“There are a few not present, they’re either abroad or otherwise engaged, but don’t worry about them in the meantime. As for those present, I’ll just go around the table. This,” he motioned to the woman sitting next to Pops, “is Zasha Rivera. She is the Head of Training and a trainer herself. You already met Sho; he is one of our Family Representatives—people we appoint to be the voice of our Family on the board. These two,” referring to the two muscular dudes who had been with Devon at the window, “are Andy and Howard. They head security.” He went through the rest in that manner. There were heads of Finance, Inter-House Relations, Non-House Relations, and another title or two I don’t remember. After the introductions were out of the way, he finally made it back to himself.

“And lastly, I am Devon Baxter. I am Kaz’s stepfather and the appointed Head of the Family. I’m sort of like the CEO here, although you could also see me as an Executive Director. Do you have any questions, Ms. Wilson?” By the way he asked, I could tell it was more of a “you better not have questions because we are wasting time.” But you know what? They dragged me there and never explained anything unless “absolutely necessary.” I decided to test my luck one more time, knowing it was a risky question to ask.

“Yes, actually, Your Honor— or whatever we’re supposed to call you — I thought you said the Head of House had to be of the Kahana bloodline?” This statement is what you would call instant regret. Every single set of eyes widened and the silence flooded back into the room. Except, of course, for Sho, who didn’t seem to be bound by the same rules as everyone else. He had started laughing hysterically but managed to say, “Yo Kaz, your friend is badass! She’s gonna be a brave fighter!” before laughing more.

Devon, on the other hand, looked… embarrassed? No, it was more of a combination of embarrassment and anger. Okay, real great job Rose. You struck a nerve on day one. Devon took a deep breath to compose himself. Impressively, it only took him a second to completely regain his composure. He had the temperament of a man who was constantly under a lot of outside pressure. Noted.

“Well, Ms. Wilson,” he spoke with a mocking softness, “sometimes certain events call for… special circumstances. And in that case, arrangements can be made. Such as when the heir to the Head of Family is too young, naive, and stupid to inherit the title. If you’ve ever heard of the Regent System, you could think of it like that. However, for all intents and purposes, you will refer to me as the Head of this House because that is what I am.” He practically spat the last part. I understood now that Devon Baxter is a man who is constantly forced to prove his authority. He took one last composing deep breath, and seemingly all his emotions were sucked back into a vortex beneath the surface, as if they were never there.

“Now that we’ve clarified all that,” he began, “we do have actual business to attend to. Starting with assessing what happened last night.

“For those present who do not know, Kaz and Rose were attacked last night by two assassins. They were not hurt, but we have concluded it was almost definitely the work of the Octavius Family. Although, I’m assuming you could guess that.” I raised my hand again.

“Yes, Ms. Wilson?” he growled across the table.

“I couldn’t. Who’s the Octavius Family?”

“Well, Ms. Wilson, as you know, there are four other families competing against us in the Tournament. That much, I am sure Pops explained to you. And if you would be patient, I was just about to explain where we stand with each of them. However, because you so helpfully interrupted, I will tell you that of all the Families, we are on the worst terms with the Octavius House of Rome. I will also tell you that they have been preparing for over fifty years for an opportunity such as this to solidify the power they gained ten years ago. If we aren’t careful, and Kaz can’t do his job,” he cast a hostile glare in Kaz’s direction, “they just might. Does that answer your question, Ms. Wilson?”

“It answers it and brings up about 300 more, but by all means, continue.” I don’t know why I was so intent on arguing with Kaz’s stepdad today, but something about him was making me ready to fight. It was probably how angry he made Kaz. I didn’t want to see my friend so upset by someone. Thinking of that, Kaz has been awfully quiet. This seems out of character for him.

I glanced at Kaz and saw that he looked revved up and ready to go. He appeared to be making eye contact with Sho, who was giving him a look that sent a very clear message: it’s not worth it, so just keep your mouth shut for now (you idiot). However, knowing Kaz, keeping the constant flow of retorts was taking all his self control. I had conveniently taken up the mantle for him right now. That’s the greatest irony about Kaz. He’s like a bottle with a single, small opening at the top. To almost everyone in the world, he’s stone faced and aloof. But he has that single lifeline of expression, his closest friends (me mostly), where the comments he uses to deal with everything slip out. I never understood how he was okay with the world not knowing what’s really going on in his head. You’re going off into Kaz Land again. Directly after angering the most powerful man in the room is not the best time to psychoanalyze your best friend, I scolded myself. With a final glance at Kaz, who was now just scowling at the floor, I drew my attention back to Devon.

