-x-
She stood still, paralyzed with fear as he looked up at her expectantly.
"What's wrong?" he asked, though it was a rhetorical question.
"Why are you here?" she asked, her voice trembling. The kunai from her sleeve is still there to reassure her that she can make a quick escape if she needs to.
"Surely a man, for whatever price, may be with a woman of his choice in this city." Takasugi stood up, walking towards her. "Even the legendary Hinowa cannot turn down the overlord of Yoshiwara."
Kamui's orders, though rarely given and bestowed mostly in terms of salutatory neglect, were those of absolute power. She had already seen the damage from her troops and a mixture of anger and hatred clouds her heart momentarily. Those were her girls who had been murdered in cold blood just for the simple reason that they had been deemed weak.
Her breath hitches in her throat. "What do you want?"
"For now? Only the pleasure of your company."
His hand suddenly reaches out, lifting her chin with his index finger. She is frozen, eyes widening at this sudden indiscretion, breaking away by taking one step forward. "I don't know your name."
"Shinsuke. And yours?"
Her eyes dart sideways. "Tsu... Tsukuyo."
He finds it amusing that she is trying to reassure herself of escaping. He supposed it was only natural. Perhaps she recognized his name already, even in the cesspool they call Yoshiwara with their dingy grit underneath the gilded cage of whores and courtesans. He doesn't give a damn either way - whatever this woman could do to him, he's not afraid of her.
"Very well then," he said, and he takes her hand - the one without the knife - and kisses the back of it, light as air. Her eyes grow bigger and he can see that she's trying to process what is happening to her. He chuckles because she's so damn easy to understand.
"Take care, Tsukuyo," he says, and slips outside the door, leaving her behind.
-x-
Edo is not much different from Yoshiwara; the only change being that up here there are more and less rules. More, because the Shinsengumi actually has the jurisdiction under the law of the Shogun to kill people if they deem it appropriate. Less, because the city is a lot bigger than Yoshiwara and it's impossible to catch everyone who commits a crime.
Tsukuyo goes up to Edo Bank. Checks her deposit bank and nearly fumbles with her debit card once she sees how much is in her account.
She's never had earned so much just for a few minutes of... whatever it was. She didn't pour him a drink. No sex. No kissing either, though she is relieved that all of those three things haven't happened. She could still feel the sensation of his fingers on her chin. They were surprisingly warm for such a man with a disdainful look in his eyes. And suddenly the chills and the goosebumps come back in full force.
She wants to know more. Who this mysterious guy is, what kind of power he holds, why he chose to not kill her, why he spent so much money on someone like worthless like her.
For some reason it makes her uneasy. A no good man like Gintoki pays her half as much attention, and now she's got another man to worry about in Yoshiwara. On top of it he's connected to Kamui, and she knows that anyone connected to the Harusame has the power to destroy her city if she's not careful.
When she walks outside, a little dejected at this new revelation, she lights up her pipe real quick. Smoking calms her down, lets her think more clearly.
All that is thrown out the window when she bumps into someone. A man in a purple yukata and a straw hat grins slyly as she turns her head to apologize only for it to be cut off shortly from her sudden paralysis.
"So we meet again."
Her instincts are so quick to shift into a defensive, kill or be killed stance that even he is impressed. With a flash of silver her two hands wield tanto swords out of nowhere, ready to slice and maim at her whim.
"Stop following me," she growls.
"I wasn't," he said, and he laughs at her mockingly. "The Shogun is coming out tonight."
"What's that s'posed to mean?"
"Wait and see," he replies.
-x-