Epilogue - A year and a half later...

"I don't see why we have to babysit the brat." Oliver groaned and pulled the covers over his head. "Why can't Gene do it? He actually likes the little monster."

"Because Gene and Yasuhara don't get a lot of time together and—"

"They could babysit together."

"I don't think having a baby around for what they want to do is suitable…" Mai mumbled. "Can you help me with this dress? I can't do the buttons."

Oliver groaned ahead and pushed the covers from his body. He sat up and shuffled to the end of the bed, where Mai waited with her half undone dress.

"I don't see why you want to wear such a nice dress to see a baby that will probably vomit on you," Oliver muttered.

Mai did not bother to argue. She thanked Oliver for his assistance and then threw his own clothing at him.

"Get dressed and I'll make you tea before we go."

Scowling, Oliver reached for the clothing.

After two cups of tea, the young couple headed to the palace. They had moved out just before the winter after Luella had become wise to their relationship. She had offered to buy them a place, but Mai had received the money from her mother's house, and so they used that to purchase their first home.

"I'm sure the Empress can afford real caretakers for her brat," Oliver muttered.

"Yes, but even they need days off," Mai argued.

"Then she should hire another one," Oliver said as they approached the baby's room.

"Oh shush. He's been trying to walk apparently, so that's my goal for today."

"You're going to teach him to walk?"

"Why not? Do you have a better idea?"

"Lock it in a cage and—"

Mai batted his chest to shut him up.

"I'm never letting you have children."

Oliver shrugged, unbothered by this statement.

"Any child of mine would be far better than the Empress's brat."

Mai narrowed her eyes at him.

"Has she done something to annoy you?" She did not wait for an answer. "Because you shouldn't take it out on Shiki if she has. It's not fair to the kid."

Mai opened the nursery door and entered, Oliver following in her wake. She was greeted by Hugo and a harassed looking Luella.

"There is a trade dispute and of course they cannot deal with it for one day without me," Luella said, failing to greet her guests. "This is the first day I have had to spend with him in longer than I care for and I must go and spend it with stuffy officials! I can't thank you enough for this, both of you, really!"

"It's no bother," Mai said, smiling. "We had nothing better planned. I'm just glad I could be of use!"

Mai knelt down next to the giggling baby, who was sucking on a blanket.

"Yes, of course, we didn't," Oliver grumbled.

"Well, maybe if you were newlyweds I'd be more inclined to call upon other people," Luella said pointedly to him.

"Well, maybe if you allowed us enough personal time together, we might end up as newlyweds," he retorted.

Luella smiled proudly at him.

"I'll be back before dinner."

"Wonderful," Oliver deadpanned.

Luella left.

Mai had apparently missed the exchange.

"Oh, she's gone. Oliver, come and say hello."

Oliver rolled his eyes, but he sat beside Mai and muttered a greeting to the baby.

"What did I tell you about taking out your annoyance on the baby?" Mai asked. "Why are you annoyed anyway? Did Luella say something?"

"She's been called away for a trade dispute that will be done by dinner."

"So? She's efficient?"

"So, I think there is no trade dispute and that she is trying something on…"

"Why would you think that?" Mai asked. "It's not like spending time with Shiki is going to make us want kids… We're not ready yet. We're not even married."

"Yes, Luella just made a point of saying she wouldn't call on us for things like this if we were newlyweds."

"She's lost her subtly, hasn't she?"

"You say that as if she was ever subtle," Oliver muttered. "She's been on at me about us marrying since we lived in Basingold."

"Oh you poor soul, how dreadful that someone wants you to be happy," Mai cooed at him.

Oliver rolled his eyes.

"Will you marry me just to make her leave me alone?" he asked.

"No, because then she'll be wanting us to have babies. We're not ready."

"Damn… Perhaps if Gene and Yasuhara get married then, that might distract her a little longer…"

"An excellent plan," Mai said. "But for now, we need to teach this little man to walk."

