and sat down. She stripped up her trouser-leg. She noticed her knee was bleeding terribly. "Geez, that's not nothing, Kasumi. Are you sure you're okay?" Terry asked. "I'm sorry, Kasumi. I should've been more careful." Mary said. Kasumi looked up at her and said: "It's okay, Mary. It was an accident." She wondered why they were all so nice to her. No one was ever nice to her. Mary sat down next to Kasumi. "Why don't you guys go and play a little, okay? I'll help Kasumi." "Uh, okay." Terry said and walked to the basketpole. "Girlstuff, right?" Kyo said with a grin. Mary gave her friend a quick smile. "Move!" she said. "Yes, ma'am." Kyo said as he walked to Terry. Mary looked at Kasumi for a moment and Kasumi hesitated. She knew now was the time to tell Mary everything she wanted to tell. But she barely knew her. But Kasumi knew that Mary was a kind girl. She felt it. "Mary..." she started. She gave Mary a nervous smile before she continued. "I want to get something off my chest." "Then speak, Kasumi. Like I said, I'll listen." "O... okay... My father... He wants me to defend the honor of our family against the Sakazaki family. And therefore, he wants me to give twohundred percent and train every day to defeat them. But I can't. I just can't! I've disappointed him so many times and he even told me that he wished he had a... better daughter..." "That's terrible..." Mary said. "And now the only thing I do is train, but I'm only sixteen and I can never beat the Sakazaki's! And I wish... I can have some... friends..." Kasumi spoke the last words softly, affraid to say them. "Hm. Would you mind if Terry and Kyo knew about this? We may be able to help." Mary said. Kasumi carefully shook her head. She wanted someone to help her. At that moment, Terry and Kyo walked to them. "We've heard everything, Kasumi. Don't worry. We'll help you." Kyo said. "Ha! We're going to kick some Sakazaki-ass!" Terry said cheerful. "I guess Terry got it concluded in a nuttshell. We will challenge them in a team battle and we will win. And I wouldn't worry about friends. We're right here." Mary said chuckling. Kasumi's eyes started to shine brightly and her smile was more than thanks enough for Mary and Kyo. And Terry? He was just glad he was going fight the Sakazaki's again.
The next day, Terry went down to the shopping mall, knowing he would find Robert there. Robert worked at a car shop in his everyday life, trying to sell people some exclusive cars. So Terry went down to the store and grinned as he saw Robert standing there in his salesman outfit. He walked to him and greeted him with the words: "Hello, Robert. You really look awful in a suit." "What a surprise. Terry Bogard. I don't believe you can afford a bus- ticket, let alone a car, so that's not the reason you're here, right?" Robert returned as soon as he was over his surprise. "You know, you really are smarter than you look, Robert. Not that that's that difficult, but I think congratulations are in order." Terry said as he sticked out his hand. "Stop mocking me, Lone Wolf and state your business." "Ah, yes. Do you remember a certain kid? Lovely little girl. Black hair, ponytail. I believe you beat her up not too long ago." Robert raised an eyebrow. Terry softly knocked on Robert's forehead with his fist. "A bit foggy in there, eh? Does the name Kasumi ring a bell to you?" "Funny, Bogard. What about her?" "She wishes to challenge the Sakazaki's again." "Ha! What a moron. And is she too scared to tell me herself?" Robert said taunting. "No. She's here with me." Terry said. He turned around and motioned Kasumi, who stood outside the store, to come. She walked inside and went to stand next to Terry, looking up at Robert with an angry look on her pretty face. Kasumi looked older than sixteen. Probably because she had to be so independent. "You tell Takuma that I'm going to challenge you all in a team battle. four fighters. And I'm going to defeat you all!" she said. Robert started to laugh. "Where do you get enough friends for your team, little one?" "She has enough. Trust me." Terry said. "I'll pass the message, shorty." Robert said, still with a taunting voice. "Five o'clock this afternoon, at the square behind the factories east of the city." Kasumi said. "We'll be there. And this time, you won't be getting away with it that easily, toots." Robert said. Terry and Kasumi exited the shop and walked down the street to Kyo's home. It was pretty crowded. But it was always crowded on saterday afternoon. "I'm scared, Terry-san." Kasumi said with a soft voice. "Scared of what?" Terry asked, walking with his hands in his pockets as he