IT'S CERTAINLY BEEN A WHILE (I'm so sorry btw). I was going to update my other fanfic first, but I already had most of this chapter written a while ago, so I decided to finish it and post it quickly. Because of my tight schedule, there might be errors in the text, which I will try to correct them later. Unfortunately I can no longer edit previous chapters since they've expired (I hate myself for this), so I apologize for that if you ever go back to reread this fanfic.

This chapter is slightly shorter compared to the last one, but I didn't want to overwhelm anyone. And lastly, this chapter starts off with Chizuru dreaming (thus explains the huge body of italics down below).

As always, enjoy!

Chapter 13: Hunter and Prey

"He's dying! Please! You have to save him!"

…I can hear a man's distant voice coming from the entrance of my secluded home. The panicked voice had woken me from my sleep. Worried and scared, I peak my head out slightly from my room. My eyes sting as they adjust to the protruding light coming from the other end of the hallway, but they eventually find their way to the front entrance. My father stands in front of the entrance door, attending to the man who was screaming.

"He'll be fine. Please, get some rest back at home. Just leave the boy in my care", my father's soft and serene voice conveys the calm and collected demeanor that a doctor should have. The stranger, on the other hand, doesn't respond well to my father's assurance.

"But-!"

"You're not his family, are you? Please, go home. I'm sure your own family is worrying over you right now. I understand your concern for this child, but he's now in my capable hands. You can trust me..."

"…A-All right... But I beg you, Doctor. Do whatever you can to save him. He's still so young…"

At last, though reluctantly, the man leaves my home, but my attention is immediately brought to the body in my father's arms. The unconscious boy, who looks to be a few years older than me, straddles in my father's hold as his limp arms dangle loosely as if they were ribbons. But I can't even make out the boy's features because he's literally covered from head to toe in blood.

I can feel my eyes widening; it's like they will never close again. When I look at that boy, I know I'm shocked, but I'm surprised that I can't even muster a sound out of my mouth. I can't even quiver in fear.

My presence doesn't go unnoticed when I see the corner of my father's eyes snap to me.

"Chizuru, there's nothing to be afraid of. Go back to bed", his words mean well, but I recognize the tone of his voice. He always uses it to scold me whenever I misbehave.

True, I'm awake in the middle of the night when my nine-year-old-self shouldn't be, my fault. But who wouldn't be alarmed after waking up to desperate screams from a stranger who brought an injured boy with him? Despite that thought, I'm not prepared to question my father, so I quickly duck back inside my room and shut the door before climbing back to bed.

…What happened to that boy? Why was he covered in blood and dying?

I know that child is in the capable hands of my father, but even so, I'm terrified for his life. I'm old enough to understand that my father can't save everyone. Still, I hope the boy survives. All I can do is pray that the Unknown shows mercy on him…

Somehow, I let tiredness consume my mind and body, and I fall back asleep…

…

"AGHHH! WUARGHHH!"

I sit up in bed immediately after hearing those horrific screams. Every hair on my body stands straight, and a cold sensation running down my back causes me to shudder. Part of me wants to stay in bed and hope the screams won't reemerge, while the other part wants to run out to hallway and look for my father.

What's going on?! Who's screaming?! Was it the boy?!

Because I don't have a visual of the scene, my imagination wanders to the darkest crevices of my mind.

"HUUAAGH! AUHHH!", the wails continue to echo throughout my entire house endlessly.

Still debating on whether or not to leave, the door to my room suddenly flies open.

"Chizuru, I need your help!", my father runs in and extends a hand to me, which I take. I would've helped my father with anything he asked of me, but he goes on to lead me out of my room without my verbal consent. That can only mean that whatever's going on is serious.

"EIAGHH!", the voice from earlier reemerges with the ability to make me wince.

"Father, what's wrong?!", I ask desperately as my father pulls me into a run toward the room where the screams derive from.

"The patient isn't responding well to his treatment", my father cuts to the chase without turning around to face me. So it is the boy screaming…

Finally we reach the room, and my eyes immediately land on the still-bloody boy lying on a large table. "Lying" isn't even the proper word to use. Rather, the boy is convulsing on the table, trying to break free from the chains shackling his arms and legs.

