The train was getting ready to leave. Nobara watched the autumn leaves fall at the window. She was sitting comfortably at one of the booths of the train, thinking back to earlier.
"I accepted the proposal letter and was instructed to send you to the Zenin Family residence in Tokyo right away". Her father stated. That was fast. Nobara thought to herself as she nibbled on her breakfast food. Her parents were quick to accept her statement last night to marry Megumi Fushigoro and live in Tokyo for the rest of her life. They were super strict but also poor, which means Nobara couldn't leave the village if she wanted to. Her only best friend, Sumi, was already married and loved this village. Nobara felt trapped.
"Sweetie, stop dozing off and eat your breakfast already" Nobara's dad instructed.
"Yes, yes. Finishing dad" She couldn't sleep. All night she was thinking of her plan. Her plan to dump Fushigoro when she enters Tokyo. She will marry him, gather enough money, familiarize herself with Tokyo, find work, and dip. Afterall, he is marrying her to produce an heir. But what happens if Nobara can't give him one? He has to leave her and get a new wife. That will be Nobara's chance. Until she is ready to leave, Nobara will play Fushigoro to her advantage.
"Honey, why do you have that evil smirk on your face?" Nobara's mom stared at her with concern. "Hurry up and get ready. The train will depart soon" she pushed Nobara towards her room.
Nobara was packing and getting ready to leave. Her bedroom's door suddenly opened. "You are leaving huh?" Sumi stood at the doorway, trying not to cry. Nobara rushed to her friend and the two hugged tightly. They ended up falling on top of each other on the bed before laying on their backs next to each other.
"Yeah. I longed for this moment. To leave this stupid village and settle in Tokyo" Nobara smiled unapologetically. Sumi knew she was determined to make her dream come true. Looking at her best friend now, she could truly tell that Nobara never meant to stay in this town forever. She felt bitter but if it makes Nobara happy, then so be it. Sumi is willing to support her no matter what.
"I will miss you, you know. Don't forget that marriage life is a tough one. Full of compromises. But never let him make you feel small, be independent, and most importantly, state your desires. Don't be embarrassed, okay?" Sumi seemed serious while giving her advice to which Nobara laughed. "Seriously? Sumi please. How hard could it be? I will be fine. Don't worry" With that, her mom came in to rush the girls on their goodbyes.
"You are not coming with me?" Nobara looked worried. Her parents explained that they are not allowed to visit. Only the bride-to-be the first time. However, they will come for the wedding. Nobara departs her family after hugging and kissing her parents and grandmother. They watch as the train pulls her away to a new life.
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Nobara finally sheds a tear; a mix of happiness and sadness. Tokyo. Here I come! She thinks cheerfully. The train horns loudly as it starts to begin it's long journey of exploration.
The Zenin family back in Tokyo, enjoys a family-friendly breakfast at the long table in the dining room.
"I was able to find you the perfect woman to be your wife Fushigoro" Naobito chewed on his food, eyeing the now crowned prince of the Zenin Family. Fushigoro makes an annoyed sound and looks at Naobito in disgust. "I told you. For the last time, I wish to focus on my responsibilities. Marriage can come later. Right now, all I want is to ensure the success of the Zenin Clan" He was fed up with this old man's reckless behavior.
"But you can't ensure the success of the clan without an heir. Besides, I am only asking you to check the woman out. In the end, it's your choice. Who you will pick is up to you" Naobito explained.
"He is not even cut out to be the leader much less handle a wife" Naoyoa's hatred for Fushigoro is audible through his words. It was supposed to be him who was crowned. So it was only natural that he was pissed off.
"Fushigoro is more than capable of fulfilling his role as the leader as Lord Naobito claimed at the banquet. Or are you deaf?" Maki hated this man. Not only was he annoying, he was perverted as well. "Oh Maki. Isn't it time you get married already? Your eggs are going to expire" Naoyoa watched as Maki became annoyed. "I don't wish to marry nor am I as desperate as you" Naobito chuckled at their bickering. "You children are the highlight of my day. The girl is arriving by tomorrow morning, which means that Fushigoro" the old man points at him with his chopsticks, "prepare to meet your future bride". Fushigoro got up and left the room without a word. Maki chased after him.
