Chapter 7: An Offer She Can't Refuse
It was a beautiful day at the Himura Dojo. Kenshin and Kaoru were by themselves and were loving every minute of it. Sano and Ryuichi had taken Yahiko to the Akabeko to stay with Tsubame and after they dropped him off they were going to go off for some 'alone time'. Kaoru had been having contractions all morning, and that means that Kenshin would be a daddy in a few hours. They were both very excited, but Ryuichi's story about her sister kinda had Kaoru worried. Kenshin hadn't heard it, so he didn't really care that much. They were going to give the baby Sanosuke's room and he was going to sleep in the training hall since Kaoru couldn't train anyone even if she wanted to until after about 3 months. On their free time they started cleaning the mess that Sanosuke called a room so they would be ready for that day when their child arrived. It was a tough job, but someone had to do it and it definitely wasn't gonna be Sano. Maybe Ryuichi loved him enough to help him, but she wouldn't love him enough to do it by herself.
"How are you feeling, darling?"
"Just fine, but the contractions are becoming more frequent."
"Don't worry, Ryuichi and Sano will be back soon enough (hopefully) to help. Ryuichi told me she had some experience with childbirth. I hope Sano doesn't and if he does I don't think I'd let him help."
A few minutes later, Ryuichi and Sanosuke came in, but Ryuichi didn't look so happy. Right behind them was a woman, a man, and a boy. The woman had long brown hair and looked like she was in her early 50s, the boy had short brown hair and looked like he was in his late teens and the man had short brown hair and looked like he was in his mid 50s.
"Everybody, this is my mother, Takechi Mizuno, my brother, Akihito Mizuno, and my father, Hisashi Mizuno."
"You stayed with these people? What happen to those swordsmen that took you from us? Why didn't you try to find us?"
"Hold on! One question at a time, Pops!"
When she said that, her father grabbed her arm and slapped her on the face, knocking her down. This made Sanosuke think about that night she got hit by Toba. He saw her lying there and he was sick of people mistreating her.
"You bitch! How dare you be disrespectful to your father! I brought you into this world and I can take you out just as easily"
"You think she was being disrespectful!? You don't have any idea what she has been through in her life. I know this 'cause I care. By the way you treat her, it is hard to believe that you even took the time to walk here!"
"And you! I saw her with you and had a hard time believing that you would be her lover. She's too good for you, you piece of street trash!"
Little did Hisashi know, Sanosuke wasn't listening. He was over by Ryuichi helping her up and didn't give a crap about some speech that he didn't care about.
"You listen to me when I'm talking to you! You're too worried about that whore to consider your elders!"
Then he did something even Kenshin was almost afraid to do, he punched Sanosuke in the ribs. The rooster just smiled, he really didn't care because it really didn't hurt.
"Man, Ryuichi, if he wasn't your dad I'd be whipping his ass all over the place. Ha! It actually sounds pretty fun, and I need a good workout."
"Go ahead, I care for no one who doesn't care for me also. This man is merely a receiver of my mother's affections, and most likely he is not my father. My late sister, Rika, had a different father and she looked just like him. I find it quite ironic that I look just like her."
Her mother and brother were still just observing. They both knew the truth about what went on in their lives and what went on between their family. Ryuichi, who was now furious at Hisashi, went over to talk to her mom while Sano was beating him up.
"There's something wrong, isn't there? Something you're not telling me. Anyone with eyes can tell you're in pain."
"Hey Sis, come here, I need to talk to you. It's about Mom."
"OK, go ahead."
"Well, she's been like this ever since you left and for some reason, Dad became an alcoholic and pretty violent. He would come home and beat on me and Mom for a while and then pass out. Mom's almost afraid to say anything to him and is even more afraid to leave him, but she told me if you were still around, she might be able to build up the courage to move on."
"I don't understand what you're saying..."
"What I trying to say is that we need you back at the house. You could be reunited with your family. Please Ryuichi, it's an offer you can't refuse."
She was stunned. She had absolutely no idea what to say. She wanted to stay at the Himura Dojo, but she knew that she should help her family. She was torn between her own selfish wants and her family's needs.
"Let me sleep on it, I'll have an answer in the morning."
"Ummm, Miss Ryuichi, I don't think you'll be getting much sleep tonight. I think my water just broke!"
