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"Honor Betrayed"Written By: Yanagi Disclaimer: I do not own or hold any rights to
[Gundam Wing]. Those rights belong to Bandai, Sunrise, and the Sotsu
Agency. These fan fictions were written for fun, not profit. However,
this story does belong to me. Please don’t snitch it. Warnings: the usual Pairings: 1x2 But it's Wufei centric [very] Beta note: I think the days in the trip to Shanghai
are messed up. They fly east so they'd arrive in late
afternoon/early evening and Yet another note: There are a lot of FAQ at the
end of the epilogue.
"Honor Betrayed " Chapter 3 At exactly 7am he woke, rose and took care of his needs by walking to the dojo, telling the girl at reception who he was and remarking that the bathroom at his lodgings was out of order. The girl immediately offered him the use of the showers for which he thanked her. He took a shower, donned his gi and was ready for work. He found the work easy, all he was supposed to do was clean the dojo. A cleaning service cleaned the offices and locker room. He was told that they couldn't be trusted to clean the dojo as they couldn't be convinced not to wax the floor or clean the mats with the wrong solvents. So, Wufei was given the duty of cleaning the mats, dojo, outer hall and inner walkway and maintaining the small, formal garden. The dojo was large but easily cleaned as the students were calm, quiet, neat and clean. He checked his work then went to take a look at the showers. Even though there was a cleaning crew that came in at night, that didn't mean that the room wouldn't need a bit of attention now. It was as tidy as he could expect of a room in constant use. He'd cleaned it in a general way after he was done with his shower and it was still acceptable. There were no towels on the floor anywhere and no soap spill to cause a fall. He decided to go into the garden and check on what might be needed there. The garden was still in very good condition, with signs that it had been pruned and trimmed recently. He got a broom and swept the path, then raked the sand garden into an attractive pattern. He checked to see that the koi had been fed then cleaned the filter in their decorative pond. The stream needed some work so he cleaned leaves out of it and the screen to the filter at its bottom then tested the water in several places. It checked out at the proper pH and was clear so he settled in the small Oriental style gazebo to wait until someone needed him. Meditation seemed like a good idea so he settled into a light trance. A voice startled him so much that he nearly attacked the speaker before he realized there was no threat. “Excuse me.” The man blinked at Wufei's flinch. “Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you. That's the master's meditation spot. We all leave it for him. I'm sure you didn't mean to disrespect the traditions of the dojo.” Wufei bowed slightly. “Of course not. I'll find somewhere else to meditate.” “I'm sure you could use the meditation room. It's behind the garden, over there.” Wufei looked where the man was pointing and realized that, at the corner of the walk way, nearly hidden in a small nook was a shoji. He bowed again and went to open it. On the other side was a meditation room with raised wooden platforms covered with thick zabuton, each one with a zafu. One wall was almost all windows while the other was covered with mandalas and long, neatly written banners of mottoes. He chose a place where he could look out the window into the large exterior garden. He was glad he didn't have to maintain that one. He settled again and spent an hour meditating, then he rose and cleaned the meditation room. When he left the room he was much taken aback to find all three sensi waiting for him. One of them addressed him quietly. “I am Kane-sensi. This is Anderson-sensi and that is Marten-sensi. We are the senior students. Your name please?” Wufei noticed that the man who'd been rude to him wasn't there. He bowed politely, no need getting their backs up before it was necessary. “I am Chang Wufei. How may I serve?” “We don't need service. We just wanted to welcome you to the dojo and ... warn you. There are a few students here who resent you. For what reason, we can't figure out. They're only junior students here, they'd be senior students or junior instructors anywhere else. Shigung is getting a bit annoyed with them. We've warned them but it doesn't seem to help. Please be wary. Feel free to come to one of us if they give you trouble.” Wufei blinked once, very slowly. “I see. Thank you so much for your concern. I'll be careful. Who is here when?” The three men looked at each other for a few moments then Kane-sensi replied, “Most of the one's who might cause you problems come in in the evening. Why?” Wufei twitched his lips in what might pass for a smile. “I come in from 9am to 12 noon. I don't think I'll run into anyone