A Beneficial Arrangement

 

Byakuya cast his grandfather and Maki another amused look. He was very pleased with this development.  As far as he had ever known, his grandfather and grandmother had never been a love match but an arranged marriage as his most certainly would have been had Hisana not come into his life.  It was good that his grandfather had found someone who fit with him so well, as Maki clearly did. He couldn’t help but smile a bit thinking that they would fight like mad, she wouldn’t back off or back down if she had a point to make. They would balance one another and be an amazingly strong unit. He paused in his thinking for a moment as his mind shifted slightly and a realization dawned on him. Settled comfortably in the tea house, still flirting and smiling, secure in knowledge, comfort and strength, he knew he was looking not only at Ginrei and Maki but at himself and Inari in the years to come. If he gave into what he’d been feeling, if he let himself fall without all of the “what ifs” and wariness that still lingered, he knew she would be one of the best things that had ever happened to him. Glancing down at her, seeing her smiling softly at the older couple in the tea house, his head finally caught up and realized that there would be no allowing himself to fall because it was already done. He reasoned some part of him had to have known it. Certainly Senbonzakura had seemed to know and it had been reflected in his soulscape. He wasn’t quite sure when or how it had happened and at this point he really didn’t think it mattered.  What mattered was the fact he was in love with her, already so deeply that he wasn’t sure he could have gotten himself out even if he wanted to. He frowned a little, now the question was, what were her feelings toward him?

Inari sensed a sudden shift to worry in Byakuya and glanced up at him. “Are you certain there won’t be any problems with them and your family, Bya?”

Byakuya smiled down at her. “I doubt it. They’ll be far too busy complaining about our union to concern themselves with my grandfather’s and Maki’s until it’s far too late,” he said, sounding both amused and smug.

“Well, let’s get this party started then and really give them something to complain about,” she said, starting up the short path toward the tea house.

Ginrei glanced over at Maki when sensing Byakuya and Inari approaching. “I think we’ve been caught, my dear,” he said with a smile.

“Which was exactly your intention, you crazy old man,” Maki pointed out, setting out the cups properly.

“I cannot deny that which is truth.  At least they seem to be taking it well,” he said.

“Inari wouldn’t care one way or the other as long as I was happy. Speaking of happy, that boy of yours had better make her happy or he’ll deal with me.  I can assure you he won’t be happy if he has to deal with me on that matter,” Maki said.

Ginrei chuckled. “One of the many reasons I love you.” He slid over a little as Byakuya and Inari entered the tea house. “So happy you two could make it. Sit down, this isn’t a formal meeting. Maki tells me the clan is suddenly making noises that Inari is unsuitable for you, Byakuya. What are your thoughts on that matter?”

“As I informed Inari previously, my thoughts on that matter aren’t fit for polite company.”

“I can imagine. What do you intend to do about it?”

“It is my intention to at very least enter into the year and a day contract with her,” Byakuya said, smiling slightly at Inari as she dug into the sleeve of her kimono for the contracts Isshin had drawn up.

“My brother saw fit to have contracts to that effect drawn up speedily late this morning, Ginrei,” Inari said, handing them to the older man for him to look over.

Ginrei took a few minutes to read the contracts thoroughly, checking for any issues or problems that might not have been seen and thereby might be exploited by the family if they really didn’t want this to go through. He glanced up at Byakuya a few minutes later then at Inari. “I take it the two of you have read these,” he said.

They both nodded. “We had also thought, that if you witnessed the signing of these, the clan would have very little to say concerning it,” Byakuya said carefully. This was, for all intents and purposes, his and Inari’s fight with the family but it never hurt to have solid back up.

Ginrei smiled at his grandson. “I have no objections to that,” Ginrei said, standing and going to a small cabinet and pulling out writing instruments. He handed them over to Byakuya and smiled a little. “No time like the present.”

“True enough,” Byakuya said, shuffling the contracts to the signature page before handing them to Inari. She smiled at him and signed her own name without hesitation.

Ginrei smiled at the younger couple. Yes, he thought, they truly would do well together. The papers were set aside for the ink to dry as the group enjoyed their tea and conversation. An hour or so later, Ginrei gingerly touched the signatures, deeming them dry and rolled up the contracts before sealing them with a bit of wax and handing them to Byakuya, who stamped the official family crest into the wax then handed it to Inari, who did the same for the royal house.

“We should get these to Isshin,” Inari said, starting to stand but Ginrei waved her back down.

“Maki and I will take them to him. We had something we needed to discuss with the Sovereign anyway,” Ginrei said, glancing over at Maki and smiling.

Inari couldn’t hide the grin at that. “I just hope the Kuchiki clan will survive the double shock of it.”

“If they can’t, we’ll be much less harassed with them all dead,” Byakuya said mildly.