Chapter 03 | The Ceremony
The situation was better described as a discussion, but Izuna called it an argument when he called Madara over from the hallway. He said, "Madara, help me settle this argument with Mio," despite it not being confrontational. Mio attempted to correct him several times because the wording could easily be misunderstood, but Izuna purposely interrupted her until his brother joined them inside the room.
"It's odd to find you two arguing," Madara said with an expression to match.
"It isn't an argument," Mio clarified for the umpteenth time. She and Izuna weren't the type that argued. "It's a discussion."
"Look, we were talking about the Climate Sphere," Izuna said, breezing past her obvious concern. "You see, we have a backyard full of Kuronuma terrified of the winds and allergic to the sun—"
"They are not allergic to the sun—"
"Mio, it was hot for like one second yesterday and about fifty Kuronuma succumbed to heat stroke," Izuna interrupted. "You looked about ready to melt into the ground. You saw her, didn't you, brother?"
"You spent hours sitting in iced water with Takuto," Madara added with a nod. "So, how did the Climate Sphere come up?"
"I was remembering Mt. Hyōga last night and all the stories I heard around the Kuronuma about how they lived in this perfectly icy wonderland undisturbed," Izuna started. "It got me thinking about your upcoming wedding and all the anxiety going on between you that someone is going to be stupid enough to attack. I cannot stand telling either one of you how stupid that sounds. We have a backyard full of Kuronuma! We have a whole backyard full of Kuronuma willing to set aside their pacifism in the case of an unlikely attack. There will be more shinobi at this wedding reception than non-shinobi. You are going to be there, I'm going to be there, Mio is going to be there. Saori, Takuto, even Nako is going to be there. Only someone with an obvious death wish would try to attack."
"We cannot say there isn't anyone stupid enough to avoid attacking us on that day," Madara said reasonably, despite Izuna's aversion to the response after his rant. "I do agree, however, that if it were to occur, we would be perfectly capable of fending for ourselves."
"And yet, Mio remains paranoid, despite Yayoi having forecasted a good day for weddings," Izuna said pointedly.
Mio remained silent because she was feeling a bit paranoid. It might have had everything to do with the wedding being in a few days and she was making excuses to see it postponed. She wasn't afraid of marrying Madara. She wanted to. She didn't expect it happen this quickly, though, but she didn't have any complaints in formally beginning their lives together. The rushed ceremony had many people anticipating an announcement shortly after, but it would be one they wouldn't be receiving as pregnancy had nothing to do with the quick wedding. Sachiyo had simply waited long to see it happen, far before Madara and Mio ever thought it possible, and as her health steadily deteriorated, she wanted to see them married.
"And how did the Climate Sphere come into the conversation again?" Madara asked, drawing Mio's attention from her thoughts.
"The Kuronuma clan used the Climate Sphere to protect themselves up in their mountain," Izuna replied, "And I figured that we should make use of it. It might help kill Mio's paranoia. She's very difficult to work with in this state. She doesn't sit still."
In that same moment, Mio realized she was pulling apart the threads at the bottom of her sleeve and stopped. She stared at the brothers, seemingly innocent.
"Do you see that?" Izuna demanded, pointing at her. "The kimono maker has to refit her robes this afternoon and she's got to stand still, else he won't fit them properly."
"I will stand still!" Mio argued. "I promised not to waste his time, didn't I?"
"If activating the Climate Sphere will bring you some form of peace, you should do it," Madara told her.
"That's the problem," Izuna cut in, silencing her before she had a chance to protest the idea, "She doesn't want to activate it. She says it's an abuse of power."
Madara looked upon her for an explanation.
"It is clearly an abuse of power," Mio said. "The Kuronuma clan activated the Climate Sphere because they wanted to protect the secret of Kiyohime's Artifacts by secluding themselves. This is a wedding. It wouldn't be for any particular benefit apart from alleviating some of my paranoia. Despite that, the protection can easily be dispelled. I don't know my way around the sphere, not like my great-grandfather, who managed to create other traps within it, so I can't even guarantee we'll be all around safe."
"I argued that she would be protecting everyone from the threat of attack if that threat existed, thus not being an abuse of power, rather a precaution."
Madara stayed quite for some time, forming an opinion on the matter. "I agree with Izuna, it would be more of a precaution," he said. "You should consider activating it."
"But it wouldn't be fair to everyone unaccustomed to cold weather," she expressed. "The strongest season in the artifact is winter and it is the only one that would provide us with a good defense, but it is also the harshest."
"We can just warn everyone," Izuna said. "We can give them time to accommodate before you activate it."
"Are things settled then?" Madara asked. "Activate the Climate Sphere as soon as you inform everyone within its range."
Mio nodded.
She felt a little reluctant about activating the Climate Sphere because she didn't know how to use it as well as she'd like. She'd been practicing with the Vision Sphere, a peculiar artifact that used guilt as a weapon to trap people inside its jagged blade, and had given little time to the Climate Sphere, a round, frosty orb that was said to be the eye of a dragon.
"Just about," Izuna answered, rising from his seat. "I'm going to start warning everyone." He glimpsed at Mio. "Are you coming, Mio?"
