House Party

-Shirotsume, Mister Burke's Home-

"Hello again, Miss Winchester. My employer would like to see you before the party begins." Kumiko greeted Diana at the door. Diana removed her navy blue dress shoes at the door and entered the home of Mister Burke, a man who she had worked for once before. Apparently he had taken a liking to her and had hired her as extra security for a party he was holding for his workers as a celebration of an important milestone for his company. She was to see him immediately for details concerning the party and security measures.

Diana was escorted into his presence by Kumiko, who bowed before Mister Burke. Mister Burke returned the bow and Kumiko left them to discuss business. The client was dressed in a blue Hawaiian shirt with khaki cargo pants and brown dress shoes and was looking cheerful.

"Hello, Miss Winchester. I called you here to discuss some business. Would you like some tea to drink before we begin the discussion?" Mister Burke asked her.

"No thank you." Diana politely declined the drink. The blond man simply smiled.

"You are so polite. Very well then. I will get down to business. I wish to speak to you about a party for my workers I am holding in my home." He said to her, taking a cup of green tea into his hand and pausing for a moment to take a sip. He then set the tea cup onto a nondescript white saucer and spoke to her again.

"I would like you to once again remain by my side. My men have the outside of my home covered, but doing so has stretched my security thin. I would like you to remain with me and watch for any threats that may present themselves." He requested of her. Diana saw no problem with that.

"Of course, Mister Burke." Diana replied in the affirmative. He smiled again.

"Splendid. I knew that I could count on you." Mister Burke said with approval. He took another sip of the green tea and set the cup back down.

"My guests will be here in less than three hours. It is time that we get ready to greet them." He said to her.

"What do you need me to do?" Diana asked him.

-Three hours later, Mister Burke's conference room-

Diana stood by Mister Burke's side as the latter addressed his workers in his personal conference room. They were celebrating the release of a type of armor called Hoplite Armor, which was becoming a fast-selling product ever since its release a week ago. Diana thought she had heard the name before but could not put a finger on it. Oh well. She remained quiet and listened to Mister Burke and the other workers exchange toasts and other expressions of good cheer.

The overall mood was a cheerful one that demonstrated the bond that Mister Burke and his workers had. Not every company treated workers so well.

[Word Count: 500]
[Total Word Count: 500/1,500]

Diana stayed by Mister Burke's side as the party stayed in full swing. There was not a whole lot for her to do except stay by the client's side and listen to bits and pieces of various conversations, but that was fine with her. Easy jobs were not a bad thing because a service was still being provided and work still had to be done in order to get paid. It was also in line with what Diana was trying to do lately: she tried to reserve killing only for people who deserved it and instead spent her time saving lives instead of taking them. That was part of her backup plan in case her relationship with Hidden Blades went south.

If she built a decent public reputation and did not piss off anyone in Hidden Blades too badly, she might be able to survive as a Guildless mage and not have to look over her shoulder for hit squads crawling out of the shadows. Then again, they might not want any loose ends walking around, so she might end up on the chopping block anyway. It was the risk she took for joining up. It was the nature of the business. In the meantime, Diana would continue to work for them as long as they did not betray her.

Diana listened into her earpiece for reports from the other guards. They had not said anything in the past three hours, which meant that either everything was clear or that someone had killed a few of the guards and was trying to infiltrate the house. Wary of the second possibility, she remained close to Mister Burke and watched all the doors for anyone trying to slip in unnoticed. Right now the client and his guests were singing karaoke and doing poorly at it. Alcohol and music did not mix.

The group warbled through several old disco songs about love and survival, which seemed to be popular topics for pop music as well. Diana had an interest in survival herself because contract killers typically had a short shelf life. They either ran afoul of authorities or ran afoul of employers who no longer needed their services. Sometimes they even ran afoul of other contract killers looking to take out the competition.

Diana had stayed alive this long because she was not flashy. She did not leave calling cards at the scene, make public displays of her hits, make killing a performance art by working pointlessly flashy acrobatics into her attacks, or use a pointlessly flashy signature weapon. She sneaked into position, killed the target with a shot to the head, and left unnoticed to make a clean getaway. She also made a point of leaving no evidence to trace her, which was why she did not leave behind calling cards. Such a style was boring and did not make headlines, but she was still alive and still free, so there was something to be said for how she worked.

[Word Count: 500]
[Total Word Count: 1,000/1,500]

-Two hours later-

The guests had all left the five-hour long party and everyone had had fun. Mister Burke had hired cabs to get everyone back to their homes safely, so no one would crash their vehicle and kill themselves or another person. Diana had heard from the guards that everything outside the home was clear. Various reports filtering in told her that it was an uneventful evening, but they were not complaining about the lack of activity. They were glad to make it through the night without an incident of any kind.

Mister Burke had finished seeing off the last of his guests when he turned around and walked up to her alongside his chief of security.

"Well done, Miss Winchester. The party went off without a hitch and no one got hurt. Well, except for Mr. Jones, but he only suffered a bruised ego from falling off a table he was standing on while singing karaoke." Mister Burke reported. Diana was glad to hear that a scientist's ego was the only thing that was hurt tonight. That meant that the party was a success. Success meant an increase in reputation. Success also meant getting paid for her work.

"I am glad to hear that. I hope Mr. Jones will be OK in the morning." Diana said to her client. Kumiko and the staff were picking up empty sake and beer bottles and transporting empty sake cups to the kitchen for cleaning. Diana did not envy them in the slightest.

"Oh, he will. He just had a bit too much to drink, but he will sleep it off and be back to normal in the morning." Mister Burke said calmly. If he was not worried, Diana was not worried. She had done her job in keeping the client safe from harm.

"Now I believe that I owe you payment for your work." The client said to her. Kumiko came back from dropping off empty alcohol bottles to present Diana with a bag of Jewels. Diana took them with both hands and put them into her pocket. She returned the earpiece she had been wearing to the chief of security.

"I thank you for your help with this matter, Miss Winchester. I may require your services again in the future. When I have need of you again, I will send another job notice your way. I hope you have a pleasant evening." Mister Burke bade her.

"Thank you." Diana thanked the client before turning around, getting her shoes from where they had been left at the door, and walking out into the moonlit world. Diana walked past a couple of security guards and down the walkway lined with cherry blossom trees. She walked under the old-fashioned "torii" gate that led into Mister Burke's property and made her way towards the town limits.

Diana's work here was done. She had protected Mister Burke during the party and had succeeded in making sure that nothing bad happened to the client. It was another success that she could add to the list of jobs completed. All in all it was a good night for the blonde. Now to return "home" and find another job to take.

[Word Count: 538]
[Total Word Count: 1,538/1,500]