Previously…

As her greeting roused them from their surprised stupor, Gerard graciously bowed his head while Takumi stood stiffly as he gave a formal bow. They both greeted her, "Konbanwa, Obaa-san (Good evening, Grandmother)."

A/N: All dialogue will be in Japanese.

Chapter 6: Reunion

England 6:56 p.m.—April 13 (2 weeks prior)

Takumi was expecting a more elderly and matronly gentlewoman than who he observed before him. He had only seen portraits and photographs of the person he has known as Obaa-san, and all those photos did not adequately capture the timeless beauty of the mature woman who sat quaintly in front of him. Tastefully wearing a tailor-made cream Versace trouser suit, it surprising complemented her silky salt and pepper hair expertly pulled into a French twist and her smooth lightly tanned skin. Only the few wrinkles around her piercing violet eyes and delicately curved mouth would give any hint to her actual age. He never thought the day would come when he would actually meet face to face, Sayuri Usui Walker.

"Now that we've got the formalities out of the way, let us enjoy our first cup of tea together." She took a deep sip of her tea and sighed as she savored the flavor. "As usual, the Morris family knows how to brew an exquisite cup of Earl Grey. Geri, remind me to commend Ceddy for his splendid efforts. I must say that I've missed this since I've been away from England. God bless those Yanks, but they think that decent tea comes only in a bottle." As she glanced at both Takumi and Gerard awaiting their first sip of tea, she continued to sip her cup. After a few moments of unnerving silence while they drank their tea, she broke the quiet, "I hope you both don't mind granting this old woman the opportunity to converse in her native tongue again. Living at the American Walker's estate for 18 years did not give me many chances to speak Japanese with the locals."

Hearing such an informal name associated with a servant and especially with Gerard coming from her surprised Takumi, but what surprised him even more was hearing that Obaa-san lived in the United States and not England.

She smoothed the hem of her pants as she gracefully stood up to place her empty cup on the serving tray that Cedric left on the table. "I couldn't help but overhear the heavy conversation before I came in."

She straightened to her full petite height, accentuating her regal stature. The heels of her pumps clicked purposefully on the hard floor as she walked towards Takumi. As she came to stand before him, she stared probingly into his eyes. She suddenly stretched upward toward his head and quickly thumped him not too lightly between his brows. Then she gave him a surprisingly innocent smile as she turned her attention to Gerard. Before Takumi could even rub his wound, she gave Gerard the same treatment.

Astonished by her actions, Takumi could only stare with mouth agape as Gerard loudly protested, "Ow, Obaa-san!"

She haughtily glared at Gerard. "I must say that I am thoroughly disappointed in you, Geri. Just because you have a terminal illness doesn't give you the right to be so insensitive towards your brother."

She abruptly twisted around to Takumi with the same glare. "And you…really, you have highly disappointed me as well. I would have thought you could show some signs of sympathy in the light of your brother's situation." She let out a regretful sigh. "My lovely Brenna would be turning in her grave if she saw how her boys are acting so foolish right now."

She was definitely not what he had expected as the Matriarch of the Walker clan. Even though he knew he should feel resentment for her absence in his life, Takumi was in awe of her relaxed yet commanding presence. She acted so casual as though she viewed everyone in the room as a member of a familiar and intimate family. As he rubbed the sting from his brow, her imposing words involuntarily forced him to mumble his condolences to Gerard. "I am sincerely sorry for your misfortune, Gerard."

A sudden thought crossed his mind that made him ask, "Is this the 'uncontrollable situation' that you spoke of earlier?"

Mimicking Takumi's action, Gerard frustratingly sighed, "As observant as ever, Takumi. At that time, I was recently made aware of the seriousness of my condition. So you may now understand my bitter attitude."

Sayuri turned to give Takumi a tolerant smile as she patted him on the arm. "It took you long enough to realize that…and I was given the impression that you were a genius, my boy."

Another thought brought Takumi to question further, "Wouldn't a suitably matched bone marrow transplant be the sufficient treatment for your particular type of leukemia?"

Gerard cautiously answered, "We have exhausted all of our resources in trying to find an acceptable match to no avail. The only option for me now is to be given enough medications to keep me comfortable."

Somewhat offended, Takumi decided to mention a certain fact. "Why did you not come to me and ask me to be tested as a possible bone marrow donor as it's a high probability that I would be an adequate match since we have the same maternal genes?"

Wearily, Gerard closed his eyes. "Even though it was discussed, I refused to use my disease as a weapon for his ruthless war for control. I have been a pawn of Grandfather's for far too long, but I do have limits to my realism. This manipulation would only trivialize the severity of what I have to endure. I do wish to live out the remainder of my days with some dignity."

