Sirens blared in the distance, closing in on the two figures, now caked in snow. Kagura blinked a few times. Had she heard him right? She could feel her cheeks burning red, and not from the cold weather. She looked down into Sougo's eyes, trying to read his tone, but as usual it was an impossible task to determine his inner thoughts. Did he have the emotional capacity of a tumble-weed? Kagura had never been one to hold back,
"Some proposal." She tried to match his lack of expression, "Maybe if you survive long enough to buy me a ring." She was joking of course. There was no way that Sougo would ask her to marry him, but she didn't want to look like an idiot either. Sougo smiled weakly, just as the ambulance arrived, along with a white Shinengumi car. Kondo stumbled out of the car, and ran over to them, arriving faster than the paramedics.
"Sougo! Are you hurt?" The noisy man shouted as he reached them, kneeling beside Sougo,
"No this is just ketchup." Sougo drawled, lazily gesturing to his bloodstained uniform. The paramedics were rushing over with a stretcher on wheels, while the Shinsengumi Vice Captain strolled over.
"Kondo-San, he's probably just scraped his knee-" Hijikata stopped as he saw just how badly injured Sougo was, "You look like crap." He commented, as the paramedics tried to prize him out of Kagura's arms. She helped them lift him onto the stretcher, supporting his shoulders. Once Sougo was loaded into the ambulance, Kagura whirled around and pointed a finger at Kondo,
"You! Make sure he doesn't do anything stupid." She ordered the commander.
"A-Ah right." He nodded, "We'll keep an eye on him, right Toshi?" He turned to his subordinate. Hijikata smirked,
"The guy does what he wants." The vice captain muttered over his cigarette.
Having no choice but to go home, Kagura began trudging through the snow back to Yorozuya's apartment. She could not go in the ambulance because she was not family, and she did not even know why she wanted to. She hated the idea of leaving Sougo alone though. What if his condition became worse? She might never get to confirm if he had been serious. Of course he hadn't, she reassured herself. Sougo had only ever teased and fought against her. In this one fight he had assisted her because he considered her stupid brother was a bigger pain in the backside than she was, that was all. He was just spouting crap jokes because of a concussion. She sighed, reluctantly resigning to returning home. She would have to forget the whole incident.
Several days passed, and Kagura was no closer to forgetting about Sougo's hospitalisation. Her birthday had been ruined completely by that idiot Kamui, and he'd even gone so far as to make her worry about that shitty sadist. What was wrong with her? She milled about the house all morning until she could stand it no longer: She went to the hospital.
Upon arrival, she marched straight up to the reception desk, stomping her soggy boots on the freshly vacuumed carpet,
"I'm here to see some crazy guy who got his butt kicked." She stated to the startled receptionist,
"Are you a blood relative?" The man asked, a little puzzled,
"N-No I just wanted to check if he was alive." She stammered, a little disgusted by the idea of them being related,
"I'm afraid we can't allow visitors who aren't blood relatives," He began, but as Kagura's face fell, he continued, "however I can check on their condition for you." The man smiled weakly, "What was his name?"
"Sadis- I mean Okita Sougo." Kagura found herself blushing lightly at using his full name. Why did she feel so strange lately? She felt her chest constrict as she waited, while the receptionist browsed through some files,
"Ah here it is. It seems he checked out yesterday. His injuries were considerable, but we were able to discharge him. He won't be allowed to go outside much for a while though. He narrowly avoided a far worse fate. There was some damage to his spine, and there were a few broken ribs, but he'll be fine in a few weeks." The man smiled, "I've told you more than I should really, so lets keep this between ourselves." He smiled kindly and winked. Kagura brightened up a little,
"Thanks old man." She nodded gratefully to him, before walking out of the hospital. She started walking aimlessly, but it was not long before she found herself standing outside a familiar, high wall. She walked up the path to the Shinsengumi Headquarters, sucking in her breath, before she knocked on their front doors. A moment later someone opened the door a little,
"Who is it?" Yamazaki asked, "Oh its you. You must be here to see Sougo." The man grinned. Kagura raised an eyebrow at this. How did he know why she was here?
"Let me in." She insisted. "That reckless bastard needs a good telling off."
