Well, I watched Vikings and the Alienist again; and reread Marriage of Convenience as well as How to get my husband on my side and I failed to divorce my husband... and one thought led to another until I couldn't stop seeing my two favorite beautiful characters in a similar situation. I don't want to dwell on the plot considering that I haven't been able to finish Innocence yet, and the work is overwhelming in addition to my health (in this last aspect the prognosis hasn't been good...) so I'll tentatively leave it as "finished" making sure that the end of each chapter (if there are more) can be conclusive. And who knows! Maybe soon I can finish my multiple projects (my novel cof, cof, cof) and finally have enough support to dedicate myself entirely to writing because I fervently wish to be able to save myself fully to it.
Disclaimer: The story is mine! The characters are from Watsuki.
"Arrangement"
The bodies disposed at the entrance to the castle.
Six men hung limp from the structure of the wall.
Koishijiro regretted having to be a part of such an event, but being part of the nobility, he could not easily escape such duties. He remained stoic while his mind strayed far from what his eyes saw; his soul repudiated that tragedy.
"Witness what happens to the rebels!" -Exclaimed the spokesman, a member of the royal council and right hand of the second prince, and who also acted as executioner then-. "To the impure! To the cowards who are against the empire! Let today's executions serve as an example! And long live the prince of fire!"
"Long live the prince of fire!" Exclaimed the voices of the people, over and over again.
Kamiya Koishijiro remained regal and serious throughout that show while standing on top of the wall, sharing space with the entourage that presided over those executions. His gaze then fixed on the second prince, the one they called the "Prince of Fire." He was barely fourteen years old and had already built influence on the group of Red Capes, that force destined to bring order not only to the streets of the kingdom, but mainly to those of the capital where they resided. The second prince was a boy whose smile revealed the wickedness of his soul.
It was a fact that soon the aristocracy would cast their eyes on the young heir. Even if he was the third in the list after the crown, the balance of the game could change in a matter of seconds if he had the right support.
Koishijirou sharpened his gaze. "No" he told himself. "I cannot allow his strength to continue to grow."
As part of the nobility and as the owner and leader of one of the largest and strongest duchies in the empire, his loyalty lay squarely with the emperor. He was, therefore, aware of the constant care that he had to put in the members of the nobility to prevent them from going astray. But the young man in front of his eyes was escaping his reach.
And if the prince's eyes were to rest on his clan... Koishijiro stifled a shudder; he had to carry out his plan as soon as possible; even if he had to take some bets for granted, he couldn't sit idly by and fall prey to the second prince and the aristocracy.
Kaoru's dress had been stained again.
After having jumped from the tree where she had rescued a cat, she had fallen into one of the puddles that had formed during the night; the earth, having been stagnant for so long, had turned into mud, and the entire front of the dress -as well as the edges- had been stained to hide the purple color of the fabric.
"Oh no. My sister will annoy me without rest", the girl complained; her blue eyes sparkled with the reflection of the light reflected in the water, the one feature that stood out relentlessly even when she was in her worst outfits.
"Is it serious?" Asked her playmate, Shura, a girl the same age as Kaoru but with brown eyes.
"No," Kaoru replied, "I suppose I can get home and change before my sister finds out, but I'll have to wash the dress as soon as possible."
"I'll help you," Shura told her.
They were ready to run then, along the edge of the river, until they reached the second access to the castle where Kaoru's family lived, the Kamiya clan, when suddenly her father's entourage arrived, and the girls saw the carriage where the clan leader resided.
"It's my father!" Kaoru exclaimed happily, running to the encounter.
But then Shura - realizing the speed with which the entourage was advancing - pulled her away from the road.
"Watch out. Kaoru!"
Both girls fell to the ground with a thud.
"Are you OK?" Shura questioned.
"I am," Kaoru agreed, "how strange. He always stops to look for me." She pouted.
"Perhaps something serious has happened," offered Shura.
"Maybe..." Kaoru guessed but not very convinced. "I'd better go back now. I'll take advantage of dad's arrival to avoid Megumi."
"Good idea. I'll tell my brother to lend you his horse."
"I apreciate it."
Although the distance was not that long, the road was heavy due to the thick grass, so the horse will be a great help to arrive in good time. Soon Kaoru galloped away, still preoccupied with her father's rapid arrival and wondering what could have him so upset.
"You can't be serious, father!"