Madara excused himself shortly after the discussion had been settled.
It took two days to prepare everyone for a drastic drop in temperature, but once they had and some of the protestations had died down as well, Mio dug a hole in the middle of the Uchiha clan's territory to bury the glowing orb after activating it. The snowstorm emerged from the center like a geyser of ice bursting through a crack, shooting straight into the sky inviting dark clouds, and spread throughout the perimeter of the clan's vast territory, engulfing their village and the surrounding greenery.
Snow fell upon the Uchiha's territory for the first two days, falling gracefully upon the grass and carried onto their verandahs by the gusts until there was a need to sweep it off. The third day brought a blizzard that shuddered through their homes, forcing everyone that once stared at the sight in wonder indoors to sit by a fire. The children were frightened, linking the rattling of the shoji to their scariest nightmare arriving to take them. Even Yayoi complained about the ruckus, but she especially threw a fit about the cold, which prompted her genius idea to find a Kuronuma to sleep next to. Nobody wanted to be Takuto in the moment Yayoi asked if she could room with him, sporting a beautiful smile while doing so.
Everyone knew Yayoi was a worse sleeper than Madara. While Mio had often woken up on to find herself kicked out of the futon, stripped of the blankets, smacked in the face (granted, it only happened once and Madara apologized, having woken immediately), or crushed underneath Madara's weight on several occasions, it was not nearly as bad as Yayoi's snoring. The beautiful priestess snored like an old dog with a bad cough. Her habit of doing so had gotten her a room downstairs on the other side of the house because it was so loud and kept everyone awake.
With the fourth day came the calm. Once the Climate Sphere had covered every inch of the Uchiha clan's territory with snow, Mio knew they were protected so long as no blood was spilled upon it. Violence was the weakness of the Climate Sphere.
Mio stood learning against one of the wooden posts in the verandah and stared out beyond the forest behind Sachiyo's home. Her heart remained unsettled.
Mio experienced a nightmare that left her shaken. As she sat atop her futon, the blankets piled on her lap, it felt like her heart would burst out of her chest. She held the Time Sphere to her cheek, taking several deep breaths before the artifact's cool surface reminded her that it had been a dream. It had given her a little peace.
Madara was lying asleep beside her with his arm draped across her lap, breathing softly. She moved out from underneath his arm as careful as possible and left the room, ambling through the house. She went from one room to the next, starting with the twins' bedroom, finding them perfectly safe and asleep. She slid apart Takuto's room, managing to wake him and Yayoi, both peered up at her from their futon, groggy.
"Is something wrong?" Takuto asked. "Do you have another fever?"
"Someone better be dying!" Yayoi complained. "The sun isn't even up!"
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Mio said quietly, starting to slide the room shut. "Go back to sleep."
She scrambled to Nako's room, then Saori's, continued to Sako's downstairs. She ran to Sachiyo's and Kana's bedrooms, receiving moody or confused glares along the way from everyone she woke, until she made it to Izuna's room. He sleepily turned over his futon, squinting at the door.
"Mio? What're you doing here?" he asked sleepily. "Did Madara kick you out? It's okay, you can sleep here."
"I'm sorry for waking you, go back to sleep," she said quietly, pulling on the shoji screen to slide it close.
"No! Wait!" Izuna sat up, kicking his covers off.
Mio stopped, watching him make his way to her. He put his hands on her shoulders and turned her around to lead her down the hallway to the staircase. Izuna quietly returned her to her room. He pulled her covers back, shoving Madara out of the way, and waited for her to slip in before he squeezed in between her and his brother to her surprise.
It took her several minutes for her to realize he had been sleepwalking, especially when he had mistaken her for Madara and shoved her away, turning over to drape his arm over his brother. She tried calling out to them to wake them, but it didn't work. She chose to leave them and slept in Izuna's room, though she had not been able to sleep, not after waking from that nightmare.
Mio struggled to explain the situation to Kana, who had worriedly decided to check up on her and found Madara and Izuna holding one another, clearly mistaking each other for someone else. Unable to pass up the opportunity, Kana had woken them to laugh, which she had and attracted more attention to the situation, making it worse, particularly in her inability to explain what she had seen without laughing.
When word of Izuna accidentally slipping into Madara and Mio's room had reached Sachiyo, she had forbidden any mention of it as it was the day of the ceremony and she wanted nothing to ruin it, though that barely stopped anyone from bringing it up.
Mio paced anxiously, scratching at the reddening flesh of her arm. She had asked Yayoi to peer into the Fate Sphere to search for some form of justification for the dread that had assaulted her the instant she opened her eyes that morning. She had not been able to shake it.
"So, you are not secretly taking on another husband?" asked Yayoi jokingly, glimpsing at her from the giant scroll on the table. "Because I can change the ceremony and have Takuto find another Kuronuma Tree."
"That was an accident!"
"You could have woken them up, Mio," Yayoi said.
"But they've been working so hard, I didn't want to disturb them."
