The Funeral: Death of the Monkey King

[The Shimmering Banana]

A bone chilling mist tickled Octavia’s face as she stood on the upper deck of the ferry traveling the North Blues Sea. The young woman gazing into the sea with a blank expression on her face as she made her way back home to the Pikt Archipelago. It was two years since she started her journey only returning home to check in with her father bi-annually. However, this time, her trip shortened by a devastating message. THE DEATH OF HER FATHER OTTO SAIX!!



*Two Days Earlier*



*Perra Perra perra perra perra*

Rang the Den Den Mushi her father gave her in order to remain in contact with him.

*Perra perra Perra*, Rang again the furry snail.



“Hey dad” answered Octavia expecting her father to be on the other end of the call.

“Octavia!” replied a familiar voice that she just could not put her finger on.

“Octavia its Pete McKay…” continued the voice in a low tone as if he did not want to have the conversation.

“Oh hey, how are you?” asked the young woman being polite, as she never expected the head of a clan to be calling her.

“It’s your father,” he informed before Octavia interrupted him.

“What’s wrong?! Is he ok?!” she questioned frantically.

“HE IS DEAD!!” the words ringing in her mind as loud as the Den Den Mushi did at the beginning of this message.



Octavia dropped the Den Den Mushi on the ground as the shock from those words hit her, its shell cracking as it hit the ground. The voice on the Den Den Mushi sounding as if it was light years away as it repeatedly called out her name… “Octavia! Octavia!... Are you there?”



*Present Day*



A snow-covered land begins to show itself in the horizon as the ferry creeps closer to her homeland. Vivid memories flooding her mind as Octavia begins to cry, her tears chilling her cheeks as they slowly rolled down her face. Her tears continued as the chain of islets began to get closer and closer. Soon she would be home but can she even call it that anymore as any human relative she had was now dead. The ferry slowed it steady pace as it crept to the main docks in the area of Abundeen. Being a clan of shipwrights and woodworkers, most foreign ships docked here in case their ship was in need of repair. An area Octavia was familiar with as she always left and returned from this port. The ferry finally halted it movement as it reached the dock, a slew of workers meeting the ship attaching ropes and a sturdy wooden plank to it connecting it to the dock. As the ship is being connected a voice rains over the passengers from above.



“Ok folks, we’ve reached our final stop Abundeen of the Pikt Archipelago. Please gather your belongings and exit the ship in an orderly fashion. As always thank you for choosing Frigid Waters Ferry for your North Blue travels.”



Octavia drags her feet as she makes her way to the docks, unbeknownst to her a few familiar faces awaiting her decent. At the end of the solid wooden pathway stood an elderly man, Pete McKay the head of the McKay clan, an old friend of her fathers, Arnold Stalk a shipwright here on Pikt and a member of the long arm tribe, and the closet thing she had left resembling family, three blue gorilla known as Big Blue, Jake and Elwood. She continues to drag her feet as she goes down the wooden ramp hearing a voice call out to her.



“Jr.” yells out Arnold raising his extended arm well over the crowd signaling the young woman to their presence.



Seeing the group, she runs towards them diving into the arms of Big Blue a downpour of tears soaking the thick blue fur of the massive mother. Big Blue simply wrapping her arms around the young monkey princess holding her tightly as if she would never let her go.

[Shinku]

There was a soft tugging on the collar of his bright pink hawaiian-shirt. Even without looking, Rince knew who it was. The little white furball on his side listened to the name Bruce and was a haggis – an animal native to the place he was heading to right now.
Ignoring his fluffy companion, Rince rolled over to the side and put his arm over his head, covering his ear in the process. He didn't wish to hear the soft questioning chirping voice of the rodent. Bruce was obviously worried about him, but Rince felt too tired to soothe the animal.
Despite the bright sunny day, everything seemed subdued and dull and whenever he closed his eyes, the shadows around him seemed to deepen – a pressuring force constricting his chest and robbing him the air to breath. Trying to breath in deeper on purpose only intensified the pain and gave him a sense of panic that he knew all too well.

That was a lot how he had felt each day before he had met Otto.

Otto, who was now dead.

Otto Say-X
Strange how he was now thinking about the mnemonic rhyme he had use to remember the name of his friend when they first met.

The first impression had been a rather odd one, Rince thought and had to smile despite the sadness. It didn't last long but faded from his face, only to be replaced by a barelly contained sob.
There had been no tears when he had heard the new two days ago, only a feeling of numbness and unbelieve. He could not quite comprehend what had happened, didn't want to comprehend it. How could someone like Otto die so easily? The man had always been so full of life.

There was a pull on his diry pink hair when the haggis climbed up on his head and sat down in the crook of his arm before patting his head as if he was a little child.
He wasn't. He hadn't been a child for a long time now, and yet he didn't feel like acting as an adult today. It was hard to care whether Bruce would think badly of him because of it, in fact, it was hard to care about anything.

At first Rince had firmly insisted on coming to the funeral. Otto had been his friend after all and he owned it to him to be there.
Now however he didn't want to be there. The closer they had gotten to the Pikt Archipelago, the more reluctant the boy had become. If only he could have left the ship and made an U-turn, he probably would have done so. But the ship had its destination and it wouldn't simply change its course for a stupid passenger who couldn't make up his mind about where he wanted to go.

The dread was growing with each passing sea mile and the nauseaus feeling had nothing to do with the rocking motion of the ship. As a former seaman he was quite used to it.
Was he already going back to the way he used to be before he became friends with the monkey man? Or was it simply the mourning that swept his mood to the darkest of places?

How could he not feel that way though when he had failed another of his friends?
No! He couldn't think that way. He had nothing to do with Otto's death nor could he have known.
Trying to convince himself of that wasn't easy though. Logically it made no sense to feel guilty about his friends demise and yet emotionally he felt as if there should have been something he could have done.
„Did I ever even tell him my real name?“ he wondered.
Back then when they first met, he had introduced himself with his fake alias that he was still using to this day. They had gotten quite close after than and yet there had never been a time when Rince had gotten the chance to tell Otto his real name. It was true that his fake name Kyou had become as much a real name to him as his real name, but still... for some reason he thought that it was something he should have told his friend.
Now he regretted that he never did.


At one point he must have fallen asleep for when he woke up the ship was entering the port.
For a short moment, Rince considered to simply stay in his cabin and not leave the ship until the ship left the island again, but Bruce was tugging his ear with force and left him no other choice but to get up.
Hurriedly he packed his little belongings into his brown leather bag. Put his faithful Den Den Mushi Lettuce on top of everything and left the ship.

