TITLE: Black Friday
AUTHOR: MikeJaffa
SYNOPSIS: How would the Burst Angel girls deal with Back Friday?
DISCLAIMER: Burst Angel is owned by Gonzo. I am making no money off this.
HUMOR WARNING: Put down all food and drink.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: It turns out there may be 50,000 American Expatriates living in Tokyo, though I know nothing about that community or whether they have black Friday sales. But if they don't know, 37 years from now is another story.
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"Sei-"
"No."
"C'mon-"
"Meg. No."
"Oh for god's sake!" Meg crossed her arms and glared at the Chinese mob princess, sitting unflappably on the sofa in the trailer's living area, Jo and Amy watching from one side. "Do I at least get an explanation?"
Sei looked up from her phone and betrayed a little impatience. "Fine. Counting you, there are a little over 50,000 Americans living in Tokyo, and on this particular Friday in November, 'Black Friday,' you all fall prey to collective insanity. It's bad enough that on this one day, your shopping habits are worse than Amy's; but last year, you were arrested for assault and attempted murder! And over what? A pair of shoes!"
"That was the last pair that went with my outfit, Sei."
"Meg, you dress like a half-naked cowgirl! Either cowboy boots or stripper heals would work."
"My other outfit."
"You don't have another outfit."
"I will eventually."
"Beside the point." Sei stood up. "In any case, I didn't enjoy having to quash that, and I am not going to go through that again. Amy and I are going to consult with Bailan's cyber security; you and Jo can hold down the fort. And do NOT give Kyohei a hard time!"
Meg saluted. "Yes, Ma'am!"
"And sarcasm is not your most endearing trait."
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Meg stood by the trailer and watched as the sports car pulled away with Sei and Amy in it. They were at their underpass location again, too far from any place Meg would want to walk to. Jo had retreated to the roof with her TV, so hardly one to be an ally.
She cursed under her breath at the retreating vehicle, then sighed. She started to turn back to the trailer, then heard a motor drawing closer.
She turned and saw Kyo coming in on his scooter.
Meg thought it over. She'd be hard pressed to admit liking Kyohei, though he was a good cook and had come through for them on occasion. And Sei was usually the one Kyo preferred to deal with - hell, he had a crush on Sei only slightly less obvious than the crush she had on him. On any other day, Meg would not even consider using her feminine wiles to get a lift downtown from him.
But the stores that catered to American expatriates had their Black Friday sales on, and Meg wasn't going to let a little thing like her revulsion at the thought batting her eyes at Kyo come between her and a sale.
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"I'm still not sure about this, Meg."
Riding on the back of Kyo's scooter, Meg tightened her arms around his waste and managed to keep a smile on her face and warmth in her voice. "Don't worry about it, Kyo. Just get me to the nearest mall so I can do a little Christmas shopping, then we go back. No problem."
"I really think we should let Sei know where we're going. This is exactly how I got into trouble with Amy that time."
"But you're not with Amy. You're with me. How many times have I steered you wrong?"
"Uh-"
"Rhetorical. But it's not like I've actually tried to kill you."
"No, you haven't done *that.*"
Meg was losing patience, but she kept a smile on her face. "C'mon, Kyo, stop worrying. I admit to a few…missteps in our friendship-"
"We're friends?"
"Yes, we are. I think it is time for a new beginning, and this is the perfect opportunity. Stick with me, Kyo, and don't worry about it…"
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Kyo had little choice but to stick with Meg as she kept his hand in a vice grip as she dragged him through the shopping mall. This included when she got into a couple of shouting matches; luckily, he was not injured.
However, it looked like his luck was going out when they got to a shoe store and Meg and another American woman with a Brooklyn accent as thick as Meg's squared off over a pair of boots. Kyo couldn't speak English and didn't know what they were saying, but he was pretty sure half the words Meg and the other woman were flinging at each other were expletives. Then Meg released her grip as she and the woman seem to be getting closer to trading blows. Kyo darted away from her, out the door, and ran headlong into Jo.
"Jo! I'm sorry-"
"Don't worry about it." Jo grabbed his arm and hustled him down the hall. "Saw you two leave from the trailer roof and had a cab take to where she was most likely to go. I get us out of here, and you get us home."
"But what about Meg? I can't believe you're leaving her behind, Jo."
"Let me tell you something, Kyo. I love Meg and I'd do anything for her…except spend another night in jail over some useless junk. She's on her own unless our regular bad guys show up. I can live with that."
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A string of curses preceded Sei coming up onto the roof of the trailer. She found Jo and Kyo sitting next to each other, watching a zombie movie and eating chips dipped in hot sauce.
Sei blinked. "Kyo, are you all right?"
"Fine, Sei. What's up?"
"Meg got away from the trailer, got down town, and either started a riot at a shoe store or was caught up in one. So I have to quash another set of charges. Do either of you know anything about it?"
Jo and Kyo shook their heads.
Sei eyed them suspiciously, then relented. "Well, whatever. This is going to take a while. Kyo, I've wired your pay already, so you can leave whenever you want after you feed Jo and Amy."
"Thanks, Sei."
Jo and Kyo watched the sports car roar away from the trailer.
Jo said, "She's going to be pissed when she finds out you gave Meg a lift."
"Yeah," Kyo said, "but as long as she doesn't shoot my junk off, I'll deal with it."
THE END