Chains?! Since when did my father start using chains on patients?! Why does he need to use them on the boy?!

Before my mind races with more questions, I catch a glimpse of the boy's hair. Instead of the natural color it once was, now it is as white and eerie as the moon. But the moon can get away with looking beautiful at times, the boy's hair, however, is haunting.

It wouldn't surprise me if the boy was already a ghost.

I turn to look at my father for answers, but when I do, I only see darkness...

Black, without a single trace of color…

It's like my home that I was living in was never there to begin with.

"Father…?"

…Nothing. There's only utter and complete silence.

"Father?! Father!"

I am alone?! Where did my father go?! Where did the boy go?! What's happening?!

This has to be a cruel nightmare… Though, I can't separate reality from illusion because the fear of being alone still grabs me with thick and unbreakable tendrils.

"Father!", I call endlessly.

"Chizuru…", my father's voice reverberates throughout the darkness.

"Father…? Father! I'm here!", tears of joy well up in my eyes.

"Chizuru…" , his voice gets closer and closer.

"Over here!", I wave my arms like a chick trying to fly for the first time.

"Chizuru", what should've been my father's voice is instead lower, indistinguishable, and…colder. I quickly cease all of my body movement. Suddenly, I'm able to see a cloud or shape of smoke that has a human's figure; it is almost like looking at a shadow.

"Father…?"

Faster than anything I've seen before, the dark shadow suddenly stands in front of me and snatches my wrist in a strong grip that's far from being friendly. Whoever or whatever this shadow is…it's not my father!

"Chizuru, I need your help…", the shape of darkness practically growls.

"Stop it! Let me go!", I shake violently, but my attempts of escape are futile.

"Chizuru…listen to me… Don't you want to save him?"

"Save who?!", I scream back.

"The boy won't survive, unless…"

The boy? Is he talking about my father's patient?

Of course, I don't wish death on anyone, least of all on a boy with years ahead of him. I just don't see how I'm a part in all of this.

Why am I even thinking about this?!

This has to be a nightmare! Right now I'm in bed, and tomorrow I'll do chores while father takes care of his patients just like any other day. Right…?

Before I can shout for help, that's when I feel a sharp, irritating, and painful sting on my palm. I scream and writhe in agony. Never before have I been cut so deeply in my entire life. My whole arm feels uncomfortably hot, and as a result, I can feel warm and sticky blood gushing out of my hand.

"Stand still, Chizuru… Your wound will heal shortly", the figure says. Was he the one who cut me?!

I know from past experience that my injuries faded away rapidly; I know the pain will go away soon. But what concerns me more than my fresh wound is the reason as to why I was cut in the first place.

"Why are you doing this to me?!", I yell at the figure who is responsible for slicing my palm, but he somehow dodges my question.

"Your blood will not only save him…but you'll make him stronger too…", as the figure speaks, I can't manage to comprehend his words.

"We can put our family's suffering to an end! With the boy and your blood, we'll be invincible!"

Our family? Is he out of his mind?! This figure can't be related to me at all! On the other hand, what does he mean by "our suffering"?

I can't understand! Why am I in so much pain?!

Even as I ask all sorts of questions in my head, I can feel my head getting lighter and my eyes forcibly shutting on their own.

…I just want to forget this encounter had ever happened.

I want to forget everything…

"Huaaagh!", I sit up immediately, jolting every muscle in my body.

"Wh-What?!", I look around my room and take in my surroundings. I'm in my designated room in the West, not the one from my old home in the South. After that thought hit me, I quickly remember the scene I was experiencing just moments ago.

Without another thought, I examine my hand.

There's no cut.

I sigh frustratingly, yet I'm relieved.

"Of course there's no cut. It was only a dream."

One heck of a dream, and certainly not one I would want to have again. Before I ponder and reflect on my nightmare, I hear slight commotion going on somewhere outside of my room. Judging by the dim sunlight seeping through the paper doors, it's still relatively early for anyone to be up and about right now. Is something going on?

