Author's note: To bring out the best of this story, please listen to kimi no kioku by MAO (1st ending of Hakuouki anime) while reading. I hoped you enjoy reading this as much as i enjoyed writing it. :)

The wind was blowing softly, as though it was caressing my face. Sakura petals fell from the tree above us; the very same Sakura tree on that fateful day a year ago. Nostalgia flooded me when I thought back to that day, the day we were finally free.

"Chizuru." His voice was gentle and loving.

"Yes?" I smiled down at the man I loved, his head resting on my lap. Our fingers were interlocked.

He extended his free hand suddenly to touch my hair gently. "A sakura petal." He chuckled, as he took the petal off my hair. I felt my cheeks burning. I was living with this man for a year, proudly known as his wife, but I can never get used to his beauty and the fact that this man belonged to me.

Who would have thought that man who once wanted to kill me was now the man I loved more than anything else? That night was engraved vividly into my memory. The snow was falling, and the cold wind was howling. Standing in front of me was a man dressed in a purple kimono top and gray hakama, accompanied by a bright sky-blue coat. The moonlight reflected off his smooth long hair that was tied up in a ponytail, fluttering as though it was dancing along with wind. His cold sword was directed at my chest, with a strong intensity to kill. His violet eyes were cold and fierce.

"Listen, don't you dare to run. If you try to run, I'll kill you." His voice, void of any warmth, was colder than the weather. It cut through me even before his sword did.

"What are you thinking about?" His voice interrupted my thoughts; his eyes bored into mine. His beautiful violet eyes were the same as the night we first met, and yet, so very different. His eyes were no longer cold when looking at me, instead, his gaze filled me with warmth.

"Hmm?" I continued stroking his short, soft black hair. "Just thinking about the night we first met."

"Ahaha," He laughed deeply from his throat. "If you try to run, I'll kill you, huh?" His voice was getting softer.

My vision blurred as I felt my cheek getting wet, my tears splashed onto his forehead in droplets. "Eh?" I didn't even know I was crying. I wiped them off using my sleeve, trying to stop them from falling, but to no avail. The more I tried to wipe off my tears, the more it fell. His smile dropped as he stared at me, his face full of concern.

"Chizuru," his voice was so soft, and weak. "Don't cry." His shivering hands lifted to wipe the tears from my eyes. I knew that even though it was a simple task of wiping away my tears, he was using up most of his strength.

"I'm sorry, I just couldn't…" I choked on a sob before I could finish my sentence. It was hard to believe this man, now so frail and weak, was once the oni fukuchou of the infamous Shinsengumi.

"Chizuru," He whispered my name again. "I'm sorry I had to leave you behind, all alone. If possible, I want to live on and spend my entire life with you." His voice quivered as though he was holding back his tears too. This time, I did not even bother stopping my tears. I just let it fall.

"No…" I mumbled. I didn't want to listen anymore. I didn't want to face reality.

"Chizuru, I love you." His voice was getting softer, weaker and very distant. "In this lifetime, and in my next few lifetimes, I will always love you. Even if I'm no longer beside you, just know that I love you and my heart will eternally be yours."

I nodded, biting on my lips.

"Urgh." He groaned in agony, and his face twisted with pain. However, it was quickly replaced with a sad bitter smile. "I guess it's time." Although he limited his powers as a rasetsu after the war, it still remained a fact that he overused most of his lifetime while fighting for Shinsengumi. The powers, that stole many of our friends' lives, was now going to take away my most loved one from me again.

"No…" I mumbled again. Kondou-san, Heisuke-kun, everyone, please, I beg you. Please don't take him away from me. I prayed silently. I didn't want to lose him. He was going to leave me, like father, like kondou-san, and the rest of Shinsengumi. He was going to leave me, to join them, in a place so far away.

"Chizuru," his voice now barely audible. "Stop crying… And please smile, and call me using my name… I… want to hear… you say my name… for the… last… time…"

For the last time.

I forced a smile, with tears still flowing from my eyes. "I… I love you, Toshizo." His face relaxed, as though the pain was never there, as though he was at peace. Slowly, I moved my face closer to his and gave him a peck on his lips.

For the last time.

I closed my eyes shortly after he closed his. For a second, I saw a teardrop rolled down his cheeks and fell onto the soft ground. Unlike the first time we kissed, his lips were no longer warm. It was cold; ice cold.

In just moments, I heard the sickening sound of crumbling sand that I dreaded to hear. Before I knew it, I was no longer holding his hands but handful of ashes, and I could no longer feel his lips on mine. I sat there silently as the wind blew the ashes far far away from me. I looked up into the blue sky, the same colour as the Haori he was so proud of wearing.

"I really love you."

I whispered as I just let the tears fall freely, no longer holding back anything.

He was gone. He really was gone. But I knew he will always be watching over me, together with the rest of Shinsengumi. I didn't know how long I sat there, under the Sakura tree. His ashes were all blown away, far away from me, to a place I can never reach.

All that was left, was a single Sakura petal.