A/N: Hakuouki clearly doesn't belong to me; i only own Kawa (and this story). enjoy~
Virtues/Vices - Prologue
A sigh escaped him as he sat outside the room with his arms folded at his chest and lanky legs dangling over the lip of the porch. He still didn't see what the big surprise was for… Even if she was doing her best to keep him from seeing whatever it was she was hiding, she sure wasn't doing a good job of it.
Blowing strands of russet brown hair from his brow only to have them drop back in place, the brunette tilted his head back at the closed shoji door of their bedroom. "If yer tryin' to hide something from me, you'll have to come out with it sooner or later, princess." He said knowingly.
"I'm not tryin' to hide something; you're just gonna have to be a good kitty and wait, okay?" The catty remark from his lover came slightly muffled from inside the room, earning a pursed-lip expression from him.
Tryin' to be secretive and callin' me a cat at the same time…? His brow twitched slightly, and he huffed.
What felt like seconds later, the door opened from the inside and roused his attention from staring at the spacious yard beyond the porch; the brunette shuffled to his feet at the noise, sighing slightly. "It's about time…" He trailed off at catching sight of his lover stepping out of the room, blinking once and then twice.
Five years they'd been together and although he never really told her in that amount of time, he liked her hair long; sure she looked a lot like her adoptive brother, but she always looked better with it long and tousled, that shade of black he liked best.
The twenty-six year old stood before him with her tousled black hair still framing her pretty face nicely, the shortened do now reaching the tops of her shoulders and looking a little more wilder, strangely different from how he was accustomed to seeing it.
"You don't like it." Her quiet assumption perked his ears.
Okita Souji blinked again and now noticed her pretty face wore that light shade of pink on her cheeks that made her look cute, her gray eyes looking away from him as if in shame. His shoulders slumped slightly and he rubbed his neck, smiling slightly. "I'm not used ta seein' it short, just yet. Doesn't mean I don't like it, because I do." He replied.
Lifting her head, Hijikata Yasakawa met his green eyes in surprise before her cheeks warmed with another flush of pink color, and she cracked a fond smile, shrugging. "Y'know Toshi's gonna ask you to cut your hair, as well." She reminded with a sigh, perking his ears again.
Lips forming into a slight pout, the lanky captain glanced away at the reminder. "'In order to camouflage with the Westerners', or somethin' to that effect… Why'd you wanna cut your hair again? Yer a woman, so I'm sure he would've excused you from camouflaging." He wondered, looking at her and eyeing the tousled mop on her head.
"Times are changing, so I thought 'why not change a little'?" She shrugged again, shaking her head to try and air out the now-shorter locks, thinking back to what was said at the Battle of Toba-Fushimi, looking out at the yard beyond the porch. Just because I change on the outside doesn't mean my goal has changed… I'll protect my family no matter the cost, she thought, her gray eyes tightened a little.
Poking her left temple with two fingers, he watched her blink and stir out of her thoughts, a smirk forming on his face. "Ya've been spacing out more than usual… Something up?" Like he had to ask; he knew she hadn't been happy when her 'brother' had taken that medicine a few months back, and she'd been sulky about it in moments she hadn't thought he'd seen, even when he did.
"No, I'm alright. Just thinking." Maybe too much, she silently added, exhaling and rubbing her neck. "Sorry for spacing out."
"At this point I'm actually gettin' used to it. Still, don't act like you're not depressed about Hijikata-san." Souji reminded calmly, perking her ears.
Kawa looked up at him in slight surprise, glancing away out of some small amount of cowardice. "How'd you…?" She began.
"I know yer not happy about it, Kawa. Ya were almost as sulky as when your mother died eight years ago…" As much as he didn't like sounding like a mother hen, she did it to him enough times so a little taste of her own medicine wouldn't kill her, he deemed; he added quietly, "Not seein' you smile isn't something I'm used to, either." He couldn't force her to be happy, but he really did love her smile, the real smiles she would give when she was alone with him.
She bit her lower lip and winced a little, folding her arms with a huff, "I couldn't do crap about that either, just like I couldn't stop Toshi from doing what he did… I couldn't protect either of them, Souji, and I hate it like you wouldn't believe!" She fought valiantly against the lump trying to force its way into her throat, closing her eyes tightly and shuddering.
Sighing slightly, Souji moved closer and pulled her into an embrace that made her squeak slightly, his arms fastening on her back and head of hair as he all-but-crushed her to his chest.
"S-Souji…" Kawa began quietly, surprised and blushing as well at his open affection, feeling his fingers curl in the thick locks at the back of her head.
"You're not weak, Yasakawa… Yer one of the strongest women I've ever met, really. I know what Hijikata-san did hurt you more than ya care to let on, but shit happens. Yer mother left you and you ended up living with us, makin' a name for yourself, coming this far… Ya stayed strong, as you've done these last five years." He stated in a likewise-quiet voice, his grip tightening towards the end of his statement.
