There were no angel-winged flower girls, no red carpet, no fresh flowers, no wedding march…not even her dream wedding gown was used.

But as of tonight, she had officially taken Hiiragizawa Eriol's name.

Tomoyo looked at the glittering wedding ring on her finger. It was not the fire and ice arrangement she had originally dreamed of, but her groom wasn't in the mood to be bothered by trivialities like beautiful designs of jewelry. He got married to secure for himself a child that would legally carry his name.

She nervously darted her eyes towards his cold profile, trying to gauge his feeling regarding this whole matter. As usual, his face was bare of emotions. She silently wondered what pain he had suffered for him to master such talent of camouflaging his emotions so al"I seriously doubt you do."

He turned the steering wheel to the right, and she noticed that they had entered the Hiiragizawa compound. Her eyes widened.

"What are we doing here?" she asked, heart hammering.

"Dinner," he said dully. "If you're not hungry, well, not me." He killed the engine and unbuckled his safety belt. He got out of the car and went straight to the door, not even bothering to open the car door for her.

Her face warmed in humiliation as she got out of the car too. She had never been treated this shabbily in her life! She suddenly wished that she didn't come with him tonight. If only she told her mother about the circumstances instead of letting her pride get in the way, she wouldn't have to endure this kind of attitude from her…

…husband.

Her eyes returned to the jewelry that symbolized her legal and sacred bond to this man…this man whom she loved only because he was what she saw in her dream.

Indeed, everything seemed like one big joke.

And it was too late to back out. She was now married to him, from the moment the court judge gave them his blessings.

It was not her dream wedding, but at least she walked down the aisle. At least she won the battle of the biological clock.

"What are you waiting for, a formal invitation to let yourself in?" Eriol Hiiragizawa's mocking voice floated from the front door. His arms were crossed impatiently.

"C-Coming." She cursed herself for her momentary stammer. She shuffled towards him as he walked authoritatively towards the dining room. To her pleasant surprise, she found a familiar face waiting in the room.

"Ms. Tomoyo!" greeted the face warmly.

Her eyes crinkled into a smile, relieved to finally find a friend after the tension between her and Eriol. "Nakuru!"

"I'm so glad you'll be joining us for dinner tonight!" gushed Akizuki Nakuru, who hadn't seemed to age a day. "I knew I had to make tonight's dinner extra special! Good thing I followed my instincts!" She pinched Tomoyo's cheeks fondly, giggling. "You look so mature! And so lovely too!"

Tomoyo laughed shyly. "Um…yeah."

"Nakuru, let her sit down and eat. She might be yearning to eat already," instructed Spinel, rolling its eyes.

"Well, ok! I'm so glad you dropped by! It's not everyday that we have a guest join us here! I mean, the last time we did was when Mistress Kaho invited some of her friends over for—"

"That will be enough, Nakuru," cut Eriol in coldly. His voice didn't rise a decibel, but his razor-sharp tone made his servant obey promptly.

"K-Kaho? Kaho-sensei?" She couldn't suppress her curiosity. Why had she forgotten that the two left for London back when she was still in elementary? It should mean something, right? "W-Where is Kaho-sensei?"

"She died." Eriol refused to make eye contact.

"I…I…" She looked down, embarrassed. "I'm sorry." She knew how pathetic it sounded. Somehow, it didn't sound appropriate to say, and she knew Eriol knew that.

"Never mind."

She took another swallow of the chicken meat, but she had lost her appetite already. It was as if the mere mention of Mizuki Kaho's name changed the atmosphere of everything inside the house.

And then there was the matter of Nakuru calling her former teacher 'Mistress'. Should that mean something too?

"We can have your things transferred to your room tomorrow," Eriol was saying. "Tonight, you would have to be inconvenienced though. Please make do with Nakuru's pajamas. I'll buy you your other things tomorrow."

"Y-You mean to say…I will live here…with you?" she asked, voice laced with anxiety.