"Well, I have your compassion to thank. I've never laughed this hard before in my life." She laughed a little then, searching the glowing lines of Mio's branching pathways for an explanation to Mio's dread. Once she finished looking, she lifted her eyes to Mio. "There's nothing here that could present any issue. Maybe you're just really nervous."
"I am nervous."
Yayoi stood. "I'm going to ask Kana to make you some passionflower tea. It should help relax you." Scrunching up her nose at her, she added, "You definitely need relaxation."
Once the priestess left, Mio sank to her knees in front of the Fate Sphere and saw through her bloodline for an accurate reading, but found that the day would go smoothly. However, she remained unconvinced.
Mio drank two cups of passionflower tea before it relaxed her enough to start dressing into her bridal robes with Saori's help. Yayoi and Takuto were in the wide hall inside Sachiyo's house dealing with last minute preparations. Mio had seen the room after it had been decorated to resemble the interior of a temple. It had an altar for a small golden statue of the Horned God of Unity. The first known practitioner of the Motou religion had been Kiyohime. She had created ten artifacts where each sphere represented one god of which there were ten main gods (and several lesser ones). In terms of artifact, The Horned One was represented by the Life Sphere, which Saori held.
The statue had been surrounded by blood red flowers dotted with white chrysanthemums. There had been candles burning, all strategically placed, and it had smelled of incense—a light intoxicating scent that had made her feel at peace. Yayoi claimed that had been the point of the incense, so Mio had congratulated her on accomplishing it, which had earned her a disapproving frown.
Mio wondered if she had sounded sarcastic while she remembered the conversation, Saori tucking one side of the robe over the other and smoothing out the creases. Saori reached around to tie a thin sash to keep her underclothing in place before walking back to the remaining layers of her outfit. Mio vividly recalled the atmospheric room with intrigue, filled with the pale, orange spheres of dancing flames that cast shadows along the walls, heavily scented with flowers and black cherry incense. The Kuronuma Tree had sat at the center of the altar, standing proudly with its thin limbs extending up to the ceiling as if in praise.
Saori hoisted the silk, white robes over Mio's back and beckoned Yayoi to help. Yayoi folded the robes one side over the next, pulling at the collar to make sure it remained straight and without a crease, while Saori began tying her obi, tugging hard to tighten it around her waist.
"How nervous are you?" asked Yayoi, looking Mio in the eyes.
"How is Madara?" Mio blurted, her heart hammering in her ribcage. She ran her hand down along her sleeve, enchanted by the beauty of the pattern, faint against the beautiful white silk.
"Madara is not important at this moment!"
"There is no need to shout, Yayoi," said Saori, peering up at Mio with a calming smile. "Mio is only asking for him because he calms her."
"I can go see him if it would make you feel better," Yayoi said. "Yes?"
Mio nodded. "But I want to see him."
"Not until your hair has been fixed," Saori stated. "Fetch Nako for me on your way."
Yayoi nodded, running out of the room, shouting, "I'll call her first!"
"You are a little tense," Saori said, patting the obi. "There we go, we're done."
"Yes," she admitted. "The tea helped, but I can't stop myself from thinking."
"You think something will happen?" asked Saori. "Something grave?"
"Yayoi has not seen anything in the Fate Sphere, this day is a good day," Mio divulged, wishing she could believe that everything would be fine, "but I have an ache in my bones and I—"
Saori covered Mio's hands with her own and smiled sadly. "Like one of your Guardians is in danger?"
"I can't leave to make sure Hashirama and Tobirama are well," she said worriedly. "I haven't heard from them in several weeks, anything could have happened, and they're my responsibility, too. I made them Guardians and if any one of my Guardians is in danger, it's my fault because I chose them."
"I can go in your place," Saori replied, squeezing her hands in reassurance. "It isn't far from here and I am well enough acquainted with Hashirama that my presence before him won't be viewed as a threat despite the Ito clan's alliance with the Uchiha clan."
"But the ceremony?"
"After the ceremony," Saori proposed. "I will go then. It will be a secret between the two of us."
Mio embraced Saori and thanked her beneath her breath when Nako entered. "I'm here for your hair, Mio!" she announced joyfully, pulling up a box. "I've brought all your hair accessories." The redhead dropped her eyes to the wooden box in her hands. "I actually didn't expect you to have so many."
Saori moved out of the way to observe as Mio sat, allowing Nako to stand behind her. She brushed the knots from her hair, smoothing it out to sit in shallow, glossy waves before she started to style it into an up-do. Once Nako had tucked the loose strands from her way, pulling them back and clipping them down, she put two silver kanzashi into her hair, one that cascaded with interconnected links that shimmered under the light and another in the shape of a flower.
Yayoi poked her head inside the room, pausing a moment as her eyes fell on Mio. "Oh, Mio, you look beautiful!" she said, then stuck her thumb out at Nako in approval. "Good going, Nako! You style hair like a beast with a vengeance!"
Nako proudly mirrored the gesture, huffing. "Of course, my lady priestess!"
"Well, did you get Madara or not?" Saori asked, startling Yayoi.
"Oh yes, he's outside." Yayoi pushed the door open to reveal Madara, who stood dressed in black, traditional robes. The priestess gestured him in. "Come in, Madara-sama."