that might cause me a problem.” “Good, good. Now, how are you at polishing a sword?” “I know how. Why?” “We've got several swords that need to be polished, none of us are good at it. Shigung asked me to see if you knew how.” “Show me the swords and I'll tell you if I can do it or not.” “This way.” Kane-sensi led Wufei to a small room in the private area, the other seniors returned to whatever it was that they'd been doing. “Who was the man in the garden?” Wufei gave a description of the man who'd startled him. “Ah! That's one of the gardeners. There are six of them. They maintain the back garden and the formal garden but none of them will touch the pool or stream. I see that you cleaned them both.” “Yes, they were in good shape and only needed a few touches to bring them into perfect condition.” Kane-sensi opened a door and showed Wufei a small room with several cases and stands, upon which rested a collection of swords; Tachi to tanto. “Here are the swords that need work.” He gestured to a case that was nearly hidden behind a cupboard that contained all the sharpening supplies and tools with which to mend scabbards and hangers. Wufei took a sword and pulled it from the shirasaya, or storage scabbard. “It's been abused. What happened?” “A couple of ignorant students trying tameshigiri. Can you fix them?” Wufei eyed the spoiled edge and fingered it gently. It was such a shame that a fine sword should be abused and ruined. “Maybe. If the steel is up to it. I'll have to actually regrind it. If you have the stones as well as enough room, I make no promises but ... maybe.” Wufei examined the sword again. Then sighed, “I still don't understand how someone can justify subjecting an antique sword of this value to the extreme stresses of tameshigiri.” Kane-sensi just said, “That's what we don't understand. These swords are all antiques. Two junior students snuck them out and damaged that one and this one.” He took another sword out of the case. “That is when Shigung dismissed his junior students, none of them seemed to understand the severity of what had been done. All the senior students were properly horrified.” Wufei made a little, rising, “Ah.” to signify his understanding. He replace the katana he was holding and took out a wakazashi. It was also damaged on the edge. He thought about things for a moment then turned to the senior student and said softly, “I would like to leave now, it's almost noon and I wouldn't like to be accused of taking advantage. I'll check around for a suitable place to work before I leave. I'll examine each blade in natural light, decide what needs to be done and write up a recommendation. I would like to know why the master has decided to trust me with this.” Kane-sensi opened the doors to the storage cupboard saying, “I don't know exactly but he said something about you being 'that Chang'. All the stones, oils and other tools are in here. Help yourself to anything you need. Feel free to take the blades into the inner garden but please don't remove them from the dojo. I'm sure you wouldn't, without consulting with master directly, but better safe than sorry.” He bowed slightly, senior to junior then left. Wufei replaced the blades in the cabinet, closed the doors of the cupboard and left. He had a dwelling to build and things to think about. He went to 'his' coffee bar which he realize was unimaginatively called, JavaCoffeeYum. The crowed outside startled him. He'd given this address for the cattle call, hoping for six or seven people but there were more like sixty. He headed for the door and was stopped by a policeman who told him, “Sorry, kid, some jerk gave this as the address for a hiring call. I can't let you jump the line.” Wufei gave him a sour scowl. “As I'm the jerk, I think you ought to. I didn't realize that this would happen or I'd have given a different address.” He went to the head of the line, excused himself to the man there and went in. He apologized to the owner and offered to pay something for the space he was going to use. The owner just pointed to a table and said, “I set that up for you. I should be pissed but people in this area need jobs so bad. Just keep it down to a dull roar, ok?” Wufei decided to do something for the owner. He approached the cashier and set up a tab, anyone who could prove they had applied for a job could get one cup of coffee 'on the house' She smiled and said she could do that. She gave him a pile of expired 10% off coupons and told him to just hand one to everyone. They'd honor them as 'freebies'. Wufei thanked her and told her he'd strike through the 10% and just hand write free on them. He gave her a credit card to run but she just shrugged. “I don't think you're going to run out on us. Have a nice day.” with that, she returned to her job. Wufei nodded to the first man in line and said, “We'll begin now.” So began one of the longest days Wufei had experienced in a long time. He