AN: I noticed that Killer Bee has a grand total of 0 romantic fics here on FF. At first I sort of hoped that by simply wanting someone to write one it would somehow magically happen. No such luck.

So the idea of writing one burrowed into by head and festered there for a while until it started driving me crazy. This will be my third FF buuut it's summer and I'm feeling ambitious, so I should be able to juggle all three at once…or so I hope.

I don't usually like using over-used plot devices but in this instance I guess I'm going to- so yes this is going to be an arranged marriage story. Hopefully I'll be able to pull some of the cliché out of it though. A.) The parents aren't total asses who simply want to get rid of their daughter. B.) Bee's significant other (before the arrangement) isn't a jealous evil bitch. C.) Twu-wuv will not be attained within a few days/chapters. D.) I've actually done my homework and have been researching current and past laws and protocol concerning arranged marriage and not just for Japan but for other countries as well.

I am looking for a beta-reader but I will admit I am difficult to work with, in that I want things finished ASAP. If you feel up to the task you can PM me here or on my DA account (link on my profile)

Prologue: What were you thinking?

"It becomes difficult therefore to predict the ideal sort of marriage. So ultimately it is up to the individual to decide whether he wants to have a love or an arranged marriage after all it is a question of being happy in love." -Nayan S. Mijar

A settled back into his in chair in the lightning daimyo's large and overly embellished sitting area, his foot twitching impatiently. The lightning daimyo and his brother were prattling on, giving their opinions on things A seriously doubted they had any real knowledge on, things like border patrol, training of new shinobi, and the status of Killer Bee. They were entitled to their occasional status reports but A couldn't understand why he absolutely needed to be there for this particular one. He had sort of been hoping for some sort of worthwhile news but so far the meeting had been rather boring.

"Bee seems to be holding up then?" the daimyo's brother asked in such a way that it caused A's brow to arch suspiciously.

"Better than previous Jinchuriki, yes," A replied stiffly.

"He's unwed, correct?"

A's mouth twitched into a rueful smile. Bee, married? The idea was laughable, he lived up to his name in such that like a Bee he jumped from "flower" to "flower", never really settling for very long. His adopted brother was about to turn thirty and although A had hoped that he would eventually settle down the chances seemed slim.

"No, he's not married."

"Attached?" the daimyo's brother continued to prod. He voice was a little more strained and A couldn't help but notice the way he sat up a little more in his chair. Some sort of eagerness was absolutely radiating off the man. A's eyes narrowed, he was dancing around something rather than just coming out and saying it, a behavior that greatly tried A's patience.

"Mifune, of the Land of Iron, has expressed an interest in Bee," the lightning daimyo said evenly. His brother was more apt to talking with people of political value which, judging by the look on A's face, was not appreciated.

"Interest?" A repeated slowly. Considering they had been previously been talking about Bee's relationship status, the daimyo's statement greatly disturbed him, the last time he checked Mifune was a man.

"For one of his daughters," the daimyo continued before A could make his concerns known.

"Like arraigning a marriage?" A asked, unsure if he was hearing him correctly.

"A marriage would be beneficial for both of our countries," the daimyo's brother said. "The land of iron is notoriously neutral but this marriage could possibly lead to warmer relations between us. They could be a valuable ally if war were to ever break out."

"But what would they be getting out of it?" asked A. He had to admit better relations with the land of iron did sound promising but he didn't see how it would benefit them.

"There's a certain level of prestige associated with one's child being married to the most powerful junchiriki currently in existence," the daimyo's brother smirked.

"You mean he would get bragging rights?" A deadpanned.

"Exactly," the daimyo chuckled. "I assume that he also believes that Bee would feel obligated to protect the land of his wife's origin if it ever came under attack."

"That's not like Bee," A snorted.

"He doesn't know that and we don't need to correct his viewpoint."

"So just better relations and bragging rights?"

It sounded like a good deal but not quite enough to convince him to bring the subject to Bee. A knew Bee would do anything he believed A wanted and A didn't want to abuse that fact.

"She would come with a nice dowry, a portion of which would go to Bee himself," said the daimyo. "Mifune also mentioned relaxing our borders with would stimulate trade."

"How much of a dowry are we talking here?" asked A.

"Depends on the daughter but anywhere from 24 to 32 million ryo." (AN: Approx 3 million to 4 million USD)

"Who chooses which daughter?"

"That would be for Mifune to decide, if Bee agrees to this he has asked to meet you personally. He holds to old traditions and believes that it is the parent's obligation to assure that they marry their children into harmonious relationships. You are the closest thing to a parent that Bee has so I assume that he will be asking for your input."

"Thirty two million," A mumbled under his breath. That was an impressive number but it still didn't add up.

"That's a lot to pay just for bragging rights."