Madara rolled his eyes as he entered, his gaze fixed on Mio's face as she rose from her seat.
"We'll give you some privacy," Saori said, pushing Yayoi out of the room, despite the reluctant protest, and grabbed a hold of Nako, steering her outside with her. Saori shut the doors tight behind her.
"Yayoi is worried you might scratch your skin off," Madara said, crossing the short distance between them to stand in front of her. "Are still worried about something going wrong?"
"Always." Mio found herself a little distracted by the fact that Madara's hair had been cut and tamed, as much as possible. It fell past his shoulders, but only slightly. He noticed the attention in her eyes.
"Grandmother's work," he told her. "She went after Izuna as well, cut his whole ponytail off. She wanted us to look presentable for once."
She laughed, surprising herself after having spent the greater portion of the morning dreading the unknown. His hands came up to rest on her cheeks, lifting her face upward. She panicked, grabbing hold of his hands knowing Yayoi would be upset if she found someone had been touching her face after she'd forbidden it. The priestess had worked hard to accomplish a natural blush on Mio's cheeks, a light lip color to draw out the shape of her lips, and had drawn a thin, black line along her eyes to draw attention to them. She'd spent an hour forbidding everyone from touching her face, certain they'd ruin all of her hard work.
Madara's hands were on her face and his mouth was pressed against hers, the action, despite being brief, made Mio's hands weaken against his. She'd forgotten about Yayoi for a split second and all the warnings she'd stressed.
"You heard Izuna, nobody would be stupid enough to attack us on our wedding day," he said near her lips. "We should trust his word. We also have the Climate Sphere. We'll be fine."
Her heart continued its nervous drumming. She couldn't shake the feeling, but the constant reassurance did ease it. "Okay," she begun, pulling away from him to reach a row of drawers sitting against the wall. "I want you to take the Vision Sphere for the day."
"That's not necessary."
Mio tugged out the dagger from the top drawer. Since Uchiha Taiga passed away, she had not assigned it to another person to guard and kept it with her at all times. She thrust the sheathed weapon into Madara's hands with a pleading look. "It will make me feel better if you do."
Madara hesitated a moment, but ultimately tucked the dagger through his sash and returned his hands to her face, running his thumbs across her cheeks. "You look beautiful, Mio."
Blood rushed to her face as she covered his hands with her own.
"Any other precautions you want to take?" he asked.
With Saori promising to check on the Senju brothers on her behalf, she felt a little calmer and shook her head in response to his question before kissing him chastely.
Madara exited.
Saori reentered with Nako and Yayoi in tow, the two sporting frowns.
"They wanted to eavesdrop," Saori explained.
"You did a good job killing that dream," Nako said huffily.
Yayoi folded her arms over her chest with a firm nod.
"This one tried to bribe me," Saori said, setting her hand atop the priestess' shoulder. "It was quite amusing. She promised me a trunk full of jewelry."
"It was a perfectly adequate deal," Yayoi said without shame.
"I simply do not understand this obsession with overhearing all private conversations," Saori remarked disapprovingly.
Nako and Yayoi stared at her with big, sparkling eyes, as if begging to be forgiven.
Saori caved. "I supposed you cannot help yourself." She moved towards the priestess. "You should go finish preparations with Takuto and put on your robes."
"I can help you if you'd like," Nako offered. "I am done with Mio and Saori and I are already in our best kimono."
Nako and Saori were both dressed in silk, furisode kimono lightly pattered at the bottom to suit the wintry weather. Nako's was a dark blue with hints of green. She wore her vibrant red hair in a modest twist atop her head, pinned by a silver tama kanzashi with a red bead at the end. Saori dressed in dark red with white and her brown hair woven into a loose braid across her shoulder.
"I would be grateful if you could," Yayoi told her, before her eyes went to Mio, narrowing as she scanned her face in search for something she couldn't quite place. Mio hoped she hadn't noticed. "Are you planning to wear the Time Sphere and that ratty bracelet to your wedding? I can get you better jewelry. A bride and groom in my faith are usually covered in jewelry. The weight is symbolic to the responsibility they are undertaking."
Mio shook her head, frowning at the "ratty bracelet" comment. The bracelet in question had been a gift from Madara, one he sent to her via bird. It had nearly startled her to death when the giant hawk had landed on her with a scroll in its beak. It had arrived a few days after her nineteenth birthday. Madara had bought the trinket from a traveling merchant in the Wind Country when he'd been trying his hand at negotiating alliances. The bracelet consisted of several red strings, some braided, other corded, and the rest sitting loosely between the different styles. Tied at the back of her wrist, the ends of the ties were wooden beads that fell across the top of her palm. She never took it off, same as the Time Sphere.
"No, these alone are fine," Mio said, and then stopped Yayoi before she headed for the door. "And Yayoi, please keep your artifact with you at all times."
The priestess went to the table and picked up her artifact, nodding.
Looking to Nako, Mio added, "Make sure to stay near any one of my Guardians for the rest of the day."
"Got it!" Nako replied, saluting her. "Let's go, Priestess-sama."
Yayoi and Nako exited the room, giggling excitedly.