usually did. "Scared of... the pain." Kasumi said honestly. "That's natural. And fear is good. It usually keeps you alive." Terry said. "But I'm too scared to fight, Terry-san!" "Listen, kid. We're going to fight and we're going to win. The Sakazaki's are cowards, really. And now the odds are even." "But I wasn't even able to defeat just ONE of them. I'll be useless..." "You should've thought of that before you agreed to fight. But you know what?" Terry said before stopping and turning around to Kasumi. "I'll beat the first three and weaken the fourth so that you can defeat him." He said it with a smile. He started to care for Kasumi. He barely knew her, but he felt like protecting the girl. And he wouldn't back out from doing so. "Just relax, kid. We'll win. No problem." he said, putting his hand on her head. "Thank you, Terry-san." Kasumi said grateful, feeling a little more confident thanks to the carefree American. "No problem, kid. Now let's go to Kyo's and have a little snack before we fight. It's no good to fight on an empty stomach I always say." Terry said cheerful. The two started to walk again until they passed a young man. He had blond, messy hair and wore black jeans and a black t-shirt over which he wore a black-red jacket with a star imprinted on the back of it. The boy reminded Terry of someone... Terry and the boy stopped and looked at each other for a brief moment. The boy's eyes then drifted off to Kasumi and sticked there. "My, what a nice girl." he said as he walked to her. Kasumi looked in his eyes and swallowed. There was something... mysterious in his dark-brown eyes. But it sure was pretty. Terry removed his hands from his pockets and put them in his sides. He wasn't really the romantic type of guy, but he noticed something was going on between them. "I'm Rock, fair lady. Who might you be?" "Kas... Kasumi..." Kasumi murmered, feeling uncomfortable. "Kaskasumi. That's a funny name." Rock said with a slight smile and a low voice which was very pleasing to the ear. At least, to Kasumi's ear. She let out a giggle. "You're a bit toady, aren't you?" Terry said to Rock. Rock looked at Terry and then back at Kasumi. "Is this your dad?" "What!?" Terry yelled as he grabbed Rock at his t-shirt and brought his face to his. "Do I look that old, boy?" he asked angry. "Please, Terry-san. It was just a joke." Kasumi pleaded. "I don't like jokes." Terry said. "You got to ask yourself one question." he said to Rock, who was looking at Terry with a bit of a surprise. He KNEW the impatient young man from somewhere... But where? "'Do I feel lucky?' Well do you, punk?" Terry continued. He then started to laugh and let go of Rock. "I always wanted to say that!" he said. "This is Terry-san. He is my friend." Kasumi said. The odd thing was, that she had no oriental accent whatsoever. She had to have been in America for quite some time. Probably her entire life. "Okay, big man. Let's shake hands." Rock said as he sticked out his hand. Terry shook Rocks hand. Rock then turned back to Kasumi. "Hey, pretty lady. What about you and me going out this evening?" "I... I am sorry. I'm not really a partyanimal." Kasumi responded a bit uncomfortable. "Ah, a quiet girl. I like that! What about a little walk through the park this afternoon?" Kasumi bit her underlip. How she would love that. "I... can't. I have to fight this afternoon." "Huh? Such a pretty lady has to fight? What's becoming of this world? Can I help?" Rock asked, offering his services. "Listen, brat. Fighting isn't like in the movies. It hurts. Now turn around, walk away and continue to play with your train-set." Terry said. "I know how to fight, Terry." Rock said with sheer determination in his eyes. This startled Terry a little. Rock was confident. "Okay, kid. Join us this afternoon. You'll see just how tough it's going to be." Terry said with a slightly taunting chuckle.
That afternoon, four people walked down to the square behind the factories. Terry, his hands in his pockets, walked in between Mary and Kasumi. Kasumi wore some casual clothes. Short trousers and a t-shirt with very short sleeves. Next to her walked Rock, wearing the same clothes as when he and Kasumi had met. He was going to take in the place of Kyo. Kyo was happy with this substitute, since he had some important things to do which came up all of the sudden. Family business. Terry figured Kyo was probably going to kick more ass than he and the American was jealous. Terry wore old jeans, his sleeveless t-shirt and his sleeveless jacket. He loved to wear it. It was very comfortable. Also his cap was present. Mary wore a pair of