I'd love to give Nobuhiro Watsuki a great big hug for creating Rurouni Kenshin. The characters and backstory are great and have made me eager to learn more about an aspect of my favorite historical era that I'd never explored.

I absolutely love the character of Hajime Saitou and it came as a pleasant surprise to find that he was based on a real man. I've taken what facts I know about Saitou to build upon the anime's end to the Shishio battle* and give us a glimpse of Mrs. Saitou's world. I've taken the liberty of making Okita a relative of Tokio since I have no clue as to how she and Saitou met…and since Tokio was from Aizu I think it's entirely possible that one of Megumi's relatives would have been her family's doctor….

* (good Lord, how did any of those men manage to walk away with the blood they spilled in those eps????) And I know Okita's first name is Souji I just liked the sound of "Okita" better when writing this.

THE WOLF'S LADY

Chapter 1

May 1878

Partially hidden in the adjoining room Tokio Saitou watched her husband Hajime contain a knowing grin as he entered the house and kicked his shoes off. Apparently he knew that their son was behind the decorative screen to the left of the door, struggling valiantly to contain his restlessness. Hajime removed his sword and went to place it in the holder in the house's large main room. He jumped in mock surprise when the boy leapt from his hiding place to "attack" him.

He was doing a passable Gatotsu stance, brandishing a miniscule wooden practice sword.

"Soba! Soku! Zan!"

Saitou glanced Tokio, who now stood in the door leading towards the kitchen.

"Slay soba immediately?" he asked.

Tokio shrugged then smiled, remembering as she often did how he'd once told her that her smile never ceased to warm the coldness that always filled his soul.

"I hungry!" two year old Tsutomu said.

Both Saitou and Tokio laughed when his little stomach rumbled as if to prove his point.

Saitou hoisted the boy to his broad shoulders then carried him in to eat.

A while later after tucking Tsutomu into bed Saitou and Tokio went to sit on the small porch outside their own room. Tokio sat on her husband's lap feeding him bits of his favorite sweetened rice cake. Playfully he kissed and nibbled her fingers after each bite, grinning wickedly as she shivered from the contact in the warm May air.

"It appears that the Battousai might be capable of going after Shishio," Saitou said after finishing the last bit of rice cake.

He lit a cigarette and smoked it while Tokio remained on his lap, her head resting upon his shoulder, her fingers toying with the dark hair at the nape of his neck.

She glanced up, her fingers gently tracing over the bruises and cuts still visible upon his face.

"At least you won't have to go it alone."

"Hnnn," Saitou grunted, flinging the cigarette butt away into the small rock garden near the porch. "Okubo is a fool for having created this mess in the first place. They should have beheaded the bastard from the start and been done with it---"

Impulsively Tokio pressed her fingertips to his lips. "Enough talk of the government and their problems. The Meiji occupies all of your time as it is and I've only had a short time with you home every night. You'll leave on a dangerous mission tomorrow and I need to be the center of your world tonight. Just in case..." She bowed her head as if ashamed of doubting his triumph.

Saitou cradled her face in his hands, using the pads of his calloused thumbs to brush away the rare tears that slid down her cheeks. His normally harsh expression softened dramatically. His usually gruff tone of voice did as well, caressing her like a blanket of thick velvet in the night. "You are always at the center of my existence. Always. In this world and the next..."

His voice trailed off when his lips met hers.

June 1878

"You are always at the center of my existence. Always. In this world and the next..."

Though she struggled to silence them, Hajime's words continued to haunt Tokio as they had for days and she gave up the pretext of sleeping, taking care not to wake little Tsutomu who'd been restless as well.

That was the thing that had her worried the most. Was Tsutomu reacting to her own unease or was his heart telling him that Hajime was in mortal danger as she so feared?

Biting the inside of her cheek, Tokio forced the panic to die before it could fully form. Hajime had faced death many, many times and had always come out alive. This time it would be no different.

Then why am I so afraid, like never before? Her heart demanded to know.

Unable to supply an answer Tokio went to fix herself a cup of tea. It was the same soothing blend she'd often given to her late cousin Okita when the consumption took its deadly hold and kept him from resting.

Okita. If only he were here to calm her fears as he'd done for a large part of her life.

"'kio-san?"

Tokio gave a start at the sound of the quiet voice then took a calming breath when she realized that it was only Eiji Mishima the orphaned boy Hajime had put in her care. He'd only been here a short time but he'd become like another son. "What is it, Eiji?"

"Are you all right? Something seemed wrong all day and I was worried about you."

Tokio smiled. "I'm fine. Why don't you go back to bed?"

"I'm not sleepy tonight. Can I have some tea too?"

"Of course you can," she said, getting another cup. He felt it too. But again she wondered if was it her unease they caught or their own intuition of disaster? No. She wouldn't think that way. She wouldn't.

She poured tea for both of them and brought out a sweetened rice cake for Eiji, knowing that he loved them as much as Hajime did. "I know that Hajime-sama asked you to look after things here while he's gone, but you need your rest. You're still a growing boy."

She contained the grin that tugged at her lips when Eiji's back stiffened in indignation.

"I'm not a boy. I'm a man."

"Still, even men need their rest when they can. Hajime takes his rest very seriously. It's important for keeping up your strength and keeping your wits about you in dangerous situations…"

Tokio's voice drifted off and she once again she was forced to fight back that unfamiliar sense of panic.

