The eyes of Tamura Akiko are blessed.
Some lovingly reference ginko leaves, chrysanthemums; others bitterly reference topaz.
She thinks of lemon macrons and the glow of a lamp, as childish as she is.
Her fiance references the rising sun, amber, a...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
The prophecy comes true, and both Kamado Tanjirou and Tamura Akiko are born.
They're set to marry when Akiko turns 16, Tanjirou being a few months older than she.
Both babies lay together when they sleep, and the wives coo when they hold hands as they nap in the same futon.
When Hiratsuka and Ray returned home after the bear attack, Higuchi threw a wild fit at the news.
The only thing that could save the young couple is if their new born be a male rather than a female.
But that doesn't happen, and Higuchi goes into a rage when she finds that she now has a granddaughter.
A bowl shatters near Hiratsuka's face, and she covers Akiko's small face with the sleeve of her kimono.
"You've cursed her! My granddaughter is basically an oiran now!" Higuchi cries out, and her husband tugs her down to sit, casting his daughter an apologetic look. Hiratsuka bites her lip before handing Akiko to Ray.
Akiko is crying, and Ray checks to make sure she isn't cut anywhere. One look from his new wife and he knows that he should just leave the room.
So he does, and it isn't until late at night that she comes back.
Ray looks her over too, brushing his thumb over some dried blood staining his lover's cheek. She collapses into his arms and Ray shushes her sobbing, pointing at a sleeping Akiko.
"Did anything else happen?" Ray questions and Hiratsuka nods her head.
She crawls over to Akiko, gently picking her up to cradle her in her arms. Akiko doesn't stir, and Hiratsuka's heart is put at ease while staring at her daughter.
"A few conditions. I thought mother would have harsher conditions, but these seem reasonable." Hiratsuka tries to calm her breathing, blinking the last of her tears away before continuing.
"Akiko spends one weekend in the mountains with the Kamados and vice versa. When she turns eight, we move to Tokyo and put her into a school."
Ray raises a brow, "So we live here for the next eight years?"
Hiratsuka lets out a tired sigh, "I don't know, Ray... I know you have the hospital to run, but..."
The three fall asleep in each other's arms for the night.
---
"Akiko, would you like to see Nezuko?" Kie rises from her bed, watching as Akiko crawls over to the futon.
Hiratsuka, Ray and Tanjuro are talking in the other room, Tanjuro thanks Ray for assisting in Nezuko's birth. Kie can see that Tanjirou is asleep in his father's arms, and no one has noticed the absence of the baby girl.