Curious and not tired enough to go back to sleep, I get up from bed and begin to dress. Once I finish tying my hair back and adjusting the kodachi on my hip, I quietly step out of my room while cautiously being aware of my surroundings. I really shouldn't be wondering off on my own in this compound, but staying up in bed is when I feel worse about being "useless".

Ever since I met the Shinsengumi, it's been hard to coordinate myself into their routine. The men are all skillful warriors, all of them having the ability to kill in just seconds. I, on the other hand, don't know the first thing about stealing life from somebody else, and I'm certainly not skilled enough as a warrior to stand even amongst the foot soldiers. Because of that, I was mainly ordered to not get in the way during patrols, and consequently my days consisted of doing chores and being confined to my room if I wasn't taking a sword-wielding lesson from Saito. Granted, I want to help the Shinsengumi in any way I can, so I hardly mind any cleaning or cooking.

…But at the same time, I feel like I'm getting nowhere in the search for my father, and after all I've learned about his experiments, things haven't felt right. Even with my supposedly reconciled friendship with Okita, I know that one day it might vanish completely once I confront him about the truth and all I've learned about him.

Every time I try to imagine a scenario where I finally tell him that I know he drank the Water of Life, I can't bring myself to actually come forward and say the truth because I know he won't take it well. "Well" would only apply if he was feeling extra generous. But deep down I already know the outcome; if I confess, it could most certainly lead to my immediate death. Keeping my mouth shut would be a reasonable solution, but after knowing the kind of strain the Water of Life puts on Okita's body, how can I sit idly and quietly by?

"…I can worry about that later."

Right now, I just have to focus on the commotion going on somewhere in the compound, so I finally stroll silently through the foreign hallways. I barely know my way around this building because we had only just arrived yesterday. The compound is a vacation home to several Northerners who are from the foreign embassy, and it's located in the fields of Flora, a small town only a day's travel away from Onoria.

The Shinsengumi captains were formally invited to attend a pre-festive banquet by the Northerners and several of Lord Matsuda's connections. I find it odd that the Northerners have a tradition to start celebrating before the actual Light Festival began, but I was curious to learn more about them. Especially after all I've heard about the North, I have to confirm for myself if they really are a threat.

At first, I wasn't expecting to attend this banquet since I don't hold any position within the Shinsengumi, but Kondou extended the invitation to me because he thought that it'd be good for me to see other areas in the West. I was ready to kindly refuse his offer, but once I discovered that Okita was going, I decided to accompany them.

Though, not all of the captains and officials accepted the invitation, like Heisuke and Saito. Sannan stayed behind for reasons that I –unfortunately- already know, but thankfully none of that intelligence was exchanged or brought to the surface.

Thus in total, the only ones from the Shinsengumi who are involved in this trip are Kondou, Hijikata, Okita, Harada, Nagakura, and I.

… At last, I arrive outside the common room of the vacation home and hear faint rustling from within. Is someone there? Best to go inside myself and see.

"Excuse me…", I slide the door as softly as I can and see Harada sitting alone while enjoying some tea.

"Chizuru? Why are you up so early?", he asks with surprise lighting his eyes.

"Um, I couldn't sleep that well…", I admit honestly, still holding back information about my dream, as I step inside the room.

"Okay, but that's hardly a reason to wonder around here by yourself. If you didn't find me and bumped into Hijikata-san instead, I'm sure you wouldn't see the last of him", Harada lectures me out of the goodness of his heart. I do my best to bite back a smile.

"…Okay, I'll go back. But first, is there something going on? Um, I thought I heard a noise, so…", I'm not expecting Harada to answer me, but I had to get my questions off my chest or else I would've gone back to my room unsatisfied.

"So you heard them… Funny how they were trying to be quiet so they wouldn't wake everyone else up", he says before taking another sip of his tea.

"Them?"

"The Northerners here invited us to go join them on some horse sport I can't even begin to understand. Naturally, Kondou-san and Hijikata-san accepted, and Souji decided to follow them too. But me and Shinpachi went out last night –so I guess you can say we're still…recovering- and we're not interested in some big-wig hobby."

