When Takashi was three months old I felt ready to travel. As grateful as we were to Itachi and Miko, we couldn't wait to move out and start our lives together. Lady Tsunade generously supplied us with an escort to Kirigakure. We didn't know what to expect when we got home, but it certainly wasn't the sight we saw on arrival. In an attempt to save face, my family threw a big welcome home party to celebrate "The Heroes of Kirigakure" or as reality would call us: the former Akatsuki traitors. We were paraded through the streets and to say that I was embarrassed was an understatement. Kisame handled it much better than I did, and of course Katsuye and Takashi enjoyed every minute of it!

After that fiasco, we were thankfully left alone. We were able to settle down in Kisame's old place and it was so weird being back to where it all started. Kisame was employed as the Mizukage's personal assistant. She sure wasn't kidding about keeping a close eye on him. It was certainly an adjustment working in an office versus the more active lifestyle of a shinobi. He tolerated the stony silence whenever he entered a room, the harsh glares from other co-workers, biting remarks about his disloyal past, or questions about Akatsuki. He would always answer politely with a smile, but late at night would take out his frustration on me…or rather with me. We would hold in our tempers until the kids were sleeping soundly, than we went downstairs and sparred until we were too exhausted to be angry anymore. We would always end up laughing at how ridiculous we were being and end the night on a happier note.

I had a pretty stressful time adjusting to regular life too. I hated all of the questions about Madara. I never wanted to think about him again and hated being constantly reminded of that battle. I also hated being restricted to Kirigakure, I was used to traveling. I loved life on the road, seeing new places and experiencing new things. That was part of the reason why being a mercenary was so appealing. But now I was just giving private lessons to anyone who wanted to learn how to use a sword. Katsuye showed a special knack for it so I trained her too. Takashi could care less about swords, but that didn't keep him out of trouble. He had inherited the Hoshigaki temper and was just as volatile as his parents. For a long time poor Katsuye was the sole voice of reason in our family. She was too Itachi-like for her own good.

We stayed in touch with Itachi and Miko. She got pregnant shortly after we left, and they had a little girl named Akiza. Itachi was required to visit every so often to "assess" Kisame's progress. He would always bring Yusei along because he and Katsuye missed each other a lot. Kisame and Itachi kept up their friendship despite the distance. I think they were good influences on each other. Itachi helped Kisame work on his temper and Kisame gave Itachi the courage to propose to Miko. Of course she said yes and we were granted permission to travel to Konoha for the wedding.

When Takashi was five and Katsuye was seven, we welcomed our last baby into the family. A little boy with purple hair, light skin, and no gills! I was so excited! This time Kisame and I both decided on the name Hayate. He was a very shy boy and kept to himself most of the time.

As time went by, things started to get better for Kisame. He started to gain respect from others and made some genuine friends. He was also allowed to accompany teams on local missions. Katsuye excelled in the ninja academy. Takashi, intent on not being compared to his "perfect" sister, maintained a low score throughout. His stubbornness never made any sense, but then again neither did mine. He was by far our most difficult child, running away from home when he was sixteen. We didn't hear from him for two years. Then we got a surprising letter from Kankuro. He had found our wayward son and had taken him in. He had no doubts that he was our son, but never told Takashi that he knew us. He went on in the letter to say that Takashi showed some interest in puppet jutsu techniques and was now apprenticed to him. Kankuro said that he would keep us updated on his progress and let us know if anything else came up. He made a world of difference in Takashi, who eventually wrote home and told us what had happened and even apologizing for making us worry! He found himself a wonderful girl in Sunagakure and remained there.

Hayate showed an interest in being a medical shinobi. Once he graduated from the academy, he went to Konoha to learn under Sakura-san, the leading expert now that Lady Tsunade had passed away. He wrote often, talking about his progress and his brushes with death while healing on the battlefield. He developed a crush on Sakura's daughter but wasn't sure if he should date his superior's daughter. He wasn't a big risk taker and we figured he'd just chicken out like he did with all of his crushes in the past. Imagine our surprise when we found out that they had eloped without telling anyone. Talk about the ultimate risk! I think Sakura-san was pretty furious for a few years, but eventually forgave them when they gave her the ultimate gift; a granddaughter named Akiko.

Katsuye and Yusei kept up their friendship over the years, but I didn't suspect anything more of it until he moved to Kirigakure once he reached the Chunin level and visited daily. I soon noticed a look in his eyes that went beyond the level of friendship. I asked her about it one night after he left and she looked me right in the eye. "Of course I know that he loves me. I love him too. We were meant to be together. I've known that for some time, ever since we were little kids."