Oliver sighed.

"Okay then, Brat, get up."

Shiki just giggled and blew a slobbery raspberry.

"Oh well, I tried," Oliver said.

Mai rolled her eyes.

"You're insufferable."

"And yet you do suffer me."

Mai reached over, kissed him on the cheek and then returned her attention to the baby.

Oliver watched her interactions with a serene smile.

Life was good.

A few months later...

Gene launched himself at his brother and wrapped his arms around him.

"I missed you!"

Oliver grimaced, but returned the embrace.

"You look well."

"I am, we've made so much progress with the wool shipments and setting up a school to teach techniques and—"

"Gene, I want to hear about you, not your job."

Oliver led his brother through the house and invited him to take a seat. Gene sat while Oliver began making tea — Mai had been giving him lessons. A few minutes later, Oliver handed his brother the cup.

"This isn't half bad," Gene said.

"Have you seen Yasuhara yet?"

Gene swallowed hard.

"Not yet. I came here first," he replied.

"You need to marry him," Oliver said, sitting down.

Gene almost choked.

"What?"

"To distract Luella for me."

"What? Why? How would me marrying Yasuhara distract Luella? She's not nearly as attached me to as—"

"She'd be happy with a good wedding. Or just some drama. That brat of the Empress's is too well behaved and so Luella is focusing on me and Mai."

"So marry Mai?" Gene suggested.

"I would, but Mai said not yet," Oliver said. "And she's right. We're not ready. Well, she's not ready and I am happy to wait."

"But you love each other."

"Gene, her last husband attempted to rape her."

"You would never do that."

"No, I wouldn't. But I can understand why she wants to wait a bit longer. There is no rush."

"Just tell Luella that then," Gene said. "Yasuhara and I… Well it's hard, I've been travelling so much and he's been so busy with his career. Did he tell you he won an award for his swordplay?"

Oliver raised an eyebrow.

Gene scowled and blushed.

"Not like that! His swordsmanship!"

"Yes, I was aware of it. I was going to be on the judging panel for the competition until your boyfriend entered."

"Why—"

"They thought it would be unfair if I judged a relative."

"But he's not—"

"Not yet he's not," Oliver said. "But he could be, if you two—"

"I've been back in the city for less than half a day!"

"So you have the rest of the day to get on it."

Gene sighed.

"She really got to you, huh…"

Oliver finished his tea.

"Yes," he admitted finally. "She does not seem to realise that I want exactly what she wants. I have wanted it for a long time. Mai just… I cannot explain it. She makes me happy."

Gene beamed.

"I could talk to Luella, you know?" he offered. "She means well."

"I know. I do not want Luella's actions to influence me into pressuring Mai in any way."

"You wouldn't do that," Gene repeated. "That's why you're venting to me. Where is Mai anyway?"

"Out with one of her friends. She met some of the other young doctors and nurses and made friends. She's good at that."

"I'm glad. Does that mean you're staying in the Capital? I remember a time where you were going to leave."

"We're staying for now," Oliver said. "Luella and the Empress like making us babysit. And dogsit..."

"If they ask you again while I'm here, let me know and I'll stand in."

Oliver nodded.

"I suppose I could tell Luella I want to stay in the Capital so I can spend more time with Yasuhara," Gene suggested. "Then she can be distracted by finding me a place and so on… Do you think she'll go for it?"

Oliver hummed.

"How well could you play the distraught factor, do you think?" he asked. Gene bit his lip and pondered the question. "Why don't you practice?" Oliver suggested. "Pretend I'm Luella."

"Okay then." Gene cleared his throat and rearranged his face to appear less happy. "Good morning Luella."

"How are you, Gene?"

"Noll, you can't just use your voice when pretending to be Luella. It just doesn't work."

Oliver rolled his eyes.

"How are you, Gene?" he asked in as high a pitch as he could manage.

Gene laughed, then got back into character and answered.

