Nashi- I hate to say it, but Kage no aru Murasaki has come to a close… Although… A new story is beginning…
Disclaimer- You all should know I don't own Dead or Alive… I mean, c'mon on now! Sheesh…
Epilogue:
It was hot, but it was a dry heat, and the sun shined brightly in the summer sky as Ayane walked home from the super market. Her bags swayed side to side and the warm air blew against her tank top and jeans as she hurried down the sidewalk, wanting to get home and have dinner ready by five.
Before she used to get looks about her lavender hair, but now everyone seemed to be used to seeing her walking down the street. Every now and then she would get a "Hello" and a "Good Afternoon", some even called her by name. It was… nice…
She finally reached her front door and walked in, the bell above the door gave a jingle as it opened and closed behind her. She used to think that the bell was annoying, but over time she had come to accept it. The store was empty, naturally. They had been closed for the day since Hayabusa went to see her brother.
Arranging her bags she headed up the stairs and to the kitchen. Tonight she would make curry… it shouldn't be too hard and wouldn't make a big mess afterward… She hoped. Last night she somehow managed to get the whole kitchen covered in sauce… Hayabusa had laughed a little and helped her clean up.
With the water boiling, the table set, and everything put away Ayane reclined into the armchair she had claimed as hers. One time both her and Hayabusa had went to sit in it. It was the Dead or Alive tournament all over again as they poked and prodded over who would sit there. In the end, they both sat in it, Hayabusa in the chair and Ayane on his lap.
Ayane flushed slightly at the memory and looked around the room. She had been living here for two weeks now, leaving her apartment as soon as Hayabusa had invited her to stay with him. It gave her less hassles with Hayate, which meant she didn't and hadn't needed to see him since the night he had forbidden her to kill Kasumi.
Hayabusa had offered to get her a bed of her own, but she liked lying next to him. Even though they hadn't really done anything, it was comforting to wake up in the middle of the night and hear his deep breathing next to her or to wake up to his arms encircling her in a gentle embrace…
Ayane angled herself to the side and looked to the kitchen to check her water. Her life had changed… She still went to school, even though reluctant to leave Hayabusa in the morning. Her grades seemed to be improving, probably from the study sessions Hayabusa had given her.
But everything else was… different… She no longer went through her days trying to think of a way to find Kasumi… Trying to find a way to capture and eliminate her… Her thoughts seemed to drift to other things… Almost as if she was just a normal girl.
Also, her sadness about her mother seemed to be soothed… it was now rare for her to have depressing dreams and wake up crying at night… And if she did she would always find Hayabusa awake and sitting beside her, ready to comfort her and tell her it was ok…
Looking around the living room she picked out her things amongst Hayabusa's. In the corner of the room was her trunk. The trunk that held all of her nighttime 'gear', she felt bad about how it now collected dust in the corner. Sometimes she would open it and examine the blades or check her suits.
She didn't have a reason for pulling anything out… She couldn't hunt Kasumi and since she hadn't talked to Hayate since that night she hadn't heard anything about the Hajinmon either…
The Hajinmon… Another thing that seemed to be slipping away from her… The Hajinmon were merely shadows of the Mugen Tenshin, but they were the closest thing, besides her mother, that she had to a true family…
Genma… I wonder how he's doing… it's been do long since I last visited…
Pushing up from the chair she returned to the stove to finish preparing the meal, but the thought of Genma still lingered in her mind. They may not have been blood related but she claimed him as her father…
She felt guilty for not visiting him, but things had been so hectic… and she still didn't finish the mission that he himself had given her… Not truly anyway… Hayate's sham of Kasumi's funeral had probably put the clan at peace, but she doubted Genma would be fooled so easily…
I'm sorry father…
The sound of the door opening downstairs broke through her thoughts. Setting the food aside and turning off the stove she headed downstairs to greet Hayabusa. But when she got there she discovered that he wasn't alone…
"Ayane…" He greeted her, "We have a guest tonight…" His voice didn't sound as if he enjoyed the thought of this guest but Ayane knew why… because he knew she would be upset… He could probably tell by the look of discontent she wore as she starred at her half-brother… Neither of them said anything… probably from not knowing what to say… Ayane turned right back up the stairs…
"Ayane…"
"Dinner will be ready soon…" She mumbled behind her. Hayabusa watched her figure retreat to the second floor and then casted a glance to his friend.