"Yes. All wives live with their husbands, don't they? Or do you have a slightly more liberal idea on your preferred living arrangement?" he asked sarcastically.

"Wife? Husband?" echoed Suppi.

"Oh, goody! You both got married!" said Nakuru cheerily. "Now our house will be less lonelier."

"Impossible!" sputtered the feline.

"Why should it be? They're both above legal ages already." She winked at Tomoyo. "Consenting adults, right?"

"Er…" Something sounded different with the way Nakuru said that.

"But Mistress Kaho—"

"Enough!" Now anger was visible in the pained blue eyes of Hiiragizawa Eriol.

She bit her lip. There it goes again, the mere mention of Kaho's name stirring emotions within him like an unpredictable volcano waking from its dormancy.

When he got up abruptly and headed for the bar where bottles of wines were displayed prominently, she made no more effort to ask him. She felt that she may be his wife in the eyes of law, but the fact didn't give her the access to his heart.

She was inwardly relieved when she realized that she and Eriol would be using separate rooms connected by a bathroom. Nakuru told her that this used to be the Music room of the house, but ever since Kaho died, the room had been converted to a mere guestroom.

Nakuru frowned thoughtfully. "I thought you guys were married."

"We are." She showed her the wedding ring.

"Nice. I like silver though."

Tomoyo laughed. "No. I mean, this ring proves that we are married."

"Oh. I thought you were just showing off your ring…"

She burst into more laughter. "Thanks, Nakuru."

"Sure. You're welcome. Anytime." The servant blinked. "For what?"

Shaking her head smilingly, Tomoyo began to unpack her things.

That night, she couldn't sleep. She had already informed her mother that she just got married that night, that she would be sleeping here in his house tonight, and that they would talk in the morning. Wrath was an understatement for her mother, but sensing her troubled voice, allowed her to sleep for tonight.

She strained to listen to the sounds next door, but apparently, Eriol had not gone to bed yet. She wanted to ask so many things to him, such as why Kaho's presence still affects this household so much. She could already foresee that making him answer was unlikely, but still, it was worth the try.

Then she heard the door of the next room open. Some deep heaved sighs.

The bathroom door opened, and the sound of the rush of running water filled her ears. Mutters of vulgar profanities reverberated too, making her wince. Now she knew that he was drunk. Dead drunk, in fact.

She heard the sound of the faucet being turned off. Sighing, she turned to her other side and forced herself to sleep, understanding that he wouldn't be in the mood for interrogations.

But then her side of the bathroom door opened.

She pretended to be asleep, to be unaware of his intrusion. She didn't know what to say to him anyway.

Maybe he just got out of the wrong side of the bathroom door, she told herself. I mean, there are two doors…the left and the right. And the ceiling must have confused him. Dear Lord, please let it be that he's not thinking of doing what is in my mind right now.

The whole evening, all in her mind was the abrupt wedding between them, but it didn't occur to her that she still had to handle his side of the bargain.

The child.

He wanted to seed a child in her.

She felt her bed shake with his weight, but she still continued her masquerade. Even when his fingers started to smooth her bangs and her cheeks, or when his wine-scented breath fanned her face.

"Did I wake you up?" he asked huskily.

She didn't reply.

"If I did, I would feel terrible then, waking an awake person up." His voice was laced with slight amusement and mockery.

She panicked. He knows I'm awake!

He chuckled, then planted feathery kisses all over her face, branding possession all over her. "Let's begin the consummation, shall we?"

Consummation. Her cheeks flamed.

She heard him chuckle some more, then felt his thumb gingerly brush her cheeks. "I promise…I'll be gentle," he assured her.

Her eyes flapped open. "W-Wait!" Her further protest was sealed by his hungry lips, sealing his promise of gentleness as well as he slowly fell on top of her.

Her body began to felt feverish. "W-Wait…" she moaned.

His heavy-lidded gaze fell on her face. "Oh no, don't tell me you forgot to say your bedtime prayer, sweet wife?"

"W-We need to…talk, you know."