"I just miss everyone here in Redport so much."

"You have been very busy with your work, haven't you?"

"Yes, so busy. I've barely seen my brother or Yasuhara or anyone. I wish I could stay here for a bit."

"Cue some comment about making that happen," Oliver said in his regular voice.

"Oh, could you? I want to keep working, but if I could do something here, close to those I love…"

"Luella would jump on the love word," Oliver pointed out. "Good choice. She'd say something like 'oh I didn't realise you were that serious' or something."

"It's hard to be serious when you barely see your significant other," Gene replied, his voice taking a more serious tone. "There was a time when I thought we could be more than just… Well, whatever we are now. But it just seems so hard."

"That sounds like it would do the trick," Oliver said. "And then later you'd have to have the 'are we ready for marriage' talk. Luella would love all that gossip. You can agonise whether you're ready and whether Yasuhara really wants you and all that crap."

"It's not crap," Gene said, pouting. "That's a genuine concern. What if he doesn't want me?"

Oliver rolled his eyes.

"He's put up with you this long."

"I don't want him to put up with me! Is that all you want from Mai?"

"That she puts up with me?" Oliver asked. "Well, her tolerating me would make the relationship easier."

Gene sighed.

"You want her to love you back."

"I think you'll find that someone really does have to love me to tolerate me," Oliver muttered. "I know I can be—"

"You're not that bad," Gene interrupted. Oliver sent him a look. "Well, most of the time."

"Thanks."

"I'll go and see Luella tomorrow then. Things are settling down after all."

Before Oliver could thank his brother, the front door opened and Mai bustled in holding bags of shopping.

"Oliver!" she called as she struggled. "Look who I found at the market! We're going to make a meal before…"

She trailed off as she spotted Gene. Her face morphed into an annoyed pout.

"You're not supposed to be here yet—"

"Mai, please," another voice from behind her said. "Let me help with those—"

"He's already here, Yasuhara," Mai muttered. She dumped the bags on the floor and crossed her arms over her chest. "How can we do a surprise welcome meal if he's already here?"

Oliver reached over and covered his brother's eyes.

"You did not see anything, did you, Gene?"

"No?"

"Good. I'm going to guide you to the door and you're going to not be here for the rest of the day, okay?"

"Okay."

"Great." Oliver began to assist his brother to the door, his hand still covering Gene's eyes. "Yasuhara, perhaps you could look after this random stranger and ask him about the plans to distract Luella. We'll see you this evening? Sundown?"

He looked to Mai for confirmation that this would be enough time.

"Yes, sundown will be perfect."

"Okay great. Off you go."

Oliver pushed his brother and Yasuhara through the front door and closed it behind him.

"But you were talking to him—"

"Mai, it's fine. He'll want to see Yasuhara. And he wants to hang around for longer this time. So I'll be able to speak to him again soon enough. Now I presume you want help with cooking?"

"Well I was going to ask Yasuhara as he's not a complete disaster—"

"I have most definitely improved."

Mai smiled and reached up to kiss Oliver on the cheek.

"Yes, you have. I suppose I could let you cut up a few things."

"I'll go and get my sword then."

Oliver began to walk away.

"With the kitchen knife!" Mai hastily added. "No swords in my kitchen!"

Oliver turned back, faked a sigh and took the bags of shopping to the kitchen. Mai took off her jacket with a smile and then followed after him.

Oliver and Gene's plan to distract Luella worked well for a few months. Coupled with the fact that Shiki had started to walk and talk, Luella was well and truly busy.

By the time Luella's attention had returned to Mai and Oliver's relationship, Oliver had something else on his mind.

Captain Takigawa had coerced Oliver into taking a stroll with him under the guise of patrolling the city. Oliver had slowly been returning to active duty after his injury, though most of his working time was spent teaching.

"Ayako is huge," Takigawa was saying as they strode down a street neighbouring one of the markets. "She's due any day."

