Disclaimer: Hakuouki and the characters don't belong to me. Proper credit goes to creator of Hakuouki series.
This was originally supposed to be a one-shot, but I decided to make it two chapters because of the plot idea.
Chapter 1:
Where am I? Who am I? What am I doing here? These were all questions that had been buzzing through a certain young Edo girl's head as she lay in a place that appeared to be very unfamiliar to her. She was so confused, so dumbfounded. Her brain was overflowing with questions she had no idea what the answer to was. For some reason or another, rumble and debris surrounded the teenager's fallen body. The dust made it very difficult to breath in the small space she was stuck inside. Chizuru Yukimura was the unfortunate one's name. Of course, she didn't know that herself. A moment ago, she was sure she'd been fast asleep. Then she awoke to a very dimly lit place that showed no sign of an exit anywhere.
"I have to...get out of here..." Chizuru ignored the dusty debris and tried to rise to her feet. Her efforts proved to be fruitless because when she tried to sit up, a violent pain shot through her head, instantly sending the girl back into laying position. She moaned in agony for a moment before the pain resided. The confused woman sighed and swallowed the fear that was slowly building up inside her. Don't panic, was all the confused female could think at the moment. Panicking would just make things worst. But the main problem here was not the fact that she literally couldn't remember anything, no. Chizuru's main problem was getting out. From the little bit she could see through the dark space, it didn't seem as if anyone else was crushed under this destroyed building like she was. Damn. That just complicated things further.
If only she could remember who she was, or just why she was in that destroyed building to begin with. Oh well, it's not like the reason would save her.
Chizuru shut her eyes a moment, continuing to fend off her violently pounding heartbeat and heavy breathing, Stay calm...Stay calm...Stay- Suddenly, a strange voice pounded against the girl's eardrums.
"Chizuru! Hey, you out there?!"
Said warrior shot up and saw a little bit of light suddenly coming in from a small space in between one of the debris that laid in front of her. Her heart fluttered a bit. This was her chance. If Chizuru could get whoever was outside to notice her, then she could get freed of this hell. Gathering up all her courage, Chizuru called out to the stranger outside, "Help, I'm in here!"
A moment later, a hand appeared through the hole and proceeded to pull away at the pieces of wood that blocked the only way leading outside. A moment later, an exit was created. One that was just big enough for her to crawl out of. Bright light hit the girl's face, causing her head to ache again.
"Chizuru?"
The Yukimura daughter blinked a few times; her eyes adjusting to the light before seeing a tall man peaking in at her through the hole. She couldn't get a good glimpse of him, but was nonetheless thrilled to see someone was there to help her out of this situation. The man extended his hand out to her, silently telling her that he'd assist in getting her out. Chizuru took the strange male's hand and was gently pulled from the building to the outside world. Chizuru had to shut her eyes tightly when her entire body was hit with the flash of the sun's rays outside.
"Ow..." She moaned before reopening her eyes. Chizuru jumped when she saw the man standing very close to her. The man had on a blue robe with white markings on the sleeve. His hair was a gorgeous mix of red and brown and his eyes shined as bright as gold. The Devil felt her cheeks flush when she realized just how handsome he was. Chizuru suddenly felt embarrassed that she had appeared in that sticky situation before such a man.
The stranger reached up one of his hands that had red bandages wrapped around the wrist, "Are you alright, Chizuru?" He asked, his voice not too deep yet also not too high, making Chizuru shiver with a little pleasure.
"I-I'm fine..." Wait, he had just said 'Chizuru'. Was that her name? If it was, she didn't remember being given such a title. Still, the young girl tried to play it cool and forced out a weak smile before bowing, "Thank you very much for saving me."
The man frowned hard at Chizuru. Something didn't seem right. She was unharmed from the looks of it, which was good, but...Chizuru didn't seem all that alert unlike usual.
"Hey, did you hit your head or something when that building collapsed?" He asked, gently touching the top of Chi's head.
"I-I don't know. I don't remember..." She confessed.
A bad feeling formed in the pit of the man's stomach. Sweat began dripping slowly down his face when he noticed the confused look in Chizuru's eyes, "Hey, I want you to be honest with me, Chizuru. Do you know where you are?"
