People say that girls and young women alike should never travel at night alone. It was dangerous. But she quite liked it. It was quiet and peaceful. No stares or merchants constantly haggling her.

"Of course it was risky, but that's what makes life, life eh?"

Yumi just looked like a red button in a sea of black. Her features were a bit shaper than average and her eyes. Her eyes were just a dead giveaway. When she was a young girl her mother had told her that her eyes looked that way because when she was infant, the deity Kuraokami* had kissed her eyes. They had become the sea. But now she was too old for silly little tales like that.

Whenever she traveled during the day, she always got unwanted stares. They thought she was a foreigner no doubt. And possibly a rich one at that. Merchants always pestered her to buy the most random things. Serums and concoctions for longevity, good luck, healthy hair; the list just went on. But she was only looking for one person.

Chizuru

She would never forget the day she had left her best friend behind. Ran into her Aunt's open arms and let herself be whisked over the ocean to a strange country where words sounded like rushing water on stones. It was her biggest regret.

Suddenly her musings were cut short when she noticed something odd. Kyoto's streets were normally bustling and busy; filled with scents and things to buy from all ends of the Earth. Well at least when the sun was out. The night breeze was cold and crisp; carrying the solitude Yumi yearned for. But her own footsteps were being joined by someone else. Who was there before.

Her Aunt had told her that when she was out by herself, she was to be aware of every crack and scratch that happened around her. It could save her life.

" Just keep walking. Whoever it is will probably leave to go home in a bit." she thought to herself. "Keep calm. Just keep calm."

So that's exactly what she did. With her composure cool she kept walking. Her feets automatically turned into random streets and alleyways. She shivered as she pulled her wool coat tighter around her body. Even the thick stockings she wore were no match for Kyoto's spring nights. But the minutes seemed to turn into an hour of nonstop walking. At that point, she no longer even was aware of where the heck she was going.

Her curiosity finally got the better of her as she turned her head around to see who her mysterious "follower" was. She immediately snapped her head back and quickened her pace. That was a bad move. Probably emboldened by her quick peek, the person also sped up as well. She fought the urge to gasp as strong arm forcefully snaked around her shoulders.

" Hello little lady, the moon sure if full tonight."

His breath reeked of sake and his blushed face showed obvious evidence of alcohol. The man's bald head shone in the moonlight and he appeared to be in his late fifties. He had a stocky figure with an awkward gait. A round stomach protrudes from his hakama.

" I would appreciate it if you could let go of me sir." she said curtly

" O ho! For a foreigner you speak pretty good Japanese. What brings you to this country?"

" I was born here so I'm not a foreigner. Please sir, let go of me." she responded more forcefully

Instead of complying, he strengthened his hold," Well now, let's not get too feisty", whispering into her ears in a way that made her sick," But I do prefer my girls like that. Anyway, what's a young woman like you doing all by yourself on these dangerous streets?"

" I can handle myself quite well thank you very much. With all respect, I think you should leave. I would prefer to walk by myself."

" Well wouldn't it nice if I could help esco-"

" I don't think escort is really the right word." with her irritation at a near breaking point being ladylike was out of her control," I'm very sure sir, that once you have the slightest chance. You'd have your disgusting fun with me and then kill me."

Suddenly the plump man snapped. His skin started to turn pink as sweat began to bead up on his forehead. The man's lecherous expression quickly melted into a scrunched look of pure rage. Surely, this man had never been put in his place before. It was an unfortunate situation to admit this, but it satisfied Yumi that words could do this to a human being. However, as joyous as that made her; another problem was brewing.

He snarled," Y-You bitch! How dare you go around like that insulting me?! Do you even know who I am?"

Despite the uneasiness building up in her stomach, she responded cooly,"I don't care the slightest who you are. I have met many men in life and almost none of them have ever been as slobbish as you. First of all, in your drunken state you choose to follow me and harrass me. Next, you somehow have it in your sick head that I'd want to screw a man like you."

If there was one down side to Yumi's personality, it was her mouth. Her Aunt had always told her it would be the death of her even though she had personally begged to differ. Turns out this time she wasn't really right though.

His rage suddenly turned dangerous as his scowl turned into a sweet smile," Well my dear, even as a woman you sure are smart. I'll give you that. You're right, I was gonna rape you" he suddenly reached out to grab the collar of her coat," But oh ho; I wasn't going to kill you. I mean who'd even believe someone like you?"

Tracing the outline of her face with his sausage like fingers his smile widened," But I mean, women with mouths like you are a menace to this country. When will girls like you learn their places? But really, if I kill you, no one will even know. People die on the streets of Kyoto every day so it's really no big deal anyway", his eyes shifted to her clothes," And plus, I'm sure your clothes will fetch a high price in the market. I mean Western clothing is truly a rarity here."

