In the palm of his hand lay a ring. A diamond perched atop the ring, flanked by two, deep black onyx stones perfect in every detail. Kenshin gently propped the stunned Karou against the dojo wall, and bent down on one knee, the ring in his extended hand and said "Miss Karou, will you do the honor of marrying Sessha?" Karou gaped at the ring, and choked out "H-how?" Kenshin never moved his hand, but settled into a more comfortable position and said "I paid for it with my own money; remember when I took all those side jobs and came back late so many nights? That all went to pay for this. Now, will you do the honor of marrying Sessha?" Karou nodded, her eyes sparkling with unshed tears as Kenshin gently slipped the ring on her finger, then reached up and gently cupped her chin with his hand and leaned in… When Sano, who was significantly sobered up and getting slightly angry, banged at the dojo door, calling out "Missy? Kenshin? Open up - I'm sorry about what happened earlier, but that's no reason to lock me out!" Kenshin looked at Karou with regretful eyes, then looked over towards the gate and called out cheerfully "Just a minute Sanosuke!" With a mischievous look in his eyes, he leaned down to Karou and whispered something in her ear.
Whatever it was, it made Karou laugh and giggle helplessly at it. But she nodded, then got up and hurried inside to retrieve something. Kenshin walked slowly to the gate, and leisurely opened it, revealing a very irate Sanosuke. Kenshin stepped back to let him in, and Sanosuke stomped inside, slamming the gate behind him. With a graceful leap, Kenshin ran and jumped up to Sanosuke's neck and soundly hit the base. He landed with ease as Sano crumpled to the ground, and Kenshin grabbed around his waist and with the aid of Karou, managed to drag the ex-gangster into Karou's room, where the fun would begin.
With a glint of revenge in her eye, Karou placed her make-up supplies, an altered kimono, an obi, and several other objects near Sanosuke, and as she began to "work" upon Sanosuke, giggles were heard, and two heads turned in unison to stare at the door. Somehow, little Ayame and Suzume had gotten dropped off here, and too late did Kenshin and Karou remember that they were supposed to baby sit. "Why is Uncle Sano on the ground? Is he taking a nap?" asked Suzume curiously, looking from Sanosuke to Kenshin, to Karou doubtfully. It was Karou that saved the plan by saying "Well Suzume, Uncle Sano wanted to play dress up! Will you two play it with us?" Both girls nodded eagerly, and Karou motioned them over, with Kenshin chuckling at the fate of Sanosuke.
"Wake up Sanosuke - c'mon, its time to awake." A voice called through the gray fog, and Sanosuke slowly came to, groaning at the pain he felt at the base of his neck. He woke to the smiling faces of Suzume and Ayame sitting on his legs, when he realized both his hands and feet were tied, he was gagged. Ayame smiled sweetly, and chirped eagerly "Uncle Sano! Auntie Karou and Uncle Kenshin said that you're playing dress up! Is that true?!" Sano's eyes widened in aghast horror, as he realized that he was dressed up as a woman! He could feel the stiffening of something on his face, and tried to recall what that was…it had to be wedding paint, for nothing else would dry like that… And was that an obi around his waist? Sanosuke struggled helplessly against his bonds, and Ayame spoke up, saying "Uncle Sano, will you take us into town?" and gazed at him with imploring eyes. One of Sanosuke's greatest weaknesses was those eyes; those eyes that could get them anything! Karou stepped up and removed Sanosuke's gag, and began to remove his bonds on his hands and feet while Suzume and Ayame pounded him with "Can we go? Can we go? Can we go?" To stop the torrent of questions, Sanosuke reluctantly nodded, but Karou held up a hand and remarked, "First before you guys go, we have to do Uncle Sano's hair!" Sanosuke gaped at her, and Kenshin's chuckles turned into wild laughter as Suzume and Ayame began to brush his hair. Between the four of them, they quickly got Sano's hair into a decent lady's style (thanks to some mud and combs) and Sanosuke left, a girl on each hand pulling him. Kenshin finally stopped his laughter, and held Karou close as they watched Sanosuke leave the dojo, when Karou murmured quietly, "I hope its not going to be like this every day from now on…" Kenshin just smiled and planted a kiss on her cheek and said "Maybe not koshii, maybe not".