Hello again! I've decided to make this a compilation of short stories about these two. They will be related, but not always in order. Please enjoy!
The girl woke up to a feeling of warmth and safety. She kept her eyes closed as she snuggled even closer to the source of comfort. But something was kind of off... Wait, when had she got into the futon? Where were the strong arms that would hold her by the waist? And the tickling sensation in her forehead caused by his soft breath? And was that fur?
Kagura opened her eyes, confused, and was met with a wall of white, fluffy fur.
"Wh- Sadaharu?"
The dog turned his head around and barked happily, wagging his tail as if greeting her.
Yes, she had been actually using her pet dog as a pillow.
"What are you doing here? And where is Sou- I mean, the sadist. Yeah. The sadist. Where is he?" She used her elbows to prop herself up and looked around, trying to find the man, but finding nothing but an empty room.
She sank in the futon again, resting her head in Sadaharu's side and pouting. She really hated waking up alone. Why the hell did he have to leave? She wasn't going to ask him directly, that was out of the question, but still. He should have known better by now.
The inugami looked worriedly at her, sensing how upset she was and whining, and the girl smiled and turned her body to embrace him, revealing in the heat his body radiated. It was winter, and it wasn't nice waking up naked to the cold morning air. Stupid, stupid sadist.
"It's okay, boy, I'm just a bit tired, you know." Sadaharu raised his eyebrows knowingly and Kagura laughed. "Oh, don't give me that face. You're a dork. And the best heater ever, you know that? You're so warm! Yes, you are. For sure. A thousand times better than that jerk. Yup!"
She scratched his neck and he barked happily. It really made her happy spending time with him. She decided that there was no reason for her to be sad. Not today when the last member of the Yorozuya she kept in touch with was with her. Not when she felt she could be herself. The times she laughed were scarce, and she should be grateful her loyal dog was there. If Okita made her feel, Sadaharu reminded her of happier times, easier ones, too. When she was able to be herself.
Giving him one last squeeze, she threw the futon away and stood up. She regretted it the moment her body made contact with the cold morning air. A shiver run up her body and she started to tremble, her hair standing on end.
'Isn't this room supposed to be heated? Oh, gods. It's frigging cold!'
She strode up to the wardrobe and grabbed a big, cozy mahogany kimono, slipping her arms inside and tying it around her waist. It barely reached her knees, but it was all she had at the moment.
She moved to the window and looked outside, marvelling in the snow covering the scenery. It was beautiful, to say the least. It was still quite early, so the only sounds were those made by the birds chirping happily. The sun wasn't out completely yet, his rays reaching the ice and making the scenery spark. There was a morning mist surrounding everything, making the atmosphere look magic. Frost covered the window sills and the facade of the building. No wonder it was so cold.
She looked down when she heard a new sound, and her heart skipped a beat. Perking up at the sight of him, she immediately reprimanded herself. No. She had just made her mind. He was a moron and she was happy she had her dog with her.
However, said dog had suddenly decided to push her to the door, nuzzling her with his big head.
"What are you doing? Sadaharu, stop. Oh. Oh no. I know that face. I'm not going, I'm staying here with you-" It was to no avail. The dog kept pushing her.
"Sadaharu, don't-" It was too late. When she realised it, she was already on the corridor. The big ball of fluff sat on the floor, preventing her from entering the room again.
"You sly dog... I don't even know why I have my Yato strength if I let you do whatever you feel like doing."
Sighing in annoyance, she kept cursing to herself all the way down to the courtyard, her legs ignoring her brain protests.
'That dog, I swear he's not touching meat until he gets all old and grumpy. I wanted to spend the time with him, not with that stupid downstairs.'
She halted when she spotted him in the porch, his silhouette contrasting with the white snow. She was now behind him, and she felt her cheeks heat up. The stupid downstairs she was actually in love with. He was wearing his pants and his hair was tied in his trademark ponytail, but his back was exposed to her. He was polishing his sword, and his muscles flexed with every move he made, making her belly do flip-flops.
'Stop. Stop that train of thought. Now.'
She shaked her head, trying to clear her mind, when the man spoke.
"Are you done staring?"
"Uh?"
"I asked you if you w-"
"I heard you the first time and I wasn't staring!"
'He wasn't even facing me! How the hell has he noticed?'
"Whatever. Are you gonna come and sit or do you intend to pass the morning standing there behind me? It's creeping me out, China."
Ignoring his jibes, she walked past him and sat down, leaning her back in one of the pillars supporting the porch's ceiling and looking skywards. It really was a beautiful sunrise. There were no clouds in the sky, and it was painted in all shades of oranges, pinks, purples and blues.