tight jeans and a blue bikini, over which she wore her favored green jacket. Terry of course didn't want Mary to know it, but sometimes he just couldn't help but look at the contents of Mary's beachwear. He tried to convince himself that it were just his hormones. Yeah, that had to be it. He hoped. "I see no sign of the Sakazaki's." Mary said. "What a surprise..." Terry murmered. "Terry..." Mary started. "Why do you hate the Sakazaki's so much?" "I don't like them. And if I don't like a person, then it's for life." Terry answered. "Surely that can't be the reason?" Mary asked. Terry wasn't sure whether he would tell his friends that which only he and Andy knew. But he did. "It isn't." he said. He paused for a moment and his three friends looked at him. "Takuma humiliated my father. And I will never forgive him for that." Rock looked at Terry with a flash of surprise on his face. "Who's Takuma?." he asked. "A filthy coward who beat my father with cowardly tricks!" Terry answered, his voice increasing in volume as he spoke the sentence. "Wha! Just asking!" Rock said, excusing himself. "But... Why are you going to fight them?" he asked. He had just followed Terry and asked no questions. He had nothing better to do that afternoon, so... "To help Kasumi." Mary said. "Oh?" Rock responded. "You got some kind of argument with them?" he asked, looking at Kasumi. The girl nodded. At that moment, Terry noticed four people walking towards them. It were Ryo, Robert, Takuma and a woman whom Terry didn't know. She wore a suit and had blonde hair which she had styled perfectly. Takuma was surprised as he noticed Terry. He walked to him as the other three members of his team stayed in the back. Terry walked to Takuma as well and the two met right between the teams. "Terry Bogard..." Takuma started as soon as he stood right in front of Terry. "Always with that meddlesome nose in my affairs. You're not saying you're going to fight alongside Kasumi, are you?" "I AM going to fight and we ARE going to win, Takuma." Terry answered. "And who's the boy?" Takuma asked, looking at Rock. "Some kid who's hitting on Kasumi." Terry shortly answered. "Ah. Very cute. Shall we begin, Bogard?" Takuma said, not putting a lot of respect in the word 'Bogard'. "The sooner the better, Takuma." the Lone Wolf growled. Terry suddenly felt someone tapping his shoulder. He turned around and noticed it was Rock. "Mind if I go first, big man?" he asked. Terry looked at Rock seriously. "Are you absolutely sure about this?" he asked with a bit of concern in his eyes. There was no need for Rock to get hurt. Rock nodded confident. "I know how to handle myself, Terry." he said. "Okay, boy. Go right ahead." Terry said, letting Rock pass. "Am I going to fight you, gramps?" Rock asked Takuma, who was barely able to deal with Rock's bright comment. "I'm not going to waste my energy on you, boy. You can fight Ryo." Takuma said, beckoning his son to come. Ryo approached Rock with a grin on his face. He would be able to dispose of this kid easily. Takuma walked away while Terry put his hand on Rock's shoulder. "Kid, I..." "I can handle it, big man." Rock said with the same determination as before. He was no coward, that was obvious. Terry liked that in the young man. "Okay, kid. Good luck." Terry said before he walked away as well.
Mary and Terry soon neared Kyo's house. It was a small one in a quiet part of town. Terry was at one side surprised and at the other side not at all when he saw several man trying to bust in the door. "What the heck?" Mary said. She wore her green jacket over her top. Terry and Mary got noticed by the oriental-looking men. One of them did a few steps in their direction and Terry noticed it was Iori. The Lone Wolf recognised the disturbed look in the red-haired man's eyes anywhere. "What's the big idea, Iori? We're not going to break into people's homes, are we?" Terry said. "Keep your annoying ass out of our business, Bogard!" "Family-business, right? I'm very sorry, but I just can't do that. Kyo is my friend. You either leave or get your ass kicked. It's your choice." Terry was getting the feeling this was going to turn into a cliche. "And you think you can defeat the three of us?" Iori asked challenging. Terry sighed. "I've had worse odds, slimefucker. And besides that, Mary is here with me. And you know Mary, right? She twisted your left leg behind your right ear last time we met." Iori looked at Mary. "Still with that poor loser, Mary?" Mary's face turned grim. "Yes." she merely said. "Why don't you ditch him and join me? We can... use such a strong girl like you." Iori