"They certainly get alone well," Saori observed.
"I'm glad," Mio said, smiling. "Nako was worried she wouldn't be able to make any good friends here."
Saori grinned. "She's a lovely girl."
Mio nodded.
"So, do you feel better? Would you like something to eat? Drink?" asked Saori as she reached her side.
"No, I'm not hungry, but I do feel better, thank you."
Saori stayed in Mio's company, speaking with her in a way that further dispelled her worries and anxiety, until Takuto and Yayoi appeared to fetch her for the ceremony. Takuto helped Mio onto her feet as Yayoi and Saori smoothed out her robes. Takuto was dressed in white trousers under a loose fitting, sleeveless shirt and a haori he tied together with a white sash at the waist.
Yayoi donned her robes, blood red in color and loose, made of a silk that flowed like water to the ground. Her black hair had been braided into small plaits along her head until they met with a high ponytail held together by a silver band studded with tiny red gems. The rest of her hair fell straight to her back with a few tiny braids woven in between. She clanked wherever she went as her wrists and ankles were decorated in several silver bands, a few were beaded bracelets as red as her robes. She colored her eyes black, making them seem hooded, but drawing out the gold flecks in her eyes and wore a red lipstick.
"You look great, Yayoi," Saori commented.
"At least you think so, Takuto yelped when I went to get him," Yayoi puffed out her cheeks.
"You jumped out of nowhere!" Takuto snapped. "You look fine!"
"Fine? I look fine, Takuto? Really?" she said, staring up at him, upset.
"What do you want me to say?"
"Figure it out, idiot!"
Saori grinned. "Should we go now?"
"Yeah, let's go," Yayoi said, waving them out the door.
"Mio! You look beautiful!" Takuto exclaimed when he looked at her.
Ahead of them, Yayoi growled in frustration.
Mio leaned towards Takuto. "That's what she wanted you to say."
Takuto blinked. "Ohhh."
Nako quickly joined them, rushing out of one of the rooms.
As Mio walked onto the verandah, feeling the cold of the floorboards, a fluttering anxiety assaulted her stomach. Saori and Nako followed behind her, keeping the long robes from twisting. Takuto and Yayoi led the way, continually discussing their plans for how the ceremony would go while infusing three different traditions (since Sachiyo stressed the presence of Shinto rituals to be included in the wedding).
Mio could see Madara on the other end of the verandah accompanied by Izuna, who was dressed in black hakama over a black kimono, and Sachiyo, in a deep green kimono. Kana and Sako poked their heads out of the room when Sachiyo mentioned her approach and the two were dressed in kimono. Kana in black one with a flower print along the bottom and Sako in a deep plum. Minako appeared wearing a dark yellow kimono with a black pattern and immediately rushed to Mio's side, grasping at her hand.
"You look beautiful!" she praised, her mousy hair had been twisted into a pair of buns atop her head. "You look like you're supposed to marry a prince, but you got Madara instead!"
Several people snorted, and then turned away when Madara directed his glare at them all.
"I heard that, you brat," Madara cursed.
"Well, maybe, you should have been a prince, and not Madara!" Minako stuck her tongue out at him.
Madara looked exasperated, but quit as Sako nervously apologized on Minako's behalf.
Yuuka and Noe rushed out, spinning and eager to show her their white kimono. The two wore their hair braided and Mio knew she had Sako to thank for seeing them dressed and readied.
Once Takuto and Yayoi were inside, tinkering with things in front of the altar, Madara and Mio stood beside one another, a moment in silence and stillness where Mio reached out to brush her fingers against his and felt his hand close over hers, giving it a squeeze.
Saori ushered everyone inside the room. She was the last to enter and to stand with the others several feet from the altar at the front of the room where Mio and Madara would be with Yayoi.
The ceremony began in complete silence as a long stick of incense burned for the Horned God. A long line of twisting smoke rose high from the incense stick that sat surrounded by red and white flowers spilling onto the floor. Yayoi kept her back to them as she spoke in prayer, invoking the blessing of the God of Unity, and turned to purify them after a short incantation with salt water.
Yayoi proceeded by picking up a red cord from a flat bowl in front of her golden statue and saying several words in blessing, while asking the Horned God to bless the unity. She drew a new stick of incense and lit it with one of the many surrounding candles that brightened the room with a warm glow. She blew the smoke of the incense onto the cord she had left laid amongst the flowers.
Takuto joined them as they were asked to turn to one another. He helped Yayoi join Mio and Madara's hands before tying the red cord around their hands.
The ritual that followed was one that used the Kuronuma Tree, a black-limbed sapling. In it, a couple pricked their thumb and while exchanging their vows drew a line of blood down each other's mouths, an act to stress the importance of honesty and fidelity. The small cut was done with the tree, as its limbs were razor sharp until they blossomed, which only occurred in the harshest weather conditions. The sapling represented the beginning of their relationship, new and youthful with means to grow, and as it grew taller, it was symbolic to the relationship. Once it sprouted its first blossom, a wedded couple would be blessed for eternity. The ritual used blood because the Kuronuma clan's jutsu relied on the combined effort of blood and the black water running through their veins. As blood was viewed alone as a symbol of life, the Kuronuma saw that sacrificing a droplet helped fuel to tree to grow quickly, granted the match was made to last.
