Gennai's Garden: Late Night at the Hotel
by Kakita Kaori and Utaku Yamada
A story of the Space Ronin, Shinwa, in an age of Space Travel, wherein our heroes acquire a goldfish...
It is raining, and the light of the neon signs reflects brightly in the shiny streets. Gennai's Garden is actually a generally pleasant planet to take leave on, and the sake is good, but the locals are all particularly pious and not many are out roaming the streets at night.
None of the locals, in their homes, discos, sake bars, or temples, know what might bring a Hida Pragmatist to their planet outside the 'Sweet Yomi' hotel, but the Hida herself knows.
Tetsuko found the fresh air and bright lights a little unnerving. She was used to the controlled, almost claustrophobic envisionment of the Kasai. The chuubushi barracks on board didn't leave much room for privacy.
But there was something in enjoying simple pleasures. And in forgetting things.
She headed into the hotel bar. Any eyes that looked her way when she entered looked quickly away when they saw the tall, broad-shouldered Hida woman. She wore a dusty blue kimono over a tight black body suit. She sat at the bar and ordered shotgun, straight. The bartender chose not to question her and when he was done serving offered a courteous smile. At a safe distance.
The hour is late enough that the bartender's smile looks sleepy as he pours the drink, not bothering to make conversation or do much else than cleaning up after the day's business. The clerks at the front desk are lazily engaged in their own quiet conversations and try to avoid the Hida's gaze. This is not a fancy place after all, and traffic is very quiet, especially on a weeknight.
A phone call to the desk, however, seems to cause a significant stir to the clerks there, and suddenly there is large amount of quiet chatter. Both of them look towards the Hida, as if interested in speaking with her, but finally seem to decide it's safer just to leave her be.
About ten minutes later, a tall, ruggedly-handsome ronin with long black hair throws open the door, looking around the hotel suspiciously. He is dressed in a plain trenchcoat braced with plain metal armor-plates in the shoulders for a small amount of additional protection, and it is clear from the way his coat moves he carries a daisho on his obi. His eyes fall on Tetsuko thoughtfully for a moment, but he ignores her to turn and speak with the clerks. You can see him remove a fistful of credit sticks from his obi and lay it on the desk. The clerk sweeps them up.
Tetsuko turns slightly at the arrival of the ronin, glancing over her shoulder for a moment then turning back. Wave-men, they had their uses at times but other than that they couldn't be trusted.
She struck the bar with her fist and called for another drink.
The bartender quickly nods, and fetches a clean cup. He adds some ice and starts to pour.
The door to the hotel opens, and two beings of roughly humaniod size, but with the faces, limbs, and tails of a rodent, wearing very cheap cotton yakuta, enter the hotel. They peer around cautiously.
The two at the front desk back away nervously and point to the elevator.
The ronin passes one of them the keycard he has been given and gestures to the elevator also, hurrying the pair along.
Of course, by this time, they are joined by three more... one clearly female and holding a small...well, it seems an infant.
Another three...a female and two small, but mobile ones...probably children?
Four more...the lobby is getting crowded.
The first two hurry hesitantly towards the elevator and push the button.
"Kiru-san..." the ronin says... "It looks like they could use a small amount of assistance getting to the rooms. Could you please help everyone get upstairs? They are in rooms 308 to 327."
The bartender startles as he realized he has overflowed his glass while staring, and hurries to fetch a fresh one.
Tetsuko turns to stare. She had seen Nezumi before, but not in such numbers.
"Is this some sort of infestation?" Her voice carries across the bar to the lobby. Surprised, not hostile, but with a steel edge.
The ronin steps smoothly past the group of Nezumi to intercept Tetsuko's gaze, knowing full well that Kiru is unlikely to be charitable if he hears. They don't need trouble.
He takes in the woman with a quick once-over, and then turns sideways to look up towards the mirror that hangs above the bottles behind the bar. "Hida-sama. I see a group of paying customers visiting with the permission of the Asako." His face is perfectly calm. "If you see some problem with the hotel that is causing you, personally, trouble in any way, then please let me know so I can avoid the problem. I would prefer to avoid problems right now if possible."
