Chapter 8
It took three days before I could see straight again. The whole time Tsubasa wouldn't leave my side until finally I got fed up with his mother hen act that I literally made up a reason just to get him out of our room and away from me. It was Friday afternoon and I was sitting out under the apple tree reading a book when the lady of the house and her maid came out of the manor house.
"Ah, Ms. Hagane, there you are; I've been looking for you," Mrs. Konzern said as she walked over to me while the maid carried an umbrella the whole time behind her.
"Yes Mrs. Konzern; what can I do for you?" I asked, placing my bookmark to mark my place in the book before putting it down on the bench next to me, as Mrs. Konzern threw it to the maid, who was standing behind her with the umbrella closed.
"I heard that you have recovered. Now I think it's time for us to talk about your marriage with my son Julian..." Mrs. Konzern said, crossing her legs elegantly in front of her.
"Mrs. Konzern, I appreciate your concern for my health, but I have already promised my heart to another." I said, turning to face the woman while still seated, thankfully wearing my normal jeans and tunic.
"That doesn't matter this is just a fleeting feeling. I have already been in contact with the current head of the Phoenix Corporation and we are about to sit down and finalize the arrangements. The current head will be here tonight at the party." Mrs. Konzern said letting me know that my grandfather was going to be here tonight, and that he was trying to pick a husband for me without asking me or my father. Than again my grandfather has never really liked me, seeing as I was a baby conceived out of wedlock.
"While if my grandfather is going to be here than I must go get ready for tonight. For I can't bring anymore shame to the Hagane family name." I said getting up from the bench and headed back into the manor. I was heading through the entry way when the door opened to reveal my grandparents. I stopped and bowed at a 90-degree angle as my grandparents passed by. They were met with the head butler and Julian. I waited until they had left the room before moving to head up the stairs and get ready for the party tonight which would most likely be the announcement of the engagement between the Hagane and the Konzern families. I was staring down at the promise ring that Tsubasa had given me when out of nowhere someone grabbed me from behind and pretty much pulled me off of the stairs. Turns out that my grandparents had brought their horrible butler to ruin everything.
"And where might you be going, Lady Aki?" Tomas asked, throwing me onto the floor before throwing his gloves at me. Clearly thinking that because I was a child born out of wedlock, I was nothing but dirt. I stood up and quickly brushed myself off. Before turning to follow the horrible man, to where my grandparents were waiting for me.
"You wanted to see me, Grandfather?" I asked as I came into the room, my head down so that I wouldn't meet their eyes, but because of this I didn't see that my grandparents were sitting down drinking tea with Julian.
"No, you stupid child I didn't; now get out of my sight," Grandfather said as he slammed his tea cup down on the saucer sitting on the table. It was then that Julian cleared his throat.
"My dear, you may not have wanted to see Aki, but I did." My grandmother said softly as she put her tea cup down on the table.
"I don't care just looking at her is ruining my mood. Tomas get her out of here right this minute, I don't even want to see her at the party tonight. I don't care if she is the guest of honor." My grandfather said as Tomas pretty much dragged me out of the room and threw me into the nearest coat closet, and locked it. Giving the order to the Konzern family servants to not open the door for the rest of the night. I had my swan watch on me the whole time that I was locked in the closet but it was so dark that I couldn't read the time. I don't know how long I was sitting there waiting for someone to let me out, when the door opened and someone grabbed my arm and pulled me out. I was blinded by the bright lights but I could tell that the arms around my shoulders were Tsubasa's. I gripped his tank top and buried my head in his shoulder before just breaking down crying. I had been so scared not being able to tell what the time was or what was going on around me.
"You're okay my lovely swan. I got you." Tsubasa said wrapping his arms around my shoulders tighter. I could hear everything going on around me, but I didn't really care. It took close to fifteen minutes before I stopped crying and pulled away from my boyfriend.