Chizuru parted her lips to respond to him when two other men cried out to them. Chizuru followed her savior's eyes to the two men. One wore a green headband and had semi-spiky hair. The other had long brown hair pulled back in a long ponytail; and also seemed to be quite shorter in comparison to the other. Not only that, but both men wore the same coat that the girl's hero was wearing. Her confusion worsened at this.
"Oh, thank god, Sano. You found Chizuru-chan." Said the man with the green headband as he made his way over to them and gave the other man a pat on the shoulder.
"We were so worried when we heard that building collapse and no one knew where she was. Great job, Sano-san." The smaller boy said with a cheeky smile.
The man who apparently went by the name 'Sano' scratched the back of his head as if he were embarrassed, "I didn't do much. If Chizuru hadn't called out to me when she did, I might not have found her. Although..." Sano looked back to Chizuru with the same deep frown, "Something isn't right."
"What'cha mean?" The taller guy asked with an odd look.
"Chizuru."
Realizing by now that such a word must have been her name, the girl responded to Sano, "Y-Yes?"
"You didn't answer my question. Do you know where we're at? Please tell the truth."
Chizuru felt herself pale with fear when the other two men looked at her with just as equally dark frowns. What should she tell them? She honestly had no idea where or who she was, or even who they were. Were they friends? Or were they enemies? Were they good or evil? From the looks of the swords at their sides, they must be samurai, she thought. Which meant they were most likely killers right? So why would a bunch of killers know someone like her? Was she one as well? What in the hell had happened in that time she had fallen asleep in the broken building?
So many questions and not a single answer. Chizuru was sure if she didn't learn something soon, she'd certainly go insane.
Taking a deep breath, Chizuru decided to be flat-out honest with them like Harada had asked of her, "No, I don't know...where I am."
The males eyes widened intensely at her confession.
"I don't know who I am...or who you all are either."
The man with the headband ran fingers through his bangs as if to stop himself from freaking out on the spot. He remained silent but his face turned as white as a ghost, showing Chizuru that he must have been concerned in some way about her.
"You really don't remember anything? Nothing at all?" The youngest one asked, shaking the girl by her shoulders.
Sano pulled him away and gave him an understandingly sad look, "She doesn't remember you, me, or Shinpachi, Heisuke. It isn't her fault. She must have hit her head quite hard when she was in there."
Suddenly breaking his silence, the other man known as Shinpachi shouted in his friend's ear, "S-So what do we do, Sano? Hijikata-san is gonna have our asses when he finds out we let this happen to her...!"
Chizuru's interest peaked at this. Hijikata-san? Was he their boss or something? From the billions of beads of sweat coming off the man named Shinpachi, the girl deduced that he must be in order to make a muscular man panic like that.
Sano flashed a kind smile down at the female, making her heart jump in her chest, "Hey, we gotta take you home with us, okay? We'll explain everything soon, I promise. For now, just trust us."
Chizuru's cheeks burned intensely with heat and she gave a nervous nod of understanding. Someone she did feel as if she could trust the man, especially since his eyes shined with such kindness.
~xXx~
"HOW THE HELL DID THIS HAPPEN?!"
The entire Shinsengumi HQ seemed to shake violently as if an earthquake was suddenly erupting from beneath them. Just as Sano and the others had suspected, the moment they'd brought Chizuru back home and informed Hijikata of the fact that the girl now had amnesia, the demon commander's deep voice exploded like lava from a volcano. All men ducked for cover or hid behind something, in fear the man would grab hold of his sword and proceed to slash away to calm his anger. However, thanks to Kondou and Sannan, such a thing was prevented from occurring. However, nothing could change the fact of how pissed Hijikata was at this revelation.
After a few minutes of deep breathing, the vice-leader of the Mibu Wolves was able to calm himself down enough to ask the question he needed an answer to, "Just how the hell did you all get separated from her in the first place? If you'd kept your eyes on her like you were supposed to, this bull-crap wouldn't have happened!"
"Toshi, now just calm down," Kondou soothed before glancing over to the fearful-looking Chizuru and smiling softly, "I'm sure it isn't their fault. We only have so much men after all."