suggested, grinning. Mary grinned back. "I'm sorry, but I prefer men with hair on their balls." she said, making Terry chuckle. Iori's look left nothing to the imagination. This latest comment enraged him. Why did Americans always had to be such smartasses? Or had Terry's big mouth jumped over to her? Suddenly, Iori grabbed Mary at her throat and squeezed his long fingernails in her skin. "I can break your puny neck anytime I want, little girl." he said with a growling voice. As a natural reflex, Mary raised her knee and hit Iori between his legs, making him nearly drop to his knees. "Duck, honey." Terry quickly said. Mary swiftly ducked, just in time to feel the movement of air caused by Terry's foot sweeping over her head and crashing down onto Iori's head. Iori stumbled to the ground because of Terry's kick and he looked up at him dazed as his cousins came to his aid. "Honey?" Mary said to Terry, looking at him with a questioning look on her face. "Hey, then he at least knows I'm not talking to him, right?" Terry replied. "Yeah, but you never call ME honey, either." Mary protested, catching an incoming fist with both her hands. "Please don't start THAT again, Mary." Terry sighed, blocking a blow from the left with his right hand and a blow from the right with his left, forming a cross with his arms. "Hey, I happen to be a very sensitive girl, Terry." Mary said, encircling the man's neck with her arm and performing a neat neck throw on him, making him fall with his back on the pavement. "Yeah, right." Terry chuckled, pushing the man away from him before punching him in his face. Mary let herself drop onto the lying man's stomach with her elbow, making him cry out in pain and gasp for air. "Yes, I am, Terry Bogard. I need affection and all that sorts of stuff." Terry punched the dazed man in front of him in his stomach before grabbing him and throwing him over his shoulder. "YOU need affection?" Terry asked surprised. He noticed the man trying to get up, so he struck him hard with his elbow in his face, knocking his lights out. "Yes." Mary said, kicking her opponent in his face as he tried to get up, knocking him down and unconscious. "And I just KNOW you have feelings for me, Terry." "Do we really have to discuss our relation problems in front of strangers?" Terry sighed. "What relation!?" Mary asked indignant. "Yeah, yeah." Terry said, kicking a recovering Iori back to his lying position. "Let's just get Kyo and play a game of basketball, okay?" Mary grabbed Terry at his arm. "Not before we settle this." she said, sounding more angry than she wanted to. She noticed Iori trying to stand up again. She kicked him back down. "Would you stay down? We're discussing very serious problems here." "Listen, Mary..." "No, you listen, Terry." Mary said, turning back to Terry. "I know you're always acting tough and stuff, but just admit that you're crazy about me and then we can go shoot some hoopes." "What!? I am crazy about you? I think it's the other way around, missy!" Terry said, pointing at Mary. "And what if I just go with cute little Iori here?" Mary said, placing her hands on her hips, a challenging smile on her lips. "You better be joking." Terry said with an offended voice. "But he's kind of cute." Mary said, feeling Terry was getting upset. "When he looks at me with his dreamy eyes, I..." Mary started, but Terry ducked and grabbed Iori at his collar. "Are you looking at Mary?" he said threatening. "Huh?" was all Iori could say, his mind in a foggy state because of the punishment he had gotten. Terry punched him in his face and stood up, dropping Iori's unconscious head on the pavement. "NOW he looks dreamy." Terry said, placing his fists on his hips and looking at Mary. "My cute little Terry..." Mary said smiling as she caressed one cheek of him and kissed the other. Terry looked at her surprised. She turned around and walked to Kyo's door. Terry put his hands in his pockets and followed her. "Women." he muttered. Mary knew Terry was crazy about her. He proved it over and over again. And he nearly punched Iori's head through the pavement just because he would've looked at her. Terry indeed gave Mary the attention she needed. The attention every girl needed. But he gave it in his own special way. At that moment, the door opened and Kyo exited his house. "Oh, good afternoon, guys. What was all the noice about?" he said. He wore black jeans, a white t-shirt and a black jacket with short sleeves. He had a basketball in one hand and closed the door behind him with his other. He noticed Iori and his eyes narrowed. "He again." he said with an angry voice. "Doesn't he look