“Sorry, I’m late. The hawks and doves were filibustering each other again, and us owls in-between had to mediate,” said Alanna. Sighing tiredly as she sank into her usual seat at the cafe she and her son always met at.

“Don’t mention it...To be honest, I might have come earlier but I was running a bit late myself. One of our valued clientele had some last-minute issues pop up, and for the time being, I’m still the one dealing with such matters,” I said. Inwardly aware that the only reason I was the one who went on the high-priority client calls created by the rollout of our loyalty system, was because I was a big-time worrier, and just a little bit over-controlling. Aiming to reduce the chance of anything going wrong.

“Ah, yes...That job of yours. I know you said you run a small company, but I’ve been entirely clear on what you meant. Sometimes it sounds like you’re just running a shop, but other times it’s sounded like it was something bigger,” said Alanna. Taking a sip of the tea that wait-staff had just brought over, after tacitly casting a spell to test it for poison.

Even though this establishment was run by her people, it was still being run in a foreign state, and it never hurt to be careful. She felt a small pulsation of aetheric energy from the opposite end of the table, and realized with a strange sense of fondness that her son had done the same. Somehow pleased to see that they shared the same borderline-paranoid cautious-streak.

“Eh? Oh, well that’s actually a bit complicated really. The answer is that both are true. I run a shop, and a company that operates adjacent to the shop. The shop is the main body of the company. It’s what I, Jo, and our good friend and extremely helpful aid Ms. Kane, do. The company is more of an auxiliary, I find its operation dry but necessary because it keeps us profitable, in face of the admittedly eccentric way I choose to run our shop…”

“Eccentric how?” said Alanna.

“Well, from the very beginning I’ve been quite particular about the kind of clientele we accept, and I’ve only grown more so...A customer has to have a certain nature to be qualified to even enter our shop, and then there are more qualifications required for one to become a repeat customer, and even more qualifications required for one to become a loyalty-member customer who enjoys heightened levels of service from our Holst Curio and Convenience…” I said. Stacking biscuits with cream cheese and jam as an illustration of my explanation.

“And what qualifications are these exactly?” said Alanna. Frowning a bit.

“Oh, nothing strident...At least, for just entering the shop and becoming a normal customer...I’ve created a matrix of probability-altering, and soul-reading, spells that check for one’s nature and fate…So long as a person does not possess a nature that would necessarily place them at opposite ends to our company, and one’s character meets a certain standard one would be able to enter our shop just fine…” I said.

“Character standards?...” said Alanna. Sounding skeptical.

“Oh, yes….The offerings of our shop are actually quite broad, and include items and services that could be quite dangerous in the wrong hands. Some people say that the weapon salesman holds no responsibility in regards to the acts of those who patronize his shop, but after the things I’ve seen…”I said. Memories of things I’d done and witnessed throughout my myriad iterations and lifespans, flashing before my eyes.

“I’m afraid I just can’t the laissez-faire approach to trade...At least, in my own case, I might not be able to control what happens beyond my store...But when it comes to my shop, I try to take “some” responsibility for the things I’m unleashing out into the world…and I do so by making sure I only sell to those who meet a certain standard of decency…You don’t need to be an angel...Hell, in some cases I even “prefer” selling to devils...but you need to have some principles if I’m going to do business with you, and lately I’ve been finding that my tolerance of those lacking basic decency in certain matters has been greatly diminished.... I’m not trying to be an agent of chaos here…Nor do I wish to take on the karma of having aided those who run around committing atrocities...” I said. My fingers steepled.

“Hm...I guess that makes some sense. Between you and me, the nation sometimes makes deals with unsavory sorts, but anarchy is one thing no wise nation will ever tolerate or risk engendering, whether within or beyond their borders…” said Alanna.

“Exactly…” I said. Feeling an odd sense of relief and gratification at hearing that my mother understood my reasoning.

“And the company?” said Alanna.

“Huh?”

“The company...You know, the one you said you run so you can get away with being eccentric with the shop?” said Alanna.

“Ah...Oh, that. It’s nothing big. Actually, I thought you already knew about it, funnily enough…” I said. Taking a sip of sharp black tea, and adding a bit of cream and sugar because it was just a tad too sharp and bitter for me at the moment.

“Why would I know about it?” said Alanna. Blinking in surprise.

“Didn’t the Eumelian government sign a deal with a bunch of component manufacturers a few weeks ago? Three of my companies are listed in the bill, and seven more are in contracts with a couple of the other companies involved…” I said.

“Eh?! R-, really?!” said Alanna. Surprised.

I listed a few of the dummy corporations I used to mask my company’s operations, and her eyes grew wider.

“All, those were you?!... Even the one that sources the new-generation of processors being used in our golems?” said Alanna.