asked for resumes from everyone and, surprisingly, most had one. Every single resume was at least decent, most of the men and women in the line were just down on their luck. He hired right and left. Anyone who had a skill he needed and a few who looked like they could learn quickly. He told them all to come to his 'home' tomorrow at 1 pm. As the next day was Saturday, he wasn't expected at the dojo. He spent the morning walking around his home, deciding where he wanted things. He examined the floors and found that they were in better shape than he'd expected. All they really needed was a good sanding, some non-skid varnish and a coat of wax. The firing range didn't need the whole length of the floor so Wufei decided to put in a large supply room/smithy at one end. He was going to have them put in six lanes then took it down to four wider ones, he's always objected to the narrow lanes most clubs had. He had to admit that he didn't know much about what he should put into a lounge, large or small. The kitchen was fairly standard but he wanted a wok burner. He sighed then decided that some of these people had to have good ideas, he was just going to have to encourage them to speak up. Wufei discovered that he didn't have to encourage his people to speak up, they did so quite readily. And vociferously. The first thing that happened was, Wufei gathered the whole crew of 45 people and started trying to explain what he wanted. He was interrupted by a woman of about 40 who politely but firmly told him that this was a waste of time. “See. No one can remember all that and, if it doesn't apply to the job they're here to do, it's a waste of time we could be doing something more useful with. So, let me see. First, we sort out all the jobs, get all the electricians together and so on. Then get a general contractor selected. He or she will be the person who assigns jobs, deciding on what can be done when. You leave it all to me, Mr. Wufei. Ok?” Wufei pinned her with a sharp gaze but she never looked away or fidgeted. “Ok, and it's Mr. Chang. I've written up what I want and drawn some diagrams. They're crude but I think they make sense.” She took the papers Wufei handed her, looked them over and nodded. “Good, you've given me a good idea what you want, without trying to lock us in. We can work with this. I'll be back to you in ... half an hour.” Wufei sighed. “Very well. What should I do in the mean time? I can't just stand around.” “I have no idea. The owner usually isn't around at this point. Why don't you go home for a couple of hours while we get organized.” Wufei shrugged. “This is home. I slept here last night.” “Oh, well. Sorry, I don't intend to be rude but just stay out of the way for a little while.” “Very well. I'll take a walk and be back in about an hour.” Wufei just left. One thing he knew was, getting in the way of the experts wasn't a good idea. He walked from his new home to Preventers HQ, taking note of all the stores between. There were several stores of interest but he refrained from entering them. After glancing at his watch he headed back to see what was going on. When he arrived back, he found the people divided into several groups who were now just standing around, talking. Wufei was beginning to think that this had been a bad idea but the woman came up to him and eased his mind. “Great, now that you're back we can start the clock. I was elected general contractor as I've done it before. Name is Clare Jones. I got together with the crew chiefs and we got this worked up.” She unrolled a floor by floor blueprint and put it on a table that was made from saw horses and a sheet of plywood. “Now, I've called in a favor and set up an account at a good, reasonable supply house. They'll deliver what we need within an hour or so. But it's going to cost. Big time. So, first thing we need is a budget.” Wufei thought for a moment, he had a great deal of disposable income. Between what had been provided for his war efforts, what he'd hack stolen from OZ, some he'd been given during the 100 Days war and his inheritance from Family Chang, he was extremely rich. “I'm quite rich actually. I'll set up two million euros to begin with. I'll pay all the wages out of it and take care of the bill at the suppliers. If it's not enough, I'll put in more. You just get the job done.” Clare goggled at him for a moment. “Well, ok. So ... look at these designs and tell me what you think. And do you want to rip up the floors?” Wufei snapped, “NO!” so quickly that Clare jumped. “Ok, boss. They're really in good shape but some people just ... you know. Want something different. I'd say that a good sanding and some sealer would do the job. Then a couple of coats of varnish and a wax job and you're in business. This dojo thing. We weren't sure what kind of floor you'd want in that.” Wufei smiled in pleasure. “I'll put mats down on the hard wood, with tatami around the