Hijikata rolled his eyes. Sometimes, it was ridiculous how poor an attempt Kondou made to defend the men who were like his own children.
Sanosuke scooted forward and ran through the earlier events that had taken place that day, leading up to Chizuru's being trapped alone inside a fallen building, "During our patrol, we accidentally stumbled across a hideout of rogue samurai. While we attempted to question and arrest them, some made a break for it while others attacked us. Amongst the chaos, Chizuru was separated from my patrol unit, which was my fault as I was not watching her just as you said I should have, and I take full responsibility. Anyways, before I knew it, Chizuru was out of sight and it was then that the hideout of the rogue samurai suddenly exploded. After that, the other samurai who we hadn't killed or taken it fled on foot. That was when we realized Chizuru was gone.
Hijikata was still twitching with fury as he tapped away at the bridges of his crossed arms with his fingers, "So, explain to me then why Heisuke and Shinpachi weren't watching her in your place if there was so much chaos?"
Shinpachi swallowed a lump and tried to laugh it off, "W-Well, I was more focused on helping Sano kick those bastards asses. And Heisuke gave chase to some of the ones that fled right away..."
Sannan, who sat between the two other Shinsengumi leaders, let out a long sigh before glancing over at Chizuru who looked more terrified then ever, "Well, it seems your surprising carelessness did quite a number on Kodo-san's daughter. It's a miracle she's not dead. My question is how she even got into that building that exploded when she was in fact outside with you all originally."
Sano and the others rubbed their necks as if they were in pain, "Yeah, we aren't really sure how that happened either..."
"Umm...ex-excuse me?" The others instantly turned to Chizuru who appeared to be trembling in her seat.
Harada smiled apologetically and gave the girl a reassuring part on the head, "Oh, sorry. We didn't mean to frighten you, Chizuru." The redhead placed a gentle hand over one of Chizuru's and stroked it comfortingly.
The girl blushed and tried her best to smile, despite the situation she was in, "I-It's fine. I just-Could you all tell me who you are?"
Hijikata's anger was suddenly replaced with a look that held a hint of concern in it. Silence seemed to linger in the air for a good five minutes before Souji, who sat away from the others in the corner, finally spoke up,
"Well, Chizuru-chan, if you really wanna know..." Souji walked over and rested his head in a flirtatious manner on the girl's shoulder while smirking one of his famous smiles, "You're our slave. You see, we bought you from this man who sold you to us for a cheap price of only ten yen. You were actually originally supposed to be Hijikata-san's wife and sex slave but see-"
Harada gave the man a swift hit to Okita's head in Hijikata's place, "Souji, she's confused as hell enough as it is. Don't make it worst by making up B.S. stories."
The sneaky killer let out an amused laugh while rubbing the new bump on his head, "Aw, come on. You guys are no fun."
Meanwhile, Chizuru, who had believed every little word that had just been echoed to her, was blushing as red as the bandages wrapped around Harada's wrists, "S-Slave...?"
Shinpachi thought a moment before grinning, realizing there was in fact some truth to what the most sadistic Shinsengumi member had said, "Well, actually, Hijikata-san DOES make Chizuru do all the cooking and cleaning, soooo-
Fire seemed to beam from Hijikata's eyes like lasers, "Shinpachi, do you WANT to commit seppuku?"
Shinpachi hung his head as if he were a dog that had just been scolded harshly by his master, "Sorry, Hijikata-san..."
"Now then," Hijikata turned his full attention back to the memory-less teen that sat in the center of the room, "Until you regain your memory, you are not to go on patrol with the others again. Understood?"
Chizuru wasn't sure what he meant by patrol or why she would follow strange men during their work anyways, but she agreed, "Hai."
Hijikata nodded before turning back to his men, "Now then, about those rogue samurai-" Before the commander could continue though, Heisuke rose his hand as if to ask a question,
"Uh, Hijikata-san...that's it? Chizuru doesn't remember a single thing and...all's you have to say is that she can't go outside?"
Shinpachi nodded in agreement with his little brother figure, "Yeah, what the hell? Shouldn't we...take the time to tell her why she's here and crap?"