Everybody stopped what they were doing, even Sanosuke. Hisashi was now thoroughly bloodied and bruised and Kaoru was almost as bloody, but for a different reason.
"Hey you guys," said Ryuichi as she pointed at her family," You stay at a local inn, I'll talk to you in the morning, but now I have some issues to take care of."
....................
Later that night, Sano and Ryuichi were putting their futons outside Kenshin and Kaoru's room. They didn't have much of a choice in the matter and once again, they didn't mind. They cherished every moment they spent together. Ryuichi had once questioned whether what they shared was true love or not, but now she was defiantly convinced. She knew he loved her and she also knew that he loved her more than he had ever loved anyone, he loved her more than words could ever say. She knew that if she left, he would be completely heartbroken. He lost Megumi almost two years ago and losing herself just so fast would be unbearable to him. She loved her family, but they were strangers to her. She had stayed at the Himura residence for almost two years now and she had made up her mind then that she was going to remain in the Kenshin-gumi. She could not break that promise, not even if it meant her death. She was too important to Sanosuke and the others to leave, especially Sanosuke. She then realized that this wasn't about her own selfish wants, it was about the needs of the other people in her own little 'family'. Everyone had a role they played, just like a real family. Kenshin was the wise father, Kaoru was the caring mother, and Sano, Yahiko and herself were like the children, who constantly fought but each knew that the fighting was just another way of showing that they loved each other.
After they finished making their beds, Sano laid down on his futon and Ryuichi laid down on him, resting her head on his shoulder. He could tell she was thinking about something, but he didn't know what. He had heard what her brother had asked her earlier that evening and he figured that's what it was.
"Hey, whatcha thinkin' about?"
"My brother asked me to come and live with him and Mother and I'm trying to decide what to do. What do you think I should do?"
Sanosuke had been in this situation once before with Megumi and he wasn't about to give the wrong answer again, but this time he had a little something that would help anchor her there.
"Well, I really don't want you to go, but it's your decision."
"If you don't want me to go then there's a 95% chance that I'm not gonna leave."
"How 'bout I make it 100%?", and as he said this he pulled a ring out of his pocket and put it on her finger."Ryuichi, will you marry me?"
She was stunned. This was the last place and time that she expected to get proposed to, but then again that didn't exactly matter.
"Sanosuke, I'm...speechless. The only thing I can say right now is...yes, of course I'll marry you."
"Then it's settled, you have to stay here. You can't leave now, you've made a commitment."
Before she could even get one syllable out, Kaoru started screaming and this wasn't your ordinary 'I'm scared help me' scream, this was a bone- chilling, blood curdling scream that could easily be heard in distant countries. It was pretty bad, but in about 5 minutes it was over. The screaming had stopped and they could tell by the thing Kenshin and Kaoru were saying, like 'Oh, he looks just like you Kenshin.' or 'Oh, Darling, look what we did together' and all the mushy crap that new parents say.
After eavesdropping in on Kenshin and Kaoru's conversation, Ryuichi remembered what had just happened. She had no idea what to say, so the only thing she could think of was to kiss him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he did the rest. This kiss was much different from the first one they shared. This one was more of an excited, spur-of-the-moment kiss, but that didn't mean there was no passion involved. He decided that since she was his fiancé now, that he could pretty much have his way with her and the thing was, he didn't have any idea just how right he was. After a few minutes, she was up against a wall and he had his arms around her (by the way, this is still the same kiss) and as soon as Ryuichi opened her eyes, she relished there was something different about the room. Then she saw that the thing that was different about the room was that the Himura family and their new addition, Kenji. She poked Sano on the shoulder to get him to control himself and that's when he saw them.
"Did ya get bored," laughed Kenshin,"We can always go back into the other room."
"Nah, we're fine, now tell us about the baby." said Ryuichi, who was now suffering from extreme embarrassment.
"Well, come see for yourself. His name is Kenji, in case you wanted to know."