For a moment he stood on the busy dock and wavered in his determination. Where should he even go? Was the dojo still standing?
When he had heard the news he had said he would come, but hadn't asked for details of the funeral from the other side, his mind had simply forgotten to think of it.
Now he was here and he didn't know what to do.
Trying the dojo seemed the best option he had, so he turned to go there when he spotted something.
Or rather someone.
Someone big, hairy and blue.
There was no mistaking the Blues.
Slowly and hesistantly he approached the group.
He reconginzed Big Blue in the front, hugging someone, her two sons Jake and Elwood behind her. Rince still couldn't easily tell them apart, though he assumed that Bruce was able to do so.
He opened his mouth to cry out to them, but no sound came out.
It was simply too difficult.
As stricken by grief as he was, he still had the sense of mind to realize who they had come for and it felt wrong to interrupt the family reunion.
So he simply turned around to vanish into the crowd.
He'd catch up with them later.
Maybe, if he found the courage.

[The Shimmering Banana]

The warm embrace of a familiar figure felt like heaven itself was surrounding the young woman. The family like group giving her time to let her tears out as they stood on the dock. After a few moments, Octavia loosened her grip from Big Blue the massive gorilla slowly loosening its grip a well as the two separated. Raising both hands towards her face, she slowly wipes away her tear before they froze to her face in the cold weather. Octavia takes a deep breath to regain her composure before addressing the group.



“Jake, Elwood, it’s been a while.” She whimpers before addressing the other two men “Uncle Arnold Mr. McKay it’s good to see you both.”

Arnold engaging her in his own hug his extended arms wrapping around her to the point that he ends up touching his own back. The clan head just greeting the girl with a head nod.



As the long arm released her, Pete McKay began to address Octavia. “Well my girl let get going back to your dojo. The funeral is tomorrow and we have a few things to talk about”



“Your dojo!” it was the first time that she thought about it but it was now her dojo. With the death of her father and the fact that the only other people that lived there were the blues, ownership of the dojo would be hers. As well as well as the trainees that studied martial arts at it as part of Otto’s contract with the Bear Calvary. The Bear Calvary was the main figures of law enforcement on the island and after several memorable incidents around Pikt Otto became a major source of training for future members of the group. However, did that mean that Octavia was now in charge of training these individuals? She knew that most the training was conducted by Jake and Elwood but without her father there to translate their command and lead them would this task land in her lap. It was a lot to think about for the young woman without even dissecting the second part of Pete’s sentence, the funeral. In just twenty-four hours, she would have to say good-bye to her father for the last time.

Octavia closed her eyes and took another deep breath as prepared to acknowledge the old man simply saying, “Ok I’m ready.”



The group all walked down the wooden pathway their footsteps echoing as they approached a wooden wagon attached to two Piktish ponies. The tamed beast gnawing at bits of grass protruding from the snow as they awaited their owner to return so they can continue their journey. The group all piled up in the wagon with Mr. McKay taking the reins of the ponies. With a light whip of the reins, the animals quickly popped their heads up and started to pull them through the town and towards the forest that separated Abundeen from the dojo. The trip home would be a short one by wagon and one that Octavia was in need of as the fresh cool breeze relaxed her mind. The various wildlife in the forest seeming particularly happy as they frolicked in the lush greenery. ‘The Monkey Princess’ continued to take slow deep breaths of the clean air as they got closer to the destination. Each breath preparing her for what was soon to come as she expected to see her father in his new lifeless state. ‘I know that tree’ she thought as the wagon passed a deer whitebeam a common tree on Pikt that gets its name from the antler like branches that grow from it. ‘That’s where dad first showed me the Saru Saru Cannon’ she continued to think as she remembered the happy memory. “We carved our name in that tree,” she mumbled out as if she was speaking to the other passengers this entire time.



The snow-covered grass soon turned into a layer of snow-covered pebbles as they reached the entrance road to the dojo. The wooden wheels of the wagon dipping into the crevices of the pathway making the ride a bit rockier than before in the forest. The ponies slowing their pace as McKay slightly pulls back the reins and makes a clicking noise. In the distance, Octavia could start to see the tall, stone, walls to the dojo with the main gates open. The building still in pristine condition as the money her father’s origination, and donations from the Calvary, were enough for major renovations over the years. Her once humble home seeming more like a compound for warriors these days.


Octavia lets out large sigh before saying “home sweet home” as the wagon passes through the main gates.

[Shinku]

There was a hurried apology as someone bumped into him. Rince watched them vanishing in the crowd and felt... what? It was hard to pinpont and his mind drew a blank.
The docks were quite busy, that was for sure. Dock workers unloading the ship's wares or loading new wares that the merchants wished to sell elsewere. Sailors going on and about, looking for a place to spend their money and enjoy the time they could spend in the port. People in genereal making their way through the little dockside market to look for today's dinner, a bargin or simply for something exotic that had come from somewhere else. Life was going on for everyone.
Exept for him.
Time seemed to have stood still.
And thinking about time standing still, Rince noticed that he hadn't moved from the place either.
He pulled himself together and started to move on.
Since he was already at the market place, he decided to look for a gift for Otto. Or maybe for Octavia.
The boy wasn't quite sure what was common in such situations – flowers most likely, but he decided to look for something that felt right to bring. And flowers, he decided, were definitelly not going to fit.


„You okay lad? Aren't you cold?“ the salesman asked him, eying his hawaiian-shirt and the green shorts with suspicion.
„No.“ Rince answered on reflex, but then thinking about the question more earnestly, he found that he wasn't really feeling himself anymore. Some of that feeling had to do with his grief but he assumed that part of the numbness was probably related to the cold.
Still, he just couldn't bother to care. If his body had hurt from the cold, he had missed it and now it was too numbed to even feel pain anymore.
For good measuremets he added a shrug, and the motion showed him even more how frozen he was. The salesperson didn't seem convinced by it either, but the man kept his mouth shut and watched the strange boy in front of him who was looking at his merchandice.
The chairs and other pieces of furniture were carved from Piktish wood and were of good quality. Surelly Otto would have appreciated the work, Rince thought and his hand clenched around the weapon on his side, a sword made from wood.
But it wasn't the right gift to bring to a furneral.

