Disclaimer: I do not own the Ronin Warriors. All canon aspects belong to their rightful owners. All original characters and aspects are mine.

CHAPTER 1: Merry Christmas

The room was noisy, bright, and cheerful. Red and green streamers hung from the ceiling, just low enough to annoy Suisei when he tried to walk through the room. There was no actual Christmas tree, but there was a half-sized replica of one made out of cardboard and construction paper that Tarun had made; he had never celebrated Christmas before, and wanted to have a tree. He had even made ornaments for it. Nohano personally liked it better than most of the artificial ones.

Delicious smells came from the kitchen, where Demetrius was making some Russian traditional foods, and Amaya was making some Japanese ones. Rashida was teaching Killian and Nohano a song in her native Urdu tongue, giggling softly when they mangled a word, which happened often. Xander was showing Suisei had to play the latest Legend of Zelda game on the Nintendo Centurion, and Tarun ran almost non-stop through the house, laughing excitedly, and helping anyone that would let him.

The San Francisco winter afternoon was bright and mild; too chilly for Nohano's liking, but just fine for everyone else at sixty degrees Fahrenheit. The windows were open, letting a fresh breeze in from outside; it had rained the night before, cleaning the air.

Rashida finally called a break in her lesson, saying that they could finish learning the song after supper, and sing it to the others. Killian said that was fine with him, and wandered into the kitchen to see if there were any food samples around to try. Nohano flopped onto the couch, thinking about all that had happened in the previous weeks.

It was Christmas day, three months after the Ronin had battled the demon Talpa in his own realm, and come out victorious. Talpa had fled before he was completely defeated, in essence kicking the Ronin out of his realm, but they had all gotten out alive.

It had taken quite a while to recover from that week. Everyone had been injured, some badly, and Nohano's injuries were the worst from battling Talpa in the Inferno armor. But the Inferno had taken a lot out of all of them, draining their strength as effectively as the Nether Spirits had—though without the taint and the awful, soul-deep pain.

They'd tried to describe how that felt, the Nether Spirits draining them, but there weren't words for it; they were able to send a small bit of it through the mind link. What little Nohano could feel was horrible enough. He couldn't imagine enduring the real thing.

President Rhyann Cavanaugh herself had summoned the Ronin to the Oval Office itself to commend them after their battle, and to explain that she knew about their war. That had been one strange conversation. She knew almost as much as they did themselves, thanks to Yasuo Toshitada and the actual Prime Minister of Japan, who had both given her the story of the Ronin and the Dynasty. Once information had been exchanged, she'd insisted the Ronin stay as guests in the White House until they had recovered.

The Ronin had contacted their families and Yasuo, warning them of the Dynasty, and telling them to take precautions against the Dynasty exacting revenge on the Ronin through them. Tarun and Demetrius, in particular, were worried that the information they'd been forced to give the warlords during their imprisonment could be used to harm their families and allies. Yasuo said that he would help to protect them, perhaps relocate them to other areas to keep them safe.

After nearly a week, Nohano and his new family had decided they wanted to go back to California. Nohano had been afraid that some of them would want to go back to their families, and though he would not have tried to stop them, he would have been miserable on seeing them go. But no one had. They had grown too close to part, and had made the United States their home.

President Cavanaugh had been extremely gracious towards the Ronin. She told them that they would be receiving reward money for their deeds, which was custom when someone had performed a great service to their country. Even mere tips to the police about wanted criminals usually got the tipster a nice amount of money, but the amount that was given to them shocked Nohano. It would enough to buy a house, once they were able to settle back into San Francisco.

As it was, no one was allowed in at that time, and thousands of people who had lost their homes to the attacks were being taken to other areas, even other states, as refugees.

Amaya, Demetrius, Rashida, and Killian all needed naturalization papers to gain their American citizenship, and the president saw that they received the necessary paperwork. Xan said that he wanted to stay separate from his parents, and that was seen to as well. He even talked to them, explaining why he didn't want to be with them, and that he had found a place he felt more comfortable in. He wasn't very happy after that meeting, and said his parents hadn't taken it well at all. His father had ranted and raved, and his mother had cried. But it was their own fault, Xan said angrily, and Xan had his own life now.

They'd all watched the news reports, which were grim. Half the buildings and roads in San Francisco had been completely destroyed, with at least minor damage to everything else. There were not as many casualties as could have been, for which they were all thankful, though there plenty of injured. The most puzzling thing was, however, that no one who had been captured by the Dynasty remembered what happened. They knew that something had attacked the city, and they had all lost about a week's worth of time, but no one could recall what occurred in that week. Nohano thought it was probably for the best.