Then Kaoru unwrapped her newborn child, he was so tiny, but you could easily tell who he took after. He had flaming red hair and although he hadn't opened his eyes, you could almost tell by the rest of him who he was gonna look like. He looked like Kenshin in every way possible, but everyone knew that Kaoru would teach him Kamiya Kasshin and Kenshin wouldn't let him learn Hiten-Mitsarugi or let him be like Battosai. He was innocent, yet was surrounded by people who had, in one point in their life, broken the law in some way. Yahiko was a pickpocket, Sanosuke once killed a man, and Ryuichi and Kenshin used to be assassins. Only he and his mother were innocent, hopefully he would stay that way, because even though people with bad records surrounded him, he still had his mother. She started this madness by 'making' Kenshin stay there, then he 'invited' Yahiko, then Sanosuke invited himself, then they came across Ryuichi. All had dark pasts, but Kaoru helped them be respectable citizens, most of the time.
"So, why were you two so, ummm, happy?" asked Kenshin, because he was wondering about the 'lip lock' earlier.
"Well, nothing big."
"Really? So that's why you've just now taken a sudden interest in wearing rings."
"Oh, guess you figured me out, me and Sano are going to get married!"
"Oro! We've been wonder in when you'd get around to...Oops, I mean I'm happy for you."
"I guess we all had a pretty good day. I bet Yahiko had a pretty good day with Tsubame too! He he!"
"Sanosuke, is that all you think about!?"
"Only when you're around." smiled Sano.
"*Hits him on the head*Shhh, not around the kid. Oh my God! Speaking of kid, I just remembered something. Umm Sanosuke, I think we might be coming across one of our first problems. You know how I've told you before that I don't want any children? Well, I don't think the fact that I don't want any children and the fact that all you have on your mind is sex is gonna mix very well..."
"We'll worry about that later, when I have more energy. Let's go to bed, I'm beat."
The next morning...
"So, you two are gonna get married and you two had a baby? This place is gonna get turned into a daycare center if you aren't careful."
"Yahiko, you don't have to worry about that. Sanosuke and I have decided not to have any children."
"You decided, not me I wanted kids, but there are something's we have to sacrifice for love *sigh*. Oh well, at least I won't have to worry about diapers and that sort of crap then."
"*Eye twitches* you mean you are only letting me win this fight so you won't have to fool with diapers? Then maybe I want to have a child."
"Fine with me, you just go right ahead, as long as I'm the daddy."
"Oh, so you really want one then? You were tricking me into thinking that I want one when I really don't."
"You're confusing me!"
"Aaaaaaahhhhhhh!!! I don't know if I want a kid or not. My brain says no but my heart says yes. My sister died in childbirth and it is a risk for me. I need help!"
"Did you ever consider going to Dr. Genzai to be checked to see if it is safe?"
"No, why?"
"He might be able to tell you if it is safe to have children or not. If it is safe, then go right ahead. If it's not, don't. It's not all that complicated."
"Wow, I never thought of that. I'll try and go tomorrow."
"Maybe you should go today, just in case Sano gets a little bit impatient."
"He might get impatient, but he'll have to wait. You're right though, I might need to go today, just to be on the safe side. Sanosuke, you don't mind if I go alone do you?"
"Nah, go ahead, have fun. *chuckles* I think I'll sit this one out."
"*sigh* Alright then, I'll be back in an hour or two."
Later that day...
"I'm back. I met up with Mom on the way to the doctor's office and she took me there. I also told her that I was gonna stay at the dojo. I've got good news and bad news. The good news is that Dr. Genzai told me that it would be OK to have a baby. The bad news is he said that it would be hard for us to conceive."
"Why? How could he determine this without me around?" questioned Sanosuke.
"He said that my family has a bad reproductive history and that I have ended up with some kind of fertility problem. He said that it would almost be impossible for us to have a child. The only good part of that is that we can fool around all we want."
"Good." Sano smiled as he picked her up and kissed her softly. "You just wait 'til I can get my hands on you."
"Ahem, there are other people in the room Sano and one of them is a small child. Whatever you want to do to her either take it to your room or save it for the wedding night!" yelled Kaoru.
"Oh by the way, Jou-chan said that we could have a piece of property to build a house of our own on. I've already talked to some people who are gonna help build it and it should be done by our wedding night."
"Yeah, I decided to just let you guys have it because you use everything else that is mine and Kenshin's, might as well let you have a piece of land too."
"Thank you all for all this, but we still have one problem...who's gonna help us plan the wedding?"
