This is for Iyanosuke on DA, a very, very, very overdue contest prize. I'm sorry and I hope this makes up for my fail!
And for SoldtoFanfic for sending me the words that were enough to push me and get this simmering idea of mine finished. And now without further adieu, a prologue of how "Till Death Do Us Part" came to be…
Rated for language, suggested sexual themes, vague nudity, and crude humor. XD
Three Deadly Words
"Tell me you love me or die!"
Somehow that didn't come out quite like she imagined. The Yato woman wasn't good with words, which was why she resorted to fists. She was sure she had put in enough practice, for many painful hours the week before last, at least until Gin-chan and Pachi were simultaneously threatening to bull doze the bathroom door down – her period, shaving her pubs, or whatever feminine excuse she tried to give in order to prevent it, they were at their wit's end.
"I just had Otae-san's bento and something angry is trying to knock down my back door, now let me into the bathroom before I hide your sanitary napkins!"
"All, right, all right!" Kagura relented, but not without stealing the last roll of toilet paper. When Gin-chan screamed, Kagura pretended to be fast asleep in spite of Pachi's desperate attempt to yank open the closet in his brotherly quest to save Gin-chan.
Kagura practiced that charming smile that she had memorized so well from her Ane-go's favorite soap opera, stubbed her own toe against the toilet as punishment every time she so much as tried to look threatening, and bit her tongue with every attempted curse word.
Lady-like. Perhaps, she was lacking in that department. Ane-go said that men liked domesticated women: housewives that cook meals, go grocery shopping, and greet them politely after a hard day's worth of work.
"That's why I cook for Shinpachi all the time, and he's happy," Otae had threatened more than asked when she glanced in her brother's direction, where he was quick to sweep down the hall and vaguely agree. If he gagged, he excused it as gas.
It was taking more time than she had anticipated - this so-called learning to be a lady crap. And all for it to be wasted in the end!
It was all because of that damn Sadist!
"What did I tell you about eating the snacks in my room without asking, hungry hippo?"
"Eh? Did you say something about that? Maybe, 'Help yourself, China. Because you're cute and you deserve it.'"
"I believe I said, next time you eat them without asking, I'll put my sword in your ass," Okita Sougo had toppled her to the floor, the chips she'd been snacking on scattered across her body.
As he hovered over her and waited for signs of struggle, she shrugged and reached for the chip lying on her boob so that she could eat it. Before the salty, crispy, barbequed potato slice could even reach her mouth; the stupid Sadist had eaten it from her hand.
"Hey, you asshole! I was gonna eat that-"
Her protests were extinguished when he kissed her hard. Needless to say, clothes were ripped off, snacks were forgotten, and sweaty, primate-like, but wonderfully orgasmic sex ensued. This pattern was an ongoing one for oh- going on two years already. When they weren't hiking up Edo's debt and raising taxes due to the property damage caused by what others would hardly call a domestic dispute, Kagura was waking up in Sougo's room at headquarters, their mouths fired up with blasphemy against one another the night before, but the morning kiss against her neck gentle, and saying otherwise.
A week ago, was one of those said mornings. She wasn't sure what had gotten over her lately. It was one of those scandalous marriage arcs in Ane-go's soap opera, and she'd been fluttering about the house looking at several wedding magazines and making several blackmailing calls to the Commander of the Shinsengumi.
Something about, "How much will you pay me to wear this dress for you and suffer gorilla allergies for the rest of my life?" That phone conversation lasted for hours, and for the Captain, apparently the auction was on!
Maybe Kagura had caught the damn allergy, phase, and sickness, whatever it was from her. It wasn't long before Kagura wanted to try on one of those dresses, even if she did spill cake on it, and that was the best part - the cake! The cakes for those sorts of things were practically skyscrapers of fudge-dripping chocolate, buttery vanilla, and foamy frosting. And you were allowed to customize the flavors? Kagura was all for it!
Ahem, anyway, so a week ago was one of those said mornings. She had spent the entire week before practicing. On this morning, she woke up with her hips throbbing, her skin tingling, and her back nestled against a blood-filled chest cavity. When it moved, it left her cold.
"I'm- I'm cold, stupid," she mumbled sleepily and something else along the lines of, "Come back here," although it was barely audible.
Sougo complied, his thick fingers molding the shape of her ribs before they settled against her belly. As if responding to his touch, her stomach growled. The Third Captain smirked when he felt the tremor in his palm.