When he was too busy laying out his "master plan", she took the opportunity to raise her foot. Using as much strength as she could muster, she gave a sharp kick to his crotch. The man let out a loud high pitched shriek as he quickly let go of her coat and went to tenderly cup his abused loins.

At that moment she started off in a sprint. These boots are steel toed so he's not gonna get up for a while. Running like she had never before, she took a complicated series of turns and twists. Running into every back alley she could, she tried to lay out a confusing track for her pursuer.

But eventually of course, she was getting tired. Looking around quickly she spotted a wooden crate and plopped herself down on it. Panting she looked up at the sky as her right hand automatically went to touch her chest. Her heart pounded so hard, she could swear that if someone was sitting next to her, they could hear it too. Regaining her breathe she looked up at the night sky. No matter where in Japan she was, England's night could never beat her home country's. The sky was a dark blue with splatters of black in it. Small but bright stars speckled the dark canvas and glowed with certainty. But the real show; was the moon.

" The moon. It's so beautiful tonight. Too bad it had to be under these circumstances to notice it." she mused to herself.

It was round and full. A pure white color. In the bright streets of London, none of this was even fathomable. Possibly in the countryside. But it still wasn't the same.

The man would have probably grown tired of chasing her given up by now. "Afterall", she thought," I mean I'm sure I'm ran a far distance."

And by this hour, it would surely be too late to find an Inn to stay in. No one in their right mind would be awake at this awful time. She was sure it would be fine to just spend the night on this "comfy" wooden crate and just wait till morning to continue. As she comforted herself about it, she felt herself begin to relax. The adrenaline from her little adventure finally left her veins making her energy completely crash.

Resting her head against the wall behind her, she continued to admire the night sky. And slowly, her eyes started to close in.

I mean what's the worst thing that I happen at this point?

Yumi had never wanted to smack herself harder than she wanted to at the moment

She must have dozed off at some point because she felt herself jolt awake to the sound of some horribly loud profanities.

" You bitch, I know you're here. Just give up! I don't know how you think you could outsmart me."

Based on the voice she was sure it was the same man from before. And that he was getting dangerously near to her location. Determined to escape peacefully she grabbed her leather travel bag from the crate next to her and almost groaned when she had to stand. Though her legs straightened themselves,

She couldn't get up

To her horror she realized that a sharp scraggly nail had somehow caught in the thick cotton of her skirt. Desperly she tried to worm her clothes off of the snare but her finger kept clumsily slipping. She wanted to scream.

" Damn it! Why now out of all bloody times?!" she groaned to herself

With the male voice getting louder, he was only getting closer. After several more unsuccessful attempted to set herself free, his voice finally came from behind the building she was hiding behind. Time almost seemed to come to a standstill as her heart felt like it was going to burst. In a final attempt of sheer fear, she ripped the fabric of her skirt with an audible tearing sound and fought the urge to cheer. However, her celebration was short lived when she felt something hard hit her behind her knees.

She grunted slightly as her head hit the hard cold ground. Her mind spinned for a little as she struggled to process was just happened.

Suddenly she heard the sound of scraping metal and came face to face with a sharp katana blade in front of her face.

" Well well well. You thought you could run from me?" The man smiled arrogantly as he loud out a loud snicker. Though he had sobered up from his little run, it seemed as if his mind was still partially dulled.

She stared at the wooden crate next to her and cursed to herself. The force of her ripping the fabric and running must had dragged the crate to its side; crashing into her during the process.

However, her hard pride kept her from uttering a words. That asshole would be damned if he hears a single plea from me.

" Nothing to say eh little lady?"

Yumi continued to stare at the offending man cooly and even forced out a yawn.

Though his smile didn't falter, she could see a vein twitch at the side of her head. It was quite obvious he had wanted her on her knees begging for her life. But that would quite literally happen over her dead body.

" Your stupidity amazes me. At death's door but still defiant as ever…"

She let him droon on as her left hand discreetly crawled into her coat. A sigh of relief almost left her lips as she felt cool metal. Safety.

Her hand wrapped itself around the handle of the gun as she eased it out of it's leather holster that was sewn into the lining of her coat. Though she didn't mind the dangers of traveling at night alone, she was no idiot. Wherever she went, her silver pistol went as well.

" You've got really nothing to say?!" the suddenly loud bark made her flinch slightly

Her silence was clearly making him even more mad. And now it was like boiling water flowing out of its kettle. Determined to keep her composure, she nodded and even smiled slightly.

" You bitch. I was going to consider sparing you again but I guess my generosity is being wasted on little fuck like you. I hope you'll be smarter in the afterlife", he raised his sword high in the air," No one will miss a disgrace of a woman like you anyway."

