Party Night

“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”  Koruku said quietly.  He was standing outside the spare bedroom of the little house he had, pacing slowly back and forth. 

“No, I think I want to.  You have been very kind to me, and if this is a party in your honor I would be happy to attend.”  Hayden called through the door.

“This is a celebration of the reconciliation between two yakuza families, my part in this is minor, at best.” 

“Would they have reconciled without your participation?”

“No…”  he answered her quietly through the door.

“Then this is as much your party as it is their party.” She finally opened the door and stepped out in the hall.  He tilted his head slightly and said nothing.  “What?  Is something wrong?”

“No…I just rarely see someone or something that looks so perfectly right.”  She was wearing a silk gown in almost iridescent blue shades.  It hugged her frame perfectly, accentuating every detail.  “How does it move?”  She stepped closer to him, and he saw the slit running up her right leg came high enough for her to be able to move around easily. 

“You are very kind, Koruku.”

“I rarely get to share things like this.  Takeda would not be caught dead in a thing like this.  I have acquired many things in my life of service that sit unused and unneeded.  I am glad you I can share with you this one time.”

“It is lovely.” 

“You are both lovely.”  He smiled.

She blushed at the compliment and grabbed the clutch that had come with the outfit.  It had her identification, her combat knife, and a small amount of cash in it.  “So what kind of a party is this going to be?”

“Well, my suspicion is that this going to be the announcement of a wedding between two members of the aggrieved families, which started this crisis in the first place.  So this is best thought of as a festival in two parts.  The first part will be very gentle, easy going as the young lovers are celebrated by their families.  Once the sun sets, the children will be sent to bed and the more traditionally outlandish spectacles will begin.”

“Outlandish spectacles?”

“Sumo exhibitions, martial arts displays, naked people of both genders being used as serving pieces for Sushi, consumption of copious amounts of alcohol, gambling, a host of vices on display.”

“Naked people?”

“It’s a cultural holdover from the distant past.”

“Well this should be something to tell my children about, someday.”

“The day their mother attended a Yakuza wedding announcement?”

“Something like that.”

“I should warn you, if there is a Sumo exhibition, there is a higher 

than likely chance that Takeda will be competing.”

“Is there a women’s league for Sumo?”

“No, but after she slapped the last Yokozuna that questioned her fitness to compete so hard she broke his cheekbone, they agreed to make an exception for her.” 

“That sounds like Takeda…”

“She has had a hard life.  If she had been born a boy, she would have been my father’s favorite.  With her great size, bellicose personality, and immense devotion to the family she would have been the obvious choice to replace our father when he steps down.”

“That’s horrible.” 

“Indeed, but the Yakuza are still a holdout of ultraconservative values within our society.  Someday, maybe her daughter will get a chance to lead the family.  If she takes the time to have a child that is.”  Koruku was dressed in a very formal kimono in simple black but made of a material she couldn’t identify.  “I love my sister dearly.  She has always been more interested in wrestling with the boys than more traditional feminine pursuits.  It pisses her mother off to no end.”

“That’s really sad…”

“I am fortunate that she has the head for numbers that she does.  She is better with facts and figures than I ever could hope to be. I look forward to the day she finds someone.”

“Everyone deserves someone.”

“Indeed.”  He smiled softly at her and extended his hand.  “Shall we visit a den of iniquity?”

“You take me to the nicest places.”

Elsewhere

“Did you overreact earlier?”  Percival asked Heather.  They were sitting in his office, going over a host of details and factors.

“When I saw Captain Quinn?  I doubt it.”

“He is not his brother…”

“Of course not, his brother is dead in a war criminal’s grave on Anywhere and all of his soldiers dead.  Further, the entire 2^nd NIC have been declared Dezgra, along with the rest of the Quinn family.”

“Dezgra?”

“They are the warriors who have stepped away from the honor road, the way a warrior should act an behave to both their fellow warriors. They have no honor, and are not given the benefits of being honorable warriors.  Hunting them down and killing them is a point of honor for most clan warriors.”

“Could you explain clan honor to me?”

“I could try, but it will take a very long time, and I am not sure you have the patience for it.”

“Try me.”

Elsewhere

Carter relaxed in the beach chair, sipping a very fruity drink from a coconut and enjoyed relaxing under the sun.  He was sitting on a beach, watching people go by.  He saw a familiar profile cut across his line of sight and chuckled. 

“Hey Carter.”  Adrian smiled as he walked up to where Carter was sitting.

“Adrian, how’s the break treating you?”

“Pretty good, the beach is nice, the surf is nice.  There’s a lot of eye-catching scenery.”  Adrian looked over a couple of attractive young men. 

“I’ve kind of always wanted to ask you about that tattoo you have.” 

“The pink rabbit on my ass?”

“No, that lion on your bicep.”

“Oh, the kitty cat.”

“Yeah…what’s that?”

“The lion itself is the Lion of Chaeronea.”

“What’s that?”

“Chaeronea is a village in Greece on Terra.  The lion was built to sit atop a tomb erected in honor of the Sacred Band of Thebes.”  Adrian put up his hand.  “The Sacred Band of Thebes was an elite formation of paired warriors who went to battle for their home and their countrymen.  The extraordinary thing is that these pairs of warriors were also lovers.  They fought together, lived together, and loved passionately.  The Sacred Band proved themselves the match of every fighting force they ever encountered, including the vaunted Spartans.  They were finally defeated in battle when the rest of the Theban army fled the battlefield.  They died to a man, dying for the man beside them.” 

“I had no idea…”

“The banner underneath says Thebes, in Ancient Greek, and the banner above says Love Conquers All in the same tongue.” 

“That’s profoundly deep. 