dreamy to you, Kyo?" Terry asked. "Eh... Yeah, I suppose so..." Kyo answered. "But seriously, how are you feeling?" Terry asked his friend. Kyo knew what Terry was aiming at. "I left it behind me. I don't like to think about her anymore." he answered softly. "Okay." Terry said with an excusing tone in his voice. Kyo's girlfriend Yuki had died not too long ago. She had been murdered. By who? No one knew. Kyo had been a wreck ever since and Terry kept on trying to chear him up. But alas, to no avail. Kyo had been seeking the murderer and the reason why Yuki had to have been murdered. But he hadn't been able to find any answers. The police had said they would find the killer, but that would probably never happen. So Kyo just tried to forget it. But he couldn't. He had loved her dearly and her death had left him... alone.
Mary watched how Terry and Kyo danced around the ball and tried to get it into the ring. They were both very skilled at it and they had trouble outwitting each other. Kyo was leading by just one point and Terry furiously tried to even the score. Basketball was HIS game and he wasn't going to get beaten by some Japanese guy here! But this Japanese guy was more than competent and he even managed to score another point and Terry trailed by two points now. Kyo was tired and took a break. He sat down on the bench next to Mary and Terry continued to shoot some hoops. He didn't feel very much in shape. Or at least, that was what he tried to tell himself. "So, Mary..." Kyo started. "How's things between you and Terry?" "Boring. But it's patching up." Mary answered with a slight grin. "Really?" "Yeah. Sort of." Mary then noticed a girl walking past the court. It was Kasumi! She wore some casual clothes and walked slowly. She looked very tired. Mary stood up and walked to her. "Hey, Kasumi!" she said. Kasumi looked up. She didn't really want company at that moment, but she didn't want to be rude either, so she stopped her pace and gave Mary a weak smile. "Hello. You're Mary, right?" Mary, who reached Kasumi, nodded and noticed that the girl had cried. Her eyes were red and held a sad look. Kasumi looked at Terry and Kyo, who came walking towards her. "Hi there, kid." Terry greeted. "Hello, Terry-san." Kasumi said respectful as she made a slight bow. "Hey, I like her already." Terry said grinning. "Kasumi, meet my friend Kyo, the worst basketballplayer I've ever met." he said. Kyo and Kasumi shook hands as Kyo said: "Pleased to meet you, Kasumi. Don't pay any attention to Terry. He can't stand losing." "Hey, now that we're with the four of us, we can play a match." Terry said cheerful. Kasumi startled. "No, Terry-san. Please not! I have never played that game before." It was a poor excuse. She just didn't want to play basketball. She wanted to be alone for a moment. Away from the Sakazaki's, away from her father, away from everything... "You're never too old to learn, kid." Terry said, walking to the middle of the court, followed by Kyo. "It's a great game, Kasumi." Kyo said assuring. Mary walked a little closer to Kasumi and said, softly enough for the guys not to hear it: "I don't know what made you cry, Kasumi. But you can forget about it by just playing a little game. It'll help you get your mind off things." Her comforting voice really raised Kasumi's mood. Mary appeared to be a person to talk to. Perhaps Kasumi could tell her a lot. Get things off her heart. As if Mary had read her thoughts, she said: "And if there's anything you wish to tell me, anything at all to release it, just do so, Kasumi. I'll listen." Kasumi slowly nodded. "Thank you, Mary." she said softly. "Hey, would you two hurry up?" Terry yelled. "We're coming." Mary returned. She turned to Kasumi again. "Shall we?" she asked. Kasumi hesitated for a moment, but nodded and walked with Mary to the two impatient boys in the middle of the court. "Finally." Terry sighed. "Okay, so we're going to play America versus Japan. I'm gonna show you something, Kyo." he said, putting his finger against Kyo's chest as he said the last sentence. Kyo grinned. "You're SO going to lose, Terry." He turned to Kasumi. "Right, Kasumi?" "Er... I guess..." Kasumi said carefully. The only thing she knew was that the basketball had to go through the ring attached to the board... Terry, who was holding the basketball, twirled it around on his indexfinger. "Losers begin." he said as he tossed the ball behind his back towards Kyo, who caught it neatly. "We'll see." Kyo said with a grin. He threw the ball to Kasumi, who caught it a bit clumsy. She swallowed. She felt ashamed amidst the people who could play