The wedding was small, only the small group and the priest were present to witness their union.
Their wedding night was pleasing in a strange and awkward way. Shiroko wore her nightwear and waited on his futon. Her hair was down and cascaded onto the blanket.
Jin entered the room and saw her waiting for him. 'Shiroko's hair is so long, maybe longer than I remember.'
Jin disrobed and Shiroko sat awkwardly unsure of how to act. 'I don't want to remind him of my time in the brothel, but I do wish to please him. Holy spirits! He's naked.'
He slid under the blanket of the futon and pulled the strings out of his hair. Shiroko looked away from him and bit her lip. 'If he wants me then he'll touch me, if not then…'
"Shiroko?" 'I recall how Shino felt after the brothel. Being touched was...not always pleasant for her. I doubt it is any different for Shiroko.'
"Yes?" she said, peering back at him with wide eyes. She couldn't help but smile, and she felt her face get red. 'Oh no! I'm blushing! He looks so amazing with his hair down and I just want to run my fingers through it!'
"If you don't feel comfortable I will understand."
Shiroko said. "Can I comb your hair?"
Jin was a bit thrown by this, but he said "Alright." It made her happy. Really happy. She got up and ran to her wooden box, laid near the wall. She pulled out a tortoise shell comb and was absolutely bubbly. She asked him to sit up and he did, pulling the blanket up over his lap. She sat behind him gently pulling the comb through his inky black tresses.
Jin was a little unsure of this, but he enjoyed it. He found it relaxing and even comforting. He missed Shino's quiet voice and her sad smile. As he thought of Shino he found that Shiroko seemed almost alien to him. He had known Shiroko longer, but he still felt she was a stranger in comparison.
Shiroko slowed the comb and felt the opposite. She put down the comb and stroked his head and shoulders. She leaned in closer and giggled. She was feeling playful. She noticed a concerned look in his eye before he blinked back to the present. She lay on her elbow next to him and they spoke.
Jin's legs shifted into a crossed-leg position under the blanket. He leaned forward on his elbows and looked at his new wife. She was dreamy eyed and couldn't help but shower him with compliments. Jin was not oblivious to how her nightwear was looser than before. Just one tug with his finger could pull that obi open. Her skin was teasing him from behind the white cloth.
He looked out the window as she spoke about Fuu and Muben's behavior at their wedding. She nudged him with her knee when she realized he wasn't listening. He looked back at her and instead of her gleeful eyes he saw a look of concern. She said "Jin, if this is too soon, I will understand. It's only been a week since she left."
He looked away and said "It was longer than this week that we were apart. Our relationship" his hair shimmered as he cocked his head up, searching for the right words. "was not what we thought it would be. Our dreams changed a while ago and our ideals parted along the way."
She sat up and observed the folds in the blanket. She said "Still, if you need time—" she stopped speaking when she felt his hand on her cheek. She looked up into his eyes and their eyes met. She was very aware now of how much skin she was showing. 'I don't get him at all! What is going on inside that head of his?'
"I have had all the time I need." Then he kissed her. Their passions kept them warm that evening, but the next day they were cold again. They would pillow intermittently, and certainly not always with that same amount of zeal. Shiroko felt she was simply doing a wifely duty at times. Jin may have gotten past losing Shino, but Shiroko was beginning to realize that this did not automatically make Shiroko the center of his affections.
Jin and Shirokowere both convinced this was a marriage not based on love, but on honor and respect. This did not stop Shiroko from trying her best to please him and to spark warmth and joy in his heart.
She was a dutiful wife and obeyed him without question. It wasn't difficult since he rarely gave her any commands. She got up early to prepare his breakfast and always made sure his supper was prepared when he came home from a job or a hunt.
She kept their house amazingly clean and spent hours dusting, beating the mats, and washing the kitchen. She prepared his bath often and made sure it was heated to his liking. She did whatever she could to make his days pleasant and his nights interesting.
Fuu and Mugen were still around helping out and earning their keep. Jin did not tend any fields, but the vegetable garden provided what they needed and there was plenty of fresh game to hunt in the fields. Mugen went into town occasionally and came back with some money to pay for odds and ends. No one questioned how he got the money and were sure they were somehow ill-gotten.
Shiroko would catch Jin chatting with Fuu about their adventures and wondering about what happened to the people they met along the way. Shiroko could tell from the look in Jin's eyes that he yearned for the freedom of traveling again, but he never spoke his desire out-loud. She could only guess from the wistful look in his eyes.
During a warm afternoon the group started to discuss what they wanted for their evening meal. Shiroko wanted to make special plum desserts. She asked Mugen if he could help pick some from the tree since he was taller than she. Jin watched the two walk out to the tree in the back of the house. Fuu said she joined Jin to watch them, but it was really so she could talk to him. "Jin?" she asked kind of absently as she looked at the orange glow of the sun setting.
