Hiya, and thanks for reading. This is for the other guy I liked a lot, and I hope I know well enough to write for. But I don't know him enough to think like him, so this is how it turned out. Like "Tenshi", this will not be long, but I hope you like it.

This is all a guess by a fan, and it will probably be contradicted by the anime's manga someday, but that's okay. S7 ain't mine. I just want to see the most expensive anime TV series on a large hi-def TV with a high-quality DVD copy.

…………………………………..

"Headmaster! He's done it again! Two dishes and a teacup!"

"What! Where is she?"

"Yukino-san?"

"Of course, I'm asking for Yukino!"

It was six in the morning, and already more than one woman was shouting.

"Yukino-san! It's Momotaro-san again!"

From one of the rooms deeper in the inn, a young woman groaned in bed. "For the last time," she droned, "his name is NOT Momotaro…"

The door of that room eventually slid open. A lightly built man with bright blonde hair went in, and slunk with his back to the nearest wall. He sighed and smiled sadly at the young woman.

"Please stop practicing on the dishes…" she looked at him from her bed and sleepily acknowledged.

"I wasn't! I was carrying a tray for Mayo," he protested, then raised his left, mechanical arm, twitching at the fingers. "But it started to act up."

She threw up the blanket over her head. "Can you stay clear of the headmaster for this morning, please?" she begged. "I've had a long night, I want to sleep. I can't defend you at all hours."

"Sure," he said, then grinned. "Can I stay here?"

"No."

"Fine, fine," he scratched his head. "I guess I'll stay in the closet again." He slid open the door, and exited.

The woman groaned and sighed one more time before shutting her eyes. "Kami-sama, what in the world did I get into?"

……………………

Yukino's problems with the man with the mechanical arm began two weeks ago, give or take. When most girls and young women might have taken in an injured rabbit or bird, the geisha of Hotaruya found herself taking care of him.

But she was a woman, of a warmer heart than most, even in the time of war. Maybe that was why she agreed to be a geisha, besides that she needed the money for herself and her family. She could not bear the thought of taking sides, supporting this clan or that. As a geisha, she did not have to.

Life at the Hotaruya was generally peaceful, but there were always reminders of the war that surrounded them. Debris from battles in nearby areas floated into the river just behind the inn, which flowed into several caves further on. It was such a common sight, that nobody bothered with the various metal objects that drifted by.

But the day came when Yukino chanced upon a very large object, which got stuck under their bridge.

It actually looked like a floating coffin, when she approached it. The top part was clear, and she found a man inside, who already seemed dead. She looked over the object, and found monitors, buttons, and harnesses. So it was not a coffin; it was one of the things pilots used to get out of a ruined cruiser.

She pressed on a large button at the side of the capsule. A whish of air was heard, and the cover swung open. She got a better view of the man inside. A soldier, there was no doubt about it now. A samurai.

He was roughly her age, just into the thirties, but he looked like he did not come from her part of the planet. His yellow hair was tied back neatly from behind, and the way he wore his uniform was just as neat. But the general neatness was ruined at the torso by patches of blood. Almost the entire left arm sleeve was soaked red. His face was bruised in two places. She was awestruck by the extent of the damage to just one man.

His eyes opened very slowly. He seemed to see her, because his lips widened slowly into a weak smile. "Hey."

"Hey, yourself," she answered automatically.

"….quite pretty…." Yukino made out what he barely said. "….angel?"

"No, sorry," she said.

"Let's see each other again, alright?"

"Alright," she did not even know why she was answering.

There were no more words. The smile disappeared and the eyes shut again. One of the small screens at the side of the capsule suddenly gave out red letters and numbers.

She screamed to the inn for a doctor, as she pulled off her obi, and tied the cloth around his left arm, trying to stop the bleeding. "The wheelbarrow! Somebody get it, please!" she shouted again. Not the best way to transport anybody close to death, but he did not seem to have head or neck injuries, and there was no other way she could think of just then.

