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"What do we all share?" 

The dark room lit only by LED candles fell quiet.  

"Memory." Came one voice. 

"Life." Spoke another. 

"Brotherhood!" Roared a woman. 

The room erupted into a cheer as stomps nearly toppled the safe, flameless candles onto the carpeted floor. 

At the center of the room a robed figure stood up, holding aloft a small Mag-light torch.  With a tilt of the head, the hood fell back to reveal an Indian man with a sharply manscaped beard and mustache. 

"Now, let us begin as one." With a clap, the lights came on to reveal a large living room and folding table covered in plastic and serving trays. The thirty men and women gathered around quickly rolled up their robe sleeves and began loading plates with food, chatting softly as they dug in. 

"Special thanks to Epiktetos for the tamales tonight - excellent as always!" The leader called out over the horde as another cheer caused a middle-aged Latina woman sitting on the couch to blush modestly. Hungry hands quickly finished their gathering and the group quieted as they took their seats in the circle of assembled furniture. 

"Now, first order of business - congratulations to our local bowling team for another victory in the regionals! At this rate I'm sure Atticus and Dareios will lead our boys to a national victory this year!" A quiet round of applause greeted this announcement. "Also, congratulations are in order for Timotheos, who expects her third child this year and has already saved enough money for her first born's college tuition - excellent work!" More woots and cheers all around.  

"Moving on to new business." Adjusting his glasses, the leader read from his notes. "I understand the Lutheran Home Owners Association has resisted our advance on the dog breed ordinance for the third time." Quieting the jeers and boos, he continued. "We understand our canine companions should be judged by their actions, not their visage, yet these suburbanites continue to base their decisions on outdated stereotypes. Needless to say the Lutheran HOA is a key hurdle to our campaign to increase adoptions for Maximus's 'Pitty Party' organization." 

A skinny black man in dark rimmed glasses raised his hand. The leader nodded back as he rose and replied, "Our Pitty Party no kill shelter has proven, time and again, that breed does not define the dog. We have a 100% record of safety with our rescues, and our rehabilitation team has successfully placed over 124 dogs this year alone.  Our cause is just, and we will succeed." A roar of approval followed as he sat back down. 

"Well spoken, Brother Maximus. What say we? Ideas on how to best this foe?" 

A hand raised as a quiet Korean woman spoke up softly, "If it is a question of insurance, who represents their interests on this matter? I have a nephew at State Farm, perhaps he can provide guidance on a more lenient policy."

"I imagine the insurance excuses a darker prejudice," gruffed an older man seated in a recliner, his orthopedic shoes shining in the overhead fluorescence. "You know the HOA committee leader, Margaret, keeps only Labradoodles." 

A murmur of agreement wafted through the crowd as the leader raised his arms up for quiet again. "Margaret Bennett, yes we know her. Who has a connection to this woman?  Perhaps that should be our target." 

A small, plump woman with curly grey hair raised an enthusiastic hand. "We have a quilting circle, where she is our co-chair. I would gladly lead a scout team, Leonidas and I both attend regularly." She fist bumped a fellow stout woman with dark skin and multi-colored extensions sitting next to her on fabric folding chairs. 

"Excellent suggestion - might I recommend Leonidas' biscuits and your own home brew sweet tea as openers, Bartus?  Report back next week on your progress, keep notes as well." 

Leonidas piped up, "Wait, next week?" 

"Correct," the leader paused and cleared his throat. "Which leads me to our other order of business - we have a serious matter to attend to, brothers." With a grave expression he held up a flyer.  

Brightly colored words on a multi-colored background announced, "CITY COUNCIL ELECTIONS - VOTE LOCAL!" 

A collective groan swept the room. Several objections rose and the leader had to hush the crowd. "I know none of us enjoy the political spotlight, but this is serious business. We've managed to hold a slim majority on the current council seats, but our grasp is tenuous at best. New residents from the city have attracted more attention with their urge to urbanize and add more farmer's markets." 

"Organic food wastes precious land!" A middle-aged man with bright freckles and a crop of red hair shook his head, his curls bouncing like carrot shavings. "There's no proven benefit, this is fear mongering by elites who can afford to pay premiums for half-sized cucumbers!" 

"Regardless, we must remain open to their concerns and try to compromise. If we are seen as outdated or overly conservative in any way our positions will be jeopardized. A few extra farmer's markets won't hurt, and we're still supporting local businesses." 

"But at what cost to the environment, hmm?" Turning even redder, he threw his hands up in the air. "Or is that an issue for the cities to deal with?" 

"One hurdle at a time, Marcus." 

Marcus sat back down.

"Now, I need everyone running this year to submit their campaign platforms by next Friday. My son has graciously volunteered to update the local community center website with an elections page detailing each candidate and their positions. Remember to stick to brief bullet points, firm but bi-partisan. Does anyone need help with theirs this year?"

The responding wave of mutters suggested many did, but would rather not.

"Remember - retaining our control over Haven is paramount to our survival as a legion. For generations, this place has provided a beacon to our souls, drawing us together from all corners of the earth, so we may do battle once more. Shield to shield, sword to sword. Without continued acceptance, and access to this community's positions of power and influence, our ability to rejoin our brethren may be lost for all the ages."

The muttering died down as the importance of their mission lay plain.

The leader nodded. "Good. I know each of us has sacrificed much to this family. We have walked many paths, spoken many languages, and loved many sons and daughters. Yet the strongest bond we have is to each other. Remember," he caught the crowd's eyes "what do we share?"

"Memory." Came Marcus.

"Life." Spoke Maximus.

"Brotherhood!" Roared Leonidas and Bartus in unison.

The room cheered loudly, banging porcelain mugs and aluminum cans on any available end table. The din continued until a sudden rap on the wall.

In the doorway to the living room stood a tall teenage girl in short-shorts and a t-shirt. She stared at the room, her brows furrowed. "Dad?"

"Yes, sweetie?" Their leader's tone and accent suddenly changed, falling back into a more familiar timbre.

"What are you all doing?"

Everyone fell silent, stuffing food into their guilty mouths. Nonplussed, their leader walked over and put an arm around his daughter.

"Just a town hall meeting, honey. For the upcoming city council election. You know civic pride is important to me, yes?"

She eyed him suspiciously. "This is like...over the top, though."

He changed the subject, his tone growing more cool. "Don't you have a trig test tomorrow? Have you studied all the material? Last time you barely got a B-."

Scoffing, she rolled her eyes. "Dad, that test was rigged. Mr. Nichols grades on a bell curve, nobody even does that anymore. It's like, un-democratic."

A soft chuckle stirred the room, but then hushed. Their leader led his daughter to the stairs.

"We'll be done in a little bit. Go try another practice test and I'll come grade it later, okay?"

"Fine." The angry teenager trudged up the steps, still giving sidelong glances at the room full of people. They waited, quietly, until she departed. At last their leader let out a deep breath.

"Alright," he said, turning back to the room. "Now, who wants to share their platform?"

A collective groan filled the small space as the debate continued into the late Wednesday evening.