Gained the World: Reap
Disclaimer: I don’t own Saiunkoku Monogatari i.e. Tale of Saiunkoku.
Story: Reishin always seems to go overboard for Shuurei. He even willingly said he’d marry her than give her to some brat. Shouka finds that he’s too worried about Hyou Riou’s potential danger to his daughter and finds that maybe he should teach Reishin to watch his promises. Therefore, Reishin finds he’s going to marry Shuurei and things get a little crazy.
Set after the first couple of episodes in season 2.
Spoilers: Yes, for what I’ve seen and maybe later on in season two.
Warnings:
Pairings: Reishin/Shuurei (main), one-sided (obsessive) Riou/Shuurei, one-sided Ryuuki/Shuurei, maybe one-sided Seiran/Shuurei, maybe one-sided Kijin/Shuurei, slight Kouyuu/Shuurei, almost Shuuei/Shuurei, Eigetsu/Kourin, Shouka/Shusui, past Shouka/Shoukun, and one-sided past Riou/Shoukun.
Gained the World
Chapter One: Reap
Kou Shouka was a very dedicated father. And the day his Bara-hime died, he swore that he would focus everything on Shuurei and make her happy.
He couldn’t do that with Hyou Riou potentially near his daughter.
That man had made Shoukun’s life a barren waste, and he would do the same to Shuurei if Shouka didn’t stop him from taking his daughter.
Despite his appearance of being clumsy and mad, Shouka was still a Kou. And being a Kou meant he was crafty and can be as cold-hearted as Reishin was. He could be like Kurou’s calculating mind, but it was all for Shuurei’s well-being.
As such, Shouka was well-prepared to call on Reishin. Not only as a lesson to Reishin to watch the promises he made, but also to have the full Kou protection behind Shuurei. It was in that decision that proved how much of a Kou Shouka was.
“Reishin, remember when you told me you wouldn’t give up and would marry Shuurei?” Shouka asked his brother.
“Hai, aniue. Why?”
“Well, I’ve decided Shuurei needs better protection right now and you need to learn to watch what you promise. I give you permission to marry her, Reishin.”
The Kou clan leader gaped at his brother, “A-Aniue, are you serious?”
“Of course I am. Hyou Riou is planning something about Shuurei. On your honeymoon, you can leave Kiyou to go with her to Sa Province, until this whole business is over.”
Reishin’s face actually hardened against his older brother, “And what happens after the ordeal is over? Do you think Shuurei would be happy? Afterwards, she’ll still be stuck married to me.”
“Right now, Shuurei is happy with just being able to do her job.”
“Of course she is. And she’ll agree to this because you approve and she’ll still be allowed to work as an official. But what of when she really finds love? She’ll regret marrying me for the rest of her life.”
“Saa, and you were so determined to be with Shuurei. In fact, I remember you so adamantly refusing to let anyone have her and that you’d marry her.”
“And I still do!” Reishin exclaimed, unhappy at the thought of anyone being with his adorable Shuurei.
“So you’ll marry her?”
“Of course!”
Shouka inwardly sighed. Reishin still hadn’t learned to think over his words first, and not just react.
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“Are you stupid, brother?” Kurou hissed at Reishin.
“And why is marrying Shuurei stupid?” Reishin frowned back.
“She’s our neice, aniue! And she still doesn’t know you’re her uncle. Think about it, she won’t be happy about this at all.”
“Well…maybe her not knowing I’m her uncle will work in my favor,” Reishin said undecidedly.
“And what? Never let her know until the day you die? Be reasonable!”
“I’m going to marry Shuurei and that’s final.”
Kurou sighed in frustration, “Why don’t you just let Kouyuu marry her? I’m sure he’ll agree to it.”
Reishin stiffened, “I taught him to think for himself, he won’t become part of this clan. And there’s no way I’d let him marry Shuurei. There’s no one good enough for her.”
“And you are?” Kurou glared reproachfully at the other.
“No, but I’d rather it were me than anyone else. I don’t want anyone else to steal her from me…us,” Reishin corrected, flinching.
Kurou huffed, “You’re digging your own grave.”
“But at least she’ll get the best protection,” Reishin tried to placate Kurou.