Hours later, and after the leader allowed himself to dress up in more comfortable clothes after a shower, Koishijiro had gone to his office and called the eldest of his daughters. Megumi had gone as soon as she was called. Her father had come like a storm, and the eldest daughter had been waiting for him to tell her what was wrong, the dark cloud that was, most likely, hanging over the clan. But she hadn't expected the answer his father had given him.
"We don't have a better option, Megumi," the man refuted, sitting at the table and with his joined hands resting on the wooden surface, his face denoting a seriousness overwhelmed by anxiety. "If we consider our position, it is the only way to protect her."
Megumi was about to slap him, but it was her father, she reminded herself.
"Protect her?" She questioned ironically. "From who exactly? You are going to send her miles from us, from her home, to the castle of a man of dubious lineage, not to mention that you are not sure that he will inherit the dukedom."
His father snorted.
"The war is over, Megumi." He told her. "It is more than obvious he will be awarded and recognized given his exemplary performance in it. Once he returns to the capital with the flag of victory, the emperor will have no choice but to reward him. And let's be honest... the guy deserves it."
The young woman clenched her hands into fists and ground her teeth.
"That doesn't mean he deserves Kaoru!" She exploded. "She's hardly a child!"
"She would not be the first child-bride."
Crash!
The man barely had time to move away when his daughter had finally thrown an object in his face: the obsidian seal, the sigil of the clan, which rested on the desk. Which, running out of purpose, had ended up going through the window.
"How can you be so insensitive, father!?" The young woman demanded. "You are selling your daughter! You're selling her to an older man!"
"He's not that old," his father refuted, the groom was indeed still young but, Koishijiro couldn't stop feeling guilty, and his eyes looked without looking at a distant point.
"I don't care!" She cut him off with emotion, tears welling up in her eyes. "Turning her into an child-bride is already horrifying in itself. Ten years should be a crime!"
"Eleven," her father interrupted, still not looking at her.
"What?" she growled.
"As I understand it, he turned nineteen on victory day, a gift befitting his prophecy."
Megumi then could no longer contain herself.
The slap struck his father's face, and this time, the man did not move.
"Eight years!" Megumi shouted. Tears ran free down her cheeks; the rage she felt was immense. "Kaoru is barely eight years old!" She sobbed. "She barely knows what it's like to be a child, and you're thinking of taking that away from her just by forming alliances that you don't even know if they'll bear fruit... If you need it so much, offer me that I'm already seventeen. Kaoru doesn't have to suffer!"
Then her father finally looked at her. And in the edge of his gaze the words of his daughter died.
"Even if I wanted to, I can't do it." He answered firmly. "Megumi, it is not just that I seek to make me a new ally, one who is also famous among the people and the aristocracy, but also to protect Kaoru from the hands of the second prince."
That left the young woman without heat.
"The second prince? You're not saying...?"
Everyone new in the empire the rumors of the prince of fire.
His father nodded.
"If I get the order, I can't refuse," he told her. "But if then Kaoru's mate has already been decided, even the emperor will not be able to break such a bond. Megumi please understand. You say it well, because of your age, in theory you are free of such a commitment, but Kaoru is not... Even five years will not be an impediment for when the prince reaches the marriable age. And given our lineage, Kaoru is the best mate he could get. Please, understand... I can't hand her over to that monster." He sentenced with a deep voice and contempt in his eyes.
Megumi trembled helplessly.
"And what assures you that you won't give her to a worse one?
Koishijiro frowned.
"It's a bet I have to make. Also, I have investigated Himura" He confessed to the the brunette's surprise. "Even in my desperation, I wouldn't dare place blind bets. No. Himura needs our financial support more than our name, although the latter will undoubtedly open many doors for him. But in his condition, he won't be able to refuse, not to mention that currying our favor will secure Kaoru's position in his house. I'm certain. He will take care of her."
"Still..." her daughter refuted. "I do not agree with this. But..."
Father and daughter locked eyes with each other. In that instant, Koishijiro breathed a sigh of relief as he saw some acceptance in Megumi's eyes.
"I'll do what you ask." She finally gave in, still shaking and crying at the same time. "I'll prepared her for her departure. How much time do we have?"
His father sighed.
"I sent the letter before leaving the castle. Considering that the army is already on its way to the capital, it will only be a matter of a couple of months, three at the most. If Himura is as my spies say, he won't be long in contacting me as soon as he arrives."
Megumi nodded, not very convinced, and still hoping that her father was wrong.
...
Unfortunately, lost in the frenzy of their discussion and all that it implied, neither of them suspected the presence of Kaoru behind the door. The girl had listened to the entire conversation without fully understanding how this agreement would change her destiny forever.