As he turned his gaze back toward the window, Takumi derisively stated, "What a perfect lie…nonetheless you limit your realism to be used as a pawn by other means."

Dejected by his response, he bleakly countered, "Well, Takumi, at least they are more honorable means. I do not expect you to understand but I wish you would not ridicule me for my previous participation in this family disagreement as I felt it was for the best interest of this family."

Takumi leaned against the windowpane, he stood silently as he pondered on each word for some underlying implication, but he could only sense their earnestness.

Unexpectedly, Sayuri gave both Takumi and Gerard another quick firm thump on the temple. As Takumi massaged his new injury, he wondered what he did to deserve such treatment. As if reading his mind, Gerard lean over and whispered, "Get use to it. She has a habit in doing this to anyone who annoys her…especially family members."

She nonchalantly sat on the edge of the bed and gave them both a stern look. "I may be old and senile, but I can still clearly hear you, Geri. You boys are completely helpless. Both of you need to stop acting so childish. This is not the time to show such immaturity. Now, let us get down to the business of why I am here. I have allowed that jackass of a grandfather of yours to handle this delicate situation long enough. I think I have been very patient with Gabe."

Stirred by the use of such intimate names, Gerard interjected, "I do believe that he likes to be referred to by the name Royce, Obaa-san."

She curtly replied, "I know that all too well, Geri my dear, but he will always be known to me as Gabe, although 'jackass' seems more appropriate lately."

Hearing the great influential head of the family, Royce Gabriel Walker, referred to by such nicknames as 'Gabe' and 'jackass' by none other that his spouse was just too much for him. Takumi couldn't take it anymore. He let out a long gut wrenching laugh that made his side hurt.

Both Gerard and Sayuri looked to Takumi astounded by this sudden outburst of laughter. Sayuri smiled tenderly at him, though. "I am glad to see that these lonely years did not leave you without developing some sense of humor, my darling Taki."

The use of such terms of endearment sobered Takumi from his previous mirth as it triggered memories of the few birthday and Christmas gifts that he had received over the years. With each gift was a brief note that simply read, "I wish I was there, my darling Taki." He never knew who or why he kept receiving gifts from this mysterious person as everyone would not divulge a single clue, but it was the only moments of his childhood that he found true enjoyment.

He looked down at her astonishingly, "So you were the one who sent gifts to me on my birthdays and at Christmas?"

Her gaze lifted to display the love within her eyes as she sorrowfully smiled at Takumi. "Yes, my darling Taki. My greatest mistake was to agree to the arrangement to permanently distance myself from you, even though you were adopted by my nephew. Thankfully, I still had some loyal servants at my family's estate who willingly delivered my gifts and notes to you in secret. They were the only means of expressing any type of affection towards you as Gabe made it perfectly clear that the truth of your birth had to be disgracefully concealed from the world. Of course, that led to some of our greatest arguments but I'll leave those details for another time. Just know that I tried my best to give you some comfort throughout your life even though my presence during your childhood was not allowed."

Even by such a brief interaction, Takumi instinctively did not question the sincerity of her words as they amazingly appeased the aching emptiness that was within him for so many years. They were like a soothing balm to his long tortured lonely soul. This unexpected reunion opened his eyes to the realization that someone did truly care for his existence in this world. It reaffirmed his desire for deeper more cherished emotions in his life such as joy, hope and tenderness. There was only one other person that has ever made him feel this way…one name summoned to his mind that gave him such peace…Misaki.

A/N: I would like to dedicate this chapter to my fellow author mandarinorange13 as well as all other aspiring authors whom had their convictions tested by the disheartening comments of critical readers. Even as an amateur writer, I have learned that I will not be able to please all the readers, but I do not lose the sheer enjoyment of the writing experience even with this fact in mind. Words of acknowledgement and encouragement are only the few benefits as a writer, but draw confidence in those benefits to persevere in expressing the principle value of one's creativity penned into mere words.

As for this chapter, I apologize again for allowing this scene to continue for so long as I initially intended this to be a brief interlude within this story, but it seems that the Walker family had decided to hijack my good intentions. Hopefully, I can conclude this scene with one last chapter then return to the fluffiness of the main story. I would like to inform though that after this next chapter, I may take a much needed brief hiatus to re-evaluate the remaining chapters of this story so that I may resolve a nagging issue that was brought to my attention about the formal tone in the dialogues beween Takumi and Misaki. I hope that in a future chapter, I will adequately convey the reason for this formality.

So I will close by requesting your feedback about Sayuri, my first attempt at an OC which, if I do say so myself, I am proud of the outcome. If you have time though, please enlighten me on what is your favorite part of this story so far. Inquiring minds want to know...especially mine. :D

Completion Date: 03/26/2011