She didn't get back to sleep, but that didn't really seem to have much of an impact on her. Usually when she got only a couple of hours of sleep, she was drained for the rest of the day and took a nap at any possible interval. But in his body it seemed like no big deal. He was ready to keep going, to burn that few hours of fuel and make something out of it. It was around seven when she finally couldn't stand being in the house anymore. She threw on some running clothes and got going. It was better to be outside anyway. Better to be in the early morning sunlight than that suffocating, dark flat. Usually she would've rather stayed in bed than gone out running. She hated to run. She'd rather exercise any other way possible. But he did it every other day, and had asked her to keep up with it. Maybe she'd been neglecting that request until now.
She did wish he'd have been a little more accommodating to her the night before. She was so terrified, in an unfamiliar place, completely alone. His thoughts only made it worse, convincing her that someone really was there to kill her. He was a complete nutjob, and she was starting to turn into one too. She didn't want to have to think about that. She knew that once this abysmal experiment was fixed, she wouldn't think like he did anymore. The idea made her wonder if he was starting to think more like her. Would he be a nicer person? Or at least, more tolerable? Only time would tell.
A delighted cry caught her attention, which was impressive in itself-the woman had shouted loudly enough for her to hear over the music. Cammy looked up, and saw a woman pointing her phone at her. Her first thoughts were to wonder what the heck the girl was thinking, taking pictures of complete strangers. Then she realized it was just a fan, ecstatic at seeing Vega in person. She didn't stop running, so she was unsure of how great the photo would be as a result. The girl seemed satisfied enough.
Vega seemed so outgoing and charming from what she glimpsed of him in a public setting. So very, very different from what he actually was, and it was almost scary to think about. How could someone so deranged and deadly be hiding in plain sight, thought of as so normal and friendly? She didn't follow him closely or anything. Occasionally her curiosity got the better of her, and she would search his name online. Maybe part of her hoped some story would expose him for what he was. She knew she couldn't do it. She didn't have enough evidence to back the claim in a court room, and could end up in a lot of hot water throwing an accusation like 'terrorist' around. Chun-Li had the same problem, and Vega was very good at covering his tracks-and his face. He'd tell opponents he wore that mask to protect his good looks, and maybe, knowing him, that was part of the reason. But he knew he couldn't show his face to anyone while on his other, less savory job. So he got to keep his little secret from his adoring public.
She couldn't help but laugh a little to herself at the frustrating situation. She had to admit that living in the spotlight like that must've been pretty stressful, so hiding so much of who he was and what else he did had to be pretty difficult. He got a lot of attention, and she would think that the last thing someone leading a double life as insidious as his would want was attention. But he loved it when it was positive, abhorred it when it was invasive, and despaired in an almost pathetic manner when it was negative. Insults left him at a loss, his entire self-worth crumbling in an instant. It was almost pathetic. All the vanity, she was beginning to see, was a self-defense mechanism. If he told himself he was worth something enough times, then it had to be true.
The burning in her throat and legs caught her attention, and she quit with the semi-introspective thoughts. Deciding she could stop for a rest, she slowed to a walk, trying to take more controlled breaths. Her legs ached from the intensity and length of the run. He had a good pair of legs, she decided. Toned and able to endure a pretty long run. He wasn't a bulky and big guy. Her friends like Colonel Wolfman, Guile, and even Ken made Vega look like an underfed kid, but she knew from experience that he was a very good fighter. Relying on strength alone, he believed, was a poor way to go into a fight. To him it was all about speed and momentum. She could identify with that, using the same tactics albeit in a different style. She wasn't weak by any means, but knew her line of work put her into fights with men much stronger than herself. It was senseless to try to be as strong as them, so she had to find other ways to overcome that obstacle.
