Author's note: Hello everyone! This story has gotten much more attention than I expected, thank you so much for reading, I'm glad it's being enjoyed! I hadn't planned on making it very long, but now I'd like to keep it going. If you have any suggestions, criticism or comments, please feel free to leave them, they'll help a lot! Thank you ^^
Mikoto was jolted awake as her door was slammed open. She rolled over, burying her head in her pillow with a tired groan.
"What the hell Souji?" she whined.
"Have you seen a mangy furball running around here?" She looked up at him, blinking as light flooded into her view. He couldn't help but smile at her sleepy daze.
"Seen...mangy furball?" she repeated. "How could I have seen anything Souji, I've been asleep," she muttered, her head falling back to the pillow. "What mangy furball...anyway," she asked, starting to doze off again. He gave a soft chuckle, kneeling down beside her. He brushed her disheveled hair away from her face.
"Don't worry about it, I'll explain when you're awake," he whispered to her. With those words, he left a soft kiss on her cheek, and turned to continue his search. Her eyes snapped open, but Souji was already gone. She brushed the spot where his lips had been with the tips of her fingers, smiling. A month had passed since Souji had made his feelings clear to Mikoto. Their secret hadn't been kept for long. Shinpachi had let it slip to Heisuke and Sanosuke one evening after getting drunk. After that, Saito had been able to figure it out through pure perception. Luckily for them, the news had yet to reach the three higher ups, Kondou, Hijikata and Sannan. They knew very well that Hijikata wouldn't be very open to the idea of a relationship amongst members of the Shinsengumi. She sat up and stretched. Spring was coming to an end, and the men had decided that it was as good a reason as any to celebrate. It was the week of Kanda Matsuri, and mostly everyone had wanted to join in on the festivities for one reason or another. The fireworks would be that night, she realized.
"Better go see what those guys are up to," she murmured to herself as she got dressed. She wore the purple kimono that Souji had gotten for her. Kondou had just recently permitted her to wear women's clothing again. Now she was only required to wear men's clothing when performing duties outside of the compound. Walking outside, it was easy enough to track everybody down based on the noise they were all creating. The captains were all running around the training yard, seemingly chasing something. Suddenly all of them looked in her direction. "Good mor-
"Mikoto chan, catch it!" Heisuke yelled. For a moment, she had no idea what he was talking about. Suddenly, something jumped up to her, and she instinctively caught it in her arms. She looked, and there was a calico cat rubbing against her affectionately.
"Hi there sweetie," she cooed, scratching its head. As she began to purr, the meat in her mouth dropped to the ground. The captains approached her.
"Well would you look at that," Sanosuke said with a laugh. "All it took was a woman's touch." Shinpachi picked the thin piece of meat up off of the ground, disappointment clear on his face.
"Yeah, but we still lost this little gem," he stated with a frown. Souji came up beside her putting an arm around her shoulders.
"Good thing I woke you up, eh Mikoto chan?" He grinned, and Mikoto had the feeling he had planned on waking her, cat or no cat. She frowned and flicked him lightly on the forehead. He let go of her and crossed his arms. "You're so mean to me Mikoto," he pouted, though a smile played on his lips.
"So what happened, why is she here?" Mikoto questioned, scratching the calico under the chin. She gave a soft mew in response.
"We aren't really sure, she just showed up and started causing trouble," Saito explained.
"Sounds like someone else we know," Souji teased, casting a glance at Mikoto as he reached over to pet the cat as well. Mikoto shot him a mock glare. After a moment, the cat jumped from her arms, and walked up to shinpachi, where she rubbed up against his leg. She then stretched up, using his leg to balance on her hind legs, looking up at him expectantly. Mikoto giggled.
'She wants the meat in your hand," she pointed out. With a crestfallen sigh, Shinpachi dropped it. The cat happily took it in her mouth and ran off. Mikoto's smile fell. "I hope she comes back…"
"Oh, I'm sure she'll be back," Heisuke said with a chuckle. Now that the excitement had died down, everyone began to disperse. Souji took one of Mikoto's hands in both of his, bring the tips of her fingers to his lips.
"Lets go train," he suggested. "To kill some time." He kissed her fingers as he looked at her with loving green eyes. Resting her free hand on the side of his face, she smiled.
"I'd like that."
Souji and Mikoto stood across from one another, bokken at the ready. They were starting yet another practice match. They had been training on and off for the past few hours, and both of them were starting to wear down.
"Loser buys dango tonight at the fireworks," Mikoto proposed. Souji smirked.
