“The bear’s feet go tom ta tom tom, tom ta tom tom, tom ta tom tom, the bear’s feet go tom ta tom tom, as they go marg round!” Issi sang as she danced around the living room. Since I was fully reed on the coud had no iion of getting up, I had to watch her bizarre performance.

  “Issi… what are you doing?” I finally mumbled after her third rendition of the strange song.

  “Singing the Teddy Bear shuffle! Az was singing it in css earlier this week, aaught it to everyone else! It’s amazing!”

  “It’s something alright…” I muttered. “Do you have to sing it right now?”

  “Yes,” Issi replied almost immediately.

  “Of course you do,” I moaned as I pced a pillow over my fa order to try and muffle the noise, ever so slightly.

  I hate to interrupt this family time, but I thought you should know someone from the Family is on their way down to talk to you, Nyx messaged me. Normally he’d use one of the bears, but Jane and I had e to an uanding and bears weren’t allowed in the residenymore. Holy, I was fih that. Spooky could be a little intense, and Bandit a little creepy sometimes. I guess having intense personalities must have been part of the programming.

  “If it’s Mirage tell him to go… away,” I muttered. I just barely mao avoid swearing in front of Issi.

  It’s not. I guess word of your st meeting got out, and the Family sent someoo iigate the situation. Someone you know.

  “Well, don’t leave me in suspense,” I said, pulling the pillow off my fad sitting up. “Who?”

  Hel. Seattle hasn’t recovered, but at least it’s stable now, and the Family is ed that another schism could occur in another one of the cities they manage, so they sent a specialist.

  “Could be worse,” I grumbled.

  She’s bringing Humboldt and Helen with her.

  “Fuck…” I hissed before smming a hand over my mouth.

  Issi just turowards me, eyes narrowed and a small smirk on her face. “Bad words! I’m telling Jane!” she decred.

  “Yes, yes, and I’m sure you’ll be rewarded for it. How about you go find Jane now, a her know we’re going to have pany…” I told the little girl. When she ran off I tilted my head slightly, “Nyx, how far off are they exactly?”

  Give it a sed… The doorbell rang. There you go.

  “I could have used more of a warning!” I hissed as I slipped off the couch, tripping over the coffee table, and rushing towards the door.

  I mao mostly straighten out my hoodie by the time I cracked the door. Behind the door were three familiar women. Sharron had apparently stopped to get a haircut sihe st time I saw her, and she now sported a deep u, very simir to how she wore it when we first met. On top of this, she had some fy clothes that wouldn’t get her jumped in the uy. Helen was wearing some higher-end uy apparel, which probably would have attracted attention if she wasn’t usieake sure people didn't notice her. Finall, Hel, whose ice-blue hair and pale white skin probably attracted attention wherever she went. The massive, obviously advanced gun on her belt made sure the locals didn’t try anything.

  I looked up at the three women and scowled. “You know it's ary to call before you show up at someone’s house,” I hissed.

  “Don’t pretend you didn’t get notified we were on the way,” Hel smirked. “Are you going to let us in, or force us to stand here and talk through the door?”

  We stood there for a few seds, staring, before I stepped to the side ahem all in. “So to what do I owe this honor?” I asked as Hel passed. “Last I heard you were still trying to put Seattle back together.”

  “It’s still a work in progress,” Hel replied as she ied the area. “Quaint pce you have here.”

  “It’s a fug papared to the pces I was living half a year ago,” I said as I followed the group into the kit. I rummaged around in the fridge and pulled out some of the fi juiceboxes we had before passing them out and joining everyo the table. “So… what’s this all about? I assume you didn’t just drop by to chat.”

  “No, no, I did not,” Hel replied. She picked up her juicebox, took a tiny sip, wihen put it down again. “Your… disagreement with Mirage at the Family headquarters a few days ago not only got around the building but made it all the way to a few other branches. It raised a few eyebrows.”

  “I’m not going to apologize for what I said, nor am I going to participate in Mirage’s crusade,” I decred before violently spearing my juicebox with the straw and sug out the sweet ar within.

  “And you shouldn’t. The Family was set up to provide support to samurai, to give them access to markets, information, and corps, if they ask for it. The anization itself is supposed to remain separate from politics, aral when it es to individual corporations… Mirage crossed the line when he dedicated the entire branch's resources to maintaining the current bance of power iy.”

  “I’m gd you see it my way,” I said with a small smile.

  “Although the anization has a policy of rality, our members are free to support whichever cause they choose. Se and his followers are going to tirag down these supposed saboteurs,” Hel tinued. “Even though the misuse of resources was a , the Family was more ed about a possible rift betweey’s samurai. The city’s defenses have been promised, and losing even a few could lead to a catastrophe the ime there’s an incursion.”

  “So… why are you here?” I asked. “You should be aware that I volunteered some of my forces to fill the gaps.”

  Sharron rolled her eyes and leaned forward. “She wants to make sure you’re not pnning on leaving. Like it or not, you’re now a erstone of the city’s defenses, even though you’re not a member of the Family.” She leaned bad shook her head. “I’m pretty sure you figured that out yourself already and just want to make things difficult.”

  “Of course I’m being difficult,” I replied, throwing up my hands. “I live in a massive underground plex with hundreds of troops and vehicles, where I’m slowly providing the means for the locals to provide for themselves and defend my family. Do you know how difficult it would be for me to move? Did you holy expect me to just leave? If I wao do that. I wouldn’t have volunteered the troops.”

  Hel visibly rexed and smiled a little. “I kind of figured, but the truth of the matter is you ARE essential to the city’s defenses now. and I had to be sure. Everyoold me I was w too mud that you and Mirage arguing ar for the course, but that rec did get a little heated.”

  “Yeah, well, I have my reasons for not joining the Family, and I’ll admit one of the big oarts with M and rhymes with garage.” I finished my juicebox then stared Hel straight in the eyes. “Is that the only reason you’re here?”

  “In your house? Yes. Iy… no. Even though the Family doesn’t interfere in local politics, they are ed that the local u may not just be limited to the corps. If someone goes around sabotaging the local defeHAT’s a Family issue.”

  I g the other two women at that table. Sharron just raised an eyebrow, while Helen was unreadable. “Did you, by any eed help cheg the state of all those defenses?” I asked, deadpan.

  “We’ve already done a plete work test, and e to all the automated ons came back green,” Helen expined. “But many of those empts could have been physically damaged, and that wouldn’t show up to the work. So we COULD use someone reliable to check the state of the AA and wall guns.”

  “Was this your idea?” I asked Sharron.

  “Partially,” she admitted. “Angeline retty much exhausted from doing surveilnce for the st week, so she ’t help right away, so I suggested using the sed-best surveilnce expert instead.”

  “That sounds like it could take weeks,” I grumbled.

  “The essential locations should only take a few days,” Hel crified. “And young Hoppy volunteered to help you, if you decide to help. So?”

  “Fine,” I finally ceded. “I hope I don’t regret this,” I added under my breath.