The proxy clan leader grudgingly conceded to that.
“Shuurei still hasn’t been told though. I doubt she’ll be as agreeing as you and aniue.”
“We’ll see. We’ll see.”
Several hours later, Reishin and Kurou waited with Shouka for the return of Shuurei to break the news to her. All three brothers together unnerved Seiran, who wasn’t quite sure what was going on.
“Tou-san, Seiran! Tadaima! I’ll start on making dinner after I put these away!”
“No need, Shuurei. Come in here first,” Shouka surprised his daughter.
There was a pause and then there were hurried footsteps coming towards them.
“Tou-san, what did you do now –” Shuurei said sternly, sliding the door open, but stopping short.
“Oji-sama! And, uh, o-ojisan…” Shuurei hesitantly referred to the other man, remembering what Reishin had asked her to call him when she had been pretending to be a boy.
“Shuurei, I hope you don’t mind us here,” Kurou smiled. “I’d also like to stay for dinner, if you don’t mind that either.”
“Ah, of course not, oji-sama. Will you also be staying here for dinner, um, oji-san?” Shuurei asked the other man.
Reishin smiled hesitantly, “I’d love to.”
He might as well, being engaged to her and all. It wouldn’t do to be distant.
“Shuurei, sit down. There’s some news we need to tell you,” Shouka interrupted them.
“Hai, tou-san?”
“You see, Shuurei, that man you saw before. His name is Hyou Riou and he’s very dangerous. I would’ve left this up to you, but I’d like you to consider the marriage proposal of Reishin here,” Shouka announced, gesturing to Reishin.
Kurou glared at the two. They hadn’t mentioned anything about someone named Hyou Riou or any dangerous men approaching Shuurei. To be fair to Reishin, he didn’t know the whole story either. He just knew that man’s name and that he caused a potential threat to Shuurei.
Shuurei sat down in shock, staring at the three men across her. She even dismissed the sound of something crashing in the background, but Shouka had a feeling it had something to do with Seiran.
“He’s a very responsible, caring man, Shuurei. He’s powerful and able to protect you. He’ll be able to take care of you and make sure you’re living comfortably.”
“But I’m happy here,” Shuurei blurted out.
“I understand. You can still live here, if you want. You’d still have a place in my home, and I’ll even live here. Besides, you wouldn’t be able to live around here anyway. Your work is in Sa Province and you’ll be there for most of the time,” Reishin cut in quietly.
“Y-you’d still let me work as an official?”
“Of course. I find your work very admirable.”
Shuurei swallowed harshly. She really didn’t care for marriage at this time, even though other girls her age were readying for it and wishing for it. But this seemed great, she would still be able to work and was being offered more freedom than she would’ve had in any other marriage.
She had the choice of home, the ability of work, and he seemed like a nice man. And her father approved.
“I…okay. I guess.”
“You’re accepting?” Reishin’s eyes lit up.
“Yes, I guess I couldn’t have asked for anything better. It’s the best political marriage I could dream of.”
“Ah, y-yes. Political marriage. So tomorrow morning then?” Reishin recovered nicely from his slipup.
“So soon?” Shuurei asked confused.
“Yes, that way I can come with you to Sa Province to look after you while we’re on our honeymoon.”
“Okay then…I’ll be ready. But what should I wear?”
“Don’t worry about that, Shuurei. I’ll take care of it,” Kurou promised.
“Okay, oji-sama. I guess that’s it then.”
“Yes,” Reishin agreed, not knowing what else to say.
“I’ll go make dinner.”
Dinner had been laid out by Kurou and Seiran, with her father and Reishin talking to each other at the table. No one talked after the food came, but Shuurei could feel this tenseness surrounding the four males and it was making her nervous.
“This is delicious, Shuurei. You did an excellent job,” Kurou complimented her, smiling.
Not to be outdone, Reishin also complimented her, “Absolutely brilliant. Your skills must unrivaled.”
Shuurei blushed under all the praises. Seiran, however, huffed silently.
“Shuurei’s cooking is perfect. She’s always cooking for us, so Danna-sama and I always eat happily,” the former prince said smugly.
Reishin and Kurou immediately glared at him, murder in their eyes.