Tetsuko looked down at the ronin. "Perhaps I should be wary of fleas then, with that many rodents about."
The ronin pauses, as if just about to say something provocative in response, but he instead exhales slowly and bows, deeply, appropriate to his position as a mere ronin.
"Wariness of fleas for a samurai is wise when speaking with a ronin, Hida-sama." he offers blandly. His tone is oddly formal and measured, like samurai from an old B-Movie. "Fleas have long been a part of the story of the ronin, the symbol of the hard life on the road and our uncouth manners. But my manners should not trouble you for much longer."
The nezumi are leaving the lobby as the elevators fill and close and carry them off, one load at a time. But more enter. Probably 30 nezumi all told are passing through.
Tetsuko snorted in derision. "It's not you that is troubling, wave-man, but the company you keep."
Kiru does as he is told, not taking issue with the insults offered—he has a Tribe to protect. The vagabond leads his remaining kin up to their rooms, choosing to take the stairs instead of the lift (after all, Shinwa's rotten luck might cause the elevators to break down midtrip). He whispers reassuringly to a worried mother, even as something rustles out of his neck scarf and darts off to climb up the wall nearby.
The next time the offensive Crab samurai-ko goes to taste her drink, she notices it has three rodent droppings floating in it, only just in time to prevent herself from putting the glass to her lips.
The glass drops from Tetsuko's hands with a smash. With a massive arm, she clears the bar of glasses and bottles, knocking them all to the ground. She also collects a harmless goldfish in a bowl, the bowl falling to the ground and caught just in time by the bartender. She takes out her tetsubo, bringing it down on the bar with a splintering crack.
"What sort of joke is this?" She thundered at the bartender, the ronin, the Nezumi and anyone else who cared to listen.
Shinwa, and only Shinwa, hears a quiet whisper in his ear: "There's more where that came from if angry boisterous woman wants some more."
Rik has by now comfortably scampered up Shinwa's boot and clinging to the back of his coat between his shoulder blades.
Shinwa exhales slowly....for those who knew him well it would be a long-suffering sigh...and steps back away from the angry Hida. He keeps his face impassive and his voice neutral.
"Hida-sama, since neither I, nor the Nezumi, nor any other visible being were near you or your drink, and you watched the barkeeper clean your glass and prepare your drink, I must conclude that the answer is that your various invocations have inspired the wrath of the Fortune Ekibyogami and she has given you the courtesy of a warning."
His gaze is calm but steady.
"Now, since the magistrates may have already been called, since this is a Phoenix planet, we may deal with this warning of the fortunes in one of three ways."
He brushes his trenchcoat back to reveal the tsuka and tsuba of an antique steel katana.
"First, I can offer to acquire for you a drink and we shall toast Ekibyogami together in the hopes she avoids us both. I can speak of you kindly to the magistrates and we will hope all will be interpreted as a great misunderstanding."
He pauses.
"Second, you can heed Ekibyogami's warning and leave to toast in whatever company you so choose."
He lays the top of his hand on his tsuka, but his posture is still casual.
"Or third, you can attempt to continue your destruction and I will feel obliged to put my blade in service of these most gracious people," he gestures at the bartender and clerks, "to protect them and their property. As I said, I would prefer to avoid problems. But I have guest obligation to protect the home of my host when it is under threat."
Dueling with a sugar glider between your shoulder blades will be an interesting challenge.
Dying while dueling with a sugar glider between your shoulder blades while defending a Phoenix cheap hotel where you put up a bunch of Nezumi for the night from angry Hida bushi...well some stories end in a way that must be considered more 'Unusual' rather than 'Glorious'.
The lobby and bar were silent, everyone still and watching the Hida. The tension was palpable, it was as if everyone was holding their breath.
"All I know is this," Tetsuko said, meeting the ronin's eyes, one hand still on her tetsubo. "Until the rodents showed up, there were no rat droppings."
Shinwa slowly moves his hand away from the hilt of his katana, but it is still near it.
