Hello everyone! I hope you all like this story! If you do review, please understand that this is my first fanfic ever. I respect criticism however I do not appreciate flames. So please no flames. (Even though I deserve them)
Disclaimer- I don't own Hakuouki in any way shape or form. Though I wish I owned Hijikata, Saitou, and Yamazaki… Anywho, everything belongs to their rightful owners.
Feelings Revealed
(Normal POV)
It was an early morning, and Chizuru had just woken up. As usual, she was waking up to make breakfast for the men of the Shinsengumi. Chizuru had been staying with them in hopes of finding her father, Koudou Yukimura.
Even though she was a guest, she started helping around the Headquarters because she wanted to be of some use. Chizuru started running errands for Hijikata, sending messages to others, and doing housekeeping chores at the HQ. She was now allowed to go on patrol with her friends.
(Chizuru POV)
I stood up and started getting dressed for the day. When I was done, I opened my door and made my way to the kitchen. I can't wait to start today! Maybe I'll get to go on patrol and ask about my father. As I made my way to the kitchen I was so lost in thought that I didn't look where I was going. Suddenly, I bumped into someone. I looked up to see Saitou-san.
Crap! I accidentally bumped into Saitou-san! This is so embarrassing! I hope he's not angry at me. "Saitou-san I'm so sorry! I didn't see you standing there." I exclaimed
"That is quite all right Yukimura-kun. Good morning to you. Would you like me to help you make breakfast?" Thank goodness! And wait breakfast? Since when does he help with food? Well I mean breakfast. Saitou-san has helped me with lunch and dinner before but not breakfast. Wait I just bumped into him! I can't have him do all the cooking! That would be extremely rude to make him do my chores.
"Oh good morning! No thank you Saitou-san. I can do it." He almost seems like he wants to help me. Well I can't wake everyone up and I want them to get up in time for breakfast, so maybe Saitou-san can do it for me? There's no harm in asking him is there? Here goes nothing!
"Um, I know I shouldn't be asking you, but could you please make sure everyone else is up? I don't want them to miss breakfast and have a rough day."
There I asked him! Please say yes, otherwise I'll be really embarrassed!
"Of course I would love to help." Oh thank god!
"Hijikata is already awake, Yamazaki is too. Heisuke, Harada, and Shinpachi are still sleeping. Kondou and Inoue are awake and I'm assuming Sannan and Okita are asleep. I will go and wake them up right now."
"Also, Hijikata said he wanted to see you, Yukimura-kun. He wants to ask you something in private. Please go see him right now. If the others complain about the wait for food I will let them know why." Hijikata-san wants to see me? I hope everything is okay…
"Is it urgent that I see Hijikata-san? I mean of course I'll go to see him but do you know what it's about?"
"Hijikata didn't tell me what it was about and I don't know if it's urgent so I suggest you go now in case it is." Why didn't he tell Saitou what it was about? That's kind of strange. Usually he'll tell him something about it. I mean Hijikata would at least tell Saitou if it's urgent or not. Oh well, I better get going in case it's important.
"Thank you Saitou-san! Please let everyone know I'm sorry about breakfast being a little late!" I said, running towards Hijikata's room.
(Normal POV)
Hijikata had already been awake, but he was busy finishing paperwork and other important duties so he hadn't come out of his room. He heard a knock on his door. "Hijikata-san it's Chizuru. Um, Saitou-san said you wanted to see me?"
"Oh Chizuru, come in." The door opened to reveal Chizuru, who was now becoming nervous. "Please sit down there is something I want to talk to you about before breakfast. Would you please run an errand with me today? You will be going out with me instead of on a patrol. I thought you should decide if you wanted to or not."
"Hijikata-san if you need me to run an errand of course I will. Why would you ask me if I wanted to or not? Of course I would want to! I want to help you as much as possible Hijikata-san!"
"I was going to ask you because instead of like my normal errands, this one will take longer. That means if you choose to come, we will be gone all day, possibly more than one, and have to stay somewhere other than HQ overnight. I wanted to make sure you were okay with this because I know you want to find your dad…"
"Oh. Well thank you for worrying about my feelings Hijikata-san." Chizuru said looking a little surprised that he had worried about how she felt on this errand.
She continued, "As much as I want to find my dad, I'm supposed to be your page right? I can't abandon my duties to you then and I want to help anyway. Like I've told you before, I want to be of service to you. So the answer is yes I will go with you."
"Thank you Chizuru. However, finding your dad is your top priority right? Since you still want to come you can ask about your dad when we are out." Is it just me or is he worrying about my feelings more than he should be? Chizuru thought to herself.
"Thank you Hijikata-san! I really appreciate this! Now let's go eat breakfast. I have a feeling Saitou-san made it today," Chizuru giggled. "He seemed like he really wanted to help me out today."
~~At Breakfast~~
(Hijikata POV)
"As you all know, I was talking to Chizuru this morning," I started, waiting for everyone to quiet down so I could continue. "I have asked for her opinion on this and she has made her decision." "So, what did you ask her? And what's her answer to this question?" Heisuke asked, obviously wondering what was going on.
I sighed, annoyed at him for interrupting me and said, "We will be going on an errand for a few days and Chizuru has decided to come with me." After a rather long awkward silence, Kondou asked, "How long are you guys going to be away?" That's when I was bombarded with a bunch of questions and comments.
