Disclaimer: Tekken and all associated characters are the property of Namco, and all I'm gaining from this story is pleasure.

-*-

The ground melted away beneath her, and Julia felt herself sinking into the soft dirt. Quickly, the rushing of the sand and gravel against her skin was replaced by the rush of the wind, and she found herself tumbling through a vast, empty space, feeling like Alice tumbling down the rabbit's hole. As she fell, her memories flooded around her, caressing her like warm blankets. She heard the terrible ringing of alarms and panic gripped at her heart as she was hunted. She felt the grogginess of a drug-induced sleep, and she remembered the force of being hurled to the ground on a dark night. She felt the adrenaline rush of following her instincts instead of obeying common sense, and the thrill of being taken for a fast ride through city streets. The musical rhythm once again swayed her to forget her worries, and the gentle warmth of making love flowed through her veins.

But as she fell, the soothing peace of her memories turned to agony, as she felt all the warmth and gentleness of the world being torn from her. She floated hopelessly through the void, feeling a strong, wicked force wrap itself around her, ready to consume her whole.

She sighed softly as powerful arms wound around her waist and she felt the mass of the demon pressing against her back. Thick, leathery wings folded around them, blotted out what little light there was, and in the darkness that followed, the beast whispered to her. "You are mine now, little girl. You are where you belong."

"Yes," Julia murmured quietly, feeling how easy it was to surrender to this monster. Understanding how hopeless it was to fight. After all, what was there to fight for?

Even in the darkness, she could feel the demon's smile, and she felt herself melting into him, losing herself to him. "He will never reach you here," the demon whispered, its breath sending a cooling shiver down her neck, spreading through her body.

"No," Julia whispered back. "He will never reach me… He will never reach me here." As she said the word, Julia eyes opened wide, straining in the darkness, and the breath caught in her throat. The evil that embraced her held its breath also, and a tiny, delicate sparkle of hope sprang alight in her heart. "I do not belong here!" she said, this time her voice confident and certain. At the sound of it, the demon's grip on her loosened. "I WILL NEVER BELONG WITH YOU!" she screamed into the darkness, slamming her fists into the wings that engulfed her, tearing apart the leathery membranes that contained her. As she broke free she gasped, blinding light flooding her senses and she fell to the ground. But instead of the cold, harsh rock she had expected, she landed on soft grass. Opening her eyes, she found herself in a wide field, the warm sun beating down about her.

Turning, she saw Hwoarang standing a short distance away. Her heart thudded in her chest, and unsure whether or not she could believe her eyes, she hesitated in approaching him. "Hwoarang?" she whispered cautiously, searching what she saw for any trace of deceit. When he turned to face her, his eyes searched hers, as though looking for the answer to a question that had yet to be asked.

"Julia," he whispered, and she was sure it was him, although she could not understand how.

"I thought you were dead," she said sadly, tilting her head and gazing at him. She wished to remember every detail, longing to run to him, but afraid that he would only leave her again.

"Don't worry," he told her, seeming to sense the worry that consumed her. "I'm coming for you. I promise." He stepped close to her, and she shut her eyes peacefully as he gently stroked her cheek with his hand. When she again opened her eyes, it was the soft summer breeze that caressed her face. She was alone, but she knew that she would not be like that forever.

As Julia drifted up from the darkness, the first thing that came to her was the soft murmuring of noise. Gradually it began to clear, becoming voices, whispering quietly around her, and the rhythmic beeping of a machine. At first, the tingling was isolated to her fingers and toes, but quickly it swept over her whole body, prickling her to the core. As the numbness lifted, it was replaced by the feeling of a heavy weight pressing down upon her, holding her in place, and with great effort, she struggled to ease the heaviness from her body. As her senses awoke, shadows and lights moved before her eyelids, and a harsh, uncomfortable itching covered the back of her hand, and a dull, constant ache throbbed in her head. Trying to escape the pain, she focused herself on the sounds. A voice was speaking, calling to someone. It was a man's voice. It called to her, and she felt relief and happiness flood through her as she heard it. Fluttering her eyes open, she gazed up into the eyes that were watching over her.