"If we do that, she'll only become more confused. We'll have Matsumoto come over later and take a look at her. I'm sure her head injury isn't bad enough to where her amnesia will be permanent." Hijikata looked back to the cross-dressing female, "Chizuru."
The girl shot her head up and looked at him with huge eyes, "Yes, sir?"
"Go rest in your room. You've had a long day." Hijikata then locked his purple orbs with Okita's grass-colored ones, "Souji, show her the way."
After agreeing to the task given to him, Okita happily took hold of Chizuru's arm and proceeded to pull the girl out of the room against her will.
~xXx~
On their way to her room, Chizuru came to the conclusion that more questions than before were buzzing about in her mind. She wasn't the least bit sure as to why that man with the long ponytail got so angry at the others, or how they were all connected even. All the girl knew was that her name was Chizuru, and she was, for some unknown reason, living under the same roof as a bunch of older men.
"Here we are."
Chizuru was snapped out of her trance by the man with the amazingly green eyes and cat-like smile. She forced out a nervous, thankful grin, "T-Thank you very much..."
Okita stared down at Chizuru for the longest time before letting out a chuckle and turning away, "Damn, you really don't remember anything, do you? I don't think you've ever looked so confused at me since that night we first met."
"That night?" She questioned, wondering just as to what he meant by that. Earlier, he had made up that ridiculous, somewhat perverted lie. Was this another lie too?
Okita must have been able to read her mind because the next thing he said was exactly what she feared he'd say. Leaning over so that their lips were a mere inches from each other, Souji assumed a rape face, "Yeah...hell, was that night fun. You were pretty damn good too, despite being a virgin."
Once again, Chizuru's skin tone became that of a tomato. Before she could even muster so much as a "Nani?!" Okita burst into laughter and clenched at his sides.
The laughter lasted two whole minutes before the trolling boy was able to stand up straight again and speak at a normal volume level, "S-Sorry, Chizuru-chan. I couldn't help myself," Okita reached out and gave the girl's chocolate-colored locks a good ruffle, "You're just so damn innocent now that you don't have your memory. I mean, you're always innocent, but it's even worst now. It makes me wanna tease the hell outta you."
Chizuru didn't share in the chuckling that was coming from this man known as Souji Okita. He seemed to be quite the joker. That, or just downright rude. Now the girl was wishing for that angry man with the ponytail to make an appearance again and yell at this boy. It would certainly make her feel better if Souji got some form of punishment for making fun of her when she had amnesia.
Apparently the girl's feelings were showing through the annoyed expression on her face, because when Souji looked back at her, his chuckling instantly stopped and his smile fell.
"Oh." Okita coughed awkwardly, realizing he had taken his joke a bit too far this time, "Sorry, Chizuru-chan."
Chizuru turned to the door that she assumed led into her room. Sliding the shojo, Chizuru stepped into the darkness of the room, "It's fine. I'm going to lay down now." Was all she said before shutting the door in his face.
Okita stood there a moment, blinking. He then lowered his head so that his bangs fell in front of his eyes and walked away, feeling far guiltier than he expected he would.
~xXx~
Who am I? Why am I here? Who are those strange men...? Chizuru could feel her mind cracking slowly and steadily as she listened to her own voice call out to her in the nightmare she was having, Am I really here just to serve as a slave to them? If I could just remember something...anything, then I'd know I'd be okay. The girl let out a loud moan before tossing and turning violently under the covers. Everything she was hearing was destroying her like a plague, But I still can't recall anything. I hate this. I hate not being able to remember anything! I can't take this anymore. If I don't remember anything soon, then I'll-
"Chizuru!"
Said woman's eyes shot open at the sound of her name, and the dream she was having instantly faded away like sand. Letting out a low yawn, Chizuru looked around in the darkness of her room. She realized she must have fallen asleep, but she wasn't sure for how long.
When her name was suddenly called again, Chizuru looked over to the doorway where the man with the ponytail stood looking in at her from the dimly lit hallway. When she sat up, the man known as Hijikata stepped in and shut the door behind him then took a seat to the side of her futon.
