Three Drinks

Drink One

"So let me get this straight, you're saying that you joined the Legion because of a woman?"

"What can I say? Nothing better to do."

Satoshi's eyes scan the Mantis' face with equal parts caution and amusement. Is this guy serious? Joining the Legion on a whim? I guess if anybody would do something like that, it would be a Ma-

"We gonna drink or what, Lion-san?" the grinning Mantis interrupts his thoughts, holding two cups of sake up, "Friendly Traveler is fine, but I prefer less... mass-produced sake. I always keep a bottle at hand, though, not everybody is a connoisseur. You should really try what they brew up in the Moshi temples."

Warily, Satoshi accepts the cup. "Kampai," he intones, watching closely as the Mantis mirrors his cup's rise to his lips. A light sensation of warmth takes him briefly after his first short sip. A pleasant enough experience. Pleasant enough to finish the rest in one swallow, anyway.

"So what was she like," Satoshi breaks the momentary silence, "This woman who convinced you to join the Legion?"

"Don't you think it's a little too early in the evening to discuss matters of the heart?" the Mantis chuckles loudly, a boisterous laugh that resonates through the room, "I don't kiss and tell for any less than two drinks."

"Yoritomo-san" Satoshi asks, the alcohol and jovial company lightening his mood, "How do you sleep at night?"

Amano's grin widens as he says with a gleam in his eye, "On a bed of koku."

Drink Two

"This stuff wasn't even legal until we were forced to accept those Spider nuts into our ranks," the Mantis says mischeviously, "And even then, it's strictly monitored. A little harsher, but if you have the stomach for it, definitely an experience worth trying once. Probably the only thing they ever got right."

"Is that... Black Water?" Satoshi asks, noticing the abnormally dark container, which only elicits a pair of eyebrows raised in affirmation.

As soon as the cups are filled by the blacker-than-black bottle, Satoshi immediately raises his, anticipation growing for the exotic brew within.

"Over the seas and down the hatch!" the Mantis proclaims loudly as both men drink deeply. Between coughs, Satoshi briefly thinks he catches his drinking partner wince.

"So that's two drinks," Satoshi smiles, "Let's hear your tale of woe."

"Her name is unimportant," the Yoritomo begins, his grin fading as his thoughts coalesce into words, "We were friends from childhood, promised to each other to renew the bonds between our families. Unfortunately, her father was bribed to marry her off to another clan. I was devastated, of course, and my father furious, but what could I do? I asked my sensei to recommend me to the legion, where I thought I could bury myself in my work. A few months into my appointment, we passed through the region her new husband was lord of. It turns out this guy had to buy a wife for a reason, if the rumors were to be believed. She never was one for taking abuse, so she returned to her family, and apparently left him worse for wear in the process."

"Yoritomo-san, I don't mean to pry, but if she's still out there, what are you doing here?

Amano's rakish smile returns as he takes a long draw from his pipe, "I'm living like there's no tomorrow, because there isn't one."

Drink Three

"This here's my best stuff," Amano says in a hushed tone, lifting a jug to the table between them, "It's not what you might call... imperially sanctioned."

The two lift their cups and Satoshi blurts out a loud "For the Empress!" which is echoed by a whole room of patrons. As soon as this liquid hits his lips, Satoshi feels the effects acutely. Like a raging fire coursing from his head to his toes, this merciless concoction is even more potent than the rush of battle.

"Why don't you go back to your woman, Yoritomo-san?" Satoshi grins, "I'm sure she'd take you back in a heartbeat."

"I have a life. And it goes in only one direction, Matsu-san," the Mantis says pleasantly, "Forward."

"Y'know," the Lion hiccups with a laugh, "Your story seems pretty familiar... Yeah, some bitch named Sanae left the lord of Crossroads Fortress with a few scars and ran off to her mountains. Funny, didn't think that was common."

"It's not," the deadly calm voice of Yoritomo Amano growls from across the table, "And it's not common for men to buy their wives like geisha. But I suppose that must be common practice for scum like the Matsu?"

As quickly as the Lion gets to his feet, hand on his katana, he finds himself immobilized, the lithe form of the Mantis behind him, his arms locking the Lion's in place. Satoshi barely feels the pain through the intoxication, but the panic of being trapped is real enough.

"Get out of here and move forward," the Mantis' voice fills his ear as he is released and becomes a heap on the floor, "This never happened. It will shock you how much it never happened."

(EDITED: To change the Lion's thought-text to black, since orange doesn't appear well on the current pages background.)