edges, just finish the floor, I'll deal with the rest. Thank you.” . Construction took a total of four days, one for each floor. The first thing that was done was to sand and finish the floors. While that was being done by two of the crews, the crew of electricians was taking care of replacing every inch of wiring in the place, adding extra outlets in the top floor and moving drop downs around. The plumbing crew checked the plumbing and announced that he had water pressure up the wazoo and the pipes were perfect. They also put in a half bath on the ground floor, second floor and a full bath on the top two. Wufei was very pleased with the shower in his bath room, it practically needed a plumbers license to run. He also approved of the jacuzzi. He paid by the day, giving each person cash. He paid the supplier on demand. No one asked questions about anything unless it was job related. The forth day brought a nasty surprise. “Boss? We got trouble.” Clare was biting her lip. “What is it? Did anyone get hurt?” “Um ... no. But your kitchen is fubar. Some yob hooked it up to the wrong wiring and fried everything. I'm really sorry.” “How did that happen?” Wufei was preparing to be very angry but he wanted the right target. “Um.” “Please stop hemming and hawing. I'm not angry at you. If it was an accident, that's one thing, but if this person was told not to do it then I want words with him ... or her.” Clare sighed, rubbed her forehead and then threw her compatriot under the bus. “It was Andy, he's got a thing. Don't know what his problem is but he just won't listen. Once he gets an idea in his head it's ... dynamite won't budge him. We told him that wire was 440 but he just insisted it was 220 and put the wrong transformer in the junction box. Well, we had sparks, fire, burning insulation and the whole shootin' match. You better come see.” Wufei followed her up in the elevator to see that the whole kitchen was pretty much destroyed. What wasn't burned beyond usefulness was ruined by the fire extinguisher. “Well, fuck. And that's another thing. This is a warehouse, shouldn't it have some sort of extinguishing system?” “Not on line yet, boss. Sorry. What do you want to do?” “See the person responsible for this first off.” Clare just motioned to a sullen man slouching against the wall. “You got it, boss.” The man shambled over, giving Clare a hairy eyeball on the way. Wufei chose to be insulted. “Glowering at Clare won't do you any good. I'd like you to explain how you managed to burn down my kitchen.” The man mumbled something about having been given the wrong part. Clare shook her head in the background. Wufei just snapped. “You're a master electrician, or so you said. That means you should have known, just by looking, that it was the wrong part. Try a different excuse, and this time speak up.” Instead of speaking the man called Wufei a 'dirty little slant eyed bastard' and took a swing at him. Wufei ducked and realized that he was going to have to deal. He punched his opponent in the stomach, stepped back and waited for him to fall over. Which he obligingly did. “Pick him up and toss him out.” Clare just chirped, “Sure thing, boss.” and had two of the bystanders do it. Then she announced that Wufei was going to have to pick out appliances. He gave her a wide-eyed, nearly terrified look and stammered, “But ... but appliances? I have no idea.” Clare rolled her eyes and started asking questions. “You cook?” “I do.” “A lot, or just nuke stuff.” “I was once considered an excellent cook. I do like to do my own cooking, that way I know what's in it. I want a wok burner for sure. Microwave. But very small. All I do in it is pop corn and warm up a few things. Big fridge. Range rather than stove top and oven. Double sink. Anything else.” Clare consulted her notes. “Nope. Don't think so ... Oh, industrial or standard quality.” “Industrial.” “Got it. Now go pick your gym equipment, furniture and ... stuff. Don't forget to get kitchen stuff. Shoo!” So Wufei shooed and went shopping. . He went first to the supply house to check about his appliances. After thinking about it, he didn't feel it was fair to make Clare pick them. When he got there he found that she had picked them, put an 'on approval' on them and he was just in time to look at them before they were delivered. He liked them very much and sent them on their way. While he was there he asked the clerk who waited on him about a good place to get furniture and kitchen utensils and such. He was given an address which was half way across town but told that it was the best place for such a large purchase. He had the lady call him a taxi then called Clare while he waited. She agreed that Jubilee was the best in town. He thanked her for picking out the appliances, told her he'd approved them all and hung up. His cab arrived five minutes later and he was driven to his destination in quiet. He handed over his credit card to