Suddenly, before he could bring his blade down, she saw a flash of white. She heard a high pitched shriek and before she knew it, that man was no longer in front of her. Rather ten feet away and on his back spread eagle. Another figure loomed over him, but with his back turned to her, she couldn't make out who. The moonlight clearly shone on his back and she could make out a coat.

It was a light baby blue with…

" White triangles and the word Shinsengumi. Oh shit". It dawned upon her. She had boughten a light dinner of gyoza earlier in the night only to have the stall owner warn her. The old lady had urged Yumi to find an inn soon.

" Thank you so much for the food." Yumi smiled cheerfully at the kind lady that stood in front of her. The lady smiled back warmly as the creases of her worn eyes deepend.

" Of course dear. I'm always happy to serve such a lovely young lady. Say dear", she leaned in closer," I didn't see anyone come up with you. Are you here alone?"

She let out a slight nod," Yes O-basan*. I've been wandering Japan alone for the past month."

The older lady's face darkened as she put a hand up to her mouth to hide her shock. " Oh dear! You poor thing. Why would you do such a thing? It's not safe out there for a young woman such as yourself to be walking around unaccompanied."

After explaining that her friend had mysteriously disappeared and that neighbors had point her towards Kyoto; the stall lady nodded. " I see I see. I guess there's really no helping it then my dear. I'd send my son with you if I could. He's quite good looking and strong, but I have no one else to help out here" she said dismayed

Quickly, Yumi shook her head and stammered," Ah n-no! Thank you so much. I-I can't believe that you would offer such a thing to a complete stranger like me."

Wiping her aged hands on her arpon, she grasped both of the blue eyes girl's hands with hers. Despite age washing over her skin like waves on a turbulent day, they were soft and kind. As the lady's old gray eyes stared into her blue ones she felt a bit stunned.

" When I was a young girl, I had dreams . And I know you have them. I see it in your eyes my darling. The crashing waves. Life will bring you good things I promise, but you must stay alive to see them."

Reaching into the cloth purse that dangled from her obi, she pulled out a silver coin and wrapped Yumi's hand around it.

" Take this. Please find yourself an Inn tonight. Kyoto is the most dangerous city of them all. Night brings such terrible things if you find yourself out too late. I must warn you of the Shinsengumi. They're quite vicious if I may say so."

Other than the gyoza lady, several other people had warned her of the Shinsengumi. " The wolves of Mibu" they called them on the streets.

The coat the man wore belonged none other than to that damned group. She was snatched out of her thoughts as she heard the man sprawled on the floor let out another shriek.

" P-please s-s-sir I w-wasn't going to h-hurt her. I was j-j-just pl-playing around." he whimpered pitifully

The figure above him, instead of responding, let out a crazed cackle. Something about it made Yumi's blood freeze. Something told her there was something very very off about that person. There was a certain trait that just didn't make them seem human.

Suddenly the man screamed again when the other pulled his katana out of its scabbard. " P-please sir I'm begging you-"

His plea was cut short when with one swift motion, the blade drow itself into the man's plump stomach. His shriek turned into a crude gurgling noise as blood splattered everywhere. Even a few drops managed to land on the edge of her skirt. Her desperate wish for an end was far from granted when he slices his blade all the way to the top of his shoulder.

The O-kesa technique. She stared eyed wide in a mixture of amazement and horror.

" Come one! Now's not the time for this!" she mentally yelled to herself

Snapping back to reality she continued to watch in silent horror as the gurgling finally stopped. Too afraid to even move a muscle she sat there and didn't even breathe. Throwing the blade to the side the figure crouched next the bloodied corpse and

Sunk its teeth into the man's neck

With savage like noises, she could see pearly white teeth rip its way through muscle, skin and tendons. Like a starved animal, he hungrily ripped flesh from its body and devoured it. Her eyes widened as she fought the urge to scream. Sure she had seen more gorey things in the hospital but, this was of course no more pleasant.

Still her hand wrapped around the gun as she struggled to control her fear. Never ever, had she ever felt this scared in her life. But her body betrayed her as she suddenly gasped for air. She hadn't even realized that she had been holding her breathe.

The sharp noise startled the man as it suddenly stopped its gruesome meal. Painfully slow, his head turned around to meet hers. At that moment, Yumi realized to her worst nightmare.

This wasn't a man. It wasn't even human. It was an absolute monster.

The creature had shining silver hair that looks scraggly and unwashed for days. It's pinpoint eyes were a startling red and bore a crazed sheen to it. And its entire body reeked of flesh and blood. With a twisted smile, it began to pant and rise. As it began to creep to her, she caught a glimpse of the disembodied man that had almost killed her before. It's head. "No" she thought to herself. What was left of his head had been thrown to the side. The bright moonlight shone upon the white bone that protruded from the marred neck. Blood continued to ooze out of where the head should have been and there was shreds of skin everywhere. It was horrible.