“I agree. Shuurei’s cooking is excellent. We’re so lucky for her to feed us,” Shouka put in, diffusing the situation, but mostly just to not be left out in praising his daughter.
Suddenly, Shuurei wondered about the predicament and hoped life wouldn’t always be like this in the future.
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Shuurei was a shining angel. Kurou had immediately ordered a wedding kimono to be made the night Shuurei agreed to be married and now Reishin was staring at Shuurei’s graceful form walk across the room to meet him. It was a quiet wedding, with only Shouka, Kurou, Kouyuu, and Seiran attending.
The silk pearl kimono fit her and draped low to the ground, embroidered with the Kou clan symbol on the back in red. Reishin let his mind wander from the hem of it to her face, smiling at how grownup Shuurei seemed. She smiled back uncertainly.
It was over as soon as it had begun, and Reishin avoided looking at the fuming Seiran, the glaring Kurou, and the lost looking Kouyuu. He even avoided Shouka’s smiling face. Instead, he focused on Shuurei’s calm demeanor and her relaxed and contented face.
“Congratulations, Reishin. You’re married. Again,” Reishin lost his smile at the sight of his friend, Kou Kijin, standing in front of him outside of the building he was just married in. Kijin’s posture revealed the anger going through him.
“Houju…”
“Married again?” Shuurei asked confused.
“You’re…my second wife,” Reishin looked down, hiding his eyes.
Strangely, that didn’t seem to bother her.
“Like I said, congratulations,” Kijin looked between the two, the others hovering uncertainly behind the newlywed couple.
“Um, thank you, Senior Secretary Kou,” Shuurei smiled at him. Kijin nodded at her and turned back his rigid stare on Reishin, his eyes seeming to bore holes into her new husband. She could just feel that Kijin was angry at Reishin.
“Let’s go, Shuurei. I’ll take you to my home for tonight and then get ready in the morning to take off for Sa Province,” Reishin said, fixing his face to a blank state as he stared back at Kijin.
“Okay,” Shuurei let him steer her off without another word, her friends and family staring behind them. Even with the mask, Shuurei felt she could visualize the pain and anger on Kijin’s face.
Started 11/26/07 –Completed 11/26/07
Story: Reishin always seems to go overboard for Shuurei. He even willingly said he’d marry her than give her to some brat. Shouka finds that he’s too worried about Hyou Riou’s potential danger to his daughter and finds that maybe he should teach Reishin to watch his promises. Therefore, Reishin finds he’s going to marry Shuurei and things get a little crazy.
Set after the first couple of episodes in season 2.
Spoilers: Yes, for what I’ve seen and maybe later on in season two.
Warnings:
Pairings: Reishin/Shuurei (main), one-sided (obsessive) Riou/Shuurei, one-sided Ryuuki/Shuurei, maybe one-sided Seiran/Shuurei, maybe one-sided Kijin/Shuurei, slight Kouyuu/Shuurei, almost Shuuei/Shuurei, Eigetsu/Kourin, Shouka/Shusui, past Shouka/Shoukun, and one-sided past Riou/Shoukun.
Gained the World
Chapter One: Reap
Kou Shouka was a very dedicated father. And the day his Bara-hime died, he swore that he would focus everything on Shuurei and make her happy.
He couldn’t do that with Hyou Riou potentially near his daughter.
That man had made Shoukun’s life a barren waste, and he would do the same to Shuurei if Shouka didn’t stop him from taking his daughter.
Despite his appearance of being clumsy and mad, Shouka was still a Kou. And being a Kou meant he was crafty and can be as cold-hearted as Reishin was. He could be like Kurou’s calculating mind, but it was all for Shuurei’s well-being.
As such, Shouka was well-prepared to call on Reishin. Not only as a lesson to Reishin to watch the promises he made, but also to have the full Kou protection behind Shuurei. It was in that decision that proved how much of a Kou Shouka was.
“Reishin, remember when you told me you wouldn’t give up and would marry Shuurei?” Shouka asked his brother.
“Hai, aniue. Why?”
“Well, I’ve decided Shuurei needs better protection right now and you need to learn to watch what you promise. I give you permission to marry her, Reishin.”
The Kou clan leader gaped at his brother, “A-Aniue, are you serious?”