He hurriedly passed a fisherman selling his catch from this morning and took a look at the spice seller who's wares left a distinctiv aroma that was noticable even over the smell of salt that came from the sea.
Which spices had Otto liked? The monkey man surelly had loved to eat, but Rince found it difficult to remember if the man had any preferances for a certain spice.
So it wouldn't be spices.
It wasn't right to bring something you were unsure of to a furneral.

The next merchant selled clothes and Kyou bought a long and warm looking coat for himself. It wouldn't do to arrive at the furneral with blue lips and shaking body. With his upper body covered however, he was going to be fine. As someone born in North Blue himself, he wasn't as sensible to the cold anyway, though he was still human so he needed the warmth.
There wasn't really anything he could bring as a gift though, so he went on.

Now, this store sold liquor, which seemed a very appropriate choice for a furneral. Rince was tempted to buy a bunch of bottles and drown himself and his grief right here right now. But if he did that, he'd never make it to the furneral. Not to mention that he had a natural aversion against alcoholic drinks and never drank. To change so now seemed wrong. It was tempting, but maybe it was that temptation that let him stay away from it as he was rather suspicious of the impuls.
So alcohol was out, even though it was a very appropriate thing to bring to a furneral.

In the end he decided on a basket full of fruits. Maybe that wasn't really anything big or fance to bring, but at least it was useful as it could be eaten. The practicallity of a gift had always been important to him, even though he had rarely been gifted anything or gave gifts himself, but nothing seemed worse than a gift that was only usefull as decoration and would collect dust.
Those fruits were fresh and would stay so for a while in this cold weather. It was also something he could put on the grave if no one who came to the funeral wanted to eat some.
Wait! Was there even a reason to bring food? Most of the time the people organizing the furneral were preparing something to eat, so maybe his gift wasn't needed?
Becoming unsure again, he walked through the market in search for something else. But his mind just couldn't find anything fitting and he had already bought the fruits, so he decided to settle on that anyway. If no one else wanted them, the island's many animals would take the offering.

Heavy basket in hand, he set off to the dojo, hoping that the others would be there as well.

[The Shimmering Banana]

As the wagon reaches the front steps leading to the doors of the dojo Pete pulls the reins once more making the ponies come to a complete stop. The group begins to descend from the wagon one by one until its last passenger, Octavia, hops off. The group all walk towards the doors looking back at the girl as they begin to walk in. It would be the first time she entered her home without her father being around. There was no training, no loud laughs coming from the halls and no food being eaten. This was not the home she knew and did not seem like one she wanted to become accustomed to. The young woman slowly walked towards the others as she knew it was time to get this over with. She looks at Pete and says.



“So you said there was something to talk about.”



The old man nodding his head and waiving his arm towards the entrance leading Octavia inside. “Yes we do.” He says as she passes through the doorway. Pete then looks at Big Blue and asks, “Would you be so kind as to make us some tea.”



As the rest of the group walks towards the living area, the mother blue gorilla walks to the kitchen and starts to boil a large pot of water. She then walks to the cupboard and grabs a favorite tea of all the members of the dojo. Banana flavored tea. A rich tasting tea that came all the way from the grand line. The last batch of this particular tea and the last bit that would enter this dojo unless someone went to the grand line to get more. Big blue knew that Otto was the one who retrieved this tea by the crate load twice a year and just how rare it was to this island. However, she thought it might bring happy memories to her daughter like figure who was taking the death of her father worse than the rest of the “family”. A loud whistle alters the mother and she drops the tea bag into the pot. As it steeps, she grabs a tray and several cups preparing to place the pot on the tray as well.



Big blue then takes the tray to the rest of the group placing it on the table in front of them.



“Thank you” says Octavia as she takes a deep whiff of her favorite tea. “Hmmmm is that…?” she questions with a huge smile on her face as she goes to grab a cup. “Where’s the sugar?”

*Mean while* 

*pera pera per…*

“This better be good news.” Says a dark and deep voice from the other side of the den den mushi.



“He’s dead Sir.” Replies a tall slender man wearing an all-black three-piece suit. “It may have taken six months but it worked like a charm.” He continued speaking of the sinister plan used to take down the head of a bounty hunter organization. “I told you no one would suspect it. Mixing in ground sea stone with the sugar for his tea. It’s tasteless and would only hurt a devil fruit user like him.” he continues as he sits at a bar sipping an aged red wine.



“And you’re sure he is dead?” continues the unknown man.



“I am but you know my guarantee. You don’t pay until I see my target get put into the ground. The funeral is set for tomorrow, I’ll call you with the location you can send my payment.” Replies the assassin confidant that his target was in fact dead.



“He better be.”

*CLICK* 

[Shinku]

Even though he had been here before multiple times, Rince had lost the orientation almost immediately after entering the forest. The main road, a well maintained street which, although not the largest and widest of its kind, had a solid underground that didn't turn into wheels-eating quagmire and the trees and other plants were always kept well off the road, and yet he had managed to end up in a bypath for some reason.
Confused the boy looked around to figure out where he was. There was a path here, but it was hardly visible below the greenery and some berry bushes had creeped their way onto the path, scratching his bare legs as he tried to wiggle his way through them.
Hunters often used those paths and definitelly other locals who knew the shortcuts well and weren't afraid of the deep shadows casted by the trees. Without a doubt, Otto's students had been pushing their way through similar and even less unwalkable paths, though Rince suspected that like the Blues Brothers, a lot of them might have learned to use the tree road instead.
Rince had never been a student at Otto's dojo, but he had had his little training fights with the very competetive gorilla brothers and his friend had given him more than just one useful hint on how to fight.

Unfortunately no hint had contained the advice of keeping his eye on the road or else the pinkhaired boy might not have lost his way like that. Truth be told, Rince had kept his watery green eyes on the path in front of him... But his mind had been lost in memories of old, so that his brain hadn't registered at all when he left the main road for a sidepath. Only when he walked into a lowhanging treebranch, Rince was knocked back into the presence.

The basket was heavy in his arms, tiring him out even more so than the road, though his most tiresome affliction was still his depressed mind.
Maybe he shouldn't have bought the watermelon? But it was a gift for Otto, so Rince had packed the basket full of exotic fruits. They were more expensive than the native fruits like apples and pears, fruits which Rince had also included, but he still considered the money well spent when his eyes felt on the bananas on top. How could he not have included those? No matter the costs, he just had to buy them. Even if that meant that he was going to eat only coarse bread and whatever fish he might be lucky enough to catch.

