Okita 6 months

1208 CE, Month of the Rat: At the height of Imperial Winter Court a Shadowlands attack on Zakyo Toshi claims the life of Iweko II Kaoru and Imperial Consort Daidoji Kazuyoshi. Okita's heroic actions during the course of the attack (his holding of the line, and rescue of Seppun Chie and the Imperial Children) bring the attention of the Imperial Families, the Seppun family in particular. Okita, for his part, insists that he could not have done it without the assistance of his comrades during the investigation. After the debriefing and elevation of the group as heroes, Okita is allowed to return to Hare lands, where the Seppun family assures him they will be in contact. Okita retains possession of the Blade of Secrets.

1208 CE, Month of the Ox: Okita spends much of this month back in Hare lands, witnessing his younger sister Yumiko complete her Gempukku. Okita also enters into a meeting with Hare Clan elders to inform them of everything he knows regarding the Spider threat. The Hare Clan grudgingly cranks down the Kolat war to begin gathering information on the Spider. Near the end of the month, an Imperial messenger arrives, bringing a marriage proposal concerning Usagi Okita and Seppun Chie. While the Hare clan is initially loath to allow one of their own heroes to marry outside the family, their concerns about the rise of the so-called Spider Clan and the sudden posturing by the Great Clans regarding the death of the Empress influences them to agree to the marriage. Okita is dispatched to Toshi Ranbo, marrying Seppun Chie and becoming Seppun Okita.

1208 CE, Month of the Tiger: Okita settles in to married life...to an extent. The recent events have put the Imperial Families on High Alert, and Okita enthusiastically joins their training and readiness programs. As far as married life is concerned, Okita and Chie bonded more than they initially knew in the Shrine of Zakyo Toshi, and the match is harmonious. Akane visits early on in the month, and she and Okita catch up on what's been going on since they last saw each other. Chie easily picks up on Akane's mental state, and she and Okita do their best to help support her. On the last day of the year, a vision of a man calling himself Daigotsu appears before the assembled Imperial Court, denouncing the entire Iweko line as usurpers and betrayers. Okita immediately sends messengers to his old friends and comrades, desperate for any information they might have that he and his new family can use.

1209 CE, Month of the Hare: The friction between the Great Clans continues to keep the Imperial Families on high alert. Okita learns that his younger sister, Yumiko, has been accepted as a yoriki to an Emerald Magistrate. With the great clan tensions rising, the new Emerald Champion comes to rely on new recruits from Minor Clans more and more. During this time, Okita confides in his wife his struggles with honorable actions in the past, and asks her help in becoming a true hero, like the Most Divine asked the two of them to be in her last moments. Chie agrees to help Okita, and the two become even closer.

1209 CE, Month of the Dragon: With the war between the Lion and the Crab beginning, the Imperial Legions and Emerald Magistrates are gutted. The Minor Clan Alliance calls an emergency convocation to discuss these disturbing trends, and through the Hare's newfound connection with the Seppun family, the following occurs; Yumiko and several other promising young Yoriki end up getting promoted to full magistrate, and in return the Minor Clans send their best and brightest to the Legions/Magistrates in a desperate attempt to strengthen Imperial control. Despite this, both the Magistrates and the Legions are nowhere near their old strength. Okita does his best to continue his contact with Maka and Ryofu, trying to get a feel for the situation on the ground.

1209 CE: Month of the Serpent: Rokugan descends into chaos as nearly every clan marshals for war. The Imperial Families desperately try to keep order where they can, namely Toshi Ranbo, and Okita chafes at garrison duty. He briefly falls back into old habits, cutting a short reign of terror across Toshi Ranbo's underworld while searching for Spider Infiltrators. Chie finds out about this, and passionately implores him to conduct himself with more dignity and honor, as the late Empress would have wanted. He agrees to her request, apologizing for slipping from trying to be a hero again. He promises to try to conduct himself better in the future, but continues to keep tabs on the local Underworld for possible Spider infiltration as best he can without breaking his word to his wife.

1209 CE: Month of the Horse: With Rokugan descending into Chaos, and the seppuku of Shogun Izo, Otomo Dakuan pays a visit to Seppun Okita and Seppun Chie at their residence, informing him that he will be requesting his help and the help of as many former comrades as respond to him. Okita, excited at the chance to return to Magistrating and seeing his old friends again, jumps at the chance, but not before reiterating his promise to his wife and his commitment to that promise. Unbeknownst to both Okita and Chie at this point, Chie is one month pregnant.