the game so well. But she didn't notice any laughs or humilating comments. "Okay, Kasumi. We're using one pole. You have to get a 'right of offense' at the middle-line before you can shoot at the ring. So if we got the ball and Terry steals it, which his highly unlikely, he has to get back to the middle-line to get right of offense." Kasumi nodded as a sign that she got it. "Okay, just stand in the middle- circle and make the pass." Kasumi did as Kyo told and quickly threw the ball towards him before Terry or Mary could intercept it. "Nice ball." Kyo said as he caught it and started to dribble towards the pole. Unfortunatly for him, he found Terry on his way. "It's not going to be so easy, Kusanagi." Terry said, watching the ball carefully. Kyo tried to outmanouvre Terry, but it wasn't possible, so he just threw the ball with a high angle towards Kasumi. But Mary was quicker. She jumped up and snitched the ball away before Kasumi could even get a shot at it. She was a bit uncareful, though and accidently bumped up against Kasumi, who made a nasty fall on the asphalt. The three friends startled and Kyo was the first to reach Kasumi. "Are you alright, Kasumi?" he asked concerned. Kasumi carefully stood up, helped by Kyo. "I'm f... fine." Her knee hurt terrible, so she stumbled to the bench and sat down. She stripped up her trouser-leg. She noticed her knee was bleeding terribly. "Geez, that's not nothing, Kasumi. Are you sure you're okay?" Terry asked. "I'm sorry, Kasumi. I should've been more careful." Mary said. Kasumi looked up at her and said: "It's okay, Mary. It was an accident." She wondered why they were all so nice to her. No one was ever nice to her. Mary sat down next to Kasumi. "Why don't you guys go and play a little, okay? I'll help Kasumi." "Uh, okay." Terry said and walked to the basketpole. "Girlstuff, right?" Kyo said with a grin. Mary gave her friend a quick smile. "Move!" she said. "Yes, ma'am." Kyo said as he walked to Terry. Mary looked at Kasumi for a moment and Kasumi hesitated. She knew now was the time to tell Mary everything she wanted to tell. But she barely knew her. But Kasumi knew that Mary was a kind girl. She felt it. "Mary..." she started. She gave Mary a nervous smile before she continued. "I want to get something off my chest." "Then speak, Kasumi. Like I said, I'll listen." "O... okay... My father... He wants me to defend the honor of our family against the Sakazaki family. And therefore, he wants me to give twohundred percent and train every day to defeat them. But I can't. I just can't! I've disappointed him so many times and he even told me that he wished he had a... better daughter..." "That's terrible..." Mary said. "And now the only thing I do is train, but I'm only sixteen and I can never beat the Sakazaki's! And I wish... I can have some... friends..." Kasumi spoke the last words softly, affraid to say them. "Hm. Would you mind if Terry and Kyo knew about this? We may be able to help." Mary said. Kasumi carefully shook her head. She wanted someone to help her. At that moment, Terry and Kyo walked to them. "We've heard everything, Kasumi. Don't worry. We'll help you." Kyo said. "Ha! We're going to kick some Sakazaki-ass!" Terry said cheerful. "I guess Terry got it concluded in a nuttshell. We will challenge them in a team battle and we will win. And I wouldn't worry about friends. We're right here." Mary said chuckling. Kasumi's eyes started to shine brightly and her smile was more than thanks enough for Mary and Kyo. And Terry? He was just glad he was going fight the Sakazaki's again.
The next day, Terry went down to the shopping mall, knowing he would find Robert there. Robert worked at a car shop in his everyday life, trying to sell people some exclusive cars. So Terry went down to the store and grinned as he saw Robert standing there in his salesman outfit. He walked to him and greeted him with the words: "Hello, Robert. You really look awful in a suit." "What a surprise. Terry Bogard. I don't believe you can afford a bus- ticket, let alone a car, so that's not the reason you're here, right?" Robert returned as soon as he was over his surprise. "You know, you really are smarter than you look, Robert. Not that that's that difficult, but I think congratulations are in order." Terry said as he sticked out his hand. "Stop mocking me, Lone Wolf and state your business." "Ah, yes. Do you remember a certain kid? Lovely little girl. Black hair, ponytail. I believe you beat her up not too long ago." Robert raised an eyebrow. Terry softly knocked on Robert's forehead with his fist. "A bit foggy in there, eh? Does the