And It has Come to War

Chapter Six

A week later the last security clearance was complete, my records had been ironed out and I had prepared my first course, with the help of a fourth grade teacher on the base. Teaching something, even though I knew it, was a completely new experience to me. My first ‘class’ was of high ranking officers, many who spoke some Japanese already.

Walking into the room I gently closed the door, then walked to the blackboard and wrote my name, in Kanji. Then I turned around, still holding the chalk. “Welcome” I said in Japanese. “I will be your instructor today, my name is Misu Laster Sara. Please stand and give me your name.”

Three of the twelve men stood, giving their names and ranks in the Japanese style, to them I smiled, told them that they could sit then switched to English, not bothering anymore to hide my accent. “I asked that you stand and give your names” I repeated in English. “This is an example of what you will be asked, should you be captured by the Japanese. I understand that name, rank and serial number are the only things that you are required to give under the ?Geneve convention? Please excuse my poor English, I have not been speaking it but a few years. What is most important to should you be captured is this, Japan is not part of that treaty. Never expect to be treated well by Japanese solders, surrender is not accepted in the Japanese culture thus will be a new concept to them. They will not know how to treat you, so most likely they will treat you like dogs, remember that. Prisoners have no rights in Japan.”

Several men asked questions then so I waited until the chatter ended before speaking. Ignoring those questions I continued on. “This course will be taught mainly in English the first day, on the last day I will be speaking nothing but Japanese. If you have any questions please write them down and submit them after class, I will do my best to have answers for you the next day.” Then I went on, explaining the basic words and concepts, then how they were used. By lunchtime many notebooks were being written in, I was going to be answering a lot of questions it looked like.

At lunch I sat alone, eating in the manner that I had been taught since I could remember. This brought comments from the men around me, though I ate in the Officers Mess those lower grade officers seemed no better than school boys at times. When Lt. Parker sat with me it was like a breath of fresh air as it quickly became obvious from how comfortable we were together that I ‘had a boyfriend.’

“I still can’t get the hack of eating with sticks” Parker admitted as he started eating, apparently amazed at the deftness that I handled hashi, or as he knew them chopsticks (a name I found to be vulgar.) Though the food served was adequate, it was missing the spices that I knew and loved so much thus I had gone off the base and purchased them, the three bottles sitting in front of me as I ate.

“And this is?” Parker asked, picking up a small pot of Wasabi that I made each morning. He opened the pot, dipping his spoon in for a good sized dollop. Before I could warn him he had placed the paste into his mouth. I sat silent, waiting his reaction as that had been fairly fresh wasabi and quite a large dose in a single, raw serving. For a moment nothing happened, then the vapors reached his sinus’s. His reaction was amusing to those around us, I however simply retrieved my pot, spread a bit on my food and continued eating. Wasabi is meant to be eaten in small batches, not huge quantities at one time. Needless to say, Lt. Parker’s expression was one of rather shocked surprise.

“And you eat this as a garnish?” he asked once the initial assault on his senses was over.

“When one is raised with such, one learns not to try and eat it as though it were ice cream” I replied. “And what is a garnish?” So we went back and forth, eating while my ‘boyfriend’ and I countered with cultural differences.

“So what will you do when the war is over” he finally asked, we were speaking in normal tones, thus allowing those close to us to overhear should they want. Knowing that, and from previous mistakes knowing that every word I spoke could, and would be reported to Lieutenant Colonel Weckerling I decided to be bluntly honest. “You mean after this country destroys Japan?” At his look I continued, “Japan has half of the geographical land mass of your state of Texas.” I knew that the ‘your’ would be noted in bold, I was honestly Japanese, America simply was a place that my family had come from. “A great majority of that land is mountains, leaving little for farming, families and factories. When this war is over, and you will win it though with a bloody cost, I will return to Yubari to take my place as a Priestess, I have no future in this land.”

Typically, as whenever I failed to meet Lt. Parker’s pre-formed opinion of how I should react, his eyes hardened, this time he stood, nodded to me and left, leaving his unfinished meal behind. “Lovers spat?” a greasy voice asked from my right, I turned to see that another man had leaned towards my table, a single gold bar on his shoulders.