“It was the Octavius House that attacked Kaz, and luckily, he was able to defend himself. We still have not identified how they found Kaz to begin with, but we are fairly sure we have a spy. Given they only sent two assassins, and that it took them this long to find him, we think the spy was only working with minimal information. That means we don’t think it is anyone in this room, nor someone who is trusted with a lot of intel. We have our counterintelligence working hard to find and interrogate the spy, unless of course, they have already returned to the Octavious Family.

“Now, enough of the past. As the Family Council, it is our job to plan for our future. As of right now, that all rides on the Tournament, and Kaz’s performance in it. Before we get to the plans for him, I will go over where we stand with each House.” Kaz scoffed.

“I don’t suppose I get a say in the plans for me, do I?” he muttered. Sho glanced at our direction but didn’t otherwise react. If Devon heard, he didn’t give any indication, and instead continued on his presentation.

“For those of us who need a quick refresher,” he glared pointedly at me, “let me remind you the House of Kahana has been the most powerful and won the Tournament for hundreds of years. It is true we have lost before, but the circumstances were different. And, of course, we lost ten years ago.” Any lingering traces of good spirits immediately evaporated from the room at that point. Devon clenched his teeth, but continued his story.

“But, may I also remind you, although I’m sure you well remember, when Koto Kahana died, I was the only qualified House member who could fight in the Tournament. We… lost and took the fifth spot.” At the mention of Koto’s name, everyone bowed their heads and the mood turned somber. No one really reacted at the results of the Tournament. I opened my mouth to comment, but sensing this was an extremely emotional topic, I closed it again. It was like the absence of Koto Kahana filled the entire room. I never met him, yet even I could feel it. I only knew Koto by name, and that he was Kaz’s father who had passed when he was a baby.

Kaz looked out the window After re-assessing the mood of the room, Devon finished his story. But since that moment, his voice had lost its jagged edge.

“I already said, the Romans from the House of Octavius have sworn destruction of our house. They have allied themselves with the House of Lai. While the Furaha and Arash Houses are still proclaimed neutral, I believe we can negotiate them to our side. I have convinced them to send advance delegations so we may discuss; they will arrive in eight days.”

“Now, on to the important topic: the Tournament. The Houses have submitted confirmation votes for the date and location. It will be held exactly four months from today, at a location we have just finished securing that is about two hours from here. The magicians are beginning construction as we speak. I know the biggest question in everyone’s mind is who will be fighting this year. For the first time in several hundred years, every single House is sending a new fighter. That is most likely in response to our choice of fighter…” He motioned cautiously to Kaz, who was still staring blankly out the window.

“Kaz has just come of age. He will be representing House Kahana in the Tournament.” This garnered some surprised murmurs from the people present, but Sho, Zasha, and Pops reacted minimally. They probably already knew. One of the advisors spoke up in protest.

“But he has only just come of age! Furthemore, we don’t know what he’s capable of! You should be the one to fight, just once more, so Kaz can have time to mature.” Some of the others nodded in approval.

“I assure you, this matter has been carefully assessed and the risks weighed,” Devon answered calmly. “I cannot lie to you all. I failed ten years ago. This boy,” he once again motioned to Kaz, “is a talented young fighter, I’ll give him that. If you don’t believe me, you can observe him on the training grounds between now and the Tournament. I assure you, he will be training diligently to properly represent the House of Kahana in the Tournament.” He said the last part with a pointed look at Kaz, who scowled deeper in response. The representatives did not seem entirely convinced, but for the first time, Pops spoke up.

“I have trained the boy myself. This you know. I have recommended him to Devon as our representative. Do you doubt my judgment?” His eyes locked with the representative who had initially spoken up. “Or perhaps it is my skill with the blade you doubt? I would be more than happy to spar if you are simply dying to remember what the blade of the fighter with the most Tournament wins in his lifetime feels like.” The heat of his expression seemed to batter their doubts back into submission and melt away their hostility. It retreated like a wounded soldier, probably not to emerge for a while longer. Pops’ smile returned quickly in seeing their response.

“Then it’s settled! Kaz Kahana will represent the House of Kahana in the Thirty-Ninth Tournament of Houses.” Devon’s shoulders relaxed and he gave Pops a nod.

“If there are no objections, I declare this Family Meeting adjourned.”