The sun was setting quickly, lighting the Kyoto sky ablaze with warm orange, pink and yellow hues, as Souji and Mikoto's walk came to an end outside of the inn. They stopped and admired one another quietly, as they often did before parting ways, before Mikoto gave a small bow.
"Please be careful on your patrol tonight, Souji." He smirked at her concern, his emerald eyes dancing with a playful light.
"You must really doubt me if you think I can't handle a basic patrol without putting myself in danger, Mikoto-chan." She huffed in response, folding her arms.
"Fine, get hurt, no sweat off my back. Just don't come looking for me to rescue you." Souji let out a snort of laughter.
"You're going to rescue me?"
"Well, not anymore, I'm not," she retorted. He ruffled her hair affectionately, chuckling a little more.
"I appreciate your concern, Mikoto," he admitted gently. "I'll see you tomorrow, if I survive my patrol." Mikoto could no longer hold her pout as an amused smile tugged at the corners of her lips.
"I guess we'll see." With that, he turned and walked off with a small wave. She watched him go with a contented sigh. Two months had passed since they had met, and she had grown to care a great deal for the man. Recently, they had been seeing each other nearly every day, and on the days when they were apart, she couldn't help but miss him. Once he turned the corner, she herself turned and snuck back into the inn through the back entrance. Once in her room, she peeked around the corner to be sure no one was walking down the hall, then closed the door behind her. Kneeling, she lifted the floorboard over her hiding spot. Along with her sword, sake, and a couple of kimonos, there was a neatly folded black bundle, on top of which sat a note. She had received the note earlier that day, but hadn't had the chance to read over it. After quickly skimming over it, she sighed. "This will just have to wait until tomorrow night...I can't interrupt his patrol…"
The streets of Kyoto were quiet that night as two men led their units through the dark, moonlit streets. Souji walked along with a contented smile resting on his lips. Spending time with Mikoto always left him filled with a comforting warmth, and this time was no different. His happy daze made him unaware of his fellow captain watching him from the corner of his eyes.
"Souji," Hajime started, pulling him from his blissful thoughts. Souji looked over at the reserved man. "Though it's not any business of mine, the other men are starting to wonder about you." Souji smirked.
"Oh? What do you mean, Saito-san?" They both knew full well what it was Hajime was trying to get at, but Souji chose to play dumb.
"I have to agree with them," he continued, not in the mood to play Souji's games. "You've been behaving strangely for a while now. It's become increasingly difficult to find you around the compound. When you're questioned, you never give a straight answer." Hajime's intense blue gaze met Souji's mischievous eyes, but the brunet was unphased. "It's unsettling behavior for the captain of our first unit." Souji let out a bark of laughter.
"You're far too serious sometimes, Saito. Is my behavior really much different from Shinpachi or Sanosuke's?" Hajime didn't have an answer. "Besides, you know very well that I'd never never do anything to betray Kondou." He eyed Souji for a moment, still suspicious, then nodded.
"I suppose I can't doubt that," he finally conceded. "Just watch yourself." His words contained an edge of warning, but he seemed ready to drop the issue for now. Both men returned their focus to the road ahead of them, and Souji allowed his mind to drift back to his daydreaming.
A warm breeze swept through Kyoto, signaling the warmer weather to come as things moved into late spring. After getting lunch, Souji and Mikoto found themselves seated beneath a sakura tree on the bank of Kamo river, which ran through the city. Souji was laid out in the grass, and had fallen asleep, within moments of laying down, with his head in Mikoto's lap. After having been out until the early hours on patrol, he had easily been lulled into a relaxed slumber while basking in the warmth of the sun. Mikoto sat still, smiling down at the man she'd become so fond of. She absentmindedly ran her fingers through his hair, soaking in the peace of the moment, silently willing it to last as long as possible. As her delicate fingers moved to gently brush some strands of hair from his forehead, he began to stir. His emerald eyes slowly blinked open, still a bit clouded by sleep. His vision gradually came into focus, and upon seeing Mikoto looking down at him, a soft smile graced his lips. Her warm eyes were such a welcoming sight to awaken to.
"Your lap is quite comfortable, Mikoto-chan," he stated, reaching up to lightly play with a strand of her black hair. She chuckled, running her hand through his hair one last time.
"I'm glad I could be of assistance." He sat up, stretching his sleep heavy limbs.
"It certainly did me some good. We've extended our patrol routes lately, so they run a bit later than usual," he explained. Mikoto cocked her head to the side inquisitively.
"Why is that?" He let out a bitter scoff.
