Author's Note: Yay! Another update! I had two days off in a row, so I decided to work on this (rather than one of my other projects. I'm trying to do too much... oh well). Gotta write that angst... yeah...
I know that no one cares, but... once I finish revising the last chapter, there will be an NC-17 version of this story up on . It won't be totally hentai; it'll just involve one sex scene between Alba and Chae Lim (in the first chapter) and then later, one between Iori and Kasumi. Personally, I think it'll make the story deeper (using sex as a plot device. Yeah, I'm awesome). But, out of respect for the readers who don't want to sift through that, I'll keep this one clean. You perverts who do want it can go to .
Anyway, on to Chapter Two. Let's do this thing!
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Five-Leafed Clover
Sequel to 'Even My Shadow Left Me' a fanfiction by Strike To Incinerate.
Chapter o2 - Striped Carnation (Refusal)
--
"Hello, ladies and gentlemen,
I'm glad you've graced me with your presence
You're in time to see me wrestle with my conscience
And staring in the si-si-si-silence
You see, I came to save the stage,
I hope I'm not too late
Passion called from back behind the curtain screaming,
"Sonny, this is urgent" "
The One-Armed Boxer vs the Flying Guillotine by From First To Last.
--
It was the middle of the night when Alba woke up, Chae Lim lying next to him on the black leather couch. They were both half-covered with the thin green blanket, and Chae's light blue, button-down shirt was opened enough for him to tell that she hadn't bothered to put her bra back on.
Between the curtains, he could see the night sky over downtown Southtown, with pin-prick stars desperately trying to outshine the city lights.
Carefully, he slid off of the couch and stood up, trying not to wake her.
In the aftermath of what they'd done, he felt guilty, and more confused than before.
Did he take advantage of her love for him? Or did she take advantage of his guilt over not remembering her?
Now he could see that it was reckless. There was no thing as no-strings sex, and in this situations, those strings were the ties that bind. In the morning, she would wake up, smile, and offer to make him breakfast. She was sweet, and she cared about him; it was inevitable.
But none of his questions had been answered.
Was he a different person now? Was she a different person? He didn't know how he could love someone without knowing them at all... acting on pure emotion felt... illogical.
In fact, as he watched her sleep, so serene with that enigmatic smile on her face, he found his thoughts wandering, wondering if he was dreaming about him...
and it freaked him out.
It made him feel paranoid, and then, angry. He didn't have the heart to wait until she woke up to tell her that it wasn't going to work, going the way they were headed. They couldn't get his memory back by having sex.
And it scared him, how much he cared about her. The very fact that he knew the look on her face when he said, 'I'm leaving' would break his heart and make him feel like the world's biggest asshole, scared him shitless.
He just could not do it.
He couldn't pretend to be the person he had been, because he couldn't even remember who that person was. Or who she was. Or anything. At all.
So he grabbed his keys. He found her address book laying on the table, next to a stale, half-eaten take-out box of white rice. He looked up L. Meyrink, and found the address. He left her a note. He left the apartment, and went to the car.
Whoever Luise Meyrink was, he had to feel less overwhelmed with her than he did with Sohn Chae Lim.
--
"Thank you for meeting us here, Yagami-san."
An older woman, with graying brown hair and blue eyes bowed to him. She was wearing a still, purple cotton kimono, and her face was blemished by wrinkles. Beside her, leaning against the wall, was an older man with long, ink black hair and a trimmed moustache. His arms were large, and he was tall, for a Japanese man, easily four inches taller than Iori. He had a stern look, but his brown eyes betrayed the fact that he was a father; they looked as if they could soften at any minute.
These were Kasumi's parents; her traditional mother, Shizuka, who wished for her daughter to stay home and become a wife and mother, like the many Todoh women before her, and her father, the patriarch of the Todoh clan, and head teacher at the Todoh School of Kobujutsu, where Kasumi was not allowed to work, who wished for his daughter, his only heir, to carry on his legacy through teaching and bloodline.
Iori had never before seen them both in the same room. Probably because Shizuka Todoh was always at home, and Ryuhaku Todoh was never at home.
"Yeah, well... you said it was urgent, about Kasumi," he replied, the easy answer. "What is it?"