name Kasumi ring a bell to you?" "Funny, Bogard. What about her?" "She wishes to challenge the Sakazaki's again." "Ha! What a moron. And is she too scared to tell me herself?" Robert said taunting. "No. She's here with me." Terry said. He turned around and motioned Kasumi, who stood outside the store, to come. She walked inside and went to stand next to Terry, looking up at Robert with an angry look on her pretty face. Kasumi looked older than sixteen. Probably because she had to be so independent. "You tell Takuma that I'm going to challenge you all in a team battle. four fighters. And I'm going to defeat you all!" she said. Robert started to laugh. "Where do you get enough friends for your team, little one?" "She has enough. Trust me." Terry said. "I'll pass the message, shorty." Robert said, still with a taunting voice. "Five o'clock this afternoon, at the square behind the factories east of the city." Kasumi said. "We'll be there. And this time, you won't be getting away with it that easily, toots." Robert said. Terry and Kasumi exited the shop and walked down the street to Kyo's home. It was pretty crowded. But it was always crowded on saterday afternoon. "I'm scared, Terry-san." Kasumi said with a soft voice. "Scared of what?" Terry asked, walking with his hands in his pockets as he usually did. "Scared of... the pain." Kasumi said honestly. "That's natural. And fear is good. It usually keeps you alive." Terry said. "But I'm too scared to fight, Terry-san!" "Listen, kid. We're going to fight and we're going to win. The Sakazaki's are cowards, really. And now the odds are even." "But I wasn't even able to defeat just ONE of them. I'll be useless..." "You should've thought of that before you agreed to fight. But you know what?" Terry said before stopping and turning around to Kasumi. "I'll beat the first three and weaken the fourth so that you can defeat him." He said it with a smile. He started to care for Kasumi. He barely knew her, but he felt like protecting the girl. And he wouldn't back out from doing so. "Just relax, kid. We'll win. No problem." he said, putting his hand on her head. "Thank you, Terry-san." Kasumi said grateful, feeling a little more confident thanks to the carefree American. "No problem, kid. Now let's go to Kyo's and have a little snack before we fight. It's no good to fight on an empty stomach I always say." Terry said cheerful. The two started to walk again until they passed a young man. He had blond, messy hair and wore black jeans and a black t-shirt over which he wore a black-red jacket with a star imprinted on the back of it. The boy reminded Terry of someone... Terry and the boy stopped and looked at each other for a brief moment. The boy's eyes then drifted off to Kasumi and sticked there. "My, what a nice girl." he said as he walked to her. Kasumi looked in his eyes and swallowed. There was something... mysterious in his dark-brown eyes. But it sure was pretty. Terry removed his hands from his pockets and put them in his sides. He wasn't really the romantic type of guy, but he noticed something was going on between them. "I'm Rock, fair lady. Who might you be?" "Kas... Kasumi..." Kasumi murmered, feeling uncomfortable. "Kaskasumi. That's a funny name." Rock said with a slight smile and a low voice which was very pleasing to the ear. At least, to Kasumi's ear. She let out a giggle. "You're a bit toady, aren't you?" Terry said to Rock. Rock looked at Terry and then back at Kasumi. "Is this your dad?" "What!?" Terry yelled as he grabbed Rock at his t-shirt and brought his face to his. "Do I look that old, boy?" he asked angry. "Please, Terry-san. It was just a joke." Kasumi pleaded. "I don't like jokes." Terry said. "You got to ask yourself one question." he said to Rock, who was looking at Terry with a bit of a surprise. He KNEW the impatient young man from somewhere... But where? "'Do I feel lucky?' Well do you, punk?" Terry continued. He then started to laugh and let go of Rock. "I always wanted to say that!" he said. "This is Terry-san. He is my friend." Kasumi said. The odd thing was, that she had no oriental accent whatsoever. She had to have been in America for quite some time. Probably her entire life. "Okay, big man. Let's shake hands." Rock said as he sticked out his hand. Terry shook Rocks hand. Rock then turned back to Kasumi. "Hey, pretty lady. What about you and me going out this evening?" "I... I am sorry. I'm not really a partyanimal." Kasumi responded a bit uncomfortable. "Ah, a quiet girl. I like that! What about a little walk through the park this afternoon?" Kasumi bit her underlip. How she would love that. "I... can't. I have to fight this afternoon." "Huh? Such a pretty lady has to fight? What's becoming of this world? Can I help?" Rock asked, offering his services. "Listen, brat. Fighting isn't like in the movies. It hurts. Now turn around, walk away and continue to play with your train-set." Terry said. "I know how to fight, Terry." Rock said with sheer determination in his eyes. This startled Terry a little. Rock was confident. "Okay, kid. Join us this afternoon. You'll see just how tough it's going to be." Terry said with a slightly taunting chuckle.
