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The Courtship of Lady Tokio

by Misaki Toyodome

Chapter 4 - Wild Dogs

18th September –

Serizawa Kamo had been killed during the night. There had been a party and Serizawa, who never seemed to stop drinking these days, had been dragged back to his quarters after he had started getting unmanageably aggressive. When people went to call him in the morning, he had been found, killed in his futon, his blood spattered all around the room. It seemed he had not even had the time to draw his own sword. His followers were lying dead in the next room. Kondou and Hijikata called for an emergency meeting. According to them, it was the work of Choushuu roushi, and all the members were called upon to be on the alert and to find those responsible.

"Serizawa-sensei was a Commander of the Shinsengumi, entrusted with the protection of Kyoto and the people. This is a clear challenge to our power and our position, a direct strike against the authority of the Shogunate and Aizu. We must not let this go unpunished!" Kondou's speech was impressive, with the right amount of controlled anger and sincerity.

Kneeling in front of his Commander, Saitou could feel the deceit clawing at his throat. He knew who the real perpetrators of the assassination were. He knew that they had been under immense pressure from Aizu to tighten control over the ranks, and to prevent further dishonour from befalling the group. He knew, and he understood, and mostly he agreed. Serizawa had been a great warrior in his time, but he had passed his prime, and fallen. It was better this way than to have allowed him to fall further into disgrace. Still, something rankled. There was something that he could not accede. But Serizawa had known that this was coming to him. He himself had warned Serizawa that his recent actions would have dire consequences. Serizawa had not been disturbed in the slightest.

"If it happens, it happens. Things will be the way they should be," he had said, and resumed his drinking. Saitou had joined him, and they had drunk to many things.

'Damn you, Takagi Tokio...' He had met her on two other occasions since the first night they had walked to the river. And the last time, she had been extremely upset...

"Saitou-sama, thank you very much for accompanying me again."

Tokio walked behind Saitou, dressed in her monk’s garb. Saitou said nothing, silently agitated that he was with her, again. Why he was bothering was a question that he had asked himself over and over again, but to no avail. He couldn't answer it, and he still came. It would have been so much easier for him to have gone straight back to Mibu. 'But she could get into trouble if she went out on her own...' So why didn't he just drag her back inside and report her? 'She'd get into trouble, and her father would probably lock her away or send her back to Aizu...' He scowled. As if her getting into trouble was any of his concern.

They reached the same spot on the bank of the river. The nights were still rather warm, and people were still in the mood for summer festivities. The sounds of the city were noisome, but around them, all was quiet except for the crickets. Tokio looked preoccupied, and she was frowning slightly.

"A penny for your thoughts, Takagi-san?" Saitou asked her mockingly. Tokio looked up at him, and shook her head. Saitou was a good head taller than her, she barely reached his shoulder.

"I was just thinking... I was just thinking it was a shame... To be honest, I am quite upset." She said this in a restrained voice. Saitou raised an eyebrow in question.

"About Serizawa-san... He was an impressive man. He commanded respect, but now..." Tokio frowned. "And I feel very disappointed with the solution that Kondou-sensei and Hijikata-sama are considering."

"Serizawa understands the consequences of his actions. He just doesn't care." Saitou did not look at her.

"But even so..." Tokio fell silent.

After a moment, she started again.

"It is shameful!" The bitterness in her voice caught Saitou off guard. "Is it not your responsibility to make sure that all members of the Shinsengumi conduct themselves in a fitting manner? To think that you cannot even control one man, one man who could be a great asset if he was dealt with properly."

"I don't think that it's any of your business how we handle our affairs." There was a slight edge to his voice.

"It is the business of Aizu how the Shinsengumi behave."

"Takagi-san, if I understand correctly, Aizu want as little to do with the handling of the Shinsengumi as possible. To the vast majority of your men, we're no more than a bunch of wild dogs that can be exploited, and then cast aside. And for the time being, we accept that. It's more trouble than it's worth for Aizu to involve themselves anymore than they have to."

"Wild dogs? Wild dogs! Are you really content with that!" Her voice rose slightly, and became harsher. "You, the Shinsengumi, Okita-sama too, have you really no pride in your position to be able to call yourselves wild dogs! To be happily exploited, and then thrown back to the gutter from whence you came? Is that your great ideal? Is that your promise to serve the country?"

He did not show his surprise at her mention of Okita, but he did wonder what Okita might have said to upset her so.

She turned away from him, taking deep breaths. When she turned back around to face him, she had composed herself.

"I am sorry. Please forgive me for my outburst. But it is just, I cannot seem to accept... It is true that Serizawa-sensei's actions are not befitting of one who must stand at the forefront of the Shinsengumi. Nonetheless, he is still one of your commanders, and still a member of your group. Will you betray him so easily? Is that what you mean when you say you are wild dogs, that you would turn on one of your own without a single regret? There must be another solution... There has to be another way...

"You and Okita-sama, I do not understand how you can be satisfied with that. Okita-sama, how can he bear to think that the Shinsengumi are merely Aizu's katashiro!"