I hadn't seen Nagakura since yesterday, and noticing that he's not with Harada now…

"Is Nagakura-san all right?"

"Yeah. The idiot just had too much booze, so he'll just be lazy for the rest of the day. It'll be a miracle if he even wakes up for lunch", Harada laughs to himself while taking a huge gulp of tea. He was never one to drink so much tea either…

"…Harada-san, are you okay?", I look pointedly at the cup in his hand. He follows my eyes, and when realization dawns him he grins at me.

"I might be a bit hung-over, but I'm fine. No need to worry, I don't go as overboard as Shinpachi. Besides, one of us has to be sober enough to watch over the other", he gives me an assuring smile before setting down his tea and focusing his whole attention on me.

"Enough about me, something must've been keeping you tossing and turning last night if you said you couldn't sleep. Maybe it should be me who needs to ask if you're okay", he furrows his brows slightly with concern.

The unnerving memories of my nightmare suddenly and ruthlessly flood my head, but I do my best to smile.

"N-Nothing's wrong with me. It's just that it's…weird being here", I try to avert the attention away from my sleeping issue.

"…I guess I can understand that. You barely know Onoria as it is, and now you're here in a new city. It must be hard for you to adjust", Harada attempts to sympathize with me, and my heart warms at the idea that he does care for me.

"…And I doubt that sitting in your room is any fun, huh?"

"N-No, not really…", I can't bring myself to admit that he's right.

"Hey, you don't need to lie to me. I may be a captain, but I'm not as scary as you think I am", Harada's brows furrow deeper, but not exactly with anger.

"Oh! It's not that I think you're scary… I-I just don't want to come across as a…burden", I mumble the last part. My eyes find my feet, and I drag my head down to hopefully have my bangs conceal my blushing face. Then I hear some shuffling and footsteps approach me. Unexpectedly, I feel a large warm hand rest at the top of my head. My eyes finally look up to see Harada standing right in front of me with a molten smile.

"Chizuru, as far as I can tell, you're no burden to us. Therefore, you shouldn't think that you are."

"Harada-san…"

"Honestly, I think it's unfair for us to put you into this position. Dressing up as a boy, staying in your room a whole lot, and doing chores; those are all things a woman such as you shouldn't be forced to do, but there's no other choice…", a scornful look of guilt crosses his amber eyes briefly.

"Even so, you do all of those things without complaining; I really admire you for that. Point is, we already put you through a lot of trouble, so there's no reason for you to think that you slow us down when really, it should be us who need to feel bad about treating a woman like this", somehow it's like our roles have been reversed.

Do the Shinsengumi captains think they're a burden to me? Such a thought would've never crossed my mind had I not just heard all of that from Harada.

"You don't need to feel bad. I know all of you are doing your best to help find my father. Really, I couldn't be more grateful about that. It just seems unfair for me to sit in my room and do nothing while everyone else is busy. You all work so hard, so if there's anything I can do to help…", I fall silent, not sure how to express the rest of my feelings. After a quiet moment, Harada gives my head one last pat before retreating his hand.

"Well, you already help us out a lot, and since we are technically on a vacation…you deserve a break too", his words surprise me.

"Huh?"

"There's not much to do in here, so I was just gonna keep an eye on Shinpachi and deal with him when he wakes up. You can stick around if you want, but I'm not gonna lie, hung-over Shinpachi isn't a pretty sight, and it isn't something you should deal with", Harada says with a scowl directed to his friend.

"…And knowing that you can't be outside your room by yourself…", he strokes his chin pensively until his eyes widen briefly when an idea comes to his mind.

"Oh! If you want to join everyone else on horseback, I'm sure you'll find someone who's still in the stables getting ready to leave. Who knows? It might be fun for you to see more of Flora; it definitely beats being stuck in here", he suggests with a triumphant smirk.

"Really?! …Do you think it's okay for me to go?", I ask timidly.

"I don't see a reason why you can't go. And I'm sure Souji or Hijikata-san will look after you."