"And she lets you continue working?" Oliver asked, eyebrow raised.

"She doesn't want me anywhere near her when the time comes," Takigawa muttered. "I think she thinks I'll panic or something. She's still set on Mai helping her…"

"Mai is terrified about that…"

"With good reason. She'll have me to answer to if anything happens."

Oliver glared at Takigawa, who laughed.

"They'll be fine," Takigawa went on. "They won't be alone."

Oliver scowled a little longer before his attention was caught by a movement out of the corner of his eye. He nodded his head towards a figure and Takigawa looked around.

"I'll get him," Oliver murmured.

Takigawa watched as Oliver walked away. He passed a merchant or two before his hand descended on the tunic of a small boy. He yanked the child up so that his feet dangled from the ground for a few moments before plonking the kid down beside him.

The boy yelped and fought to get away, but Oliver was too strong for him.

"Empty your pockets."

"Let me go!"

"Empty your pockets," Takigawa echoed. "Now."

The boy, who was no older than six, burst into tears and pulled out a packet of dried meat and a vial of an unknown liquid from his pockets.

"Where did you get these?" Oliver demanded, immune to the tears. "And how much did you pay for them?"

The boy continued to cry and he shook his head. Oliver pursed his lips.

"Let's return them, shall we?"

"But Mama is sick…" the boy whimpered.

Takigawa took the vial and read the label.

"Kid, this isn't going to cure any sickness. It's… Well… It's for men. What's wrong with your mother?"

"I don't know…"

"Let's return these, then take us to your mother. We know some doctors, perhaps we can get her some help."

The boy nodded. They returned the stolen items, received thanks from the merchants, and then let the boy — Tomu, they discovered his name to be — guide them to his home.

"This is it," Tomu said, pointing to the house at the end of a row. They were on the outskirts of the city now. "The front door is locked though. So we have to use the back one."

The two Captains did not argue, but let Tomu lead the way.

The backdoor of the house opened and they were hit by a putrid smell. Both soldiers covered their noses, but Tomu did not seem to mind.

"This way, Mama's asleep upstairs…"

"Kid," Takigawa began, "What's that smell?"

"Mama is sick, she can't wash…"

Oliver stuck his head into the kitchen and saw rotting food on the counters.

"Where is your father?"

"He's gone. He went to war and didn't come back. Mama said he died protecting us and so he can't come back." Tomu sucked his thumb. "When I'm a grown-up, I'm gonna go to war and find my Dad and bring him home. Mama misses him."

Neither adult corrected the kid. Neither laughed at the way he spoke of 'war' as if it were a place. Neither could bring themselves to explain what death meant.

Perhaps the kid was too young to understand.

"Mama is this way."

The trio climbed the stairs and entered a bedroom.

"Mama! Mama, wake up!" Tomu jumped onto the bed and shook the woman lying there.

Takigawa covered his mouth. Oliver swallowed.

"How long as she been asleep for, Tomu?"

"A few days? But when I got ill, I slept a lot too. Maybe she woke up while I was out."

"It's okay," Takigawa said. "I think we should go and get a doctor to help her."

"Are you hungry?" Oliver asked.

Tomu nodded.

"Okay, I know someone that can cook you a really nice meal. So how about you come with me, and Takigawa here can get a doctor for your mother. Does that sound like a plan?"

"Will she be okay?" Tomu asked, his hand still resting on his mother's shoulder.

"She won't be if she's worried about you," Takigawa said. "Come on, kid."

Tomu nodded and crawled off the bed. Oliver offered him a hand, which he took. They left the house in silence. Oliver and Takigawa shared a look.

"I'll take him home, Mai will feed him."

"I'll…" Takigawa paused, aware Tomu was listening. "I'll find someone to help his mother. I'll tell you how things go later."

Oliver nodded.

They parted just after they passed the market.

"Where are we going?"

"Back to my house."

"Why?"

