Chapter One Thousand Twenty-Three
21st July 1953
Tokyo, Japan
“Good” Natsumi said, “But you still tend to drop your guard on the right when you start an attack.”
Kat’s ribs ached from when Natsumi had exploited that tendency of hers that she had been unaware of until the second that had happened. It had started early that morning when the Senior Equerry had woken her with an invitation to have breakfast. The conversation had been wide-ranging discussion over breakfast of grilled fish and rice with fruit washed down with tea. They had spoken at length about recent news and Kat’s impressions regarding Japan. Kat’s children and the various reasons for Kat’s visit, Natsumi refused to believe that she was here only for a dog.
Then the topic had turned to martial arts and Kat’s knowledge. Before Kat knew it, she was facing off against Natsumi, the woman was ten years older than her, but she hardly allowed that slow her down. It had turned out to be the hardest workout that Kat had done in years. Simply put, in hand to hand Natsumi was better than her. At the same time the Japanese woman had never fired a pistol or saw much use for a karambit, preferring her tessen as Kat would learn her fan was called.
After a couple hours in the Dojo Kat noticed that the sun was out, she had completely lost track of time and that her clothes were soaked with sweat.
“We must stop” Kat said, “I’ve an obligation to attend to.”
“I’m always happy to have a receptive student” Natsumi replied “The Princess I presume?”
Natsumi seemed to be the sort that believed that pain was a good teacher. Kat felt more satisfied then she should have that she had been able to keep up.
“Yes, I promised her that I would go to Museum of Art with her” Kat replied.
“What are your impressions of her?”
“Suga is a sweet girl” Kat said, “Intelligent, imaginative and a dreamer. She’s a bit naïve and can be a pushover, manipulative at times. Those last few things can be worked on.”
“And as a potential bride for your Crown Prince?” Natsumi asked.
“I didn’t say anything about that” Kat replied.
“You don’t need to” Natsumi said, “Your Empress sent someone she knows and trusts all the way here. I also know that you teach others, young women to do the same thing that you do. The Mistress of the Keys, I believe you call it? The invisible hand of the Empress in your society. Working in the interest of harmony.”
“I’ve never heard it put that way before” Kat replied, not denying what Natsumi said, but not confirming it either.
“Tell me about Prince Friedrich?” Natsumi asked.
“Smart, nice, not much of a reader, enjoys the outdoors, particularly football” Kat said, “He can be a bit pigheaded at times though.”
“Yet he took the time to learn Japanese and writes a letter twice a month to a girl halfway around the world?”
“I told you he can be a bit pigheaded” Kat replied only to see that Natsumi seemed amused by that.
“Enjoy your afternoon in the Museum Katherine” Natsumi said, “I would suggest looking for the paintings by Takeuchi Seihō. He traveled widely and was deeply inspired by a trip to the Dresden Zoo.”
With that Natsumi left, Kat knew that she had just enough time to get cleaned up before starting the three-hour trip to Kyoto. She was starting to wonder what had happened to Tilo, not having seen him in a couple days. She figured that he would turn up eventually, but there were times when Kat wondered exactly what Nancy saw in him.
Berlin
It was a fun party as the filming had wrapped up. They had shot the scenes depicting the final moments of the race and then that was it. Nancy had not stuck around as the party had run late. She knew she was going to have to be up early in the morning, so going home was the best option for her.
To Nancy’s astonishment the film didn’t have a necessarily conventional ending. Tiger Martz has a chance to win the race but gives it up so that her friend Anna can have a chance at happiness. The final scene involves Tiger and Felicitas talking about if their 2nd Place finish was worth it as they can see Anna and Derik finally able to be together on the other side of the spectators there to see the end of that race.
Overall, Nancy had to say that the filming was a good experience for her and exactly what she needed. Tomorrow she would be back in Wolfsburg in the Promotions Department of Volkswagen. Very different from Greece. She also had her family coming to visit and Kat was supposed to be back from Japan in time for her birthday. Nancy wouldn’t say that everything was coming up roses, but for the first time in what seemed like forever she was close to happy.
The house was dark as Nancy walked up the front steps with only the blue light from the television coming from the parlor. Typical Tuesday, she thought to herself. The girls would have knocked off early having places to be in the morning. Douglas might be up but with Kat out of town he had divided his time between work and the twins, the result was that he went to bed exhausted as soon as Tat and Kol were down for the night.
Unlocking the door, Nancy saw that Petia and Eha were watching a murder mystery. “Perfect timing Anna” Petia said, “They’re just about to show who did it.”
“But I wouldn’t know the context” Nancy said as she hung up her jacket in the front closet. She smiled to herself, it was as if she had never left.