Mio pressed her thumb to the pointed branch of the tree and pulled back as a bead of blood bubbled from the small wound. She looked up to Madara, who had done the same, and waited.
"We promise to heal you if it hurts," Takuto told Madara.
The ceremony was usually done between two Kuronuma, who would not be affected by the dangerous properties of their blood, and because of it, Takuto suggested leaving it out (as it often was with marriages with non-Kuronuma were common), but Madara told him to leave it as he had developed something of a tolerance after being attacked by Kuronuma before.
Madara went first, running his thumb down her lips as he spoke his vow, a promise of respect, love, and fidelity. He stared at her directly as he made his promises, making her insides quiver. He meant every word.
Mio followed his lead, promising the same as she drew a line of blood down his lips noticing him wince upon contact. However, in her anxiety, she had stuttered, which made him smile and her stomach flip.
The Kuronuma Tree would be planted the following morning at the break of dawn, as was the tradition.
Yayoi continued speaking, binding them, before asking them to give an offering to the Horned God. Mio presented white flowers and Madara brought red flowers, the offering doubling as a request for good fortune in the marriage. Yayoi would have offered them a pair of wedding bands, but earlier when the preparations were being talked through, Mio and Madara decided against them knowing they would never wear them.
They performed the san san kudo where they took turns sipping three times out of three flat cups of varying sizes. Only when they had taken their last three sips from the last cup did they finally drink the sake.
Yayoi concluded the ceremony with a final prayer in gratitude towards the Horned God that everything had gone accordingly without issue. Once she finished speaking, she stepped away from the altar. Mio and Madara walked forward and bowed deeply to the golden deity before approaching it once more to burn incense for it while reciting a short, prayer in gratitude, simultaneously.
The ceremony only ended after they blown out every candle in the room, shrouding it in darkness.
Mio and Madara were immediately swarmed by everyone ready to congratulate them while Kana passed out sake to toast to their happiness. Yayoi untied the red cord from their hands and told them to keep it.
"This is your marriage bond," Yayoi told Mio. "You need to take care of it."
Mio nodded, taking the cord from her outstretched hand.
Takuto gave them sake. "Make sure she doesn't drink too much, she's a terrible drunk," he advised Madara. "Very abrasive."
"We know," Madara and Saori said in unison, to Mio's shock.
Izuna appeared to hug Mio and to steal her sake cup before patting his brother on the shoulder. "Keep her happy, brother. If you can't do it, nobody can." He turned to her with a true smile. "You too, Mio, we both know how stupid Madara can be. Only you can save him from his stupidity."
Mio and Takuto laughed, which made Madara snap at them.
"Now, if everyone will go out to the compound, I'll have the food prepared for dinner," Kana announced. "Go greet on and the other guests. I heard they're all waiting."
Mio picked up the bottom of her robes as the others left the room.
"How is your mouth?" she asked, once everyone's voices sounded distant.
"Numb," Madara answered.
"We should ask Takuto to heal it, but first—" Mio put her hand behind his neck and brought him forward, pressing her mouth against his. The taste of blood and sake reminded her of the first time they kissed in Enki's castle surrounded by death. It had been the least romantic setting, but it had been what they had gotten. That moment had changed everything between them. Mio opened her mouth, running her tongue against his lips before he met it with his own, reaching around to press his hand underneath her obi to pull her closer.
Once they had drawn away, they kept their faces close, their breaths mingling.
"We should go," he suggested. "Before anyone comes back to find us."
"Yes, we should."
She wanted nothing more than to kiss him until her lips bruised, but she could be patient and wait until after the festivities concluded. She'd have him all to herself in the empty house.
Madara kissed her passionately one last time and left her side, leaving her breathless as she followed him. He waited outside and walked astride her the entire way.
They were separated when they reached the others in the large hall beside the compound where their other guests were waiting. Mio was drawn away by the Kuronuma and Murakami Keishuu, the Samurai's leader, who were eager to congratulate her. Madara went to thank other clan leaders for joining them, before beckoning her over to introduce her to all the one's she'd not had the pleasure of meeting before that evening.
The area outside was decorated in the lanterns Sako and Nako spent hours making by hand and glowed in their filtered light, filling it with warmth. There were several strung inside the gargantuan hall that offered their guests a cozy atmosphere.
Saori pulled Mio from a crowd several minutes later, leading her outside. "I am going now."
"You should have something to eat first," Mio suggested.
"Kana prepared me a small lunch to take with me. She promised not to tell anyone." Saori kissed Mio's cheek. "I will be back as quickly as I can."
"You should take one of my men. Please."
Saori nodded.
Mio called one of her Kuronuma, an older male called Fuyukichi that often acted as her guard when she required one during meetings with other clans or dignitaries. She entrusted Saori to him and asked him to be careful. He bowed, congratulated her a second time and disappeared with Saori into the woods.