That's right. Okita joined Kondou and Hijikata on the "horse sport" that the Northerners invited them to. To be honest, I'm worried on how Okita plans to deal with the Northerners. Remembering Kazama's story and Okita's warning about them…it's natural that I'm skittish around the Northerners.

I'm still an oni, and Okita is a fury. If word of our breed got out to the Northerners, there'd be havoc waiting for us. I know that I can't let Okita suffer through that fate alone if it comes down to it. More than knowing, I don't want him to be alone.

"Okay, I think I'll go to the stables", I say with resolution.

"Then you'd better hurry or you might get left behind", Harada dismisses me with a wave of his hand.

"Thank you!", and with one last grateful smile, I rush out of the room.

I sprint out of the compound and head toward the stables. Even though I'm worried for Okita, I can't help but feel strangely excited about joining him and the others. I have to mentally force myself from hopping to the stables. I can't exactly explain my enthusiasm. Maybe it's because I'm leaving the compound for a while, or I don't know what, but I go with it.

I reach the stables, and I'm forced to bend over and brace my hands on my knees as I pant for air.

"Yukimura-kun?", my head pops up immediately once I hear that familiar voice. With a fast pace toward me, a concerned frown morphs on Kondou's mouth.

"Is something wrong? You were running frantically and it's rather early, so I thought…", Kondou –as usual- jumps to drastic conclusions.

I stand straight once I finally regain my breath.

"Everything's fine! …I was just wondering if I could come with you guys" it takes a lot out of me to not sound desperate or eager. Kondou must have sensed my excitement to join them because he smiles radiantly at me.

"Of course you can! That's actually a great idea, right Toshi?", he looks behind himself to hear the Commander's opinion. Hijikata nears us, and luckily, his lips pull back into one of his rare smiles.

"I guess we can't keep you in a room forever. Just don't go brown-nosing for trouble, all right?", even with a smile, Hijikata is as stern as ever.

"Yes Sir!", I bow appreciatively, and soon I notice Okita coming our way.

"Glad you're joining us, Chizuru-chan. Now we can finally race together in the forest", he seems too cheerful as he talks to me.

"…Racing in the forest is just an easier way to get lost…", I mention, but I have a feeling that Okita already knows that.

"Exactly", he confirms my theory with a playful smile.

"You're mean", I chide back. Hijikata had overheard Okita's teasing, and I know he isn't going to take any chances.

"If she gets lost, you best cut yourself open before I find you", he threatens coldly with a vein of annoyance popping out from his forehead. Okita chuckles.

"Okay Mom."

…

…After saddling the horses and packing all of the equipment we needed, we ride several miles out of the town and into the grassy fields of Flora. The name wasn't given on whim since the fields are comprised of flowers as far as the eye can see. The land is rich with color, and not so far away, there are decent mountains with stone so impressive, it looks like polished granite. The scene can most definitely belong as art on paper doors in the Emperor's mansion.

The South has a number of impressive mountains and fields, but over there it is untamed and coated primarily with the average evergreen. In contrast, the country in the West is rich and diverse, and nothing short of beautiful.

So how is that the Northerners are still able to disturb such natural eloquence? I'm watching the answer to that right now.

I sit on top of Chibi at a small hill, away from the sporting Northerners as they overwork their horses to chase down a wild fox. That's the sport. Hunting in its cruelest fashion. The point of the game is to chase and kill a fox on horseback using only crossbows. I don't frown upon hunting in general, but I can tell that the Northerners will let that poor animal's life go to waste.

I hardly know much about weapons, but even I can tell that it's hard to shoot a crossbow, especially while one isn't standing still, making it harder to hit the target. Unfortunately, that means the animal would suffer from misdirected arrows if it wasn't lucky enough to receive a quick death. In short, the Northerners would kill and destroy the fox simply because it was fun.

It is a barbaric Northern tradition that I don't ever want to participate in.

And as if mutilating a fox isn't enough, running the horses at full-speed for too long would make them prone to injury. They could quite possibly damage their lungs and start to bleed out from their nostrils. As for the worst-case scenario, a broken leg to a horse is equivalent to a death sentence.

