Civility
Disclaimer: Find me anyone says they own anything, and I'll point out someone with delusions of grandeur.
Author's Notes: This is about the two characters most likely to have killed one another without supervision; Hikaru Ichijo and Lynn Kaifun. I feel that, had they met under different circumstances, they actually could have been pretty good friends. They both hate war, but they have very different ideas about ending it. Hikaru hates it to the point where he'll fight to end it; Kaifun hates it just as much, but he is unwilling to use violent measures. (This pent up aggression is what probably leads to his temper.) It got me thinking; what if they had tried getting it all out instead of verbal sniping? The answer to this what-if question will probably be unknown, but here's my take on it.
"Someone up there hates me. That's the only reason I could be stuck in a situation like this," Hikaru thought. Currently sitting at a table in the White Dragon, Hikaru would have normally been happy to be in the establishment. Not only did they have good food, but Hikaru would often be faced with the bonus prospect of talking with Minmay. As it stood, he simply had to return a book that she had lent him. Unfortunately, things never go as planned…
"Hello! Anyone here?" Hikaru called out, as he pushed through the door into the restaurant. It was surprisingly empty; probably due to the time. After all, Chinese food for breakfast was an odd choice, to say the least. Well, it was either that, or there was some food poisoning scare he knew nothing about.
"Hello! Minmay? I've got your book-" Hikaru said, as another voice rang out to cut him off.
"Save your breath. She's out for a walk right now."
Hikaru turned his head – and mentally cursed. Lynn Kaifun. This would not be fun. The pacifist was currently leaning against the wall, apparently studying him with a comparatively neutral expression on his face. Hikaru could detect no outward hostility as of yet; maybe Kaifun had woken up on the right side of the bed this morning. Still, Hikaru responded guardedly.
"Uh… hi." He said lamely, aware of the fact that Kaifun was quite capable of twisting anything he said against him. Kaifun said nothing. Hikaru chose to press on. "I kind of have to… return this book," Hikaru said quickly, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the paperback. A slight frown appeared to cross Kaifun's features, but he still said nothing.
Right before he was about to offer it to Kaifun to give back to Minmay (he was surprised Kaifun hadn't demanded it) but as it stood, Kaifun's mother happened to walk in.
"Ah! Hikaru! What can we do for you?" Lynn Feichun asked, eyes twinkling. Hikaru looked surprised, but he repeated the explanation about the book. She nodded her head. "I see. Well, I suppose you could leave it here, but I'm sure Minmay would appreciate it more if you gave it to her yourself."
Hikaru blinked. "Ah, well-"
The sudden ring of a phone interrupted him. Feichun looked over. "Ah, I suppose I should get that," she murmured, as she began to walk toward the back. "I'll be back soon, so there's no need to go anywhere. Have a seat," she told Hikaru as she saw him turning to leave.
Hikaru thought he was fine. He should have kept in mind Murphy's Law; if anything can go wrong, it will go wrong.
"Kaifun, I'm sure you and Hikaru can find something to do." She said to her son, as she breezed by. Kaifun's stoic expression broke, and he looked toward his mother in surprise. Hikaru's eyes widened with dread.
"But…"
"Nonsense, Kaifun! You two must have something to pass time with!" she commented, as she left the room to answer the phone. Kaifun looked back at Hikaru with a look of consternation on his face, obviously disturbed. Hikaru slumped down into his seat, and he sighed.
Murphy was a freaking optimist.
That had been a half hour ago. Feichun hadn't come back, there had been no customers, and the silence had not been broken since Feichun had left. Kaifun hadn't moved from the seat he had taken across the room, and his eyes were closed. Hikaru was getting desperate for anything to say, and to his horror:
"The weather's nice," leapt from his mouth. Kaifun looked at him and raised an eyebrow but said nothing else. Hikaru felt like kicking himself. They were onboard a starship with environmental control systems. How the hell had he managed to ask about the weather?
