Japan, Spring 1877
"On behalf of the United States of America," the ambassador proudly announced as he faced the Emperor, "the signing of this treaty will usher in an era of unprecedented prosperity and cooperation between our two great nations."
Nobody paid any heed as the door slid open, and one of the Emperor's servants made his way up, quickly, toward the front of the room.
"On behalf of the Emperor, we are pleased to have successfully concluded this..." Omura tapered off. Well, he noticed, certainly. "... Negotiation."
The Emperor's man bowed, and then whispered something to him, so silent that nobody else in the room could hear.
Emperor Meiji
"//Is he here?//" The Emperor looked at the man, who nodded.
Nathan
Escorted by more of the Emperor's men and dressed in his Captain's uniform, Nathan stepped into the doorway. Tucked carefully into the crook of one arm was a sword, wrapped in violet. He stood there and waited until, after a long look at the Emperor, Mr. Omura gestured for him to enter.
He did so, though the elevated step into the room gave him trouble. He made his way halfway into the room, to the next stair, and he bowed. It was low and respectful, the sort of bow he should have known the last time he was in this room was only fitting for the Emperor himself. And then he took the next step, jaw clenched, ignoring the ache of his wounds as he pushed himself forward.
Getting to his hands and knees was a less than graceful endeavour.
He set the sword on the floor before himself, bowed again so deeply that his head nearly rested on the floor, and then gently lifted the katana, pulling the fabric from it, holding it toward the Emperor, and lowering his head in respect.
"This is Katsumoto's sword. He would have wanted you to have it." There was a pause, and then Nathan lifted his gaze to meet the Emperor's. "Let the strength of the Samurai be with you, always."
Mr. Omura
Omura didn't seem thrilled by the intrusion. Not so close to seeing his goals for a modernized Japan finally come to fruition.
"//Enlightened One, we all weep for Katsumoto, but...//"
Nathan
Nathan wouldn't let him finish.
"He hoped, with his last breath, that you would remember the ancestors that held this sword. And what they died for."
Emperor Meiji
In spite of Omura's protests, the Emperor knelt, holding out his hands to take the sword from Algren. He drew in a ragged breath, to keep his poise from cracking entirely, and then he spoke.
"You were with him? At the end?"
Nathan
"Hai."
Mr. Omura
"Emperor," Omura interjected, not just impatiently, but angrily, "this man fought against you!"
Nathan
"Your Highness," Nathan said, looking up from another low bow to meet the Emperor's gaze, "if you believe me to be your enemy, command me, and I will gladly take my life."
Emperor Meiji
The Emperor looked at Nathan for a moment more, and then he stood, Katsumoto's sword clasped firmly in hand, looking out at the men assembled before him.
"I have dreamed of a unified Japan. Of a country, strong and independent. And now we have railroads and cannons, Western clothing, but..." He lifted the sword. "We cannot forget who we are. Or where we come from. Ambassador Swanbeck. I have concluded that your treaty is not in the best interests of my people."
The ambassador attempted to protest. The Emperor would hear nothing of it. As the ambassador left, Omura attempted to interject as well. Attempting to tell the Emperor that all he'd ever done was for the sake of Japan only ended with the Emperor seizing his family's assets. And then, when the man protested again, holding out Katsumoto's katana.
"//If your shame is too unbearable, then I offer you this sword.//"
Omura bowed, and stumbled out of the way. Quickly.
The Emperor knelt before Algren again, drawing in another breath. Both men were fighting back tears, now.
"Tell me how he died."
Nathan
Nathan straightened with some difficulty, a smile on his lips in spite of the tears in his eyes.
"I will tell you how he lived."
Nathan
Nathan supposed it was only a matter of time before Fandom would find a way to catch up to him, even over a century out of the way and clear across the Pacific ocean.
At least, he noted, waking up with a pair of breasts wasn't as bad as some of the things that place could have thrown at him. And it had waited until after his time at the encampment had ended.
And he wasn't half bad looking as a woman.
It was probably Fandom's way of reminding him that yes, he was finished his work here, and it was time to gather up Tony and leave. And that was why he was in Tokyo knocking on the door of the room that Tony had been staying in before he had run off with Katsumoto. After all, Portalocity was supposed to arrange for their portal to leave from... right around here.
Tony
The door opened a crack before-- "Not bad, Nathan. I think I expected you to be shorter."
That was Tony-ese for 'thank god, this isn't just me.'
Nathan
"Good to see you, too," Nathan replied, raising an eyebrow slightly.
Just because he was shorter than most of the Japanese people he'd been spending time with didn't mean that he was...
Fine. He was short.
"I have tickets."
