title: Precious
author : cluelesspsycho
fandom: Weiss Kreuz
characters/pairing: Crawford/Ran, Ken/Aya-chan
rating: NC17
warning : AU Fantasy, a little crack, OOCness, OC, weirdness, slash, cross-dressing, some kinks, pirates, guest appearances, lemons, I'm sure there are more.
disclaimer : I own nothing but my crazy writing talent.
summary : Fujimiya Aya was ordered by the Emperor to marry Count Crawford, a nobleman from the other side of the ocean. However, Ran, her big brother, heard that Count Crawford was a cruel man with strange gift. He didn't want Aya to suffer. Ran arranged for Aya to escape with Ken, and showed up at the wedding as the bride.

Part Three: A New Beginning

"We're ready," said Momoe-san as she carefully threw the white, silk drape over Ran's head, covering Ran's hair and face completely.

Ran let out a soft sigh of relief. He could not be happier. He had gone more and more wary and edgy as Momoe-san put yet another layer of kimono on his body. The kimono were heavy, and the hairdo, as much as Momoe-san made it simple enough yet still giving an impression of the right bridal hairdo beneath the drape, made his scalp itch. "Thank you," he whispered softly.

Momoe-san adjusted the collar of his nagajuuban so it covered his adam's apple completely, then she smiled and cradled his face in her old, wrinkled hands. "You're pretty," she said.

"Aya would've been far prettier." Ran's eyes darkened with sadness when he said that.

"Don't start now," said Momoe-san. "Aya is happy now. You have made sure that she will be happy, and you should be happy for that. You've been a very loving brother to her, a very brave one too. If it was not because of you, this will never happen, and she might not be the only one who will regret this for the rest of her life. We will too. Now you have to be brave too, you have to carry out what you have planned, and at the end, you'll be happy too."

Ran nodded. Everything was for Aya's happiness, and for that, he had arranged for Aya to run away with Ken. They must have gone as far as the border at that very moment, Aya had left the house far before dawn. There was a small shrine there where they should stop because Ran had arranged with the priest to get Ken and Aya wedded. He trusted Ken would not go any further without marrying Aya first. Deep in his heart, he wanted to do something to make sure that it happened, like having someone to follow them and kill Ken if he broke his promise, but he knew that would probably make Aya sad, so he did not. Besides, when this was over, he'd go and find Aya and bring her - and Ken – to where she was supposed to be, the Fujimiya's house.

He wrapped his fingers tightly around the handle of the kaiken, the small decorative sword a bride put inside the obi along with a paper fan. Except that, it was not actually a kaiken, it was a kodachi, a real short sword.

"It's time," Momoe-san touched his elbow. "Let's go. They're waiting."

Ran nodded.

Together, they walked the long corridors towards a new beginning.

The wedding was held in the main hall of the Takatori's castle, as the place was more appropriate. It was a beautiful spring day, and sliding doors were pushed open to garden full of blooming, colorful flowers. It was not yet the time for cherry blossoms but it would be in a matter of days. Two priests knelt at the far end of the hall, with two miko – the maidens – standing near them. They were facing an alcove with a scroll with the names of the kami, a small dais with offering had been prepared below the scroll. Fujimiya Senior and his wife sat on the tatami to the left of the alcove, along with very close relatives and very close friends. Across from them, on the right side were Lord Reiji and the entire Takatori clan, some officials, and a couple of gaijin from the ship.

Ran proceeded very slowly, dragging his heavy kimono. Half-way, Momoe-san went to join the Fujimiya. Ran glanced at his parents. They did not look like they suspected anything. His mother was smiling softly. He felt warm, at the same time his heart beating wildly, and his stomach churning.

He stopped where Count Crawford was waiting, in front of two small tables, and together they kneeled before the tables. Count Crawford was wearing long, black coat and black pants made of fine wool, his shirt invisible beneath the coat, a long necklace made of clear beads with a silver cross at the end hung from his neck, his hair was tied neatly at the nape of his neck with a small black ribbon. He had golden eyes like a tiger, hidden behind a horn rimmed glasses, and Ran thought he smelled nice. He did have big hands like Aya had seen, they looked strong and capable, but Ran tried not to stare too long at them. He focused his attention to the flat porcelain dish holding a miniature pine and a plum tree, a bamboo grove, the statues of a hare and crane which were symbols of longevity, pliancy and fidelity.