Killian said he wanted to see if his parents were alive, but the fighting in Australia was worse than ever, and information was proving nearly impossible to find. He wasn't going to give up, however, and President Cavanaugh said that if she had the resources to spare, that she would help. Nohano remembered standing in the Oval office on their last day there, thanking her about a million times for all she'd done to help them.

Nohano had exchanged contact information with Yasuo, who said once he returned to Japan that he would keep in touch. They'd all said goodbye rather reluctantly; everyone in the group had grown fond of the man in the time he had been at the White House with them.

After leaving Washington, D. C., the Ronin stayed in some apartments in Los Angeles for a month, often traveling to San Francisco to help in the clean-up efforts. A survivors database was compiled for those searching for friends and family, listing where they had been relocated to, and Nohano thanked the powers that were that the guys from No Quarter had made it out. Their apartment had been trashed, but they were alive. The Ronin met with them in Los Angeles, where they had also rented an apartment.

It wasn't until the beginning of November that they were all able to move back into San Francisco. The Ronin used their reward money to buy a house comfortable enough for the eight of them, near the apartment complex Nohano and No Quarter had lived in. (The other guys in the group took over Nohano's apartment.) The house was nice, but not ridiculously expensive. It was two stories, with a full attic and basement. There were six bedrooms and two full bathrooms (with a toilet, sink, and basic shower in the basement.)

Xan, Nohano, and Killian, who had grown accustomed to rooming together, took over the attic for their living quarters. Suisei, Tarun, Rashida, Demetrius, and Amaya all took a bedroom each, leaving the master bedroom as a sort of den and guest room. They didn't have much in it for now, just a bookcase, a bed, a computer table (Suisei had replaced his laptop computer), and a comfortable armchair.

There was a roomy kitchen and a large main room on the main floor—they'd gotten an inexpensive couch at a secondhand shop, as well as a few chairs, and a table for the kitchen. Oddly enough there was no dining room. Xan had gotten himself a comfortable cot to lie on, though Killian only got himself a soft pad to put beneath his sleeping bag, just as content to sleep on the floor.

The basement, Amaya had turned into a dojo of sorts, though she said she wouldn't bother with the tatami mats. (That surprised Nohano, as strict as she usually was regarding tradition.) She said when a person fought the enemy, they didn't usually fight on mats! It was there they did much of their practicing, leaving their isolated spot by the shore for their more exuberant and destructive attacks.

It had been a good few months. Though awful things had happened, the city was slowly rebuilding, and people were getting their lives back in order.

Rashida, Demetrius, Suisei, and Amaya had all had birthdays, celebrated with small parties and gift giving. No longer needing to work, Xander decided he wanted to finish out high school, and was able to transfer his records from Washington D. C. to San Francisco. He was two months late for term, but the teachers assured them they would help him catch up, and schools on the West Coast seemed to be less advanced than those on the East Coast. Killian decided he wanted to finish school as well, even though it was quite different than in Australia. They put him a grade behind his age, since he had a lot more things to get caught up on than most students, such as American history, spelling, and geography. It was not easy to juggle school and No Quarter, but the guys were really good in working with him so that he didn't miss many rehearsals.

Demetrius, at seventeen, did not want to go to school for only a year, and did not feel his English was good enough for him to be able to attend classes normally. He returned to his part-time construction job, enjoying the work—and he had plenty in San Francisco that year. Amaya, however, did attend the school, enrolling in a class called English as a Second Language, designed to aid foreign and exchange students with their classes. Killian, Amaya, and Xan all attended the same school, though Xan was a junior, and Amaya and Killian were in the freshman year together.

Suisei kept his job at the hangar, which he liked very much, and Rashida was thrilled to get a part-time job with a local archeologist who was willing to teach her on the job of his work. Nohano stayed with No Quarter, of course, and Tarun returned to elementary school. The schools were being extremely forgiving about students who were behind, given the city-wide catastrophe.

All in all, Nohano and his family were doing very well, and had settled into a pleasant enough routine. Still, it was weird for Nohano to live with so many people. Even at the foster home, Nohano had never lived with so many people at once—sometimes he would leave the house and escape into the large back yard, just to get away. He loved them all, but sometimes it got a bit much! But then sometimes when he felt lonely or uncertain, he had seven people who would cheer him up (or annoy him) until he shook the mood. He didn't think his life could get better.

Nohano was badly startled from his ruminations by a small form suddenly leaping at him, and he grunted as Tarun landed on his lap, driving him halfway into the soft cushion behind him. Nohano laughed as Tarun gave a gleeful grin. "Gotcha!" he proclaimed.