Light, hazel eyes looked down at her. Julia didn't recognise them. "Hunh…" she whispered, trying to form the words she wanted.

"Jules?!" the strange man smiled down at her, before glancing across at someone Julia could not see.

"Hmmm…" she sighed again, blinking heavily.

"Julia!" she heard the cry of a woman's voice come from beside her, and she slowly, painfully turned her head to see her mother leaping out of her seat to lean over her, grasping her hand in hers.

Julia frowned up at her, unsure what was going on. "Mo.. Mother?" she managed to whisper.

"Oh, thank the spirits!" Michelle squeezed her daughter's hand, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Where am I?" Julia asked, her confusion heightened by the pain in her head.

"Oh, Julia!" Michelle gasped, tears falling down her cheeks, too choked with tears to go on.

"You were in an accident," the man Julia didn't know explained. "You fell off your horse. You're in the hospital."

"In the hospital…" Julia repeated his words, as she began to recall what had happened. "Xiao called… and then… there was a snake," she murmured, frowning as she tried to make sense of her memories.

"A snake?" the asked.

"I didn't see it. Tantrum got spooked…" she turned back to her mother.

"I'm just so glad you're ok!" Michelle cried, hugging her tightly.

As she hugged her mother, she looked back at the man. He did seem a bit familiar.

At that moment, another person entered the room, and a loud squeal filled the air. "She's awake!" Hayley bounded across the room, and seeing her university friend, Julia realised why she recognised the man. It was the guy Carrie had introduced her to. But what was his name…

"William! Why didn't you come and get me?!" Hayley chided, as she hurried over and shoved him out of the way, taking Julia's other hand. Julia frowned, looking down at the bed she lay in, trying to sort out all the thoughts flying through her mind.

Michelle turned to William, "Go and get the doctor. Tell them she's awake."

"How long…?" Julia asked, looking back to her mother.

"Three days, my darling," Michelle explained, stroking her forehead softly, and looking at her with concern. We were all so worried.

Once the doctor had visited and checked her over, he said that all the signs were good, but she should stay in the hospital for at least one more night, to keep an eye on her, because head injuries can be very dangerous. When he'd gone, Hayley and William left, but Julia's mother refused to do the same. She sat and watched her as she slept.

Two days later, Julia was ready to leave the hospital. Much to her mother's annoyance, she chose to go back to university, as she was worried that she'd missed too much work, and she didn't want to fail her exams. Hayley and Carrie had been going to pick her up, but Michelle insisted on taking her back to the dorms. Julia hadn't suffered such over-protective parenting since she fell out a tree and broke her leg when she was ten. Michelle still gave her angry glares if she went too close to a tree.

"Mom, please! I'll be fine. I can take care of myself." Julia's protests earned her nothing but a cross look.

"Julia, I really think it would be best for you to come and stay with me for a while, just until you're feeling better," Michelle went on.

"I feel fine already!" Julia exclaimed, for what felt like the millionth time.

"You were almost killed, Julia. That does not make you fine!"

"Mother, really. I'm all right. The doctor said I was in perfect health."

Michelle glanced across at her daughter, and flicked her eyes back to the road. "Julia, Hayley said that you got some bad news from one of your friends, and that was why you were being so reckless. I just think it would be… safer if you were to stay with me. I'm not sure I like that group of friends you hang around with. They could be a bad influence, especially that Carrie girl. I don't want you doing anything stupid."

"Mother! I am not suicidal. And I'm not about to start doing drugs or working as a prostitute because of my friends. Which is stuff that none of them do, anyway!"

Michelle sighed, shaking her head. "Julia, I just want you to be safe. I was so worried about you."

Now Julia felt guilty. She knew that her mother just loved her and was worried about her. She apologised to her as she got out at the dorms, promising to call whenever she needed to, and agreeing to visit her Michelle at the weekend.