Her voice was rising again, and a faint pink blush appeared on her cheeks.

"I did not write to my father to tell him that the Shinsengumi were wild dogs. I did not tell him that Aizu need not worry because the Shinsengumi were merely a pack of animals, that Aizu could exploit them as they saw fit and then wash their hands of them. Is that what I was supposed to write? Of these men who are allegedly trying to bring peace to the streets of Kyoto, who are trying their best to fight for Aizu, and for the country? How could I say that?"

She looked down at the ground, her face flushed, feeling she had said too much, that she had been carried away.

Saitou had not said a word as he listened to her outburst. Moments passed, and Tokio could feel his gaze on her. Still, she did not look up.

"Takagi-san," he said after a while in a low voice, "I said that for now, we accept our role as Aizu's scapegoat. For now. But things will change. There is no need to upset yourself about our fate. I assure you, we are capable of looking after ourselves." He paused for a moment. "Just out of curiosity, what did you write to your father?"

"... I told him that Aizu must beware how they handled the wolves that they had taken up with... I told him that you were strong men, and could become a great ally to Aizu..." She turned around – there were people coming towards them along the road. "I really must be getting back now. I am sorry for my behaviour tonight. And thank you once again for your time." She bowed, and started to walk away, not even waiting to see if Saitou would follow.

Saitou did follow, a good few paces behind her, until she reached the side gates of the compound that she had used to get out. Before she disappeared into the compound, she turned to him and bowed. He didn't respond.

"Saitou-san, we're going out tonight, and I say you should come with us." Harada was his merry old self, not in the least bit bothered by the day's news, it seemed. "And Kohana-san was asking for you, again. She was wondering when you'll come with us, so come with us tonight."

So, here he was, with Harada, Okita and Toudou, in Gion, with Kohana pouring his sake. Kohana couldn't seem to decide whether to sulk or flirt with Saitou, and opted for what she thought was an endearing sighing tone.

"Saitou-sama, I haven't seen you since the night you walked me to the Kadoya. Where have you been all this time?"

"I've been busy," came his curt reply. Kohana pursed her lips. Saitou Hajime, it seemed, was indeed a hard catch.

Saitou was thinking back on the day's events. After Kondou had called the meeting, all the members were ordered to find out as much as they could about any suspicious persons in the area the night before.

'Ahou-domo, if they're taking that seriously.'

Tokio's face crossed his mind, flushed and distressed, uncharacteristically raising her voice. Tokio, he could tell, was not one that easily gave into anger. Betrayal? Hardly. Serizawa had been fully aware of what would transpire. He swallowed his sake.

"Wild dogs? Wild dogs! Are you really content with that!" He could hear her voice in his head. 'Okita... He met her. He upset her about something...'

"Okita-kun, did you happen to meet a Miss Takagi of Aizu recently?"

Okita blinked in surprise.

"Eh? Takagi Tokio-san? As a matter of fact I did."

"What? Okita, when was this? Bastard, trying to hide it from us! When what where how!" Harada fumed.

Ignoring the ranting Harada, Saitou looked coolly at Okita.

"Harada-san, don't get mad. We met randomly on the street as I was patrolling, is all. She was running some errands, you know. And she stopped me to congratulate us on the Sumo festival. Turns out she was there. That was all."

Saitou turned to Kohana to fill his cup, and said simply,

"That was not all, Okita-kun."

"Ah, hai hai. And then she said she was worried about the nickname we'd been given. Miburo. And how she thought that it was most unfortunate that the people of Kyoto didn't understand what we were trying to do. I told her not to worry, that we were like the katashiro at the shrines, and that we weren't bothered in the least."

So, that was it. She had felt insulted on behalf of the Shinsengumi and their Aizu supporters.

"We were both busy so we left it at that. Harada-san, stop glaring at me, I swear that was all that happened."

"Yeah right, as if! Meeting a beautiful young girl like that, and you just left? The charming, the handsome, the popular Captain Okita Souji simply left it at that?"

"Okita-san is so lucky..."

"Toudou-san, not you too!"

While Okita argued with Toudou and Harada, Kohana turned to Saitou and asked,

"Who is this Takagi-san?"

His reply was to thrust his empty cup towards her, and she grudgingly poured his sake.

The other geisha present, trying to distract Harada from getting more riled up, stood up to dance. Harada quickly forgot about strangling Okita, and started to clap his hands. Okita then sat down next to Saitou, and looked at him slyly.

"...What is it Okita-kun?" Saitou asked without turning towards him.

"Saitou-san, you can't fool me. You've been meeting with Lady Takagi. I mean, how else would you know that I'd met her, and why would you be interested, hhmm?"

Before Saitou could think of an answer, Kohana interrupted them to draw their attention back to her.

"Okita-sama, I have a question. Why on earth is the Shinsengumi uniform that colour? It looks so cheap, and I must say, it isn't very becoming. I mean, everyone knows that asagi is a colour for poor samurai."

Saitou gave a short, disdainful laugh. Okita eyed him reproachfully, and answered Kohana.

"Kohana, there is a very good reason for the design of our uniform. We didn't just choose the cheapest cloth we could find, I assure you."