pay for the ride then went into the store. He took one look and felt weak in the knees, how the hell was he supposed to find anything in a furniture showroom the size of his warehouse only jammed with beds, tables, chairs of all kinds, couches and he couldn't tell what else. He nearly turned tail and ran but a clerk ambushed him. “Hello. Can I help you find anything?” Wufei quickly read her name tag. “Yes, Donna, you can. Everything.” “Excuse me?” Donna goggled slightly, even her smile freezing for a moment. “I've just bought a house. I'm in need of a full house of furniture, TV, vid equipment, computers and desk. Exercise equipment, if you have it and I'm not sure what else.” Donna light up like a Christmas tree. “I see. And, I'm sure you want everything to match. Room by room? Or whole house?” Again Wufei wasn't quite sure. “Well, it depends on what style you like. And if you like strong, earth or pastel colors.” Wufei sighed, he was beginning to get a headache. And lose his temper. “Can you just ... show me something?” The girl took her life in her hands, unknowingly but just the same. “Bad day? Don't stress yourself, we'll fix you right up. Traditional Chinese?” Wufei rejected this with every sign of loathing and a sharp, “NO!” Donna sighed and led him to a series of show rooms, thinking trust her to get some temperamental new designer. She hadn't listened to half what Wufei had said. Wufei liked the bedroom with the earth tones and said he'd take that. Donna nearly had him walking out by asking him what colors he wanted. “The one's I saw, you ...” He managed to refrain from calling her a stupid onna by a hair. So, with little help from Donna, Wufei picked out three living room sets, two in complimentary colors and one in dark chocolate brown leather. He also picked out an oak slab kitchen table that, without leaves seated four, with leaves could seat up to twelve, and twelve chairs. He could store as many as needed in the empty room across from the kitchen. He also picked an entertainment center, computer desk and odd bits of this and that that pleased him. He found out, much to his displeasure that they didn't sell electronics of any kind. Nor exercise equipment. When he asked Donna how much he owed, she just gave him a blank look and said she'd have to scan all the tags to find out. “And why didn't you scan the tags when I picked things out?” “Um ... I donno, just didn't. Can you show me what you wanted again?” Wufei blew his top. “Listen. I told you I needed all these things. Are you completely retarded? Where's your superior? I'd like to speak to him or her ... now.” Donna stood looking at him with her jaw hanging until Wufei wanted to smack her. “Move! Go!” Donna scurried away shooting a glare over her shoulder. A man showed up only moments later. “I understand that you're being a bit rude to Donna, what's the problem?” He was properly deferential, with a hint that things could change quickly if he didn't like the answers. “I picked out an entire house full of furniture, only to find that your ... person hadn't scanned the tags. Now I have to go back and relocate things. I'm tired and have more places to go as she didn't tell me you don't sell gym equipment or electronics.” “I see. Donna is ... related. Let me help you. We'll start with what you can remember easily. And work from there.” Luckily Wufei had a good memory and could find most of the things he'd picked, what he couldn't remember locations for, Wufei described. Mr Jackson managed to find them and also suggest a few other things he might like. After scanning everything, Mr Jackson took Wufei to the office to arrange for payment and delivery. “Ok, here we go. I hope you have a strong heart Mr Chang. This is going to be a huge investment. Although I assure you that our furniture is top of the line. And you have...” Wufei stopped him from continuing his spiel. “I don't need all that. Just tell me how much. And arrange for delivery.” “Delivery might be a bit of a problem. A truck big enough to hold all this ... getting a truck that big into a complex can be a bit hard.” Wufei smirked at the man and just shrugged that off. “I'm converting a warehouse. There's a huge loading dock, which I'm converting into a garage and there's a freight elevator that's about eight by eight. I think that will suffice?” “I agree. Address please.” Wufei gave the address, paid his bill and left, leaving Mr Jackson to have a rather pointed talk with Donna. Next, Wufei went to a store that specialized in gym equipment. Not equipment for home use but a company that supplied gymnasiums. He was greeted at the door by a muscular young man with a cheerful smile. “Hello. My name is Jake. Hate to be a buzz kill but we really don't sell to individuals much. Our equipment is really expensive.” Wufei just looked at him for a second. His smile failed to fade. Wufei decided he liked his looks. “I'm afraid you're