"Oro!" said the groom-to-be.
It was a beautiful day at the Himura Dojo. Kenshin and Kaoru were by themselves and were loving every minute of it. Sano and Ryuichi had taken Yahiko to the Akabeko to stay with Tsubame and after they dropped him off they were going to go off for some 'alone time'. Kaoru had been having contractions all morning, and that means that Kenshin would be a daddy in a few hours. They were both very excited, but Ryuichi's story about her sister kinda had Kaoru worried. Kenshin hadn't heard it, so he didn't really care that much. They were going to give the baby Sanosuke's room and he was going to sleep in the training hall since Kaoru couldn't train anyone even if she wanted to until after about 3 months. On their free time they started cleaning the mess that Sanosuke called a room so they would be ready for that day when their child arrived. It was a tough job, but someone had to do it and it definitely wasn't gonna be Sano. Maybe Ryuichi loved him enough to help him, but she wouldn't love him enough to do it by herself.
"How are you feeling, darling?"
"Just fine, but the contractions are becoming more frequent."
"Don't worry, Ryuichi and Sano will be back soon enough (hopefully) to help. Ryuichi told me she had some experience with childbirth. I hope Sano doesn't and if he does I don't think I'd let him help."
A few minutes later, Ryuichi and Sanosuke came in, but Ryuichi didn't look so happy. Right behind them was a woman, a man, and a boy. The woman had long brown hair and looked like she was in her early 50s, the boy had short brown hair and looked like he was in his late teens and the man had short brown hair and looked like he was in his mid 50s.
"Everybody, this is my mother, Takechi Mizuno, my brother, Akihito Mizuno, and my father, Hisashi Mizuno."
"You stayed with these people? What happen to those swordsmen that took you from us? Why didn't you try to find us?"
"Hold on! One question at a time, Pops!"
When she said that, her father grabbed her arm and slapped her on the face, knocking her down. This made Sanosuke think about that night she got hit by Toba. He saw her lying there and he was sick of people mistreating her.
"You bitch! How dare you be disrespectful to your father! I brought you into this world and I can take you out just as easily"
"You think she was being disrespectful!? You don't have any idea what she has been through in her life. I know this 'cause I care. By the way you treat her, it is hard to believe that you even took the time to walk here!"
"And you! I saw her with you and had a hard time believing that you would be her lover. She's too good for you, you piece of street trash!"
Little did Hisashi know, Sanosuke wasn't listening. He was over by Ryuichi helping her up and didn't give a crap about some speech that he didn't care about.
"You listen to me when I'm talking to you! You're too worried about that whore to consider your elders!"
Then he did something even Kenshin was almost afraid to do, he punched Sanosuke in the ribs. The rooster just smiled, he really didn't care because it really didn't hurt.
"Man, Ryuichi, if he wasn't your dad I'd be whipping his ass all over the place. Ha! It actually sounds pretty fun, and I need a good workout."
"Go ahead, I care for no one who doesn't care for me also. This man is merely a receiver of my mother's affections, and most likely he is not my father. My late sister, Rika, had a different father and she looked just like him. I find it quite ironic that I look just like her."
Her mother and brother were still just observing. They both knew the truth about what went on in their lives and what went on between their family. Ryuichi, who was now furious at Hisashi, went over to talk to her mom while Sano was beating him up.
"There's something wrong, isn't there? Something you're not telling me. Anyone with eyes can tell you're in pain."
"Hey Sis, come here, I need to talk to you. It's about Mom."
"OK, go ahead."
"Well, she's been like this ever since you left and for some reason, Dad became an alcoholic and pretty violent. He would come home and beat on me and Mom for a while and then pass out. Mom's almost afraid to say anything to him and is even more afraid to leave him, but she told me if you were still around, she might be able to build up the courage to move on."
"I don't understand what you're saying..."
"What I trying to say is that we need you back at the house. You could be reunited with your family. Please Ryuichi, it's an offer you can't refuse."
She was stunned. She had absolutely no idea what to say. She wanted to stay at the Himura Dojo, but she knew that she should help her family. She was torn between her own selfish wants and her family's needs.
"Let me sleep on it, I'll have an answer in the morning."
"Ummm, Miss Ryuichi, I don't think you'll be getting much sleep tonight. I think my water just broke!"
