A bright light shined, hurting my eyes.

My head pounded, as I fought the jolts of pain on my shoulder and legs.

I slowly opened my eyes.

¡°Father?¡± my voice croaked, my vision slightly a blur.

I could barely see the figure of my father sitting in front of me, stroking my burning forehead.

¡°Tokio- shhhh rest¡± my father¡¯s blur moved closer to me.

I struggled to move, ¡°Father-¡±

¡°Kojuurou san, you must let her sit up¡± a stronger voice encouraged me; a strong pair of arms helping me sit up.

¡°Arigatou¡± I murmured, wiping the sweat off my forehead, ¡°Souji san-¡± I stared back at those innocent eyes.

I groaned, my headache grew worse.

¡°Let her sleep¡± I barely heard my father argue.

¡°Tokio¡¦.¡±

¡°Eh¡± I weakly replied

¡°Do you remember anything that happened two days ago?¡±

Two days?

Remember?

Did I forget something important?

Always forgetful.

Darn- wait

My eyes snapped shut, a memory, I could see fire¡¦.


Fire

?

What was that supposed to mean?

A cold realization knocked me down, I fell surprised towards father. Someone held me up.

I remembered¡¦.

¡°Ijaou san¡¦¡± my eyes began to hurt more, stinging- ouch

Why wouldn¡¯t this headache go away?

Pounding

Ringing

Tears fell from my eyes, ¡°He¡¯s dead¡±

Before I could say anymore, my mind completely blanked out, the light was gone.

Dark.

I had watched the tomboy girl cry and faint afar, by the door.

Such weakness I did not wish to see but I could not help feeling fascinated by it.

So she remembered.

My jaws tightened, the sting of failure still burned.

With a grunt of disgust, I motioned for Okita to follow; I still had no idea why we were here.

I came under the persuasion of Okita.

¡°Saitou¡¦.I feel bad for her¡± Okita¡¯s soft voice continued as he slowly closed the door of Takagi¡¯s room, ¡°She¡¯s still in danger¡±

I shrugged nonchalantly, ¡°We¡¯ll keep a close eye on her- what¡¯s her name?¡±

¡°Takagi Tokio¡±

So Tokio.

A simple name, easy to remember, and easy to forget.

¡°Saitou san- why so quiet?¡±

I narrowed my eyes, but gave no reply.

¡°So you¡¯re still moaning over Choruke¡¯s escape?¡± Okita¡¯s light voice brought a scowl to my lips.

¡°I do not worry about Choruke, is already a dead man¡± I leaned against the wall, ¡°I¡¯m wondering about Takagi Kojuurou¡±

Okita¡¯s eyes widened, ¡°Takagi?¡±

¡°Why would he oppose such a threat to the man behind Choruke?¡± I fingered my katana, ¡°Is there something about the Takagi we don¡¯t know about?¡±

Okita grinned, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t worry about old Kojuurou san, I would worry about the girl- Tokio san¡±

I snorted, ¡°The girl is too weak to even stand, Okita-she¡¯s no threat¡±

Okita stubbornly continued, ¡°If you had been there earlier, she was magnificent- she fights like a warrior¡±

¡°So the tomboy is a rebel with a sword.¡± My mind flashed to the girl¡¯s flushed face, her desperate dark eyes, wild hair tied into a bun, ¡°She has feline grace-but she does no harm. Only Takagi Kojuurou, whom I¡¯ve heard had an unfortunate distaste of the Shinsengumi¡±

Before Okita could reply, Takagi Kojuurou appeared, his face down, his hands trembling.

Worried for his daughter no doubt.

¡°Thank you¡± Kojuurou bowed, ¡°For saving my daughter¡±

Okita bowed in reply, I nodded acknowledging the man.

¡°I hope she gets better Kojuurou san¡± Okita earnestly

¡°Yes¡± Kojuurou sighed.

¡°Until next time Takagi san¡± I slowly walked out, Okita closely followed.

The main door shut behind us.

Okita coughed softly.

¡°Your cold still hasn¡¯t gone¡± I noted

Okita froze before smiling, ¡°Don¡¯t worry Saitou san I think it¡¯s almost gone¡±

I gave a nod.

¡°Okita you should head back to your recruits¡±

¡°What about you Saitou san?¡±

¡°I¡¯ll remain around here¡± I glanced at Okita¡¯s confused look, ¡°I¡¯ve already spoken to my troop¡±

Okita let a out a small sigh, ¡°You¡¯re not thinking of finding Choruke by yourself are you?¡±

I let myself smile, ¡°I have better things to do¡±

Okita¡¯s smile vanished, ¡°You aren¡¯t planning on questioning Kojuurou san-¡±

I didn¡¯t reply.

Okita was far too perceptive for his own good.

¡°Well then- I¡¯ll see you when you return Saitou san¡± Okita waved his hand

I raised a hand and dropped it.

Takagi Kojuurou

Something was not right

Cold, I snapped awake.

Cold cold, I shivered clutching my blankets.

Tokio get a hold of yourself, I scolded myself.

The pain from missing Ijaou was still there- but the pain lessened.