“Of course I am. Hyou Riou is planning something about Shuurei. On your honeymoon, you can leave Kiyou to go with her to Sa Province, until this whole business is over.”
Reishin’s face actually hardened against his older brother, “And what happens after the ordeal is over? Do you think Shuurei would be happy? Afterwards, she’ll still be stuck married to me.”
“Right now, Shuurei is happy with just being able to do her job.”
“Of course she is. And she’ll agree to this because you approve and she’ll still be allowed to work as an official. But what of when she really finds love? She’ll regret marrying me for the rest of her life.”
“Saa, and you were so determined to be with Shuurei. In fact, I remember you so adamantly refusing to let anyone have her and that you’d marry her.”
“And I still do!” Reishin exclaimed, unhappy at the thought of anyone being with his adorable Shuurei.
“So you’ll marry her?”
“Of course!”
Shouka inwardly sighed. Reishin still hadn’t learned to think over his words first, and not just react.
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“Are you stupid, brother?” Kurou hissed at Reishin.
“And why is marrying Shuurei stupid?” Reishin frowned back.
“She’s our neice, aniue! And she still doesn’t know you’re her uncle. Think about it, she won’t be happy about this at all.”
“Well…maybe her not knowing I’m her uncle will work in my favor,” Reishin said undecidedly.
“And what? Never let her know until the day you die? Be reasonable!”
“I’m going to marry Shuurei and that’s final.”
Kurou sighed in frustration, “Why don’t you just let Kouyuu marry her? I’m sure he’ll agree to it.”
Reishin stiffened, “I taught him to think for himself, he won’t become part of this clan. And there’s no way I’d let him marry Shuurei. There’s no one good enough for her.”
“And you are?” Kurou glared reproachfully at the other.
“No, but I’d rather it were me than anyone else. I don’t want anyone else to steal her from me…us,” Reishin corrected, flinching.
Kurou huffed, “You’re digging your own grave.”
“But at least she’ll get the best protection,” Reishin tried to placate Kurou.
The proxy clan leader grudgingly conceded to that.
“Shuurei still hasn’t been told though. I doubt she’ll be as agreeing as you and aniue.”
“We’ll see. We’ll see.”
Several hours later, Reishin and Kurou waited with Shouka for the return of Shuurei to break the news to her. All three brothers together unnerved Seiran, who wasn’t quite sure what was going on.
“Tou-san, Seiran! Tadaima! I’ll start on making dinner after I put these away!”
“No need, Shuurei. Come in here first,” Shouka surprised his daughter.
There was a pause and then there were hurried footsteps coming towards them.
“Tou-san, what did you do now –” Shuurei said sternly, sliding the door open, but stopping short.
“Oji-sama! And, uh, o-ojisan…” Shuurei hesitantly referred to the other man, remembering what Reishin had asked her to call him when she had been pretending to be a boy.
“Shuurei, I hope you don’t mind us here,” Kurou smiled. “I’d also like to stay for dinner, if you don’t mind that either.”
“Ah, of course not, oji-sama. Will you also be staying here for dinner, um, oji-san?” Shuurei asked the other man.
Reishin smiled hesitantly, “I’d love to.”
He might as well, being engaged to her and all. It wouldn’t do to be distant.
“Shuurei, sit down. There’s some news we need to tell you,” Shouka interrupted them.
“Hai, tou-san?”
“You see, Shuurei, that man you saw before. His name is Hyou Riou and he’s very dangerous. I would’ve left this up to you, but I’d like you to consider the marriage proposal of Reishin here,” Shouka announced, gesturing to Reishin.
Kurou glared at the two. They hadn’t mentioned anything about someone named Hyou Riou or any dangerous men approaching Shuurei. To be fair to Reishin, he didn’t know the whole story either. He just knew that man’s name and that he caused a potential threat to Shuurei.
Shuurei sat down in shock, staring at the three men across her. She even dismissed the sound of something crashing in the background, but Shouka had a feeling it had something to do with Seiran.
“He’s a very responsible, caring man, Shuurei. He’s powerful and able to protect you. He’ll be able to take care of you and make sure you’re living comfortably.”
“But I’m happy here,” Shuurei blurted out.
