~Disclaimer: Tekken and its characters are owned by Namco. This story is for entertainment purposes only. Anyone that's offended by this story, go read BryanxJin yaoi. Anyone that's not, thank you. I mean it. Enjoy.~

~Author's notes: Revised and editted on October 16, 2002 with a seperate and extended epilogue. This fan novella is in fact, Tekken 1 fanfiction, and aside from one character and some alluding in the plot, there is no mention of Tekken 3's story. This is not a romance by nature, so even though there are "couples" (if you can call them that) in this story, that is not the primary focus of the plot. If that bothers you, then go back to the FF.Net link page and choose another story to read. If not, or if you're brave enough to venture into this story, then I wholeheartedly thank you for your time. You won't regret what I have say, if you have the patience to read.~

Canto

Chapter One

He sat outside the gas station, waiting, like he had been told, and sitting in the shade of the canopy and on still warm concrete. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, which was to be expected during the summers there, and the dusty horizon stretched out as far as the eye could see. He squinted and shielded his eyes, then smiled when he saw that shiny black sedan appear against the dry skyline. Lee Chaolan stood up and dusted off the faded blue jeans he was wearing and grabbed the old bookbag that had been sitting next to him as the car finally pulled to where he been waiting. The car stopped, engine still running, and the young man smiled at the tinted window then frowned at his reflection.

He was a mess. His pewter colored hair was going every which way, and just like his jeans and tennis shoes, the light green sweatshirt he was wearing was covered in dirt from all the walking he had done. His eyes had dark rings under them, and his lips were dry and cracked. For a moment, he felt like running away again, until the window rolled down, breaking his trance.

"Are you going to get in or stand there and gawk?" his brother asked coolly. Lee nodded once stiffly at Kazuya, then trotted over to the other side of the car to get in. The older man's face was drawn down in a taunt frown as he watched the silver haired man sit down and slam the door in one swift motion. Lee then glanced over at Kazuya then quickly looked down at his hands, which were trembling despite how tightly they gripped the dirty backpack on his lap.

"Thank you," he said softly. His older brother nodded once and put the car in reverse to pull out.

As expected, it was a long, silent trip. Neither man turned on the radio nor attempted conversation with the other. Occasionally, Lee would glance over at Kazuya. It was obvious that the older Mishima had just come from work, since he was still clad in a clean white oxford shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and the top button undone, however. And he wore neatly pressed black slacks and carefully buffed black loafers. His jet black hair was, as usual, slicked back, but there were a few wild strands hanging in his face today, and Kazuya would constantly bring up a hand to swipe them away in vain. Lee let out a heavy sigh and leaned back into his seat, still cradling his bag like it was a child. He then closed his eyes and listened to the soft, tuneless humming of the car engine.

He drifted off into a dreamless sleep for the rest of the trip. The only thing that woke him was muffled sounds of the electric gate to his family's estate creaking painfully open, and the younger Mishima brother blinked slowly and sat back up. Outside the windshield, he could see the considerable greener land that spilt out in front of the manor, which was still about a ten-minute drive away. The gate finally finished opening, and the car moved forward into the well-tended grounds.

Kazuya finally spoke first, "You're lucky I didn't tell him you were gone again."

"Hm?" Lee turned his attention to his older brother. "Tell who?"

"Dad. He's out of town again." The older man's gaze was still forward as he drove on the white gravel road that led up to their home.

Lee frowned slightly, "Oh. Thank you."

"Don't mention it." A slight smile cracked on Kazuya's lips. "You got further out this time."

The grey haired boy rubbed the back of his neck, "Yeah, but I still ended up calling you to come get me. I'm pathetic."

"No, you're not. Your common sense just finally kicked in at the last minute," Kazuya's grin grew, and he glanced over at his little brother. "I would had missed you, you know."

"You keep saying that, but I don't believe a word of it."

"No, no," he laughed, "I would have. I actually was getting worried." Lee lifted a brow, shook his head, then looked out his window; there weren't any trees, however the grass kept getting greener and greener the closer Kazuya drove to the manor. Lee then pressed his forehead against the warm, darkened glass and sighed heavily.

"What's wrong with me?" he murmured.

"You just need to get rid all that teenaged mod angst you still have," his older brother sang.

"Stop it, Kaz. It's not funny."

"Who said I was joking?" Kazuya slammed on the brakes and put the car in park. He fully turned to face Lee and lifted a brow, his smirk gone. "I'm being serious. Whatever it is, you've been spewing this 'nobody loves me' shit since you were in high school. It's getting old."

"I've never said that," Lee protested; he hugged his bookbag to his chest in response to his brother's sudden preaching.

"Of course you haven't," the dark-haired man sighed, and his frown deepened. Lee blinked once at Kazuya then turned away.

"Don't you..." the boy began softly, "I mean, don't you hate him too?" His grip on his bag tightened as he felt his eyes watering up. He managed to blink away the oncoming tears, however, and turned back around to face Kazuya. He was surprised at the expression that his older brother had. Kazuya was still frowning, but it wasn't as threatening as it had been just moments before. In fact, it was a rather placid and oddly sympathetic look.

Kazuya looked away and placed a hand on the steering wheel. He didn't answer but instead put the car back in drive and stepped on the gas gently. The car crept forward then gradually sped back up to the steady pace that it had been traveling at before. Lee refused to look at the older man and continued to clutch his backpack. He then rested his head against his window again to watch the world slowly be swallowed up by the massive home that loomed forward.

The car finally stopped in front of another pair of iron gates that stretched open. Kazuya sat quietly, both hands on the wheel, and his gaze was still on the house in front of them. There was only a bit a road left until it turned into driveway. The gates halted with a final moaning creak, and the car moved forward again, however this time at a considerably slower pace.

Lee sat up, but still kept his head turn toward his window. The sun was starting to set, and the sky was blossoming into brilliant hues of tarnished bronze. There was the light of mansion luminating the way now, ugly and wan yellow light. He felt his stomach tighten as they drew closer to the manor.

It was a beautiful home, three stories tall, and made of grey stone, obviously several decades old. It had been there since the 1920s, when Kazuya and Lee's great-grandfather had made a fortune with his appliance factories. The iron gates were still the original ones that were placed there, only with a few modern modifications for convenience, such as the remote control entry. Barely visible from the front was the garden. A strange thing to see in the Southwest, but was still well kept and noticeably Oriental in design, with the large bright crimson and gold poppy blooms and cherry blossom trees that contrasted the grey statues and stone posts that decorated the garden. There was even a small rock garden placed in the northeast corner of the garden, usually raked everyday by the boys' father, though neither brother really held an interest in Zen practices as the older man did. In the front of the home was a dried up fountain, decidedly covered in dried ivy. Like the rest of the house, it was made of grey, weathered stone, and, despite not being any water, made for a gorgeous centerpiece for the estate home.

The driveway wound towards the back of the manor, and the garden came fully into view as Kazuya continued to drive. Lee lifted his head as he noticed his father was home now, carefully raking the sand around his rocks. The older man turned his attention to his son's black Oldsmobile when it passed him, and he adjusted the navy blue yukata that he was wearing, wiped his brow, and then went back to raking. The silver haired boy shuddered a bit and looked over at Kazuya, whose gaze was still fixated forward, his mouth still in a tight frown.

"I do," Kazuya said softly as they drove away from the garden and down a steep hill that lead into the garage.

Lee lifted a brow again, "Hm?"

"I hate him." The car slowed and pulled in next to a dark green Cadillac Deville and stopped; the engine still murmured softly. The older Mishima brother still looked ahead, now at the white sheetrock wall of their garage. "I hate him more than you do."

And the engine stopped.