"What do you have for breakfast, Sadist, and it had better be good?"
"I can't afford to keep feeding you, China. You eat me out of a house and home."
"I think I want an omelet, one of those spicy ones you make-"
"You mean fifty of 'em? I don't think the farms have supplied Edo with enough eggs yet at this time of morning for the endless abyss that is your stomach."
The fog clearing from her mind as she grinded at her face, she demanded, "You have an obligation to feed me, damn it! I'll make you pay if you don't!"
Sadistic intentions being the norm, he provoked her with a nibble against her ear, "And why, pray tell, am I obligated to feed you? You, monster."
He most likely expected that she retaliate with that one. Spin around and reward him with a punch to his jaw and then the wrestling match would begin. But the girl in his arms hesitated. Just as he was about to continue rousing her up, she mumbled something under her breathe.
"Huh? You say something, China? I can't hear over the deafening sound of your hungry stomach."
Finally she had the gall to pull it off.
"I said you're obligated, because you love me, Sadist! You know you do!"
Another brief moment of silence. Kagura was afraid to turn around. And when there was movement, she quipped herself to whack him in the head, inviting a fight and raising her fists. Instead of an oncoming attack, however, he stood up from the futon and moved to dress.
"W-w-what are you doing, idiot?" she stammered, embarrassed and glad that his back was to her red face.
"I'm going to overestimate the farms."
"What?"
"I'm gonna check for the eggs, stupid, now stop hounding me!"
"But you didn't answer my question." She stood up, bare-chested and nonchalant as she waved her hands.
"There was a question? I think you need to return to grade school and refresh on your basic grammar skills."
"ASSHOLE! You know what I mean."
"Damn it, I think I need to buy milk, too," he cursed, hopping on one leg to get into his pants.
"Are you listening to me?"
"And bread."
Kagura shot up from the blankets, nude and furious. Snatching up her dress that had been thrown on the far side of the room the night before, she stomped, "SAY IT, STUPID!"
He was halfway out the door into the hall when he finally showed signs of paying her any mind. With slits for eyes and a curl for lips, he was- annoyed? No. Angry.
"WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?"
He yelled, the rumble shaking something in her and stalling her response.
Lady-like. Here was her cue. She had kept Gin-chan and Shinpachi suffering with the shits for this moment and now it was her time to shine, to convince him that she wasn't just good for sparring and keeping his futon warm, but to keep too. And to be the receiver of a giant cake and pretty dress.
So, with much force, she attempted the most charming and lady-like pose and smile she could manage.
"What IS that? It's disgusting!"
Finally Kagura lost it, "Arrgghh, you've never said it in all this time! I wanna know!"
"I'll be back," he was about to slide the shoji screen closed when she screamed louder than intended.
"TELL ME YOU LOVE ME!"
The door paused mid-way. The Yato clansmen cleared her throat uncomfortably. Okita Sougo's face was hidden behind the screen.
"OR DIE!"
Yeah. Not what she had in mind. And so there would be no love confessions sung and no more sex- err, love making.
The door snapped shut at her last words. Kagura listened for his hurried footsteps to fade and it wasn't until she replayed that last phrase in her mind, that she had realized that she must have trembled. No matter how good his omelets were and no matter how famished she was, Kagura dressed quietly and left before he bothered returning, if he even did.
It had been days since. The two times she had run into him, he regarded her with a look so cold, it sent a draft up her calves, a chill into her bones. She returned the same and whipped around to march away, chin up.
Fuck this! What the hell did I do wrong? It's all that damn Sadist's fault!
Thursday morning, Kagura was moping on the sofa when the freeloader samurai crept up on her.
"Oi."
"SHIT! Don't scare me like that!" she yelped, Gintoki unfazed.
"Good morning, Kagura-chan. You've got mail." He flung an envelope to her before making his way to the kitchen on his hunt for strawberry milk.
"Papi!"
Kagura cheered, all her former anguishes receding to the back of her mind as she ripped open her parcel.
"Blah blah, yeah, yeah, I'm not gonna stop eating sugar and I'm not gonna wear shorts under my cheongsam. What else?"
Kagura continued to read to herself, her nose practically in the paper and smiling until she had reached the very end.
