Epilogue

Fujisaki shuffled through the park, looked around, and marveled at the brilliance of the morning. Sighing he turned towards the river and stared out at the glistening water. Just a week ago, he found himself caught in a struggle for life and death, and now... Now, back in his home country, everything felt so peaceful, so calm.

Shuichi was back in the studio recording Bad Luck's next single. Hiroshi and Ayaka were seeing each other again. Now Sakano was running N-G productions with Seguchi in a mental hospital; the official PR statement being that Seguchi suffered from "mental exhaustion." Ryuichi was brought back to Japan to rest at home, and was left under Ark's care by K.

K. The tall blond man with a knowledge of guns and a taste for violence. He was still in America, working things out with his wife.

Clutching his stomach, Fuji struggled to hold back the hot tears that threatened to burst free from the corners of his eyes. It wasn't fair. He let himself love and was spurned in return. Memories of K; holding him, soft lips pressed against his own, and gentle love at night threatened the sanctity of his mind.

Turning away from the river, Fujisaki wiped his eyes clear and continued to walk, eager to try and distract himself from thoughts of his former lover. As he went through the park, he began humming a couple measures of Bad Luck's latest song. A simple melody, but with the right backing, it could prove to be a hit.

Off in the distance, as he hummed, he thought he could hear someone playing the backing. With a few notes of a basic melody, it sounded like someone had made a beautiful, flowing chord structure. Someone with a greater musical mind of his own had breathed emotion into an otherwise dull song.

The more he walked, the louder the music grew. Fujisaki began to sing the song to the steady sound of a bow being pulled across strings. Like silvery wine floating through the air, the music surrounded his head and escorted him closer to the sort. Around the bend, he saw a boy, not much older than himself, standing under a tree and cradling a violin.

"So you're my duet partner, eh?" The boy said. His Japanese was thick and awkward, but the mouth that produced the words broke into a smile that warmed Fuji to his core.

"I guess so," Fuji said softly. "Where are you from?"

"America," the boy laughed, "I suppose I don't exactly blend in well with the locals." The boy was right. Tall, with toned muscle rippling underneath his simple T-shirt. His eyes were a bright blue and his hair the palest shade of blond that Fuji had ever seen. His skin was a slight red, though with the slight glow of a tan that was ready to emerge. It looked as though he had spent most of his life in the dark.

"No, you don't," Fuji chuckled. "What did you say your name was?"

"I didn't," the boy said as he extended his hand, "I'm Adam, Adam Forrester."

Fuji took Adam's hand and shook it. "You said your from America?" Americans always forget to bow.

"Yes, sir," Adam said, laughing again, "Specifically from New York, but I was an apprentice with my former employer, so I traveled a lot."

"What brings you to Japan?" Fuji asked as he sat down on a park bench and looked up at Adam.

"Well," he sighed, "My employer recently went out of business, and I was in his care for such a long time, I don't know. I guess I needed to get away for awhile where I can relax and just focus on playing my music," he lifted up his violin as if to demonstrate. "A lot of my employer's clients were from Japan, so I decided to check it out."

"Well you play beautifully," Fuji said. "I'm a musician myself, in fact, later today, I'm headed to the studio to work on a new single with the band, Bad Luck. If you want, I could bring you in, and after I'm done working with them, we could have a little jam session."

Laughing, Adam shook his head, "I don't want to be a bother to you."

"Not at all! They only play synth-pop stuff. It be nice to create music with someone who has a larger scope."

Another smile, "In that case, I would love to," Adam said as he crouched down and placed his violin in its case. "If you're not doing anything right now, would you like to get a coffee with me? I haven't found a decent place since I got here," he wrinkled his nose and laughed, "I'm picky about things like that."

Fuji's face broke into a wide smile. Thoughts of K vanished as he stood in the presence of this person. Someone so kind, happy, and in love with music. For all the pain he had been through, this magnificent person was brought to him. Every time Adam pushed the hair out of his eyes, Fuji could feel his heart flutter.

"I would love to," Fuji said. Everyone has someone to love except for him. It was his turn to find happiness in another. He could feel his cheeks grow hot and he looked away to hide his blush.

Grass parting under foot, he could hear Adam approach. The closer the footsteps, the faster Fuji's breathing. His heart was racing, his head growing light. When he felt like he couldn't take anymore, he felt long, gentle fingers perch under his chin and lift his head up. So close he could feel Adam's warm breath as he heard English words whispered, "Why are you being shy?" Behind the blue eyes stirred intense passion, his voice dripping with sweet, honey-like seduction.

He watched the thin lips curl into a smile and Adam step back, letting his light laugh lift into the air. "You can't show me a coffee shop with your face hidden like that."

Giggling, Fujisaki nodded in agreement. Adam lifted his violin case and nodded back. Together, the two made their way out of the park and into the chaos of the city. The stench, noise, and rush; unable to touch them as they carried each other in their eyes.

Finally, Fuji thought, Now it's my turn to be happy.

After Note:

The end of Abusive Heart II: The Cliffs of Dover. I feel as though I need to clear a few things up, though. Just in case during my hiatus, some confusion arose.

A.F. is not any one's real name. Rather it is a title given to the head of the Dark Terror organization. Those that except the title leave their own name behind and everyone just calls them by the title until their birth name is all but forgotten. Though what those intials stand for remains a mystery. (a mystery to be solved in the third Abusive Heart ;) )

A.F. does not possess magical powers. He is not a demon. He is not some abstract force of evil. He is a man. However, part of the training during the Apprentice years is to gut out all humanity from the body and fill it only with a determination for power. He isn't immune to bullets. Merely, he has taught himself to suppress pain. If his wounds were to be left untreated, he would bleed out and die. Or, if a major organ were to be damaged.

A.F. is a title, passed from person to person. In the first Abusive Heart, the A.F. of that story WAS killed when K shot him in the head. That A.F.'s apprentice (whom was never met in that story) disposed of the body, took the mask, and presented himself as A.F.. Dark Terror does this in order to create an illusion of immortality.

While modern A.F.'s do not possess any super natural powers of their own, the counsel that first formed Dark Terror was rumored to have dabbled in the occult. Even at one point trying to leave America and restart again in England, in order to further their powers (this can be seen in a mini-series coming which will be a Kuroshijitsu fanfic.)

The reason A.F. appears to have powers beyond this world is because he is a master of illusions. The effect of mind control over Shuichi was the result of the chemical he drank. It weakened his conscious and unlocked his subconscious where subtle suggestions had been implanted. A.F. never truly had Shuichi under his control, Shuichi subconscious merely thought he did.

And finally! I need a break... Too much Gravitation. This is the reason why I no longer cosplay Yuki, and why it will be awhile before the third one is released. I figure after getting into some other series, and writing fanfics for different characters, I'll be able to get back into the series with the same love for it I had before. (So odds are, I'll end up cosplaying Yuki again, lol)

Anyways, that's all for now. I want to thank you all for reading and commenting. Your feedback really means a lot to me. I hope that you will read some of my other fanfics that will be coming, and that, when the time comes, you'll once again start reading the final instalment in the Abusive Heart Trilogy. Abusive Heart III: Redemption for the Fallen (and I already know the plot :P )

ONE LAST THING (I promise) In case anyone missed it, yes, in the epilogue, that is The Apprentice from the previous chapters of this story. Fuji and he never met, so there's no why they would recognize each other.

Thank you once again, love to you all, and I hope you continue to enjoy my work.

- Allen Frost