As she walked down the corridor to her room, Julia recalled the sound of the telephone that had filled it the last time she had been there, and she was thankful that today it was silent. She sighed, shifting her small backpack on her shoulder as she shoved her key into the lock. It looked like Hayley wasn't home after all. As she pushed the door open and flicked on the light a huge cry went up.

"SURPRISE!"

Julia stared in awe at the sight before her. All of her university friends and quite a few people she didn't know were crammed into the room. A huge banner that read 'Welcome Home Julia' was hung across the window, and there were bowls of party food and a big table of drinks at one side. All the furniture had been pushed against the walls to clear a dance floor and a tacky disco ball had been hung up in the middle of the ceiling.

"Oh wow!" Julia exclaimed, looking around in shock.

"Welcome home, Julia!" Hayley yelled, leaping across the room and catching her in a tight embrace. "We're all so glad to have you back!"

Julia was completely gob-smacked. She couldn't believe her friends had gone to this much trouble for her. Once it got into full swing, the party quickly transformed from a one-bedroom get-together to a mass orgy of celebration, spreading all the way down the corridor, with people arriving from all areas of the campus to join the festivities. One friend or another, all eager to ensure that she was enjoying herself constantly surrounded Julia. She did enjoy the party, despite the usual party mishaps, such as having drinks spilt all over her and getting sore feet from having no where to sit down.

There was also a rather unpleasant run in with William, who appeared to have assumed the roll of her boyfriend while she was asleep, and therefore took it upon himself to advise that she give up horse riding. "It's dangerous, and we don't want you getting hurt! Plus I'm sure if you quit, your thighs would slim down in no time," he told her, giving her bum a playful squeeze. Five seconds later she'd emptied the entire contents of the punch bowl over his head and gone to spend time with people she actually liked. Hayley thought that this was brilliant, and Carrie begrudgingly agreed that he hadn't been quite the man she'd thought he was, and not suitable for Julia at all.

However, despite all the fun and friends, deep down Julia realised that the only person she really wanted to see wasn't there, and it made her heart ache. Eventually, at about three in the morning, when the guests had gone, and the music had been turned off, Julia climbed into her bed, and snuggled down to sleep, squeezing her eyes tight shut, so that she wouldn't cry.

Julia awoke late the next day, squinting painfully at the light coming through the open curtains. "Geez, Hayley. Can't you close them?"

Hayley, who was busy wearily gathering rubbish at the other side of the room, looked over at her friend. "It's 2pm Julia. We can't keep the curtains shut all day. It's not healthy."

Julia groaned, sitting up in bed. "Fine…" she grumbled. She plodded her way across the pigsty of a room, grabbing whatever items of clothing she could find on her way to the bathroom. She stared bleakly at the dark shadows under her eyes and gave another groan. Exams in a week, she hadn't done any studying, and she felt like hell. This'll be fun.

"Hey, I'll help you with that," she offered, emerging from the bathroom and seeing Hayley struggling with a couple of huge bags full of rubbish.

"No, it's fine. I've got it!" Hayley beamed confidently at her. "Is that my top?"

"Um…" Julia answered, looking to see that she was indeed wearing one of Hayley's tops.

"Never mind," Hayley said, dragging the bags toward the door.

"You sure you don't want any help?" Julia asked again.

"I'm sure! I'm just gonna take these out to the bins, then I'll Hoover the place before I go round to Matt's."

"'Kay," Julia nodded at her roommate and the huge bags she was struggling with. "I'm gonna get started on some studying."

As Hayley left, letting the door slam shut behind her, Julia turned to her desk and hauled a couple of books down off the shelf.

Just as she was settling down, she heard a knock at the door. "I guess she needs help after all," Julia mumbled to herself as she went to answer it.

"Hwoarang!" she exclaimed after a few seconds of confused blinking, her eyes widening in recognition. His hair was now a layer of very short black stubble, and rather than his usual grubby biker gear, he wore a smart white shirt and a pair of black jeans, which, from the strength of the colour, were new. He held a single red rose in his hand, which he offered to her, smiling at her recognition, and the fact she seemed happy to see him. Taking the rose from him, she smelt it, smiling happily, before turning her eyes again to gaze at him, unsure what to say next.