Something rustled in the bushes and Rince tensed up in anticipation of an attack from a wild animal.
But it was only Bruce who was roaming through the greenery.
Or was it? Rince took a closwer look and noticed that the haggis, although snow-white like his own companion, was a little smaller and had less pronounced brows.
As if to confirm his thoughts, Bruce appeared from behind him and joined the newcommer. Together they exchanged some fast and rather high-pitched notes, probably updating each other on the recent news as they whistled away with no care in the world, completely ignoring the scrowling man who stood next to them and watched their conversation.
Rince knew a little bit of haggis speak from his time with Bruce, but whatever those two were talking about, it was too difficult for him to follow.

„Oh, right. You know where we are, don't you Bruce?“ he asked his companion in the well-founded hope that the haggis could lead him back on track.
His friend turned around and gave him a look. It had an air of „Now you decided to finally notice me?“ and Rince had to turn his gaze away as he was feeling ashamed about how he had treated his friend in the last few days.
No matter how sad he was over the death of his friend, he shouldn't be neglecting his other friends because of that.
„Look Bruce,“ he started, not exactly sure what he wanted to say, „I'm... those last few days... I... What I want to tell you is that I'm sorry. I shouldn't have ignored you like that.“
It sounded lame, even in his ears. Like always he wasn't sure that he had properly been able to convey his feelings, but the haggis seemed pacified and took the lead, which Rince took as a sign that they weren't lost after all.
As they walked through the forest, they were joined by more and more furballs in all sorts of colors. A lot of them had red, yellow or brown skin, making Rince think of autumn, but there were also some plum colored ones and midnight blacks in their midst. Accompanied by this honor guard, they were soon back in a place that Rince could recognize.
It wasn't far to the dojo now.

[The Shimmering Banana]

*Somewhere on The Grand Line* 

A tailor kneels before an average height man, a long tape measure spanning along his legs as he is fitted for a new suit. The tailor then removes a pencil from behind his ears and begins to jot down notes on a piece of yellow paper. He then takes the tape measure and wraps it around the man’s waste continuing to jot down the average person’s measurements. As the tailor moves up towards the man’s arms, another tall well-dressed man enters the room and begins to speak, “Boss” he calls out.



“Just give me a second,” replies the boss.



The tailor then finishes off his measurements by wrapping the tape around the man’s neck. He then walks towards a book of fabrics and brings them to the man in order for him to choose the pattern for his new suit. The man points down to a royal blue stripped pattern and hands it to the tailor. “That’s a great choice” says the tailor as the man steps down and walks away from the mirror. The man thanking the tailor as he retrieves his old clothing. He puts on his old tattered jeans then slips his large feet into a pair of holey shoes. As the tailor watches he sighs and addresses the man once more “No.. no.. no! You’re going to need some new shoes as well. Go down the street to Jovani’s and tell his Mr. D sent you.” The man nodding and simply replying “Yes Boss.” The tailor then turns to the other man in the room and waives him towards a room in the back of the shop.



“So what is it Mr. V? You know I don’t like being disturbed when I’m fitting the new recruits.” Says the tailor as he slips on his dark gray suit jacket and sits behind the desk.



“I’m sorry Mr. D, our other men have arrived on Pikt and are awaiting your orders,” continues the other well-dressed man. “Good once the hired assassin confirms that damn apes death have our agents kill him. I don’t want any loose ends”. “Yes Sir,” replies Mr. V as he leaves the bosses officer.

*Back on Pikt* 

The young woman picks up her cup and takes a small sip of the warm banana tea. As she places the cup back onto the wooden table, Pete begins to speak.



“So like I told you earlier the funeral is set for tomorrow and per your father’s wishes he will be cremated and his ashes planted behind the dojo in the green house with a banana tree.” The girl rolling her eyes as she heard her father’s wishes. “I know, it seems extra but you know your father…” continued Pete “now as to his will, he wants it read after the funeral to make sure that everyone named in it shows up.”



Octavia takes another sip of her tea and replies “That’s fine, so where is he?”



“He’s back at the doc’s, the closest morgue is there and that’s where dead bodies go young lady,” continued Pete. “It’s also the only place we can have him cremated. So, tomorrow morning I will go back to Abundeen and get him while you tend to your guest.”



“Ok Mr. McKay, so who else is coming?” says the girl while continuing to drink her favorite drink.



“Well we contacted a few of his associates but there’s no way to tell who will make it here. You know how traveling in the North Blue can be this time of year.”

[Shinku]

It hadn't been that far and yet Rince was starting to feel tired. Or rather, he had been tired from the beginning, but now he was starting to drag his feet.
Dirt started to cling to his shoes even stronger than before, coating them in a dirty brown layer of drying, or rather, freezing mud. Just what had he been thinking, coming here wearing those old worn-out shoes? And his clothes were no where near appropriate for a furneral either.
Rince wished he had thought about this when he was back in town. He could have bought some decent clothing instead of simply this plain coat, functional as it might be.
Too late to change that now, besides he didn't have the money.

„How far is it?“ he asked Bruce.
The haggis looked back, a little distracted, he had been in conversation with his family members and hadn't paid much attention to the boy.
With a rather human shrug and a whistle sound, the animal indicated that it wasn't far anymore. There was definitelly some annoyance in the noice as Bruce was thinking that his human should have been able to tell by himself that it was just around the corner now.
Not like the forest had any corners, but Bruce had found that humans tended to like them very much. The way they build their towns clearly showed how fond they were of them as you couldn't go more than a few meters without seeing one.
Strange creatures, but interesting too.

The forest began to thin out and more light began to shine through the conifers' snow-covered branches as the trees began to stand together farther and farther from each other. And then they were out of the forest without any further mishaps for which Rince was grateful for.
The group of haggis that had followed them through the forest turned back again and only he and Bruce were left.
Since they had gone through the forest on some sidepath, the main road was a bit to the side and Rince had to struggle through some unpathed bit of land until he was back on track again. Bruce on the other hand took it easy and simply climbed on the boy's shoulder to save himself the effort of walking through the snow.

Hi, I've come for the funeral.... Hello Big Blue, I'm here for the funeral... Hello Big Blue, I've come to give Otto my respect... Hi! I'm a friend of Otto's, I've come for the funeral... Hello, I'm Kyou, I'm friends with Otto...
As he walked the last few meters to the gate, Rince went over and over what he wanted to say in his head, trying out variations so he would be able to say something rather than have the words stuck in his mouth when the time came.
I've brought some fruits for Otto... for the funeral... as a gift... as a gift yeah, that was probably the best way to describe it.
Deep in throughts he passed through the gate and went to the entrance of the dojo. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door.
His first attempt at knocking came out so feeble, that he wasn't sure if anyone had even been able to hear it, so he gathered his courage and knocked again – this time strong enough to be noticed – hopefully.

