This is really the second half of Chapter 2... but the supernatural beings who govern formatting and uploading were against me so I gave up and made it into its own chapter. I think this one is fun because you get to see a bit more of some of the guys interacting with each other as well as Chizuru.

Chapter 3 - Maybe They're Not That Bad?

There was no answer, and a moment later her hands were free. Saitō-san turned his head, hearing somebody approaching. He obviously recognized the footsteps, because he opened the door even as the tall red-head called out to him. Harada-san was wearing his uniform – blue haori and white headband – and there was a sword in the belt resting on his narrow hips. He was juggling a spear, a water jug, and a tray.

"Hey Saitō, Yukimura-san." The tall man paused, frowning slightly. "You know… That seems awfully formal for a girl dressed up like a twelve-year-old boy. Anyway, here's the water and a couple of onigiri – I'm not the best at shaping the rice but they'll taste OK, so eat up. Also, miso soup since it's so cold out; somebody had a pot going for the night patrol guys."

He handed a tray to Chizuru and smiled warmly at her. She blinked, as a large hand rested briefly on the top of her head. He's nice, the girl thought, disconcerted. Except – hadn't he suggested stripping her earlier?

"Chizuru, right? Well, hope you can get some sleep, Chizuru-chan. Oh – I'm Harada Sanosuke by the way, Captain of the Tenth Division. And try not to let Okita get to you, OK? Anyway… Later!"

She gave him a startled look, because he was being very informal, but he just waved and headed out, amber eyes laughing at her in the lantern light.

"A-arigatou gozaimasu, Harada-san!" she called, as he closed the door behind him.

After a moment, Saitō-san's voice recalled her to the tray in her hands. He was holding the water jug, which he placed on the floor near the futon.

"Eat."

"Yes, Saitō-san. Um… will you join me?"

"That is not necessary."

He moved to stand against one wall, where he could see both Chizuru and the door. The one small lantern by the door did not provide a lot of light, so his face was even more unreadable than usual.

"Is Okita-san the captain who was with you earlier this evening, Saitō-san?"

"Yes."

Reluctantly, because she was uncomfortable eating under guard, she sat down and crossed her legs. Before she could eat, though, she had to have something to drink, and the cool water went a long way to easing her parched mouth and throat. After a few minutes, she stopped worrying about Saitō-san's watchful gaze, finished the soup, and picked up the first of the two triangular shapes on the plate. The onigiri was surprisingly good. Or maybe she was just very hungry.

She had just finished eating when Saitō-san moved to the door again.

"May I come in?" a man's voice called softly.

She automatically called out, "Yes, please enter," but her silent guard had already opened the door. Chizuru reddened slightly, realizing that she was a prisoner, not a guest.

"Good evening, Yukimura-kun," said the oldest of the captains pleasantly, nodding to Saitō-san. "I am Genzaburou Inoue, Captain of the Sixth Division. You may call me Gen-san."

Chizuru's heart lightened again. These people were really very confusing.

Gen-san left Saitō-san to close the door, and knelt easily across from Chizuru. He handed her the cloth bag she had carried with her on her trip, and a faded black hakamashita and grey hakama. The clothes were worn, but clean and unpatched, and the short kimono smelled faintly of sandalwood. The scent was somehow familiar, but she wasn't sure why.

"Arigatou gozaimasu, Gen-san," she said, bowing. "Would, um, would it be possible for me to wash my clothing before I go to bed?"

"If you will change now, Yukimura-kun, I will take your things with me. You may trust my experience with such matters. Saitō-kun and I will step outside while you prepare for bed. Call us when you are ready."

"Oh, OK… Thank you!"

Saitō-san followed the older man out of the room. He seemed to be frowning slightly, but it was hard to tell.

Once they had left, she rushed to take her sleeping yukata from her bag, stripped down to her under-kimono, and changed. It was wonderful to take off the blood-stained, soiled clothing. Then she used the facilities, and washed her face, neck and hands as best she could with the cold water in the basin and a cloth. She could only assume that a household servant had come by while she was being questioned, because everything was clean and neat, and the basin had been refilled.

