In At the Death

"I do it, then," Chang said. "You have colored people at your wedding, right?"

"Well, I think so," Cinci

"You have Chinese people, too." Chang nodded and pointed to himself and his wife. Their and Cinci

"Yeah, we will," Cinci

"Maybe not so bad," Joey Chang said. Considering how hard he and his wife had resisted Grace's marriage to Achilles, that was a lot from him. He insisted they would have liked it just as little had Grace married a white guy. Cinci

"We should go," Elizabeth said. "Don't want to be late." The church was a block and a half away, so there was very little risk of that. But Elizabeth would flabble. It was a wedding, after all.

"Long as Amanda and Calvin are there-and the minister-don't hardly matter if we show up or not," Cinci

The Changs made much of Seneca Driver as they walked to church. They took old people seriously. "Mighty nice great-grandchillun," Seneca said. "Mighty nice. I don't care none if they's half Chinese, neither. I wouldn't care if they was red, white, an' blue. Mighty nice."

Cinci

Beat up or not, though, he was still alive and kicking-as long as he didn't have to kick too hard. With a little luck, he'd see more grandchildren before long. Compared to most of the surviving Negroes in the conquered Confederacy, he had the world by the tail.

Calvin's father and mother were already at the church. They were pleasant people, a few years younger than Cinci

"I didn't see any combat, sir," he said to Cinci

"Son, you didn't miss a thing," Cinci

"I told him that," Abraham Washington said. "I told him, but he didn't want to listen. He went and volunteered anyway."

"He got the chance to show he was as good as a white man, and he went and took it," Cinci

Luther Washington gri

His father only sniffed. By the way Abraham Washington sounded, his people had lived in Des Moines for generations. He was used to being thought as good as a white man-or nearly as good, anyhow. Having grown up in the CSA, Cinci

Cinci

And there were a few whites, as he'd told Joey Chang there would be. They were doing their best-some doing better than others-to be friendly with the colored people sitting around them. Cinci

But it was better here than it ever had been down in the Confederacy. Not good, necessarily, but better. Cinci

A burly young man whose shoulders strained the fabric of his tuxedo jacket came up. His name was Amos Something-or-other. He was one of Calvin's friends, and the best man. "Wedding procession's forming up," he said.

"That's us," Elizabeth said. Cinci

Amanda seemed ready to burst with glee. That was how the bride was supposed to act on her wedding day. Calvin didn't look ready to run for his life. For a groom on his wedding day, that would do.

The organist struck up the wedding march. Down the aisle everybody went. A photographer fired off one flashbulb after another. Yellow-purple spots danced in front of Cinci

Up at the front of the church, he and the rest of Amanda's supporters went to the right, those of Calvin Washington to the left. The minister did what ministers do. After a while, he got to, "Who giveth this woman?"

"I do," Cinci

Amanda and Calvin got to say their "I do"s a couple of minutes later. Amanda's ring had a tiny diamond on it. Tiny or not, it sparkled under the electric lights. It shone no brighter than Amanda's smile, though. The kiss the new husband and wife exchanged was decorous, but not chaste.

Down the street three doors to the reception, Joey Chang's good beer was highly unofficial, but also highly appreciated. The minister drank several glasses and got very lively. Cinci

One of the white men congratulated Cinci

"Thank you kindly." Cinci

"This is a good bash, too," the white man said. "People get together and have a good time, they're all pretty much the same, you know?"

He seemed to think he'd come out with something brilliant. "I won't quarrel with you," Cinci

"And you've got to tell me who makes your beer," the white man added.

"That fella right over there." Cinci

"Well, how about that?" the white man said, which was safe enough under almost any circumstances. "Stir everything around, huh?"

"Why not?" Cinci

But he didn't. He just said, "How about that?" again.

Good, Cinci