"What is a nation without presence?" the daimyo asked. "The village of Iron likes to keep to its own but it doesn't want to become completely overlooked. This marriage would be widely known and would be a way of getting other nations to acknowledge that it's still there."

"I'll talk to Bee."

Even as the words fell from his mouth A couldn't believe what we was saying. Saying that he would talk to be was the equivalent to agreeing. Bee would never say no.

"Keh, who knows maybe this will settle Bee down a bit," A thought hopefully.

"You want me to get married?" Bee asked, for once too completely and utterly confused and shocked to actually try rhyming anything.

"I don't want you to get married," said A, still trying to work out a better way of explaining all of this to Bee without sounding biased in any way. "I'm asking if you would, consider it."

A sighed and set the barbell he had been lifting onto the bench-press. Bee looked too distracted to be spotting him and the last thing he wanted was to get a cramp and end up decapitating himself.

"To who again?"

"As I told you before, I don't know. If you agree to this then that will be decided."

"Well how can I decide if I don't ever know who I would be marrying?"

A arched a brow, for once Bee was actually thinking rather than simply doing what he thought A wanted.

"Those were the terms I was given," said A. "You don't have to agree to this, I was just bringing it to your attention."

"What would I get, y'know in exchange."

"Other than a wife?" A laughed. "You would get a third of her dowry which would be anywhere between 8 million and 10 million ryo."

"Why only a third?" Bee scoffed, looking a little jaded.

"A third will go to you, a third to the village, and a third to the daimyo."

"So you'll get paid if I agree to this? Psshft, why aren't you the one getting saddled with a wife then?"

"I'm not getting paid, the money will go to the village and Mifune wants you, not me."

"What else would the village get?" Bee asked uncomfortably as he glanced out the window.

"Relaxed borders with Iron, increased trade and better relations. They're still a neutral country but this could be considered an… under the table alliance."

"Will you be picking her?"

"If, you agree to this," said A, being sure to stress the if. "Mifune has requested I meet with him to discuss which of his daughters will be chosen, but ultimately the decision will be up to him."

"Why didn't he ask to meet with me? Could introduce me to each of his daughters and then make a judgment after that."

A shook his head with a frown. "People like him believe that parents know their children better than their children know themselves, so parents are more qualified to make decisions about future spouses."

Part of A agreed with Mifune but he felt like he controlled so many other aspects of Bee's life, who me married seemed to be pushing it. A jinchuriki wasn't able to make decisions on their own as far as the welfare of the village was concerned but although this did affect the village A still felt like he didn't have the right to make this particular decision.

"Ah, so now you're my parent?" Bee laughed, like with anything he was trying to make light of the situation.

"Just give it some thought okay," A sighed, rolling his eyes. He didn't need jokes right now.

"I agree."

"To give it some thought?"

"No, I'll do it."

"Bee, you can't just…"

"Naw, I've made up my mind but do me a favor, make sure she's attractive before you sign any paper."

A gaped at Bee as he once again pulled out his rhyme book and began jotting things down. True there had been a moment of uncertainty but Bee was once again barreling into unknown waters without fully comprehending the consequences.

"Married…uh…ferried?" Bee mumbled to himself. Not many words rhymed with married.

"I can't believe you agreed to this," Hachibi grumbled.

"I never thought I would marry and I gotta admit the notion is scary."

"Married?" Yugito repeated again, completely unaware of the conversation going in between Hachibi and Bee.

"He's an idiot," Nibi supplied, trying to break his vessel from the stupor she was in.

"Even so, I never would have believed that Bee would agree to something this ridiculous," Yigito replied to her tailed beast.

"Do you know anything about her?" Yagito asked Bee.

Bee sighed and set his book and pencil down long enough to quickly fill Yagito in on all the details.

"…so one hasn't even been picked out yet."

"So you have no idea what kind of person you're going to be tied down to?" Yagito snapped once the shock had worn off. "I mean do you understand what it means to be married to someone, and what about…what's her name? What are you going to tell her?"

"Isawa? I was gonna drop by her place later and let her know what's goin on," Bee shrugged.

"Oh yeah, that'll go over real great," Yugito said sarcastically. "Oh hey, yeah I figured I would stop by and tell you that I agreed to marry a complete stranger."

"It's not like it was serious."

"Three months, longer than most of your relationships!"

"…and it would have ended eventually anyway," Bee replied. Bee's heart and gut sank simultaneously. The truth was he wasn't sure if it would have ended, Isawa was a sweet woman, and she was kind and funny as well as beautiful. He would do what was best for the village but he hated that she would get hurt in the process.

"Don't s'pose I could get you to break it to her?" Bee breathed. The enormity of the situation was finally catching up with him.