"Right! Yes of course Miss," Yamazaki's grin widened, as he opened the door, allowing her to stroll past him. What an idiot, she thought. She marched around the side of the building, looking for signs of Sougo. She only realised after several minutes of getting lost in the courtyard that Sougo would of course by lying down somewhere indoors. She was about to go inside, when she heard that all-too familiar voice call out,
"Oi China, have you gained weight?" Sougo asked from a nearby bench. He was lying down on his side, with that ridiculous eye mask over his face. She wondered if he could really see through it,
"Worthless scum!" Kagura fumed, her eyes darkening as she marched over to him, "It's your fault I ate too much! And you shouldn't say such things to a lady."
"My fault?" Sougo pulled down his eye mask,
"W-Well I'm an energetic woman who needs her food... and y-you made me use up a lot of energy." Kagura felt her face reddening again, "Idiot."
"Use up energy? Doing what?" Sougo looked baffled for once,
"I-I wasn't worried or anything. No nothing like that." She shook her head. Her face could not have been more red if she'd painted it crimson. Sougo lowered his head, so that his fringe covered his eyes. His expression was completely hidden, though Kagura thought nothing of it, since his face was usually blank. That was when his hand shot out. She had no time to move out of the way, so he succeeded in gripping her wrist. A moment later, she was pulled down on top of him, "Wha-" She exclaimed, but he caught her words between his lips. It took Kagura a moment to register that she was being kissed, but it was hard to miss, due to his hot mouth gliding over hers, his tongue like fire as it captured hers, scorching her, taking her breath away.
Taken completely by surprise Kagura felt her eyes close, as he held her body against his, one hand weaving its way into her hair, his fingers tangling in her scarlet red locks. He breathed between kisses, enveloping her in his warmth. Kagura was stunned by this entirely new experience, never having expected this from Sougo of all people; though as she began thinking about it, Sougo just as easily distracted her. Was he doing this on purpose? He seemed to have completely lost control, his lips now tracing a line down her jaw, her neck, her collarbone. She gasped when he nipped her, ever so lightly at the base of her neck. The reaction made him groan, before he took her lips with his.
"China lady," He whispered close to her ear, his hot breath teasing at her skin, "Your hair smells like pickled seaweed." Kagura was fairly certain that she should be insulting by this, but pickled seaweed, known as Sukonbu, happened to be her favourite food, which she had indeed been eating a lot of,
"Sadist bastard," She breathed close to his ear, mimicking his playful tone of voice, "You should be careful what you say to the Queen of Kabuki District." With that, she climbed off of him, "You'll have to do better than that to impress this lady." She sounded confident, but she could feel her body shaking. What was that? What was any of that? She was overwhelmed with new sensations, and she needed some air. She huffed, and took a few steps away. He tried to sit up, looking a little surprised, but then he grinned at her,
"Challenge accepted." He stated simply. Kagura's jaw dropped. The sadist wasn't supposed to agree! "I hope you've thought about my offer." He winked. Kagura swallowed hard. What had she gotten herself into?
"Just so you know, I didn't come here to see you. I was just passing by." Kagura snapped. With that, she turned on her heel and left him there, knowing he wouldn't be able to follow her.
"Wait." He said, and she heard him moving behind her. Was he trying to stand up? "Gotcha." Kagura felt two strong arms wrap around her from behind, encasing her against his chest. He nibbled the side of her earlobe, teasing it between his teeth, "It's hardly a fair game if you leave."
"B-Butthole!" She snapped at him, just as he raised his hand, "What about your injuries?" She saw he was holding something in front of her. It was a tiny, red velvet covered box. No. No. Nononononononono this could not be happening. No. "Whaaaa-" She started. Shakily, she took the box from him, and his arm returned to its place around her chest, wrapping around her in an embrace. Slowly, she turned the box so that it was facing toward her, and placed her fingers at the delicate, silver clasp. Sucking in her breath, she opened the box. Her jaw dropped even further this time, as the contents were revealed.
"Oi China," Sougo purred into her ear, with that familiar teasing voice, "Marry me."
Kagura could only stare. The contents of the box were truly impressive: It was a far greater gift than she could ever have expected. But marry him? That jerk? The son of a bitch who had been her rival since she was a kid? She started shaking her head, but then she remembered something. An image flashed across her mind, fleeting, but lingering long enough for her to understand. Sougo lying bleeding on the snowy earth; Sougo in her arms as she cradled his head; Sougo fighting alongside her, countless times. They had argued more than anything, but he had always been there, and she found it hard to be depressed or scared in his presence. She could only remember having fun. She looked at the gift in her hands one more time. The years supply voucher for sukonbu lay there tempting her...