"Oh, yeah?" challenged Nohano, grabbing the boy and wrestling him to the floor. He launched a merciless tickle assault on Tarun while the kid flailed around shrieking in laughter. He finally let the boy up, grinning as Tarun caught his breath, and pointed an indignant finger at Nohano. "That's so wrong!"

Nohano cracked up. He wasn't sure where Tarun had picked up the phrase "that's so wrong", but he'd been using it for a week. 'Probably at school,' he thought. "Listen, half-pint," said Nohano with a grin. "Go pounce on Killian, yeah? He hasn't been pounced for three days now. He's in the kitchen. Just make sure he's not around anything hot or sharp—skewering him would be a bad idea!"

Tarun giggled and nodded his head, dashing into the kitchen. Nohano stood up, catching Rashida's amused glance. "You have a way with children," she said.

"Me? Naw. Can't stand the little buggers." She snorted. "No, seriously, I love the kid. Same as anyone here, really." He blushed as Rashida's expression softened, and she came over to put a hand briefly on his shoulder. She didn't say anything, but she didn't need to.

A sudden yelp of indignation from the kitchen had Nohano laughing once more. An entirely gleeful Tarun raced out of the kitchen, Killian in hot pursuit; Killian's face and the front of his shirt were wet, and Nohano deduced he had been drinking something when he was so rudely pounced upon. The two raced all around the living room, Tarun relying on sharp turns and erratic maneuvers to evade the Australian boy's grasp. When Tarun ran for the stairs, Killian was close to catching him, and even Suisei and Xan had torn themselves away from their adventure on the game console to watch.

A sudden thudding noise from upstairs, almost like a jackhammer, had them all puzzled until Killian's outraged voice sounded: "Hey! No armor, you cheater!"

Everyone cracked up, and Nohano collapsed back on the sofa, a hand over his head, at the image of Tarun speeding down the hallway like a cheetah, leaving an incensed Killian behind.

"I think that Tarun had better watch himself after this," commented Suisei when they'd calmed down.

"Boy, you said it," said Xan. "Killian'll be out for revenge, now!"

The whole chase ended not a minute later, with a yelp from Tarun, and a "ha!" from Killian. Killian came down the stairs in full armor, his yari slung over his shoulder, its blades clamped around Tarun's ankle. Killian had discovered that aside from attacking, the yari blades could be used as a mancatcher, doing no harm to the person he caught, but holding them fast. Tarun dangled upside down (also in armor, though without his helmet), yowling indignation.

After Killian dumped the boy on the couch, he armored down, stowing his aqua blue orb in his pocket. He looked somewhere between extremely irritated, and unwillingly amused. 'Just like brothers,' Nohano thought.

"You're gonna pay for that one, brat," said Killian, though without malice. At least not too much malice.

Tarun giggled, banishing his own armor, and shrugged. "It was Nohano's idea."

Oops! Nohano raised his eyebrows and deliberately turned his attention elsewhere when Killian turned to glare at him. "I'll deal with you later, mate," he threatened. "For now I'm going to finish the glass of milk I had just poured." With that he left the living room.

Amaya poked her head out and regarded the group evenly. "If you children are finished...supper is nearly ready. Please come and help to bring it onto the table."

Everyone dutifully trooped into the kitchen, exclaiming over the delicious smells, and how good everything looked. Rashida proclaimed that her stomach was growling like an angry tiger, and Tarun said he was going to eat the whole kitchen. Nohano commented that the stainless steel countertops probably wouldn't digest very well, which seemed to amuse Tarun.

For the main course, Amaya had made Teriyaki chicken, something that was very common in Chinese restaurants, though Amaya said it was popular in Japan as well. Demetrius had made a sort of mushroom soup, and baked some odd-shaped biscuits that he had said he tried to shape into Christmas trees, but hadn't succeeded very well. He made an odd side dish containing kidney beans and potatoes, along with about a million spices. And to top it all off, Amaya had made a Japanese Christmas cake, which was a sort of sponge cake with a lot of sugar-filled decorations.

As everyone helped to get the food onto the kitchen table, Suisei looked sidelong at the cake, and then sort of narrow-eyed at Tarun. Nohano understood why; the kid hardly needed sugar. But Suisei didn't forbid him of partaking--it was Christmas, after all.

No one talked much during dinner, unless it was an exclamation of how good the food was. Amaya blushed each time she was complimented, saying she enjoyed cooking, and had done it often at home. "My father taught me," she explained.

Demetrius only grinned, taking the compliments graciously, though far less modestly than Amaya had. He had more reason to be smug; it was his first attempt at a recipe, and it had come out very well.

Nohano didn't know about anyone else, but he stuffed himself completely silly that afternoon, and enjoyed every minute of it. He even managed to stuff a piece of the cake in after all the food; it was strange to Nohano, since he'd never had sponge cake before, but he liked it all the same. "I think I'll never eat again," he finally groaned, slumping back in his seat.