"I told you this was a bad idea…" Hayate said as he ran his hand through his hair.
"She has a right to know…"
"You could've told her… She moved out of the apartment just so she wouldn't have to talk to me…"
"You're her brother… She needs to hear it from you…" With that Hayabsua made his way up the stairs, a reluctant Hayate behind him. Ayane was adding another plate to the table as they walked in.
"That won't be necessary, I won't be…" Hayate began.
"Shut up and take a seat, Hayate…" She said without looking at him. Hayate shrugged off her command and sat down with Hayabsua, "What do you want to drink?"
"Water…" Hayate took notice of how she didn't need to ask Hayabusa for his drink preference and how well she knew her way around the kitchen. Once she had dished out the food Ayane took her seat and they began the meal.
After the first few bites Hayate was surprised at how her cooking had improved. Last time he ate her cooking, which was long ago, he had to take stomach pills afterwards, but this food was actually pretty good…
"Have you taken cooking classes at school?" He asked, trying to break the silence. He hadn't meant for it to sound like an insult, but Ayane seemed to take it that way.
"What does that mean?" She looked up from the plate of food she had been concentrating so contently on to glare at him.
"Your cooking just tastes different. It's improved…" Ayane mumbled something that sounded, or at least should've been, a thank you. The rest of the meal passed in silence aside from small comments between Hayabusa and Ayane about school and the store.
Hayate was surprised to see how close the two had become. Ayane was calling Hayabusa 'Ryu' and he could've sworn that she had made a small giggle; of course, she stopped when she noticed him looking at her.
Once the meal was finished Ayane cleared the table, silently refusing his help, and placed the dishes in the dish washer, "I'll leave you two alone now…" She said once she finished. They had moved to the living room and Hayate sat on the sofa while Hayabusa stood.
"Ayane, please stay… There's something Hayate needs to tell you."
Something Hayate needs to tell me? What? Is he finally going to apologize for being such a jerk?
Ayane sat down in the large armchair and waited for Hayate to say something. Hayate looked uneasy and looked to Hayabusa for help but he only shook his head. With a sigh, he began what he hoped would turn into to large of a battle.
"Ayane… I'm afraid I have some bad news… I know you and I are not on good terms at the moment…" And probably never will be after this… "But this is something you need to know... Something you should've known…"
Ayane suddenly felt worried. What could Hayate possibly know that would concern her so much? She didn't care about the clan's affairs… Could it be something about Kasumi?
Hayate watched her face for a while before he started again, "Genma, the leader of the Hajinmon function of the Mugen Tenshin… disappeared last week…"
Ayane's heart instantly sank… Genma was… gone?
"What do you mean by disappeared? Did he leave on a trip? He probably just left and didn't…"
"Ayane," Hayabusa chimed in, "Please listen to the rest of what Hayate has to say…" Now she was worried. If Hayabusa seemed so concerned about this then it had to be something bad…
"Ayane, Genma didn't leave on a trip… He was capture… abducted you could say…"
"But who…"
"I received a report from a scout I sent… that said that Genma was located… in DOAtech…"
No…Not DOAtech... that means…
"He has been experimented on Ayane… Just like I was… He's no longer the Genma you knew…"
"Hayate, why are you saying this?" Why was he saying he wasn't the Genma she knew? What could it mean?
"Because, as leader of the Mugen Tenshin… I have to kill him…" Hayate hung his head and waited for her to say something.
Ayane didn't think her heart could take what she was hearing. Genma, the one who cared for her as a child and taught her the Hajinmon way, was captured by DOAtech and experimented on? Now Hayate had to kill him?
"No… it can't be…"
"It is Ayane… I too have looked into it…" Hayabusa said.
"Hayate, you can't!"
"I have to, Ayane…"
"Ryu, please…!" Hayabusa shook his head. There was nothing he could do…
"They changed him Ayane… He's no longer human…"
"No!" Ayane yelled, "You're wrong! Genma could never be a monster!" With that Ayane ran to the downstairs, the front doors bell echoed up to the as she ran out of it. Hayabusa crossed the room and looked out the window, watching Ayane's figure running down the crowded sidewalk.