"I…" he began, running his hand across his head, frowning at the lack of hair, which he still wasn't used to. "I'm really sorry. I know I left without saying anything, but… I thought a lot about you, and what you said to me… About having a target in life and stuff…" Hwoarang went on, looking down at his feet, not sure how she was reacting to this, as she just kept staring at him, with the same look in her eyes. Taking a deep breath, he continued his speech, which he'd rehearsed a million times while he hitchhiked across the country, but was getting all wrong, now that the time came. "And I realised that… that it was you. You are my target. I want to see you make your dreams come true. I want to see you happy, because…"

Julia gazed at him, searching for what his next words would be, and hardly able to believe that he was really there.

"Because, I love you." Hwoarang looked up at her, staring deep into her eyes, hoping that she'd forgive him, and that she would accept him.

Reaching out, Julia took his hand and pulled him gently into the room, towards her. "I love you back," she whispered, tilting her head up and kissing him softly. He responded by wrapping his arms around her, pulling her into a tight embrace, and kissing her with such passion they were releasing all the pain and tension of the time they'd been apart.

They were still deep in their kiss when Hayley returned a few minutes later. At her embarrassed cough, Julia broke the kiss and looked over Hwoarang's shoulder. Hayley grinned broadly at both of them. "Is that him?" she asked Julia cheerfully.

Smiling like the cat that's got the cream, Julia nodded, before pulling Hwoarang back into another kiss. With that, Hayley gave a whoop of joy, "wahey!"

The End

-*-

And just so there aren't too many unanswered questions:

Julia made Hwoarang go to the doctor and get his leg checked, which was just as well, as it had become a bit infected. Btu with some antibiotics it healed fine.

She took Hwoarang to meet her mother at the weekend. Michelle was pleased that her daughter was happy, although she'd have preferred it if the guy hadn't been a street thug and an illegal immigrant.

Julia did pass all her exams.

Hwoarang got a job on the reservation, helping reforest the land, and is considering going for a career in forestry.

He taught Julia to ride a motorbike, and she taught him to ride a horse.

They still argue all the time, and everyone thinks it's terrible, but they don't mind, because the make up sex is always fantastic.


Hwoarang's hair did grow back, although it took some time. He also dyed it red again, as he thinks black is boring.

If you want to know anything else about this story, then feel free to email me. I don't bite, usually.

I'd like to thank everyone who has reviewed. Thank you to Sarah, Chandavatika, Leda Mayfair, Gizmo, spifferfish, Solaris, Akira14-Raziel, Jenna21, Jenna, crazed reviewer, Hwoarang, Ayanami, :Dark:, Iris Omega, kazzy, L*a*u*r*a, babyg2988, E-chan Hidaka, SSJ Tokya, C*h*e*r*r*i*e*s, Burnsidegirl, Kkornelia, Sammei, Trenay, Princess Michelle, MissDbzMedabots, Kittenwithclaws, Chibi-Sugababy, Legolas Luver, Firebird, The Fire Dancer, double-oh-zero, oreo-panda, zelda, and krappkarmin. All your reviews are so nice (except maybe that one calling me a wart-faced baboon…) and they encourage me to write more. Thank you so much!

Special thanks go to:

My darling boyfriend, Drake - Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thanks for proof-reading all my writing, and putting up with my constant "Are you sure it's ok? Is it dull? Do you like this bit? What about that bit?" Etc.

Princess Michelle - Your stories are inspirational, and you reviews are just so lovely!

MissDbzMedabots - Iris, your enthusiasm for my writing is wonderful, and I love all the encouragement you give me.

Solaris and Chandavatika - You both gave me encouragement early on, without which, I may have given up on this story.

Thank you to the people who have contacted me either by email or MSN because of this story, and thank you to anyone who has read it, but not told me.