""Oh? Well if you insist, I look forward to the free food," he goaded. With those words, they charged at one another, exchanging several blows, before backing up again to evaluate the other's movements. Mikoto quickly made a swipe to his left side, which he quickly blocked, and before she could react, his bokken was at her throat. With a tired, defeated sigh, she fell backwards.
"Fine, fine, you win." Souji laughed
"You're fast, but you get rather sloppy when you're tired," he stated, then held out a hand to help her up. She sat up, about to take his hand, when suddenly his demeanor changed. Rather than grabbing her hand, he roughly took hold of her forearm, leaning in close to her and staring her down with cold eyes. "Is that really the best you can do?" he questioned. "Get up you idiot." With those words, he pulled her to her feet, bringing her close and keeping his grip on her arm. She kept quiet as she glared up at him. She understood what he was doing as soon as she had caught sight of Hijikata and Kondou out of the corner of her eye. "What do expect to accomplish in a real fight? I should just kill you right now…"
"Souji," Hijikata warned as he approached. Souji turned and looked at him as though he hadn't been aware of his presence the whole time.
"Toshi san!" he exclaimed cheerfully. "I was just having a conversation with Hasegawa here." Hijikata let out an irritated sigh, but before he could say anything, Kondou stepped in. Though his usual warmth was still there, Kondou appeared very serious.
"We wanted to be sure we spoke to everyone before tonight," he started. "If either of you plan on going out tonight for the festivities, we need you to stay vigilant. Times like these when the streets are crowded and the people are rowdy are optimal times for the choushou clansmen to make a move," he explained. "That being said, I'd still like you to have a good time." He finished speaking with with a grin. "And I'd like you to make sure people stay safe," he added, warning hidden under his kind words as his gaze focused on Souji. Souji and Mikoto gave respectful bows, and the commander and vice commander went on their way. As soon as they were out of sight, Souji pulled Mikoto into a kiss. He pulled away, placing his hand on the side of her face.
"I wish you'd give me a little more warning before you do that. It still throws me off when you change so quickly," Mikoto said with a sigh. Souji chuckled.
"Now if I did that, it would be less convincing. Hijikata is the last person we need knowing. Are you alright? I didn't hurt you did I?" he questioned, rolling her sleeve up to examine her arm.
"I'm fine Souji." He smiled and kissed her forehead.
"Good. Now, how about we go get that dango you owe me before the fireworks start?" With a small smile Mikoto nodded. After putting the bokken away, Mikoto quickly changed back into her kimono, and they started towards town.
Mikoto leaned on the railing of the bridge, head in her hand. She let out a sigh.
"When are they going to start Souji?" she asked, looking up at him. He laughed.
"You're such a kid. They'll start when they start." She let out another sigh. The sun had already set, her orders of dango were long gone, and now she was becoming restless as she eagerly waited for the fireworks.
"I bet everyone ate dinner without us," she complained. Souji cocked an eyebrow.
"For someone so small, you eat a lot," he teased. She opened her mouth to say somethings, but stopped as a high pitch whistle sounded in the distance. She immediately straightened up with a grin as the first flower of fire blossomed in the dark sky. She watched with wide eyes as several more followed the first. She turned to Souji, only to see him speaking with someone, his expression serious. She recognized the man as Yamazaki Susumu. She had only met him a couple of times, but she knew that he was one of the Shinsengumi's spies. Yamazaki gave her quick nod, and took off.
"Is everything alright?" she asked, her brow knit with concern. He nodded.
"There's just some men stirring up trouble at a shop. They've raised some suspicion, so I'm going to go check it out," he explained.
"I'll go with you," she said quickly, grabbing his hand. He shook his head. "But-"
"I don't want you getting hurt. Besides, you've been looking forward to the fireworks. I'd like you to enjoy them," he said resting a hand her shoulder. Mikoto frowned, but didn't argue the matter. He kissed her cheek. "I'll see you back at the compound tonight." She nodded.
"Be careful." With that, Souji turned and disappeared into the crowd. With a sigh, Mikoto turned back to the fireworks, her interest in them now somewhat diminished. She watched until the show's conclusion before deciding it was time to return to headquarters for the night. As she was making her way through the crowded streets, she felt a tug on her sleeve.
"Excuse me, miss?" She turned to see who was trying to get her attention. Before her gaze could land on whoever it was, a sharp pain shot through the back of her head, then quickly numbed. She could feel herself falling, but could do nothing about it as her vision began to fade and she slipped out of consciousness.