"She's going to need time to think this over…" Hayate slammed his fist into the arm of the sofa.
"Damn it!" He laid his head in his hands and looked to the floor, "Why do I always have to be the bad guy?"
"It is the burden of an elder brother…" Hayabusa said without looking away from the window.
"I just…" Hayate let out a sigh, "I just can't stand watching her cry… the whole thing with Kasumi… and now this…"
"Where is Kasumi now?" Ayane's image had now disappeared from the crowd.
"She's still running… Her 'death' has silenced the clan, but if she's ever spotted again…"
"I see…" Hayabusa sat down in the armchair still warm with Ayane's presence, "It seems that fate has delt you and your sister's cruel hands…"
0000000000
Warm air tossed her hair about her face as she sat on some stranger's front porch. The lights were off and the house was quiet so she didn't think anyone would mind. Not unless she started to break windows or something…
But she felt like breaking something… She wanted to take a baseball bat to all the bright lights and shop windows and send the rest of the world into the darkness she felt. She already had her mother taken from her, why did Genma have to be taken as well?
"It's… not fair…" She half-said, half-sobbed, DOAtech had already ruined her family once when they took Hayate, but now they had Genma… What did they do to him...?
"He has been experimented on Ayane… Just like I was…" Hayate's words repeated in her mind. Genma must have suffered a great deal… He must still be suffering…
"Oh Genma… father…" The tears came stronger now…
"Well now, what do we have here?" Two men approached her from the street, "Now what reason could such a lovely lady have to cry?"
Ayane kept her head bowed and ignored them, "It's such a shame to see a damsel cry…" The man walked closer to her and lifted her chin up with his hand, "How would you like to join me for some drinks, sweet heart?"
The man must've been foreign, his accent sounded Spanish and his hair was long and braided. But that didn't keep Ayane's fist from crashing into the bridge of his nose.
"Vega!" The other man cried out.
"How dare you…" The Spaniard, Vega, said while holding his nose, "How dare you strike my beautiful face!"
The man came at her, she was up and ready. She swung her leg back and quickly brought her heel forward, but she underestimated him… Vega dodged her leg and sent his fist into her stomach.
"Whoa!" His friend said, "Hitting chicks is not cool! You're on your own!" The man turned and ran but neither of them noticed. Ayane was still winded when Vega sent his leg into her said, causing her to fall to her knees.
"You shouldn't start fights you can't finish, little girl… Wha…?" He was taken aback to see her on the ground… Laughing…
"Now…I'm pissed…" She snickered as she got to her feet.
"You should've stayed down! You don't know…"
"…Who I'm up against?" She finished for him, brushing any remaining tears from her face, "I don't care who you are… all I know is that I'm going to beat your face into the pavement…"
People from the street were starting to crowd around as Ayane unleashed her fury upon the Spaniard. Punches, Kicks, everything sped by until she heard the approcing sirens of the police.
"Lucky for you… Stupid foreigner…" Ayane ran into the scattering crowd, leaving the beaten corpse behind her.
Many thoughts passed through her head as her blood pumped through her veins… So while she ran, her mind was made up…
"Please wait for me father… I'm coming…"
And so, with her new mission objective, the purple shadow disappeared into the surrounding darkness…
End story: Kage no aru MuraSaki
Nashi: And there you have it! It took a while but the story has reached its final part! Now it's time for DOA 3… oh yeah! I wanna say thanks to all of my loyal reviewers! I love you all!
Hayabusa: The story may be over, but my problems aren't!
Kurmoi: Oh Ryu! I love you so! (Huggles, gropes, and does many other wrong things…)
Hayabusa: Gah!
Ayane: Man, it must suck to be a hot video game guy…
Unforgiven Gamer: Yep… (sweatdrops as even the Ryu clones shake in fear of Kurmoi)
Nashi: Time for lunch! In celebration of Kage no aru Murasaki, food is on me!
(The three walk off)
Hayabusa: You guys suck!
Kurmoi: Oh Ryu… I'm not done with you yet… (giggles)
Hayabusa: Noooooo!