Killian grinned at him. "See what happens when you get greedy?" he said cheerfully. "I didn't have to get my revenge after all; karma did it for me. You're gonna be sick, now."

Nohano snorted. "If that supper is what you call revenge, you've gone soft."

Though a half hour later, he could see Killian's point a whole lot better. He really had overdone it, and he felt like he'd gained about a half a ton, even a little sick. Taking pity on him, Suisei had gotten him a glass of Alka-Seltzer—didn't take away the full feeling, but it helped with the nausea! He sat on the sofa, feeling like a beached whale, and watched Xan and Suisei continue their video-game lesson where they'd left off.

Around five o'clock, the group gathered in the living room to exchange presents. Nohano had convinced the others to close the window against the chilly night, and the curtains were closed, leaving a single lamp to light the room. Nohano felt warm and content. "We have to get a tree next year," said Nohano. "And lights."

"Yeah!" said Tarun eagerly, reaching beneath his homemade tree to grab a small present. "Here!" he said to Nohano. "This one's yours!"

Nohano discovered then that Tarun's school had had a workshop before Christmas break so that the students could made presents for their family. Nohano opened the package to find a small, wooden box, with an awkwardly wood-burned Japanese character on it. He realized it immediately as jin, the virtue of his armor. Touched at the personal gift, and impressed at the skill Tarun had displayed in making it, he hugged the boy. "This is great," he said. "Fantastic. It's just big enough for my sphere, too."

Tarun beamed. "Yeah! That's what I made 'em for." He clapped a hand over his mouth, having revealed he's made more than one.

Nohano laughed quietly, thinking he'd probably made the same thing for everyone.

All in all the gift-giving was a very pleasant affair. The gifts were small, but they meant a lot. Demetrius, Suisei, and Rashida had gotten Nohano books, with a little note on the cover and the signature of the giver below it. Demetrius had gotten a book of Russian legends, and the others had gotten adventure novels. 'Like I need those now,' thought Nohano wryly. 'My life is an adventure!' Still, they looked good, and he paged through them for a few moments.

Xan had gotten him a video game, and Amaya had bought an ornamental sheath for the katana that Nohano practiced with when he wasn't in armor. It had been one of the things he had bought with his share of the reward money; two practice katana. Killian's gift was a small, heavy, metal token. He said almost shyly (which seemed really strange on the outgoing Killian) that the symbol stamped on it was an aboriginal symbol for brother. He smiled and took a necklace from under his shirt, showing he had the same thing, though it was a mirror image of the symbol. Nohano understood; it was an indication that they were two of the same, and together made balance.

"That's great," said Nohano, unable to say anything more. He slipped the token into his pocket, next to the Wildfire sphere. He let his mind speak for him, letting his appreciation and affection through, and knew that Killian had gotten the message.

"I'm part native, you know," Killian said with a grin. "Got aboriginal blood in me. I've done some research in the old beliefs."

It was Nohano's favorite gift.

The other presents were similar. There were books and little toys, and a couple of gag gifts that had everyone laughing. (The walking pair of plastic buttocks given to Nohano by Xan made Nohano nearly laugh himself sick.)

As they were finishing their gift-giving, a knock at the door stopped the cheerful banter, and Nohano frowned over at the door. He wondered who would be knocking on their door period, without it being Christmas.

"Who the heck could that be?" wondered Suisei aloud.

Killian shrugged. "I guess I'll find out." Everyone was curiously quiet as Killian stood up and walked to the door, and Nohano suddenly had a very bad feeling. He had just gotten to his feet when Killian opened the door, revealing a man in some kind of uniform. 'Postal, or something,' Nohano realized after a moment of paranoid wariness. He relaxed, but only a little; the bad feeling hadn't gone away.

Killian talked to the man for a moment before the man gave him a piece of paper. Nohano felt a sudden, shocked wave of sorrow from Killian's mind as the other boy read the paper. The man grasped Killian's shoulder for only a moment before leaving.

Worried now, Nohano jogged over, forgetting about the wide-open door at the sight of Killian's face. Normally tan, it was almost as pale as Demetrius's, and his eyes looked wide and shocked. He suddenly looked far younger than fifteen. "Killian?"

Killian began to shake, handing the paper over to Nohano without a word. Nohano looked down, gasping softly as his eyes skated over the telegram. It was from one of the databases from Australia that Killian had been checking for the past three months. It was a computerized, automatic notice, horribly bland and matter-of-fact.

"What?" asked Xan, sounding alarmed.

Nohano looked up to see that the others had all joined them, and slowly closed the door, answering softly, "His parents are dead."