Chapter 2: Conditions

"Y-your mother?" I stammered just as I turned the corner into the main room. There at the end of the kotatsu, next to Hasuko, sat a woman with the same colored hair as Taiga, but cut shorter. She wore glasses and was dressed almost as if she were a business woman. The last time I saw her was the night that Taiga and I ran away together. She was trying to take Taiga away that night… I wonder if she would try that again…

"Hello Mr. Takasu" she said as he walked in with Taiga, her expression holding a small smile that didn't seem completely sincere, "I am Mrs. Hakado, Taiga's mother. But I am sure you remember… I just wish it was under better circumstances then."

Her saying this made me remember that night… the fighting, the yelling… I sighed and lowered my head in a respectful greeting. "It is good to see you ma'am" I said to her, "I know our first introductions weren't… ideal. Hopefully we can fix that today." This earned a more sincere smile from her, which was a score in my book.

"I think that Ryuuji said that he was going to make some pork cutlets for dinner tonight, right sweetheart?" said Yasuko, looking at me with her usual gentle smile. I caught her hint however, and smiled.

"Of course" I said, "but if we are going to have guests, I should go to the marketplace and pick up some more."

"I'll go with you!" offered Taiga happily, looking at her mother who nodded with a surprisingly warm smile. With that, we were back out of the house and on our way to the market. Taiga seemed to be in a much better mood after having me speak with her mother, as short as it was.

"She likes you" Taiga said matter of factly as we walked hand in hand. I looked at her curiously and she seemed to have picked up my unasked question. "I've been around her long enough now to pick up on the little things. Just so long as you impress her with your cooking, I don't think we'll have anything to worry about!"

I chuckled as she said this, if there was any way I could get someone on my side, all I'd have to do is invite them to dinner. Regardless, I still wanted to make sure that her mother would know that I would take care of Taiga. We made it to the marketplace and picked up more cutlets as well as a few more ingredients before making our way out. On our way back, however, Taiga pulled me another route through an older path that was hardly used anymore. Even now it was completely empty. "Uh… T-Taiga? Why are-"

"I couldn't stand waiting until later, and while we have some time to ourselves, I figured now would be the best chance" she said excitedly and somewhat hurriedly. Before I could ask what she was talking about, she set down the bag she was holding and jumped at me, flinging her arms around my neck and pulling herself up until her lips met mine with enthusiasm.

I was taken by complete surprise, going as far as dropping my own bag and falling against the wall of the building behind me. However, the feeling of her lips were inviting, and she was right, this really was our best chance to be this close together before we get back home. Without hesitation, I wrapped my arms around her waist to keep her from hanging and returned the kiss with equal excitement. I mean, come on, I only kissed her once today after over a year of not being with her, sue me if the need for physical affection was intense. We kissed more intensely than we ever had, to the point that I opened my mouth enough to invite the sensation of her tongue caressing my own. She brought one of her hands up, raking her fingers through my hair, affectionate and at the same time, exciting. I could hear her moan softly as we continued our tongue wrestle, the sound of her being so intimate was borderline arousing should I say so myself. Eventually we broke our kiss as the need for oxygen was too great. She sighed and laid against me, her head resting on my chest as her fingers played with the side of my shirt. I placed a small kiss on the top of her head and wrapped my arms around her as we stayed this way for a while. Then as a minute or so passed, Taiga said something.

"I love you too, Ryuuji."

I felt my hear skip a beat as she said this, and I wrapped my arms a little tighter around her, kissing the top of her head again. Perhaps she was right, and she was just better at finding the right mood to say it, though I found it far from embarrassing.

Before the moment could go much longer, then bumped me in the chest with her head hard enough to get a small 'oof' from me, then she picked up her bag. "Well come on you perverted dog, our mom's won't wait forever!" she said with her usual Taiga attitude, but with a hint of humor into it. I smiled and picked up my own bag and followed her the rest of the way home.

Dinner ended up splendidly, the pork cutlets turned out great and the rice I made with it blended well. All the while, Inko wouldn't stop stuttering out questions of whether or not it was bird we were having, as if he was paranoid that we were eating a feathered relative. We finished it all off with tea then I stood up to take up the plates and wash them. Taiga was caught in a conversation with Yasuko, but I couldn't hear what was being said. As I washed the dishes, the sound of footsteps caught my attention and I looked over to see Taiga's mother standing there.

"M-Mrs. Hadako! I h-hope you enjoyed dinner" I stammered as she studied me with and small smile. She nodded her head and replied;

"Of course, it was as amazing as my daughter said it would be. You seem to have quite a gift there."