"I'm sorry Tsubasa...I don't know what has gotten into me..." I said my voice breaking twice as I leaned my head against his shoulder.
"Shh, you're okay my lovely swan. You are alright Aki. I know that you don't want to move from this spot but we don't have very long before your grandparents' butler comes back..." Tsubasa said looking over his shoulder before picking me up and carrying me up to our shared room. Once we were inside the room Tsubasa set me down on the bed; it took a few minutes before I noticed that my grandmother was petting my bright red hair out of my face.
"Shh child, you're alright. Everything is going to be alright," my grandmother said as she reached out to take my hand when I threw myself off of the bed. Or at least, I would have if Tsubasa hadn't been watching the whole time and stopped me.
"Aki, stop," Tsubasa said, wrapping his arms around me in an attempt to calm me down. "She's not going to hurt you. Your grandmother told me where to find you and the best way to get your grandfather's butler out of the way long enough for me to save you."
"You can't trust her. She just wants to use me and take over the family business. No one in my family other than my father and brother can be trusted," I said, letting my fear get the better of me. It wasn't until I heard my grandmother singing that I calmed down. I looked at her, confused, until I felt the warm feeling of comfort from when she placed her hand on my cheek. The same feeling I got when I was a little girl and I would visit my mother's grave; someone would always come find me and comfort me."
"It's alright little autumn. Everything is alright," my grandmother said before pulling me into a hug, something I hadn't felt since before my mother got sick. And I just broke down crying in her arms as if I was a little seven-year-old girl again. It took a while before I fully calmed down enough to pull away from my grandmother and wipe my nose on the back of my tunic sleeve.
"I'm sorry Grandmother," I said, letting my head drop forward so that neither of them could see my face.
"No, my child the way your grandfather treated you was unsightly and just wrong. Now I have something for you. It's a few days late but this is your birthday gift. Go ahead open it." My grandmother said pulling a long box off of the bench at the end of the bed. When I opened the box, it took my breath away. Inside was a beautiful emerald green short off the shoulder ball gown with a white ribbon around my waist.
"Grandmother, it's beautiful; where did you get it?" I said, running my fingers over the satin ribbon.
"I had it made out of one of my older dresses. We don't have much time until the party begins. Tsubasa, why don't you go get ready with one of your friends while I help Aki get ready?" My grandmother said, looking at the clock on the bedside table next to me. I looked over to see that she was right; Tsubasa was already pulling out his suit and gathering the few things he needed to get ready.
"Aki, I am going to be in Yu's room if you need me, you know where to find me." Tsubasa said before leaving. I gathered my items needed to get ready and headed for a shower. Or that was my plan until my grandmother stopped me.
"My child, we don't have the time for you to take a shower. We need to get you in your dress and style your wild mane of hair," my grandmother said as she pulled out all the necessary items for tonight. It took close to 50 minutes before I was dressed and ready. My long red hair was pulled back into a French Twist held together with hairpins and a hair comb that once belonged to my mother.
"Oh, you look lovely, Aki. Your mother would be so proud of the young lady you've become. And I know that she would have loved to meet Tsubasa; he is such a lovely young man and is the perfect match for you, my dear. My little autumn." My grandmother said, standing behind me as I looked into the mirror at the young lady that I had become, it didn't help that at that moment I looked just like my mother.
"I look just like my mom," I said as I touched the mirror lightly with my fingertips.
"Yes, dear. You do. Suzume would be so proud of you, Aki," my grandmother said as she put her hands on my shoulders. I had never heard my mother's name before; my father never really talked about her, and until now, I thought I couldn't talk to my grandmother.
"Aki, what is it?" my grandmother asked, turning me around so that I was facing her.
"Why didn't you ever stop Grandfather from hurting me? What did I ever do that was wrong?" I asked, tears building up in the corners of my eyes.
"You did nothing wrong child. Your grandfather has just been hurt so many times that he takes that hurt out on you my dear child," my grandmother said before pulling me into a hug. We were like that for a few minutes before we heard a knock at the door.