"We heard that you were dying... and we'd like to extend our sincerest apologies about that," Ryuhaku said, giving a slight nod.
Iori frowned a little. 'The hell? Not like you made that stupid deal with the Orochi. Hell, you probably don't even know about it. You probably just think it tuberculosis or something, just like those stupid asshole doctors,' he thought, but he held his tongue. He didn't have the energy to get into an argument with both of Kasumi's parents, and he knew that if he did, it would only make her more upset. She didn't even know he was here; she thought he was at a club, rehearsing with his band. She was still at the apartment, making dinner and watching television, maybe even on the phone with Mai. "Uh... thank, I guess," he replied.
"We're very sorry to hear that someone as young as yourself is in such poor health. It's a shame," Shizuka added.
He shrugged. "So... are we actually going to talk about Kasumi, or what?" he asked them. He was getting sick of their formalities. He hated that traditional crap, and was glad that Kasumi never did it. Even normal politeness ticked him off sometimes.
The Todoh elders looked at each other, and Ryuhaku nodded. Shizuka cleared her throat, and said, in a very clear, firm voice, "Please stay the hell away from our daughter."
Iori was taken aback, both to hear the prim, traditional mother use profanity, and that she was just now, after they'd been dating for three years, telling him to stay away from her.
"Uh... you know that even if I was willing to, she wouldn't listen to you, right?" he informed Shizuka.
Ryuhaku stepped in. "I'm begging you. Please... leave her alone now," he replied.
Her father had more influence over Kasumi, he knew. In fact, her father's actions had influenced Kasumi for the past ten years. She still considered him to be one of the best martial artists in the world, despite all the evidence to the contrary, and for some reason, did not resent him for deserting her family. She didn't even consider it 'deserting'. She just blindly blamed Ryo Sakazaki for her father's shortcomings.
"Why? Why now?" Iori countered. "You didn't even care for the first three years--" he began, looking at Shizuka, "-- and you weren't even around. You definitely don't have the right to ask me that," he finished, looking at Ryuhaku. "Kasumi searched for you for YEARS. You show up now because you don't approve of us dating?"
Ryuhaku swallowed. "It isn't that. I'm sure your good enough for my little girl, if you've been together this long..." he said, and his wife elbowed him hard enough to make him cough. Apparently, she didn't agree. "All we want is to spare our only child the pain of losing someone she loves."
"Pain is life. Kasumi's a big girl, she can deal with it," Iori replied harshly.
"Do you want to put her through that?" Ryuhaku said. "Do you think that's fair, that she has to carry all of that on her shoulders?"
"You think I want to fucking die?!" Iori bellowed. Ryuhaku jumped, but Shizuka did not. "No. I don't. It's not my fault... I don't want to leave her all alone..."
"You think she'll be alone with out you?" Shizuka said quickly. "She won't. She wasn't alone before she met you, and she won't be alone after you're gone. You narcissist; do you honestly think that you're the only person she has? She has a family, she has friends... she'll be fine without your punk ass."
No one had spoken so plainly to Iori since his own father had died. He felt a little intimidated.
"That's right; I don't care about how many people you've supposedly maimed and killed. To me, you're just a punk-ass kid who's about to hurt my only child. You don't scare me at all... the only thing that scares me is the fact that very soon, my daughter will be emotionally scarred for the rest of her life."
He wanted to counter that they had never been the perfect parents to Kasumi, that they had no rights to make her decisions because she was an adult, but... he just couldn't.
He couldn't tell them that they were wrong.
Because he knew that it was going to kill a part of Kasumi when he died, and the only way to stop it was to make her hate him now. And that would kill him in more ways than one.
"... I know," he said quietly. For the first time since his childhood, he felt tears, not of pain, or hate, but of pure distraught, sting his eyes. He couldn't bear to hurt Kasumi like that. It was already killing her, to have to deal with all of his shit with the doctor's and watching him waste away...
And her parents had just offered the solution.
She didn't have to watch him die. She could hate him, and move on, to someone who was wonderfully uncursed, someone who could marry her and safely have children, someone who would take care of her and treat her well all of the time...
strangely, it was a comforting thought.
Probably because it was what he wished he could do.
"I... I'll break up with her tomorrow. I'll let her know that you're home... she'll come running back here," he told them, his mouth suddenly dry, a lump in his throat.