"I would not know, Hida-sama. Do you come here often? A lady like yourself I would expect in a far more respectable establishment than this."
Is he....flirting? He keeps his face neutral. It is hard to say.
If he was flirting, Tetsuko either didn't notice or didn't care. She opened her mouth to speak, and had she done so there might have been violence. But instead, another Hida entered the hotel. Just as tall as Tetsuko, just as brawny and with more than a passing family resemblance. He surveyed the room for a moment, a long moment for everyone else. With two Hida bushi there, anything could happen. But he wasn't angry, he seemed more...amused.
He walked up to Tetsuko, barely surprised at the damage she had caused. He had clearly seen the like before.
"Tetsuko-chan, what happened?" He asked, his voice gently mocking her. "Do I have to explain to Ayumu-sama why my nikutai is in the lock up again?"
Surpringly, these words seemed to soften Tetsuko. She even looked a little ashamed. "It's...rats...Nobu-kun," she said. "Fleas, droppings...pesky things."
Nobu laughed, a big hearty laugh full of merriment. He clapped Tetsuko on the back. "Is that all? Surely there are others more worthy of your strength imoto."
Tetsuko nodded, looking down and walking out, avoiding the stares of everyone.
Nobu clapped some currency on the bar, more than enough for repairs as well a few drinks. He made a bow to the bartender and the ronin. Courteous, even for a Crab. "Sorry about the mess," he said, then followed his sister out.
Shinwa returns the bow with excellent, if slightly dated, courtesy. He manages to keep his face free of a smirk, but it is dancing behind his eyes. He does not answer the Crab, but as he rises his eyes follow them out thoughtfully.
Once they are gone, he finds a seat at an intact portion of the bar near the poor goldfish. With a gesture of his hand, he summons the bartender over, and says, "Something decent. Something strong. Bring two. And domo arigatou."
When the bartender brings his drink and sets it down before him, Shinwa turns to the goldfish, raises his glass in a toast, and says, "To Ekibyogami, may she pass us by, and to Fukurokujin, Kingyo-san. For we have both lived to write another chapter."
The goldfish's mouth opens and closes in silent agreement.
A story of the Space Ronin, Shinwa, in an age of Space Travel, wherein our heroes acquire a goldfish...
It is raining, and the light of the neon signs reflects brightly in the shiny streets. Gennai's Garden is actually a generally pleasant planet to take leave on, and the sake is good, but the locals are all particularly pious and not many are out roaming the streets at night.
None of the locals, in their homes, discos, sake bars, or temples, know what might bring a Hida Pragmatist to their planet outside the 'Sweet Yomi' hotel, but the Hida herself knows.
Tetsuko found the fresh air and bright lights a little unnerving. She was used to the controlled, almost claustrophobic envisionment of the Kasai. The chuubushi barracks on board didn't leave much room for privacy.
But there was something in enjoying simple pleasures. And in forgetting things.
She headed into the hotel bar. Any eyes that looked her way when she entered looked quickly away when they saw the tall, broad-shouldered Hida woman. She wore a dusty blue kimono over a tight black body suit. She sat at the bar and ordered shotgun, straight. The bartender chose not to question her and when he was done serving offered a courteous smile. At a safe distance.
The hour is late enough that the bartender's smile looks sleepy as he pours the drink, not bothering to make conversation or do much else than cleaning up after the day's business. The clerks at the front desk are lazily engaged in their own quiet conversations and try to avoid the Hida's gaze. This is not a fancy place after all, and traffic is very quiet, especially on a weeknight.
A phone call to the desk, however, seems to cause a significant stir to the clerks there, and suddenly there is large amount of quiet chatter. Both of them look towards the Hida, as if interested in speaking with her, but finally seem to decide it's safer just to leave her be.
About ten minutes later, a tall, ruggedly-handsome ronin with long black hair throws open the door, looking around the hotel suspiciously. He is dressed in a plain trenchcoat braced with plain metal armor-plates in the shoulders for a small amount of additional protection, and it is clear from the way his coat moves he carries a daisho on his obi. His eyes fall on Tetsuko thoughtfully for a moment, but he ignores her to turn and speak with the clerks. You can see him remove a fistful of credit sticks from his obi and lay it on the desk. The clerk sweeps them up.