mistaken. I'm too hard on home equipment, I need commercial grade. Can you sell to me.” “Sure thing. I just need you to prove you can make the payments. Sorry. Boss got stung one time too many.” Wufei smiled and handed over his credit card. It scanned and made Jake's eyes light up. “Great. I've been waiting for an opportunity like this. What can I show you.” “Full gym.” Jake looked him over. “Martial arts?” “Yes, and kendo. Battojutsu, I also train with the jian and dao, but I favor the Japanese styles. Enough information?” “Way much. You're in really good shape. So, here's a deal. We've gotten a full gym of nearly unused equipment returned. I can let you have it at half price and convince my boss I've sold the hell out of it. It needs some reconditioning, and we'll replace all the padding, of course. There's nothing wrong with it, some guy had visions of being a body builder but it was too much work for him.” Wufei cast him a look from under his lashes. “Oh, don't look at me like that. It's good for both of us. Most gyms don't buy second hand, no matter how good the condition. So, you get a real steal of a deal and I get kudos for selling this stuff and saving my boss a hunk of money. Any reconditioning that needs to be done is really just a matter of adjustment and I'll do that when I install it. See?” Wufei admitted that he did. Then he asked about tatami and mats. “Well, you're in luck there. We sell all that sort of stuff. I can set you up with mats, tatami and a manikin. How's that?” Wufei nodded, he didn't use one of the training dummies much, but he might as well look while he was there. Jake led him into the back part of the small store and showed him a muk yan jong. He said he would take the training dummy as well. Jake settled his mind about the equipment by actually showing him the various pieces. They were all in perfect condition, covered with plastic and kept in a back room that was clean but cluttered. “I'm satisfied.” Wufei paid and again got a pleased response when he explained about delivery. He left the store feeling satisfied. Then he had to buy electronics. Here he just walked in to a Shack and pointed. He bought a tv for both lounges, the bedroom and vid equipment and speakers to go with them. He also picked a desktop computer, three stereos, and a personal mp3 player with a different pair of headphones. He paid, arranged delivery and left feeling exhausted and cranky. This was what lead to the fight, if you could call it that. Three taxi rides and a quick stop to empty and abandon his storage had left Wufei hungry, tired and very irritable. He got out of the taxi in front of a restaurant a block and a half from home; instructing the driver to take his stuff to the warehouse and paid him in advance. His intent was to eat then go back to see what was going on. He managed to eat, it was just a noodle shop so he got his bowl, ate and was on the way back to the counter to hand his bowl to the server, instead of leaving it on the table. Someone bumped into him, making him drop it. It shattered on the cement floor and he just had enough. “Watch were you're going, you clumsy fool.” “Yeah, shorty, and who's going to make me.” The man shoved Wufei again. “I will.” The punch was telegraphed like a valentine. Wufei used a cross-wrist drop defense which put him in position to use a over the leg throw and slammed the man to the floor. This took one second. “Sorry about your bowl. Make him pay for it.” The look on Wufei's face had the cook and server stammering apologies and assurances. It also cleared a way to the door through a crowd that included some very tough individuals. They all got out of his way in a scramble that knocked over chairs and tables. Wufei strode to the door, slammed it open and left, stalking down the street with a furious scowl on his face. People walking along stepped aside, wondering what had put such a pretty boy into such an evil mood. Little did they know. He was perfectly capable of killing anyone of them with something as simple as hashi. He made it back to the warehouse in a better frame of mind but still upset enough that he really didn't want to deal. Clare met him with a smile and the information that his living quarters were finished, kitchen and all. They had put in a push and finished it first when they'd found out that Wufei was sleeping in a sleeping bag. They'd even managed to get the furniture delivered and in place. The rest of the furniture was stored on the ground floor, carefully covered to keep it clean. Wufei was delighted and showed it with a bonus. He knew most of these people lived hand to mouth and every extra euro was a boon. The next days went by in a whirl of dojo, exercising and construction. His gym equipment had come the next day while he was working and setup had taken no time at all, according to Clare. Jake had backed into the loading dock and asked for some help unloading, just so