Kaifun, meanwhile, wasn't exactly comfortable himself. Not only was his natural aversion to the military working against him, he had no idea what kind of a person Ichijo was. Minmay had told him that he liked planes, and that he was a good stunt flyer, but beyond that, Ichijo was a non entity. He was determined to stay cordial, however; he had figured, being aboard the Macross, he should try not to stir up things too much. Especially after the brawl. God, how he regretted the stupidity of that…
Hikaru's voice broke the lull once more. "So… how are you doing?" the pilot asked. Kaifun immediately heard a groan follow the statement, and he noted that the pilot was horrid at small talk. Still, he felt kind of sorry for him – anyone would after his ridiculous first statement – and thus, he answered.
"I can't really complain. Yourself?" Kaifun responded.
Hikaru was surprised. "Uh… pretty good, I guess." Kaifun nodded, but said nothing else.
Ten more minutes passed, and Hikaru couldn't take it anymore. "Hey! Uh… you know what fascism is, right?"
Kaifun looked at him, an expression of confusion on his face. Hikaru shrugged at him. The pacifist nodded. "Yes. A system of government where people are led by a dictatorial leader who has absolute power over them, along with economic and social power. Why?"
Hikaru blinked at the longwinded explanation, but recovered himself. "Thought so. Well, if that's true… does that make the North Pole a fascist state?"
That statement definitely caught Kaifun's attention. The long haired young man looked at Hikaru with shock on his features. "What?"
Hikaru was starting to regret picking this particular crackpot theory, but he felt he had nothing to lose. "Well, it's true, isn't it? I mean, Santa has total control over the elves, he essentially has a monopoly on Christmas, he chooses who gets gifts and who gets coal… let's face it! We grew up waiting for gifts from a fascist!"
"You're kidding, right?" Kaifun managed to choke out. He couldn't believe the ludicrousness of the situation. Here were two fairly bright young men (Kaifun was probably more intelligent, but he doubted Ichijo was stupid), and one was trying to convince the other that one of the most beloved figures that humankind had ever known was a fascist.
"There's more. The whole "he sees you when you're sleeping, he knows when you're awake…" line obviously point towards Santa having some serious intelligence. It only stands to reason that the elves were used as secret police-"
"You're comparing Christmas Elves to the Gestapo?" Kaifun exclaimed. "Are you insane?"
Hikaru looked offended. "Hey, I'm just trying to pick a topic that you'd be interested in."
Kaifun sneered before he could stop himself. "Figures a warmonger would pick a topic about fascism."
Anger suddenly flared in the pilot at Kaifun's words. Recognizing a challenge, he spoke. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Hikaru demanded. Kaifun mentally sighed. Time to get it all out.
Kaifun glared at him. "What do you think? You really shouldn't be accusing anyone of fascism. All military groups are just as detestable!"
Hikaru had immediately stood up, his eyes blazing. "What!" he yelled, rage evident.
Kaifun was angry as well now. This he could handle. Small talk, friendliness… Those things were not his forte, but anger at military overlords who only used their power for their own gain… that was so much easier. "You heard me, pilot. Do you really think the UN Spacy really wants to stop the war? All they care about is saving their own hides and keeping their power!"
"You're wrong! They're the ones defending Earth right now-"
"Defending it from what? The Zentraedi? Please! They don't want this ship to win! If anything, we're probably decoys while the commanders are busy hoping for an extended break, so that when the aliens do come, they can beat them back and be declared as heroes to the populace. The people will be herded like sheep. The military is quite good at public manipulation-"
"SHUT THE HELL UP!" Hikaru roared. The arrogance of the pacifist in front of him enraged him even more. Kaifun spoke like he knew everything, like all military forces were bad, like he had all the goddamn answers…
"Does the truth hurt, Ichijo?" Kaifun taunted. Hikaru took a deep breath, and tried to compose himself.
"At least we're trying to stop the war by fighting back. That's the good thing about the military. I'm not going to stand here and be judged by someone who simply talks in hope the Zentraedi will magically heeds the words and disappear." Hikaru shot back. Any mocking expression in Kaifun's face vanished, to be replaced with anger.
"What did you say?" Kaifun growled, his eyes narrowed. Hikaru smirked at him.
"Does the truth hurt, Kaifun?" Hikaru parroted, mirth on his features.
