(NOTE): Yeah ok. Discovered this anime a few months ago and I haven't read the manga so I'm no genius. So I usually just do one-shots for the first fics in the particular category ;). Hope you like!
Gold gazed back at yellow in the mirror.
Her hands gently smoothed down the folds of the robe of pearl silk as she blankly stared at the white cloth.
Her bronze skin was clean and fresh; her shiny, violet tresses were twisted up and back into a full bun, a band of opal blossoms placed neatly in front. A gossamer veil attached to the string of blossoms draped over the elegant twist and fell down her back into a long train. The soft light shone on her lovely form and made her features and garments glow, creating the perfect vision of a bride.
But the mirror told her otherwise.
All she saw was a stern dark face surrounded by the untidy purple bangs that couldn't be held back by the headband of plain flowers. Her white outfit was a little too big on her slimmer form and even felt a little heavy. Plus, the sleeves were long and wide and practically swallowed her arms and hands, the skirt of the robe did the same with her legs and feet. She had always felt that even normal clothes were restricting, but these were like weights on her entire body.
In short, she didn't feel like she looked much like a bride.
It was ironic. She was she that this is what she wanted, yet she was upset because of her undeniable certainty. Knowing this didn't make things any better.
She was lucky.
The groom was a man she dearly loved. The wedding guests were her friends. The ceremony and reception had been well-planned and arranged, guaranteed to run smoothy. The weather was behaving wonderfully.
She looked beautiful,
Pretty
and she was clad in everything that was required:
A white kimono outfit that had belonged to her mother,
Old
the headband strung with fresh spring flowers gathered and put together by Orihime,
New
pearl strands that Rukia had lent her around her neck,
Borrowed
and Uryu's sewn under-robe of pale aqua just barely peaking through the upper folds of her pale outer attire.
Blue
Everything was perfect; and yet, everything was ruined.
Yoruichi wasn't a fool. She knew the way things worked. She understood that precautions always had to be made in every situation. She accepted that every action had a consequence, whether it be bad or good. And she recognized that every consequence had to be acknowledged and dealt with in the best way possible.
These were the rules she was taught; that was how she lived, but consequences can be miscalculated and rules can be dismissed.
Sometimes by a instance of ignorance.
Sometimes by a period of panic.
Sometimes by a flash of frustration.
But this was a case of desire.
She had neglected a rule, just one rule, and now the consequence had to be properly acknowledged and dealt with. She knew the facts and had gone over them many, many times:
The action: Love.
The cause: Desire.
The neglected rule: Precaution.
She believed that she had been careless, she had fallen for her best friend and acted on it. It had eventually led to this. It had been difficult, but she had made her decision. Becoming Kisuke's wife, taking him as her husband, was for the best, she knew it and determined it was the right choice.
Alas, a choice with negative consequences of it's own. Returning to the Soul Society would no longer be possible. Marrying an exile would make her a traitor, an exile herself. She would not be accepted back into the Soul Society, from the very second she finishes her vows until the rest of her existence, on the charge of treason: Willingly allying herself with a banished ex-captain. When she had gone back to her old estate and snatched away her mother's garments for the wedding, that was the last time she would ever see her old home again.
This would make this marriage seem like a worse option, but the others were not any better to her.
She could not just leave him, and she knew he would not be accepted in the Soul Society. She couldn't live as Kisuke's cat, in fact that was ridiculous. Living on her own would be pointless, not to mention more expensive. And if she lived at the store with Kisuke, she would need to help out, manually and financially, and it would be less costly if they were a married couple.
So that was it: Living in the same house, making a living at the store, and sharing all the legal marriage benefits made the most sense, especially in her heart.
That seemed silly. Her family had always discouraged making decisions based on any emotion other than instinct, the very trait that fit her literal cat-like persona. Yet her feelings are what made her stay. To wanted to out of care.
Out of love.
Kisuke Urahara had been her best friend since childhood, since that day when she had snuck her then-child self away from her body guards as they were passing through a market and met that flippant little kid selling candy on the streets. They had grown up together, studied together, practiced together, fought together.
Kisuke shared all of his ideas and inventions with her. He saw and knew her as Yoruichi. Not Lady, not Goddess of Flash. Just Yoruichi. And she knew he loved her as that as well.
And Yoruichi knew she loved him as Kisuke, a person whom she would stick by always for and in anything. And she had. She had helped him escape the Soul Society and had become an outcast herself.
Only, then, she could return any time she wanted; but now she wouldn't be able to at all.
Did she even want to? Should she want to return to the place where what mattered the most to her would be unwelcome? The place where following wasn't an option?
No
Yet did she want to live as an ordinary person? Give up her life as a guide and a fighter to live a normal human existence in this world and never see her home again?
No
But Kisuke had, and he still guided and helped Soul Reapers. He still fought. He still invented and researched and experimented and discovered. His life was still one adventure after another, even in this mediocre human world, living as a simple shop owner.
Then again, Kisuke didn't have a choice, unlike Yoruichi. She herself had thought this through and had decided on this fate. Any regrets she would have would be her own fault. And yet her heart had convinced her that this wasn't a choice at all. This was a consequence.