Tetsuko turns slightly at the arrival of the ronin, glancing over her shoulder for a moment then turning back. Wave-men, they had their uses at times but other than that they couldn't be trusted.
She struck the bar with her fist and called for another drink.
The bartender quickly nods, and fetches a clean cup. He adds some ice and starts to pour.
The door to the hotel opens, and two beings of roughly humaniod size, but with the faces, limbs, and tails of a rodent, wearing very cheap cotton yakuta, enter the hotel. They peer around cautiously.
The two at the front desk back away nervously and point to the elevator.
The ronin passes one of them the keycard he has been given and gestures to the elevator also, hurrying the pair along.
Of course, by this time, they are joined by three more... one clearly female and holding a small...well, it seems an infant.
Another three...a female and two small, but mobile ones...probably children?
Four more...the lobby is getting crowded.
The first two hurry hesitantly towards the elevator and push the button.
"Kiru-san..." the ronin says... "It looks like they could use a small amount of assistance getting to the rooms. Could you please help everyone get upstairs? They are in rooms 308 to 327."
The bartender startles as he realized he has overflowed his glass while staring, and hurries to fetch a fresh one.
Tetsuko turns to stare. She had seen Nezumi before, but not in such numbers.
"Is this some sort of infestation?" Her voice carries across the bar to the lobby. Surprised, not hostile, but with a steel edge.
The ronin steps smoothly past the group of Nezumi to intercept Tetsuko's gaze, knowing full well that Kiru is unlikely to be charitable if he hears. They don't need trouble.
He takes in the woman with a quick once-over, and then turns sideways to look up towards the mirror that hangs above the bottles behind the bar. "Hida-sama. I see a group of paying customers visiting with the permission of the Asako." His face is perfectly calm. "If you see some problem with the hotel that is causing you, personally, trouble in any way, then please let me know so I can avoid the problem. I would prefer to avoid problems right now if possible."
Tetsuko looked down at the ronin. "Perhaps I should be wary of fleas then, with that many rodents about."
The ronin pauses, as if just about to say something provocative in response, but he instead exhales slowly and bows, deeply, appropriate to his position as a mere ronin.
"Wariness of fleas for a samurai is wise when speaking with a ronin, Hida-sama." he offers blandly. His tone is oddly formal and measured, like samurai from an old B-Movie. "Fleas have long been a part of the story of the ronin, the symbol of the hard life on the road and our uncouth manners. But my manners should not trouble you for much longer."
The nezumi are leaving the lobby as the elevators fill and close and carry them off, one load at a time. But more enter. Probably 30 nezumi all told are passing through.
Tetsuko snorted in derision. "It's not you that is troubling, wave-man, but the company you keep."
Kiru does as he is told, not taking issue with the insults offered—he has a Tribe to protect. The vagabond leads his remaining kin up to their rooms, choosing to take the stairs instead of the lift (after all, Shinwa's rotten luck might cause the elevators to break down midtrip). He whispers reassuringly to a worried mother, even as something rustles out of his neck scarf and darts off to climb up the wall nearby.
The next time the offensive Crab samurai-ko goes to taste her drink, she notices it has three rodent droppings floating in it, only just in time to prevent herself from putting the glass to her lips.
The glass drops from Tetsuko's hands with a smash. With a massive arm, she clears the bar of glasses and bottles, knocking them all to the ground. She also collects a harmless goldfish in a bowl, the bowl falling to the ground and caught just in time by the bartender. She takes out her tetsubo, bringing it down on the bar with a splintering crack.
"What sort of joke is this?" She thundered at the bartender, the ronin, the Nezumi and anyone else who cared to listen.
Shinwa, and only Shinwa, hears a quiet whisper in his ear: "There's more where that came from if angry boisterous woman wants some more."
Rik has by now comfortably scampered up Shinwa's boot and clinging to the back of his coat between his shoulder blades.