I know yer gonna keep on moving like the She-Wolf you are, Kawa.
Feeling a smile creep onto her features, she clung to his shoulders and nodded, sniffing. "Since when're you so inspiring?" She asked softly, cheek resting on his shoulder.
Souji cracked a soft grin, planting a kiss on her forehead. "Since I fell hard for a stonewall swordswoman with warm smiles." He replied, hearing her giggle.
"I love you, you overgrown cat." Kawa sighed.
"Love you too, princess." Souji smiled.
Kawa sighed elatedly as she finished buttoning up the faded indigo vest over the pale gray loose-collared shirt she wore, looking to make sure her navy breeches were tucked into the black knee-high boots covering her feet.
"Cripes…" Souji groused as he was trying to adjust to the tightness of the sleeves of his black and gold coat, flexing his left arm out and doing the same for his right, a concentrated pout on his lips. "Why couldn't that oni have picked something loose?" He muttered.
Smiling patiently at his pout, Kawa approached him to pick at one of the shortened locks of brown framing his face. "Your face is gonna be stuck in that expression forever," she teased.
"At least you can wear a damn haori…" Souji sighed, green eyes sulky, holding her hand to his left cheek on reflex.
"Gold suits you, so stop complaining." She pointed out, pecking him lightly and smiling.
His gaze calmed and he returned the smile, albeit partially, kissing back. "Still bein' forceful, babe." He remarked, earning a quiet giggle from his lover.
"Oi, go get a room, you two!" Sano declared from the doorway, making the couple jump slightly, before they both shot the taller brunette a scowl.
Chizuru, who'd been standing near Sano and Heisuke, gawked at seeing the couple clad in Western garb. "Wah, you two look so different!" She declared.
Souji smirked wryly at the younger woman, "Ne, what's that for, Chizuru-chan?" He jibed.
Kawa shook her head and laughed slightly, "As per Toshi's orders." She mused, squeezing Souji's hand on reflex before stepping away from him.
"Kawa-chan, you still look different with your hair shorter…" Heisuke pointed out with a slightly confused look crossing his youthful face.
Shinpachi scoffed, "The runt's right, it makes ya look gorgeous." He teased with a light grin.
Cheeks coloring slightly, Kawa smiled at both captains and waved it off, "You're both bein' idiots again…" She said.
"Both of ya monkeys, leave my woman alone." Souji groused as he slung an instinctive arm around the woman's hips, brow twitching slightly as he squeezed her in a possessive way.
Sano snickered, "Different outfit, still the same possessive cat." He jibed, making Shinpachi also chuckle.
"Bite me…" Souji sniffed.
Kawa rolled her eyes at their antics, placing a gentle hand on Souji's chest. "Honestly…"
"Um, I think you buttoned this wrong, Saitou-san…" Chizuru said as she was examining the black overcoat Saitou had donned, looking at the blue-eyed captain in slight confusion.
Perking up at the noticeable error he'd made, Saitou looked away, pretending his cheeks didn't warm up. "I'll fix it later, then…" He assured.
"Saitou-kun's blushing! Awww," Kawa sang as she had overheard their conversation, making both of them stiffen, smiling cheerily.
"AWWW!" The baka trio echoed in unison, breaking into laughter as the teased captain's cheeks turned a darker shade of pink, nearing red.
"You're all impossible…" Saitou griped as he turned away and somehow feeling grateful that Souji wasn't also laughing.
"R-really now, you guys…" Chizuru declared embarrassedly as she started to leave, trailing off at seeing Hijikata present and her feet came to a halt.
Blinking when feeling he was being stared at, Toshi looked in her direction; brown met violet. "Am I wearing this wrong?" He wondered, indicating his Western garb.
"E-eh, no! Um, it's just… You also cut your hair…" Chizuru stammered, blushing beet red as she looked away out of cowardice, a shy smile on her lips as she added, "It looks good."
Souji, who had noticed the display, allowed an impish grin to form on his lips as he elbowed his lover. "Methinks ya rubbed off on her too well, princess." He hummed, perking her ears.
"Hm…" Kawa poked her head around his shoulder and caught on to what he said before she also grinned, sighing cheerily. "Y'know, I'm proud to say that I don't regret anything towards this." She chimed, looping her arm with his.
just as a head's up for future reference, i don't intend to make my cover of the Hekketsuroku season to be as feels-overrun as it is in the anime. there will be angst, and drama, and love, but there will be a light at the end of the tunnel! that i can promise! xD anyway, feel free to drop a review. they always make my day~. lates!
**also, yes Souji is being a big comforting lug and bratty bae in this chap. what can y'do? -innocent shrug- and more OTP shipping~ imo ToshiChizu is still my top OTP of this series, y'know, that's canon. they're cute together, and besides, Kawa can't be the only woman to rein in a certain oni... l'D ok im done. now off to tumblr! if you want more info on Kawa, feel free to message me. i'll be happy to answer! (: