A Night on the Town

A Sohryuden short story

by Amparo Bertram


After jerking back into semi-consciousness for the third time, Hajime finally surrendered. A movie theater seat wasn't the most comfortable place for a nap, but with the lights turned down and the voices on the screen murmuring in French, following a script that wouldn't have held his interest anyway, he couldn't stay awake.

Not that he minded. After dealing with the constant monitoring of his house, the attempted abduction of his youngest brother, and his imminent dismissal from the school board, he appreciated the luxury of indulging in such a mundane activity as snoozing through a romance movie. He was grateful to his cousin for providing him the opportunity to relax. This night out, just the two of them--it was almost like...almost as if...

Allowing his head to droop, he sank into lazy dreams.

They took him back to a familiar location, visited on a family trip to Kyoto. He couldn't forget the bright orange torii that towered over the street. Unlike the original vacation, however, he couldn't see his brothers smiling and posing beneath the entrance to the Heian Shrine.

The day was overcast and humid, but it showed no signs of raining for the moment. Before he knew it, he was buying two tickets to the garden that spread out north of the shrine. Matsuri took his arm and led him down the marked path. Why is she here? a small voice in his mind asked, but the part of his subconscious directing the dream hushed it. Of *course* she was with him.

Wasn't she always?

She gazed all around as they explored, drinking in the sight of greenery being trained along trellises, the stone lantern beside a stream, the pink flowers adorning the bushes. They reached a series of concrete stepping stones across a pond, and she darted confidently onto them, her laughter carried back to him like birdsong on the slight breeze. She paused in the middle and turned to face him. Standing against a backdrop of lilypads, she beckoned teasingly, her voice...her voice...

He blinked, startled awake as she spoke beside him. It took a moment for him to shake off the dream and realize she wasn't talking *to* him. Someone was blocking her view of the screen, and she wasn't about to let it go on for long.

It soon became clear, however, that the incident was no honest mistake. Hajime sized up the thugs disturbing his evening and dismissed them as no real threat, although they were certainly a nuisance. He didn't want to cause a scene in the middle of the theater, so he decided to go along peacefully at their none-too-gentle urging. They might even contribute useful information that would help him solve the puzzle of who was harassing his family, though he doubted they knew much themselves.

"Matsuri-chan," he said, keeping his voice deliberately calm to reassure her, even as one of them clamped down with uncomfortable force on his shoulder, "I don't think they're going to let us finish the movie."

She took the hint. She couldn't help being nervous with a stranger's arms wrapped possessively around her, but she pushed the feeling aside and responded in kind. "Maybe we should postpone it until later."

The gang hustled the two out of the theater and walked them to their leader's rooftop hideaway, where he sat on a worn sofa listening to a CD. The surrounding graffiti, proclaiming such profound insights as "bakayarou," gave an unsurprising glimpse into his character.

Matsuri had regained her composure on the trip, so much so that, when the bull of a man who introduced himself as Furuta Yoshikuni propositioned her, she did more than stand up to him--she stomped on his foot. Not the most tactful of responses, but perhaps direct enough to avoid misunderstanding.

Rather than take her heartfelt *no* for an answer, however, he snatched her up and crushed her onto the sofa, loudly announcing his intent to carry through on his suggested course. Gasps of effort accompanied her struggles to escape, but though her will was strong, she didn't have the physical power to resist him.

Despite remaining outwardly unperturbed, Hajime filled with a cold rage. Targeting him or his brothers was one thing. The four were aware of their differences, and their augmented abilities enabled them to take care of themselves. However, Yoshikuni had just violated the deepest and most important of the Ryudo family's unspoken rules.

Nobody messes with Matsuri.

He coughed quietly to attract attention away from the spectacle of a man gleefully forcing himself on an unwilling girl, then voiced a sincere warning. "Allow me to offer a little man-to-man advice." No real harm had been done yet, but if the situation proceeded any further, he didn't think he would be able to prevent bloodshed. "A girl like that is too much for someone like you."