"Yuji" no response. "Yuji" still no response. "Yuji!" Choso shouted his younger brother's name, who was snoring and falling from his chair. Yuji shot up in surprise, "What? What's going on Choso?". Choso was not annoyed. He never was. His brothers meant everything to him. They were his responsibility. "You have been dozing off Yuji. As the leader of the Kamo Clan, you have to make sure that all of the paperworks is being done on time" Choso began handing out the new work that had just arrived for Yuji. "Ugh! It's so much work. Why couldn't you be the leader or Noritoshi?" Yuji blabbered on about the same things while looking over the displayed papers on the desk. The wind blew into the office room of the Kamo residence from the two large windows behind Yuji. The room is filled with ancient books from all around the room, only stopping at the entrance behind Choso. "You are the best fit for the position" Choso was never tired of repeating the same answer. When it came to his brothers, Choso was willing to do anything.
"Yeah, yeah. Choso guess what?!" Yuji shouted with excitement. His eyes went all sparkly. Choso's face formed into a question. "Agh you never guess. Okay so my best friend is getting married! Fushigoro is about to meet his future bride-to-be today. I have to see her!" Yuji rushed out of the room to escape all the paperwork. Choso sighed. He knew Yuji's work was his work now. Choso happily took on the job.
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Nobara looks up at the huge mansion greeting her. It's a Japanese-styled house that only nobles would have. It stretches beyond what the eyes could see on maybe a hundred acres. Before long though, she is greeted by several maids. They all smiled widely at her; greeting her with excitement and a bit of a rush. They hurried her into a large dressing room, located behind the main building. The room was a whole walk-in closet with beautiful garments hung on the racks surrounding the entire place. Before she could admire the designs and work put into them though, Nobara is carried to the bathroom adjacent to the dressing room. She is quickly placed into a warm bath filled with red petal roses. She hated the smell of red roses; it made her dizzy. Before she could protest, the ladies started scrubbing her body. "Hey, I just showered before coming here. I am good, okay?" the maids giggled and kept scrubbing her more. "Your body is surprisingly smooth. I thought village girls barely bathed. Much less using soap" they made fun of her appearance despite complementing beforehand.
Nobara responded in annoyance to which the maids laughed. "We don't have time for chit chat girls. Let's hurry this up and present Ms. Kugisaki in front of the lords" the lead maid announced. Everyone adhered to her statement and hauled Nobara up the bath and into the dressing room. She is then dried off and placed into a shimmering gown of a kimono. The color starts off in sunset yellow and is slowly devoured by the color of red, similar to dawn. Gold leaves and roses are comfortably placed all around the bottom of the kimono and at her sleeves along with the borders. The waist is tight while the rest of the dress is flowy. The dress highlights her curves perfectly; the kimono is probably the only thing she won't complain about ever since she got here. They apply whatever makeup they could in the time they have and the hair is placed into a low bun. Nobara always was a rebellious child so having short hair was no issue to her. As for the maids however, they were annoyed at the effort it took to create a bun out of it. They bickered as they worked. She, on the other hand, admired their handiwork. Since her face is kept in one position to make it easier for them to work better, Nobara can only stare at the bottom of the mirror where gold jewelleries are laid in dozens. She almost cried looking at these priceless accessories. How much does this even cost? She pondered. It reminded her of her younger self, who would die for one of these ornaments. Coming from a poor family, she could only see these in magazines.
Nobara's thoughts are quickly interrupted when a gold fabric lace veil is placed on her head. "This is to cover your face before the lord can see you" one of the maids reassured her. Thinking it was crazy, Nobara was then rushed into the grand hall. It was hard to walk with all the weight of the garment and accessories; even her face felt heavy with make-up. Not to mention the veil made it difficult to see. But Nobara didn't care because dressing herself up was a routine back home. A lady can never have enough things.
The two doors are gracefully opened by the maids. What waited beyond the entrance, was Nobara's future husband-no-her ticket to becoming Tokyo's promising new fashion designer…
Note 2: Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. New chapter every Saturday (if I am not too lazy)!
