A/N: Here's the second chapter. A special thanks to Akiko88 who commented on my first chapter. Please review! Thanks for reading!
Disclaimer: I don't own Hakuouki or any of its characters.
Chapter 2
Back at the headquarters, Aoi's two escorts lead her to the meeting room. When the door slid open, two men, who were apparently in deep conversation, looked up. The one sitting closest to the door had long black hair pulled back in a ponytail and violet eyes. The one sitting next to him had light brown eyes and black hair pulled back into a reverse topknot, similar to that of Souji's.
"Saito, Souji, what is the meaning of this?" The one with violet eyes demanded, glaring at the two.
"I'm sorry to bother you Hijikata-san. There's something important we need to discuss. I will go call the other captains." Saito's white scarf fluttered as he turned to walk out the door.
The man sitting next to Hijikata turned to the remaining two. He smiled and said, "well, Souji, don't just stand there. Why don't you two take a seat while we wait for the others?"
Aoi knelt a few paces in front of the sliding door, facing the opposite wall. After closing the sliding door, Souji sat down to her left, facing Hijikata. A few moments passed in silence. The only movement in the room was the dancing shadows caused by the flickering flames of the candles. Then the door slid open again, and five men filed in. A man wearing glasses claimed his spot to the right of the friendly one with light brown eyes and black hair. Saito took his position directly opposite Aoi's, and the other three—one with spiky brown hair and a green headband, one no older than fifteen years of age with long brown hair and light blue-green eyes, and the last with long red hair and golden eyes—took a seat behind Souji.
"So Hajime-kun, what's this meeting about?" The one with long brown hair and light blue-green eyes asked.
Saito looked up and locked his dark blue eyes on Aoi's. He began, "last night, while Souji and I were patrolling the streets of Kyoto, there seemed to be a disturbance. After investigating it, Souji and I discovered two of the failed soldiers dead on the ground in an alley. It would seem that this young man was the one who had killed them."
"It would seem that we have no other choice but to kill him. Right, Hijikata-san?" The corners of Souji's mouth turned upward in a smirk.
"Now, now Souji, he's only a little kid. Why don't you tell us your name first?" The kind man sitting on Hijikata's right smiled reassuringly at Aoi.
"Um, well, m-my name is Tsukahara Aoi…" the girl stuttered.
The kind man nodded. "Hmm…Tsukahara-san…it's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Kondou Isami, the commander of the Shinsengumi. To my left, with the ugly glare on his face, is Hijikata Toshizo. He's the Shinsengumi's Vice-commander. And to my right is-"
Hijikata turned his glaring eyes on his neighbor, cutting him off. "Kondou-san, is there really a need to tell him all of this?!"
Souji laughed. "He's right, Kondou-san! There's no need to give out everyone's names if we're just going to kill him in the end!"
"Huh? You think so?" Kondou's face fell.
"Well, it seems there wasn't any need for this meeting if the kid's future is already decided." The one with red hair and golden eyes called out.
"W-wait a second! Please, hear me out before you decide my fate!" Aoi cried in desperation. She couldn't die now, right after she had finally found the Shinsengumi. This was the only chance she was going to get, she couldn't waste it. If she missed this opportunity to talk to all the high-ranking officers at once, she knew she wouldn't get it again. She had to do something, after all, no matter what she did, it didn't seem like her situation could get any worse.
"There shouldn't be a problem if we just hear his story, right Kondou-kun?" The man with glasses asked Kondou.
"You're right Sannan-kun. There's no harm in listening." Kondou turned to smile at the man on his right. "Go on, Tsukahara-san."
Aoi inclined her body forward in a deep bow. "Please, please, let me join the Shinsengumi! I beg of you!" She cried.
There was a long pause of silence. Then the young boy with long brown hair and light blue-green eyes broke out in laughter. "You? You want to join the Shinsengumi?! A scrawny little kid like you?! You don't look like you could lift anything heavier than a feather!" He collapsed on the ground, his entire body shaking with uncontrollable laughter.
"Heisuke, you're not one to talk," The one with spiky brown hair chided, "you don't look any stronger than him, and you certainly aren't any taller than he is, shorty!"
"Cut it out Shinpachi-san! You old men have no right to talk!" Heisuke snapped.
"Old men?! I sure as heck don't know what you're talking about. I'm not old, but I'm not too sure about Shinpachi here!" The one with red hair laughed.
"Hey, Sano! Are you betraying me? You're a horrible friend!" Shinpachi cried.
"You three, shut your mouths." Hijikata ordered.
"I'm sorry about that, Tsukahara-kun. They're a lively bunch." Sannan-san apologized to the girl. "But, disregarding the interruption, why do you want to join the Shinsengumi? You must have heard some bad rumors about us right? We aren't exactly popular…"
"Because there's nothing else I can do…" Aoi muttered.
"What do you mean 'nothing else you can do'? Why don't you start from the very beginning and tell us everything?" Kondou said.
"Very well, but before I start, there's something I need to tell all of you." Aoi looked down.
"What is it?" Sannan-san asked.