Kaifun could barely hold his anger back. "At least pacifists TRY nonviolent methods! You pilots are so proud about how many kills you get, never once thinking that a simple transmission might do just as well-"
"They're ALIENS, Kaifun!" Hikaru exclaimed. "You can't expect us to reason with them midbattle! They're trying to kill us, to we have to kill them first! Law of the jungle; eat or be eaten." Hikaru told him. Kaifun laughed scornfully.
"Thank you for giving me that little nugget of knowledge. Now I can walk out proudly and say that Hikaru Ichijo told me how gang warfare is rationalized." Kaifun deadpanned. Hikaru stared at him.
"We're getting pushed, so we have to push back," Hikaru said tiredly. Adopting a conciliatory tone, he spoke once more. "I know you may not want to accept this, but in order to survive the Zentraedi threat, war is necessary."
Kaifun's expression suddenly went even darker. "Necessary? Necessary! WAR IS NEVER NECESSARY!" Kaifun roared. Hikaru stepped back, startled. He had never pictured Kaifun screaming to get his point across, but he supposed war got him riled up. "You think husbands dying are necessary? Widows everywhere are necessary? Children wondering where their father or older brother or uncle is? That's not reasoning; that's military bull!"
"Says you!" Hikaru yelled back, his anger having returned. "What glass bubble do you live in, Kaifun! We aren't dealing with humans! We are dealing with an alien race intent on getting this ship, and they probably don't mind obliterating this ship to do it! Should we simply lay down our arms and say "Hey! We think war is bad; come slaughter us!"?
Kaifun's eyes flashed. "More rhetoric. Like I said before, if the military really wanted to, they could attempt peace negotiations. But do they? No! They go on and on, with this foolish war! All military soldiers don't care; all they care about is getting more kills. Admit it; you get a rush whenever you target a Zentraedi, you exult whenever you post more kills," Kaifun told Hikaru. Little did Kaifun know he was on dangerous ground. "If this war ended wouldn't you be sad? Not being able to pilot your precious deathbringer anymore… so sad."
Kaifun was suddenly thrown backwards by a punch he was totally unprepared for. He hit the ground hard, and he felt pain radiating up his jaw. "Ichijo's stronger than he looks!" Putting that thought aside, he immediately flipped to his feet and retaliated with a quick elbow, nailing his opponent in the solar plexus. Hikaru's eyes went wide with shock, and he dropped – but not before smashing Kaifun in the same place. Both young men collapsed, and lay on the floor, Kaifun rubbing his jaw and chest, Hikaru trying to regain his breath. He groaned and rolled over on his side. Five minutes passed.
"What do you want me to say, Kaifun?" Hikaru asked him suddenly, sounding exhausted. Kaifun was tired as well – he hadn't expected Hikaru to hit him in the chest as he went down – but he turned and listened. "Do you want me to agree with you? To say that war is foolish, and all the efforts we've made are in vain?"
Kaifun didn't respond. Hikaru sighed.
"My dad always said that war was asinine. He said it cost money, and more importantly, it cost lives and innocence. And you know what?" Hikaru asked.
Kaifun's eyes went wide as he heard Hikaru say, "He was right."
"War is stupid. It does cost lives, and money. It never solves a conflict, it just exhausted all the parties involved to the point where one was just unable to carry on anymore – but the hatred would still remain. After a while… it would happen again. You and my dad are right. War is stupid."
Kaifun was confused now. "Then why did you-"
"The same reason as senpai," Hikaru told him. "The chance for peace is slim to none, and if this war continues, it will only cost more lives. That's why I joined the Valkyrie forces… if it won't end on it's own, I'll fight to help it end. I don't care about risks; I'll do whatever I can to help this war stop." Hikaru told Kaifun, all anger gone from his voice. There was silence for a few moments, before Kaifun spoke.
"I could never do that," Kaifun said truthfully. "I could never fight, kill, even to end war. My father taught me the martial arts because he thought the discipline would be good, but I loathe using what I learned. No one – not anyone in the galaxy – has the right to hurt another. To take the life of another. Nothing justifies extinguishing life."