Two other women came from the inn, a man following along with the wheelbarrow. One of them shrieked when she saw the injuries. "What happened? Who is he?"

"We'll ask questions later. First we have to help him!" Yukino answered, as she began loosening the capsule harnesses.

They brought the injured man to one of the empty rooms on the first floor. Yukino took it upon herself to unbutton the man's uniform. As hot water and cloths came from her friends, she cleaned and patched what she could of the many wounds and bullet holes she found. Still, the man was getting worse, turning paler than he already was.

The doctor arrived in time, armed with an extra bag of blood and other surgical tools. He thanked Yukino and her friends for doing what they could for the man, which helped a lot to keep him alive until that time. Then the doctor told everyone except Yukino to leave the room, while he checked the man over.

He checked pulse, breathing, eyes, head, the injuries. Then he stood up, and shook his head. "I'm sorry. He has lost too much blood, and the injuries are great. We can keep him alive like this until tomorrow. But for him to survive, we have to mechanize him."

"No," she quickly and sternly said. Dispose of his body, and just take his brain and soul? Turn him into one of those large, bulky robots? No. "Is there no other option?"

"Selective mechanization, if you are agreeable," the doctor said. "It's almost a lost art, but I think I know a surgeon who still does it."

"What is that?"

He pointed to his left arm. "We can amputate the left arm, and replace it with a mechanical one. We can convert the most severely fractured of the ribs to implants. I don't know about his internal organs yet, but if necessary, any of those may be replaced, too. The rest of him stays the same. It requires regular maintenance, more than regular mechanical samurai require."

Yukino looked from the doctor, to the unconscious man. It was, indeed, a better option. "How much?"

"Definitely, much less than being completely mechanized. But it is still rather expensive."

She looked at him again. She remembered that weak but handsome smile. She took a deep breath. "Do it, sensei."

The doctor looked at her with wide eyes. "YOU will pay for it?" The jaws of the headmaster and the rest of the girls behind the door collectively dropped.

She thought about it, and gulped. "Yes, sensei."

The doctor nodded. "I'll complete my evaluations, do the amputation already, and contact my associate tonight. The operation will be done tomorrow."

Thus, Yukino left the room, to be met by the rest of the women of the house.

The headmaster spoke for the assembled group, quite sternly. "You don't know this man! His background, his connections, nothing! What if he turns and takes advantage of you?"

Yukino looked back into the room, and answered with a lowered head. "I know I'm taking a big chance, but I know he's a good man. I can feel it."

"He might leave without even thanking you."

"Then, so be it. But my conscience is clear."

The headmaster sighed. "All expenses will be taken from your earnings. It's only fair; you brought him in. Are we clear?"

She said yes.

She was not sure why she did it, really. Maybe she felt the duty of a human being to another. Maybe she felt sorry for him. Maybe she wanted to know this quietly brave man with the neat uniform. For that to happen, he had to stay alive.

The doctor took out the bullets and the badly injured left arm. His associate arrived with a cartload of tools the next day, and did what he needed to do. There was no wonder why this selective mechanization had become a lost art: it required less materials, but it needed more technical skill.

For her part, Yukino spent the day selling off her newest kimono. It was the only thing of enough value she currently had, to make a downpayment on the procedures. But when they were done, Yukino knew she had made the right choice. It was still him, the man she found by the river, just with a metal arm. If he used to be a pilot, he would be smart enough to learn how to use the new hand.

But she was worried. She had not asked him if he wanted this. Who was she to decide his fate? What if he did not want to be mechanized that way? What if he hated it?

His eyes finally opened again. He looked around the room, finally meeting her gaze. "Hey. We meet again."

"Hey, yourself," she answered with a sad smile.

"Shichiroji, first lieutenant, first unit, protecting Ninomaru castle. At least, I was."