"Hm?" he responded, keeping a sharp eye on Mugen with his wife.
"Don't you think you're lucky?" she said.
Jin took his eyes away from the criminal and his betrothed and looked at Fuu. He didn't say anything, but it was a signal he wanted to know more.
Fuu continued "You got a second chance."
"What do you mean?" he asked again.
As Fuu and Jin continued their serious conversation they were unaware of Shiroko's and Mugen's attempts at finding ripe fruit. Mugen hacked off a limb of the tree with his sword to get some ripe looking plumbs. When he didn't find any he just dropped it, unripe plumbs and all, on the ground. Fuu thought it best to ignore that and look at Jin.
Fuu said "Well, she knew you before you were you for cryin' out loud! Back when you were a kid and others took care of you and stuff. You can revisit that comfort with her."
Shiroko's bugging eyes expressed her fury with Mugen, but she calmed herself down and tried to explain to him how to tell if a plum was ripe for the picking or not in none too subtle language. She went back to checking on the delicate looking tree.
"Why would I do a foolish thing like that?" Jin asked.
Mugen tried Shiroko's way, but soon got frustrated with it and pulled out his sword again. Shiroko began to poke his chest with her finger and tried to emphasize the importance of not cutting off each of the limbs.
"Because it feels good, dummy!" said Fuu.
Mugen was not getting the point.
Jin said "Life is not about feeling good, Fuu. It's rare that we can feel such simple joys."
Shiroko grabbed Mugen's wrist and twisted it behind his back.
"That's why when you do feel good you should savor it and enjoy it! So when your remember it it's as vivid as yesterday! You don't have to work as hard since you're married to a living memory, who you can make more with!"
Jin considered her words as he examined the calluses on his hands. "Mmn" he said.
"I think it's great you're married to her now. She really loves you for you. Not because you've got those swords, or because you're really handsome, or because you're a man with a nice house. She loves you for you!"
"Mm" was all he said. He was still looking at his hands.
"Mm?" Fuu was getting frustrated. "Jin," She asked very delicately "do you love her?" He looked up at her and her rather brash question. When he didn't answer she said "She's such a good wife, and we never see you being affectionate, I was just wondering…"
"That is really none of your concern" he said hoping to end their little chat.
"Heck yeah it is!" Fuu snapped at him. "You're both my friends and I'm concerned about your happiness!"
Mugen yelled out from the pain of having his arm pinned behind him and Shiroko kneed him in the back. They fell to the ground under the tall grass.
Fuu and Jin's conversation came to a halt when they heard Shiroko yell out "YEAH? OH YEAH? PIGGY, HUH?"
"YEAH? AAAH!" screamed Mugen, obviously in pain. He couldn't strike her back since Jin would not hesitate in gaining vengeance. Mugen knew he couldn't take them both on.
"YEAH! I MAY BE A PIGGY, BUT YOU'RE A WORM! YOU KNOW WHAT WORMS EAT?" Jin and Fuu rushed down to the tree and saw Shiroko perched, as politely as she could be, on Mugen's back smashing is face in the dirt. "DIRT!"
"Grrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaah!" yelled Mugen "CRAZY PSYCHO-BITCH GET OFF!"
"WORMS EAT DIRT! GO ON MUGEN EAT IT! EEEEEEEEAAAAAAAT!"
Jin diffused the situation and allowed Mugen the first bath after dinner.
That evening Jin came to Shiroko's bedside to pillow. Afterwards Jin rose to return to his own room. "I'm sorry, Jin. I know that you will never love me and that your mind will always be on the road. You are a traveler at heart and desire to begin your journey again. I want you to be happy, and release you from your obligation to this marriage."
She bowed deeply and Jin said "It is not you who has bestowed this upon me. You cannot release me from this, nor do you need to worry about it." He did not seem bitter about it but Shiroko couldn't help but feel like she was a ball and chain on his leg.
The next day came and Fuu and Mugen decided to move on. They told Jin they were going to Nagasaki. "Why Nagasak?" asked Jin.
"Why not?" said Fuu in response.
'Ah yes, they are free to go where they please when they please' thought Jin. 'They have no obligations, but I have fulfilled mine.' The thought brought Jin some mild contentment. 'I am free to stay here.'
Fuu and Mugen said their goodbyes to Shiroko and thanked her for all the hospitality. Jin then left with Fuu and Mugen. He would walk them a certain distance down the road then return to his home.
Shiroko watched them walk down the dirt path towards the main road. Fuu turned around and Shiroko waved with a big smile. Fuu stopped intuitively feeling something dreadful was about to happen. She wasn't sure what, but she felt it in her bones. A worried look crossed her face.
Jin noticed the look and cocked a questioning eyebrow at her. She said "Oh…it's nothing" and returned to the path ahead of her.