"Lady Hagane, Aki, are you both ready?" Tsubasa asked.
"You can come in Tsubasa. Tell me truthfully how does she look?" My grandmother said, moving to stand behind me with her hands softly on my shoulders. In front of me stood Tsubasa in a suit and emerald green tie to match my dress. His hair pulled back into a braid. He was struggling with the cufflinks on his white button up when he looked up and stood there mouth opened unable to utter a single word.
"Tsubasa, you look quite smashing. But don't just stand there gawking at Aki, tell her how she looks." My grandmother said, putting her hands on her hips.
"Wow Aki, you look amazing," Tsubasa said as she rushed across the room and pulled me into a hug.
"I should be saying that to you," I said, looking down at my feet as a blush dusted my cheeks. I was clearly embarrassed about the fact that Tsubasa had told me that I was beautiful.
"Oh, you two look just perfect together." My grandmother said clapping her hands together at just the sight of us. I was about to say something when I caught the two of us in the mirror. My grandmother was right; we looked perfect together, both tall and thin, Tsubasa however wasn't in the danger zone for his weight, my red hair contrasting with his pure silver hair. I was so entranced by how perfect we looked that I almost didn't notice Tsubasa pushing a strand of falling hair behind my ear.
"You look absolutely beautiful, Aki. More beautiful than any swan. And I can't wait to show you to everyone that is downstairs waiting to meet the guest of honor," Tsubasa said just as Yu and the members of Team Wang Hu Zhong entered the room. I watched as everyone stopped in their tracks.
"Wow, Ki-Ki, you look beautiful. Man, I wish I could go to the party too, but the nanny said I was too young." Yu said crossing his arms over his chest. I wanted to pick him up and spin him around in my arms, but I couldn't because of my side.
"Why don't you come for a few hours? I know that there are going to be some other children who came with their families," I said, looking down at him before reaching down to take his hand. I could see right away that he was happier at my suggestion.
"Yeah, I'm going to go. I want to have at least one dance with my mama," Yu said before running out of the room. It wasn't surprising to see him running around with so much energy.
"Did he just call you mama, Aki?" my grandmother asked as she sat down on the bed behind me.
"Yes, that is our foster child Yu, and we are thinking about adopting him. While Tsubasa is still on the fence, I am pushing for us to adopt him…" I said leaning my head back on Tsubasa's shoulder. Or at least that was before Tsubasa pulled out an envelope from his suit jacket.
"Happy Birthday my lovely swan," Tsubasa said as he wrapped his arms around me and placed a kiss on my left cheek. I opened the envelope to find finalized adoption papers, all through the WBBA.
"You mean he really is ours now?" I asked, looking up at him from over my left shoulder, before turning around in his arms and wrapping my arms around his neck.
"Yes, my lovely swan, he is our child now and forever," Tsubasa said as he lifted me into his arms and spun me around.
"Congratulations on the adoption, Aki, Tsubasa." Dashan said along with the rest of the members of Team Wang Hu Zhong. It was then that Yu came back into the room struggling with his suit jacket. I quickly pulled away from Tsubasa before getting down on my knees and started fixing Yu's jacket. I was straightening his jacket before leaning forward and whispering in his ear about the good news.
"You mean that you are my mama now?" Yu asked, tears springing up in the corners of his eyes, before throwing his arms around my neck and crying in joy.
"Yes, sweetie you are our child. And you have a large family now; now come say hello to your great grandmother," I said wrapping my arms around him. I lifted him up before carrying him over to where my grandmother was watching. The whole time my grandmother was watching in total shock at the news she had just heard.
"Hello Great Grandma," Yu said as he moved closer to her before curling up in her lap, waiting for her to wrap her arms around him. It took her five minutes before everything sunk in and she wrapped her arms around him. "I'm Yu Tendo."