"She'd hate you if I did. If I were you I would go back to A and tell him you've changed your mind."

"Aint gonna do that."

"Bee…"

"Minds already made up and…" Bee's voice trailed off. He couldn't even think of a rhyme. He was forced to admit that this was something that he did not want and no amount of denial was going to change that.

"She looks so calm," Kayono sighed.

"Or course she's calm, she knows father would never choose her," said Suboshi bitterly.

"He could," Momoka peeped.

The sisters exchanged looks and then all three sets of eyes fell back to their youngest sister as she meticulously prepared for their afternoon tea. Unlike the three of them, their sister was almost an exact duplicate of their mother in both appearance and personality. As a result of these similarities their father, Mifune, had always favored her, though to outside parties it seemed quite the opposite.

Ginkiri, their sister, had never received any sort of training, she was hardly ever taken to political social events, and she had the lowest dowry out of the four of them. Indeed most people assumed that Mifune looked down on his youngest daughter but his other three children knew differently. She was never trained because that would make her more appealing to suitors looking for a physically strong wife, she was never taken to social events because Mifune didn't want her to catch the eye of any young lords, and her dowry was the lowest to discourage anyone looking for financial gain.

"Chickens cackling in a barn," Hachi tittered as she stepped behind the three women. "It's not polite to stand around and speculate on such things."

The three sisters turned to glare at their nurse-maid. When their father announced that the Raikage had accepted his offer for an arranged marriage the three women had been put into a sour mood.

"We're not speculating," Suboshi snapped. "It's true."

"You don't know that for certain," Hachi cooed. She was well accustomed to Suboshi's harsh attitude and her little outbursts rarely ever had an effect on her. "Your father believes in harmony and will base his decision on how harmonious that union would be."

"I heard the eight tales is a beast," Kayono snorted. "So I guess if father is looking for harmony, Suboshi would be his best choice."

"Shut up," Suboshi groused.

"I've heard a number of things about the eight-tails," said Hachi. "He is quite strong, so in that respect Suboshi would be a good match, but I've also heard that he's humorous so he might be better suited for someone like you Kayono. Then again, I've also heard that he has little to no interest into political subjects so a wife like Momoka could be very beneficial."

"And Ginkiri?" Suboshi drawled.

"I've heard that despite his strength he's also very kind and compassionate so someone as gentle as Ginkiri could also be a good choice."

"When is the Raikage supposed to be here anyway?" Suboshi sighed, she had a horrible feeling that she was going to be the one chosen.

"Within three days," said Hachi. "If the weather is permitting. So I would expect Yana bustling around you four until then."

The three women groaned in unison. Yana was their governess and in their opinion was the most uptight woman to ever exist. The four sisters were well past the ages where they needed nursemaids and governesses but their father insisted on still having them around.

"Sit up straight!" Kayono said mockingly.

"Fold your hands like so!" added Suboshi is the same mocking tone.

"Do not mock those who are only trying to help you," a tight voice said from behind the cluster of women.

"When exactly where you planning on telling me?" Isawa bellowed as she paced back and forth across her small living room. He long teal locks bellowed out around her as she pivoted on one heal, turning to begin pacing in the opposite direction.

Bee shifted uncomfortably as he watched the woman continue to rant. It had been three days since he had agreed to the arranged marriage but he had yet to actually tell Isawa about it. When A left that morning got the Land of Iron his reasons for the visit had been made public, and naturally Isawa had heard about it. He regretted not telling her personally but he hadn't been sure about how to bring the subject up.

"Eventually," Bee mumbled.

"Eventually, eventually?" Isawa laughed hollowly. She turned to face Bee, her pail green eyes ablaze with anger and betrayal. "Bee how could you even agree to something like this?"

"It's important to the village," Bee defended but his voice lacked the conviction to back himself up.

"Do I mean so little to you?" Isawa asked, her shoulders slumping and her voice cracking.

Bee reached for her as silent sobs wrecked through her body but Isawa pulled away.

"Isn't there any way out of this?" she pleaded through her tears.

Bee cringed; he hated to see women cry.

"No."

No, there really was no way out now. He had agreed and although he had time to back out he hadn't and now it was too late. A had already left and was well on his way to the Land of Iron. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting but this certainly wasn't it. Isawa was heartbroken, Yugito made a point of expressing her displeasure each and every time she saw him, even his three young apprentices weren't very happy with him.

"You've dug yourself into quite a whole Bee," said Hachibi.

Bee's body sagged under the weight of it all.

AN: There we have it.

You might be thinking to yourself "Bee doesn't seem very Bee-ish without his rapping"

-The poor guy is going through a lot right now and… flat out his rapping annoys me and I suck an rhyming stuff… But rest-assured I will be adding bits here and there but all of this dialogue is NOT going to be rapping.