"Well, the thing is, I'm a girl…" Aoi said, studying the patterns on the tatami.
"A girl?!" Several voices cried.
"But if she's a girl, then there's no way we could kill her that easily!" Kondou exclaimed.
"There's no proof she's actually a girl though, unless we strip her." Sano said.
"S-strip her?! No! There's no way. I won't allow it!" Kondou shouted, embarrassed.
"We'll just have to take her word for it." Hijikata sighed. "But if she's a girl, then it's also impossible for her to join the Shinsengumi."
Aoi started. "No, please, I really do want to join the Shinsengumi! Please! Hear me out!"
"Hijikata-san, why don't we allow her to finish her story before we decide?" Saito asked. He showed no surprise at the fact that Aoi was a girl.
Hijikata sighed. "Alright. Continue." He glowered at Aoi.
Aoi stared at Saito for a few seconds before continuing. She was surprised but happy at the fact that Saito had stood up for her. A light blushed touched her cheeks. "I was born into a family of samurais. My father had always wanted a son, so when I was born, he was naturally disappointed. But nonetheless, my father decided to raise me and treat me as a son, instead of a daughter. He taught me many things including basic medical training and how to wield a sword and fight. I was very diligent and never missed a day of training because I wanted my father to praise me and love me. After a few years of practice, I became the strongest in my neighborhood. There was no one who could beat me with a sword. One night, when I was twelve years old, I was returning home from an errand. But when I stepped foot into my house, I could feel there was something horribly wrong. I ran into the living room, and there on the floor lay the bodies of my parents. There was blood, lots of it, covering the walls, the floor, and the furniture. My parents were murdered in cold blood. I had no idea who killed them. It might have been rogue samurais or bandits. After that incident, I went to live with my father's sister and her family. They never treated me terribly, but I always felt like I was a third wheel. I had no redeeming qualities. The only thing I could really do was fight. I felt like I was useless, so when I turned sixteen, I left that house. I had heard from various people that there was a group of men in Kyoto called the Shinsengumi who dealt with the rogue samurais disturbing the peace, so I disguised myself as a man and came to Kyoto in hopes of joining you."
"Hmm…so that's why a girl decided to disguise herself as a man and come to Kyoto." Kondou nodded his head several times, thinking.
"But she's a girl, we can't just let her join the Shinsengumi, and even if she were to join, there's no way she could sleep with all the low-rank soldiers! They all share rooms!" Sannan-san exclaimed.
"That's true. And there's still the fact that she saw the failed soldiers." Souji drawled. "I still think we should kill her."
"Okita-kun!" Sannan-san cried.
Aoi started to panic. She didn't want to die. "Please let me join! I may be a girl, but I am stronger than most men! I want to fight for the Shinsengumi! If you let me join, I promise to keep the fact that I saw the failed soldiers a secret! Even if I did go out and tell everyone, no one would believe me! There's no way they would believe such monsters existed in real life! They would think I was crazy! So please let me join!"
"If it's like that, Toshi, then I don't see the problem with letting her join. We have an extra room, and if she were to stay here, we could keep an eye on her. Besides, I couldn't kill a girl that easily." Kondou pleaded to Hijikata.
"Seriously Kondou-san, I think you're getting too soft. If you say so, then I guess there's no other choice." Hijikata sighed.
"I still don't agree with her joining." Okita said. "I'll only accept it if Hajime-kun isn't able to defeat her."
"What?" She was confused. She looked at Saito for clarification, but he only stared at Okita.
"So if she is defeated by Saito, then she will have to return home? That's pretty harsh. Saito's a master at the sword!" Sano chuckled.
"I guess it's only fair if she fights someone, but does it have to be Saito-san? The chances of her winning are very slim…" Kondou looked troubled.
"I don't mind." Aoi exclaimed. "If fighting Saito-san is what I have to do to join, then I will fight. Even if he is one hundred times stronger than I am, I won't lose."
"Your resolve is strong." Saito murmured. His deep blue eyes softened a bit.
"If she agrees, then there's no problem right?" Heisuke said.
"Yeah, but not tonight. They will fight tomorrow morning. It is already late." Hijikata said as he stood up to leave. "Saito, please show her to the extra room."
Saito inclined his head in consent and stood up. He turned toward Aoi. "Follow me." And he walked out of the room.
The pair didn't exchange a word as they walked down the dark hallway. He led her past several rooms until they finally stopped at the one she would be sleeping in. But before he left, Saito turned to Aoi. "Although I shall be fighting you tomorrow, I wish you the best of luck. I won't hold back, even if you are a girl. Sleep well tonight. You might find need for the energy tomorrow."
A smile lit Aoi's face. "I don't intend to hold back either. No matter what, I can't let you defeat me. I want to join the Shinsengumi. Good luck to you as well."
Saito's lips curled upward in a small smile and he turned and walked back down the hallway. His movements were so graceful that he seemed to float. Aoi stood in front of her room for a moment, glad that the darkness had prevented Saito from seeing her cheeks turn a light pink color. She turned, entered her room, and slowly slid the door close on Saito's retreating figure