Tony
"Thank god. I think the landlord assumes I'm the mistress."
Nathan
Nathan mulled that over for a moment, and then he managed a wry smile.
"You hardly look the type," he decided. In spite of the fact that he was well aware that Tony's 'type' was pretty much summed up by 'with a pulse.' "Have you got your things packed?"
For all of the 'things' that they'd managed to pick up in Japan. Nathan probably had more. He was still puzzling over how to get his armor back. It wouldn't have been a problem otherwise, but as it stood, he was propping himself up against a wall right now.
Tony
...or electronic. Or robotic.
"Are you going to fall over? If you pass out on the trip back, I won't drag you to the clinic."
Yes he would.
Nathan
Swallow the pride, Nathan. Ask for help. You can do it. It isn't difficult.
"I'll need to sit." And then, subsequently, he'd need help up again. He'd burn that bridge when he got there, really. "I can't lift my armor."
That was almost like asking for help. If you squinted at it.
Tony
Tony eyed him for a minute. Or maybe he was checking out the new breasts. Who knows?
"I've got it."
Nathan
"Thank you." A pause. "Please tell me you weren't just ogling me, Tony."
They were pretty nice breasts, bandages and stitches aside.
Tony
"Why wouldn't I be?" Tony asked, offering him a hand to get moving. "They're there."
Nathan
Nathan rolled his eyes, yes. But he also took the hand that was offered to him. He needed it, as much as he was loathe to admit that he needed any help at all.
"You know, I can't argue with that logic? I must be losing my touch." Or else he'd woken up with breasts and had spent most of the morning distracted by the fact that he was too shot up to actually take advantage of that fact. Either or.
Tony
"Ready to go home?" Tony asked now that he had an even better view of Nathan's breasts.
Nathan
"Ready to go..."
Here was home. But he wasn't quite finished with Fandom, yet. If time hadn't barrelled on at a breakneck pace without them while they were gone, maybe he could pick up where he left off. Maybe Japan would wait for him.
Maybe.
"Ready to go, yes."
[NFB, NFI, BYOB, LMNOP, Etc. Preplayed once again with not_ironmaiden, who has been nothing shy of amazing through all of this. And, as this is the last (and still spoilery) chunk of my canon, here is where I go, "Omg, guuuuys, if you liked that, watch the moooovie." Because it is my job to shamelessly enable. And because I had to cut alot out because The Last Samurai is two and a half hours of pretty and I would have been posting eleven of these a day, otherwise.]
Nobody paid any heed as the door slid open, and one of the Emperor's servants made his way up, quickly, toward the front of the room.
"On behalf of the Emperor, we are pleased to have successfully concluded this..." Omura tapered off. Well, he noticed, certainly. "... Negotiation."
The Emperor's man bowed, and then whispered something to him, so silent that nobody else in the room could hear.
Emperor Meiji
"//Is he here?//" The Emperor looked at the man, who nodded.
Nathan
Escorted by more of the Emperor's men and dressed in his Captain's uniform, Nathan stepped into the doorway. Tucked carefully into the crook of one arm was a sword, wrapped in violet. He stood there and waited until, after a long look at the Emperor, Mr. Omura gestured for him to enter.
He did so, though the elevated step into the room gave him trouble. He made his way halfway into the room, to the next stair, and he bowed. It was low and respectful, the sort of bow he should have known the last time he was in this room was only fitting for the Emperor himself. And then he took the next step, jaw clenched, ignoring the ache of his wounds as he pushed himself forward.
Getting to his hands and knees was a less than graceful endeavour.
He set the sword on the floor before himself, bowed again so deeply that his head nearly rested on the floor, and then gently lifted the katana, pulling the fabric from it, holding it toward the Emperor, and lowering his head in respect.
"This is Katsumoto's sword. He would have wanted you to have it." There was a pause, and then Nathan lifted his gaze to meet the Emperor's. "Let the strength of the Samurai be with you, always."
Mr. Omura
Omura didn't seem thrilled by the intrusion. Not so close to seeing his goals for a modernized Japan finally come to fruition.
"//Enlightened One, we all weep for Katsumoto, but...//"
Nathan
Nathan wouldn't let him finish.
"He hoped, with his last breath, that you would remember the ancestors that held this sword. And what they died for."
Emperor Meiji
In spite of Omura's protests, the Emperor knelt, holding out his hands to take the sword from Algren. He drew in a ragged breath, to keep his poise from cracking entirely, and then he spoke.
"You were with him? At the end?"
Nathan
"Hai."
Mr. Omura
"Emperor," Omura interjected, not just impatiently, but angrily, "this man fought against you!"
