Tea for Two

Written with Lady Munin of PAW



It was a pleasantly breezy day for the end of spring. The type of day Munin could be thankful for when wearing a simple light kimono. Despite its modern styles and lightweight pale grey material it was still Long sleeved with two layers. If not for the breeze she would have been notably less comfortable to be sitting at the outside pavilion. The discomfort would have been worth it though, for truly there was no better place to have tea than in the traditional elegance of a Japanese garden on a beautiful day.

A wisp of black hair escapes her French twist, and was quickly tucked behind the shell of her ear. With a sigh of content, she adjusted one of the utensils to its proper position, and then simply sat in silence to await her guest.

In the distance a heavily tattooed man is signaled to her location. He smiles and straightens out his koromo robe and approaches. He looks around and sighs at the nostalgia this place makes him feel in a foreign land. Then he gets closer and marvels at the attention to detail Lady Munin has put into the arrangements for the tea ceremony. Everything is impeccable. This woman knows how to make a good impression. It was his turn to match it. He walks in front of her with a smile and bows.

“Apologies for the lateness, Miss. Have you been waiting long?” He motions at the table. “This is truly incredible. It is a slice of home one has far too little of nowadays. Thank you for your invitation.”

Munin smiled up at the larger man, before giving her own bow. She was content with courteousness and appreciation, some manners seemed to be lost in other modern cultures.

“I am pleased that you find it satisfactory sir, you arrived just as I finished placing everything...So in a manner of speaking you are right on time.”

With one hand she made a small elegant gesture towards the space across from her.

“Please make yourself comfortable.”

He takes a step to the side and sits down where she motioned with a small chuckle. “Yes good. It is amazing how the simplest things bring such satisfaction. I hope this didn’t put you too far out of your way. You must be very busy running your federation.”  After a quick glance at the table a thought occurs to him. “You are Japanese, right? It is good that you remember the customs. May I ask how you came to leave the country? It is a curiosity of mine and I ask every expat I come across.”

Munin considered brushing the question aside as she normally would, but something about the larger man moved her to answer.

“My mother was English while my father was Japanese. They died when I was young, and so my companion and I found ourselves erratically spending time in Japan and England...Until my paternal great uncle decided to take us under his wing.”

She paused while she began to prepare the tea. It was a ritual that required the utmost precision, so to appear effortless to one's guest. Much the same way one would move through choreographed dance.


“He was a bit of a black sheep my uncle, and he largely spent his time snubbing the family to live in America. Where he taught martial arts, and lived his life without the families dictations.”

The man watched as she went on with the tea preparation and marveled at what seemed like her practiced form. It was almost perfect. He silently cursed himself for breaking etiquette but he doesn’t get to interact with people who don’t want to hurt him somehow very often and this was an interesting woman. There was a purpose for this part of the ceremony after all. Hearing her story made him reflect on his own journey and he was thankful that has led to this moment right now.

It wasn't custom to talk at this point, but honestly some traditions were worth bending. It was oddly liberating to talk about a part of her life she never shared.

“My family was furious when they realized I was wrestling, and they tried to cut me off. It was too late by then of course, I had already taken precautions once I stepped into my role as head of the family. There was nothing they could do, but that I keep the family name out of it. Which is something I was and still am more than happy to do...

She trailed off so that she finished the tea in silence, and it was not until this was done that she continued.

“I feel no regret in going against my family’s wishes. I have brought honour to the honourable man that raised me.”

The man listened carefully and thought about this path she took and imagined how it would be like to have walked in her shoes before replying. “It is an unfortunate thing to lose familial ties like that but at least your uncle still supported you and keeps the connection alive. This was a great man and his good influence is felt every time you go to battle. You honor him indeed, Lady Munin.”

She smiled before sipping her tea, the familiarity of the bitter taste was welcome distraction.

“I still have ties to my family but we are not close, as for my uncle he has sadly passed. His teachings however are of course very much alive.”

Reaching down she saintly picked one of the semi sweet treats laid before them. A sweet treat to balance out the bitter tea, everything had its purpose.

“I find myself more inclined to value honor over morals. I find morals are fragile things that are easily twisted and broken without consequence. “

He reached for his cup and placed it in his other hand. He turned it three times while contemplating this statement. It was something he struggled over constantly. He bowed slightly and sipped the tea. It was excellent but now he was more unsure about who it came from than when he arrived. “Doing the honorable thing is always clear. Morals can be a good guide to live by but they do tend to be subjective. So many conflicts come from it but they are useful when seeing what kind of person someone is. Guilt comes as the consequence to the lucky. Otherwise people like me take an active role in ‘educating’ those in need.”

He nods and rotates his cup the opposite way and places it down again.

“I am familiar with your work sir, it is quite impressive. In many ways I admire you. I can not say that I always follow the same code that you do, but I respect how well you hold yourself to that code. Morality and honour is a rare combination indeed.”

There was no mockery in her words or derision, just a simple profound truth. There was no need to immediately fill the silence that followed with thoughtless words. Both parties were content to sit and enjoy their tea and thoughts in silence as the seconds ticked by

It was a rare moment of peace that he greatly enjoyed. It was almost rare to find someone that understood him. “I appreciate your kind words. Sometimes I feel like a knight errant chasing windmills. The pressure to stay true to yourself is part of the struggle and one must not give in to any weakness.” He looks up and thinks for a second. “I wonder how much this pressure is multiplied as a leader of an organization with many different types of people.” He takes a sip of his tea as he looks at her.

