"It's not that cold, Wakana." I call back as I stood outside in the coloring lawn.

"Well, you aren't the temperature sensitive one here!" She complains back at me as she rubs her arms.

It has been several weeks since the incident with Riezie and we haven't looked back at that day since. Wakana was now worry free that someone isn't out there trying to steal her back like some object and I didn't have to worry about becoming mental again.

The winter was beginning to pass and the snow was melting. I get kind of excited with the changing of the seasons because it is just a beautiful scene and I wanted to take a walk down to the creek with Wakana. But she wouldn't stop complaining that it was cold out.

"Come on, Wakana." I urge with a smile. "I'll give you my jacket."

She looks up at me for a moment before walking over to me and holding her arms out towards me. Taking off my jacket, I throw it over her like a cloak and tie it. Hiding her arms behind the fabric, she takes in my scent from it and smiles brightly.

"Okay, now we can go for that walk." I tell her as I began to walk away on a trail.

Quickly catching up to me, she walks by my side and I slow down my pace for her to be able to walk together. As I walked with my arms at my sides, I felt a close presence near my hand before looking down and seeing Wakana reluctantly try to take a hold of my hand. Smiling at her shyness, I take hold of her hand and intertwine our fingers together.

"Your hands are cold." I comment as I tighten our grip.

She looks down at the melting trail with a flush of color in her cheeks as she noticed that I caught her trying to hold my hand.

We walked down the entire trail and finally got to the creek. Standing and admiring from the bank, I took in the warm air and felt the blooming sensation of spring calm my body and relax me.

"You were right; it is nice out here." Wakana tells me in a quiet voice without looking away from the scene in front of her.

I bite my lower lip for a moment as I look at her and think to myself if right now was a better idea than later. Examining Wakana's soft expression, I argued with myself until I finally made the decision.

"Wakana," I quietly call out her name, making her look up at me with a curious look.

"What is it?"

I hesitate before speaking. "I know we haven't really been together for a very long time. Maybe just a month or two, but," I advert my eyes as I try to find the right words. "It seems right. You helping me overcome something traumatic, me protecting you from something dangerous; and in the end being able to stay alive to sleep with each other in bed."

"Kotaro, what are you getting at?" Wakana asks, a little quiver in her voice.

"I want to continue doing that. But not just for a few months; I want us to do that for years."

"Wait, are you,"

I interrupt quickly by locking our lips together and kissing her deeply. And after a moment of intimacy, I pull away and look down at Wakana's hands. She looks down also and finds that I have placed something in between them. Slowly opening her palms, she reveals a simple but elegant ring with a emerald diamond in the center of the sterling band.

Wakana looks down at the ring with tearing eyes and a bright smile. She finally looks up at me and a gleam of curiosity flashed in her eyes.

"I want to take you as my wife, Wakana." I exclaim as I slid the ring on her ring finger.

"Yes. Yes, yes, yes!" Wakana jumps up and down in excitement before jumping up and embracing me.

~Present Day~

"And like that, Kotaro proposed to Wakana and within a month, the entire group got a wedding and banquet setup. Probably was one of the best days of Kotaro's life." I finish telling the story before looking back at the three little children on a different branch.

"Wait, so father only knew mother for a couple of months before they got married? And before they met, she was a slave?" Yuki asks me with a sorta confused look on his face.

"Yeah. And the day she was able to escape, I just happened to be in town. So, it was fate." I say as I remember what happened when I first met Wakana.

"Uncle Goemon! Can you tell us how you met Anya?!" Hotaro asks me excitedly, with her twin nodding her head.

"Yes uncle! Tell us!" Haru repeats.

I smile as I look back at them. "That is another story for another day."

"I bet it was just as good as our fathers." Yuki grins as he looks back at his twin sisters and shakes his head.

"Actually, I think my story is better." I look up at the sky and hook my fingers at my chin, making it look like I was actually thinking.

"Wait, really?!" He asks in excitement. "Can you tell us?"

"Uncle Goemon here has told you enough stories for today." Kotaro suddenly appears in front of me with his usual blank expression and crossed arms.

"Father! You're back!" Haru and Hotaro cry in unison, making him slightly smile.

"How was the trip?" I ask Kotaro.

"Tiring. Have I ever told you that I secretly dislike meetings?"

"Like 10 thousand times." I say with a sarcastic smile before all of us jump down from the tree and land on the ground.

"Mommy!" The twins run up to Wakana and embrace her tightly the second they landed the ground.

"Hey babies, how are you two?"

"They wouldn't stop complaining about my cooking." Yuki groans as he walks up to them.

I look at the little family and see all the resemblances. Yuki was already 17 and looked more like Wakana with the brown hair and green eyes. He was also as tall as us, just a few inches shorter. And Hotaro and Haru look more like Kotaro than Wakana. Both have bleached hair that was always pulled back and bright red eyes. They were able to split their albinism gene that Kotaro carried and now run around like little ghosts. They were several years younger than Yuki and just started puberty. About 13.

"You have bad cooking, Yuki!" Hotaro; the bold one, exclaims to him as she pouts.

"Hey, he's just a young man. His wife will do the cooking for him." Wakana explains with a smile, knowing that she made her son blush.

"Will you be going to Iga tomorrow?" Kotaro asks me.

"Yeah, I need to check on Anya and Resha before the mission in a few days." I explain.

"Good. I was wondering if I could come. I haven't seen your daughter since a few years back."

I nod. "Yeah, you can also maybe bring Yuki if you want."

"Why?" The albino raises an eyebrow at me. "What are your plans?"

I could only smile as I follow the little kids into the house after the talk with the Fuuma Ninja.