" Chiyo-chan! Is that you?" said Chizuru with her voice wavering. There was just too many emotions.
The girl turned over and stared back at her with disbelief. She said in a whisper," Oh god. Chizuru!"
They ran and embraced each other like there was no tomorrow. No words needed to be spoken to communicate how they felt. However this left the rest of the Shinsengumi at a loss starring the pair.
Chizuru was the first to pull away with tiny droplets of water spilling from her eyes. She had a huge smile splayed on her face though. Chiyo also had tears spilling out of her eyes. No one could understand how they felt.
Chiyo was the first to speak," Chizuru-chan...where have you been all this time? I have searched for a very long time to find you!"
She blushed slightly and said," Sorry. I was here the whole time. It's so strange that life just brought us together again!"
" Um excuse me but if you two are done chatting...can we have an explanation?" said Hijikata.
Both sighed because they had some explaining to do...some major explaining.
" Ok so if I heard you right...you two are friends?"
They had chatted over lunch about their past. From the moment they met to the moment Chiyo had left to go West. It was very vivid and both had a good time talking about the old days that they had together.
Heisuke stammered," So you're a girl than right?!"
Chiyo mentally slapped her face. Those men might be the strongest men in all of Japan but...man are they dumb. Just because her hair wasn't long and she didn't have chest...why that doesn't prove anything at all. While she wanted to go on a rant about disrespect, she remained calm and nodded while forcing a small smile.
Heisuke mumbled an apology and all the others followed. The only ones who remained silent was Okita who was still sore about losing to a girl and Saito who just never had anything to say in general. To them, killing a girl would be out of the question and would go against their honor codes.
The whole room seemed to faint as everyone collected the information. Only Saito remained uncaring as he started at the wall. Chizuru started laughing and whispered something to Chiyo who also started laughing. Hijikata recovered from his shock and noticed that...that...Chizuru was actually happy for the first time in a while. He had gotten used to seeing her sad smile that he forgot how much her smile could light up a room.
Suddenly Chiyo stood up and said," Chizuru. Come back with me to Edo. We can live in your abandoned house with just the two of us. It will be like old times. You won't have to see any more blood!"
Chizuru's smile instantly faded as she looked at the ground. " Chi-chan. I'm sorry I can't go with you. I must stay."
Chiyo's face fell and she asked," Why? What is keeping you here?"
" It's my father. He disappeared after coming here to work and I want to find him before leaving. Once we find him...we will go back. I want to go home so badly but I am just not in a good situation. Please understand that."
Chiyo's face set. She started at the ground deep in thought before smiling sadly. She sighed," It's okay. You're right, you have to stay here because of something important. I was just being selfish without thinking why you were here. It is enough for me to know that you are safe. I will than go back to Edo alone. Maybe we can visit each other?"
She smiled and replied," Of course. Come over to visit New Year's with us! We can also talk by sending letters. At least we both know that where the other person is."
She nodded.
Kondo said," Would you like to stay for dinner?"
If she stayed, she knew that she would never want to leave. Instead she told him that she had a long journey and wished to head out before it got dark. However that darkness would be that some other people had captured the heart of her best friend. She was being selfish but honestly, at that time...she could give less of a fuck than anyone could imagine.
Right when Chiyo had left Chizuru scooted to Hijikata's side and said," Hijikata-san...you said that we were in dire need of men right?"
He nodded and tried to avoid the question that he knew was obviously coming.
" Why don't we recruit Chiyo as a soldier then?"
" I don't know. She is a girl after all. That would cause quite a ruckus."
" But you saw her fight with Okita-san! She won against him and she was a girl! Wouldn't she be a most valuable asset to the Shinsengumi? We need quality soldiers like her!"
She looked towards the others and they nodded and mumbled their approval. Kondou stared at Hijikata not knowing what to say.
When he was thinking she took a chance to press on," If you can all confuse her as a girl, than others can too as long as she continues to dress and act like a boy. We are desperate for men right now."
Hijikata started into the watering hopeful eyes of Chizuru. " Damn those eyes" he thought. He always had a soft spot for her. Hijikata motioned towards Saito and waved him off. He curtly got up and motioned for Chizuru to follow.
Chizuru's stomach churned as she bowed as low as she could to Hijikata and bounded away. What would happen with Chiyo as a warrior? Would she improve them? Or would she light up the headquarters a bit more like Chizuru had done.
Chiyo walked out of the gates and looked above her. The first blossoms of the cherry blossom flowers were blooming. Normally she and Chizuru would view them together and gawk at their beauty and elegance. However this year, she would be alone. She sighed sadly. Her escape from death no longer pleased her but instead made her feel sore. She just wanted to go back to their old peaceful life.
" No...that's not it. I just don't want blood on Chizuru's hands. With those men, there is no guarantee that it won't happen. Who will protect her? What if those men rape her?"
Questions and worry flooded her mind as she walked further and further away from headquarters. Not even the noisy street sounds could break her thinking.
" Chiyo wait up! Wait for me!"
Her concentration broke as she turned aroudn to see an out of breathe Chizuru with Saito tagging along behind her. Life has an uncanny way to mess up life. It takes what it gives but also does wonderful things. However, this gift will end up to be a two sided blade with two different roads. What will she take?
