Disclaimer That Is Getting Freaking Old: I don't own Street Fighter. Nor its characters. The legal system irks me.
Chapter Four
Several days
passed when Hayao saw neither hide nor heel of Remy. He was always
out of the house, and when he wasn't, Hayao was. Remy often simply
sat on his living room couch for hours at a time while Hayao was out
singing. Remy would, under normal circumstances, be reading Sun Tzu's
The Art of War. Remy hated warriors with a passion, but...he
did long to understand their logic. To identify with these
people...is the first step toward re-education.
A rare passing of
the two occured when Hayao's summer break was already two weeks down.
The Japanese boy had just gotten back to Remy's house, and...there he
was, lying on the couch. Not reading, though...just staring at the
ceiling, deep in thought.
Remy's line of vision was obstructed
suddenly by a bright, chipper face and a full, bushy head of purple
hair.
"Hey there!" Hayao said with a smile. "Where've
you been, blue?"
Remy sighed lightly.
"I don't have
to explain myself to you, Hayao."
With that, he rose,
crossing the hall and entering his room, leaving Hayao to sit on the
couch himself, pouting.
"That jerk..."
Hayao laid
helter-skelter on Remy's sofa for about an hour, then looked the
other way as Remy left his bedroom, running a hand through his long
teal hair. Just before Remy got to the door, however, he stopped,
turning to face Hayao.
"Listen, Hayao...I'm sorry I snapped
at you. I just...I'm not a very social person. I don't want to scare
you, and I don't want to upset you. I...I'm sorry."
Hayao
flipped over the arm of the couch, facing Remy with a friendly smile.
"Don't worry about it, blue. I figured you were just having
one of those days. Happens to the best of us." He clapped Remy
on the shoulder lightly, which made Remy chuckle.
"Thank
you...you're very understanding. Now, I must be going. And...if you
want to know, I go out every night to fight. I'm trying to
understand... their mindset."
Hayao instantly understood
this. "Oh! I see...re-education and such, right?"
Remy
smiled again. "Yes...yes, that's right. I'll see you tomorrow."
And with that, he was gone.
Hayao stared at the door for a
while, amazed that Remy had actually taken the time to say anything
to him. He then decided to find another bar and sing his heart out,
as per the norm.
At Horinoya, a well-known sushi/karaoke place,
Hayao sang softly, a slow, melancholy song. It had a romantic feel to
it, though, so it seemed Hayao's style.
"...shiama se
de..." he finished, bowing neatly.
As he left the stage to
wild applause, a Girl approached him. She was...odd-looking, but only
because she looked foreign. Her skin had a chocolate hue to it, and
her hair was a tad short. It gleamed snowy white, and almost made
Hayao squint.
"Hey...I like your singing. It's good to
dance to!" she said, her voice having a tinge of an Australian
accent to it.
Hayao smiled warmly, giggling. "Thank you! I
always like people to dance when I sing!" He extended a hand to
her.
"I'm Hayao Watanabe! What's your name?"
"...Elena."
She giggled as well, taking his hand and gently moving up and down.
Second nature to humans now. Hayao sometimes wondered about
that.
"It's nice to meet you, Miss Elena." Hayao bowed
lightly, releasing Elena's warm hand.
"So...Heard you know
how to fight, Hayao." Elena tossed her white hair behind her
head, only to have it fall over her eyes again.
Hayao shrugged. "I
dabble."
Elena giggled at this. "Think you're up for a
match?"
Hayao looked at Elena blankly. "You think you
could fight me? I mean...I might get hurt!"
Elena smiled,
gently punching Hayao's shoulder.
"Oh come on, dear, you can
do it."
Hayao smiled happily, taking Elena's hand.
"Alright
then! We'll find an alley or something..."
"Or a roof."
Elena pulled Hayao by the hand up the stairs of the bar and to the
moonlit roof.
The two stood on the top of the building for a
second, then Hayao gasped in shock as Elena pulled her shirt and
skirt from her, revealing a two-piece bikini...or something of the
sort. Elena began to step lithely back and forth in rhythm, and she
motioned for Hayao.
"Come on, dear!" she said with a
laugh.
Hayao looked at her for a second, then realized what she
was doing.
"Ah! You're a Capoeira Girl, huh?" He assumed
his stance as well, and nodded to Elena.
"Let's go!"
Elena
giggled, then flung herself at Hayao feet-first with remarkable
speed.
"Rhino HORN!" she cried, as Hayao stepped nimbly
aside and countered with a rising chop attack, dubbed the Orion
Slash, which sent Elena packing. She leaped to her feet, then
assaulted Hayao with kicks as he was forced into the defensive. He
blocked, dodged, parried, and then ducked, sweeping Elena to the
ground with a confident laugh. He leaped back, taunting Elena
playfully with a slightly Girlish pose.
"You can do it!"
he said. This seemed to spur Elena on, as she flicflaced to Hayao,
delivering a sharp kick to his chin. Hayao flew into the air, spun
about, regained his balance, and readied one of his better attacks.
He summoned an incredible amount of celestial power, then released it
in the form of several arrows which rained down on Elena.
"Sagittarius Volley!"
Elena couldn't handle the
energy attacks that Hayao delivered. She let each of the ten bolts
hit her face, chest, and legs, then crumpled to the ground, out
cold.
Hayao fell to the ground quickly, running to the unconscious
Elena.
"Oh no...! Miss Elena! Are you alright?" Hayao
groaned. "I must have been too rough! I better get you to a
hospital!" Hayao took the tall, long-legged African into his
arms, walking back into the bar and outside.
"Ohh..."
Elena came to slowly, looking about her as she did so.
Where was
she? White walls, weird-smelling bedsheets, a steady beeping nearby
her...ah!
"I'm in...a hospital?"
A doctor walked to
Elena's bed, smiling warmly.
"Well, now, Miss Elena. Didn't
expect you to come around so soon!"
"How long?" the
Capoeira Princess asked.
"Just six hours, actually." The
doctor straightened her coat, taking Elena's hand.
"You'll
be fine. I think there's someone who wants to see you!"
Elena
progressed into the waiting room, where Hayao was leaning against a
pillar, sleeping. Elena giggled and cleared her throat, which made
Hayao jerk awake. He smiled brightly when he saw her, approaching
her.
Elena was flabbergasted. "You took me to a
hospital...and waited for me?"
Hayao nodded. "I couldn't
rightly leave you, could I? Oh!" He handed Elena a paper
bag.
"It's your uniform. Figured you wouldn't want to go out
on the street in a bikini."
Elena smiled, brushing a tear
from her eyes. "That's so kind of you!"
Hayao shook his
head. "It was nothing...but I have to go now, Elena. I hope I
see you soon."
Elena leaned forward, kissing Hayao's cheek.
"I hope this moment of friendship will bring you many happy
memories."