The door went open and Rince immediately launched into his prepared speech, without even looking at who had even opened the door.
„Hi Kyou, I'm Blue! Err.. you're Blue, I'm a friend of Ottos. Fruits! For the funeral. Errr.. I've brought some to eat I guess or eat.. err...“
Loosing his line of thoughts he stopped, the basket with the fruits held up like an offering, or maybe a shield.
On his shoulder, Bruce was facepalming hard. A gesture the haggis had copied from the humans and which he was particularly fond of. Lucky for him, his human companion gave him many chances to use it.

[The Shimmering Banana]

As everyone drank their tea around the wooden table, a loud knock interrupts the clan head from speaking. “Ah that must be the things I ordered,” says the old man as he rises from his seat and walks towards the large doors. As he opens the doors, a large box sits on the doorstep with a tall slender deliveryman standing behind it. “Sign her please Sir.” Says the man as he hands Mr. McKay the order receipt. “Thank you” he continues as the old man hands back the signed piece of paper.



As he walks away from the dojo, the ‘delivery man’ looks down at the signed paper and reads the name. ‘Pete McKay, he’s a clan head… this guy had friends in high places.’ He then hops back into his wooden cart pulled by a single pony and tosses the paper in the back. With an excessively hard whip, the pony begins to leave the area at a speed not common for a Pikt pony. As he rides away a muffled sound creeps to his seat in the front. “Keep it down back there.” He calls out to a tied up delivery man lying in the back of the covered cart. The imposter making a sharp turn off the regular path as he sees a pink haired boy re-entering the path from the outskirts of the woods. ‘Better if no one else sees me’ he thinks to himself.



Back at the dojo, Mr. McKay calls out to the young blue gorilla in order to pick up the large package too heavy for an old man. The blue beast lifting the wooden crate with ease and bringing it into the living area where everyone else was still sitting. “So as per traditions on this island. I have ordered several kilts with the dojo’s tartan on it. This little tribe of his has been recognized by every other tribe so I saw to it that your fathers marking became an official tartan of this island.” The kilts a solid brown color with dark yellow stripes on the side of each leg. A circular patch with Otto’s Jolly Roger, a monkey skull with two bananas crossed behind it, placed on the upper left thigh area.



Octavia lays the kits on her lap as she passes her fingers across the warm material reaching the patch and moving her fingers around it in a circular motion. “It’s beautiful,” she says as she nods in thanks to Pete McKay.



“Of course my dear” he replies “and of course there will be enough for everyone we have invited to the funeral.” As he spoke another light knock followed by a normal one raps at the door. “Now who can that be?” he says as he walks back towards the door. Pete slowly opens the door to see a young man stumbling over his words with a large fruit basket held over his head. “Slow down lad. You must be one of the banana heads friends. Come with me we’re just having a cup of tea.”

Leading the boy into the living room Mr. McKay announces the boy, without saying his name as he had not yet asked, and shows him an empty seat for him to sit at. “So my boy its traditional here for the family and friends to tell stories of the deceased and themselves. So who are you and how do you know Otto?”

[Shinku]

Hugging his fruits basket as he followed the old man who looked slightly familiar to Rince, though the boy could not place where he had seen him before. Probably just in passing or something, as there were usually a lot of people going in and out of the dojo.
At least on a normal day. Which today clearly wasn't.
Rince got an eerie feeling as he walked through the too empty place. The vibes were all wrong. The usual cheerfullness and chaotic mess that was created by a lot of people training together was all gone and there was only a dead silence. Appropriate maybe for a place who's master had recently died, but it still felt sad and unfitting since Otto himself had always been such a genki and cheerful person.

With a silent nod at the other present people, Rince took the offered chair and put the gift basket on the table. Only to immediately regret that action since he now had nothing to hold on to and he had to keep his hands from nervously fumbling around out of embarrassment.
He reached for a tea cup, unknowingly taking one belonging to someone else and took a small sip to cover his nervousness.
The warm tea had a distinctive taste of bananas, something strongly reminding him of the monkey man. It was nostalgic but it was also making him sad and just tasting this made his whole body feel weak and worn out instead of warm and calm as tea normally should.
At first he had intended to keep the cup in hand, but his hand was shaking so badly that he had to set it down.

Feeling out of place, he let his gaze wander over the present people. He still couldn't place the old man or the other one, but of course he recognized Octavia. They had never spend much time with each other, but they knew of each other because of her father and because of the BHN, which Rince was a member off, even though he was rather spectacularily failing at catching any noticable bounty. Luckily Big Blue was around as well. Rince had been a tad scared of the big gorilla when he had first met them, but it was hard to stay afraid of her once you knew Big Blue. The Blue Gorilla was very motherly, not just to her own children and had always welcomed him kindly whenever he had come to visit. Her presence helped to calm him a little. At least until the old man asked him for a story.
He had not expected to be asked to tell a story and he was starting to panic again.
Bruce gently patted his side and Rince took a deep breath and started to tell how he had met Otto for the first time.

„I'm Kyou.“ he started, shooting a quick glance at Octavia to see of she perhaps recognized the name from the member register. But then again, there were quite a few members, so there was no reason for her to remember everyone and especially not a failure like him specifically.
„I'm a friend of Otto's. I mean, that's why I'm here for the funeral.“
Well, that was awkward.. why was he stating the obvious.
„I've met Otto by chance when we were both doing a mission for the Island's research center, looking for proves of rare piktish wildlife, so that they can see if they're still exist or if they had died out.“
That seemed a bit better, but he was still not really telling them much about Otto and himself as they had asked him too. What else was there he could say?
Rince didn't really want to go into too much details as to not bore them, but he probably had to say something more.
„As we did so, we encountered some poachers on the way. Those guys later tried to kidnapp the Blues and we went to beat them up but...“
There he stopped, feeling that to talk about that event was rather hurtful and considering that everyone was already down because of Otto's death it didn't seem wise to bring up bad days.
Hoping that someone else would take over the storytelling and save him, Rince looked around. Bruce had settled in his lap and the pink-haired boy absentmindedly stroke the soft white fur.
„By the way,“ he wanted to know, „who else is going to come to the funeral?“
He was really hoping that Erwyn would show up as well so that there was at least one person he knew well, but considering how scattered they usually were, it was a faint hope that the man would make it.