"I find it pointless, but a few of our patrols have reported a petty thief giving us the run around." Her golden eyes widened, slightly startled. Souji took notice of this and rested a reassuring hand on the top of her head. "It's not someone dangerous. More of a skilled nuisance. I personally don't think it's someone we should be wasting our time with, not when there are talks of the Choshu scheming in Kyoto. Kondou insists we must protect the city from all wrong doing though, and I certainly won't go against him." Mikoto nodded.
"Well, if I can be of any assistance to you and the Shinsengumi, I'd be glad to help," she offered. He shook his head.
"If we can't catch this guy on our own, we don't deserve our name," he stated plainly, shifting so he was against the tree, shoulder to shoulder with Mikoto.
"Well, I just figured, information is easy to come by in my line of work. Give a man a little to drink, and you'd be amazed what he'll let slip. It's as if they think women don't have ears." She gave a sly smile as she spoke. Souji cocked an eyebrow.
"Oh? Look at that, you can be clever." She shoved into him with her shoulder, and his face split with a grin. He didn't think he could ever grow tired of teasing her. She was trying, and failing, to hide her own smile.
"Shut your damn mouth, Okita," she snapped, feigning offense. He had no response other than to let out a laugh followed by a sigh.
"I have actually been meaning to talk to you about that," he started after having settled down. Her brow furrowed in confusion. "You're still seeing...clients, huh?"
"Well, fewer now, thanks to someone's threats to the innkeeper." She looked at him pointedly before continuing. "But I have to make a living somehow…" His eyes flicked downwards, away from her gaze, and a frown pulled the corners of his mouth down. He was clearly unhappy with her answer.
"I want you to get out of there," he said, his tone bordering on demanding. This took her by surprise. She hadn't seen him this serious since the night they met.
"Souji…" He finally met her eyes, his own flashing with several emotions she couldn't pinpoint.
'I mean it, Mikoto." The intensity of his stare left her unable to speak, instead her mouth just opened and closed uselessly. "I don't care where you go, even if it's away from Kyoto, away from...I can help. I just don't want you in a place like that." She opened her mouth once again, ready to actually give a response, but was interrupted by a sudden eruption of noise from the streets. They both jumped up and whipped around to find the source of the shouts and crashes. It seemed as though a group of ronin had decided to start trouble, causing a chaotic ruckus to break out. Mikoto looked over at Souji, who was already reaching for his katana, his lips drawn back and his teeth bared in an eager, almost animalistic grin. It had been a while since he'd been able to put his sword to good use, so he wasn't about to let this opportunity slip away. "Mikoto, go home, we'll continue this discussion later." His voice came out closer to a growl.
"Wait, Sou-" Before she had an opportunity to protest, he was off , and she was left alone reaching for nothing but air. "-ji…" She sighed as she watched him disappear into the crowd, her mind still buzzing with his words. She began making her way back to the inn, hardly paying any mind to where she was walking as she lost herself in her thoughts. Of course she wanted to leave, but she had nowhere to go, and she certainly didn't want to rely on Souji, not after all she'd kept from him. The guilt ate away at her everyday, but was always overpowered by her own selfish desire to be with him. Before she knew it, she was nearing her destination.
"Mikoto!" Startled, she snapped to attention, and what she saw made her heart drop. A woman, a bit older than herself, was quickly approaching her. Her build was slightly stockier than Mikoto's, and she had dark auburn hair with bangs that framed her large brown eyes.
""Ayumi, I-" The woman grabbed Mikoto's hands, giving them a squeeze. Though it could often be taken as a friendly action, Mikoto knew it to be more of a way to keep her in place. She attempted a smile, but it came off more as a grimace.
"Were you able to get everything?" Mikoto just bit her lip, and Ayumi's eyes grew wide. "Mikoto, you know we need you to do this!"
"Look, I couldn't get to it last night, something came up, but...listen, Ayumi, I-"
"What's going on? You always used to be so quick and diligent, but lately-"
"I can't do this anymore!" Mikoto finally snapped, her frustration forcing her words out more forcefully than intended. The woman's expression was one of someone that had just taken a slap to the face. After a moment, the shock faded from her features and her doe eyes became large and pleading.
"What are we supposed to do without you, Mikoto?" She was clearly trying to guilt Mikoto, and much to her disdain, it was working.
"You can manage without me, Ayumi, you just don't want to…" she tried to reason. "I'm not doing it again. I'm done."
"Please…" Ayumi tried once more, looking desperate and defeated. Mikoto let out an exasperated sigh, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Fine," she gave in. "Once more. That's it. This will be the last time, then never again. I've been presented with a chance to change things, and hell if I'm going to let it go." Mikoto's tone left no room for argument. Ayumi nodded, but was clearly not overly thrilled with the answer.
"Very well, thank you, MIkoto." Mikoto nodded.
"I'll get it done tomorrow night."