Author's Notes:
Kikuichi Norimune: Was the name of Okita's sword.
Roushi-gumi: The name of the squad that would later become known as the Shinsengumi.
Geisha: They are female entertainers. They would play music, entertain samurai and they would serve them tea or sake
Okita Souiji (Soushi) Kaneyoshi (Fusanaga): Okay, from what I can tell the guy lived by two names hence some confusion but... well... Fusanaga Soushi was his REAL name and the Okita Souji Kaneyoshi was
Chapter 2: From the Beginning
The meeting had been scheduled for tonight.
Tokio had spent the last two days preparing herself for this mission, every detail about her appearance had to be correct, so she had spent an enormous amount of time cutting her hair to her cousin's length, and going through his belongings looking for clothing that would fit her without making it apparent that she was a woman.
At her side, her cousins' katana, the Kikuichi Norimune laid tucked into the folds of her hakama, ready to be drawn if it became necessary.
Tokio watched through the door waiting for the other party to arrive. Considering Serizawa-sama's personality he was probably doing whatever it took to waylay the boredom of waiting. Vigilance and security tonight would be her responsibility.
Two hours had passed until at last the two men had arrived. Tokio bowed formally greeting them with a warm welcoming smile, before leading them both upstairs. Director Ikeda Tokutarou of the Roushi-gumi and Kondou Isami, she had never heard of either of them before tonight, who exactly were these men? Either way her instincts said that Ikeda-sama was an important guest and that Kondou-san was also not one to be messed with lightly. For now she would walk lightly.
The details of their discussion didn't make much sense to her, but she calmed Serizawa-sama when he needed calming, and commented politely when it was necessary.
It was all very boring to her. She tried to stay focused on the sounds outside as well as the warriors seated across from her. She did her best not to betray the sense of boredom that she felt, and just kept a light smile plastered across her face.
The only thing that truly caught and held her attention was the fact that Serizawa-sama was already a member of the Roushi-gumi.
She considered this information carefully, and the position that this put her in. Why hadn't he said anything? From the abrupt statements and pointless questions it was clear that there was a strong sense of disapproval for his behavior in the past, and because of her association with Serizawa-sama, there was a strong disapproval of her as well. What exactly had he done to upset them so badly?
When at last the discussions were over it had been decided, that she would indeed join the group and serve the Bakufu with her sword. Her identity as a woman was tactfully withheld from the talks and she was merely introduced as Fusanaga Soushi, and for various reasons from now on would be called Kaneyoshi Okita Souji.
Okita... that was a name she would have to get used to and quickly.
She was going to have to be careful with her secret; she didn't want to know what the penalty would be for having lied about her gender, especially when it was clear that she could already have enemies, just by being recommended through Serizawa-sama.
Fusanaga Soushi-san soon became a well-known name within the Roushi-gumi. His skill with the sword was well known among the other members, and Fusanaga-san found that rising through the ranks was easily done for him. Serizawa-sama had nothing to do with it, the climbing in the ranks was done through hard-work and because his kind and gentle nature turned those who believed that everything connected to Serizawa-sama was nothing but trouble, into believers of Fusanaga-san's pure hearted goodness.
It became painfully obvious that the two individuals were nothing alike.
To Tokio though, she found things more than a little confusing. She didn't want to rise in the rankings the only thing that did was make her more seen. Her secret was hard enough keeping without her mere presence being a major focus point for everyone.
Fusanaga was well liked at the local inns and teahouses, and whenever Tokio arrived several geisha's would argue over who would get to serve him and his party, and Tokio would just smile and let them wait on her and her comrades.
The situation was so awkward for her, that in the end she just let them do what they wished. They did their best to keep Tokio entertained and in turn she would smile her thanks. As part of their job they needed to know when the flirting was welcome or not, it took a while but it soon became apparent that Tokio wasn't very interested in flirting. The geisha's just believed it was because he was so young and innocent, and they found him even more adorable because of it. At least it curbed the teasing, and the flirting.
It was during one of these gatherings at a local teahouse that Tokio first laid eyes on Hajime Saitou. He was introduced as being the newest member of the Roushi-gumi, recruited through the Kondou's. Tokio wasn't in the least bit impressed with him, still something about his presence made her give pause⦠well it didn't matter anyway!
Keeping the big smile on her face she greeted Saitou-san in a friendly manner, and ignored his cold look, and just kept on smiling. When Saitou was informed that Fusanaga was his superior surprise only showed in his eyes for a fraction of a second, before he nodded his understanding. Hopefully things wouldn't become too complicated.