Everybody stopped what they were doing, even Sanosuke. Hisashi was now thoroughly bloodied and bruised and Kaoru was almost as bloody, but for a different reason.
"Hey you guys," said Ryuichi as she pointed at her family," You stay at a local inn, I'll talk to you in the morning, but now I have some issues to take care of."
....................
Later that night, Sano and Ryuichi were putting their futons outside Kenshin and Kaoru's room. They didn't have much of a choice in the matter and once again, they didn't mind. They cherished every moment they spent together. Ryuichi had once questioned whether what they shared was true love or not, but now she was defiantly convinced. She knew he loved her and she also knew that he loved her more than he had ever loved anyone, he loved her more than words could ever say. She knew that if she left, he would be completely heartbroken. He lost Megumi almost two years ago and losing herself just so fast would be unbearable to him. She loved her family, but they were strangers to her. She had stayed at the Himura residence for almost two years now and she had made up her mind then that she was going to remain in the Kenshin-gumi. She could not break that promise, not even if it meant her death. She was too important to Sanosuke and the others to leave, especially Sanosuke. She then realized that this wasn't about her own selfish wants, it was about the needs of the other people in her own little 'family'. Everyone had a role they played, just like a real family. Kenshin was the wise father, Kaoru was the caring mother, and Sano, Yahiko and herself were like the children, who constantly fought but each knew that the fighting was just another way of showing that they loved each other.
After they finished making their beds, Sano laid down on his futon and Ryuichi laid down on him, resting her head on his shoulder. He could tell she was thinking about something, but he didn't know what. He had heard what her brother had asked her earlier that evening and he figured that's what it was.
"Hey, whatcha thinkin' about?"
"My brother asked me to come and live with him and Mother and I'm trying to decide what to do. What do you think I should do?"
Sanosuke had been in this situation once before with Megumi and he wasn't about to give the wrong answer again, but this time he had a little something that would help anchor her there.
"Well, I really don't want you to go, but it's your decision."
"If you don't want me to go then there's a 95% chance that I'm not gonna leave."
"How 'bout I make it 100%?", and as he said this he pulled a ring out of his pocket and put it on her finger."Ryuichi, will you marry me?"
She was stunned. This was the last place and time that she expected to get proposed to, but then again that didn't exactly matter.
"Sanosuke, I'm...speechless. The only thing I can say right now is...yes, of course I'll marry you."
"Then it's settled, you have to stay here. You can't leave now, you've made a commitment."
Before she could even get one syllable out, Kaoru started screaming and this wasn't your ordinary 'I'm scared help me' scream, this was a bone- chilling, blood curdling scream that could easily be heard in distant countries. It was pretty bad, but in about 5 minutes it was over. The screaming had stopped and they could tell by the thing Kenshin and Kaoru were saying, like 'Oh, he looks just like you Kenshin.' or 'Oh, Darling, look what we did together' and all the mushy crap that new parents say.
After eavesdropping in on Kenshin and Kaoru's conversation, Ryuichi remembered what had just happened. She had no idea what to say, so the only thing she could think of was to kiss him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he did the rest. This kiss was much different from the first one they shared. This one was more of an excited, spur-of-the-moment kiss, but that didn't mean there was no passion involved. He decided that since she was his fiancé now, that he could pretty much have his way with her and the thing was, he didn't have any idea just how right he was. After a few minutes, she was up against a wall and he had his arms around her (by the way, this is still the same kiss) and as soon as Ryuichi opened her eyes, she relished there was something different about the room. Then she saw that the thing that was different about the room was that the Himura family and their new addition, Kenji. She poked Sano on the shoulder to get him to control himself and that's when he saw them.
"Did ya get bored," laughed Kenshin,"We can always go back into the other room."
"Nah, we're fine, now tell us about the baby." said Ryuichi, who was now suffering from extreme embarrassment.
"Well, come see for yourself. His name is Kenji, in case you wanted to know."