"How are you feeling?" Came the deep voice that seemed to pierce Chizuru's heart like a small knife with its sharp tone.
Chizuru whipped her eyes, recalling her dream and looked away to hide her true feelings, "I'm alright."
"You've been asleep for the last few days. You even missed dinner earlier."
Chizuru looked back in his direction. How had he known she was wondering about how long she had slept? Wait, she had been asleep for several days straight? Well, perhaps she needed it, considering the situation that had befell her a few days prior.
"There's a tray for you in the kitchen." Hijikata rose and looked down at her darkly, "If you're hungry, I'll show you the way."
Chizuru felt sweat pouring down the back of her neck. Like Okita, this man didn't seem very...cheery. Or maybe 'nice' was a better word to use. He seemed like the type who was always grumpy and hated social situations above all else.
Feeling it would be best not to ruin the man's already sour mood, Chizuru shook her head and smiled, "T-That's alright. I'm not hungry in the least-" But at that particular moment, her stomach decided to speak for itself and a loud growl escaped. Chizuru covered her mouth in utter embarrassment at this. Great. Now she was sure that man would yell at her for trying to hide something so obvious. He's probably even call her stupid.
"Idiot."
Yup. Chizuru called it.
Hijikata gave the girl's arm a swift pull, lifting her onto her feet. When she looked up at him, her eyes met with something she'd never expected. A smile. The man who seemed cruel and ill-tempered had his lips quirked upward at the corners, flashing an amused (and to Chizuru's surprise, quite handsome) grin.
Chizuru's eyes shined as her cheeks flustered yet again. Instinctively, she took her arm back and stepped away as if she were frightened. The smile on Hijikata's face fell and his eyes widened.
"Hey, I'm not gonna hurt you so there's no reason to be so scared." Though his face didn't anymore, the tone in his voice still held the same amusement from earlier.
Chizuru nodded without thinking. She couldn't let him know that fear wasn't actually the reason she'd backed away from him. She was just simply afraid if she got any closer to him, that her heart would shoot out of her chest.
"Come on." Was all he ordered when he turned and led her out into the hallway. As she followed the man, she noticed that all was extremely quiet. She found that surprising, considering that a bunch of men who probably loved to drink sake and adored battles lived here.
"Excuse me, but where are the others?" Chizuru decided to just go ahead and ask any questions she wished to know. The worst he could tell her is 'none of your business' and even then, that would still be an improvement compared to what little she knew about everything right now.
"Asleep. It's already eight." Before Chizuru could ask what he knew she would, Hijikata explained that the others had early patrol tomorrow, and that ended the conversation.
He really isn't all that talkative. Chizuru thought, scanning over Hijikata's back with her dark orbs. His ponytail seemed to swing from side to side as he walked, occasionally smacking the top back of his shoulder. It was then that Chizuru noticed just how much taller the man was then her. He had to have been at least two feet taller then she was, Chizuru thought before she was stopped in her tracks by Hijikata who had frozen in his tracks.
"Sir...?" The female Devil attempted to get a look at Hijikata's face but before she had the chance, the samurai spun around and looked straight at her with the most serious face she was sure she'd ever seen in her life. The girl felt her heart begin to beat as rapidly as it had when she was trapped inside that destroyed building after she had first came to. What was that look of his for? Had she done or said something wrong? Had she angered him further in some way?
Without warning, Hijikata grabbed hold of the handle that belonged to the sword strapped to his side. Chizuru's eyes became the size of specks when she heard the sword be removed from its sheath. The man's eyes showed pure cold nature and the intent to kill. Such a look from him was far too much for Chizuru, she decided. She was about to turn tail and run when fear took hold of her legs, stealing away her ability to run. Before the nonhuman could so much as even gasp in terror, Hijikata swung the sword straight at her. Blood scattered throughout the air in clumps as a scream rang out into the night.
~xXx~
"What was that?!" Heisuke shouted, jumping up from his bed. The small soldier nearly flew out of his skin when he suddenly heard pounding come from his door. The shojo slid open, revealing a panicked Shinpachi, distressed Harada, and a concerned Saito.
