"Because I could not live with myself if I didn't. If I could say, 'Oh, there's nothing I can do', then I might be able to justify doing nothing. But you and I know that now there is something I can do. That changes everything. Every day I find something new that I can do that other people can't, or that only a very few people can. I can't stand by and let things happen out there any more than I could stand by and let things happen in here."
"So you are throwing yourself on the forge to be hammered into some kind of sword of justice?"
"'Sword of Justice, '" I chuckled. "Pretentious, but noble. I like it, but let's keep that list open."
"Are you going to show me the dragon?"
"Sure. Down here." I led the way down the back stairs to the workshop. When I turned the lights on, Neeka walked right to the motorcycle and started looking it over. I could tell by the way she examined it that she knew more about bikes than I did.
"This is one of the most beautiful custom bikes I've ever seen," she said. "I don't see a logo or a name anywhere, though. Do you know who built it? It doesn't look like anything I've seen before. This is something special. That's a racing motor. But the fairings and the windshield aren't for racing. Those pipes have mufflers built in. And that suspension! See the air dampers? This thing runs against every design principle I know. Quiet, comfortable, soft ride, but very fast. And it's gorgeous!"
"It didn't sound quiet to me," I said.
"You started it? In here? We should have heard it all over the house! Those mufflers must be better than I thought. Still, I imagine it would sound pretty impressive in a room like this. All the sound would just echo around. So that was the Dragon's Roar, hunh?"
"Yeah. I thought I'd wet myself."
"Hop on. Let me see you on it." Neeka was getting enthusiastic about this, but I was having more misgivings. Still, it wouldn't hurt to sit on it, so I climbed aboard again.
"It fits you. That's odd. Oh, I see. All the adjustments are still cranked down for shipping. No one has ever ridden this bike. Do you really think Mrs. Reynolds is going to let you?"
I laughed. "Not until I learn to ride one."
"You've never been on a motorcycle before? Criminy! Do yourself a favor and don't try to learn on this one."
"No way. But how do I learn if I don't have one to learn on?"
"My cousin, Paul. He has a small dealership. He sells scooters and dirt-bikes to the yuppie-scum kids, pardon me, the children of the newly affluent elements of society. He teaches classes that help you get your motorcycle endorsement on your driver's license. Lord! You don't have a driver's license at all?"
It was a rhetorical question. She had just got the answer out of my head.
"You have a license?" I asked.
"Sure."
"I bet you have a motorcycle endorsement on it, too."
"Uh, yeah. Paul and I used to go riding together. He's more of a kissing-cousin, you see?"
"There's plenty of room to ride two."
"Oh, hell." Neeka looked at the bike with fresh eyes. I saw her smile and knew she'd just thought of something I had missed. "OK, so I'm your chauffeur. I guess that means I get to go along. Good. One condition here, Blonde Dragon, I'm going to be taking those martial arts classes with you. You'll need a sparring partner who can give you a challenge, anyway."
"Oh, yeah? What do you know about martial arts? What color belt do you have?"
"I know the same as you do, girl — nothing. But I can do this." She took two steps toward me and started to swing her left hand up and over in a long slow slap aimed at my face. I wondered what she was up to. I stepped in with my left foot and raised my right hand and caught her arm, just as she jabbed me in the side with her right hand.
"Ow!" It didn't hurt that much, but I was caught off guard. "OK, smarty. Want to try that again?"
She did the same thing again. She started a slow overhand slap. This time I turned the other way and raised my right hand to catch her left and stood ready to block her left-handed jab. While I was watching her right hand, she dropped her left and jabbed me in the other side.
"OW! You're cheating!"
"Duh, Sherlock! I can read your mind. I know what you're going to do the instant you decide to do it. When you can beat me, it's safe to assume that you can beat anybody."
We spent the next quarter of an hour proving that the same qualities that made Neeka a fantastic lover and friend also made her an unbeatable sparring partner. Still, it was an awful lot of fun, and I came away with a firmer commitment to learn to fight. Toward the end of our first sparring session, I got a glimpse, just an inkling, of the degree of awareness of my body and of the situation that I might achieve. It was an incredibly heady feeling and I wanted a lot more of it.
We decided that the workshop would make a good practice room, but the concrete floor would need some padding before we tried anything too energetic.
"I guess we need to go wake up everybody," I said, as we caught our breath. "Nap time is over."
"OK. Let's do the boys first. They've been asleep the longest." Neeka said.
"By all means, let's do the boys!"
"You devil! You're insatiable!"
"Guilty, your honor!"
"OK, hotpants, which one do you want?"
"I'll take Bud. You take Jim."
"Works for me."
We giggled all the way back up the stairs to the boys' rooms, but we managed to stifle ourselves as we each quietly opened a door and tiptoed inside.