“Ah, that is dependent on the leader I believe, but it is an interesting though that many do not have. I look at very much in the way a chess master may consider his board. You have your opposing side, you can't have the game unless you have both, and you watch as they look in constant conflict. In order for the game to continue the conflict must continue in a series of small victories and loses.

Her manner is calm, serene even as say's this. There is no anger or remorse just an odd sort of peace in her view of the world.

“Each piece is a player in its own way,fighting to stay in the game, and the board of course is their battlefield.”

She pauses here to take a sip of her tea, and smile at her guest. There is no burn of righteous purpose in her eyes, no conquest to subjugate him to her views...just a simple honesty. In some ways that simple honesty was far more complex.

“The purpose of the game is this conflict,if there is no conflict there is no game,and to keep the game going there is a fragile balance that must be upheld. Every piece has its own role to play in upholding this balance, and thus keeping the game in play. My role is not to be a player in the game, but to ensure that it continues.”

He turns the cup in his hands repeatedly as he listens and thinks about her words. “It is just like the game of Go. Are you familiar with it? Your pieces move together as one to occupy the most space on the board and capture the opponent’s pieces. The constant conflict is there and how you play is similar. There are exchanges and sometimes sacrifices. It is difficult to judge who is ahead but you have to keep track to judge if you should take a loss or not for the greater victory. The constant battling against opposing forces, black and white,  also occurs within yourself as you strive to win the game.”

The cup stops its rotation and his voice is filled with curiosity. “This is coming from the perspective of a combatant. You, however, act as a control so it doesn’t get out of hand, but also so that it keeps going and going. No conflict, no game like you say. Do you often find yourself going against your ideals in order to keep the pieces playing?” He strokes his chin as he thinks about this problem and awaits her answer.

“I would have to say that my ideals and morals differ at times from others, but I do believe that every game has its rules and consequences. With this in mind it is very rare that I am conflicted over anything, but I would be foolish to say it never happens.”

She smile up at him after refilling their cups.

“That would be like saying I have never regretted anything.”

He holds his cup up with a bow of his head and rotates it in his hands two times to admire the cup before drinking again and thinking on her words. “It must be a terrible burden when you must compromise for the behaviors of others. I too have had my share of… compromises. We can only use the regrets as lessons and let go to move on. It is in this way that we remove the chance of inner conflict in the future. The hard part is not giving in to your emotions while not losing your sense of self.”

His words struck more of a cord than anyone would ever know. They were the echo of words her uncle had spoken for most of her life, and they were bitter sweet to her ears.

“I couldn't have said it better myself.”

He grins. “It is just like my student, Banzai-san. I only try to make her believe she is good enough. She looks up to you and some of the women on your roster, you know. I don’t know about the Pixie woman but you I can say are a good role model. She even talks about owning a business like a bar or something similar.” He let’s out an uncharacteristic but comfortable chuckle. “I don’t know much about being looked up to like that but it is usually a deserved trait.”

“That’s very sweet, but I am not entirely sure I am the best role model.”

Her eyes twinkled with genuine amusement, as her chuckle echoed his.

He nods. “Of course you are.” He takes a sip of his tea and waits for it to settle in the cup. “All of this is why my master and I chose your organization to send our next Zombie. He is a bit too old to need a role model, but you may be strong enough to keep a man like him in check.”

His words caught her interest immediately.

“Oh?”

“This man is similar to me but so very different. He is looking for redemption and justice but it is not really for others but for himself. He is a man looking to be punished for his past deeds and entered the fighting rings to get that pain into his body and cleanse it out of his soul. He believes he also relieves people of this same pain in the process. He can get somewhat reckless at times. Dangerous if he doesn’t get satisfaction. He knows what he is and there is no conflict in him to change. So we scouted vigorously and found PAW under your guidance to be the perfect place. We call him Aokigahara Zombie.”

Munin was quiet for a moment, it seemed that it was her turn to examine her tea. The man he described was liking reading a page of her own history in so many ways.

"I can't go back to yesterday, because I was a different person then."

The Alice in Wonderland quote was murmured more for her own ears than her guest. She didn't even realize she had said it until it passed her lips.

He drinks to hide a smile and looks at her with twinkling eyes but looks away when she looks up at him. “The past forever follows us like ghosts. It is in us and looks out through us whether we want it to or not. This man feeds on this ghost and beats on the world with its rage. Would you please help him or just find a way to contain him while he works on himself. It would be beneficial for you both, I suspect.”

Munin studied her guest with a sharp eye, before bowing her head in acceptance.

"Very well, he will be welcome."

He nods and grunts approvingly. “Excellent. This has been a most fruitful and enlightening visit. I hope I haven’t droned on too much after my prying. People say I tend to do that… but with the best of intentions.”

Munin's chuckle was slightly indulgent, as she picked out a sweet mochi.

"That is in part what tea time is for. It is good for the: mind, soul, and body.

She took a moment to chew before giving him a mischievous smile.

"Next time it will be my turn to pry. I bet it has been awhile since you have been selfish enough to talk about yourself."

“You are right. I never really get to unless I have to. It should be a liberating experience I imagine. Just like the emptying of the cup as we talked. I will look forward to doing this again.”

They nod in agreement and smile. He watches with content and reflects on completeness. as Lady Munin finishes the ceremony by wiping down and putting away the cups and utensils.