Her compliment made me blush embarrassedly, but I smiled back that she had enjoyed the meal. I looked back over as she continued, "If you do not mind, I would like to speak with you in private."

"O-oh, of course ma'am." I replied, curious and nervous as to what she was going to say. I finished the plate I was washing and set it to dry before cleaning off my hands and leading her to the balcony. As I opened the door, I looked up at the window that used to be Taiga's. It was complete habit that I did this, I couldn't even say how many times I would look at the window, hoping to see the small tiger girl open the curtains to ask what I was going to cook for her that day.

"Takasu" said Mrs. Hadako, taking me out of my trance to look over at her. Her face had a hardened seriousness to her expression, almost as if I was about to receive a lecture about something I did wrong. It made me feel like a child inside, but I did my best to keep a mature stature as I listened.

"I find it funny, I had only met you once before, and that was merely a few seconds, but it feels like I know you rather well. Taiga spoke much about you over this past year, and I know she has had dreams about seeing you again. When I saw you two run away together… it was frightening. My little girl, as defiant as she was, was still my daughter. Seeing her run off with a boy I knew nothing about was scary to me. I didn't know what you two were thinking, I saw it as completely foolish. Even to this day, I cannot say that I completely agree with her marrying you, if it only be for the reason you are both so young. But be that as it may, I know for a fact if I try to hold Taiga back on what she truly desires, she will fight me tooth and nail. I fought with her for too long to allow that to happen, and seeing her adamant as she was on me meeting you, I can honestly say she really does love you."

Her saying this almost made it hard to stand up straight. To hear her saying that she wouldn't fight Taiga about the two of us being together… did it mean we were going to have her blessing to get married?

"However" she continued unexpectedly, "I do not intend on seeing off my daughter without knowing she will be properly cared for. That means that you need to step up on a few things. One would be, I want to know you two will be able to afford and manage a home you can at least live in comfortably, nothing huge, but a proper home. Second, I want your word that no matter how hard times would get, that you will not stop loving her as much as you do now. And third… I hope you get her a nice engagement ring, not something generic, but something that will mean something to you both."

Hearing her say these conditions, I found myself standing strong, not weak kneed like earlier. It was like a challenge that I was more than willing to accept, not just to pass, but excel in. Looking her in the eyes, I said with a strong voice, "I will see to it that these conditions are upheld. I will care for Taiga to the utmost of my ability and make sure she stays happy. I am willing to do what it takes to keep her in my life… I love her, and that is something that will never change."

After saying this, a much bigger smile came across Mrs. Hadako's face, it was warm and welcoming, and made me breathe and internal sigh of relief. "Very well Mr. Takasu. I expect you will uphold what I have said, and I expect nothing less from you. You have my blessing to marry my daughter." She replied, lowering her head respectfully at my response. I smiled back at her, and together we made our way back into the house. Taiga looked at her mother then to me, giving her warm smile that I had come to love so much. I gave a quick thumbs up to her and her smile widened before looking back at her mom.

"Well Takasu, this dinner was absolutely lovely, and I do hope to come back soon to try it again. I wish I could stay later, but the sun is setting and I have a train to catch." She said as she gathered her coat and other belongings. I looked at Taiga curiously as she didn't even make a move to get up, at least until her mother walked over to give her a hug. "You behave yourself Taiga, and come back to visit me whenever you can. Ok?"

Hold on… I was confused. Taiga wasn't going… with… her… It was then I looked over and noticed the suitcase on the floor, a small tuft of one of her dresses poking out. My eyes widened as realization settled in, but before I could say anything, Taiga's mother was walking out the door saying, "I know you will take good care of my Taiga. I will come to visit again soon."

"Wh-What… d-does this… does this mean that"

"That I am living here now? Exactly!" said Taiga, finishing my sentence before snatching up the last helping of pork cutlet and helping herself to it. All of my words caught in my throat as I tried to say something, but the sudden realization that Taiga and I were living together now… it was happy… but downright overwhelming. Yasuko looked at me with curious eyes and said;

"Ryuuji, is everything ok?"

"T-T-T….Ti-Tim-Tim…" stammered out Inko just as I fell to the ground.

"Timber!"

I have to say that I had a blast writing this chapter. Granted it started somewhat dry, but then I decided to add the small bit of fluff before heading into the serious talk. Anyway, I'll probably have another chapter up this week, so hopefully I can get a few more reviews and maybe a few more people to follow the story! Like I said before, any kind of tips you have, feel free to let me know in a review! The next chapter may be a bit of a filler, but I will make sure to keep it interesting! Expect the rest of the gang in it!