But I have to keep the peace, so I keep my opinions to myself and watch the "sport" silently. Luckily, I'm not the only bystander. Though everyone is on horseback, Kondou is keeping himself busy by conversing with a few of the more authoritative Northerners and one or two members of Lord Matsuda's circle. Okita stationed himself near the chief, but neither is he participating in the conversation. Is he quiet because the Northerners are around? Perhaps, but I'm not entirely sure.

Now that I think about it, Okita was always aloof and disinterested whenever politics was brought up, and I'd put my finger on it that politics is indeed the center of the conversation that Kondou is having with the other group of men. It's more logical to assume that Okita is simply bored.

I must have been staring at him for too long, or he probably felt that he was being watched, because his eyes find mine. Much to my surprise, he looks relieved and all too eagerly maneuvers his horse next to Chibi. When he finally settles in place, he grins wolfishly at me.

"Why do you look so bored, Chizuru-chan? Is fox hunting not what you expected it to be?", by the look in his eye, he can easily tell how uncomfortable I feel toward the whole event, and he's having fun joking about it.

"I have to admit, it's not very pleasant…" as I say that, I wonder why Okita isn't participating in the hunt. As messed up as it sounds in my head, hunting isn't so out of character for him; he is, after all, a soldier. And I've seen how Okita kills with a rictus smile on his face; surely fox hunting doesn't bother him as much as it does with me.

"So what about you? Why aren't you hunting? I mean Hijikata-san's doing it…", I don't want to be pushy, but I'm curious.

"Don't really like this kind of hunting, and what's the point in using a crossbow if you have a bad aim? If it were me, I'd get the job done quickly", his hand grazed the haft of his sword to make his point.

"Plus, someone's gotta keep an eye on you", he added.

"So why is Hijikata-san hunting? Does he like it?", I have to ask. Despite how intimidating he is, Hijikata never read off as someone who enjoys that kind of "sport", so naturally I want to know why he joined the Northerners in the first place.

"It's more complicated than that. He isn't doing it because he likes it; rather, he's hunting with the Northerners because he feels that he has to", Okita explains.

"Okay, but why does he have to hunt? It's not like anybody is forcing him to", I comment.

"Actually he is being forced, but coercion would be the proper term", Okita clarifies. I open my mouth to ask him why, but he already knew my question.

"Northerners are big on image, and fox hunting is sorta how they show off. So when you get invited to go hunting with them and you don't follow through with it, it makes you look like you've got no balls", he continued.

"I see…"

A strong image and reputation are critical to go up in rank, even more so to get recognized by a Lord. And given that some of Matsuda's men are present, Hijikata is leaving them with a good impression of the Shinsengumi.

I now understand Okita's point clearly enough, but he isn't done talking.

"Kondou-san doesn't like this kind of hunting either. His swordsmanship and leadership are worth a whole lot more than this fox-shit, but the Northerners are too stuck on their high horses notice that", a grin still plays about on his lips, but it's hard to miss the angry spark in his eye.

"So what you're saying is that Kondou-san is displaying his true talents right now by conversing with the higher ups, while Hijikata-san is…", I start.

"…Covering for Kondou-san by hunting with the rest of the Northerners", Okita finished.

"That's incredible…", I blurt out absent-mindedly.

If I haven't thought that Hijikata was a fantastic Commander already, I now know he is. From just one event, he is accomplishing so much. Presenting a good image, having Kondou impress the higher ups verbally…this had to be calculated ahead of time.

And here I was worrying about the Northerners! If Hijikata and Kondou can stand their ground, I had no reason to believe that Okita can't. And it's not like the Northerners are drilling Okita with questions about anything related at all to the Water of Life –that is even if they knew such a concoction existed, which is highly unlikely. Also, for the duration of this trip, Okita never broke a sweat in front of them, almost as if he was completely unaware of the existence of furies.

Northerners are only concerned about the existence of oni, and so long as I don't do anything to grab their attention, I'll be fine. I'm just another human to them. As if I knew the first thing about being an oni, I think sarcastically. So far I can only heal up quickly. The more I think about all of this, I wonder why any of this had even been a problem to begin with.

