Weddings
The music started.
Hakkai looked at the entrance of the hall. The whole Bull youkai clan turned their heads towards the door. At the entrance, stood their king, Kougaiji, holding the arm of his trusted pharmacist, Yaone, who looked more beautiful that day than she ever had. Goku and Lirin stood opposite him. Goku, who had his memories returned to him, stood tall and handsome in his crisp white suit. Oak-leaved-geranium, the flower of true friendship, and a red rose, signifying love, was pinned his onto his coat. He stood beside Lirin as Yaone's maid-of-honour, slightly towering the princess who was the bride's flower girl. Even Lirin looked beautiful in her blue and green flower-girl dress, wearing a nosegay of oak-leaved-geranium and holding a bouquet of red roses.
There was a bit of a storm concerning Goku's position as the maid of honour. The boy surprisingly agreed to it, much to the surprise of the men on both sides. Yaone had personally asked him if he was willing to do so. Goku did not appear embarrassed by the prospect of it. Hakkai was close to telling his fiancée that Goku was a boy and it was probably not good for him to take on a woman's role in the wedding. There were other girls to choose from but Yaone had to choose Goku of all the available girls to be her maid of honour. Goku agreed just the same, saying, "As long as you don't make me wear a dress." Yaone laughed at his pun. That was Goku for you, Hakkai thought, I guess he really was made of honour.
Hakkai turned his eyes back to Yaone who wore white. A crown of oak-leaved-geraniums and red roses holding her veil in place and a matching bouquet in her arms. Her blue eyes shone with warmth and happiness. Her beauty shone through the simple dress she which she wore and designed herself. Gojyo and Dokugakuji stood alongside him as his best men. Kougaiji lead his pharmacist with pride and dignity, glossed with friendship and a smile.
Hakkai realized that his life would change forever. He thought back on the battles, travels and joy he had experienced within the past two years. The first year, they were adversaries; the second year, however, Hakkai and Yaone began to develop feelings for each other. In the heat of battle with Gyu Mao, Hakkai, desperate, asked Yaone to marry him.
"Assuming we get out of here alive?" she asked sceptically. "Regardless," Hakkai answered, with sincerity. "Yes," she answered. They shared their first kiss, there and then, amidst the battle, and were caught off guard that they did not see Gyu Mao raise his sword towards them until they had no time to run. They would have been killed if Goku blocked the strike at the last minute. Hakkai realised that the battle had nearly cost Goku his life, but Gyu Mao and Gyokumen were defeated and that was all that mattered.
Yaone had reached the pew, and Kougaiji handed her over to Hakkai, as her own father would have done, as they stood before Sanzo who conducted the ceremony. Sanzo pronounced them husband and wife, they were married.
The dance later was the most magical moment for Hakkai. Kisses exchanged between him and Yaone. She held him ever so gently, it brought him back fond memories. And he knew there would be new ones in the making. At one point, at the corner of his eye, Hakkai thought he saw Kanzeon Bosatsu, smiling at them. Beside her, a familiar figure stood. Hakkai, not believing what he saw, looked again but both figures were nowhere to be seen. Then he heard a soft voice in his ears, "I'm happy as long as you are." Hakkai was certain it was Kanan, but he made no mention of it.
At one point after the first dance, Hakkai sang "Way back into love..." with Yaone, and later, Goku and Lirin sang "What I like about you" for them. It was possibly Hakkai's imagination but it seemed to him that Goku and Lirin were falling for each other as they kept looking at each other throughout the song. When he mentioned this to Yaone, she giggled and said, "That's been coming on for months."
All this was five years ago. Now, he watched silently as Lirin, lead by her brother to the pew where Sanzo stood. Hakkai's two daughters, Kanan and Mali, the flower girls, stood at front opposite a handsome golden eyed man stood. Beside them, four-year-old Koumyo, Sanzo's disciple and heir, held a pillow with two rings. He had asked Gojyo and Dokugakuji to be his best men. There were no maids of honour.
No longer would Goku be a child, no longer would he complain for food, or whine as he had when he was a child. He would not, because he was no longer a child, he was a grown man. He stopped doing so at the age of twenty, for he had been chosen as protector at Chang'an temple and Captain of the guards in the Bull youkai clan. Goku stood in his captain's uniform of brown, with a dark green cloak lined with a golden tassel. He somewhat disagreed of wearing the uniform at first, until Hakkai pointed out that the tuxedo was getting old, besides Goku looked far more regal in his uniform. The colours suited him perfectly as they somewhat represents his being as a child of the earth.
Hakkai knew there had to be some days when he, Sanzo and Gojyo would be forced to admit that Goku was no longer their naïve little monkey. This day was amongst them. Hakkai held his wife's hand as his heart began to wrench in a mixture of joy and despair as Kougaiji lead his sister to the pew where her life will, hopefully, be forever bounded with Goku's.
As Sanzo pronounced them as husband and wife as he had done five years before with Hakkai and Yaone, Hakkai thought he could hear Sanzo having a little difficulty doing so.
Later Goku sang "Another (summer day)... but I wanna go home" to Lirin, who, in return, sang "Titanic" shortly after their first dance. He later danced with each of the flower girls, where Lirin danced with little Koumyo. He was still the cheerful Goku everyone knew, even though he was captain of the guards and protector of a temple, both of which he took seriously, the only thing that had been different about him was, ever since he regained his memories of the times before he was imprisoned, the innocent light that had always shone in his eyes before wavered dramatically. Instead of drowning himself in sorrow, he was grateful to have had another chance to live with a family.
The family would extend more in years to come. Goku would one day be a father. Hakkai looked at Yaone who smiled at him and patted her swollen belly, Hakkai felt sorry that his third child was not there to witness this miraculous moment in life, and yet, in his heart, as looked back at his youngest friend, who was now dancing with his wife he knew more miraculous moments would soon come. He looked over to where Sanzo and Gojyo sat. They caught eye contact with Hakkai and smiled briefly, telling him they were thinking the same. Happy years would come, as will happy times forever more and beyond the end of their lives.
Author's note: I must confess, as I wrote this piece, I found that in my heart I hoped to be finding the right one someday...