Yantober

A wedding.

A wedding was supposed to be the most joyous day where love conquers all. Two hearts melt into one another before confessing undenying love and joining for eternity for holy matrimony. Or for loved ones to join in to celebrate the couple's special day. Cheering and exchanging smiles. Then the couple would dance the night away. Cutting cake. Drink champagne. Settle down and plan their lives together.

Unfortunately you never had that experience with your life.

Perhaps it was a curse upon your life when you only ever had bad experiences with romance. Most of the time you would go on one date (usually arranged by one of your parents or occasionally your older brother setting up one of his friends) with someone only for them to be rather unpleasant or completely boring. Occasionally there were the nice ones like your brother's best friend who was polite to you during the date but obviously uninterested in pursuing anything further with you. Some of these unfortunate match ups had been-

The man was old enough to be your grandfather! Apparently your mom thought it'd be a GREAT idea to try to marry you off to the village elder. Your father argued that he'd probably wouldn't last long enough to even get married and probably just die within a year of your marriage anyways leaving you a widow at such a young age and that would just make your family a laughing stick. ..You hated his reasoning but at least you weren't forced to marry the creepy old man. Or how about the time she set you up with a narcissist 'medical travelor' who insisted your slight pollen allergy was because you didn't hear about his snake oil- You mean his totally legit dietary medical syrup he was gonna sell to you for only a hundred gold coins as your dowry...Your father was not that desperate to marry you off.

Or how about the time your brother surprised you by setting you up on a blind double date with your brother, his own fiance, and her cousin whom was also looking for a wife!! Which you 'messed up' by slapping him when he tried to kiss you, poured his drink on your yukata when you refused, and stomped off leaving you shocked and covered in sake. And then your brother got mad at YOU for making his fiance's family upset and angering his soon to be cousin- in-law.

Or how about the guy you met at the tavern who was already drunk when you arrived and then made a fill of himself by drunkenly falling out a window? Or how about the time you had lunch with that librarian? He was very nice, polite, maybe a bit paranoid and you found out why when his WIFE carrying a five month old baby stormed into your home as your parents were introducing him to you and started loudly cursing both her HUSBAND and you out. Your mother then had the full to suggest that you could become his second wife which only escalated the fighting couple's yelling and baby's wails.

You decided to try and prevent your family from setting up dates for you after that. Your father and brother seemingly both annoyed and tired of trying countless times backed off but your mother was more stubborn than ever claiming that you were going to be married one way or another because-

"I want grandchildren!"

You've been dealing with this ridiculous issue for quite a while though ever since you were fourteen in fact and your parents were simply just trying to get you engaged let alone married but as said you never really had the best of luck. In fact compared to your older brother everything seemed to work out for him because he met his soulmate on the first date and they've been together ever since. On the other side you were known as the girl who couldn't even make it past one date. Not very appealing to those whom avoided you like the plague. Oh did you mention lately for the past year or so every single man regardless of age had been actively avoiding you.

It was extremely odd. It started out as just one man canceling the date he had begged you to go on for a whole week and then another completely ghosted the appointment both your families had. Then your bad dates started ghosting you or giving you these weird looks. At the time you chalked it up to the rumors surrounding your dating life but as it continued you just accepted your love life must've just been cursed.

However you had never expected the future to turn on it's head when he came around.

Yoriichi Tsugnakuni.

The man who's positive and kind personality was like a breath of fresh air for you. Never a bad thing to say. Always willing to lend a hand. Always so selfless. Is was no wonder why so many women were head over heels Infatuated by him. You always thought he was really nice, although nothing more to it than that. Perhaps that's why he became so intrigued by you. Your family ran the town's bakery for generations and so you were no exception. Working in the family establishment and helping to sell the many breads and cakes and other baked delights your family made and sold.

He was almost always there sometime every day practically. Buying a small loaf of bread there or a cake for his mom here. Each and every time you spoke he'd politely talk to you and didn't seem to care about the rumors which couldn't help but make you also happy. He was quite lively despite his somber personality. Talking about everything from the small bird nest that was just built in his garden to the small flower garden he had just started.

For the longest time ever you felt as if you had a good relationship with the him. You thought you both were good friends by how much he spoke to you, or at the very least you two were on very good terms. However you were not expecting him to walk right into the small bakery and announce right in front of everyone-

"Mister and Misses L/n? I've come to ask for your daughter's hand in marriage."

The shock was quite evident when he asked so bluntly, making you nearly drop the pie you wee selling a child. The initial shock had quickly worn off into utter delight when your mother beamed at him.

"Why of COURSE!! Please come on in and we can discuss this further Mr. Tsugnakuni!," she gestured to the back of your home as he somberly tilted his head .

"Yes. Thank you."

He followed her without a word feeling like the world was settling into place because in truth he had been planning this moment for a long time. He had known you would be the one who he had wanted to spend the rest of his life with when you had shown him kindness when no one else could. That rainy afternoon when he stumbled around aimlessly after his mother's funeral. Numb, empty, and feeling hollow. That was until he found himself wondering into the town's bakery. The familiar scents of buttery bread and cream filled cakes drawing him in and bringing him inside. Of course the sights of a six foot samurai drenched from the rain outside might've been intimidating to anyone else, gaining sights of disgust or slight caution as people moved away from his wondering form until he stopped in front of a bread rack. The warm wheat bread looking fluffy and appetizing to the eyes...He might've bought some of her wasn't out of money or felt so bad.