“Gajin” I answered in my most haughty voice, then I too stood, gathering both our trays before leaving. However the Lt. couldn’t leave it alone. “Busy tonight toots?” he asked as he leaned his chair towards me, “I know I’m a better man than him and I’ll prove it tonight, your quarters or mine?” I noted that the other two officers with him were wearing pained expressions, so with just a draw of my right foot I caused his overbalanced chair to fall, walking away as he slammed to the floor. That should have been it but as I was turning in our trays someone grabbed me from behind and jerked me around, it was that same golden barred lieutenant, anger filling his face and a fist drawn back. In the instant before I reacted I could see dozen’s of men and some women rushing to my aid, aid that would be too late.

Simply because I studied Kyu-do did not mean that I hadn’t been exposed to other of Japans martial arts, I had practiced Kendo and Karate, which is why I had recognized what was used to put my father down. Truthfully I could have defeated my father at any time, I was though raised to believe that my father had the right to beat me should he desire, as long as I lived under his roof. In this case I simply struck quickly, the officer seemed to gasp then sagged to the floor. It was over faster than it had started and I was none the worse for wear, though my dress was food stained and now I was surrounded by those who had come to my aid. After all, I was a small woman and my attacker had been rather large.

Of course Lieutenant Colonel Weckerling was fully aware of everything even before I left the women’s latrine, having taken the time to get the worst of those food stains from my America style dress. I hated American fashions. An hour into class two very large armed men with white helmets on walked in, I was being summoned. At least they allowed me time to explain to my class before they dragged me off by my feet to the chopping block.

Really, it wasn’t that bad but having two six plus foot tall men on each side of a four foot eight tall woman was rather funny, now that I look back on it. Standing before Lieutenant Colonel Weckerling was never amusing, and it was something that I was to do over and over during the war.

“You were assaulted in the officers mess hall” the man stated, he almost never asked a question I had noted. “By Second Lieutenant Dickinson.”

“That was his name?” I asked, “I really never looked at his name tag sir.”

“Second Lieutenant Dickinson is currently in sickbay having two broken ribs attended to” the Lt. Col. continued. “As it was a possible sexual assault, why didn’t you kill him? From the injury and witness’s reports you hardly hit him.”

“Sir, I struck the man hard enough to stop him from hitting me, killing is not something that I felt I needed to do in that case.”

“But you could have.”

“I have” I admitted, then explained because Weckerling always wanted explanations I had discovered. “Two want to be yakuza, local toughs, caught me in a rainstorm returning home from temple. I had no other choice, other than to be another body found floating in the river. It is not something that I enjoyed and it was days before I was again whole.”

For at least three minutes Lieutenant Colonel Weckerling was silent, then he continued. “Things are not working between you and Lt. Parker, are they Miss Laster.”

“I have repaid him my debt sir, in full” was all I could say.

“He doesn’t like that you see America not as your homeland, but as a foreign country, he also has a problem with your religion. Correct?”

I really couldn’t answer that question, as I could not read Parkers mind, nor had he ever expressed in words his feelings. “That sir, is a question that I am honestly unable to answer” I explained. “I am aware that his eyes harden at certain times, and that at lunch he departed the table without finishing his meal, but as to what he thinks. This sir I do not know.”

“Spoken like a career Sargent” Weckerling admitted. “Lt. Parker will be replaced as your minder starting right now, he simply hasn’t the attitude required for the job. Lt. Dickinson will be facing courts marshal, what with the witness’s and your own statement, I have no doubt that the man will be home as a civilian within the day. As to you Miss Laster, I will have several hand to hand combat instructors meet with you Saturday, to gage your abilities. When the jeep arrives, bring that bow you love so much, I want to see it in action myself. Now return to your class, they have had enough goofing off time.”

With a ‘Yes sir’ I departed the office, only when I turned around did I see a female Army officer sitting in the back of the room, she had obviously been taking notes. Upon returning to my class it was to find my ‘students’ working among themselves practicing the Japanese that they already knew.

“It is otearai Major Williams” I corrected automatically. “You are asking politely, if you wish to insult it is benjou, the placing of O before a word adds politeness.” And we were off as though nothing had happened, I know though that by breakfast they would all know the entire story and no, I never saw or heard from or about Lt. Dickinson again in my life.