Sannan asked, "Can you tell us what this is about or is it just for you two to know?" At the same time as Sannan's question,Okita joked, "I wonder what things you will do when you're alone, Hijikata-san? If you need any ideas, I can definitely give you some. Or do you have something planned already?"
Harada heard what Okita said and called out, "Okita don't go giving Heisuke those ideas! You can give them to Hijikata, though I'm pretty sure he already knows what to do. Just don't tell Heisuke. He's got enough problems as it is. He doesn't need more by trying to steal away Hijikata's girl!"
I looked over at Chizuru when Harada and Okita started arguing and saw her face turn red when she heard what they were saying.I was just about to start shouting at them when Heisuke exclaimed, "What do you mean 'problems'? I don't have any problems and what ideas are you talking about?"
"Heisuke, Heisuke, Heisuke, you want to know what the ideas are do you? Well Okita's not the only one who knows about them, me and Harada know about them too!" Shinpatchi said.
They're making Chizuru really uncomfortable. I may tolerate some comments here and there, but when they start bothering her, that means they're going too far. No one should make her feel this way. I love her and since I love her, I will stop them.
So with that in mind, I yelled, "Stop it! All of you just shut up! Can't you see how uncomfortable you're making Chizuru? This needs to stop! You shouldn't be talking like this at breakfast anyway! Just because Chizuru and I are going away for a few days, does not mean you should assume stuff! So stop it!"
I calmed myself down in the silence and then continued, "In answer to your question Kondou-san, we will probably be gone for three or four days. And Sannan-san, as much as I'd love to tell you, Chizuru doesn't know all the details yet and it would be a waste of breath to tell you about our errand. Saitou do you have any questions?"
"Yes Vice-Commander, I do. Since Yukimura-kun is going to be away, who will take care of her duties?" Finally a question I can answer without hiding anything! Leave it to Saitou to be the one to ask a serious question that he knows I can answer.
"I thought about this too, and I have decided everyone will take turns with her chores. You men should be able to handle cooking and cleaning. Besides you need to understand what Chizuru has to go through everyday. I will let Saitou and Yamazaki handle who has what job and when. Gen-san can supervise everyone so please if there are any more questions ask them now."
I was very glad when no one raised their voice or had any questions. "No questions? Alright then you can return to eating your breakfast. Chizuru I need to talk to you when you're done." Then I quickly added, "Alone" before anyone got any ideas.
Chizuru then replied, "Okay, I'll be done soon Hijikata-san." She smiled and I felt my heart skip a beat. I really am falling hard for her. Does she return these feelings though? I'm not even sure. Perhaps she's fallen for one of the other men, it's only natural right?
I mean she has been spending a lot of time with Okita since he's sick and Heisuke is closer to her in age. Harada's always making her laugh and Saitou can sit with her in aa companionable silence.
I guess I'm just jealous when the others make her happy. What have I ever done with her? That's why this trip will change everything.
After a few moments she said, "Hijikata-san, I'm done so we can talk now." I decided we should go to my quarters, where it would be a lot more private and I would make sure no one eavesdropped.
"Come with me Chizuru, I don't want anyone eavesdropping on our conversation." I eyed the other men, as if I was warning them that they would be in big trouble if they did listen in on our conversation, and then led Chizuru back to my room.
Hijikata's Room
"Chizuru, do you mind if we share a room on this trip? I know this might be what you call overstepping the boundaries, but we can't afford two separate rooms as of right now. I know this is a lot to ask of you but, please consider the circumstances" I felt nervous to be alone with her, like I couldn't trust myself with her.
"If you want, I can get a screen divider or something." I added, feeling a bit guilty that I even thought she would go on this trip with me and be happy and return my feelings. Or that she'd be fine sharing a room with me without a divider. And that's even if she wants to share a room with me. Maybe one day we will, if she even feels the same as I... I thought sadly. What she said really surprised me.
"Hijikata-san I don't think I'll need that divider. You're a nice guy and I trust you so I'm convinced you won't do anything to me. It's fine with me to stay in the same room, but if you want that divider you can get it, I don't mind if you feel like you need one." She said, a hint of disappointment in her voice though I have no idea why. did SHE actually WANT to share a room with me?
I walked towards her, handing her a list of supplies she needed for this trip. She would have to start packing, as would I, before we got any sleep. I made a mental checklist of what I was packing, making sure to bring my haiku book with me. I would probably write some just for Chizuru.
I hadn't heard her say anything for a while so I wondered if something was wrong with her. When I looked down at her, I found she was blushing, and I realized how close I was to her. I suddenly felt the urge to embrace her, to confess my love for her right now, but I fought it. I couldn't do this right now, WE couldn't do this right now, could we?
After telling her that I would wake her tomorrow, I told her to go back to her room, pack her things, and then to get some rest. Once she left, I was overcome with my feelings for her and when to act on them.
No Hijikata! You won't do anything with her here! If you're going to confess to her, at least do it while you're alone with her. Not at the HQ for the Shinsengumi with who knows how many eavesdroppers and jokesters around. Wait until you two, wait until we are gone. Then I'll show you! That's when I'll tell you, but I won't right now. This trip will be to see if you return my feelings or not. I'll confess to you on this trip Chizuru, I swear!