"Naki!" Suzuya said, scrambling over to his unwanted best man whom had just re entered the church. "Where have you been?"
The blond ghoul blinked. "Out for a walk."
The white haired man let out an exasperated sigh, and then tugged at a strand of hair. "Well, I'm getting married in five minutes!"
"Nervous?" the ghoul said, raising his eyebrows at the investigator.
Juuzou replied with a huff and adjusted his tux. Naki smiled a bit; it was odd to see this strange man in such formal attire. Naki looked around at his servants; they were filing out of the small rooms to take their places in the chapel.
"That tuxedo makes you look short," Naki commented innocently.
Suzuya flashed his best man an angry glare, but the ghoul did nit pick up on the groom's lack of satisfaction with his blunt comment. With one last adjustment of his bowtie, Juuzou strode into the main room of the church and took his place at the alter.
He could feel sweat beginning to wet his shirt, and butterflies did three sixties in his stomach. He clasped his hands behind his back and began to rock on his feet. Anxious, he scanned the crowd. All of his 'groomsmen' were seated in the front row of the left side of the church; Naki being sat nearest to him. Naki's male servants took up the rows of wooden benches behind their master. On the left were all the female servants. Suzuya recognized all of them from the mansion except one; the maid of honor. She was pretty; with a hime haircut and round eyes. She looked tired and weary. Much to the groom's surprise, a child that looked to be about a year older than his own children sat next to the tired looking woman. The child had light, ruddy-brown colored hair that came down to her shoulders and round eyes of the same color. She wore a white puffy dress, and was frowning and kicking her feet.
Juuzou turned his head away from the crowd and looked at the priest who was going to marry him and Eto. He was rather elderly; and looked, well, friendly. Like a nice old man. But he was a ghoul, and Suzuya knew it. And no matter how hard he tried, Juuzou could not purge himself of the thought of how many people this old priest had to have killed to live to the age he was now. Another thought sickened the investigator: it was his wedding and he was the only human present. It was wrong; so wrong. If he made someone mad; he could be devoured in an instant.
That thought made him even more nauseous than he already was, so Juuzou decided to instead focus on the church itself. It was simple, with a high ceiling and off white walls adorned by paintings of religious figures. The benches were old and wooden, and the altar was nothing fancy. Juuzou anxiously looked down the walkway where his soon to be wife would make her way to the alter.
He couldn't believe he was doing this. Marrying the One Eyed Owl. This was going against everything the CCG stood for. What he had stood for. He shouldn't be doing inside he knew that if he didn't, he would hate himself forever. Plus, he had children to think about.
Troublesome children. Suzuya wasn't worried much about Hitomi, she was steady as a hammer. Everyone knew right where she would be. Hitomi was a stay at home type of person; family was important to her. But Kaito on the other hand, when it came to family, he would never have any worry. He was the crooked kind.
Suddenly, noise from the crowd got the investigator's attention. His daughter stood at the end of the walkway. She was beaming, white curls flowing down in sharp contrast against her black dress. She carried a small weaved basket full of flower petal. Hitomi began to walk down the aisle— and was not dropping any petals. When she reached the front, Ju San got up, a look of annoyance on her face.
The servant whispered something to Hitomi, and the white haired girl ran back to the end of the walkway. Hitomi turned around and stood stationary. Ju San motioned for Hitomi to drop a petal. The child, eyebrows scrunched together in confusion, slowly dropped one petal onto the floor. She stood their like a statue, waiting for further instruction.
"All of them," Ju San called out to Hitomi.
Hitomi gave Ju San a blank look, and then turned over the basket, all of the petals falling in one spot on the floor. The servant groaned and hid her face in her hands, while the rest of the audience laughed. Hitomi, realizing her mistake, began to cry. She dropped her basket and ran down the aisle to Naki; climbing into his lap and hiding her face.
Organ music began to play, and a nervous lump formed in Suzuya's throat. Eto appeared at the end of the walkway, and she took Juuzou's breath away. Her dress was snow white and it flowed over her beautifully. Her usually wild hair was beautifully brushed, and her curls were tame. The half ghoul's face was hidden behind a veil.
She made her way to the alter with fluid grace, and, hands shaking, Suzuya pulled the veil back so he could see his beautiful bride. The priest started the opening remarks, and Juuzou droned them out. He focused on the beautiful woman in front of him.
"Your vows?" the priest asked.
"Yes," Suzuya said, stomach it knots. "Weddings have a lot to do with promises. And I cannot promise you a bright future. But I can promise you that I will be with you every step of the way. I cannot promise that you will be safe, but I promise that I will protect you as much as I can. I cannot promise that things will go well for us. Because one day, I promise you, we will meet on the battlefield. And I promise I will not harm you. Because I'm here to be your friend, your family, a father to our children, and your everything. You have my loyalty and my respect. And I love you. And I will carry you to the end. I promise."
There were tears in Eto's eyes, and she smiled.
The priest turned to Eto. "Your vows?"
"Suzuya, your beginnings were hell. Therefor, a vow to try to make the rest of life a bliss for you. I vow to help you love life and to make sure you will always have a reason to live. I will say the words you need, and say nothing when you you need to hear none. I will be patient and loyal in good and bad, night and day, smiles and tears, sickness and health, and death and life. I will remain by your side until I am no more. I promise you."
At that moment, Kaito proudly made his way down the aisle with the rings. He stopped at Suzuya's feet, and offered up the two rings.
"Here you go," he whispered.
Suzuya took Eto's ring and slid it gently around his bride's finger. "The owl."
Eto took the ring still on the pillow and slid it onto Suzuya's finger. "The dove."
"Juuzou Suzuya," the priest said. "Do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife until death do you part?"
"I do," he said, smiling at Eto.
"Eto Yoshimura, do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband until death do you part?"
"I do," she said, tears of joy streaming down her face.
"You may kiss the bride."
And that's what Suzuya did. As he kissed her sweet lips, a warm feeling spread over him. Something he hadn't felt for a very long time: happiness. And in that moment, Juuzou was home.