"Thank you," they said in unison, both of them bowing to him.
He stood up, nodding... and flipping over the chair as he walked away.
It hurt more than his blood-riot, but it was the only thing he could do.
He wasn't going to let this curse bring Kasumi down, too.
--
'I'm going to stay with Luise Meyrink. I'll call you if Soiree wakes up.
I wish I could remember who we were.
Alba.'
Chae Lim read the note a few times, standing in the kitchen in nothing but her button-down shirt. She crumpled it in her fist. At first, she felt angry and used; get in, get some, get out, huh? But, then, she realized, that it was hard for her to play victim when she'd practically forced herself on him.
He didn't remember her, so for him, she had been some random girl who really, really wanted to get into his pants.
She sat at the table, folded her arms, let her head fall into them, and cried.
After ten minutes, she was hiccupping, and she'd run out of tears. Her face was red, her head throbbed, and she felt hungry and depressed. She felt slovenly and insecure. She felt jealous, too; whether he remembered it or not, he (and Soiree) had once had a dream about Luise, which had led to a city-wide manhunt for her, before the second King of Fighters tournament, back in 2006. They'd never found her, but Alba and Soiree both had a special nickname for her: 'Fraulein'. She'd always felt a little jealous that Luise and her supermodel-elegant looks would steal Alba away. After all, Alba was good-looking, intelligent, a man of power... why the fuck would he want a girl like her? Why would anyone?
She was going crazy... she picked up the phone, and called Mary.
"Oh... honey..." Mary soothed. "He's just being a man, you know? He wants to do things on his own, feel like a big boy. You just have to let him do those things. He'll come back once he has his memory. He'll remember how much you mean to each other."
"But--" she was sobbing again, "I was supposed to help him remember! Why... why would he go to her? I mean, I know she's European and sophisticated and rich and beautiful... but..."
"Honey! Don't talk like that!" Mary scolded. Chae Lim sniffled. "Her accent is so ridiculous. You can't understand what she's saying half the time! And secondly, you've got discipline. You're sophisticated in your own way. You're a cop; start acting like one. Go break down that woman's door and take Alba into protective custody. Place him under house arrest until you can get some evidence. Real cops don't sit around and cry and wait for suspects to find them; they go out and do their job!"
"I can't do that," Chae Lim said. "I need probable cause. A search warrant."
"You've got probable-fucking-cause!" Mary retorted. "Love! That's the most probable cause of all!"
Chae Lim laughed. "Yeah, well... I can't go kicking down doors. Maybe I should just give him some space to do his man-thing. It's not like... he'll really just switch to her, right? Not in his condition... he's smarter than that!" she replied, feeling a little better.
"That's the spirit! There's my girl!" Mary said. "Hey... I got an idea. Later, you want to go out for some Karaoke?"
Chae's secret weakness; Karaoke. She loved making a fool of herself with all of her friends. It was a great stress reliever.
"Yes. That'd be great," she replied, her smile growing.
"Good. I'll bring Terry, and Rock, too. That kid needs to get out and have fun with others his age. Everybody's been ignoring him lately, poor guy. 'Cept for that creepy little underage girl... man. She pays a little too much attention, you know?" Mary said.
Chae Lim laughed a little. "Alright, it's a date. What time are you going to pick me up?" she asked.
"Oh... 'round seven or so," Mary said.
"Okay... thanks, Mary. I really appreciate it," she said.
"Oh, honey, it's no problem. I'm glad I could cheer you up. I'll see you at eight."
Feeling better, and with the prospect of fun on the horizon, Chae Lim hung up the phone and went to take a shower.
--
"Alba? Zis is a su'prize," Luise said, opening the door for him.
"Oh... well, I woke up yesterday. Did Chae Lim not tell you?" he asked her, stepping into her apartment. She closed the door behind him.
She shook her head. She was more beautiful than he had expected, in an unusual, exotic way; long, silvery hair, the brightest blue eyes he'd ever seen... a svelte figure, and elegant manner. The kind of woman that went with his car.
It was annoying and confusing, that in the back of his mind, a voice was going, 'Well, yeah, but you know Chae's even more gorgeous...'