Closing her eyes briefly, she inhaled one more time and started running again. It was sort of interesting, experiencing life as the opposite sex. There seemed to be advantages and disadvantages to nearly everything. While running, it was a bit of a relief to not have to worry about her chest bouncing around for everyone to see. But on the other hand, it reminded her all too aware that she was, in fact, biologically male at the moment, and she wasn't sure which was worse. She really, really didn't want to think about his genitals, and was almost terrified of breaking something. It seemed like a giant oversight for a body to have its sensitive areas flopping and dangling around everywhere, primed for some awful accident. His mind never even considered that a possibility-he must not have cared too much, what with getting into regular fights with a pissed off bull, nothing between its horns and his crotch but a few layers of fabric.
It was already warm out, and she'd broken into a sweat as a result. It was, at least, a comfortable sort of warmth, one that wasn't oppressive and humid. She wasn't exactly happy with the uphill sections of the run back to his home, but she decided if she ran the entire way, it'd be done with quicker. His body was enjoying the exhaustion at any rate. She'd heard rumors of this 'runner's high' thing, but never really stuck with running long enough to experience it herself.
Barcelona was pretty. But it seemed like the sort of place she'd rather vacation in than live. And she simply didn't like this sort of climate very much. Maybe it was strange, but she didn't mind overcast days. And the cold didn't really bother her much. She wasn't entirely sure how she ended up in London, but she liked it enough to take up permanent residence. When she'd first woken up there, she'd been so confused. Had no idea who she was, where she came from, why she could fight like a vicious animal. She'd later find out, much as she wouldn't want to. By then, London had become home.
It was strange, nearly indescribable. All control over her-or, his-body was suddenly lost. She stopped running mid-stride, tumbling to the ground in the process. Reality blurred into one big mess around her, and she saw rather than felt his body hit the pavement before she was yanked away into a horrifying unconsciousness.
Miles from Barcelona, a slightly irritated young man trapped in the body of an amnesiac young woman was scrubbing away at the dishes. He didn't like doing this, but she'd forced him. How was he expected to eat off of plates that were barely able to be considered clean? He thought about dining out, but didn't want to put forth the effort. It wasn't until he was already halfway through cleaning these dishes that he knew it would have been the easier option. Part of him wondered, who cares about the dishes? He thought he could just get to them later. They weren't going anywhere, after all. But he quickly realized that was Cammy thinking, and sighed with disgust. The girl was a bit of a slob. Weren't girls supposed to be the clean ones? He tried to remember that she was what amounted to a child in an adult's body, and supposed that when he was that young...
No. Even then, he at least knew how to pick up after himself. What did a mindless drone need to know about cleaning?
"Degreaser my ass," he muttered as he drenched the plate in another few tablespoons of dish soap. This stuff wasn't getting clean enough. How did she stand it? These were plates and utensils she'd declared clean enough to use, but some of them still had food on them. Didn't she understand how disgusting that was? Something made a noise at his feet, and he rolled his eyes before looking down. One of the cats was rubbing against his leg again. Didn't the damned things get tired of doing that? Cammy's mind was feeling a little bit of sympathy towards it, and it gave him an urge to pick it up and start petting it. But he wasn't big on animals. He pushed it away with his leg, and could practically feel Cammy's brain pouting about it. Dishes were not more important than the cats.
When it happened, he certainly didn't expect it. He didn't even have time to react. Cammy's body fell limp, and there was a strange tugging sensation, as if he were being ripped away from the only thing grounding him to the world. He watched helplessly as her body dropped to the tile floor, not missing the edge of the sink on the way down.
It was an hour or so later that someone began knocking on the door. The visitor was persistent. "Vega," she called out, glancing around to make sure no one was around to hear. "Or Cammy. Whichever. It's me." Chun-Li waited a little longer, listening intently for movement inside the apartment. She could hear water running in the kitchen, which wasn't too far from the door. So that marked off the possibility of the person inside being asleep. She knocked again, a little louder, and still received no response. Was he so stubborn he couldn't just validate her presence here? She sighed angrily, dialing Cammy's phone. It rang, but no one picked up. "Come on, you jerk!" she said, knocking on the door again. She strained her ears and only heard the steady drone of running water. She bit her lip. What if something was wrong? What if they'd been swapped back? Or what if someone had broken in?