Shinwa exhales slowly....for those who knew him well it would be a long-suffering sigh...and steps back away from the angry Hida. He keeps his face impassive and his voice neutral.
"Hida-sama, since neither I, nor the Nezumi, nor any other visible being were near you or your drink, and you watched the barkeeper clean your glass and prepare your drink, I must conclude that the answer is that your various invocations have inspired the wrath of the Fortune Ekibyogami and she has given you the courtesy of a warning."
His gaze is calm but steady.
"Now, since the magistrates may have already been called, since this is a Phoenix planet, we may deal with this warning of the fortunes in one of three ways."
He brushes his trenchcoat back to reveal the tsuka and tsuba of an antique steel katana.
"First, I can offer to acquire for you a drink and we shall toast Ekibyogami together in the hopes she avoids us both. I can speak of you kindly to the magistrates and we will hope all will be interpreted as a great misunderstanding."
He pauses.
"Second, you can heed Ekibyogami's warning and leave to toast in whatever company you so choose."
He lays the top of his hand on his tsuka, but his posture is still casual.
"Or third, you can attempt to continue your destruction and I will feel obliged to put my blade in service of these most gracious people," he gestures at the bartender and clerks, "to protect them and their property. As I said, I would prefer to avoid problems. But I have guest obligation to protect the home of my host when it is under threat."
Dueling with a sugar glider between your shoulder blades will be an interesting challenge.
Dying while dueling with a sugar glider between your shoulder blades while defending a Phoenix cheap hotel where you put up a bunch of Nezumi for the night from angry Hida bushi...well some stories end in a way that must be considered more 'Unusual' rather than 'Glorious'.
The lobby and bar were silent, everyone still and watching the Hida. The tension was palpable, it was as if everyone was holding their breath.
"All I know is this," Tetsuko said, meeting the ronin's eyes, one hand still on her tetsubo. "Until the rodents showed up, there were no rat droppings."
Shinwa slowly moves his hand away from the hilt of his katana, but it is still near it.
"I would not know, Hida-sama. Do you come here often? A lady like yourself I would expect in a far more respectable establishment than this."
Is he....flirting? He keeps his face neutral. It is hard to say.
If he was flirting, Tetsuko either didn't notice or didn't care. She opened her mouth to speak, and had she done so there might have been violence. But instead, another Hida entered the hotel. Just as tall as Tetsuko, just as brawny and with more than a passing family resemblance. He surveyed the room for a moment, a long moment for everyone else. With two Hida bushi there, anything could happen. But he wasn't angry, he seemed more...amused.
He walked up to Tetsuko, barely surprised at the damage she had caused. He had clearly seen the like before.
"Tetsuko-chan, what happened?" He asked, his voice gently mocking her. "Do I have to explain to Ayumu-sama why my nikutai is in the lock up again?"
Surpringly, these words seemed to soften Tetsuko. She even looked a little ashamed. "It's...rats...Nobu-kun," she said. "Fleas, droppings...pesky things."
Nobu laughed, a big hearty laugh full of merriment. He clapped Tetsuko on the back. "Is that all? Surely there are others more worthy of your strength imoto."
Tetsuko nodded, looking down and walking out, avoiding the stares of everyone.
Nobu clapped some currency on the bar, more than enough for repairs as well a few drinks. He made a bow to the bartender and the ronin. Courteous, even for a Crab. "Sorry about the mess," he said, then followed his sister out.
Shinwa returns the bow with excellent, if slightly dated, courtesy. He manages to keep his face free of a smirk, but it is dancing behind his eyes. He does not answer the Crab, but as he rises his eyes follow them out thoughtfully.
Once they are gone, he finds a seat at an intact portion of the bar near the poor goldfish. With a gesture of his hand, he summons the bartender over, and says, "Something decent. Something strong. Bring two. And domo arigatou."
When the bartender brings his drink and sets it down before him, Shinwa turns to the goldfish, raises his glass in a toast, and says, "To Ekibyogami, may she pass us by, and to Fukurokujin, Kingyo-san. For we have both lived to write another chapter."
The goldfish's mouth opens and closes in silent agreement.