…I know you hate our planet, Kagura. But now that I have some time off, I'm looking to live elsewhere. I'm hoping that you can help me pick out something suitable on a less drenched planet, and if you're willing, you can stay with me.
I'll be coming at the end of the month for a visit.
Papi loves you.
Umibouzo
Kagura sighed. She folded the letter and tucked it into a collection on the shelf beneath her bed in the closet. He didn't try so hard ever since Gin-chan and Pachi had reassured him that she was fine with them. But it had already been a few years, Kagura, a blossoming teen now young adult.
At twenty, it was probably about time that she pulled her own weight, whether she admitted to it or not. She loved working for Yorozuya, and she loved their makeshift family. She wasn't planning on leaving, but perhaps it would be nice to have her own futon outside the closet and not live in fear of vanishing sanitary napkins, courtesy of Gin-chan's threats.
With new food for thought, she had ventured on a stroll to purchase her daily supply of sukonbu when the third occasion had arrived. The third time she had run into Okita Sougo since their spat.
Blocking the entrance to the store she was trying to get into, he left her with no choice, but to speak to him regardless of her malicious plans to ignore his existence.
Smart ass.
"You! Get out of my way!"
"I'm checking this street vendor's permit so you'll have to excuse me for a few minutes until I'm done with what little police duties I feel like completing for the day."
"You're blocking the store! What is that called? Littering? YEAH! Littering! Give yourself a ticket!"
"It's LOITERING, China, and I'm allowed. Like I said, I'm working."
Kagura fumed behind him, her fists balled up and her cheeks puffed. Not once had he turned to look her straight in the eye. She weighed her options between kicking his ankle or punching right in the middle of the spine, when something else happened.
Words spilled out of her mouth without warning.
"Who said you could call me China anyway?"
"I can call you whatever I want."
"No, you can't! Only- only people that love me can call me whatever they want."
"I'm an exception."
Sougo continued to stare at his papers, leaving his rival with a heart wrenching feeling knotted up in her chest.
An exception? What the hell was that supposed to mean? What high horse is he riding? Does that mean- that he doesn't- he doesn't-
Kagura couldn't even finish it in her mind. And when tears finally bubbled and blurred her vision, she cried loudly, "I'm leaving!"
"Good. You eat too much sukonbu anyway."
"No! I mean I'm LEAVING FOR GOOD!"
When she ran away at full speed, she had closed her eyes and missed the moment when the Sadist looked up. Foot forward and ready to give chase, Okita Sougo seemed to contemplate before he decided against pursuing her.
Returning bitterly to the task at hand, the street vendor he was inspecting asked, "Girlfriend of yours?"
Sougo scoffed and didn't answer.
Kagura spent many nights with wet, swollen eyes, and regardless of what others deemed impossible for her, she hadn't eaten much. In fact, Gintoki and Shinpachi became so wrought with worry, that they were rapping on the closet a week later, eager to drag her out if they had to.
"Kagura! Get out before mold starts growing on your body!"
"Kagura-chan! I've got a whole bag of sukonbu for you. I'm gonna eat it," Shinpachi sung, hoping to tempt her. When she didn't respond, he whispered, "Oi. Gin. I think she's dead."
"No way, she's not dead-" Gintoki thought about it. Then he punched the door.
"KAGURA! ARE YOU DEAD?"
"DAMN IT! What do you want? Go away!"
The closet door yanked open, revealing a zombie resembling the once jovial and pudgy Yato girl.
"HOLY-"
Before the perm head could end that line, Kagura found his sleeve and tugged.
"Gin-chan," she whined.
"What is it?"
"Do you- would you- Am I marriage material?"
"…"
Seeing that Gintoki was too horrified and shocked to answer, Shinpachi shook him. "Oh my God, I think we should call a head doctor!"
Recovering, the man had lifted these scraggly sticks that were supposed to be her fingers and nodded, "O-of course, Kagura. Any roided up, heavyweight wrestler with steel for a body would love to marry you."
"Really?" she smiled weakly. He couldn't believe that worked.
"Yeah! Right, Pachi!"
"Uh, yeah, sure."
Snatching the bag of sukonbu from the four-eyes, the redhead slipped out of the closet and headed towards the kitchen.
Gintoki whispered to Shinpachi, "She's making for the fridge. This is a good sign, right?"
Or so he thought when she had taken out half of its food, placed it on the counter and then kicked the fridge as hard as she could, almost putting a hole in the wall.