"Heisuke, have you seen that captured rogue samurai around at all tonight? The one we brought back with us to HQ a few days ago?" Shinpachi was sweating like a boar in summer.
Heisuke, who was still half-asleep, thought a moment before realizing who it was that his comrade was referring to, "Kaizou?! Why, what-"
"He is not in the storehouse where we locked him for interrogation." Saito explained from the shadows, his poker-face threatening to disappear at any moment, "We decided to check on him before heading to bed for the night but..."
"Kaizou was somehow able to break the chains we tied him up with and escaped. He could be anywhere in the HQ by now." Harada looked to the side nervously, "Even close to Chizuru-"
When the others caught onto what Harada was saying, all men went deathly silent and made a B-line in the direction they had just heard the scream come from.
~xXx~
I'm dead. I'm dead. I'm definitely dead...That was all that was rushing through Chizuru's mind as she laid back-first on the floor, blood stained about her clothes and face. She peaked out from half-shut eyelids to see Hijikata standing over her with his sword that was now drenched in crimson. She was about to make an attempt to speak when an unfamiliar voice echoed from behind her, causing Chizuru to jump up from the floor and collapse behind Hijikata. Once there, she looked to see a strange man she had not yet met standing there before her, a large slash wound split down his torso. Blood seemed to seep from his mouth and wound as he dropped to one knee and let the sword he had been clenching in his hand drop at his side.
Chizuru reexamined the red all over her. So this wasn't her blood after all? She hadn't been the one who had been slashed, but this man instead...?
"Are you alright, Chizuru?"
The girl looked up, terror still exposed on her face. Hijikata wasn't looking back at her but he must have known that his slashing had given her quite the scare.
"Sorry I didn't warn you, but that bastard would have decapitated you if I hadn't acted when I did." Hijikata swung his sword again, this time killing the man with one hit. The rogue samurai known as Kaizou fell back on the floor like a pound of bricks.
"Hijikata-san!"
Chizuru looked down the hall to see the men she'd met earlier approaching them. When they got close enough, all eyes went from their leader and straight to her slumped over figure that was drenched in blood.
"Oh my god!" Heisuke cried, running to lean down at Chizuru's side, "All this blood! Did he-"
"That piece of...Did he hurt you, Chizuru?!" Harada shouted, looking over to Kaizou's corpse. Saito placed a hand on Harada's shoulder, silently telling him that it was too late to exact revenge, "Damn. Hijikata-san, you beat me to the punch. Or in your case, slice, I guess."
Hijikata re-sheathed his sword but kept his attention on the dead body, "How did he escape? I thought you all had said you'd locked him up rather tightly."
Shinpachi scratched his head, feeling the guilt crash onto him like a bolder, "Y-Yeah, that might have been my fault. I was the one who tied him in chains but I don't think I had tightened them around him enough. Sorry, Hijikata-san."
Hijikata let out a long exasperated sigh and shook his head, "It's fine." He then ordered Heisuke and Shinpachi to clean up the body. Hijikata then returned to Chizuru's side where Harada and Saito remained.
"Chizuru." But despite having her name be called out, the girl responded with nothing.
Harada and Saito exchanged concerned looks before looking back to their leader for answers,
"Hey, why was she out of her room in the first place? I thought you ordered her to stay in there-"
Hijikata shot a quick glare at Harada, "I thought she might be hungry, considering she hasn't eaten for three days..." Hijikata lowered his eyes, feeling shame for what had happened, "The fault is mine. I should have simply brought the meal to her room."
Saito looked Chizuru over and in the end, deemed she thankfully had no injuries.
"Well, that''s good at least!" Shinpachi shouted cheerfully, cupping his hands behind the back of his head.
Heisuke nodded in agreement before smiling at the girl, "Yeah. It's great that you're okay, Chizuru."
"No, it's not..."
All of their faces paled at her remark.
"What do you mean, Chizuru-chan?" Shinpachi questioned.
