Free The Hinomoto Rebellion by Elizabeth Staley

hand under her bangs and running a finger across her forehead. Stop worrying about yesterday, set your sights on today and tomorrow.
    She allowed herself a small smile that didn’t reach her eyes. Tony had told her that every day since she was seven years old. She’d never tried to listen to his advice, and now here she was finally trying to live up to what he wanted her to be.
Somewhere, he was laughing at her. Andrea just knew he was.
    Just then she heard someone cough behind her. Andrea turned quickly, the smile disappearing from her face. 26 stood in the doorway, her slowly swishing tail kicking up clouds of dust from the rotting floorboards. “We were just about to sit down to dinner.” said the furred being.
Andrea stood and brushed off the back of her pants. “Sounds good.” she said, walking toward 26 slowly.
    “Hey, Andrea?” began 26. Andrea stared at her, waiting for something to respond to. “If you need someone to talk to... about anything, I mean... I’m a great listener.”
Andrea looked down at the floor. “There’s nothing to talk about,” she snarled.
     
26 backed up half a step. “Alright well, if you need anything, just ask. Anytime.”
    “Whatever,” Andrea pushed past her and walked down the hall, her silver hair glinting in the fiery light of the coming sunset that was shining through the windows.
    26 sighed as she shook her head, and followed. She didn’t know what she had expected from her offer but she figured that trying to be friendly to the cold and distant woman was better then treating her like an outsider. 26 hadn’t lied about being a great listener. Despite the tests done on her by the government she hadn’t become hard and cynical like Andrea. 26 saw herself as she might have been had she not met Roni and Kanjou when she looked at Andrea.
    As she walked a few paces behind the white and blue clad female warrior, 26 tried to think of something they could do to gain her trust. It was three weeks until the press conference, which would be a long time to live with someone who was as volatile as an active volcano. 26 unconsciously wondered what horrors Andrea must have seen in the Underground to make her so hard– so cold in her heart that she could not even smile or laugh.
Maybe one day, before this is all over she’ll understand what this rebellion means, thought 26 hopefully as the two entered the dining hall.
    On the other side of the city, outside of a small café, Kanjou sat at a table sipping a glass of ice water. It was a French style Bistro, with glass topped tables outside and black metalwork chairs with delicate scroll work designs on them. Each of the tables on the outside patio had an umbrella above it, deep burgundy in color with the name of the café printed in white on the panels of fabric. The smell of brewing coffee and baking scones and pastries wafted over the sunny patio as Kanjou sat and drank his water. He was wearing a pair of dark sunglasses and a button-down shirt over his usual t-shirt with the ripped off sleeves. As calmly as any man waiting for a friend, he nursed his drink and made pleasant conversation with the waitress- who was young and cute but not Kanjou’s type.
    After Kanjou had been there about twenty minutes a short man with a slight build sat in the chair across from him. “Hello, Kanjou. Nice to see you again,” he said.
Kanjou smiled. “Daimyo Shinrai.” he murmured, “Good to see you too.”
    The man who had just joined him also wore dark sunglasses. His black hair was pulled into a short ponytail at the nape of his neck and bound with a cord. He wore denim shorts and a Hawaiian print shirt, his feet clad in leather sandals. His face was lean and his eyes sparkled from behind his sunglasses. No one could have picked him out for a Daimyo, which was what Shinrai had in mind when he’d dressed for his meeting with Kanjou.
    Shinrai flirted with the waitress before ordering a drink of his own. He looked at Kanjou’s water, scowled,