“We are the people we are, Carter.  Might as well be loud about it.” 

“So what are you doing?” 

“Heading over to a club to meet up with Reggie and the guys.” 

“Sounds like a good time.”

“Want to join us?”

“Sure, I don’t have anywhere else I am supposed to be.”

“Come on, it’ll be fun.”

“Ok.”  Carter grabbed his drink and followed Adrian along towards the club.  “Adrian, why haven’t you ever checked me out like that eye candy you were giving the once over?”

“Oh, I have, but I never got the impression you were interested.  Was I wrong?”

“No, you were right, but a guy likes to be appreciated.” 

“Do we need to find you a girl while we are on world?”

“Nah, I think I can find one of those.” 

“Have you seen the new redhead Percival hired?” 

“I think I saw her once in passing.”

“Take a shot, you might be surprised.”

“Have you seen the redhead Hayden’s hanging out with?”

“I have in fact.  He’s gorgeous.  Hayden is a lucky woman.” 

“You think he’s okay?”

“I think he’s a welcome distraction in a world full of problems.”

“That’s not the same thing.”

“No, but I think he is probably a good guy.”

“She’s been through a lot.”

“Yeah, she has.”

“Why don’t we ever talk like this?”

“Because we don’t usually hang out like this.”

“We should do that more often.”

“Bro.”

“Bro, “Carter smiled and followed him into the club.

Later

Hayden had to admit that this was not the kind of party she was expecting.  There were two ostensibly opposed families sharing the great hall of a third family who had agreed to host the event.  She met the young couple that had started the trouble and she was sort of surprised by how affectionate they were towards each other.  There were aunts and uncles everywhere and the younger cousins were running around and playing like small children played everywhere in the galaxy.  She wondered if clan children played games…

The families at the center of this grievance both had dozens of retainers at the party, and she was pretty sure that underneath the suit jackets, every single one of them was armed with a pistol or a blade of some kind.  They were very respectful of her, but she suspected that had more to do with Koruku than an intrinsic value of her own.  She watched him work the crowd, taking pictures with various dignitaries and members of both families.  She was sipping a glass of a local fruit punch when one of the other young women sat down next to her.

“Hello.” Hayden greeted her with a nod.

“Which one of these bullets paid for you this evening?’ 

Hayden spat her drink out.  “Excuse me?”

“I said which one of these bullets paid for you this evening?  Are you simple?”

“No one paid for me this evening.” 

“So you are just stupid enough to believe that one of these bullets is a suitable partner for you in life?”

“Have I offended you in some way?”

“You existing on the same planet I do is offensive.” 

“Excuse me?”

“I will not, you here with one of these fools is intolerable.  This is my house and you are unwelcome anywhere near it, whore.”  The woman’s hand flew faster than Hayden had expected but didn’t make contact.  Surprise crossed her face and then it twisted in agony.  Koruku had caught her hand before she could strike Hayden and was currently applying a hold Hayden had never seen to her thumb.  The older man who was with Koruku’s face betrayed no emotion but his ears twitched. 

“Hayden, my dear, are you having an issue?”

“Nothing that I could not have handled myself, dear.”  She nodded 

at him. 

“Good, good.  Have you met our host, Genfu?” 

“I am afraid I have not had the pleasure.”  She turned and bowed to the older man.  He returned the gesture.  Koruku had not released the girl’s thumb and she was crumpling to her knees trying to relieve the pressure.

“How is his daughter behaving this evening?”

“We had a bit of a misunderstanding, but I think it has been resolved now.”  She watched the pain in the young woman’s face.

“Hariko, has it been resolved?”  Koruku asked her quietly.  She didn’t respond and he twisted a little harder.  She grimaced in pain and replied sharply.  She slowly nodded and Koruku released her.  “Good, I am glad you have resolved your issues.” 

“My sincere apologies, Miss Shields.”  The older man bowed.

“They are unneeded, I have gotten worse from the Jade Falcons.”

“You have encountered the clans?”  The old man said with trepidation. 

“Erewhon, Anywhere, and Apollo, to name a few of the places.”

“You are most resourceful to have survived against such foes.”

“We paid a high price for our survival.”

“I understand, I think.” He turned his attention back to the young woman. He barked something in Japanese and she was escorted into the family residence.  “Forgive Hariko, please.  She is young and foolish.”

“We all are at that age.”

“Please enjoy the party.” He bowed one final time and returned to the other guests.

“That was unnecessary, Koruku.”

“Yes, I am sure you could have handled it yourself, but in the moment I let myself move as the universe needed me to.  I offer my apology if I have offended you.”

“Koruku, how did my friends ever get close enough to you to kidnap you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t play coy with me.  I’ve seen how fast your hands are.  You are perfectly capable of defending yourself.  How did they kidnap you?”

“I chose not to defend myself…”

“What?”

“I could have defended myself, but that would probably have gotten one of your friends hurt.  I rarely consider my life to be important enough for another person to suffer harm in defense of it.”

“You don’t consider your life important enough?”

“All life is precious, I have never ascribed to the idea that mine is more important than anyone else’s. “

“But mine?”

He frowned and nodded, “In this instance, you are my guest, and I would not want harm to come to you while you are here.  If you had struck Hariko, that would have been an insult to Genfu and his family.  That would have led to a considerably unpleasant evening for you, and I would be responsible.”

“Still protecting me?”

“Only from the things that I expose you to.  I am sorry.”

“Don’t be, It’s kind of nice for a change of pace to be taken care of.” 

“For as long as you want to be taken care of.” He bowed and smiled.  An officious looking man carrying a camera smiled at the two of them and asked for them to stand together.  Hayden smiled and Koruku did likewise, posing together for a very official picture that Hayden would think fondly of in years to come.