“I understand. You can still live here, if you want. You’d still have a place in my home, and I’ll even live here. Besides, you wouldn’t be able to live around here anyway. Your work is in Sa Province and you’ll be there for most of the time,” Reishin cut in quietly.
“Y-you’d still let me work as an official?”
“Of course. I find your work very admirable.”
Shuurei swallowed harshly. She really didn’t care for marriage at this time, even though other girls her age were readying for it and wishing for it. But this seemed great, she would still be able to work and was being offered more freedom than she would’ve had in any other marriage.
She had the choice of home, the ability of work, and he seemed like a nice man. And her father approved.
“I…okay. I guess.”
“You’re accepting?” Reishin’s eyes lit up.
“Yes, I guess I couldn’t have asked for anything better. It’s the best political marriage I could dream of.”
“Ah, y-yes. Political marriage. So tomorrow morning then?” Reishin recovered nicely from his slipup.
“So soon?” Shuurei asked confused.
“Yes, that way I can come with you to Sa Province to look after you while we’re on our honeymoon.”
“Okay then…I’ll be ready. But what should I wear?”
“Don’t worry about that, Shuurei. I’ll take care of it,” Kurou promised.
“Okay, oji-sama. I guess that’s it then.”
“Yes,” Reishin agreed, not knowing what else to say.
“I’ll go make dinner.”
Dinner had been laid out by Kurou and Seiran, with her father and Reishin talking to each other at the table. No one talked after the food came, but Shuurei could feel this tenseness surrounding the four males and it was making her nervous.
“This is delicious, Shuurei. You did an excellent job,” Kurou complimented her, smiling.
Not to be outdone, Reishin also complimented her, “Absolutely brilliant. Your skills must unrivaled.”
Shuurei blushed under all the praises. Seiran, however, huffed silently.
“Shuurei’s cooking is perfect. She’s always cooking for us, so Danna-sama and I always eat happily,” the former prince said smugly.
Reishin and Kurou immediately glared at him, murder in their eyes.
“I agree. Shuurei’s cooking is excellent. We’re so lucky for her to feed us,” Shouka put in, diffusing the situation, but mostly just to not be left out in praising his daughter.
Suddenly, Shuurei wondered about the predicament and hoped life wouldn’t always be like this in the future.
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Shuurei was a shining angel. Kurou had immediately ordered a wedding kimono to be made the night Shuurei agreed to be married and now Reishin was staring at Shuurei’s graceful form walk across the room to meet him. It was a quiet wedding, with only Shouka, Kurou, Kouyuu, and Seiran attending.
The silk pearl kimono fit her and draped low to the ground, embroidered with the Kou clan symbol on the back in red. Reishin let his mind wander from the hem of it to her face, smiling at how grownup Shuurei seemed. She smiled back uncertainly.
It was over as soon as it had begun, and Reishin avoided looking at the fuming Seiran, the glaring Kurou, and the lost looking Kouyuu. He even avoided Shouka’s smiling face. Instead, he focused on Shuurei’s calm demeanor and her relaxed and contented face.
“Congratulations, Reishin. You’re married. Again,” Reishin lost his smile at the sight of his friend, Kou Kijin, standing in front of him outside of the building he was just married in. Kijin’s posture revealed the anger going through him.
“Houju…”
“Married again?” Shuurei asked confused.
“You’re…my second wife,” Reishin looked down, hiding his eyes.
Strangely, that didn’t seem to bother her.
“Like I said, congratulations,” Kijin looked between the two, the others hovering uncertainly behind the newlywed couple.
“Um, thank you, Senior Secretary Kou,” Shuurei smiled at him. Kijin nodded at her and turned back his rigid stare on Reishin, his eyes seeming to bore holes into her new husband. She could just feel that Kijin was angry at Reishin.
“Let’s go, Shuurei. I’ll take you to my home for tonight and then get ready in the morning to take off for Sa Province,” Reishin said, fixing his face to a blank state as he stared back at Kijin.
“Okay,” Shuurei let him steer her off without another word, her friends and family staring behind them. Even with the mask, Shuurei felt she could visualize the pain and anger on Kijin’s face.
Started 11/26/07 –Completed 11/26/07