Hikaru suddenly laughed, ignoring the pain in his chest. "I could never do that," Hikaru responded. "I don't have enough conviction. I know that you're telling the truth… but I won't stand by and let the Zentraedi think they have the right to do whatever they please."
Kaifun was stunned silent. "So, the pilot hates war just as much as I do…" he thought. The irony was shocking.
"We all do what we can, Kaifun. I fight, kill… while you try to convince the population that, even though war protects, them it's still wrong. If more people did that…" Hikaru cut himself off, not wanting to seem patronizing.
Kaifun said nothing, instead standing up and brushing himself off. Hikaru was expecting a cutting remark – and was surprised when Kaifun turned around, and wordlessly bent down and extended his hand.
Hikaru stared at his for a second – and reached up, and grasped it. Kaifun helped him to his feet. Hikaru surveyed the restaurant, where miraculously nothing was out of place.
"I see we didn't break anything when we fell," Hikaru noted. Kaifun nodded.
"Surprising indeed." Kaifun murmured. A noise from behind made them both turn around, and they saw Feichun walk back in.
"Sorry for taking so long! Did you have a nice chat?"
Hikaru looked at Kaifun. "She didn't hear us?"
Kaifun shrugged. "I guess not." The sound of the door opening suddenly made all three turn towards the new occupant-
Only to see Minmay breeze in, happy and carefree as she always was. She was humming a tune under her breath, and see looked around – and was surprised when she saw Hikaru, her cousin, and her aunt all standing there. "What's going on?"
Kaifun looked at Hikaru, and Hikaru suddenly recalled his reason for coming. "Yeah! I have to give this back…" Hikaru said, walking up and giving Minmay her book. Minmay nodded
"Mm! Thanks, Hikaru!" she exclaimed. Hikaru laughed.
"No problem. Anyway, I should be getting back... see you all." Hikaru called out, as he walked towards the door. Kaifun flipped up a casual wave in response.
"Hey, Ichijo…" Kaifun called out. Hikaru turned back. "You're still a trigger happy flyboy."
"And you're still a hypocritical jackass. Later," he fired back, before leaving the restaurant. Minmay blinked in confusion. Despite their choice of words, that exchange almost appaeared to be… friendly. Minmay had no idea what happened, considering the normal animosity between the two.. but she couldn't say she wasn't pleased. Kaifun then smiled, and sat down at one of the tables, putting his head down. Feichun had left to check on the kitchen, and so Minmay was left with Kaifun.
After a minute, she walked over and affectionately rested her chin on his head. "What happened?"
Kaifun shrugged. "We talked, pretty much." Minmay was about to nod, when she caught sight of a red mark on his chin.
"What happened to your jaw?" she asked worriedly, looking closely at it. Kaifun looked up and waved his hand dismissively.
"I fell," he told her. She didn't look convinced. Kaifun smiled indulgently. "Don't worry. If it makes you feel better, Hikaru fell too."
Minmay frowned, but decided to let the matter drop. "What did you talk about anyway?"
"Why Santa Claus is the dictator of the fascist state known as the North Pole," Kaifun informed her, his expression neutral.
He couldn't help but laugh as he saw her face.
Ending notes: I really wanted to explore Hikaru and Kaifun as characters. Kaifun could have been so much more than just the antagonist, and Hikaru never really expanded on his hatred of war. Had this topic been brought up, it's possible the animosity between the two would have lessened. In their argument, I also wasn't going for logic or good debating; it wouldn't have been like that. They would have yelling and anger, and I tried to convey the raw emotion as best I could. As for the whole Santa Claus is a fascist thing… I thought of it in Socials class one day, and I remembered it while writing this. I needed a nonsensical topic to lead into the grand argument, and I laughed while picturing Kaifun's reaction to such an odd statement. Also, my intention was not to make them all buddy-buddy; that wouldn't have happened after one encounter. I just thought they were actually quite similar one day, and that led to this. Hope you liked reading it. And yes, Kaifun's mother is named Lynn Feichun; I lovr the Macross Conpendium. Lifesaver.