She lingered outside, long after watching them leave, and hoped the ache in her bones was not a warning for those around her, but for herself. She could handle whatever was thrown at her, but having to presence the death of another Guardian would be asking too much of her. The feeling of having every bone in her body broken, a cruel and brutal torture, followed by the sense of being ripped apart—of having her soul torn asunder to accommodate the loss. Taiga's death had taken its toll on her three years ago, it left her weak and melancholy for several months, a pain that could only be alleviated by the succor of sleep.
Perhaps, his death had led to her condition. The depression of her heart might have wanted to be at peace for a stretch of time, having been unable to do so in wakefulness.
Either way, it changed something in her. She could never recover it. She would never be the same as she was before it. She paid the price for having been careless with the lives of her Guardians.
It could not be alleviated.
"Mio?"
She turned to her husband.
"What are you doing out in the cold?" Madara asked.
"I was a little overwhelmed," she told him, the words fell from her mouth organically, despite their deception, but she could see it in his dark eyes that he did not fully believed them. "I wanted some air."
"Kana is about to have the food brought in, you should have something to eat," he said, gesturing her in.
Mio followed him inside and sat beside him in the front of the room. His family and her Guardians sat closest to them, followed by the clan leaders (or representatives of them had their leaders been unable to attend, though this only seemed to have been the case with the Ito clan as Saori explained Takuei had been too sick to travel) and their families. The Elders of their respective clans, the Kuronuma clad in white and the Uchiha in black, sat across one another arguing constantly using whatever excuse available to start something with one another. The back of the room was slightly crowded with the presence of several clan members and the guards that clan leaders had brought with them.
The seven cooks proved their worth as soon as the food had been served, which boasted Kana's pride, warranting another secret shot at Madara for being unnecessarily stingy. Sachiyo appreciated that one quite a bit.
It did not take long for the others to speak of Saori's absence, questioning it for being strange, though they did this amongst themselves. Kana brushed them off, saying the last she had seen Saori, she'd been headed for the bathroom, a lie everyone seemed comfortable with as they continued to enjoy their dinner.
"Where is Saori?" asked Madara, leaning into whisper.
She looked at him inquisitively with the naivety of a person without any knowledge.
"You were outside and Fuyukichi is missing, where did you send her?" he rephrased his earlier inquiry. "I can tell you are lying when you do, my not making a mention of it does not mean you were successful."
She risked his annoyance when she admitted, "She went to the Senju."
Madara made a sound in clear irritation before he spoke through clenched teeth, "For what reason?"
"They are my Guardians, too," she said firmly. "Whether they are your enemies or not, they are my Guardians and I have a duty."
"You cannot protect them forever, we are at war with them," Madara responded menacingly. "They will die or we will die, either way you will lose Guardians because you chose to make them yours."
"I understand that."
"You should have let them be, then."
"It would not have eased my worry to let them be. Saori volunteered—"
"Enough," he interjected with a snarl.
Mio bristled, though she did not speak. She quietly picked up her bowl of white rice and started to eat the servings set out for her. She did not care what his opinions were on the matter, as he did not agree with her own. She could explain it if it made any difference, but it wouldn't. He wouldn't understand the concept of how giving Hashirama and Tobirama their respective spheres was because the artifact themselves chose them, though she had an unconscious inclination that they belonged to them.
Hours passed quickly once the guests had their fill of sake and overflowed with a contagious and boisterous energy that had many telling inappropriate jokes, singing old folk songs, spilling their darkest secrets, and having men courting the eligible women present. Yayoi received a lot of attention, which she appreciated, until people started to mistake Takuto for her partner and all potential suitors ran from her. Kana found herself charmed by a Kuronuma shinobi with a mop of curly white hair and bright rose eyes that towered over her by several inches. Despite her denial when asked, she definitely liked him and Mio encouraged her, speaking praises of the man, as he was the grandson of one of the Elders in her Council.
Nako, being the only Uzumaki in the room, stuck out and faced the scrutiny of many because her clan was allies to the Senju clan, which by default of many clans present was as much their enemy as the Uchiha's. She was modestly defensive, but never outright insulting, though when Mio sensed she had reached her boiling point, she interjected and kindly asked her guests to leave her. This worked against her as whispers soon reached her of the inadequacy many felt she held as a proper bride. Some of the older people present questioned the wedding in its entirety knowing she had been married previously to Mikazuki Gouki and felt that tarnished her reputation and her husband's.
The alcohol turned out to be a double-edged blade, while it brought on the merriness the atmosphere lacked in appearance, it also came with cutting words that threatened to dampen her mood, which had already suffered a blow because Madara had spent the rest of the evening since she revealed Saori's location moodier.
Despite the bump, the festivities continued merrily. Yayoi had all the women line up so she could read them their love fortune through the Fate Sphere for free. Takuto stayed by Nako's side after the events earlier. Madara and Jouji shared a drink with the leader of the Hagoromo clan and his eldest daughter. Izuna went around the room spending time with all the guests as the kimono maker's apprentice, the white-haired girl with the bright green eyes, watched him from afar. Minako befriended a young shinobi from one of the Uchiha clan's allies and spent a greater portion of the evening talking his ear off, having every bit of charm her father was known to have when he went on his conquests. Mio's twins had been put to sleep when they had started growing fussy after night had fallen and Sako had volunteered to watch them since she had retired early to be with her son, who had stayed behind with her husband. Kana disappeared with her Kuronuma suitor, the two laughing at each other's lame jokes.