Chizuru, her head still lowered at the floor, fought back tears of confusion as she sat there, feeling more vulnerable than she had in her entire life, "I still...don't remember anything. I don't know who any of you are and I don't even know who I am and I just can't stand-"
Suddenly, the sight of all the Shinsengumi members as well as the hallway of their headquarters vanished from Chizuru's vision and was replaced with a bright light. A moment later, the light faded, revealing the scenery of Kyoto, or to be more specific, part of the town outside the HQ. It still appeared to be nighttime, and a chilling wind was blowing by. Chizuru was about to speak out when she looked over at the sound of swords clashing. A second later, the figures of the men she knew as Okita and Saito appeared, their bodies stained in the blood of the men they'd just killed. A shadow fell down upon Chizuru's sitting form and she looked up to see Hijikata staring down at her with eyes as cold as ice, his sword pointed towards her nose. The same light from earlier reappeared, and back came the scene of the Shinsengumi men gathered around her inside their home.
"Chizuru-chan, you okay?" Shinpachi asked, his eyebrows cocked up highly.
Heisuke gave the girl's shoulder a squeeze, "Yeah, you zoned out there for a minute."
Chizuru tiredly nodded before rubbing her temples that were now pounding hard, "I-I'm fine. I think...I just remembered something."
Harada exchanged looks with their leader and Saito before turning back to her, "Really? Like what?"
Chizuru shut her eyes tightly, trying to recall every detail of the memory she had just seen. However, like her other memories she couldn't recall, that memory had blown away just like a gentle breeze.
"I...can't remember now. I think it had something to do with...that man with green eyes."
"Souji?"
The girl nodded at Shinpachi, still clenching her terribly pained head, "Yes. I...also remember seeing those two. " Chizuru pointed at Saito and Hijikata.
"Think it could have been from the night we first met, commander?"
Hijikata nodded in agreement with the emotionless soldier, "It must be. That was the only time I remember when we were all with her on such a night."
Before the others could ask what she knew they would, Chizuru gave them the simple explanation that no, she did not remember anything or anyone else. She was beginning to wonder if she ever would.
"Well, it's only been three days," Harada spoke gently and calmly in hopes of cheering Chizuru up, "I'm sure time will give you those memories back very soon. Like Hijikata-san said, your injury wasn't that bad so the amnesia shouldn't last more than a month, if that."
"Plus, you're a Devil."
Everyone gasped in sync with each other and shot a disturbed look at the ignorant Heisuke.
Chizuru blinked at the comment, unsure of what the boy meant by that, "Devil...?"
Heisuke then gasped himself, understanding just how reckless his random outburst was, "O-Oh! Um...I-I didn't say Devil..." Heisuke tried to laugh it off, looking to his brotherly figures for assistance.
Shinpachi and Harada both put on their best fake smiles and laughed along.
"Y-Yeah, he said, uh..." Shinpachi eyed Harada to complete his lacking sentence,
"Heisuke said that you're...delightful." Harada sweat-dropped, feeling as though he had just severely failed at the task given to him.
Chizuru decided not to argue with the men, even though she knew she'd heard different than what Harada had said. She was far too tired, confused, and pained to bother fighting anything at the moment. Perhaps it would just be best if she went back to bed for the night. The woman could worry about her lost memories in the morning.
"I think I'll return to my room now." Chizuru tried to stand up but quickly fell forward, her headache demanding she stay where she was. Hijikata caught the woman before she could face-plant into the wooden floor, and picked her up bridal-style.
"Hijikata-san?"
Toshizo headed back in the direction of the teenager's room, "Heisuke, go get Chizuru's dinner from the kitchen and bring it to her room. Shinpachi and Harada, go get some towels and hot water so we can clean the blood off of her. And Saito,"
"I will go fetch a change of clothes." Saito mumbled, glancing at the stains on Chizuru's kimono before rushing off on his mission. Soon after, the others also dashed off to perform the duties given to them.
Once the two had returned to her room, Hijikata laid the girl down gently in her futon and sat back down where he had been previously, "They'll be here in just a moment. Try to stay awake until you get something in your stomach." What Hijikata said sounded almost like an order more than concern for her, but Chizuru still didn't care. She was just too tired to give a damn anymore. Still, it wasn't as if she wasn't still desperate to find out more about herself before her body finally gave up from exhaustion.