"Hello my great grandchild. It's nice to meet you, Yu." My grandmother said before pulling him closer to her. Yu for once looked so happy about finally having a family of his own so it was close to five minutes before they pulled apart. The whole time Yu had a huge smile on his face.
"Today is the best day of my life," Yu said as he hopped onto the bed. That was until Tsubasa scooped him up into his arms.
"Yuu, no jumping on the bed. Now why don't you walk with your great grandmother down to the ballroom while I walk with your mom." Tsubasa said before putting the 12-year-old on his feet. At first Yu was fighting saying that he wanted to walk with me but than Dashan cut in and reminded Yu that it was Tsubasa's job to walk with me as he was the person that I had promised to give my heart to one day. But not even that worked until my grandmother said something.
"Yu, as the person who your mom loves more than anything other than you. It is Tsubasa's job to walk with her as an escort. You'll get to dance with your mom later. And before you ask you can't be your mother's escort because you are too young." My grandmother said bending down to scoop up Yu in her arms. The whole time she was as beautiful and graceful as I remember her being from the other side of the room when she would watch Gingka when he was younger.
"But then why can I go with you and not Mama?" Yu asked looking up at her with confusion.
"You can go with me because I have already debuted into high society while your mama is about to make her debut," my grandmother said, moving to leave the room the whole time talking with Yu about everything that he could or couldn't do tonight. Like the first dance tonight had to be with whomever I chose, as the guest of honor and an unmarried woman debuting into high society.
"Now that everything has been taken care of, how about we all head down to the ballroom?" Chao-Xin said, clapping his hands together, before holding his arm out to Mei-Mei who was looking beautiful in a lovely traditional Chinese dress. While Chao-Xin was wearing a matching outfit to Mei-Mei and they looked so good together.
"I just noticed that you and Mei-Mei look so good together. And this is the first time that I have ever seen you with your hair down Mei-Mei," I said turning to my friend a big smile on my face. I could see Mei-Mei blushing before she turned to Chao-Xin and pretty much buried her face into his shoulder. Chao-Xin was running his fingers lightly over the back of her head, not quite touching her hair but just enough to create a calming effect. I turned to Dashan silently asking how long the two of them had been together, but the look on his face told me that he had no idea that Chao-Xin and Mei-Mei had even had feelings for each other. I was about to say something when someone knocked on the door; it had been a maid that Mrs. Konzern had sent because we had been taking a long time.
"The madam is worried because you have been taking a long time. Would you like me to inform her that you will be down in a little while?" The maid asked, bowing.
"Yes, we are on our way down right now," I said, reaching past Chao-Xin and Mei-Mei to grab my white gloves. Under the gloves, I found a silver charm bracelet that had once belonged to my mother and a note from my grandmother.
"Aki, this might not be the right time to give you this but it's never too early to start gathering your something borrowed, something blue, something old and something new. This bracelet was your mother's and I know that she would want you to have it. It has been passed down in your mother's family for more than six generations. From mother to daughter, usually on the daughter's 17th birthday. I promised your mother while she lay on her deathbed that on your 17th birthday, I would give it to you. However, your grandfather would not let me. Saying that you as a child born out of wedlock did not deserve to have the rights of the next head of the Hagane family. He plans to marry you off to either the Tategami family or to the Konzern family; but I think that you have the right to marry whomever you love. I wish you the best of luck my sweet granddaughter. Love, Grandma." I read out loud so that all of my friends could hear it. The whole time Mei-Mei was trying to put the bracelet on my wrist but the clasp was being a bit flicked. Just as it had been for my mother when she was still alive.
"It's okay, Mei-Mei," I said, holding my wrist out to him. "This bracelet can be flicked." My mother used to say that this bracelet would let you know the one you were meant to be with because no matter whoever tried to fasten it, it wouldn't work until your true love could do it. Tsubasa quickly crossed the room and secured the clasp of the bracelet around my wrist.