Once the bride and groom were in place Lord Reiji opened the ceremony, as he was the official go-between appointed by the Emperor for this marriage. He was smiling widely, proudly, as he spoke, "It is my privilege to open this ceremony in which Count Bradley Crawford and Fujimiya Aya shall be united in marriage before the gods."

Ran took a deep breath, making an effort to do it subtly. One priest began with purifying the room by swishing a long wand tasseled with white paper strips and chanting to chase away evil spirits. Holding back tears proved to be difficult for Ran, as all he could think about was Aya, who was supposed to have this grand, beautiful wedding instead of himself.

The other priest played a flute, while the first one accompanied with a wooden drum, and they were nearing towards the most sacred part of the ritual. After the music stopped, one miko poured concentrated sake into a long-handled brass decanter and brought it to the bride and groom. The other set before them a tray containing three wooden cups in different sizes. From the decanter, the miko filled the smallest cup, bowed and handed it to Ran. The room had fallen into complete silence as Ran accepted it, his fingers trembling a little.

Ran carefully brought the cup into his lips, somehow managing to do it without disturbing the veil at all. He sipped slowly, repeating the process three times. Then the miko refilled it and passed it to Count Crawford. He drank three times, his face did not show any kind of expression. He looked as if he was attending some kind of a boring meeting instead of his own wedding. When Ran glanced at his parents again, he saw his mother was fighting back tears and his father looked like he was torn between too much happiness and the unbearable thought of losing his precious daughter. Ran wanted to run to him and tell him that he had not lost his daughter, at all.

The miko set the cup aside and filled the second one. She handed it to Crawford first, and after three sips, the cup was passed on to Ran. As he drank slowly, Ran thought that he could smell Crawford's scent at the brim of the cup; tobacco and liquor and musk and something very specific, very male. He inhaled deeply, an attempt to distract himself from the heady scent, but instead, the scent filled his nose completely, and that somehow created a thousand butterflies to dance inside his stomach.

It was a big relief to Ran when the third cup was passed and drunk. The flute and music resumed, and the guests smiled and the mikos served sake to the Fujimiyas, the Takatoris, and the foreign guests in honor of the new bond, and they proclaimed in unison, "Omedetou gozaimasu." Count Crawford smiled too, a little, and Ran dug his teeth into his lower lips. Absentmindedly, he lifted his fingers to feel the kodachi beneath his thick obi.

Just a little more, he told himself.

From the small table, Count Crawford picked up the ceremonial document and read in surprisingly well Japanese, his voice cold and sharp and deep, like sword of steel running through flesh, his tone flat as if he was reading out a journal before a court, "We have now become united as husband and wife for all eternity. We vow to execute our marital duties faithfully and spend all the days of our lives together in never-ending trust and affection. Count Bradley Crawford, the fifteenth day of the fourth month." That somehow made Ran feel relieved that he had Aya escape the marriage.

Then, in very low, almost inaudibly voice, Ran read from an identical document. The miko then handed them branches of saka tree with white paper strips attached, leading them to the alcove to make the wedding offering to the gods. Together they bowed and laid the branches on the altar. The miko bowed twice to the altar, then clapped their hands twice. The guests followed suit.

"The ceremony is successfully completed," announced the priest who had performed the whole invocation. "Now the bride and groom can begin to build a harmonious home."

Amidst the murmured blessings, one of the miko stepped towards Ran and reached for the hem of the veil, but Ran caught her hand. The miko looked at him through the thin drape, saw his eyes, and understood. She released the veil, and instead, she went to escort Ran and Crawford to Ran's family. The guests stood, if they were surprised at the unusual manner, they did not show it. Ran and Crawford bowed to Ran's parents and Count Crawford thanked Fujimiya Senior for the honor of joining the family, then they thanked Lord Reiji for his patronage and his generosity in accepting Count Crawford and his entourage in his castle during the wedding preparation. They also thanked the guests for coming.

Then, after the endless congratulations, thanks and blessings, Lord Reiji announced that they all should move to the dining hall were a banquet had been prepared.

Crawford smiled for one moment, a wicked smile, then, lifting his chin, he said, "Unfortunately, something came up in my homeland, and we have to go back straight away. I'm taking my wife to the ship now."

tbc