"Huh... Zat iz strange..." Luise said. "She 'as been keeping in contact vith me since she woke up... I just assumed--"
"I guess I was just too distracting for her," he cut in. Hearing her talk about Chae made him think about the girl and feel bad for just leaving like he did. He wanted to ignore it, and focus on his amnesia.
Luise laughed. "I suppose so," she replied. Her laugh was melodic, light... pleasant to the ear, but not as enrapturing as Chae's.
He had to stop doing that... comparing her to Chae.
'Forget Chae. I don't even remember her. I need to remember everything... that's what I need.' His inner voice wasn't as confident as he would have liked.
"I'm glad to see zat you are vell, z'oh..." Luise continued.
"Well, it was all thanks to you, Fraulein," he replied. "You footed the bill for that hospital stay. Can I repay you in any way?"
She shook her head. "Oh... no. Zat iz not nese'zary..." she said gently. "I 'ave too much money any-vay. It vas nice to be able to do zom'ting for others for a change," she finished.
Alba nodded. "Well... thanks. If you ever need something, just tell me," he said. "I really owe you one."
She smiled again. "Vell... I assume zat zis iz not a social visit... and surely, you did not come all ze vay 'ere just to thank me, nein?" she asked. "Is zere som'ting you vanted to talk to me about?"
She was intuitive, and kind. He felt much more at ease as he talked to her. "I... can't stay with Miss Sohn," he said.
The formality he used startled her for a moment. "I see... you've lost your memory..." she said. She seemed thoughtful for a moment, and then continued. "Vell... I guess you vere just unlucky. Are zings awkward vith you and Chae Lim?" she asked him.
He nodded. "Not for her... but for me. She seemed willing to accept my amnesia... but I can't..." he explained. "I feel like it's smothering me."
"Did som'ting 'appen?" she asked.
"In a manner of speaking," he answered.
She chuckled, blushing a little. "Vell... you are alvays velcome 'ere," she told him. "I 'ave a spare guest room. You can sleep there, until you figure things out."
"Thank you," Alba replied, leaning in to kiss her cheek.
Unknowingly, Luise turned her head at the last moment, and their lips touched. Alba instantly pulled away, giving her a funny look.
"It's down ze hall... door ein on ze left," she told him quickly.
He walked, briskly, towards his new room.
Luise touched her lips... musing on how little Alba knew, and what Chae Lim could have told him so far. When they'd talked, she'd seemed to have little recollection of Rekha's actions. All she knew was that Rekha had tried to make her copulate with Soiree, but was unable to, and that she had been involved in a ploy to leave this planet and destroy it. She couldn't remember why, or how, those actions had come about. She just felt guilty for turning against her good-loving nature.
But... if Alba did not have his memory, and Chae Lim had told him nothing of Addis or Jivatma... then there was a chance that he never would know of it, and it would minimize the possibility of Judiem, and therefore, Rekha, resurfacing again during their lifetimes.
Luise bit her lip. She did not know what she would do... she walked to her room, wondering if it was still her place to meddle (to save innocents certain pain), or if she should, as Rekha had always told her, just leave them alone.
--
"Hey, sorry about not telling you... I mentioned to Yuri that we were going to Karaoke to cheer you up, and she wanted to come... it's cool, right?" Mary asked, as she, Chae, Rock, and Terry went to sit at the large booth.
Chae nodded. "Yeah, it's cool..."
"Well, she brought King, Mai, Ryo and Robert, too... you sure it's cool?" Mary continued.
"Mary, she said it's cool, so it's cool. Jeez, the more the merrier, right?" Terry said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.
Chae nodded, smiling brightly. "It's fine. It'll just make it more fun," she agreed.
Mary had picked her up promptly at seven, and she'd piled into the backseat with Rock. She had changed from her normal jeans to a pair of slim black pants, and a dark green top with three-quarter sleeves. She wasn't wearing much make-up; just some eyeliner and lipgloss.
Aside from Mary, she didn't know any of the people there very well. She'd only heard about Terry from various people, and Rock and Alba had stopped hanging out after Soiree had disappeared. Rock seemed nice, but constantly plagued with women troubles; he was awkward around girls, and the one who was the most willing to get to know him was more like a stalker than an admirer.
