Sitting at the table Christian started to pour for us each a cup of hot, steaming tea while we waited for Bruce and Kate. "Thanks Chris." I said, taking the porcelain cup and taking a sip.
"Chris?" He asked me amusingly. "I thought that you've forgotten this nickname."
"Why would I do that?" I mused, sipping the cup of tea. "Earl Grey?" I asked, gaze ticking towards him.
"One of Winston Churchill's private collection. Kept during World War One."
"That costs a lot Chris." I replied, sipping my cup of tea calmly. "Especially Winston Churchill's tea."
"And that ornate gentleman weapon as well." Katrina remarked. "After all I'm related to a certain royal family member of the Russian throne."
"Right, Tsar Nicholas the Second." Jun-myeon remarked. "But we've traced your ancestry to Catherine the Great Katrina."
"I agree." She replied. "After all, grandfather... err... sort of disavowed him."
"For making Russia into a sort of laughing stock." I said. "Blame history for that."
"But now, what are we going to do with the crates in Paris?" Then I sipped my tea in silence. "I'm sure that you have your idea Isa."
"I'll contact my informant there." I replied, taking a sugar cube and dropping it into my cup of tea. Turning my spoon I watched as the sugar cube swirled in the cup. "We might have to settle this the British way."
"Oh? Like what we did in London last time?" Jun-myeon asked me.
"Kinda, but I'm sure that Chris knows."
"Correct." He replied, his British accent still lingering. "Oh and by the way, Grandfather Fabian had just got his health checked. That bloke's health was good that he is allowed to fight."
"Reminds me of ours." Jun-myeon said.
"Chris, can he?" Katrina asked wryly. "As long as the house doesn't have hidden traps."
"Would it be that easy Katrina?" I asked her back. "After all my family in Korea have the manor fortified with hidden traps." Smiling wryly I downed a few sips of tea as footsteps sounded down the walkway. "About time." I mused.
"Following Director Fury again?" Jun-myeon asked dryly.
"Nope." I said. "You know that."
"Oh right, did I?"
"Don't throw that cane-sword, a word of advice." I said. "If not for me extending my bo, you get the picture."
"Well... not the first time I wager." As Bruce and Kate approached I solemnly pushed the cup of untouched tea towards the empty side of the table beside me and at the end of the table. Kate sat down beside Christian as he too pushed the cup of untouched tea towards the empty side of the table. "Please, sit down." Jun-myeon invited them.
"So, this is Bruce Wayne a.k.a Batman and his cousin Katherine Kate a.k.a Batwoman. I recommend that you guys get acquainted fast." I said. "Chris, pass me the plate of cheesecake please?"
"That's cute." Katrina mused. "Quick introduction by the way Isa. Much like what I did when I reported to Comrade Ivanov."
"What's your name?" Bruce then turned his attention to Christian. "And why did Isa call you Chris?" Hearing this both me and Christian cringed in response. "And you?" He turned to Katrina.
"Christian Churchill, Isabella's younger cousin. A year apart." He answered. "Bloody American." He then whispered. "No manners at all."
"Katrina, Romanov." Katrina then added. "Be grateful that I didn't kill you right now American. My cousins wouldn't allow it."
"It's fine Katrina." I said. "After all I've met people more rude than this."
"After all...." Jun-myeon begin. "Are you sure that you didn't know about Isa's engagement?"
"Engagement?" Christian was the first to answer. "I've never heard of it."
"Technically Isa's engaged to Bruce here." Christian, Kate and Katrina all spits out tea they have drank just now while I took a sip of tea with a smile intact. "After all... the World's Greatest Detective and the World's Greatest Spy are a perfect match." Christian struggled to comprehend as he was still coughing because he was choked with the tea, Katrina is practicing her breathing to calm herself down while Kate blinked twice.
"Since when?" Christian asked, still choking.
"November. When Isa's crowned regent." He explained calmly. "That was before grandfather and grandmother told us about their sibilings' interracial marriages."
"Oh, Bloody Hell. I need to lie down for a bit there." Christian said. Amused I dropped a cube of refined sugar in the Earl Grey and spun the teaspoon. Katrina swore in Russian but Bruce still remained calm and took a sip of the tea.
"Where'd you get this?" He asked me.
"One of Winston Churchill's private collection of Earl Grey. Courtesy of Christian."
"Winston Churchill?"
A small laugh. "Chris is my maternal cousin, my grandfather's side to be precise. He had four siblings : One died in the Korean War and two married to Europe. Two sisters, younger than him."
"Grandmother on the other hand, had Greek and Russian heritage." Jun-myeon finished my sentence. "Well... I don't need to introduce myself. We met in November." Bruce solemnly glared at him.
"And that?" He gestured at the cane lying beside my chair.
"My weapon."
"Weapon? That looks more like a cane rather than a weapon."
"Clearly you didn't have quite the strong sense of spectacle." I said, unsheathing the cane-sword. The handle, shaped in the form of a silver phoenix, glinted under the lights as I examined the fine blade.
"Clearly Americans don't Isa. Cane-swords are often described as a gentleman's weapon, some women also used this as a weapon albeit a concealed one." Christian explained in a sarcastic tone. "Used during the 18th and 19th Century."
"What are we going to do now?" Kate then asked.
"I've already asked my contact to send the crate of vibranium to London. Before the four of you even came along we have already decided to travel to the United Kingdom. To investigate the case far from interference. Dad's been staying there ever since what happened in the Churchill household for protection." I said. "We'll be leaving tomorrow." I said, sipping the cup of tea.