"Yukino, junior geisha, this is the Hotaruya. Pleased to meet you, o-samurai-sama."

"Pleasure is all mine, pretty lady," he replied. He looked down at the mechanized left arm. "I'm not sure what you did, but thanks."

She breathed a huge sigh of relief. "You're not angry?"

He laughed weakly. "Why should I? I'm still alive, aren't I?"

But she saw him starting to fade out on her again. "It's alright, Shichiroji-sama, take your rest. I'll be around."

He had his eyes closed again before a reply came, but he slept with an unusual smile on his face.

…………………………

Yukino's hunch had been right, so far. Everybody agreed that her ward was a nice man, kind and cheerful. He told them stories from the warfront, sitting up in bed, leaned on the wall. He got to know all the maikos and geishas. He did not ask for more help than necessary. He did not bother the headmaster. He did not complain about his new mechanical arm, although it did give him trouble.

That is also where Yukino's trouble began.

Learning to use the new arm was rather difficult. Shichiroji still had problems making the hand do what he wanted it to do. Sometimes it gripped things too hard and broke teacups, or gripped things too loosely and dropped teapots. Then there were times when all the fingers suddenly jittered, making him drop a whole tray – just like this morning.

He once tried to clean the doors, but he tore off too much of the paper screening. He once helped to mop the floors, but could not wring the rags properly, thus the floors turned out too wet. Everybody knew that he wanted to help, and everyone gave him a chance. But he was getting to be nuisance to everybody, even if he did not mean to be. Poor Yukino had to take his side, too many times already.

The problem had to be addressed. The headmaster did so that afternoon. She frowned at Yukino and her ward, as they sat across the table from her.

"Too weak to be a guard, too destructive to be a cook, too useless to be a handyman," the headmaster shook her head. "This is my final word on this matter. If Shichiroji does not find anything to do here within one week, out he goes."

"But, ma'am!" Yukino exclaimed, then quickly bowed her head and remembered her place.

The headmaster folded her arms over her chest. "He's well enough now to take care of himself without us. I will not have him using up any more of your earnings, Yukino."

Yukino looked up again. "But it's alright, headmaster---"

The man raised his normal right hand. "She is right, Yukino. I have to earn my keep, and to pay you back." He shrugged. "I'll learn how to do your dances, play the shamisen, sing a bit. That should keep me away from the dishes."

Her eyes widened. It took her a few months to master the shamisen enough to play before an audience, and a year before dancing well enough to join the festival presentation. She had not heard him sing, although he whistled quite well. Besides all that, the man was a samurai, and he should not be subjected to the humiliation of entertaining others! "You don't have to do this, Shichiroji-sama!" she pleaded.

"A samurai has to keep his word," he smiled back at her. "Even if he can't keep his left arm." He faced the headmaster. "One week it is. If I manage to do it, can I hang around here and keep bothering her?"

The headmaster chuckled a bit, and looked at the half-blushing geisha. "Yes, and we will pay you for your services."

"It's a deal."

…………………………………

Hotaruya Firefly House. It's the inn where we first find the love team in the series. Since it's shorter I use that. Shamisen 3-string guitar-like instrument that you see Roji-san play in episode 7. When I remember or find what 'headmaster' is really supposed to be, I'll use it. (sigh)

I do agree about using the character the way you see him. However, I come from the Rurouni Kenshin section, which does not show mercy on those who don't at least try to get the characters right. It was good training. Thus, my concern that I'm not getting Roji-san right.

This comes from a hodgepodge of initial influences, including Ichise's prosthetic problems in Texhnolyze (if you hear about those 4 phases and other jargon after a while, you know where I got my concepts) and Sanosuke and Megumi's relationship in RK. Major thanks also Fauna-chan and the people at the S7 LJ community for helping me brainstorm. Oh, yeah. This means "Jiro Came to Town" is on hold again. (sigh) Thanks for reading, and I hope you come back. Comments and suggestions really welcome.