"There you go, my lovely swan," Tsubasa said before placing a kiss on my forehead. "Now I think it's time for the guest of honor to make her first appearance in high society." I took a deep breath and squared my shoulders, head held high. I was so very scared that I might make a mistake and then be left all alone. I was about to open the door to our room when Tsubasa placed a hand on my shoulder, laughing.
"You have nothing to fear my lovely Swan. I'm right here, and so are all of our friends." Tsubasa said before he grabbed my hand and placed a kiss on the back of it. I relaxed slightly until I heard Tomas running up and down the hallway looking for me. Having thought that I was still locked away in the closet. So when he got to our room and threw open the door, it was clear that he was shocked at what he saw.
"Lady Aki, so you were here this whole time." Tomas said breathing heavily as he spread out to block the doorway. I sighed before reaching into the small handbag lying on the bed; and pulling out my launcher and my bey.
"Cygnus," I called out before noticing that he was just standing there staring at me. I called Cygnus back to me, and placed him back into my handbag.
"What do you want Tomas?" I asked wrapping my arms around Tsubasa's chest, handbag clasped firmly in my grip. Tomas just stood there blinking his eyes and mouth wide open. I knew I could be a tomboy at times but I was still a girl.
"Aki my lovely swan, we must get going." Tsubasa said as he placed a kiss on my forehead before leaning down to kiss my lips.
"Yes, let's," I said as I stepped past Tomas.
"Do you plan to stand up to your grandfather?" Tomas finally asked, smiling at me. I turned to the man next to me and smiled back.
"Yes, I do tonight. I'm not going to let someone else choose who I marry. I am madly in love with Tsubasa Otori, and I have already promised to one day marry him. Now if you don't have any more questions we have a party to get to." I said looping my arm around Tsubasa's before leaning up and kissing his cheek. After that we left the room we had been sharing, and headed down to the ballroom.
"We present the lady of the hour: Lady Aki Hagane and her promised intended Mr. Tsubasa Otori." The Konzern family butler said as we entered the room. I could see my grandfather's expression at this revelation. As we reached the bottom of the staircase people started to swarm us, asking questions, past on congratulations on my coming of age and engagement. When I heard the four piece orchestra, I turned to Tsubasa who was holding out his hand, clearly anticipating the fact I would want him to be my first dance partner. I can say that both me and Tsubasa were better bladers than dancers, but we still danced several times. I was sitting at one of the tables when my grandfather stormed over to me; Mrs. Konzern not that far behind him.
"Yes grandfather…is there something I can help you with?" I said, standing up at my full height.
"What does he mean by 'intended partner?' I never agreed to that," my grandfather said, fuming with anger. I sighed before getting up from my seat.
"It's clear to me that you don't care if my life affects the Hagane family. So I am going to make the most of it. I'm not going to let you decide for me who I will marry. I know you don't like me because I am an illegitimate child born out of wedlock but I am going to be happy. I love Tsubasa with all my heart just like you love Grandmother and my father loved my mother. That is what taught me what I can expect from my life. You also can't marry me off to the Tatagami family or the Konzern family because they both are a few years younger than myself, while Tsubasa is my age. And he makes me happy, isn't that enough for you?" I said drawing everyone's attention to me. However, I wasn't going to back down or that was before my grandfather started clapping his hands. I was confused until my grandmother walked up to us.
"You finally passed the test sweetie. Congratulations Aki," my grandmother said before wrapping me in a hug. Now I was confused.
"The final test for the heir of the Hagane family is to stand up for what they believe is right. In your case that is the belief that you also had the right to be loved, not because you are of the Hagane clan but because you are Aki. So by standing up to me, you pass the final test. I am so sorry for everything that I have put you through my child." My grandfather said before pulling me into a hug. I was now very confused, happy that I finally had my grandfather's approval but extremely confused. I needed to get some air.
"If you'll excuse me for a minute…I need some air." I said before heading to the back garden and my favorite spot under the apple tree. I sighed as I sat down on the bench.