Mio sat keeping Sachiyo until it came to her attention that the older woman was interviewing young girls from among the allied clans.
"What are you doing?" asked Mio, staring horrified at Sachiyo.
"We need to find a good woman for Izuna to marry," Sachiyo revealed, then pointed to a doe-eyed girl with yellow hair. "I like that one in particular. Good family, very skilled. How do you find her? Do you think Izuna would like her?"
"What?"
"Mio, if you do not plan to cooperate, you will not be needed here," Sachiyo reprimanded, suddenly shooing her. "Now, go. Go make peace with your husband. Take him to bed if you must, but I'm tired of him glaring at everyone. The guests are growing wary."
Mio was taken aback by the suggestion. "Have you been drinking?"
"'Course I've been drinking, child, how else do you think I'd stand having these girls talk my ear off! Now, go!"
"Okay, excuse me."
Mio didn't go to Madara. She went outside. She stood facing towards the frost tipped trees surrounding the Uchiha's territory and breathed in the air, closing her eyes to feel the wintry breezes brush snowflakes across her face. She wondered if Saori would be returning soon when her mind began to wander aimlessly at first through darkness until several images unfurled. Mio grabbed a hold of her head. It felt as though the new images flashing through her mind were being crammed in all at once with a force that made her head start to pulse at a similar rhythm as her heart.
The woman stopped running and looked all around her, breathing haggardly. She held a hand to her chest, rising and falling, and watched her darkened surroundings, alert to oncoming dangers. She did not move. She analyzed her situation because she was determined to escape the shadows that chased her down to see her cornered. She knew what they wanted and knew her fear was real. She understood giving into it would be a mistake she could not risk committing.
I can reach it if I keep going, she thought and took several quiet steps into the cover of darkness where she sank down to her haunches for a breath. A little more and I'll be there.
Mio recognized Saori in the pathway Yayoi had extracted, whether it had been purposely or unintentionally, she panicked as it continued to unfold. Saori did not look any different than she had when Mio sent her to the Senju, her hair was still braided loosely over her shoulder, and that worried her. The ache in her bones returned, a harrowing pain in between the joints filtered into her body as she held herself strong where she stood.
The shadowed men crept quietly above the canopy of trees and Saori lifted her eyes, slowly reaching for the short sword she hid behind her back when a pair of arms wrapped around her neck, ripping a scream from her throat—one that vibrated through Mio like a high-pitched warning. Saori was dragged across the darkness into a stream of moonlight.
Others waited there with their weapons and malice. And she fought. Using the techniques she had learned from her father, those she had practiced diligently since his death. She managed to connect the first five strings that would create a web, but when she was about to throw the rest, hands took her by the legs and pulled her under, trapping her in the earth.
A man twisted her hair in his hand and jerked it back. Pressing a cold blade to the base of her throat and the breath escaped her.
Mio sunk to her knees, hand gripping her chest as she struggled to breathe. Her head went completely black.
She took a deep shuddering breath before letting out a strangled scream. She dug her fingers into the earth and snow as she tried to bite back the pain and the tears that blurred her vision.
"Mio!"
Several voices called out her name.
Yayoi reached her first. "I don't know what happened!" she said, panicked. "It suddenly came to me and I—"
Madara, Nako, Takuto, and Izuna came into view, though her scream had put everyone on guard. Many shinobi were at the doors, peering out at them all, expecting to see what might have made her scream, though there was nothing but a vast field of white snow.
Mio searched desperately for the pulse of the Life Sphere through the Time Sphere when a devastating shudder rippled through her in revelation.
There was no pulse.
xl note: First of all, I would like to say, Happy New Years to everyone! I hope to continue bringing you all wonderful updates in 2015 for all the stories that you enjoy! I also have to apologize because there's been a delay on my journal only updates for Firestarter, Empress, and a new Jigsaw piece. It's like Wind Central here and it's messing with my internet, which messes with my ability to double check everything that needs to be double checked with internet (I also prioritized this the editing of this chapter so that I'd be able to release it on the 31st, even though it's 11, it's still the 31st, haha). You will see them sometime later today, after I sleep or before it, don't know yet. If you don't read those, you have nothing to worry about because you got this chapter! Yay!
Second, I don't want to say anything about this chapter. So, I'll just sit here and see what you guys think.
Ya'll knew something bad was on its way, though.
Next, I want to thank these lovely folks for being wonderful and reviewing: Loteva, Melissa Fairy, and HushedFable. Thank you!
Third, thank you for reading. I hope you all enjoy your New Years, whether you be partying it up or spending it quietly or being with family or all three. Whatever you are doing, I hope you enjoy yourselves today! :) I'm going to eat some tamales now! Fuck yeah, tamales!
I'll see you next chapter! :D I'll post preview for it in an hour or so at my livejournal! :)