That afternoon, four people walked down to the square behind the factories. Terry, his hands in his pockets, walked in between Mary and Kasumi. Kasumi wore some casual clothes. Short trousers and a t-shirt with very short sleeves. Next to her walked Rock, wearing the same clothes as when he and Kasumi had met. He was going to take in the place of Kyo. Kyo was happy with this substitute, since he had some important things to do which came up all of the sudden. Family business. Terry figured Kyo was probably going to kick more ass than he and the American was jealous. Terry wore old jeans, his sleeveless t-shirt and his sleeveless jacket. He loved to wear it. It was very comfortable. Also his cap was present. Mary wore a pair of tight jeans and a blue bikini, over which she wore her favored green jacket. Terry of course didn't want Mary to know it, but sometimes he just couldn't help but look at the contents of Mary's beachwear. He tried to convince himself that it were just his hormones. Yeah, that had to be it. He hoped. "I see no sign of the Sakazaki's." Mary said. "What a surprise..." Terry murmered. "Terry..." Mary started. "Why do you hate the Sakazaki's so much?" "I don't like them. And if I don't like a person, then it's for life." Terry answered. "Surely that can't be the reason?" Mary asked. Terry wasn't sure whether he would tell his friends that which only he and Andy knew. But he did. "It isn't." he said. He paused for a moment and his three friends looked at him. "Takuma humiliated my father. And I will never forgive him for that." Rock looked at Terry with a flash of surprise on his face. "Who's Takuma?." he asked. "A filthy coward who beat my father with cowardly tricks!" Terry answered, his voice increasing in volume as he spoke the sentence. "Wha! Just asking!" Rock said, excusing himself. "But... Why are you going to fight them?" he asked. He had just followed Terry and asked no questions. He had nothing better to do that afternoon, so... "To help Kasumi." Mary said. "Oh?" Rock responded. "You got some kind of argument with them?" he asked, looking at Kasumi. The girl nodded. At that moment, Terry noticed four people walking towards them. It were Ryo, Robert, Takuma and a woman whom Terry didn't know. She wore a suit and had blonde hair which she had styled perfectly. Takuma was surprised as he noticed Terry. He walked to him as the other three members of his team stayed in the back. Terry walked to Takuma as well and the two met right between the teams. "Terry Bogard..." Takuma started as soon as he stood right in front of Terry. "Always with that meddlesome nose in my affairs. You're not saying you're going to fight alongside Kasumi, are you?" "I AM going to fight and we ARE going to win, Takuma." Terry answered. "And who's the boy?" Takuma asked, looking at Rock. "Some kid who's hitting on Kasumi." Terry shortly answered. "Ah. Very cute. Shall we begin, Bogard?" Takuma said, not putting a lot of respect in the word 'Bogard'. "The sooner the better, Takuma." the Lone Wolf growled. Terry suddenly felt someone tapping his shoulder. He turned around and noticed it was Rock. "Mind if I go first, big man?" he asked. Terry looked at Rock seriously. "Are you absolutely sure about this?" he asked with a bit of concern in his eyes. There was no need for Rock to get hurt. Rock nodded confident. "I know how to handle myself, Terry." he said. "Okay, boy. Go right ahead." Terry said, letting Rock pass. "Am I going to fight you, gramps?" Rock asked Takuma, who was barely able to deal with Rock's bright comment. "I'm not going to waste my energy on you, boy. You can fight Ryo." Takuma said, beckoning his son to come. Ryo approached Rock with a grin on his face. He would be able to dispose of this kid easily. Takuma walked away while Terry put his hand on Rock's shoulder. "Kid, I..." "I can handle it, big man." Rock said with the same determination as before. He was no coward, that was obvious. Terry liked that in the young man. "Okay, kid. Good luck." Terry said before he walked away as well.