[The Shimmering Banana]

As the pink haired boy spoke, Octavia held onto every word or lack thereof. She remembered this man’s name from the BHN’s database but she also remembered another thing. Being the secretary for the organization, she had seen his face a few times and she always made sure to keep meticulous records. That record keeping lead her to a fascinating discovery a long time ago one that her father decided not to pay any mind to. Long ago when the pair met, much like today, the pink hard hunter introduced himself as Kyou. However when completing some paperwork with the world government in order to keep the organization a reputable one, that name did not registered in any census in the world. Therefore, it was either this man never stayed in one place for too long… or he was using an alias. Given their line of work, it was common for hunters not to give their real names so no evil doer could retaliate against their family. But why lie to your friends? Octavia found it strange seeing as she felt that someone that could not even give his or her real name could not be trusted. Her father on the other hand could care less.



She could remember the exact words that he said to her when she told him. “Kyou, Y-you, Bowho… I don’t care what the guy’s real name is, all I care about is that he helped protect people from this land. Besides that were still getting the 10% from his turn in’s arnt we?”



Although he let her do all of the paper work she knew that her father spent at least half the night double checking her work. So, she also knew that Otto knew that Kyou barley brought in any money, in fact there were only two or three bounties turned in in the years he worked with the organization. Nevertheless, that only meant that his friendship and trust was worth more to her father than any amount of money he was worth. If it were good enough for her father, it would be good enough for her as well.



As the boy asked who else was coming, Mr. McKay replied as he was the only one that knew the guest list. “Well it is the North Blue in the winter time. So you know how it is… We have invited most of the remaining members of your organization but you are the only one to reply. Other than the people in this room I’m sure that the Calvary will show up as well as another one of my workers Marcus.”



Octavia takes the final gulp of her tea and looks directly at the pink haired young man with a cheerful look in her eyes. “You’re here and that’s all that matters. My father held you in high regards and for all I care it could just be the people in this room and ‘cousin’ Marcus of course”. Waiving her mother like gorilla over the girl continues to say, “Blue since all the recruits have graduated this time around we have plenty of empty rooms don’t we? Well Mr. Kyou you can stay here for as long as you like”



The large mammal rise to her feet and begins to walk down the hall stopping by the linins closet and gathering a clean sheet and a pillow for their new guest. “Oh and your file says how shy you are but don’t try and say no to her she can get a bit beastly. Hahaha! Get it?”



It had been the first time she laughed since she heard the news but she could tell that with this new friendship it may not be her last. Her father was always a happy man and he would want her to keep moving forward and be happy so why not try to start tonight.

[Shinku]

At first Rince was a little stunned, but then he burst out laughing as well. It was not a loud laugh, but it was liberating. It felt as if all (or at least a good chunk of his heavy) worries were flung away together with the laugher and the shaking shoulders lost some of their tension.
It took him a while to calm down again.
Not like it had been an especially funny or very witty joke, but it had been so „Otto“ that he couldn't help himself. Hearing that sort of humor from his friends daugher made him glad he had come.
The memories stung. They were still stinging now.
But on the same time there was a promise of healing in the air.
Yes, he could get over this.
Not in the way of pushing the memorie away and pretend it never happened, but properly, by giving Otto the send off he deserved and himself the much needed time to sort through his feelings and allow them to be whatever they were.
Here in this dojo that had been build by his late friend, here where he might get a glimpse of what the word „home“ truly ment, he could allow himself to be vulnerable for a bit.
Before he had to let caution take control again...

For the first time since he entered the room, he allowed himself to look at her directly rather than staring at her feet or pretending to be deeply engaged with the person who had led him in and asked him the questions.
The resemblance to her father was unmistakable.
As were the differences.
Fore one, there were curves in places where Otto definitelly didn't have any and she was also a lot more slender than her father. Like her father she was well-trained and even her slender figure could not hide the strength she possessed.
The woman also seemed a lot more serious than her father – at least at first glance.
Considering that her joking habits seemed very much like her father, that might be a false impression though.

He gave her a grin. It was a bit crooked as his facial muscles weren't used to the motion and his eyebrows didn't unknit either from their perpetual frown, but it was a honest smile nevertheless and his green eyes shone with a light that was rare for them.
„You sure have gotten your father's humor.“ he told her as he got up to help Blue with the bedsheets, feeling really uncomfortable that the old lady had to go through the trouble for him.
„I think I'll be fine with Big Blue here. If anything she's more...“ Rince tried to think of a good joke in return, but couldn't think of anything good so he lamely finished with „more likely to smother one with her motherly affection than anything else.“
Yes, making jokes was definitelly not for him. You needed wit for that and a sense of humor, which Rince definitelly didn't have. He could enjoy jokes that others made, but he was rubbish at remembering them or coming up with good responses on his own. Best to leave that to the Saix family from now on.
„Anyway, thank you. Both for the invitation and for letting me stay here.“
he told Octavia as he took the bed sheet and the pillow from the blue gorilla's hands. Having gotten to know her from his previous visits, the boy felt quite comfortable around her, which was a rare thing for him.
There was no way he would reject an offer of having a roof over his head for the night, especially since it looked as if it was going to snow some more tonight and he was feeling save enough in the dojo, saver than he would feel somewhere in the woods below a random tree.
As he followed Big Blue to his room, he did wonder where Octavia got the idea from that he was shy. He wasn't shy, was he? No, definitelly not!
Sure he was a little socially awkward, but he wasn't shy. He simply prefered not to get too close to others, but that wasn't out of shyness but a general mistrust.
For a moment he wished that he had kept his distance from Otto as well.
Had he done that he wouldn't feel so rubbish right now and wouldn't have to feel sad over the man's death.
But even as he thought that he knew deep and clear, that he wasn't actually believing this to be true. His meeting with Otto had brought some trouble with it, and a lot of other bizzar things, but it hadn't been a bad thing. All in all, Rince had turned out better for it.

[The Shimmering Banana]

As the boy took the night gear from the mother gorilla Octavia thought to herself that he really did seem like a good friend. It was easy to see why her father put so much trust in the pink haired kid. As the night slowly crept over the day and the conversation ran dry, their guest slowly stood from their seats and announced their leave. “Well its getting late, Arnold and I have to get back home,” says the old man as he stretches his arms over his head. “An old man needs is beauty sleep and the forest is no place for a geezer like me” he continued his bones creaking as he stretched. “We will see you in the morning after we pick up your fathers ashes.” He finishes up as the two men walk towards the door the young hunter accompanying them out of the dojo.