"Could you tell me..." Chizuru didn't bother to open her shut eyes to look at Hijikata, but she wanted to keep talking. If she didn't, she was sure she'd fall asleep at any moment, "...why I'm here in the first place..."
Hijikata noticed the dark circles that now hung under Chizuru's eyes and the sweat that was pouring down her cheeks. He knew that the situation from earlier had scared her, and her amnesia didn't help but perhaps she had hit her head harder than he'd thought. She certainly looked pained enough to have been hit extremely hard. If that was the case, he only hoped she didn't have a concussion, "You're here because you're in search of your missing father, Kodo. He's a doctor who had spent some time with us a while back, but vanished quite suddenly. You came here to the capital in search of any information regarding his whereabouts, but so far, there has been no clues. We allow you to stay here because it is in the Shinsengumi where you may get the best insight to anything regarding him." Hijikata believed he also had to keep talking, to keep her awake, just in case she did indeed have a concussion.
"I see..." Was all Chizuru said before sleep truly began to take hold of her. She was just about to let it take her, when she felt Hijikata strongly take hold of her arm,
"Hey, stay awake for just a little longer, okay? Just until Heisuke gets here with your dinner. You need to eat something to keep your strength up." Hijikata's voice trailed off at the last part of his sentence, revealing the deep concern that he had been feeling since the moment his men had revealed Chizuru's amnesia to him.
A long period of silence hung over the two as they waited for the youngest Shinsengumi member to come. Occasionally, Hijikata would talk to Chizuru, just to confirm she was still awake. Eventually, Chizuru decided to ask another question before things got any more awkward between them,
"That boy with the long brown hair...called me a Devil, didn't he?"
Hijikata's eyes almost flew out of his skull as he turned his head towards the girl. He could feel a building up anxiety begin to take over his brain, making it impossible to be as quick on his feet as Harada had been, "Well...that was...simply an expression. It meant nothing."
Chizuru suddenly saw another bright light flash in her mind. The form of a man with short blond hair and ruby-colored eyes appeared; an evil smirk upon his face. His lips split apart and out came the words "You are not human, Chizuru Yukimura. You are in fact a precious, female Devil. Why stay with those foolish creatures any longer? Break your chains to them and just come with your own kind." The light flashed again, and the man disappeared.
Despite remembering something so nerve-wrecking, Chizuru didn't flinch at the words she'd just heard. Instead, she let two lone tears roll down her cheeks, her eyes still shut tightly.
Hijikata noticed the water works and felt panic in him start up again, "Hey, w-why are you..."
Chizuru lifted her arms to use them to shield her face. It was already pathetic enough that he and the others had seen her all scared and confused. She didn't want Hijikata to see her cry like a baby too, "I'm...not human. Somehow, that figures..."
Hijikata's lavender eyes widened greatly, "Figures? Wait, did you remember something else?"
Chizuru peaked out from the spaces between her fingers, "Devil...huh." The woman could fight out the sleep no more and let her arms fall back to her sides as her eyes drifted shut.
Suddenly, the door slid open and in came Harada and Heisuke.
"Hey, we brought her food." Heisuke stopped at the edge of the futon when he noticed Hijikata raise a hand to him, "Huh? Didn't you say you wanted Chizuru to eat something, Hijikata-san?"
Toshizo didn't look at the youngest Shinsengumi member but instead held his eyes on Chizuru's tear-stained yet sleeping face. It was the first time he had seen her look so peaceful in the last few days. Ignoring the fact that two of his men were right in front of him, Hijikata moved his hand to Chizuru's face and brushed some straying hairs out of the girl's shut eyes.
"I think...it would be better to let her rest for now." With that, Hijikata and his men took their leave. The demon commander glanced at Chizuru once more time before shutting the door, leaving Chizuru alone in her cold, dark room.
~End Chapter 1~
Author's Comments: Like I said above, this fic was originally supposed to be a one-shot, but due to the fact that this particular plot idea is so extensive, I had to split it into a two-shot (thus why the ending to this chapter is so short and random). I've already started the 2nd chapter so that'll be up in a few days. I apologize for any grammar mistakes and/or character OOC-ness. Thanks for reading and please leave a review if you have the time.