"There will be a lifetime's worth of that if you say yes." Sougo said right against her earlobe, before turning her around to face him. She searched his wine-red eyes, swimming with something unusual in them. He was smiling, and looking at her expectantly. She felt her cheeks burn hotter still,
"I-If I were to say yes, you have to take in Sadaharu too. He stays with me." Kagura made her demands clear. She never had been one to hold back. If he agreed to her terms, then she had no reason to delay her answer. Sougo's smile widened at her words, reaching his eyes; a sight she had never before seen,
"Of course. He's yours." Sougo exclaimed, "What kind of man would ask his woman to abandon her pet?" Kagura nodded.
"Well then... in that case," She shyly looked up at him, "I guess being your wife wouldn't be the worst thing ever!" She blurted out. Sougo blinked a few times, before he burst out laughing. He howled with laughter for a few moments, as Kagura's expression slowly turned from bashful to pissed off, "This better not have been a prank you bastard!" At that Sougo abruptly stopped laughing, and swept her into his arms. He held her so that she was dipped backwards, and relying fully on his arms to hold her up,
"Do you think I would joke about this?" The infuriating sadist remarked, "Or this?" He leaned closer still, before pressing his lips to the place they had last touched. He brushed them over her collar bone, placing a kiss above her breast. Then she felt his weight shift, as he reached into his pocket. A moment later, she felt him slip something onto her finger. "Say yes."
Sougo moved so that Kagura could stand upright again, and examine the item now adorning her ring finger. She gasped, and shrieked,
"Sougo!" She exclaimed, barely able to believe the sight before her. On her finger was an ornately sculpted, golden beetle. The wings were slightly apart, to reveal a beautiful lapis lazuli gemstone. She could see her eyes reflected in the glistening blue orb. She stared for a few moments, before she could finally speak. She looked up at him, a tear burning at the edge of her eyes, "Now I finally have a better beetle than yours." She smiled. Sougo chuckled, but he was interrupted as she flung her arms around his neck, and kissed him deeply. "Yes!" She answered, sure of herself, "I'll become Okita Kagura." She stated, enjoying the look of disbelief on his face. It was the most expressive she had ever seen him, so she kissed him again, and again. She kissed him until he moaned, and he stopped her for a moment,
"You need to stop that since we're not married yet." Sougo smiled down at her. Was that, joy?! He looked genuinely happy. Kagura was in shock. She was also confused by his sudden old fashioned values that seemed to have come from nowhere in particular,
"Since when do you need to protect my virtue?" Kagura laughed, "I'm not a kid any more."
"No..." Sougo's eyes seemed to rake over her, "Definitely not a kid." He clasped his hand around hers, and gripped it tightly, before leading her toward the building. He paused just outside the barracks, "But wasn't that your first kiss just a few minutes ago?"
"D-Don't be stupid!" She spat, "I mean, I've kissed Sadaharu on the nose a few times. And-" Sougo placed a finger just above her breast, and began slowly tracing circles there with his fingertip, ever so slowly,
"I just want to be sure that you know what you're getting into." Sougo smiled, clearly revelling in her dumb-founded-ness at his actions. Gradually, the circling motions went lower, and lower still, until Kagura whimpered,
"Of course I know what... adults do. I just haven't experienced it yet." She admitted, "But you don't have to be a pervert about it." She grabbed his finger before he could reach any lower, causing him to smirk, "We're outdoors!"
"Nobody will come. I told them to leave us alone." Sougo's smirk remained plastered on his face, "But that is why I was trying to take you inside." He studied her for a moment, "I know this is difficult, but I need you to trust me." He asked her, his face serious,
"O-Okay." Kagura nodded. And with that, he swept her up, into his arms, and carried her bridal style into the barracks. As he brought her to his room, she pondered on the fact that she would some day be Mrs. Okita. Would her friends start calling her 'Okita-San'? She laughed lightly at the thought, and felt something pleasant bubbling up inside her chest.
Author's note: Mwa ha haaaa! Please do leave a review. I'd like to know your thoughts so far ^_^