"You're gonna catch a cold."
"You're not one to talk." She didn't bother to tear her gaze from the sky.
"I brought a blanket with me, but I wasn't cold. You, on the other hand, are shivering. I suppose you're not wearing anything underneath that kimono?"
Kagura huffed, puffing her cheeks a little. Like hell she was admitting she was cold. It was his fault in the first place, for making her stay outside so early. It wasn't like he was forcing her, but still... She wasn't admitting that neither.
He sighed, and the next thing she knew, the blanket had landed on her head. She glared at him, meaning she wasn't acknowledging this as a defeat or that she had accepted his help, but wrapping the blanket around her nonetheless. He shrugged, not caring about her childish behaviour. He had resumed polishing his sword, and she looked down.
"I thought you had left." She had whispered the words in hopes he wouldn't hear them. When she received no response, she lifted her eyes to look at him, and found a pair of red eyes staring back at her. She felt the blood rush to her cheeks and to her utterly mortification, he smirked.
"You felt lonely?"
"Of course no. As if I need you when I wake up. I was just wondering where you had gone. It's unusual for you to leave, even more if it's that early. You're a lazy ass."
"Well, this lazy ass used to wake up at 5 in the morning every day to train, so it's only natural I want to enjoy my new sleeping schedule. That doesn't mean, though, that I don't appreciate waking up early from time to time. This is the most peaceful moment of the day, after all. Until you came to join me, that's it."
Kagura gripped the hems of the blanket, tugging them closer to her. There was again that look in his eyes that made something stir within her, and that raw emotion in them she couldn't put her finger into. What was it? If only she knew what he was thinking...
"And you should be thankful, I was considerate enough to lie you down on a futon. I could have just left you on the floor, where I wake up."
Kagura realized then that it was true. They had fallen asleep with his back to the wall, her body resting against his, wrapped in a futon. On the tatami. She had woken up all cozy and comfortable between blankets.
"Uh, thanks, I guess."
He carefully left the sword on the floor and stood up, swiftly closing the distance between them in two steps and dropping next to her, their shoulders brushing. She ignored her heart beating faster.
"You know, China," he passed his arm over her shoulders, grabbing them and pulling her closer to him "if you don't want me to leave, just tell me."
"What the hell are you talking about? Let go of me! You're acting weird, sadist."
"It's because you're the one being weird. "He hugged her even harder. "You've got me thinking for a moment there that you were worried I had left. I suppose I was wrong."
"Well, you were definitely wrong. You know you can do whatever you want, I won't care. It was the deal, right? No feelings, and complete strangers outside this whole mess. Now let me go."
"You don't know how to take a joke, brat. Sure, it was the deal. That doesn't mean, however, that we can't fall in love. Humans can't control their feelings."
"I'm not a brat, I'm definitely not in love with you and I'm not human." She spat the words. A image of Kamui crossed her mind, and she flinched inwardly. She didn't like where the conversation was going, and she was only getting more nervous.
"Yato or not, you're still cold. You keep trembling. Just be still, dammit. You usually enjoy this when you wake up. It's not different from now. I would dare to say you seem in love."
"As if." Kagura was confused, to say the least. What was he doing? Of course she liked it when he embraced her when they wake up, but she could say she was groggy those times if he teased her about it. What was she supposed to do now? Embrace him back to let him know how much she loved him? She was not the kind of person who hugged others. But if she were to hug him, she didn't want to let go of him. She wasn't sure she would be able to keep her hands from hugging him tight.
In the end, she decided to keep still, as he had told her, doing nothing. She closed her eyes and breathed, his smell captivating her. He was warm, and she was glad it was so cold. She remembered she had wished moments like these would last forever not long ago.
But happiness was something slippery, and when a door opened somewhere, she jolted out of his arms.
"Take it easy, China. It was just a door."
"If someone finds about us, ever, you're dead."
He shrugged, getting up to grab his sword.
"As you wish, China girl. Guess I'll see you later."
With a wave of his hand, he entered the building and disappeared of her sight. Kagura sighed. What was all that about? She sat there, wondering why he was so hard to understand. After a while, Sadaharu appeared and laid down next to her, giving her another source of heat apart from the blanket the former Shinsengumi member had lend her. She pressed to him and closed her eyes, snow slowly falling from the sky.
"I'm glad you're here with me, Sadaharu. Don't ever leave without me, okay?"
The dog barked and rubbed his face against her head, letting her fall asleep as he looked after her.