Still smiling, the creature finally loomed above her. Suddenly, Yumi's adrenaline kicked in as she managed to thaw her muscles and acted quickly. Pulling the gun out, she quickly unlocked it and wrapped her index finger around the ivory trigger and aimed for its head.

" Here goes nothing"

A loud bang rang out throughout the street and continued to resonate. Looking up finally, she saw a bloody hole through the middle of the creature's eyebrows. Blood oozed out and she couldn't even see the butt of the bullet. With painful slowness, the creature shrieked and finally slumped down. When it fell with a thud, she flinched.

She didn't know how long she stayed like that. Staring at the two dead bodies that lay before her. Her hands shook trembled from the recoil. The smell of gunpowder stung her nose. Ringing filled ears and she struggled to hear. Tears gathered at the edge of her ocean eyes from fright but refused to fall. The only thing that kept her grounded to reality was the stinging on her shoulder where the empty bullet shell had seared her skin.

Finally, after she had regained her breathe and strength she slowly stood up. " Damn, there's blood all over me." she mumbled softly. It had managed to get on her face, hands, and all over her clothes. She stumbled to her feet and took a deep breathe. The crisp cool air around her had been tainted a foul metallic scent. There was the damned crimson liquid everywhere. Forget the blood on her clothes, she had to get out of here. People were sure to come looking for them and she definitely did not want to be here when they came.

But before she could run, she felt something sharp press roughly on her back.

" Well well well what do we have here?" a sharp voice snickered

Letting out a sigh she turned around to stare into a pair of bright green eyes

" The shows over. What the hell do you want?" she said tiredly

She had neither the strength or the good humor for games right now. The bright blade pressed itself harder into her back.

" I wouldn't rush if I was you. Oh, what have we here?" he turned to look at the creature she had just killed.

The man had a sharp angular face. Along with his eyes and attitude, he reminded of her a snide fox. Fox face.

" Neh Saito-kun come over here will ya?" he called out

As quiet as air, another man emerged from the darkness. " Who is that?"

" Eh I found her here just now. Now why don't you look at that?" he pointed coyly to the bullet wound in its head.

Smirking he said," Well miss, why don't you tell us how that got there?"

" I didn't do anything sir. I swear by it. I was just passing by and saw them already dead. What else do you want from me?"

He raised an eyebrow and nodded towards the silver gun still clutched tightly in her left hand. Oh god. Really?!

" Heh yes. You were just passing by eh?"

She narrowed her eyes at her and readied herself to make a smart retort when the other man spoke up.

" We need to inform Hijikata of this. Whatever happened is obviously troubling from all sides of it."

" Then what do we do with the girl then?"

The man had a more calm air around him. He had dark purple eyes and purple hair that blew softly in the night wind. He was strange.

His eyes bore and burned straight into her blue ones as he shook his head," Take her back Okita-kun. We'll see what Hijikata wants to do with her."

Fox face chuckled snidely," Are you sure about that Saito? Last time we did that, what a disaster it turned out to be."

" Don't play around Okita. I'm serious. We'll take her back so we won't go against his orders. Do you understand?"

" Mah mah fine. I swear you're no fun my friend."

He sighed and said in a deadpan voice," This isn't meant to be fun. It's our duty so treat it more like it."

Throwing a burlap sack at the red haired man he mumbled," Tie her hands and throw this over her had. We're leaving."

Finally Yumi butt in," Wait! You're not taking me anywhere! Nowhere you hear?!"

" That's not really a choice to make for you" the man named Okita grinned evilly

" Who even the hell are you?! Why the hell are doing this to me?! Someone help me! Please!"

The calmer man shook his head and merely mumbled," Okita."

" Got it."

Before Yumi could continue shrieking for help she felt something hard and cold knock hard against her head. Instant pain spread through. Suddenly, the throbbing dulled as.

" Oh lord please no" she thought to no avail

Darkness seemed to close in on her and she could only stand helplessly and feel herself fall

As the girl slumped down, Okita caught her quickly and laid her on the ground. Now unconscious he could finally get a good look at her. By no means was she ugly and he could say she was rather pretty.

" Hey Okita I'm heading back now. Take her back and when you get back to headquarters, tie her hands and legs. Don't forget to gag her while you're at it."

" Got it Saitou. Oh and," pointing at a worn leather bag and the silver gun that rest as his feet," What do I do with these?"

Without even glancing back he said quietly," Take them with you. Keep the gun and bag with you and make sure no one knows you have it. Yamazaki will handle the rest."

*O-Kesa - a diagonal cut from the hip to shoulders done by a katana. Death can either be almost instant or slow.

*Obasan - a formal way to address elderly women

Kuraokami* - the Japanese deity of rain and snow