"Should I cry?" She asked herself. "Should I throw a tantrum? Or should I accept my duty as a member of the clan?"
She wasn't sure what to feel or think. She did not understand her sister's grief; after all, since they were little, they had been instructed in their duty to marry. But neither did she understand his father's haste and anxiety to marry her off.
She went to bed with her mind lost in her doubts and imaginations, unable to erase the name Himura from her mind.
"Himura... Will he be red as his name suggests?" She asked herself.
In the sky, the stars blinked as if wanting to say yes.
Sanosuke plopped down on the soft bed as soon as he entered the tent. For a change, the bed wasn't his. The owner of it, however, barely noticed his presence.
"How can you continue working despite having traveled all day, Kenshin?" Questioned the chestnut, still with his eyes closed and spread out on the makeshift mattress.
"This is the only time I have to work on paperwork, Sano," his partner rebutted. His scarlet hair was loose, giving him an air of nobility that was absent when he's on the battlefield.
"Couldn't you give it to someone else?"
"Even though I wanted to, you know very well that I can't," he replied. "As long as we remain unrecognized, I have no means to afford servants."
Sano's eyes widened, an idea having crossed his mind.
"But that's about to change, isn't it?" He inquired. "As soon as you receive the emperor's appointment, they will give you your title and lands."
Kenshin frowned.
"It's not that simple, Sano. I'd appreciate it if you didn't get your hopes up so high."
"Damn it, Kenshin" He complained, finally sitting up. "I understand you want to be careful but, you should be more ambitious. You are the hero of the war! If you wanted to, you could easily ask for more."
The young man's gaze sharpened.
"Sanosuke," he warned. And in the deep baritone of his voice was a heavy threat.
The chestnut man gave up after that.
"Okay, okay. I'll keep my mouth shut. Anyway, you know what I think." He said and went back to sleep.
Kenshin understood, of course, where his best friend and partner's dissatisfaction came from. But the young leader knew the ease with which titles were given and taken away. If he wasn't careful, his title would be one in name only. And even swearing allegiance to the emperor and crown princes would not give him the financial support he needed to sustain his people. He had to find another way to make-up for the lack of income once the soldier's pay stopped coming, but how?
He sighed wearily, determined to answer just one more letter. He glanced irritably at the stack of papers on the silver tray to his left; his eye caught sight of an envelope with a blue seal on it.
"Blue" he thought. His mind was already searching for the clan with such an unusual color.
The reality was that the wax normally used was always red. So that had undoubtedly been done on purpose, with the obvious intention of catching his attention. The redhead took out the envelop from among the rest of the papers, and upon seeing the seal, his soul almost fell to his feet. It was from the Kamiya clan! The closest and most loyal clan to the emperor. Could he afford to hope? He questioned himself and then broke the seal to read the letter inside.
...
"Sanosuke!"
The warrior woke up instantly after hearing the tone in his general's voice; he had barely been dozing off.
"What's wrong, Kenshin? Is someone attacking us?" He questioned apprehensively.
"Something better!" The redhead answered.
"Something better?" Sano inquired, totally confused by his partner's choice of words.
"But first, I need to confirm it," Kenshin continued.
"Slow down, Kenshin. What's going on?"
Then the redhead showed the letter to his subordinate, he read it immediately.
"Is this true?" He asked in disbelief.
"That's what I need to confirm," Kenshin agreed. "But if it is, Sano... perhaps we have found the solution to our problems."
"An arranged marriage, who knew" Sanosuke whistled. "But are you sure, Kenshin? You don't know this young lady."
Kenshin had already sat down at his desk again, resting his face by his chin on the fist of his right hand; he dedicated himself to contemplating the possibilities of such an arrangement as well as the risks that said union could present.
"I'll decide that once I've had met with Kamiya dono." He concluded. "For now, take it upon yourself to find Aoshi and ask him to confirm the veracity of this deal."
"Right away," Sano replied, walking out of the tent in the moment later.
Only when he was alone again, kenshin slumped back in his chair, and sighed.
"My father was right," he said to no one, "I'll end up selling my soul," he said with a bitter smile.
However, then he was willing to do what was necessary to keep his clansmen alive and safe.
...
His surprise would be great, months later, when he discovered that his chosen bride had not been the eldest daughter, but the youngest of the Kamiyas. Just a button of a flower that gave no sign of opening soon.
"Are you my future husband?"
A/N: For now is just a oneshot... If I get reviews, I might keep on writing!