Just as I'm beginning to enjoy relief wash through my body, I hear Okita grunt next to me. Almost instinctively, my head snaps to face him.

"Hrnng", he grunts again, only this time I can see him grinding his teeth in desperate attempt to silence himself. His hands almost bite into his throat and stomach; it's clear that he's in significant pain.

Watching him like that made my mind recall the first morning we spent together in the South, after he rescued me from the masked men. We were outside Doctor Matsumoto's house when he began writhing in pain, like he was being torn apart from the inside out. He'd dismissed his pain as mild food poisoning, and I was ignorant enough to believe him at the time. Now I know that something far worse was happening to him.

"Grrgh!", Okita's groan comes off dry and raspy. He's clenching his hands into tightly balled fists, so much so that his knuckles turn lighter than my pale skin. It's probably taking a considerable amount of energy and control to stop himself from wailing or screaming in horrible anguish.

Something's obviously off, and I have terrible feeling as to why this is happening, but I'm frantically hoping that I'm wrong.

"Okita-san, are you okay?", I try not raising my voice since the Northerners are close by -not to mention Kondou, and he doesn't even know about Okita's condition- but every fiber in my being wants me to shout in despair.

Okita doesn't answer me. At this point, he's close to bending over his horse completely and struggling to stay put on the saddle. Then there's that look of agony in his eyes, but there's more to it than that. As if someone or something is taking control over him, the brilliant emerald shine in his eyes disappears completely, and in sharp contrast, a glowing scarlet hue emerges in its place.

We have to get away from everybody now before they see him like this!

"Okita-san we should-", I was going to suggest we retreat to the forest that serves as a barrier in between the field and mountain area, but before I can finish, Okita kicks his horse's side harshly with a loud thud. The startled horse rears and whines before fleeing away up to a full gallop, with Okita still barely clinging onto it. Escape is clearly his first priority, and my gut tells me he doesn't want me near him.

…It was stupid of me to forget, even for a small moment. How can he possibly want me by his side if he doesn't even know of all that I've learned about the Water of Life? But I can't stomach the idea of him trying to endure the pain of the concoction all by himself…

"Wait!", I call after him and command to Chibi to start galloping behind him. I have no problem riding Chibi like this, but given the circumstances, I'm more nervous than usual. I try my hardest to endure the wind blowing hard against me, but sometimes it feels like I'm running straight into sharp pieces of glass. But that hardly matters now, what does matter is that Okita is suffering and I have to do anything I can to help him.

I'm sure we made a scene in front Kondou and the Northerners, but by the direction our horses are going, it looks like we're joining the hunting party. From what I last saw of the hunt, the fox vanished into the woods, dragging the other men behind it as well. Okita and I just have to be lucky enough not to run into them right now.

As Chibi and I enter the forest, I immediately lose sight of Okita and his trail. It's still early in the morning, so the sun hadn't even risen high enough to illuminate the darkness in the dense forest. If I keep wandering blindly through the woods, I'd only be getting myself lost if I couldn't find Okita. Though the darkness is a thorn on my side, I can't be discouraged.

I must find Okita, but I can't help myself from fearing the worst for him. But just locating him won't solve everything.

If I do find Okita, would he be driven mad by thirst for blood by then? What can I even do for him in that state?

Only more daunting questions come to mind as I go deeper into the forest.

Would Okita even be sane enough to recognize me?

…Or would I become his prey?

So that's that! I leave you with (hopefully) more suspense! So yes, next chapter is sure to be a rather dramatic encounter between Souji and Chizuru. As to when this chapter might posted, I HAVE NO CLUE. I've just started my second semester at college, and it is already proving to be stressful. I also have other fanfics to write, so the date for the next update is undeterminable.

ANYWAY, please leave a review for this chapter and tell me what you thought/liked/etc. It helps me out tremendously and motivates me to try to make faster updates! If you'd like to reach me, you can always message me here or visit my tumblr blog (hakuoukiandmocha11).

As always, have an awesome day!