I hope you¡¯re happy up there with Takeru, I softly sighed.

I jumped up from my bed; I could feel the messiness of my hair.

Last night I dreamt my whole memory from two days ago.

Choruke

Souji

And-and another mysterious man- I forget I think I fainted before I saw him.

Dressing quickly, I ignored the dull pain my head was feeling.

I had to find Souji- my partial memory returned, I needed to find out what had happened-

I sighed, the aching in my legs had ceased but my shoulder still burned.

I nearly cried when I changed into comfortable clothing.

¡°Come in¡± I softly called, hearing quiet thumps knock on my door.

¡°Tokio¡± my father exclaimed, rushing up to hug me.

I was surprised to see relief and happiness in his eyes, ¡°Father¡±

I guess in his heart, he cared for me- although not as much as my brothers.

I was his only family- as He was my only family.

¡°I¡¯m glad to see you well,¡± he murmured.


I pushed the locks of hair away from my eyes.

¡°How long have I been out?¡±

¡°You have awoken earlier this morning from the two days rest-its night now¡±

I remembered that I have not been so well earlier.

¡°Father- I must go out to see the Shin-¡±

¡°No¡± a stern look passed my father¡¯s face, ¡°You will rest for the week¡±

¡°A whole WEEK?!?¡± I gaped outraged, ¡°But-But my¡±

¡°Your wounds haven¡¯t fully healed-yet- not a word Tokio¡± father scolded.

I blinked, and after biting my tongue and thinking furiously for moment I nodded, ¡°I respect your wish father¡±

Pleased at my rare obedience he put a gentle hand on my shoulder, ¡°Rest Tokio, and after you do I have something important to tell you¡±

My eyes rose up in curiosity.

Father grinned, turning to the door, ¡°Rest my daughter¡±

I heavily sighed after watching the door shut.

Sorry father, but there are some things that need answering.

Without hesitating, I jumped on my bed opening my window.

I quickly grabbed a small dagger- just in case the Shinsengumi were as horrible as they were rumored to be.

Stuffing some extra clothes under my blanket-as a decoy- I looked back satisfied with my masterpiece.

Without a moment¡¯s waste, I jumped lightly, kicking the sidewall and hopping out to the open window.

Freedom.

I landed outside with a small thump.

Ignoring the flash of pain the jump cost my shoulder; I carefully and quietly stood up.

¡°Hehe you could never hold Tokio captive¡± I grinned despite myself.

With careful soft steps, my view of the house slowly disappeared, and I found myself standing awkwardly in the middle of an open street.

¡°Eh¡± I muttered, waving hellos to the familiar people who walked by.

A sudden scream sounded from my right.

What?!

I ran and skidded into a crowd of frightened people, whispering and crying.

What was going on?

I pushed myself towards the core of the crowded bunch and stopped short.

I could feel the blood drain from my face.

An elderly man lay in a grotesque position, his eyes still open, fresh blood dribbling from his mouth.

What-

Who

My eyes fluttered closed, my heart dismayed.

I know- my eyes snapped open.

¡°Who did this¡± my voice came out as a dangerously quiet growl.

The crowd¡¯s buzz instantly died.

Perhaps they were not used to a girl ordering them around


Perhaps they were not used to such a command

No matter¡¦

¡°Who¡± I softly commanded.

¡°Miss- a young girl found his body just a hour ago- we don¡¯t know who did it¡± a young man stepped up.

¡°Go- everyone back home- I see that this old man had no family¡± I glanced sadly at his body, ¡°I¡¯ll clean and bury him myself¡±

Slowly one by one, people backed away- soon the streets were empty.

The dead silence that I needed was here.

I kneeled to the body, the blood slightly made my head spin, but I forced myself to wipe the blood from the man¡¯s chest.

¡°Oh my go-¡± I whispered, seeing a burnt black slash on his chest.

I never knew the wound was this deep.

I looked at my hands disgusted at the blood drying.

I stared back at the man, ¡°Well he died quickly¡± I sighed,

No one was here to mourn for him.

Filled with sympathy, I gently closed his eyes.


A sudden feeling of darkness overwhelmed me¡¦.what was it?

As if instinctively, I whirled around, seeing a tall threatening figure saunter towards me- quietly- dangerously.

My eyes widened as I recognized the man¡¯s uniform: a Shinsengumi

Crap

Crap

I knew he wouldn¡¯t give me time to explain, no- he wouldn¡¯t give me time-


He was to think that I had murdered this man¡¦.why did I always get in trouble like this?


Damn that Miburo- the blood in my hands would be instant proof that I had killed this man.

No he wouldn¡¯t give me a chance- their stupid motto: Aku Soku Zan¡¦.he¡¯ll instantly kill me.

I jumped up, my hands at my back reaching for my dagger.

My shoulder was wounded, I was in no condition for battle, I pivoted and ran.

Run Takagi, my mind screamed, my shoulder burning again, I could feel the pair of running footsteps behind me.

¡°Oh no you don¡¯t¡± a deep voice whispered, close.

A warm air blew on my neck as the voice had spoke.