'Fool of a woman. Better to keep your mouth shut and have people suspect you're an idiot than to open it and prove it.' Saitou felt less inclined to be pleasant to Kohana than ever. 'Takagi, Takagi Tokio...'

"I like the new uniform." Tokio stated unexpectedly.

It was the second time he had met her. He wasn't sure whether it was entirely by chance that he had been walking around outside that particular section of the compound, at the same time of evening, and that she just happened to come out of the side gates as he turned the corner.

"Well well, if it isn't Miss Takagi, playing at being a monk. I thought you weren't going to sneak out again."

Tokio bowed and smiled.

"You must excuse my appearance. I just felt in the mood to have a kind hearted strange man grant me a few moments of freedom."

"Kind hearted? Hardly. And maybe I'll report you this time?"

She smiled innocently.

"But fancy seeing you here tonight! What a pleasant coincidence, that you should just happen by just as I was about to head out."

A coincidence? He wondered, but didn't press the subject. He wasn't going to report her either. Walking in silence, they headed towards the river again. He doubted that anyone would really buy Tokio's disguise as a monk, but surprisingly, no one even so much as glanced at them.

And then, unexpectedly, Tokio said,

"I like the new uniform."

He cocked his head. He wasn't wearing it now, so she must have seen some of his cohorts earlier.

"It is a good colour," she added.

"You don't think it's cheap?" He smiled at her slyly. He knew that there were plenty of people who had not realized the symbolism behind the design.

"Of course not." She sniffed patronizingly. "Though I do think that choosing Chuushingura as a design motif might be described as a little maudlin."

He laughed shortly at that; he had felt the same way.

"Still it is a good uniform. The sentiments behind it are true. You should be proud to wear such clothes." A little smile danced mischievously on her lips. "Though it might be that the uniform itself turns out to be more honourable than some of the men who wear it."

She had, of course, understood the symbolism. 'Well, naturally,' thought Saitou, 'one would expect no less from a daughter of the Takagi family.' Chuushingura, the chronicle of the Akou Roushi, was one of the most admired stories in the history of Japan. The tale of the forty-seven roushi who had vowed to avenge their lord's death was regarded as one of the greatest expressions of loyalty in history. And after they had concluded their mission, they had chosen this same colour to wear when they commited seppuku. By basing their uniform on the same motif, the Shinsengumi were symbolizing their own commitment, of their unwavering loyalty to their cause and their unswerving path.

"Saitou-sama, you must work hard to live up to that uniform."

Her laughter rippled through the night air. And he had felt happy. For some reason, that night, he had been in a better mood than he could recall for a long time.

'Takagi Tokio...'

Unusual girl, to take such an interest in the Shinsengumi, and even more so because she seemed to understand their cause. She would probably be upset tonight at the news of Serizawa's death. She had wanted them to find another way. She would have considered it a betrayal -treacherous, unworthy actions for those affiliated with Aizu, no doubt. Next to him, Okita was still trying to educate Kohana about the Akou roushi, and why the uniform was important to the Shinsengumi. Annoyance welled up inside him. He couldn't stay here much longer. He had had enough to drink.

He stood up abruptly, and announced his departure. Turning a deaf ear to the protests of his colleagues and Kohana's pleading, he stepped out of the building, and into the street. It was nearly ten o'clock. He took long strides at a brisk pace. He was nearly there in ten minutes. Not for any particular reason, he tried to persuade himself, although he knew exactly what had brought him to the walls of Koumyouji. As he turned the corner, he stalled. There she was, standing outside the gate. Was she waiting? Or was she just leaving? Or just coming back? She was just standing there, looking at the ground. Was she waiting? She looked up, and saw him. She greeted him with a bow and an exquisite, wistful smile.

"Saitou-sama..." Her voice was quiet and tender. “Saitou-sama, I am so glad you are here. I really wanted... I really wanted to apologise for my behaviour the last time we met... I had no right, and it was not my place..." Her words kept dying into silence.

"Were you waiting?" He asked her brusquely. She hesitated, and then shook her head.

"Not waiting so much as hoping... I was hoping that I might catch you tonight, although I did not think you would be passing this way." She paused, and then added, "My sincere condolences for the unfortunate loss."

No blame, no accusations, just sympathy. He looked at her. This time, he did not break her gaze. He understood. No recriminations were necessary, she had forgiven him. At least, she did not hold him responsible.

"Things happen as they should, I believe. It is nothing as grand as fate, or destiny, but just the way things are." She looked down at the ground again.

'Serizawa-san said a similar thing,' he recalled.

They stood in silence for a while before she looked up at him again, and smiled.

"It is already quite late, and I don't wish to cause you any more trouble tonight. Please, do not let me keep you. I promise that I won't go anywhere tonight." She bowed, and headed back into the compound. Saitou watched her disappear, and in spite of himself, couldn't shake the feeling that he had been cheated out of a moment's respite, he felt disappointment, a fleeting feeling of loneliness that he had fancied for just a moment. A moment of respite, heart's ease, to calm the soul...