"Because my friend is going to find you some food. She's a really good cook."

"What does she cook?"

"All sorts of things. What do you like?"

"I like everything! Except beans. Beans are gross."

"Well, I'm sure we can find something for you that doesn't have any beans."

When they arrived back at Oliver and Mai's house, Mai was surprised to see them. Surprised Oliver was home so early, and even more surprised that he had a child with him.

"Who—"

"This is Tomu, he's hungry. Do you think we can feed him?" Oliver cut him off. "When did you last eat?"

He directed this last question at Tomu, who shrank back a little before answering.

"Uhh… I don't know. You made me give the meat back…"

Mai frowned, but nodded.

"I have some bread and some meat and cheese. I was just about to go and get groceries so we don't have much in…"

She bustled into the pantry and returned a minute later with a plate of various offcuts of meat, the last of the cheese and a chunk of bread. She placed it on the table, where Tomu scrambled to sit and eat. Mai retrieved a mug of water for the kid, then pulled Oliver aside.

"What's going on?"

"We caught him stealing. He took us to his house… His father died in the battle. His mother is dead in her bed and he thinks she's sleeping. Takigawa is dealing with that."

Mai covered her mouth.

"He doesn't understand what being dead means," Oliver murmured.

Mai left Oliver and took a seat at the table.

"Do you have any aunts or uncles, Tomu?"

He shook his head.

"Uncle Goro went to war with Dad and died and hasn't come back. I'll find him when I go to war and find my Dad."

"And your Uncle didn't have a wife? Or a husband?"

"No, he was too busy for that. He said he was too busy killing bad guys. He saved people all the time."

"What about grandparents?"

Tomu shook his head and stuffed more bread into his mouth.

"Why?" he asked after swallowing.

"Well, if your Mama is poorly, she needs to get better. So you might need to stay with someone else for a while."

"I don't wanna leave Mama."

Mai forced a smile.

"Okay, we'll see what we can do. You eat up."

Oliver, who stood in the doorway, nodded at Mai, who joined him.

"He has nowhere else to go, Oliver."

"I can clear out the spare room this afternoon."

"How are we going to explain this to him?"

"I'll do it, once Takigawa comes back."

Mai nodded.

"Can you look after him?" Oliver said. "I think he needs a wash and probably some sleep. I need to clear my head."

"Of course," Mai replied. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just a little… I need a walk."

Mai nodded.

"Go, I'll keep an eye on him."

Oliver kissed her on the forehead and left. Mai turned back to Tomu.

"Where did he go?"

"For a little walk because you smell so bad. Once you've finished eating, I'm going to run you a bath, okay?"

Tomu nodded.

"Mama does baths but she's been poorly so I haven't been able to have a bath. Do you have smelly soap?"

"Most soap smells," Mai replied.

"Mama's soap smells like flowers."

"My soap also smells like flowers."

Tomu nodded and ate the last of his cheese. Mai led him to the bathroom and bathed him. His clothes were filthy, so she leant him one of Oliver's spare tunics. It was comically too big, but Tomu began yawning, despite it being the middle of the day.

"Do you want to sleep for a bit? You can sleep in my bed, it's really big and warm," Mai offered.

Tomu accepted and was asleep before his head hit the pillow. Mai tucked him in. Oliver had not yet returned, so she looked into their spare room. It had a bed in it for whenever Gene visited. The rest of it was taken up with random boxes of stuff. Some of it was her mother's. Some of it was Lin's…

She moved her mother's belongings into her own bedroom and tucked them away in a corner. Lin's belongings, she relegated to the front door. They could be donated. There must be someone in need of clothing of his size.

Oliver returned not long after, with Takigawa in tow. They had brought back groceries, for which Mai was grateful. The two men joined her in the kitchen as she began to cook.