Surprised by the closeness of his voice, my eyes widened, my legs weakening, and a sharp jab on my burning shoulder pushed me forward.

By gods the pain was excruciating, my eyes could dimly see sparks and stars, my body leaned forward- falling, I cried out.

A sudden strong arm held me and dragged me back, forcing me up against a wall.

Struggling weakly, I finally gave up, raising my head to see my attacker.

I gasped silently

My eyes had locked on a pair of amber-wolf like eyes.

The burning torturous pain my shoulder was feeling had increased, from my dry lips escaped a moan.

Focus idiot

I forced myself to look again at those frightening yellow eyes.

My right hand slowly making its way to my dagger¡¦.

¡°What do you want from me Shinsengumi?¡± my voice cracked, unable to hide the surprise in my voice that he had not killed me already.

The dagger¡¦.so close-

NOW!

As my hand closed around the hilt of my dagger, I slashed at my attacker¡¯s arms.

The Shinsengumi easily dodged my petty attack, his lips slowly curving up to an amused smile.

¡°Damn bastard¡± I grunted as I aimed for his face.

Moving at an inhuman like speed, the Miburo sidestepped my assault, and grabbed my attacking arm.

¡°A woman with a dagger is hardly a light matter- you should not have taken this weapon so easily¡± the Shinsengumi¡¯s frighteningly cold face darkened, his grip on my arm tightening.

Refusing to let go of my dagger, I painfully raised my other weak arm in attempt to slap him.

The wolf¡¯s other hand quickly reached and stopped my other arm, his fingers still crushing my trembling one.

With both of my hands useless and pinned, my eyes threatened to cry in pain and in shame.

Unable to bear the pain, my hand finally released the dagger.

The fallen object clattered noisily on the floor.

Still the Shinsengumi had me captured, not ready to let me go that easily.

Sweat slowly poured my face, drenching my clothes.

The Shinsengumi still did not make an effort to release me, his cold fiery eyes studying me.

¡°Let go of me¡± I whispered, no energy, no hope.

I was weaponless.

The Shinsengumi slowly smiled, a strange light flickering his eyes.

A cold terror seized my heart.

He wasn¡¯t going to-?

I¡¯ve heard rumors of the Shinsengumi¡¯s violent attack rapes on young women¡¦. I did not want to find out if it were true.

The fear gave me more fighting ki, I struggled meekly and the Shinsengumi nonchalantly tightened his grip.

As if reading my thoughts, the wretched man let me go, the sudden withdrawal of his iron grip stunned me, ¡°Do not worry girl- The Shinsengumi have more honor than you think they have.¡±

I weakly slid down to the ground, my good hand nursing my crushed one.

His strong voice still carried on, ¡°You seem like an innocent girl Takagi san, but it takes one to know one- what were you doing by the old man?¡±

Takagi san?

He knew who I was?

A stalker?

I should¡¯ve been more cautious-

The Shinsengumi slowly kneeled down, his eyes focused on me.

¡°Answer me girl¡± his voice grew softer, a hint of threat behind those words.

Silence

His hand steadily moved the bangs from my face and tilted my face to him. ¡°Look at me and answer¡±

I stared widely at his face; from the moonlight- I could see the Shinsengumi¡¯s dark fine eyebrows, narrow studying eyes, straight nose-

¡°I did not kill the man¡± I managed to speak.

With one of his eyebrows arched, he pressed, ¡°What did you see?¡±

Confused, I pushed his hand away, ¡°I saw nothing- the man had been dead an hour ago¡±

Slowly the Miburo stood up

I continued unsteadily, ¡°Another girl found the man dead already- I told everyone that I was to bury him- he had no family¡±

¡°From the look of his wounds he seems to have been murdered¡± I quietly added my eyes fixed on the ground.

Silent from the Miburo, ¡°I trust your words Takagi san-¡± he paused ¡°but do not get yourself involved in this case any longer¡±

I didn¡¯t answer.

He finally turned to leave, but I grasped desperately at his sleeve, ¡°Wait¡±

Although he did not answer, he stopped.

¡°I think I know who did this-¡± I cried, ¡°he-¡±

¡°Takagi san there are many assassins out here during war-¡±

¡°His name is Choruke- I-I fought him days ago- although I¡¯m not sure whether he was killed- the slash on the old man¡¯s chest was of only Choruke¡¯s style¡±

¡°If you value your life- forget your meaningless thoughts of revenge- the Shinsengumi will take care of him¡±

My eyes widened, ¡°You- You knew-?¡±

The man finally turned, and smirked, ¡°I have seen you fight the Choruke in vain Takagi- you had your chance¡¦..you have witnessed Choruke¡¯s strength with your own eyes- do not attempt to fight him any longer¡±

I gaped at him, ¡°You were there? You-You were the one-¡±

With a mysterious smile, the Shinsengumi walked away, ¡°Good night Takagi san- listen to your father and rest- a life as a warrior is not a glamorous one for the wealthy daughter of Kojuurou¡±

A flash of anger erupted.

Was he a spy for Souji?

Damn the Shinsengumi.

As the man disappeared in the dark, I regained myself and collected my dagger.

Without another look behind, I ran home.