he could clear the dock for other traffic. Then he set all the equipment up in less than three hours. Wufei was surprised and delighted to find several different styles of striking blocks had found their way into his package. A note had explained that the owner didn't know where they'd come from so he'd included them in the package to get them out of the warehouse. His firing range was done, with four firing lanes, a throwing lane for work with throwing objects and a large storage and smithing area. The installation of the insulation had decreased the size of the room by a foot in every dimension. He'd worried about the elevator meeting floor level but someone knew how to adjust it so he was satisfied. His personal dojo was also done in record time. Not that it really took much. The floors were finished to a dull gloss, perfect in his eyes. The mats put down and the tatami down around them. He was happy. He showed his happiness by writing glowing recommendations for each person and sending them to WEI with an email to the hiring consultant to ensure that they were given consideration. And while this was all going on, Wufei was still trying to plan his first foray into justice. And do his job at the Yang dojo. Wufei thought about the dojo a lot. He kept separate from the students and did his job. None of them tried to get him to do anything outside of his job requirements so he was satisfied there but he missed training with a sword. He missed sparing. He decided he'd better work harder on getting the swords repaired. He's spoken to Yang-Shigung about needing extra time to work on them as he was distracted by getting his house in order. The older man had just waved his apology away, saying, “Take your time. Do it right. There's no hurry. I understand the need to get settled. Don't worry.” Then the shigung had just gotten up, patted Wufei on the shoulder and walked into his private area. Wufei took care of the few chores he had for the day and went to look at the last of the swords that needed repairs. This one was badly in need of a new tsukaito if not a complete tsuka. He'd have to disassemble it to make sure. This wasn't as hard as it might seem as the blade was held in the ho by friction and a small peg. Picking up a small tool he pushed the menuki out. The blade didn't want to part with the ho so he tapped the kashira sharply into his palm. The blade obediently parted with the ho and he examined the nakago. It was clean so he laid the blade aside for later examination. Using a small flashlight he shined a light into the interior of the ho, or wooden core and sighed. It was dry rotted and beginning to split along one seam. He'd have to make a new one. He didn't reasemble the sword, he just wrapped the bare blade in a piece of heavy silk and placed it in a storage box. Swords were never put in anything but a saya, or a shirasaya, but a bare blade was usually put into a box. As he worked, Wufei reviewed his options. He could let justice drop, take a job in Preventers and live, unsatisfied. He didn't think he could do that. He could lay low, gain justice and possibly die. That didn't bother him as much as he would have thought three years ago. It was possible he'd die on a Preventers mission. His heart hardened and burned. No one would grant him justice, he had to take it himself His decision made, Wufei gathered up his tools, the box with the blade and the tsuka. He took them back to the display room and settled on a zafu in the light of the only window to write up his recommendation for the sword. He'd written one for each of the six swords that needed work. There were two wakizashi, three katana and one ikazuchi-choto, a modern blade but a very good one. He examined each recommendation carefully for any error in the kanji. They were fine. He folded each paper properly and put it in an envelope. He gathered all them up and went to give them to Yang-Lao Shi. She looked up from some paper work she was doing and took the envelopes with a nod. Wufei waited for a moment then said, “I will need some time off. I need to find the proper materials to do the repairs. They are not available in Sanq and I want to handle everything before I use it. I'll need ... four days. If that is acceptable.” “Give Yang-Shigung a day to look at these. But I'm sure it will be fine.” She glanced at the clock then smiled at him. “It's almost time for you to go home. I'll give you your pay.” She put her hand under the desk and produced an envelope. “Here you are. Are you doing well? Do you need anything?” Wufei looked at her for a moment. “I'm doing well. I don't need anything you can give me. I thank you for your concern.” He bowed and left. Yang-Lao Shi followed him with sad eyes. “What did someone do to fill you with such hate and sadness.” She shook her head and returned to her work, she'd give the recommendations to Yang-Shigung at closing. . Wufei woke up, glanced at