Now if anyone other than Katsuye had said that, I would have chalked it up to teenage hormones. But she was always so sure of herself. She just knew that Yusei was the right one for her. So it wasn't surprising when he asked Kisame for her hand in marriage. Of course we gave permission. The wedding was a simple one and a little comical with both fathers bawling their eyes out. Having moved back to Konoha, the newlyweds wasted no time in having children. Within a year of being married, she had twins. A boy and a girl named Sora and Setsuna respectively. And you guessed it: they both had fox ears and tails. So strange but absolutely adorable! It felt a little weird being grandparents, but we soon loved it. You can spoil them with toys and candy and then return them to their parents for damage control.

Kisame eagerly waited for his probation to end so he could find out if he would be allowed to wear the Kirigakure headband. It was always on his mind. On the morning of the deadline, I was surprised to find the Mizukage at our front door. I invited her to sit down and poured her some tea.

"I have to say Ritsuko-san; I pride myself on being a good judge of character." She began. "But in the case of your husband I sadly misjudged him."

I held my breath. Just what did she mean?

"He has such a sensitive soul and is very considerate. In fact, he's the only one in my employ who doesn't criticize my being single. 'It'll happen when the time is right', he said." She wore a thoughtful smile. "I should have trusted Gaara-sama's judgment from the beginning and I am glad that I listened to him." She pulled out a small bag and handed it to me. "Here is his new shinobi headband. Normally we would give this in a ceremony, but I have a feeling that he'd rather share this moment with you."

"Thank you Mizukage-sama," I said gratefully. "From both of us."

"I also heard from Kisame-san that you used to be on the personal security squad of the 4th Mizukage and the Kazekage. Now that your children have all moved away, would you consider a position on mine? It does involve a lot of traveling though."

I bowed deeply. "I would be honored to."

She smiled. "Report to work on Monday, enjoy your weekend."

I wished her well as she left. When Kisame came home that night, he was more than a little discouraged.

"Is something wrong?' I asked.

"Today my probation ends and not a word on whether I've been forgiven or not. Don't they realize how important this is to me? How long I've been waiting for this? What else could I have done to convince them that I've changed?" He punched the kitchen table in frustration, cracking it in half. He groaned and pressed a hand against his forehead. "I'm sorry about that, I'll fix it later."

"Don't worry about. You've done it so often that its time we got a new one anyway." I said, taking him by the hand and leading him into the bedroom. "Come in here, I want to show you something."

He sat wearily on the bed. "Can't it wait till later? I just want to be alone right now."

"No it can't, now just close your eyes." I climbed up on the bed behind him, pulled the headband out of my pocket and tied it around his forehead.

"What are you doing?" He fidgeted.

I turned his head towards the mirror on our wall. "Ok, open your eyes."

He opened his eyes and saw his reflection. His eyes widened in disbelief and he rushed over to the mirror to see it better. He was deathly silent and I was worried if something was wrong. I approached him cautiously and rested a hand on his arm. "Is everything alright?"

His eyes crinkled at the corners as he grinned broadly. He turned round to pick me up and spin me around the room. "Is everything alright? They're better than alright! They're perfect!"

He tripped on the corner of the bed and we both fell onto it laughing. "Oh Suko, now everything is complete and back to where it should be."

I looked at him with a sad smile. "It's a shame that it's taken so long to get there." I felt a heavy weight on my chest as I recalled those hellish years in Akatsuki and tears welled up in my eyes.

He reached out hold my hand. "What's wrong?"

"Madara's been dead for twenty years…but the pain is still so fresh in my mind." I trembled. "His effect on me hasn't gone away completely. I'm still afraid that he's going to come back and take it all away again."

Kisame hugged me tightly against his chest and gently shushed me. "I know what you mean. I feel the same way sometimes. He's taken so much away from us, there's no denying that. But look at what we have now: three beautiful children, three adorable grandchildren, acceptance in Kirigakure,…and above all, we have each other. With so much to be thankful for, it really puts things into prospective doesn't it?"

"I guess it does," I murmured, enjoying his arms around me and I nuzzled my face against his shirt. "You smell so good."

He chuckled. "I'm soaked in sweat from work."

"You make sweat smell good then."

He laughed out loud and gave me noogie. "You're just being silly now. I take it that you're starting to cheer up a little?"

"More like trying to distract myself," I confessed. "But you are right Kisame, I should be more grateful." I kissed him tenderly. "I'm grateful to have you in my life."

His face softened and he kissed me back. "Me too."

The End

* AUTHORS NOTE: An extra special thanks to my friend Miko for steering this story in the right direction! This story would have gone in a completely different direction if not for her help. And special thanks to all those who favorited this story and left reviews, its great to hear feedback and have your support as well!