"Hey," she said, loud enough to be heard on the other side. "Hey, come on, please answer me? So I at least know everything's okay?" There was no response, no shuffling feet, rustling cloth, nothing to indicate that anyone was inside, save for the running kitchen sink. "I'm getting a little worried." She tried the phone again, but there was still nothing. She knocked a little more frantically, and finally, she decided, if it was just Vega being rude, then she'd feel better knowing everything was okay. At worst, something was wrong on the other side of that door, and Chun-Li had to know what it could be. With a couple of kicks, she knocked the door open. Hopefully, she thought, Cammy would understand.
Her suspicions were confirmed immediately as she made her way into the kitchen to turn off the running water. Cammy's body was lying motionless on the ground, and one of the cats had taken to bumping its head against hers. Chun-Li dropped down beside her friend, looking her over for injuries. She didn't spot any, and she supposed that was a good sign. But she was at a loss as to what caused this. Then, Cammy's phone rang again. She glanced at it, then back to Cammy, who was still completely motionless. Biting her lip, Chun-Li ventured to answer it. "Hello?"
There was a brief hesitation, and then a dreadfully familiar voice answered. "That was most certainly unexpected."
"Bison." The name was like poison in her mouth. "What do you have to do with this?"
"I'm looking for a status report on either Killer Bee or Vega. I've called both of them a few times now, and this is the first time anyone has answered."
"What's happened?"
"I'm not the one with them," Bison said, impatient and condescending as ever.
Chun-Li stifled a smart response, and instead answered, "I don't know. I'm with Cammy-or, her body, at least-and she's passed out."
"Can you wake her?"
Chun-Li tried shaking her. Smacked her face a little. Called her name. But no response. "Nothing. Not even a twitch."
Bison sighed. "I can only assume that his body is having the same issue. Damn."
"Did you do this?"
"We thought a remote switch may have been possible, and took the risk. Seems we were wrong," he answered. She could practically hear him shrugging with nonchalance. It sickened her that he toyed around with people so easily, even his own comrades. "The 'souls', if you will, should assimilate back to the bodies momentarily. Some disorientation and confusion is to be expected. If it is any consolation, we must be very close, but they will have to come here for this to work."
Cammy's body had no soul in it. What did that make her? "That sounds dangerous," she managed to answer. "For Cammy."
"Then she can stay in Vega for the rest of her life, if she wants, though I'm unsure how happy he will be with that decision."
Chun-Li narrowed her eyes. It did seem like a pretty hopeless situation. Cammy certainly couldn't remain in Vega's body, but it seemed like taking her back to Shadaloo was a death sentence. There was no way she could trust Bison's word that Cammy would be returned safely, and she knew he would demand that no one accompany them on their way to the base. "I'll have to run this by her first."
"She has no other choice," Bison said sternly. "They both come here, or they stay as they are. Do you really want her to succumb to his insanity? To go back to life as an assassin?"
"What do you mean? Cammy would never do that," Chun-Li said. He was just trying to frighten her into compliance.
"For the time being, they have been able to remain as two separate, distinct identities within the same body. But this won't be true forever. The minds of the bodies they inhabit will assimilate their spirits, and in time, you won't know Killer Bee from Vega. His soul will have turned her into an embittered shadow of her former self, and hers will do little to keep him sane."
She put a hand to her head, closing her eyes briefly. The situation was just getting more and more hopeless. Even if, for whatever reason, Cammy did decide to stay where she was, she'd basically end up turning into a watered-down version of Vega. It seemed there could be no happy ending here, and Chun-Li struggled to think of a way to save her friend. "We'll just see about that," she said defiantly and hung up before he could argue. She looked back down at her friend and frowned. There must have been a way to fix this, to make sure Cammy came out all right in the end. "Things will turn out okay," she whispered. "It'll be okay." She was trying her hardest to believe that, anyway.