"I've had the body removed. She's been dead for about a week. The doctor who looked at her couldn't see an immediate cause of death, but she looked weak and ill fed. Which was surprising from the amount of rotten food in that house. I've got some men emptying the house out. They'll box up the salvagable belongings. The real question is what we do with the boy. The state will pay for her funeral, but does he have any relatives?"

"No," Mai answered. "I asked."

"It doesn't look good for—"

"He will stay with us," Oliver stated. "Unless someone comes forward to claim him as a family member."

"Oliver, that's impractical. You both work full time and—"

"And the kid has nowhere else to go. He can come with me to work," Oliver stated. "He can train and study and learn, as I did as a child."

"They won't allow that."

"Who won't? The Generals? I'll go over their heads. Both the Empress and Luella would support this."

Takigawa sighed, knowing he was right.

Later that night, some soldiers brought around what they had retrieved from the house. They put it in the spare room. Mai fed everyone who stayed and after dinner, Oliver took Tomu aside.

"Your mother died," he began.

Tomu only frowned.

"She's gone to war? To find Dad?"

"Something like that," Oliver said. "She's gone to find your father. And she might be gone for a long while. We would like you to live with us, while she's gone."

"Oh… Can I still visit her?"

"She's going to be very far away, so it'll be difficult."

"Oh…"

Tomu cried himself to sleep that night.

He took a few days to settle in. He trailed behind either Mai or Oliver each day, wherever they went. He held their hand and hid behind them. He cried for his Mama. They comforted him, knowing there was little else they could do to ease his pain.

He perked up about a week after he had moved in when Gene and Yasuhara came to visit, bringing Hugo with them.

"So you finally got collared into dogsitting," Mai commented as Hugo bound through the house.

"Yes," Yasuhara said. "We were given the option of the baby or the dog… We picked the dog. Who's the kid?"

He nodded his head towards Tomu, who was shyly petting Hugo.

"Oh, we're looking after him," Mai explained. "His mother passed away and he has no known relatives…"

Gene sighed and moved away from the adults. He knelt down beside Tomu. Mai watched, presuming that Gene was introducing himself. Gene then proceeded to show Tomu all the tricks Hugo could do.

Mai and Yasuhara took a seat while Hugo played with Gene and Tomu.

"That's the first time I've seen him smile in a week," she mumbled. "He doesn't quite understand the fact his mother is dead. But I think he realises she's not coming back."

"Poor kid."

"Yeah…"

The presence of Hugo did much to cheer Tomu, who played with him for the rest of the day, until they were both so tired that they fell asleep together on Tomu's bed. The adults chatted, Yasuhara helped Mai cook, Tomu — and thus Hugo — were woken for dinner.

After, Gene and Yasuhara took their leave with Hugo in tow. Tomu cried at the parting of his new friend, but Gene promised that Hugo could visit again, even though it was not his place to do so.

Once Tomu was asleep, Mai and Oliver readied themselves for bed.

"Oliver?" Mai pulled her nightdress on.

"Yes?"

"Marry me."

"Excuse me?"

"Think about it. We live as if we are married. The only thing that has stopped us is the pressure over children. If we're going to continue looking after Tomu, we already have a kid. We can brush off any suggestions with concern for him. He's had enough upset in his life. We can… We can get married now…"

Oliver blinked several times.

There had never been a question in his mind that they would not care for this kid if he needed it. But he had not realised the extent to which the kid could help them.

"You're right," he said. "And if we formally adopt him, we'll need to be married."

"The only thing that remains really, is who tells Luella…"

Oliver laughed, grabbed Mai's hand and pulled her onto the bed.

"I think it would be much more fun to just not tell her…"

"You're cruel."

"And yet you want to marry me," Oliver pointed out, eyebrow raised.

Mai smiled and kissed Oliver gently.

"Yes, yes I do."

The End.

Author's note: Well, it's finally done. I've introduced Tomu and kept the ending like this because I'm leaving it open to a sequel... I do have ideas for said sequel... It'd be next gen primarily... Let me know what you think!