Shuichirou smiled when he saw Sakuno looking curiously to his horse. The animal was inside a small fence, drinking water. It was morning and he was going to feed him grass.
"Did you ever see a horse before?" he asked gently and it startled her a little. The mermaid shook her head negatively. "Come, he will not harm you."
Shuichirou put some food on her hands and the horse came, eating gently. Sakuno giggled, happily and she touched his head.
"You are so beautiful." It was a black horse with a white front. She looked at Shuichirou with a smile. "Thank you."
"We were not properly introduced. I am Oishi Shuichirou. Nice to meet you."
"Ryoma told me. You are Kaori-san's husband."
"I am sorry for what my wife said yesterday. It was wrong. I hope you can forgive her."
"Why does she hate me?" her voice was sad.
"She does not hate you, Sakuno-san." He said, kindly.
"So why was she so mad?"
"She has always been very protective of Ryoma and she also feels responsible for Muramasa. She is just… worried."
"You two could live here with us." She smiled. "Ryoma would be happy."
"Unfortunately things are not so simple." The green eyes were gentle. "But, I must admit the idea of living in such a beautiful place is very nice."
##########
Ryoma smiled seeing them talking, before turning around and walking towards his sister's tent. Kaori was there, watching the sea. He came close with small pieces of cake he had bake and sat by her side. She continued to observe the waves, not paying attention to him.
"I just made this with some berries Sakuno collected on the forest near here. Do you want some?"
"Did you change your mind about going back with me?"
"No."
"I do not want your cake, thank you." He took a deep breath and continued to sit by his sister's side.
"After all this time, you are finally here." He said, quietly. "I always thought about you. I always wanted to know if you were okay."
"All this time, you did not even send me a letter, at least to tell me you were alive."
"I am sorry. But I was afraid Ren would intercept the letter and would hurt you." she finally looked at him, the pink eyes filled with tears.
"I looked everywhere for you. I offered a reward for anyone who could tell me anything on your whereabouts."
"Kaori…"
"You are my little brother and I was not able to protect you. I hope you can forgive me someday."
"It was not your fault." He held his sister's hand. "Ren was the one who hurt me."
"I have missed you so much." Her forehead touched his chest. "That place was so lonely without you."
"I have missed you too." He hugged his sister. "And, congratulations on your wedding. Shuichirou-san told me yesterday. I am glad you two got back together."
"I am glad he did not give up on me." She showed a little smile. "Ryoma, can I ask you something?"
"Sure."
"About the mermaid…"
"Her name is Sakuno." He corrected her.
"About Sakuno-san, are you really sure you want to be married to her?"
"Of course I am." He said, seriously. "I love her, Kaori. I have never been more certain of something in my life. You know me."
"So, are you going to be living here with her, for the rest of your days?"
"Yes." Ryoma showed his sister a small smile, but she knew it was genuine. "I am fine with it. As long as Sakuno is with me."
"You really happy, right?"
"I am. I hope you can understand that. Sakuno is not fit to live in a city. She needs to stay near the ocean all the time, otherwise her legs hurt and it is really painful. She also does not understand some human things very much, she is still learning. When I first found her, she could not even speak."
"I see. I wonder what Chichiue would say if he met her. He was fascinated by mermaids." She rubbed her brother's dark hair. "You really are his son."
"You could stay, Kaori. We could build a house for you and Shuichirou-san. It is a good life here. When winter comes and if you think it is too difficult, there is a city just two days away and…"
"I cannot, Ryoma." She replied, sadly. "I am sorry. I have to find a solution to Muramasa even if you do not help me. I just… cannot go on with my life knowing I abandoned Chichiue's state."
"But it is not your obligation."
"It is." She took a deep breath. "I will think about something. I just need some time."
"You and Shuichirou-san can stay as long as you want."
"Thank you."
"Kaori?"
"Yes?"
"Thank you. For helping Sakuno. For making it possible for us to meet."
"I am sorry for the way I talked about your relationship. I will ask her forgiveness later."
"I appreciate it."
###########
Since they made up, Kaori finally agreed to stay at Ryoma's place. He offered their room to them and he and Sakuno moved to the back porch. Since it was spring, the temperature was cool and pleasant. And, both of the newlyweds couple could have some privacy.
It was already late at night when Ryoma woke up and realized he was alone on bed. He found Sakuno by the beach, her feet being washed by the tides and her scarlet eyes were lost somewhere beyond the horizont.
"Is something wrong? Are your legs hurting?" he asked, by her side.
"No." she continued to focus on the ocean. "They are singing."
"They?" he tried to listen something, but he could only hear the soft winds.
"The mermaids. Far away."
"You can listen to them?!"
"But I cannot understand them. Remember when I told you I had found them with little ones once?"
"Yes."
"There were a lot of them on a rock on the sea. They were feeding their babies and singing to them. There is probably a group doing it right now somewhere."
Ryoma watched his wife's expression and it was a mixture of curiosity and longing. He held her hand and she finally looked at him, like waking up from a trance.
"Ryoma?"
"Do you wish to go after them?" the golden eyes were aphrensive. "Do you wish to leave?"
"Not at all." She smiled gently at him. "I just…found it beautiful."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes." Her hands cupped his face. "The only place I wish to be is here by your side, Ryoma."
His heart was at peace with her sweet words and he hugged her tightly.
Sakuno giggled and hugged him back.
"But… can I try something?"
"What is it?" he looked at her.
"There is a song I carry inside of me, for a long time already."
The mermaid got away from his embrace and entered a little more inside the water.
She took a deep and long breath before starting to sing.
"Why do you want to forget?
Please, try to remember,"
I wish as as warm tears
flow down my cheeks
Why, as we tremble,
do we now seek each other out?
Because I want to hold you over and over
in my embrace
The feather that drifts on the waves of
this blue planet's ocean;
the sorrow of its fading
is a prayer to tomorrow
Blue Flow"
Ryoma was completely astonished. Her voice was powerful, but very gentle still, reaching him to his core. People used to say the mermaid's singing could easily allure any men and Ryoma understood those legends. It was simply magnificent.
"On a night when the moon rises
Look, the sky of your dreams
casually beckons you to
the other side of fate"
The young human felt incredibly touched by his wife's song and he could feel the golden eyes watering with tears. She moved her hands over her heart and closed her eyes.
"While still lost,
I tried calling out to you, just now
I want to be sure of the heart
that only you possess
The times you look at the pale stars
and think that you're lonely;
I want to become the kindness
that takes the pain from those thoughts
Blue Flow"
The soft light of the waning moon was over her figure and she continued to be there, with closed eyes and a small smile on her face, listening to the songs of her kin.
Ryoma realized there was a type of solitude on her that, even with all his love, he would never be able to erase completely and things he would never fully understand. But then, Sakuno touched his face and kissed her husband so tenderly that made him even more determinate to give her nothing but extreme happiness to the end of his days.
While they returned to their home, holding each other, they didn't notice Ren's guard watching them from afar. The man turned around and started to ran back to his horse that was hiding some meters away. He needed to tell the Muramasa's lord that his precious mermaid was now in the arms of his brother.
Author's note: the song Sakuno is singing is the ending of Haibane Renmei (Blue Flow)