Shivering and self-conscious, she slipped on the black hakamashita for warmth and modesty. It was slightly big, but that was all to the good. Feeling much better, but still embarrassed at being in night-wear around strange men, she slipped into the futon and called out that she was done. She remained sitting up, and her dark hair, now loose, hung a few inches past her shoulders; once, it had fallen past her waist, but she had cut it before leaving Edo to improve her disguise. It had been a sacrifice, but the hair would grow back eventually.

Gen-san and Saitō-san returned to stand just inside the door.

"Are you well, Yukimura-kun?" asked Gen-san politely.

"Yes, Gen-san, thank you for your kindness. Will you please thank Kondou-san for me as well?"

Chizuru had been brought up to be courteous. Nobody had told her how to behave around ruthless men who threatened to kill her and then gave her food and clothes and saw her tucked into bed, but she was doing her best.

"I will give him your thanks. Good night, Yukimura-kun. Saitō-kun will remain here on guard until morning. After that, the person on duty will remain outside your room. Please do not be alarmed."

"Good night, Gen-san." She managed an awkward bow from her bed, and the older man left, taking the bundle of filthy clothes with him as promised. She wondered if he truly meant to do her laundry though – did captains in the Shinsengumi wash clothes?

Saitō-san said nothing, but he remained standing by the door, half-turned as though waiting for somebody else to arrive. She couldn't make out his face very well, but he seemed uncomfortable. Maybe he was just aware of the impropriety of being alone in her room like this? She sighed – that seemed pretty unlikely, even if he did seem more formal than the other young captains.

She was still sitting there, wondering whether she should lie down, when Saitō-san opened the door again. This time he admitted the muscled man with the green bandana.

"Hey Saitō…"

"Nagakura. Gen-san told me you were coming."

The visitor briefly raised his eyebrows at the sight of Chizuru with her hair down and evidently ready for sleep. Then he smiled, although she thought his eyes were still a bit wary. On the whole, she guessed she looked pretty harmless, especially with the borrowed hakamashita bundled around her.

"Brought you a brazier, Yukimura-san. I saw Sano – ah, the red-haired beanpole, you know? – in the kitchen, and he said you'd need one. He's a good guy, but you'd better watch out for him. He flirts even when he doesn't know he's flirting. Right Saitō?"

After a moment, Saitō-san shrugged.

"Perhaps. But he is honest."

"Yeah, there is that. Sometimes it's even a good thing… Anyway, I'm Nagakura Shinpachi, Captain of the Second Division."

He set the brazier down and checked that the charcoal was still glowing steadily. After a last look at Chizuru, he nodded and turned to go.

"See you tomorrow."

"Thank you very much, Nagakura-san. I am truly grateful to you." She bowed. "Good night."

He laughed and waved, reminding her of his friend Harada-san. She saw him glance at Saitō-san as he walked out, but neither spoke.

Once the door closed again, Saitō-san knelt with his back to the wall. He set his swords down beside him on his right and blew out the lantern on his left. In the dim light of the brazier, Chizuru saw him settle his hands loosely on his knees. Was he going to remain in seiza for the remainder of the night?

"You should sleep now, Yukimura-san."

"O-okay. Um… Saitō-san?"

He looked at her, waiting for her to ask her question.

"I wondered… Do you know if my sword is safe? I'm – I'm not asking for it back. But… it's important."

"Your kodachi is safe, Yukimura-san." His voice seemed warmer than before, less flat. He hesitated and then added, "It is a fine blade. It is well that you are concerned for it."

"Arigatou, Saitō-san. Good night."

Chizuru took off the short black kimono and laid it gently aside, almost reluctantly. It was soft from having been worn and washed so often, and something about it soothed her. But she didn't want it to be creased if she was going to wear it in the morning. As she settled down into the futon, she wondered if she was going to be able to sleep with a guard – a more or less unknown man – watching her. Then a yawn overtook her and she felt her body relax, tense muscles loosening almost against her will. In just a few minutes, she was asleep.