"OI! I DON'T HAVE MONEY TO PAY FOR THAT!" Gintoki wailed when she stuttered something.
"Is it because he's not a wrestler?"
"What?"
Gintoki looked to Shinpachi for clarification, but evidently he had no answers either.
Kagura did not run into Sougo for many days after. She had lost count and hadn't bothered to keep track. So when her father had arrived so suddenly, Kagura was surprised to see him.
"Papi! You're early!"
"Early? No, I'm not. I'm here just when I said I'd be. It's the end of the month, Kagura."
"Whaaaat? Where has my life gone? Damn soap operas!"
It was then that they all had a nice chat, with Gin-chan, with Pachi, and Papi. Kagura was stuck in a rut as some would call it, and needed to venture out and find herself, like that movie: Eat, Pray, and Eat some more- or was it called that? Anyway, and Kagura was so serious in explaining herself, that despite how much Gintoki wanted to ask, he must have known better.
"Are you sure, Kagura-chan?"
"Yeah, Gin-chan. I'll come back! I promise! Maybe. Depending."
The trio of men matched gazes, confused, but willing to let it play out. Kagura would spill the beans when she was ready.
Next thing she knew, days had passed again. Kagura didn't have much to pack and so her father took it upon himself to treat her to a wardrobe, a bit of something she lacked living with two men who wore the same thing everyday just as she had done.
She was standing outside of a shop, donning a formal cheongsam, cardinal, and extravagant. Her flushed hair had been swept up with floral pins, some eye shadow dusted above her eyes and her legs complimented with the heels she was wearing. Not exactly the sort of thing she'd wear all the time, but hell, she did want a pretty dress. So whether or not it was from the Sadist, she convinced herself that it was more about the dress, not the person who gives it to her.
She was doing a decent job convincing herself, too. Some unsuspecting young men had been eying her and the one or two that dared to speak to her, were shooed away, pissing their pants at the sight of her father, radiating with murderous aura. He was in the shop paying for a few things when she thought another man had arrived to be her victim.
She was wrong.
"Where are you going dressed like that?"
Kagura looked up, finding Okita Sougo standing before her, arms crossed and a face to match.
"None of your business," she snapped.
"I bet that poor dress won't last until the end of this day."
"Hmm, I've learned from Madao that a betting man is a poor one."
"Can you even walk in those heels?"
"I'm pretty light on my feet, Sadist. When I want to be."
For a moment, neither one spoke. Noting the shopping bags she was holding, if the Shinsengumi officer was suspicious, he didn't ask. Instead, there were more pressing matters to attend to. He had heard it from Danna. And when he received the news, he was so outraged, that after calmly turning the corner from where he had run into the Yorozuya boss, he punched a telephone pole so hard, his knuckles bled.
"I thought you were stronger than that, China. I must have overestimated you."
"What?"
"What a waste. All this and we haven't even settled our rivalry. Now you're gonna run away with your tail tucked between your legs-"
BOOM!
The Sadist found himself slammed against a brick wall, garbage cans spilling their contents all over the concrete, courtesy of Kagura's monstrous strength as she shoved him by his collar. Hissing, she gave him an ultimatum.
"If anyone's wasted their time, it's me. Now are you gonna say it, or not?"
She was breathing hard. Her fingers were white on his jacket. Biting her lips hard enough to bruise later, Sougo scooped her into his arms for a brief second, only to hand her the finishing blow.
"I don't surrender to those who run from battle."
Next thing she knew, he was gone. When her fingers had released him, she didn't remember. The shock must have been obvious because when her father came out, he found her staring into space, an arm hanging in the air, empty.
"Kagura?"
"Oh. N-nothing. Let's go."
Her last night, she spent with Gin-chan and Pachi in the park. Adorned in her usual attire again, the trio shared ice cream as they looked up at the stars.
"So, Kagura, any idea where you wanna live?"
"Hmm, someplace with lots of candy and rice."
"That's it? Those are your main concerns? Not rent control or western perks?"
"Okay fine, I want a big TV!" she declared, treating herself to Gin-chan's large arm in her grasp. Leaning against him and motioning for another ice cream for Pachi, she whispered.
"Can I make one last confession?"
"Hmm?"
"Promise you won't tell anybody?"
"Promise."