Nathan
"Your Highness," Nathan said, looking up from another low bow to meet the Emperor's gaze, "if you believe me to be your enemy, command me, and I will gladly take my life."
Emperor Meiji
The Emperor looked at Nathan for a moment more, and then he stood, Katsumoto's sword clasped firmly in hand, looking out at the men assembled before him.
"I have dreamed of a unified Japan. Of a country, strong and independent. And now we have railroads and cannons, Western clothing, but..." He lifted the sword. "We cannot forget who we are. Or where we come from. Ambassador Swanbeck. I have concluded that your treaty is not in the best interests of my people."
The ambassador attempted to protest. The Emperor would hear nothing of it. As the ambassador left, Omura attempted to interject as well. Attempting to tell the Emperor that all he'd ever done was for the sake of Japan only ended with the Emperor seizing his family's assets. And then, when the man protested again, holding out Katsumoto's katana.
"//If your shame is too unbearable, then I offer you this sword.//"
Omura bowed, and stumbled out of the way. Quickly.
The Emperor knelt before Algren again, drawing in another breath. Both men were fighting back tears, now.
"Tell me how he died."
Nathan
Nathan straightened with some difficulty, a smile on his lips in spite of the tears in his eyes.
"I will tell you how he lived."
Nathan
Nathan supposed it was only a matter of time before Fandom would find a way to catch up to him, even over a century out of the way and clear across the Pacific ocean.
At least, he noted, waking up with a pair of breasts wasn't as bad as some of the things that place could have thrown at him. And it had waited until after his time at the encampment had ended.
And he wasn't half bad looking as a woman.
It was probably Fandom's way of reminding him that yes, he was finished his work here, and it was time to gather up Tony and leave. And that was why he was in Tokyo knocking on the door of the room that Tony had been staying in before he had run off with Katsumoto. After all, Portalocity was supposed to arrange for their portal to leave from... right around here.
Tony
The door opened a crack before-- "Not bad, Nathan. I think I expected you to be shorter."
That was Tony-ese for 'thank god, this isn't just me.'
Nathan
"Good to see you, too," Nathan replied, raising an eyebrow slightly.
Just because he was shorter than most of the Japanese people he'd been spending time with didn't mean that he was...
Fine. He was short.
"I have tickets."
Tony
"Thank god. I think the landlord assumes I'm the mistress."
Nathan
Nathan mulled that over for a moment, and then he managed a wry smile.
"You hardly look the type," he decided. In spite of the fact that he was well aware that Tony's 'type' was pretty much summed up by 'with a pulse.' "Have you got your things packed?"
For all of the 'things' that they'd managed to pick up in Japan. Nathan probably had more. He was still puzzling over how to get his armor back. It wouldn't have been a problem otherwise, but as it stood, he was propping himself up against a wall right now.
Tony
...or electronic. Or robotic.
"Are you going to fall over? If you pass out on the trip back, I won't drag you to the clinic."
Yes he would.
Nathan
Swallow the pride, Nathan. Ask for help. You can do it. It isn't difficult.
"I'll need to sit." And then, subsequently, he'd need help up again. He'd burn that bridge when he got there, really. "I can't lift my armor."
That was almost like asking for help. If you squinted at it.
Tony
Tony eyed him for a minute. Or maybe he was checking out the new breasts. Who knows?
"I've got it."
Nathan
"Thank you." A pause. "Please tell me you weren't just ogling me, Tony."
They were pretty nice breasts, bandages and stitches aside.
Tony
"Why wouldn't I be?" Tony asked, offering him a hand to get moving. "They're there."
Nathan
Nathan rolled his eyes, yes. But he also took the hand that was offered to him. He needed it, as much as he was loathe to admit that he needed any help at all.
"You know, I can't argue with that logic? I must be losing my touch." Or else he'd woken up with breasts and had spent most of the morning distracted by the fact that he was too shot up to actually take advantage of that fact. Either or.
Tony
"Ready to go home?" Tony asked now that he had an even better view of Nathan's breasts.
Nathan
"Ready to go..."
Here was home. But he wasn't quite finished with Fandom, yet. If time hadn't barrelled on at a breakneck pace without them while they were gone, maybe he could pick up where he left off. Maybe Japan would wait for him.
Maybe.
"Ready to go, yes."
[NFB, NFI, BYOB, LMNOP, Etc. Preplayed once again with not_ironmaiden, who has been nothing shy of amazing through all of this. And, as this is the last (and still spoilery) chunk of my canon, here is where I go, "Omg, guuuuys, if you liked that, watch the moooovie." Because it is my job to shamelessly enable. And because I had to cut alot out because The Last Samurai is two and a half hours of pretty and I would have been posting eleven of these a day, otherwise.]