A consequence of desire.
However, there were of course positive consequences as well.
For one thing, Yoruichi knew she wouldn't be bored, she trusted Kisuke to know what is good for him and to involve her in any and all Soul Reaper adventures (like she wouldn't involve herself anyway). They would still guide stupid Ichigo, sweet Orihime, silent Chad, and stubborn Uryu through their trials. And she would still be there to kick ass and save the day! Yes, she would still be active in Soul Society affairs, whether they liked it or not!
For another thing, she would be with a man whom she undoubtably loved, desired, and enjoyed. His sense of humor, his intelligence, his laid-back attitude, his skills...
His body.
Oh, she definitely enjoyed that! That time she had visited him, when they had first "realized how much they cared", that had been only the beginning. Since then she would visit him, still in her feline form, and his room would be the first place they would hold their "reunion." She'd transform, he'd undress, and they'd spend time with each other until Tessai, Jinta, and Ururu would return from whatever restaurant they had eaten at or movie they had gone to see.
Whether they thought it was infatuation, lust, or love didn't matter at that time. She wanted him and he wanted her, and that was that. they were practically husband and wife already. So it seemed strange that this ceremony of simply promising to remain intimate would drastically change her life.
Her relationship with Kisuke would remain the same, but the Soul Society was another story.
The wife of an exile would be forbidden, all because of that damn Banishment Spell Number Forty-Seven. Any entrance to the Soul Society would reject Kisuke's soul, that was the first rule; rejection of his flesh and blood was the second. His identities as a Captain and a Soul Reaper were terminated as he passed through the gate for the last time, but his knowledge, memories, and most of his abilities remained intact (he was lucky they hadn't used Banishment Spell Number Fifty). The only other 'charity' the spell gave was allowing him to keep his beloved Benihime.
Another rule was that any bonds created under strict, official oath with Kisuke Urahara would be noticed and the people who participated in that oath and bound themselves to him would be subject to the spell as well. That is what happened to Tessai when he swore on his life to serve Kisuke. It is what happened to Ururu when she agreed to be Kisuke's adopted daughter (though Jinta had refused, yet still remained a loyal helper).
And that is what will happen to Yoruichi as soon as she consents to be his wife. In the 'eyes' of the spell, she was not gaining a husband, but he was gaining an accomplice in the form of a spouse.
A willing spouse who's heart has given her no choice.
It was all his fault, and yet he was completely innocent. She could not, and would not, place the blame on him. This was her choice, this was her fault. Still, this wasn't the worst fate possible.
Kisuke is a good friend she told herself and a good lover. He'll be a good husband.
She straightened out the garment and veil once more and took a last glance at the mirror.
Satisfying
She sighed and walked to the doorway, careful not to trod on her wedding clothes. It would be time for they ceremony to start soon.
Might as well see if any body is late.
She was surprised that everyone actually seemed to be there. She noticed all the familiar faces that would witness one of the best and worst times of her life. The familiar redheads were there, Ichigo, Orihime, Renji; She could see Chad towering silently near Ganju and Kukaku. Rukia was there, of course, and Uryu. Soi Fong had even pluck up the courage to attend, although she looked extremely uncomfortable.
Yoruichi smiled. I'll have to thank her greatly for this.
Even some of the captains and Vice-Captains themselves were there!
Yes, she could make out the silver head of Captain Hitsugaya near the buxom, blonde Rangiku, half listening to her incessant rambles. And there was 'Little' Byakuya standing near Captain Unohana, though he seemed to be keeping a close watch over his sister standing so close to Ichigo. Yoruichi had to hold back a giggle at his overprotectiveness.
So many familiar faces. So many supportive friends.
The Captains were wearing their usual garb, as were most of the Vice-Captains; the others were wearing nice, dressed up clothes. She searched in the crowd for a mop of sandy hair and gazed at her groom as her eyes landed on him. She nearly gasped in surprise! He had apparently been allowed back his old Captain uniform for the ceremony, and it fit him so naturally.
He looked perfect.
The room, all perfectly prepared for the ceremony, did indeed look very lovely.
And mostly everyone looked to be enjoying themselves
Fine then, if everything is going to look so damn beautiful, Yoruichi thought, nearly crying at the lovely sight, so unlike her might as well be happy about it.
And in truth, she was happy.
And she was loved.
Her eyes went to the white bundle her groom was showing to Isshin, who was smiling and cooing over it nonstop. She leaned her head gently against the threshold as she gazed at her son, their son, laughing at her old friends silly antics.
Besides, this is all for him. He'll have his mother. He'll have his father. That is what a child should have.
The consequence: A new life.
(NOTE): I hoped you guys liked it! What's more I hope you understood it ;P. If you guys are confused, just let me know!
BTW: Here's a fanart you can check out! Enjoy! (Just remove the spaces): http:// www. deviantart. com/deviation/50308698/?qo4&qby3Amuezac&qhboost3Apopular+-in3Ascraps