The small woman hesitated, sitting between her older brothers as they looked on and waited. Whatever it was, it had to be a bombshell, the one they were counting on for a while now.
Sobbing, she admitted, "I- I love him, Gin-chan. And it hurts to not be loved back."
Kagura's vision was too blurred to notice the boys fume with anger. Hiding it in their clenched fists, Gintoki blanketed her head with his palm. He'd have to pay a visit to Shinsengumi Headquarters later, raise some hell, and judging by the look on Shinpachi's face, he was all for it too.
"We love you, Kagura-chan. Don't tell your dad I said that."
She laughed.
The next morning, she arrived at the terminal. It was crowded, stuffy, and just as comfortable as Prince Hata in a bikini. Her father would meet her on the ship and if she didn't hurry, she was going to miss her flight. Rolling her suitcase behind her, the Yato woman pushed and shoved, cursing and kicking both the young and the old.
"Haul ass, you old fart! I've got a flight to catch!"
Attention, fliers. We are experiencing some delays due to some unexpected security measures. We apologize for any inconvenience. We will resume normal flight times as scheduled after the security check.
"Move it or lose it! And believe it, lady, you can afford to lose something!"
She continued her rampage of insults and hadn't bothered listening to the flights listed as delayed. When she had made it to the metal detectors with her ticket, the Amanto guards stopped her.
"I'm sorry, but we're gonna have to frisk you. There's an illegal immigrant at the terminal and the officers on this planet are searching every flight."
"What? Frisk my ass, now move!"
She punched him square in the jaw before the guard could show her the picture of the so-called wanted fugitive.
"Wait! Guards! Catch that woman!"
Kagura sprinted, abandoning her suitcase and hoping her father wouldn't be too upset with her. Guards gathered to lunge at her, from the left, from the right, and she nimbly escaped them all.
"Ah! There it goes!"
She found the gate she was looking for and was running towards it when she noticed two familiar men standing outside.
"Gorilla-san! Mayora! Help me!"
Kondo and Hijikata regarded her with a stern look. Kondo raised a hand to stop the guards.
"I'm sorry, Kagura-chan, but you can't board the flight until you go through the proper procedures."
"What? But I didn't do anything wrong! This is my flight, damn it!"
"Just go back," Hijikata commanded and she scoffed.
"Some help you are."
Pushing the two men aside, she darted past them.
"Kagura-chan! Wait!"
She heard the gorilla's yell, but ignored it. When the Shinsengumi Captain was sure that she was out of sight, he grinned.
"He was right, Toushiro."
"Hmmph," Hijikata reached for the cigarette tucked behind his ear, "Well, we've done our part. Now that handful is up to him."
Kagura was running so hard, every time her heels slammed, it resonated up her legs and through her body. Her stomps echoed through the long tunnel, deserted due to the stupid security crap keeping people on and off the flights.
"This is bullshit!"
She passed the glass where all the rockets and space ships docked. Her last glimpse of Edo. At the mere thought of Sougo, she clenched her eyes shut. Wringing the material at her chest, she ran, from Edo, from herself, and from him.
"I'm not running away!" she proclaimed as if he were listening, "You are!"
When she opened her eyes, as if she had summoned him with her words, he appeared before her.
Okita Sougo: Prince of Sadists.
His flaxen bangs did little to conceal the look of mischief brewing about him. Once his red eyes had focused on their target, Kagura snapped to attention.
"What the hell are you doing here?"
"I'm doing my job, of course, China."
"That's my flight. I need to get on it."
"You can't get on yet. You have some legal matters to attend to."
"What the FUCK are you talking about?"
The officer removed a document from his jacket, one that Kagura hadn't bothered to look at.
"Turns out, you're an illegal immigrant, China. You entered Edo without a proper passport and now you're trying to leave and escape earth's judicial system. Oh my, what's an officer to do?"
"That's bullshit! I mean, I did at first, but papi fixed that. I'm totally legal!"
"Hmm, maybe I misplaced some papers somewhere. I don't know. Could never be too careful with papers and those who can be paid off to mess with them, ahem."
"Arghhh!"
Sougo caught her fist in his hand. Then her knee to his groin.
"I'll kick your ass!" she threatened before tossing another jab at his face. That one landed but he had taken her momentum forward to sweep a foot under her leg. When they fell to the floor, his skull bumping into hers rung.