A girl like that. A girl who smiled her defiance, ignoring the rough hands tugging at her jacket and blouse. A girl who could single-handedly keep the four bachelor Ryudo brothers living up to civilized standards. A girl with vitality and spirit and self-possession who beckoned to him in his dreams.

The thugs tried to escort him away, under orders to shoot him if he resisted. He allowed his chilling anger to grow, focusing his mind to icy clarity. They had ignored his words, turning their backs on decency and wisdom. They had chosen to let his cousin suffer at the whim of that brute.

Pressed against the dingy cushions, her blouse halfway off one shoulder, Matsuri called out a mocking admonition. Fear never touched her.

She knew. She *knew*, beyond any intimation of doubt, that he would protect her.

He would fight for his family, of course. As the head of the Ryudo household, it was his responsibility to see that his brothers led the best lives possible, under the circumstances. He would fight for friends, as well, were he ever in a position necessitating action. Yet for Matsuri, his sense of duty went past the level of rational thought. At any hint of a threat to her safety, a primal energy reached into his gut and twisted.

He drew upon that energy, striking with his enhanced strength, the heel of his hand sending blood and teeth flying as it connected with his nearest opponent's face. He spun and lashed out again, this time catching the second of Yoshikuni's henchmen before the slower man's reflexes could react.

The third used the opportunity to lunge from behind, but a sharp blow from Hajime's elbow stopped his attack. Using only two fingers, the eldest of the Ryudo brothers lifted the man by his nose and flung him through the air to slam into his leader. The impact sent the sofa teetering backward to the ground.

Matsuri took advantage of Yoshikuni's preoccupation to stand, straighten her clothing, and dust herself off. She appeared as unconcerned as if the disturbance were a routine matter, swiftly resolved. "Quit while you're ahead," she said to her furious assailant as he righted himself and charged toward the man he had seriously underestimated.

Hajime smiled as he paused to adjust his tie. A girl like that.

He would show no mercy.

He ducked under Yoshikuni's clumsy swing and leapt to the roof's highest point. He waited, hands in his pockets, for the other man to climb to him. Backlit by the glow of the city, his posture of self-confidence should have been warning enough.

I am the predator. You are the prey.

Yoshikuni pulled out a weapon crackling with electric charge. He called it a stun baton. He thought he would use it to kill. Lips curved with amusement, Hajime effortlessly dodged the first few thrusts before finally capturing the baton in his bare hand. Its dancing light arced over his skin, but the tingling of its electric field was negligible compared to the power already singing through his body.

He forced the baton from his opponent's grip. Eyes narrowed with intent, he stepped forward, shoved the weapon into the other man's mouth, and then punched him in the stomach. Yoshikuni stumbled and fell, defeated.

Hajime gazed at the man for a moment while the night wind played with his jacket, carrying away most of his anger on invisible wings. He could almost believe it might sweep him along with it, weightless and free... He shook off the odd sensation and rejoined his cousin on the flat roof.

"So," she asked, stepping over one of the moaning thugs on her way to the stairs, "what shall we do next? The movie's probably over by now, but we could still go for dinner and karaoke like I promised."

He followed her, surprised by the offer. "You don't want to go home after what just happened?"

"Why let it ruin our whole evening? Besides, Dad wanted me to marry that animal." She sniffed. "If I went home, I'd have to put up with my ridiculous father, and I'd rather not be in his presence." She hesitated as they exited the building and looked up at him for confirmation. "If that's all right with you."

He smiled again, this time with a pleasant warmth. "Your company is more than welcome," he said. He added, "We have much to discuss. The implications of this assault--"

"Right," she agreed. "Lots to talk about." Her eyes sparkling, she led the way to a place they could sit down and chat over coffee.

She knew. It was all that mattered.

The End

[Anime]
© 1998 Amparo Bertram