“Ok Mr. McKay, Uncle Arnold I’ll see you in the morning.” She says waiving the two men away as they load up in the wooden cart.



Dark clouds swept over the sky as nightfall came, the dense clouds releasing a light snow over the land. The surrounding areas of the dojo came to a silence as the forest creatures found a safe place to rest their heads for the snowy night. “Well Mr. Kyou, you know where your room is. Big Blue and I have some preparations to get ready for tomorrow but there’s one of those new Den Den televisions in your room if you are not quite tired yet. Feel free to use it.” She says as she starts her way to the kitchen with Big Blue.



The pair enter the kitchen, Big Blue tossing the girl a yellow and brown stripped apron to wear as they were in for a night of cooking. Octavia wraps the straps around her slim waist and ties them in a neat bow in the front. She then walks towards the cabinet and begins to retrieve a mountain of vegetables herbs and spices. Big blue simultaneously going into the refrigerator retrieving a bunch of un-cooked meat and eggs. Octavia has never considered herself a good cook but one thing she was good at was remembering instructions. Moreover, if nothing else she could remember several different recipes that she learned as a child and from her travels around the North Blue. The girl and the gorilla then walk towards the sink and begin their culinary journey by washing their hands. ‘The Monkey Princess’ cracks several eggs into a bowl and starts mixing flour and a pinch of cinnamon. She then briskly whips the mixture together until it made a thick dough. With the dough formed, she removes it from the bowl and tosses it onto the wooden counter top. As she pounds the dough, Big Blue walks towards the oven and begins to pre-heat it. The large gorilla then begins to peal several bananas and place them into a mixer with heavy crème and a good amount of sugar. This would be the foundation of their desert, Otto’s favorite BANANA CRÈME PIE.



The woman continued to cook throughout the night as the snow continued to fall as far as the eye could see. It even fell over the land of Abundeen where in the morgue something sinister ensued. A thick cloud of smoke plumed over the morgue as a slender man inside began to incinerate a body. As the body turned to dust, the man slipped on a white lab coat over his black suit jacket. ‘If I’m going to play the part I might as well look the part’ he thought to himself as his long arms slipped into the sleeves. Watching the fire burn he lets out an ominous laugh as he says, “looks like there going to need a new coroner”. The man subtly announcing that he was not the man that was supposed to be doing this job. In fact, he was the cause of all of this, the man that extinguished the flame of the bounty hunter, the man that killed Otto Saix. A nameless assassin with hopes of joining the ranks of a letter agent in a criminal organization in the grand line. As the coroner’s body finishes turning to ash the criminal pulls out the tray and slides the cinders into a trash can getting rid of the evidence. He then walks over to the metal tables and takes a picture using a Den Den camera of a rather hairy man laying lifeless.



‘This should be proof enough for the boss’ he thinks to himself as he rolls the table over to the furnace and slides Otto’s body in. As he cremates the body, he continues to take pictures during each step to ensure that the boss will consider this a completed mission. It may have taken him a long time to complete it but there was nothing to link it back to him or the organization. It was the perfect crime. With the body completely burned, he scoops the remains up with his hands pouring them into a monkey shaped ern. As the ashes fall in, a ring with a ‘D’ emblem slips off his sweaty fingers falling into the pile of ashes. The ring a symbol of his ties with the criminal group sure to cause problems for the man later on. ‘Mission complete’ he thinks to himself as he washes his hands never realizing that the ring has fallen off. He then slips into a cot set up in the coroner’s office and slowly falls asleep.



With the birds chirping outside it was the beginning of a new day and more importantly the day of the funeral. The mysterious man awakens in another man’s cot and decides he might as well take a shower. As the warm water flows over him, a light ring echoes as three men walk into the coroner’s office. One a clan head, another a long arm, and the last an octopus fish man. “Hello!” calls out Mr. McKay as he looks for someone with no sight of the coroner. “It’s Pete McKay. I’m here to pick up the remains of Otto Saix.” He continued as the octo-boy sees the monkey head shaped ern that he himself made for the occasion. Popping open the top he could see the ashes inside and calls out to his boss, “Osan! he’s right here” still referring to the remains as if the bounty hunter was still alive. With still no sign of the coroner, the three men decide to go about their business and make their way back to the dojo with Otto’s remains.



As the assassin washed the soap off his wet body, he finally realizes the idiotic mistake he made. “My ring where is it?” he questions himself as he rushes out of the shower naked and starts to look for the ring. With the ring nowhere in sight he realized it must be with the ashes and runs out to the front of the room looking for the monkey-man’s remains. ‘Where is it I know I put it here’ he thinks as he does not see the ern anywhere. “Oh no… What time is it?” he questions himself peering back at an old coo-coo clock. “AHHHHHH! It’s already 8:00 A.M. they must have come and picked up that pain in the bosses side. I’m screwed.” Rushing to catch up to the group, he runs out of the office wearing only the cloths he was born in. NONE. After a few steps in the freezing cold weather he noticed his embracing mistake and goes back to the office to put his suit on. ‘Looks like I’ll be crashing a funeral today’ he thinks slipping into his undergarments.

[Shinku]

There were soft breathing sounds coming from the round ball of fur on the pillow, next to his head where Bruce had made himself comfortable. The white fur tickled Rince's ear, but it was a pleasant and reasuring feeling, rather than a bad one. It reminded him that he wasn't alone, that there was someone here with him.
The bed had a nice fresh smell, like old wood from the closet. Rince just laid there in his underware, as he had not bothered to take any spare clothing with him, and breathed it in as he let his mind wander.

He wasn't tired in the slightest, even though the day had been hard on him, but he had slept so much on the ship that sleep now dodged him as if he were a poisonous snake or something like that.
Dark thoughts were lurking in the shadow of his mind, so the boy tried his best to stay away from them and focus on less depressing thoughts.
Not an easy task, considering that he had come here for the funeral of his friends and the whole house – no, the whole island – held memories from the two of them.

I wonder if I can find the stream we both almost drowned in.
His memories for geographical space was good, but he ended up getting turned around easily anyway and the Pikt Archipelago was full of little and larger streams and other watery surfaces like lakes, so he doubted he could find the exact same one again.

