The librarian pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose with the same charm and ease as he did years ago when he first took up the position as head librarian. He noted the feel of the cool metal on his fingertip as he clearly took in the beauty of the woman sitting next to him on the park bench.
“The ceremony was beautiful,” he said awkwardly breaking the silence between them on the lonely seat on the warm day.
“Yes, it was,” Nanoha gazed into the light blue sky.
Yuuno gave a small smile as he laid his head back on the bench, “I would have bet money that Hayate would trip down the aisle.”
Nanoha chuckled to herself, “I thought she would too.”
They sat silently on the bench until Yuuno placed his hand on top of the brunette’s who then laced her fingers with his. His smile widened even with the simple gesture.
“Carim was beaming during the whole thing,” Nanoha said dreamily.
“Ever think about it?” the man asked nervously.
“What?”
“Marriage,” Yuuno’s grip tightened, “Do you ever think about your own wedding?”
“Of the ceremony, yes,“ Nanoha laughed as she dug through her memories, “I think I had the whole event planned out and even who would cater it by the time I was 10.”
“Even the colors?”
“White and blue~”
Yuuno grinned, “Some things never change.”
“But some do,” she said gently while giving the warm hand on hers a kind squeeze, “The ceremony would be beautiful, but I don’t think I ever got around to the whole ‘marriage’ thing.”
“Marriage thing?”
“You know, the whole seriousness of it,” Nanoha pursed her lips in thought, “The ceremony is nice and all, but doesn’t it strike you as a little overboard for signing a piece of paper and getting put into a different tax bracket.”
“Is that what you think marriage is?” Yuuno’s smile disappeared.
“I’m not saying everyone feels that way at first,” she reasoned, “but look at the married couples we know. Don’t you think they were more passionate toward each other when they were living together then after they took the plunge?”
Yuuno’s eyes stung as he stared into the sky without blinking, “I don’t know.”
“Plus, people are more inclined to get divorced anyway,” the brunette sighed, "It seems to me that it's better to live passionately in love for a short while and part amicably then stay together till you can’t stand the sight of other person in the morning.”
“I don’t know about that,” Yuuno politely disagreed, “It’s more than a piece a paper.”
“Always the hopeless romantic.”
“Maybe,” Yuuno smiled, “but, I don’t know. I guess I see marriage more as a contract than something emotional.”
“That’s my point,” Nanoha interrupted, “It’s a love-killer, not a love-reinforcer.”
“No,” Yuuno exclaimed before pulling back, “It’s the backbone of love. It’s a promise-“
“-that no one takes seriously,” Nanoha rolled her eyes.
“But they should! Think about it. What if people actually meant it when they said ‘In sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer, for better or for worse, to death do us part’? A guarantee that you won't go through life alone. Isn’t that the ultimate form of love?”
“To stick around when all passion is gone?”
“Do you really equate love with uncontrollable lust?” Yuuno let go of her hand and rubbed his forehead in a combination of frustration and agitation, “Isn’t there more to a relationship than an orgasm? What about commitment?”
“Yuuno?”
“It’s a promise to stop looking for greener pastures and adore the one you’re in!” Yuuno calmed himself, “I find ‘sticking around’ as you put it-“
“Whoa, I didn’t mean-“
“-to be the ultimate form of love. That someone chooses to accept me for you I am, that they choose to love me at my worse, that they choose to bring the best out of me, and that I choose to do the same for them. It’s a promise to that person and to my own eyes that I’m done searching for the one who completes me. That only death will separate us.”
“Why are you taking this so seriously,” Nanoha asked with a nervous laugh.
Another silence fell between them in the park as Nanoha watched the sad green eyes stare at the fluffy clouds above them.
“No reason,” Yuuno whispered back and he wondered if he could give the small box in his pocket back to the Scrya clan leader without too many questions.