"Oww!"
"Resisting arrest, China. I don't think you should do that."
"Leave me alone, Sadist!" she rammed upward, hoping to throw him up and she would have done so had it not been for those damn tears again sapping some of her strength. After she had enough struggle, she wilted, allowing her hands to flop on either side of her head in submission.
"I don't understand you- what the hell do you want from me?"
"There's only one way to solve this legal matter. Are you listening?"
"I don't care! Why are we still talking about-"
"READ! You can do that, at least, right? Idiot…"
The paper stuck to her damp cheeks and she pulled it off.
"This had better be a coupon for a year's supply of sukonbu or I'm gonna-"
Wait a minute…
This certifies that
Okita Sougo and Monster Kagura
Were united in marriage
At The Yorozuya Office, in the county of Kabuki District, in the state of Edo. On the 2nd day of May-
Below it were Gin-chan and Gorilla-san's signatures as witnesses.
"W-what the- WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?"
"You can read, right?"
"And Monster? That's not my last name, asshole!"
"We can fix it later."
"This is- this is bullshit! Get off me!"
Sougo obeyed. After his weight was lifted from her, she got up slowly, in disbelief and reviewing the paper in her hand as if she had missed something.
"This is a fake!"
"I think the judge would take my word over yours."
"I'm not gonna marry you! You can't even- you can't-"
She could hardly put the words together. She was frustrated, spiteful, confused, and in pain all at the same time. It was annoying. Something must have been wrong with her. She could barely breath. It was as if there were a fist in her throat and somewhere deep within her, something was breaking.
"I'm leaving! I said I was leaving!"
The man jerked her to him by the arm, catching her body and holding tight. Before she had a chance to heel one of his toes, his lips grazed her ear.
"I can't believe you still need me to say it after all this… Idiot.
I love you, China."
"W-what? You're lying."
"I do. Now don't make me say it again or I'll throw you on that ship myself, Mrs. Sadist."
Kagura sniffled, finding the buttons of his jacket and twirling them in her fingers.
"Do you mean it?"
"I've managed to feed you thus far, haven't I?"
He lifted her chin to level his nose to hers. When he kissed her, it was just like one of those morning kisses she liked. Gentle, meaningful and full of intent. Kagura welcomed him, allowing the Third Captain to fully capture her in his swathe of muscle and strength. It was salty, sticky, but the best one she had ever had. When they peeled from one another, Sougo smirked, "You look like a drag queen with all that stuff running down your face."
"Shut up!"
Okita Sougo gestured for her hand and happily; the Yato clansmen took the offer. Together, they walked away from the entrance to the ship. They had both stopped running, and now walked together toward their own shared destination.
"I really hope I get a huge cake out of this."
She pointed at the marriage certificate now being folded in his jacket.
With another kiss to her hair before they would soon reunite with the rest of the gang waiting in the lobby, he grinned.
"Don't push your luck, China."
~Fin~
-x-x-x-x-
-x-x-x-
-x-x-
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Ten minutes later…
Attention all fliers. The security check has been resolved and flights will resume with their normal schedule. This ship will now be leaving the docks. Please remember to buckle up and-
"Wait! Kagura! I have to wait for my daughter! She's not on the ship yet!"
Umibouzu complained to the flight attendant passing by his seat.
"I'm sorry, sir. But we have to take off-"
"Wait! Let me just-"
"Sir! We're already on the runway! You can catch another flight at the next planet-"
The concerned father went to grab the suitcase he had left in the seat intended for his daughter. He was about to hop out and make way for the exit when something at the window caught his eye. The glass that marked the inner hall of their flight's gate was occupied by a pair of lovers sucking face. Perhaps, these love-stricken idiots had prevented his precious daughter from getting through that tunnel on time and-
Wait.
Is that-
When the man squinted hard enough and spotted the way that the Shinsengumi Officer trapped this young woman's waist against him amidst their make out session, a woman who looked oddly enough like his precious daughter, it took a moment to register.
"Who the HELL-
KAGURAAAAAA!"
Flight 484 is now taking off. Buckle up, be safe, and once again, thank you for choosing Edo Airlines.
A/N: By the way, a Cheongsam is supposed to be the correct name for the type of Chinese dress Kagura wears. If it's wrong, feel free to correct me.
I had to put a touch of KonTae in there. That time-skip manga convinced me...