On the desk with the promised 'television' Den Den, his own Den Den Mushi Lettuce was sleeping quietly. The little girl was a calm and silent as alway and if she had conversed with the other Mushi, they had done so in the way of the Den Den, so Rince wouldn't been able to pick up on it unless he had a Den Den to translate the waves into something humanly inteligable.
His own Den Den had been a Camera Mushi, but the technology that had made it work had long since broken down and fallen appart and Rince only kept her around as a companion now, not having the heart of abandoning her after so long.
Besides, there was always the option of getting new tech for her, if he ever got some money to spare.

Oh right! There should still be some pictures from that time around.

On their first meeting, Otto had been in his hybrid form and Rince who had been charged with taking pictures of the local widelife had mistaken the monkey man as one of the native animals. So he had taken a few pictures of Otto back then.
A smile slipped onto his face.
Otto being Otto had of course started to pose for him and had of course made the classic „Three wise monkeys“ gestures for him to perpetuate with his camera.
Rince had long lost the photos, but he knew that Otto had had his own copies of them. Maybe he could ask Octavia about them tomorrow. Seeing them would be nice and a good way of remembering Otto how he had been while he had still been with the living...


It was still dark outside when Rince woke up. The cold was perceptable even through the warm blankets and the boy wrapped himself more tightly into them. He hated mornings when the curse of consciousness robbed him of the peaceful oblivion that was sleep and brought him back into the harsh reality of life.
He really wished that he had put his clothes closer to the bed last night, but heedless he had just thrown them on the floor somewhere.
With the rest of his body still hidden under the blanket, he tried to reach out for them, but couldn't really grab them. The tips of his fingers lightly brushed over the fabric, but could not get a hold of it to pull it towards himself. If he wanted to get dressed, he would have to get up and face the cold...
Frowning worse than usual – for one because it was morning and his frown was always worse in the morning and two because it was also a rather cold morning and he couldn't get dressed without leaving the warmth of his bed (his bed! Just the thought of it!) - he stumbled out of the bed with the blanket tightly wrapped around his shoulders and got his clothes on.
They had given him something to wear for the funeral, but as there was still time till then, Rince prefered to stay with his usual clothes.

Maybe it was just because the recruits had all graduated, but the emptiness of the place really accented the absense of it's owner. Rince wouldn't have been surprised to see a ghost jump out from one of the walls, trying to scare him. That would be just like Otto, he thought and stayed on high alert. But nothing happened.
Not sure when the other residents would get up, he made his way to the dojo and started a light morning routine to train.
That wasn't like him at all, but it felt right.
Most of all, moving his body kept him from thinking too much.
On one hand, moving one's body could help focusing one's thoughts, but it was also very easy to get lost in the movement, focusing on each and every step as one conducted them until every other thought got canceled out and only the flow of the dance remained.
He was alone in the training room, not even Bruce was with him, and so he took his time to enjoy a bit of solitude as he worked his body to exhaustion while the sun began to rise.

[The Shimmering Banana]

As the sunlight gleamed in through the kitchen window, a baking flower covered girl and her mother gorilla slept face down at the kitchen table. A loud timer going off waking the pair up from their slumber, a slice of cheese stuck to the drool covered face of Octavia. “Huh! What! Where’s the fire” she calls out frantically searching for the source of the commotion. Her head quickly twitching back and forth, as she noticed the timer on the stove going off. “Oh man my roast,” she continues rushing over to the beeping stove. As the young woman opened the stove, the aroma of fresh herbs and marinated meat filled her nostrils causing her mouth to salivate. ‘Oh yeah that’s the stuff’ she thinks to herself as she pokes the tender meat with a metal skewer, the utensil easily seeping through the cooked meat. “Perfect,” she says to Big Blue who was awakening slowly starting to take strides to the cabinet to retrieve the caffeinated tea. It was to be a long day and surly everyone could go for an extra pick me up this morning.



Octavia slips on a pair of oven mitts and removes the meat from the oven as Blue puts a kettle of water to boil. The girl then looks up at the time and thinks ‘it’s already 8. Mr. McKay will be here shortly’. The two females still having much to do before the guest arrive for the funeral. Any other day Blue would have already been awake and would have started making breakfast but today she was too busy to worry about the boys, Jake, Elwood, and Kyou sleeping down the hall. The two continue to put their finishing touches on a variety of foods for the guest; a full spread including fruit, steamed and fried vegies, cheese, a full pork roast, and of course the banana crème pie. With all the food complete and set on the counter the girl walks towards the door and sees a fresh layer of snow covering the ground.



As she looks out into the yard leading to the garden Big Blue walks up to her and hands her a cup of tea. “Thank you,” she says before letting out a sigh “I guess I’ll start shoveling this snow or else well have nowhere to do the ceremony”. The hot cup in her hand instantly beginning to cool from the brisk morning air of the island. Suggesting that it was time for them to relax and prepare their bodies for the service Big Blue pulls Octavia back into the home and plops her down into a seat. The large gorilla then grabs two shovels that were leaning on the outside wall near the door and walks towards her boy’s room. With a stern growl, the mother awakens the boys, both of the young blue gorilla hopping out of their sleep and to their feet. She then tosses them the shovels and gives them a low growl instructing them to “Get your butts out of bed and shovel the back”. The boys grumbling to themselves as they walk into the cold snow to start their labor on an empty stomach.



Octavia nodding at the boys as they passed her on their way outside, taking a sip of the room temperature tea. As she finishes her drink she returns to the kitchen and pours, another for their guest who she presumed was still sleeping in his room. The hot cup of tea warmed her hands as she walks towards the room and lightly knocks on the door. “Mr. Kyou… It’s morning,” she says continuing to knock on the door, “Mr. Kyou I’ve brought you some tea, it’s caffeinated”. With no answer, she begins to slowly open the door when she hears a noise coming from the training hall. The girl heads down the hall tea still in hand and sees the pink haired boy working up a sweat as he got in his training. ‘Just like dad,’ she thought ‘waking up early just to train. This guy must be tough. Hard to believe from the lack of bounties he’s turned in’. Still it warmed her heart to see someone else with the same habits as her departed father.



“Mr. Kyou,” she calls out “sorry to bother you in the middle of your workout but I’ve brought you some tea. There’s no breakfast today but funerals here are an all-day thing so there will be plenty to eat once we get started which should be in an hour or two once Mr. McKay and the others arrive with the ern.”