After the girl left with Saitō, Hijikata turned to Kondou and Sannan. Nobody spoke as Gen and Nagakura followed the quiet swordsman and the troublesome witness out of the room. Okita watched everyone in turn, his usual cat-like smile playing across his face. Heisuke did not leave with Nagakura, which was unusual. Hijikata thought he had been rather taken with the girl. Now that was a complication he didn't need.

At least Harada had already left to fetch food and then head out on patrol. Harada Sanosuke was a highly dependable subordinate and an outstanding warrior, but Hijikata thought that he sometimes took things too much to heart. The current situation might attract his innate chivalry, which could be a problem. Not that he would disobey orders or refuse to kill when necessary, but the longer the girl was around, the more likely he was to feel responsible for her.

Sannan watched Hijikata brood. Kondou's opinion was a certainty at this point. While Kondou would reluctantly accept that it might be necessary to kill a faceless witness to protect the Shinsengumi's secrets, once Chizuru had knelt before him and told her story there was no way the Commander would accept her murder. And she was Yukimura Kōdō's daughter! While they didn't know what had happened to the enigmatic doctor, it seemed imprudent to kill his daughter out of hand. Maybe she could help them find the missing man.

"You had already decided about the girl from the start Hijikata-kun."

"Sannan-san?" The Vice Commander's frowning violet eyes met the deceptively mild gaze of his immediate superior.

"If you'd really wanted the witness dead then you wouldn't have brought her here. At least, not alive."

"Hmmph." Hijikata's expression lightened briefly, from irritated to rueful.

"You know we can't just let her go," Sannan said softly.

"I know." The frown returned.

"I think we should keep her safe here while we search for Yukimura Kōdō," interjected the Commander.

"I agree, Kondō-san!" cried Tōdō Heisuke, youngest and least restrained of the captains. "We can't just kill her now. I mean, I get the problem, but jeez… She came all the way here, and I think she's pretty brave…"

"Or just pretty, right Heisuke?" murmured Okita with a smirk.

Heisuke blushed but shook his head.

"I don't know about pretty – I mean, c'mon, dressed like a boy and covered in blood and stuff, it's kinda hard to tell – but I thought she was nice, yeah. And like the Commander said, we shouldn't be killing innocent civilians."

"You weren't so worried about it before you knew she was a girl," sniped Okita.

Hijikata narrowed his eyes.

"Any other pearls of wisdom to add, Sōji?" Hijikata asked. "What did you think of the girl?"

"Huh? Well, she's cute... I don't totally hate the idea of keeping her around. And to be honest, I doubt she's a spy. She's a really bad liar."

"But she ran into the Shinsengumi and the failed ones on the very day that she arrived in the city looking for Yukimura Kōdō. It's a strange coincidence."

"I think it's like you and Kondō-san said, Hijikata-san – wrong place, wrong time, bad luck. And if Kondou-san thinks we should look after her then that's what we'll do. Unless she tries to run away of course."

"Yeah, of course we'll look after her!" Heisuke agreed, nodding vigorously. He ignored the last part with the ease of long practice.

Kondō rose and yawned behind his hand.

"Time for bed – for what's left of the night, anyway. Toshi, how about we delay the first morning patrol long enough to get everyone together for breakfast and a meeting with the girl after?"

"Good idea. Heisuke, you let Harada and Nagakura know – and if I don't see all three of you at breakfast you'll pay for it."

For once, Hijikata wasn't able to intimidate the younger man.

"No problem, Hijikata-san! I'm supposed to make breakfast with Gen-san anyway, so I'll be up in plenty of time!"

Heisuke bounced up and Sannan smiled as he rose more slowly.

"It is fortunate that we can count on Gen-san to wake you, Heisuke-kun."

The men said their goodnights and filed out. Hijikata held Okita back just outside the door.

"You'll replace Saitō at five, Sōji, so enjoy your nap. You can eat breakfast with the girl after the meeting."

"You're all heart, Hijikata-san."

"Yeah. And stay out of her room after Saitō goes. You can stand guard outside."

"You don't trust me, Vice Commander? I'm hurt."

"Uh-huh. But even an inconvenient kid doesn't deserve half a dozen death threats before breakfast."

"Fine, fine."

Okita lifted a lazy hand in farewell and walked off.