"Hello, Mr. Tsugnakuni! It's nice to see you again!,'' a voice had greeted him with a happy tone. Sorrowful eyes turned to look at her. The woman he had seen countless times before when he came to buy bread or his mother's favorite mochi cakes to sneak to her. She wore a stained apron with that warm smile on her face. "Quite the nasty weather outside isn't it? Everything is so muddy."

She hadn't looked any different from any other time he'd seen her. Usually stained apron over her kimono, hair tied up in a messy bun, and with that big smile on her face. He'd seen it plenty of times before. Had seen plenty of working women have the same appearance as her before. But the moment their eyes met, something happened that stirred something deep down in him.

She had frowned noticing the look in his eyes. Hand held up towards him but not touching him. "Hey there. Are you alright? There's a sadness to your eyes."

He couldn't remember if he answered. That moment was a blur even though how hard he tried to remember even today. Too lost in the moment of sorrow he supposed but if he did say anything it must've made her only worry because her frown grew.

"Oh..I'm so sorry. You have my condolences. It must be really hard for you." Her head then turned towards the rack of breads cooling and still warm before her body turned and before he knew it, a hand had extended and grabbed his own. "Here. On the house."

Hands much softer and small lifted one of his own up causing him to flinch off guard, not expecting anything like this to happen. Before bread, also soft but not as soft as her skin, was left like an offering in his palm. Magenta eyes blinked glancing between the two in confusion and silence seeking an answer.

"Sorrows are less with bread." Her eyes crinkled in a smile. "Plus you could use the warmth in your belly. Don't mind staying here until you dry off. It's the least we can do for a loyal customer like you."

It was like a beacon of heaven had shown down upon her in that moment. The simple act of beauty that spear headed something within him. So it was in that moment that he knew..

She was the one.

He debated on asking her to marry him right then and there but it would be too hasty. She might mistake his sudden forwardness as just admiration and thankfulness instead of genuine love. So he would have to wait for the right time. Yoriichi was always a patient man so he didn't mind waiting for her. A month he figured would've been a decent amount of time without being too forward. He even practiced what he was going to say about when he finally got asked why he wanted to marry her-

"We've known each other so long as I've been buying goods from your family for years," he calmly answered your mother as you all sat down for tea and your parents were wondering why he out of the blue suddenly decided to ask. "I've grown feelings for your daughter but it always seemed she was being courted by someone else whenever I came around. I didn't want to intrude if you were already in a relationship but I thought perhaps this time it wouldn't hurt to ask in case you hadn't picked a suitor yet."

A suitor. Not like those others that weren't ever good enough for her. Oh there had been a few polite ones that had let her go with a simple 'no thank you' and those few he spared other than a stern warning he was getting engaged to her and a few gold coins they were happy to accept as a bribe. The ruder ones had to be dealt with more harshly. He swore to never take an innocent man's life and he had stuck to his promise, but there was nothing wrong with giving them verbal (threats-) warnings and scoldings for how they treated you. He made sure they never bothered her again to keep her safe, and it worked. Not another man dared approached her to harm her with their filth..

Then again who'd argue with a man holding their sword against their necks in the middle of the night?

"That's wonderful!," your mother exclaimed clasping her hands together as you still say there stunned by everything. "We accept your proposal!"

"That's good. I wish to get married as soon as possible."

"Oh. I completely understand. We can take a week to get the affairs in order-"

"I was hoping we can have the ceremony tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?!"

Magenta eyes met with her shocked orbs. Mouth agape and the teacup nearly falling from your hands as he nodded. "Yes. I came here with the intent of marrying as soon as possible. I think I've waited enough for this moment."

"AGREED!!" Your flabbergasted face snapped to your mother wide eyed as she slammed one hand on the table and pointed to him. "We can have everything together tonight and ready first thing in the morning!!"

"Mother!!"

He simply nodded. "I'm grateful for that. I have no family who'd want to attend so this should be easier to plan without a big guest list."

"YES!!" Without warning she immediately turned to her husband and shoved him to get up. "Well don't just stand there!! Go to the local temple and request the priest to come here first thing tomorrow morning!! Go to the butcher's immediately and order the finest bird he's got!! We can cook anything else we need in the kitchen!!" She shoved and shoved him until he got up finally. "I need to get my old gown immediately and get Y/n to the tailor to have it fitted! I knew it was smart to keep it in good condition!!"

"Mother-" You stood up immediately and began after her. "This is insanity! I can't just get married first thing tomorrow!" You shut up when she snapped around to glare at you!

"And you be quiet!! I've been trying to get you married for the last eight years!! I'm not having you mess this up as well!! No go find your brother and tell him to scrape together a dowry this instant!!"

"Mother-"

"I SAID GO!!" She shrieked grabbing your arm and effectively shoving both you and her husband out the door without another word. After a few moments of huffing for air she smiled sweetly and turned back to him. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience but I must leave you here if we're going to be fully prepared for tomorrow."

"Please don't overwork yourself for my sake." He smiled genuinely happy at her joy coursing through his veins. "I'll just be happy to be married in plain clothes as long as I get to marry her."

"And you shall! Promise you that!"

He smiled warmly down to the reflection in his cup imagining the way he'd hold you in his arms and finally make you as happy as you did him with your kindness. Maybe this was a little bit fast but he'd make it up to you later once he gathered enough money and he'd pay for a second wedding ceremony to renew your vows, then you both could have a proper ceremony and he could invite your entire family and he could invite his brother's family to join him. But for now-

You stared up at him slightly trembling in the haphazardly sewn shiromuku and quick make up job as the priest before you both mumbled some words to officiate the ceremony. The nerves and dread surrounding you further as he squeezed your hand just a little bit tight.

For now this would do.for him.