"Right. About the bees and the flowers…" He smiled sleepily. "But not now…"

"Eriol-kun!" His face was lowering down to hers again. His mint-scented breath fanned her face once more. "Eriol-kun…" One minute, she was swimming with a turmoil of emotions, and the next thing she knew was she was falling into abysmal darkness.

She woke up the next morning groggily. It took her a minute to reorient herself before she remembered what happened last night. She quickly checked her body and was strangely confused when she felt that she was untouched.

"You fainted on me." Hiiragizawa Eriol's voice floated into the room. Dressed in his blue master's robe and clutching a roll of broadsheet, he looked every inch a husband. She had to smile at the thought.

"You look so happy about it," he said, a look of annoyance on his face. "You can't run away from your marital obligations forever, my wife. We had a deal, and I intend to keep it. I had given you my name, so you should give me what I bargained for."

Her smile vanished. Are we talking about the child here? Our future child? How can he talk so business-like about it as if it was just a product in a barter trade or something? Tomoyo raised her chin in angry defiance. "I will decide when I feel like it."

His eyes crinkled in fury. "I want a daughter as soon as possible. I do not have the time or the patience to live with your whims."

"If you wanted a child so much, you could have adopted—"

"I want to father my own child. And I married you because of that want, not so you can nag me or rebel at me."

"Well, tough luck. I'm not in the mood right now to f---, Hiiragizawa Eriol!" she yelled, now angry too.

"Who's talking about mood?" Before she could react, he grabbed her shoulder roughly and threw her on the bed. He fell on top of her, eyes blazing in anger.

"Get off—" His mouth devoured her lips in deliberate intention to hurt and shame her. He heartlessly bit on her soft lips, then proceeded to lick the blood that came out of it. The kiss was punishing her in a way passion dictated, and so, despite of her outrage, she felt herself responding urgently to him.

This seemed to pacify him, for she felt him pause, then slow down.

She felt him freeze.

"I don't…" She licked her swollen lips. "I don't want sex. I want to make love with you."

She heard him exhale sharply, muttering profanities. Finally, he untangled himself from her arms and pulled her up gently. And she, whose energy was sapped to its very last drop, fell on his chest, sobbing brokenly. She could feel his arms encircling her, bringing her closer to him. She was enveloped in his embrace.

"I'm sorry."

She was stunned. She looked up at him to make sure that she heard him right.

His face was dismally devoid of emotion. "I cannot give you what you want. I do not love you the way a husband should to his wife. You must understand that. This is all a marriage for convenience."

She didn't reply. She just listened.

"Do you want me to say that I love you? Would it make you feel better?" he asked.

She shook her head sadly. It was like handing her an umbrella right after she came into the house drenched from the rain.

"Then you must understand that in our marriage, the word 'love' is insignificant. In our world today, we need a lot of things. Money, companionship, and pleasure, but not always love. At least, practical people opt to do that."

She nodded quietly.

"But I guess it still is not reason enough to force myself on you." He sighed. "But you must promise me, you will give me a child. I want it as soon as…as soon as you're ready." He smoothed her hair with his palm. "Just try not to wear my patience down. I often get very…ah…irrational and imprudent with my actions, you see."

"'Kay," she said weakly, then smiled at him. "But perhaps, you can start calling me by my first name already?"

"Only if you promise not to faint on me the next time we get intimate," he said, smiling a little.

Her cheeks reddened.

Nakuru passed by the library and saw Spinel engrossed in a book about nature conservation. Something then entered her mind. "Hey Suppi! Do you know that Master Eriol is concerned about the environment too?"

The feline groaned. "What made you think that?"

"Well, last night, I could hear him in the kitchen with his wine, muttering over and over that, 'She's a virgin! Damn it! Lord, save her from myself!'" Nakuru smiled. "I knew he had a thing for virgin forests, but getting drunk over it?"

Spinel groaned and found itself wishing that if there really was a God, He should have given Ruby Moon at least a micro-inch of a brain cell.

To be continued…