“Well, yeah...I think I told you before that most of the offerings within our shop are made in-house. And a lot of our materials are self-sourced, and directly acquired by our operations...That leaves our company with a lot of excess materials and smaller items that we can sell wholesale to other groups…” I said.

“But why haven't I heard of you, when all those other companies have been shaking up the market?” said Alanna.

“I think you just answered your own question, mother…” I said. Smiling lightly.

“Ah!...” said Alanna. Seeming to catch on to my game.

“Wealth and success are wonderful things...But those who do too well invite the envy of the world...I don’t need that kind of trouble, so my company operates in such a way that its actual activities and presence in the market are largely obfuscated,” I said.

“Huh...Clever...Though, as a lawmaker, I’ve got to say that kind of opaqueness is probably a bit troubling…” said Alanna.

I just smiled.

My mother and I were having another monthly tea. I’d initially thought that this was just a curiosity, something I’d do for a little bit, until my interest had waned, and my inner-child had been pacified. Yet, here we were months later, still meeting up. I’m not in the habit of lying to myself, so I could no longer pretend that it was solely due to the part of me that still yearned for some kind of connection to the Dorothea family.

I found that I actually genuinely felt some affinity to the individual known as Alanna Dorothea. I was pretty sure I didn’t think of her as a parent, but I at least considered her something of a friend...Or something like that. Honestly, I don’t know...What I did know was that this was solidly a part of my monthly routine at this point, and I didn’t see any reason to change that.

Eventually, things came to an end, and my mother and I got up to go our separate ways. Usually, we’d see each other off at the door, with me walking off, while she and her people clambered into the motorcade that was parked in front of the cafe. When we got to the entrance of the cafe, that’s when “it” happened. A guy appeared out of a puff of smoke and shadow, his aura thick with killing intent. I didn’t think the guy was after me, but I found myself moving anyway. Call it instinct, or jumpy reflexes.

“Prepare to di-arghhhh?!” was the man’s last words as he prepared to lunge towards Alanna only to start screaming. The daggers he’d wielded fell onto the concrete sidewalk as two, too small, bubbling pools of slag.

“Ah...Whoops!” I said. Quickly realizing what I’d done. Staring at the small heap of ashes I’d created with a flash of yellow light from my eyes.

“Er...Are you okay?” said Alanna. Looking pale as she also stared at the small heap of ashes that the man’s body had left behind.

“Yeah...Um, how about you?” I said. Carefully not making eye contact, and awkwardly scratching the back of my neck.

“Er, yeah...Thanks to you, I guess. That guy was one of the Violet Empire’s elites...A pretty high-level elite at that...I’m afraid we’re currently at war with them again...And well, I guess they figured coming out here on the regular made me an easy target for assassination…” said Alanna.

“Ah, I see,” I said.

“Yeah…” said Alanna.

“Er, anyway, I’ve got to go,” I said. Getting up and putting on my coat.

“Uh, yeah...That’s fine, I guess. Uh, thanks again, honey. See you same time next month?” said Alanna. Smiling weakly at first, but the smile warmed up again a moment later.

“Uh, yeah. Of course,” I said. Finding myself smiling as well, and feeling oddly reassured, like a part of me had expected her to be afraid of me, or something. A silly thought, considering the lives we both lived, but one born from fears created from some very unfortunate experiences my alternate-selves had gone through in the past. The two of us then exchanged an awkward hug, before I made my exit.

*************************************************************************************************************

Alanna Dorothea watched her son disappear down the road, as she was reminded, once more, of why she’d initially started having these little teas, instead of running away from the complicated past that lay between her and her son.

It was an understatement to say the man, that now lay as a heap of ashes on the ground, had been a “strong elite”, the man had been a sovereign, or close to it. He’d been strong enough that Alanna honestly couldn't believe that the Violet Empire had been willing to put him at risk to put her down. Yet, her son had killed the man with no signs of obvious effort. Looking more embarrassed about the matter than anything else. Like he hadn’t intended to kill the attacker, and had ended up misgauging his strength.

Alanna didn’t know how to feel about that. Even if the assassin was in the lower-realms for Sovereign-ranked elites, he’d still been a person that could fight off entire armies. Seeing him die so suddenly, and get treated like he was some insect that the other part had been trying to capture but accidentally ended up squishing instead, was naturally a bit shocking.

She decided to simply be happy that she’d somehow managed to find enough of a place in the young man’s heart that his immediate response to something trying to harm her, had been a protective one. It was hard to tell with that son of hers. The boy's consistently, and flatly, affable manner made his actual intentions and dispositions extremely hard to judge.

In the end, Alanna let herself be happy about the progress the two of them had made over the past few years, before sighing tiredly, well aware that the death of a sovereign, in an attempt to assassinate another country’s rising elites, was going to result in quite the mess.