"Tadaima!"

Takani Megumi entered one of the two living rooms in her family's suburban mansion. She frowned when she realized that the person lounging on a loveseat was no other than Sagara Sanosuke, longtime friend of the family's. His long legs were stretched out in front of him, hands tucked behind his head, eyes closed.

"Sano."

Brown eyes appeared under half-open eyelids.

"Hey, Megitsune."

"How many times do I have to tell you to not call me that?" She gave him an icy glare from her higher vantage point which didn't faze the young man in the least.

"What are you doing here, Sano?"

"I've come to see my fiancée of course."

She stepped closer and punctuated each word with a finger stabbing at his chest. "I. Am. Not. Your. Fiancée!"

He shrugged. "Suit yourself. They'll be here any minute now. Consider yourself warned." With that ominous statement he stood and strolled out of the room, hands in his pockets. Before he could reach front door though, it flew open and nearly caught him as it swung in.

"Sweetheart!" Megumi's mother rushed into the room, eyes on her only daughter. In the split second it had taken her to enter the room, the older woman's eyes landed on the escaping Sanosuke. "Sano, darling! I'm glad we caught you." Megumi's father and Sano's parents filed in more sedately after Mrs. Takani.

"Mrs. Takani," Sano gave her a kiss on the cheek. Megumi's mother twittered and Megumi resisted the urge to roll her eyes; her mother had always adored Sano.

"My, my, it's been too long young man and how you've grown! It feels just like yesterday when you and my dear Megu-chan were still in dia—"

"Now Dear, let's not get too nostalgic, today's a day for happier things." Megumi gave a silent thank you to her father for cutting off that particular trip down memory lane. She respectfully greeted the older Sagaras. Mrs. Sagara kept the young woman's hand in her own and took her son's.

"Now you two, you know it has all been our dearest wish to see you both wed to each other." Megumi froze. "And with both of you graduating from college in a few months, we've decided it's time that we finally settle everything!"

"Mother—" Sanosuke attempted to cut in. Mrs. Takani took her daughter's free hand and patted it affectionately.

"Megumi, you've grown up with Sanosuke and there is no better candidate for your hand than him."

"And Sano, you've known Megumi all your life, she is the ideal wife for you."

"I don't know about 'ideal,' as she doesn't cook." It was said low enough that only Megumi, who was standing shoulder to shoulder with him, heard.

"Shut up, rooster head! As if you're 'the best candidate' yourself!" She threw lowly at him.

Both fathers closed in next to their respective wives.

"With that being said, Sano now has our permission to ask for Megumi's hand."

"And of course, Megumi, you have your father's and my blessing to accept his proposal!" Sano's mother placed Megumi's hand in Sano's while both sets of parents beamed at the two who only stared stoically back.

"Let's go into the other room and give these two a few moments, shall we?" They all trooped into the adjoining room and one of them made a show of pulling the door behind them but leaving it an inch or two open. The two snatched their hand away from the other.

Megumi lowered herself weakly onto an armchair. "O-kay… What just happened?"

Sano leaned against the back of a seat next to her. "Don't say I didn't warn ya."

"I don't understand how you can just stand there and not say anything!"

"I didn't see you faring any better."

"I couldn't even get a word in edgewise." She conceded begrudgingly.

"What're you going to do about it?"

"Refuse, obviously. I'm not one to just take orders sitting down – especially not when it concerns the rest of my life."

"You never were."

"What?"

"You've never liked being ordered around."

"Something wrong with that?"

"Did I say there was? It just makes you you."

"Why do I feel that's not a compliment?"

"It's not a bad thing."

"What are you going to do?"

"What can I do? I don't care either way. They want me to start assuming the role of head of the family and for that I need to be married, preferably with an heir in the works."

"And you're okay with that?"

"With working on making a baby?" His grin turned suggestive. "It is rather enjoyable."

Megumi blushed red and sputtered. "Baka! You know what I mean."

For the first time since she'd seen him that morning, Sanosuke looked serious. He straightened up from his slouched posture. For a moment Megumi thought he wouldn't respond.

"I'm a Sagara, Megumi. The only male of my generation. It's my birthright to be the next head of the family and it's my duty to find the right bride for the task."

"But we live in a modern society now, Sano. Don't you believe that you can fulfill your duties but still marry for love?"

Brown met brown for the space of a heartbeat before Sano looked away. He left a puzzled Megumi without answering her question.

Hello, hello! So this little dialogue spun itself just this morning. I think it can potentially be a few chapters long. Hmmm…

I know both moms here are super hyper but that's how I saw them in my mind, basically tripping over themselves talking and not allowing the youngin's a chance to. I also thought they needed to be pushy but still affectionate to give the feeling of slightly negligent but not necessarily mean parents.

Well, I hope that was interesting and let's see where it goes from here!