But, it brought their total up to nine people. A waitress came by, and took everyone's order for drinks; Ryo, Robert and Terry had beers, King, Mary and Mai had various cocktails, and she, Yuri and Rock all ordered sodas.
"Okay... who's going first?" Mary asked, standing up.
"Oooh! Since we're here to cheer Chae up, why not her?" Mai suggested, bouncing happily.
Chae blushed. "Uh... okay."
"I'll go second!" Yuri volunteered.
"I'm third!" That one was Mai.
"Rock's going fourth," Terry put in.
"Do I have to?" The young blond whined.
"Hell yes, you do. You're not going to just sit around and sulk. We brought you here to hang out with other kids your age. Don't be rude," Terry said, taking a sip of his beer.
Yuri and Mary chuckled, and Chae went up to the karaoke machine, picking up the mic, and flipping through the song book. Most of the songs were in English... and so, she didn't recognize many. One did catch her eye. It was the theme song of a movie she and Mignon had watched together one night while waiting for Alba and Soiree to come home after their 'business meeting'.
She put in the CD, and picked the track.
The guitar introduction began, acoustic, soft and slow.
She cleared her throat, and began to sing with the words on the screen.
"And I'd give up forever to touch you, because I know that you feel me somehow.
You're the closest to Heaven, that I'll ever be, and I don't want to go home right now."
Ryo and Robert snorted, eliciting punches from their girlfriends. Yuri and Mai looked at her with sympathy, and Rock was very still.
Her voice was calm, but full of emotion, soft, but seeming to fill the room... and she didn't feel like herself. She felt different... but they were still her feelings.
"And all I can taste is this moment.
And all I can breathe is your life.
But sooner or later, it's over. I just don't want to miss you tonight."
The guitar picked up, electric and bass joining it, with the drums finally adding depth.
"And I don't want the world to see me, because I don't think that they'd understand.
When everything's made to be broken... I just want you to know who I am..."
She had sung that more loudly than she'd meant to, putting more emotion behind it than she'd expected. The song was more appropriate for her state of mind than she'd realized.
She kept singing, until it was over.
Mai, Mary and Yuri stood up and clapped, cheering for her, and King sat with a serene smile, clapping slowly. Ryo, Robert and Terry toasted their beers, and Rock was still very silent.
Chae went back to her seat, feeling proud of herself, just a little... she felt better, too, getting that off her chest. It had been a little melodramatic... but a good song. She'd have to download it to her iPod.
"That was really good..." Rock whispered to her.
She smiled at him. "Thanks... Karaoke's really popular in Korea."
"Yay! My turn!" Yuri said, bouncing over to the machine.
--
They'd stayed there for hours, until closing time, singing almost a hundred songs, and racking up more than a hundred dollar's worth of drinks. Mai ended up joking that they should do Karaoke at King's bar instead, because the drinks would be free.
Chae went back to Mary's car, and Rock opened the door for her.
It was then that King came jogging up to them, that same small smile on her face. "Ah, Mary... can I talk to Chae Lim for a moment, oui?" she asked.
Mary shrugged. "Sure."
"Merci," King to looked to Chae. "You're a very good singer," she complimented.
"Thanks... I mean... I'm just glad that I don't totally suck."
"Suck? Non non non. Quite the opposite, actually..." King continued. "Listen, I was wondering if you could help me out of a bind... My house band went back to Japan. The bassist got sick. I've been trying to find replacement acts for them, but nothing's been working out..." she explained. "I was wondering if you could sing in the longue of the Illusion for me. I have a wonderful piano player, and I can find you a guitarist. I'll pay you for each gig, too."
Chae bit her lip and looked to Mary. "I... don't think I can. I mean, I have to get back to working at the police station soon, and I'm really not that good..."
"Just on the weekends, please," King begged. "I haven't been able to find anyone... just for a couple of hours. I'll pay you whatever you want."
Chae found herself unable to refuse. "Okay... but if they boo me off the stage, it's your problem."
King laughed. "Yeah, right... Thank you, Chae Lim. I really appreciate it," she said. "How about tomorrow at six?"
Chae nodded. "I'll see you then."
--
Yeah, that's the end of chapter two. I had to work really hard to finish this one up today... But, it's done, so I can keep going. I've got three more chapters planned... whoo.
Review, please.