The conversation that flowed around Aya was pleasant, relaxed and ordinary. To his right, Ryo was talking over the latest video game releases with Yuki and Ken, in English. Ryo had insisted upon this after discovering that everyone was making the effort to speak only Japanese since his arrival at the house. Aya could tell he’d been touched by the gesture, but he still declined, stressing that he was in England for business and it was better for him to speak the native language as much as possible to strengthen his own skill with it.
“He appears to be getting on well with the others,” Chloé quietly comment, leaning in against Aya’s left side as he nodded toward Ryo.
“Yes, he is,” Aya agreed, his gaze once again drifting down to the tarot card sitting in front of his plate. The bottom of the card was labeled Arthur, and depicted the former king of the Britons atop a mountain, seated in a stone chair with the sword Excalibur across his lap. Holding up the card, he looked up at Chloé and asked, “Any idea what this is about? You said before that Free had promised to keep the cards in his room.”
Aya spared a brief glance for the man in question, who was currently involved in a conversation with Michel. While he couldn’t hear what was being said over the boisterousness of the others, he could tell that it was something Michel was rather excited about, judging from the animate expression on the teenager’s face.
“This card and the others aren’t from Free’s usual deck,” Chloé began to explain, “and he had the idea to use them as pseudo name cards for the place settings.” He picked up his own card, Taliesin, and studied it. “They’re rather intriguing. I like the idea of being the bard of the group. You should be pleased, you get to be king.”
Aya grunted. “I suppose intriguing is the word for it, but I never said I wanted to be king, Chloé.”
“Samurai or warrior king, I don’t think there’s much difference in the meaning, but you could ask Free about the cards after dinner,” Chloé replied. “Or maybe we should all ask, if he’ll even tell. You know how cryptic Free can get. He gave Ryo The Wounded King, did he not? Hmm, I’d say that was a rather fitting card considering his situation, wouldn’t you? I know you’re quite familiar with the legends of King Arthur and his knights.”
Aya frowned back at Chloé. “Calling me a samurai wasn’t amusing the first time we met and neither is it amusing now,” he grumbled. “And yes, I have read about them, but that doesn’t mean I know what Free intended by selecting the cards that he did for everyone. Besides, I haven’t seen them all.”
“I have. Michel’s is The Seeker, Free’s is Merlin, Ken’s is The Green Knight, and Yuki’s is Gawain.” Chloé smiled back at Aya. “I was also just teasing you about the samurai thing. You really should get yourself a sense of humor, Aya.”
“Bastard,” Aya muttered, and Chloé laughed, drawing the attention of the rest of the people at the table, much to Aya’s chagrin.
“What did you say to him?” Ryo asked, his full attention now on Aya and Chloé.
“He called me a bastard,” Chloé answered, still chuckling.
“Because you are,” Aya stated, a small smile on his lips.
Aya was suddenly aware of Ryo watching him intently and turned to look at him, their eyes meeting. Ryo reached out to brush the tips of his fingers down Aya’s cheek, smiling before drawing his hand away.
“I don’t know about everyone else,” Ryo said, glancing around the table, “but I’m stuffed. The Chicken Marsala and Tiramisu were both delicious, Ken.”
“Glad you liked them, but I can’t take credit for the Tiramisu. Michel found it at a Italian bakery,” Ken said.
Ryo grinned across the table at Michel. “Then thanks to you both for the great meal, and all of you for making me feel so welcome.”
“It has been our pleasure to welcome you, Ryo,” Free replied. “I think I can speak for everyone when I say that we are all looking forward to the opportunity to know you better.”
“And to that end,” Michael piped up, “I thought we could all go sight-seeing Saturday afternoon. We could show Ryo around London and take him to the museums, Trafalgar Square, the Tower… everywhere! It will be fun, don’t you think?” He looked expectantly at the others.
Ryo turned to Aya and asked, “Isn’t the shop open on Saturday?”
Aya nodded back to him. “Yes, but only for half a day and we’re closed on Sunday.”
“Well, as long as I’m not keeping you from your work, then I’m all for playing tourist. It is my first time in London. That I can remember,” Ryo said with a smile.
“Will the rest of you come too?” Michel asked, glancing around the table. His smile widened when Ken, Yuki and Chloé all nodded. “Excellent! I’ll work up an itinerary for us right now.” He pushed away from the table and hopped off his chair, quickly disappearing into another room.
“He has a lot of energy,” Ryo observed. “Is he always that… exuberant?”
“Always,” Free answered before anyone else could. “Michel strives to find the goodness in life wherever he can and embraces it wholeheartedly.”
“He seems like a good kid,” Ryo said. “Although I admit I’m still surprised to find out he wasn’t a girl. I hope I didn’t insult him too much.”
“Please don’t worry about it. ” Aya laid his hand over Ryo’s, giving it a gentle squeeze. “Michel’s used to the confusion his sense of fashion causes. It doesn’t bother him at all. Little does.”
“Aya’s correct,” Free assured as he stood up and began collecting the empty plates.
Ken leaned back in his chair and put his hands behind his neck. “This is the best part about cooking – I don’t have to clean up. So Aya, it seems that Ryo is something of a football fan. I happen to think it’s my influence from when we all lived together. Mind if I borrow him while you and the others clear the table and do the dishes? I want to show him the new PlayStation game I just bought. Yuki, you come with us, too. You’re better at the damn thing than I am.”
“Ask him yourself, Ken. I’m not his keeper,” Aya replied, sharing a smile with Ryo.
Ken at least had the decency to look embarrassed when he turned to face Ryo. “Sorry man, I didn’t mean to imply that you couldn’t make decisions for yourself.”
Ryo smiled. “No worries, Ken. This whole situation has got to be weird for you. I know it is for me. I keep thinking I should apologize for not remembering you. Anyway, if you don’t mind giving me about ten minutes to go outside and have a smoke, then I’ll be happy to check out that game of yours.”
“Take all the time you need, Ryo. We’ll be in the other room.” Ken nodded to Yuki and together they headed into the adjoining living room.
“Aya, if you and Free don’t mind starting without me, I’m going to join Ryo outside while he has a cigarette. I won’t be long,” Chloé said as he pushed his chair away from the table before standing.
Aya narrowed his eyes suspiciously at Chloé, but realized he had no legitimate reason to stop his friend from spending time alone with Ryo. He shrugged. “Why would I mind? Go on. Free and I will finish clearing the table.”
Ryo grinned at Aya and leaned in for a quick kiss as he rose from his seat. “I’ll be back in a bit. At least, I hope so. He’s safe enough, isn’t he?” he asked, hooking a thumb at Chloé. “Or should I worry about my virtue?”
Chloé snorted. “Your virtue is perfectly safe with me, Ryo, I assure you. Not that I don’t think you’re an attractive man, but I’m guessing that Aya is the jealous type and he knows where I live.”
Aya shook his head and sighed while Ryo laughed. Clasping Chloé on the shoulder, Ryo said, “I like you, Chloé. Now let’s go have that smoke so you can tell me embarrassing things about Aya. I have a few years to catch up on.”
“Well, there was this one time…” Chloé began, opening the door to the side yard and gesturing for Ryo to go outside first. He turned to give Aya a quick wink before he followed, shutting the door behind him.