his luminous watch and got out of bed. He liked his bed. It was full size and very comfortable. But it was time for him to start his justice. He dressed in black, black t-shirt, black jeans, black boots and a light weight jacket. Contrary to popular belief black BDU's stuck out like a sore thumb. He left his home, reminding himself to get a security system and trotted through the streets. No one would notice him running this late at night. He was still young and looked younger. Anyone seeing him would assume that he was out after his curfew and trying to get home before he got in trouble. He wasn't trying to get home but he hoped to keep out of trouble. Breaking into a military supply house was problematical, at best. It turned out that the security system was cheap, badly maintained and what Duo would have called a tin can. Wufei easily bypassed it and entered. He got a large duffel and started filling it up with weapons. He gathered the best the store had to offer; taking rifles, pistols and ammo. He also picked up three sets of swords. One diasho, a matched set of ninja style blades, and a full suite of katana, wakazashi, and tanto. He noticed a long box under the counter and opened it. It contained a beautiful set of ninja swords, one a full 26” the other somewhere between a tanto and and a wakazashi at about 18”. He took them too. All the swords had good steel and terrible edges, he'd have to see to that. After stuffing all this into the duffel he picked it up. It wasn't terribly heavy yet so he looked around. Knives jumped to his eye but he bypassed them as unnecessary. He had two tanto. But then he found the throwing section. He scooped up all the throwing pins, shirikin and other throwing knives he could manage. Then he turned to ammo but only picked up a few boxes. Lead was heavy so he couldn't carry much. He would have to find another source for that. But he did find a display of magazines and took as many as he could manage. That filled up the duffel, so he let himself back out and disappeared into the night as silently as he'd appeared. He made it home without incident and put the duffel in the smithy. He'd check it out later. He stripped and put his clothing into the hamper, swearing as he realized that he'd forgotten to get a washer and dryer. Then he went back to bed. He allowed himself to sleep a bit later to make up for his night time activities. He took a shower, delighting in the hot water and using enough soap for someone three times his size. He'd truly hated the grainy, butter tan soap the prison had provided for both body and hair. He hated the smell even more. It reminded him of the damage a blow from a new bar in the toe of a sock could cause. He rinsed off and got dressed in jeans, a button down shirt and trainers. He made his trip to the dojo an excuse to jog. Not that he needed one. He maintained his cover by nodding to other joggers on his way. At the dojo he hunted up one of the senior students. He thought of the three sensi as senior students and all the others, most of whom he knew on sight but not by name, as junior students. He didn't care what their rank was, he was probably senior to all of them in skills. He had passed his 8 dan before the wars started. But that was in the past and this was now, so he was relegated to a rope or cord belt that signified he had no skills. He was only a member of the staff. He had found that everyone was polite to him. That did not assuage the sting. “Excuse me. Have you seen Shigung? I need to speak to him.” The back he spoke to turned out to be Anderson-sensi. “Wufei, how are you?” Wufei endured the trading of pleasantries and found out that Yang-Shigung was in the outer garden. He went to find him, bowing politely before he left. In the garden, he found that the master was sitting, watching the light breeze sway a clump of bamboo. As the weather was still a bit nippy, it being late April, Wufei chose to stand in the sun. “Ah, Wufei. I got your evaluations. I understand that you'd like to travel to acquire your materials but I'm afraid the dojo can't afford to pay for that.” “Sir. I have money. I've needed to do a bit of traveling for a while now. Only putting it off to settle in here and at my new home. I won't be gone more than ... three days, four at the outside.” “You'd do that?” The older man seemed a bit surprised at this. “Of course. It's no inconvenience to me. It might put you out a bit, but I'll do everything I can before I leave and it won't be hard for me to spend a day catching up after I get back.” “Well, in that case.” He gave Wufei a sharp look. “You may have four days. Please see me when you get back.” Wufei bowed low. “Thank you, Yang-Shigung. “Travel well, my young one. Go now. You'll need much time to get ready.” He waved a hand in dismissal and went back to his contemplations. Wufei bowed again and walked away. He wondered if he'd make it back. ~ * ~ tbc... |