Then Kaoru unwrapped her newborn child, he was so tiny, but you could easily tell who he took after. He had flaming red hair and although he hadn't opened his eyes, you could almost tell by the rest of him who he was gonna look like. He looked like Kenshin in every way possible, but everyone knew that Kaoru would teach him Kamiya Kasshin and Kenshin wouldn't let him learn Hiten-Mitsarugi or let him be like Battosai. He was innocent, yet was surrounded by people who had, in one point in their life, broken the law in some way. Yahiko was a pickpocket, Sanosuke once killed a man, and Ryuichi and Kenshin used to be assassins. Only he and his mother were innocent, hopefully he would stay that way, because even though people with bad records surrounded him, he still had his mother. She started this madness by 'making' Kenshin stay there, then he 'invited' Yahiko, then Sanosuke invited himself, then they came across Ryuichi. All had dark pasts, but Kaoru helped them be respectable citizens, most of the time.
"So, why were you two so, ummm, happy?" asked Kenshin, because he was wondering about the 'lip lock' earlier.
"Well, nothing big."
"Really? So that's why you've just now taken a sudden interest in wearing rings."
"Oh, guess you figured me out, me and Sano are going to get married!"
"Oro! We've been wonder in when you'd get around to...Oops, I mean I'm happy for you."
"I guess we all had a pretty good day. I bet Yahiko had a pretty good day with Tsubame too! He he!"
"Sanosuke, is that all you think about!?"
"Only when you're around." smiled Sano.
"*Hits him on the head*Shhh, not around the kid. Oh my God! Speaking of kid, I just remembered something. Umm Sanosuke, I think we might be coming across one of our first problems. You know how I've told you before that I don't want any children? Well, I don't think the fact that I don't want any children and the fact that all you have on your mind is sex is gonna mix very well..."
"We'll worry about that later, when I have more energy. Let's go to bed, I'm beat."
The next morning...
"So, you two are gonna get married and you two had a baby? This place is gonna get turned into a daycare center if you aren't careful."
"Yahiko, you don't have to worry about that. Sanosuke and I have decided not to have any children."
"You decided, not me I wanted kids, but there are something's we have to sacrifice for love *sigh*. Oh well, at least I won't have to worry about diapers and that sort of crap then."
"*Eye twitches* you mean you are only letting me win this fight so you won't have to fool with diapers? Then maybe I want to have a child."
"Fine with me, you just go right ahead, as long as I'm the daddy."
"Oh, so you really want one then? You were tricking me into thinking that I want one when I really don't."
"You're confusing me!"
"Aaaaaaahhhhhhh!!! I don't know if I want a kid or not. My brain says no but my heart says yes. My sister died in childbirth and it is a risk for me. I need help!"
"Did you ever consider going to Dr. Genzai to be checked to see if it is safe?"
"No, why?"
"He might be able to tell you if it is safe to have children or not. If it is safe, then go right ahead. If it's not, don't. It's not all that complicated."
"Wow, I never thought of that. I'll try and go tomorrow."
"Maybe you should go today, just in case Sano gets a little bit impatient."
"He might get impatient, but he'll have to wait. You're right though, I might need to go today, just to be on the safe side. Sanosuke, you don't mind if I go alone do you?"
"Nah, go ahead, have fun. *chuckles* I think I'll sit this one out."
"*sigh* Alright then, I'll be back in an hour or two."
Later that day...
"I'm back. I met up with Mom on the way to the doctor's office and she took me there. I also told her that I was gonna stay at the dojo. I've got good news and bad news. The good news is that Dr. Genzai told me that it would be OK to have a baby. The bad news is he said that it would be hard for us to conceive."
"Why? How could he determine this without me around?" questioned Sanosuke.
"He said that my family has a bad reproductive history and that I have ended up with some kind of fertility problem. He said that it would almost be impossible for us to have a child. The only good part of that is that we can fool around all we want."
"Good." Sano smiled as he picked her up and kissed her softly. "You just wait 'til I can get my hands on you."
"Ahem, there are other people in the room Sano and one of them is a small child. Whatever you want to do to her either take it to your room or save it for the wedding night!" yelled Kaoru.
"Oh by the way, Jou-chan said that we could have a piece of property to build a house of our own on. I've already talked to some people who are gonna help build it and it should be done by our wedding night."
"Yeah, I decided to just let you guys have it because you use everything else that is mine and Kenshin's, might as well let you have a piece of land too."
"Thank you all for all this, but we still have one problem...who's gonna help us plan the wedding?"
"Oro!" said the groom-to-be.