Absorbed in her own thoughts it took Tokio a moment to realize that Eiji was truly agitated, but before she could question him, he placed his finger to his lips requesting her silence then crept to the window that aced the rear of the secluded house. He listened at the window a moment

Someone there, he mouthed.

Instinctively, Tokio reached beneath the low table and brought out the tanto Hajime had secured there. She nodded as Eiji did likewise with the wakazshi secreted behind a cabinet beneath the window.

Eiji pointed to the door leading to the bedrooms. Go to Tsutomu, he mouthed when Tokio rose to join him. She hesitated then did as he requested, knowing that Eiji could defend himself against an intruder where the baby could not.

She had just reached the side of Tsutomu's futon when Eiji called for her.

"It's Hajime-sama!"

The boy's tone only served to confirm the dread that had been surrounding her. Her blood ran cold when she reached the kitchen and saw the boy struggling to hold up her injured husband who'd collapsed as soon as he'd stepped into the house.

Tokio dropped the dagger onto the table and rushed to help, putting as much of Hajime's weight on her as she could. They got him to the bedroom and lay him down. Taking a deep breath and freezing her emotions, Tokio began stripping off the bloodied uniform while telling Eiji to bring water, soap, bandages and the medicine box.

This was bad, worse than she'd ever seen. He had so many wounds. Even the few bandages he'd tied on were drenched. How long had it taken him to get here in this condition? It was a miracle that he'd made it at all, she realized. Thank you, Kami for seeing him home, she prayed.

Tokio allowed Eiji to remain in the room just long enough to help while she did her best to stitch the worst of Hajime's wounds. "Look in on the baby. I'll call if I need you."

"But 'kio-san---"

"Please, Eiji, do as I ask."

The boy nodded the left.

Tokio closed her eyes a moment. Eiji had become quite close to Hajime in the sort time they'd spent together. She wouldn't have his last memories be horrid ones if-

No. There was no "if". Hajime would recover. He always did.

But have you ever seen him look so near death as he does now? Her fear asked.

Tokio refused to listen, refused to even consider the possibility as she continued to minister to her husband as efficiently as any doctor could. Of course she'd had a lot of practice courtesy of her reckless cousin and younger brothers and later the Mibu soldiers she'd helped tend during the Bakumatsu. The family's doctor back in Aizu had been a frequent visitor and though her father disapproved, Tokio had always found a way to sneak in to watch and help. And luckily her mother did approve to the point of uncharacteristically overriding her father's order to stay away.

Kami has given her this noble desire to help those in need and he's given her the most skilled sensei in Dr. Takani, who are we to question or forbid this part of Tokio's life path when only good can come of it now and in the future?

"Please let good come of this night, Kami. I beg you." Tokio whispered, gazing at Hajime's eerily pale face. She smoothed back the hair matted on his forehead and felt for signs of a fever. There were none. Yet.

She looked at the bandages and was not pleased to see blood seeping through. It wasn't that much, and some continued bleeding was to be expected, but still. She caressed Hajime's face, gently kissed his lips then began mixing a poultice to ease the flow of blood from the stab wounds.

Hajime would be all right. He had to be because to lose him would be to lose her own soul.

Chapter 2

Tokio applied the herbal remedies to her husband's wounds then re-bandaged them, hoping that it would aid in stemming the blood loss. Lovingly, she again cleaned his pallid face and torso and thought back to the day her cousin had first brought him home. He'd been anything but handsome to her then. In fact he'd been the most obnoxious man she'd ever had the great misfortune to set eyes upon.

She couldn't for the life of her understand why her normally sensible cousin was so taken with the latest member of the Shinsengumi. Finally she decided that Okita's head must have been turned by the fact that Hajime Saitou's entrance to the group had been sponsored by the Aizu han. What other reason could it be? It certainly wasn't the man's nonexistent charm that could have won over Okita and she doubted very much that his looks had any bearing considering that he was comprised of a mass of harsh lines and angles with cold, wolf-like amber eyes and an insufferably sarcastic temperament. Therefore, she refused to even consider her younger brother's whispered speculations that Okita had an ogama's crush on the older man.

It wasn't until much later, one night when Okita was overcome by the consumption that Tokio finally caught a glimpse of the man her cousin looked up to.

The first and third Shinsengumi squads were patrolling when they were overcome and ambushed by a band of Ishin Shishi. Okita had trouble breathing while in the midst of the skirmish and would surely have died if Hajime hadn't thrown himself in the attacker's path and shielded her fallen cousin. Despite his own injuries he got Okita to safety then carried him all the way home to be tended to by Dr. Takani and Tokio herself.

Tokio felt the heat of Hajime Saitou's large body as he hovered behind her while she helped Dr. Takani administer the medicines that would help clear Okita's lungs to ease this latest spell.

"This will pass? He'll be fit to fight again?"

"Yes, but he shouldn't and he knows it," she snapped. "His health is more important than your endless fight with the Ishin."

"Okita follows the warrior's path. He knows no other way."

Tokio's annoyance came out in a low growling sound that made Dr. Takani stop mixing his remedy. "I have things under control here. Please take Saitou-sama into the next room and tend his wounds."

"I'm fine."

"Your wounds need cleansed and dressed. It will only take a moment."

Tokio shook her head as Saitou grunted his reply and stepped aside for her to lead the way. As she cleaned and bandaged him she felt the compulsion to find out for herself exactly what type of man he was.

When she asked the question that had been on her mind he fixed her with an angry amber glare. "I do not do this because of the politics or to support the Bakufu over the Ishin Shishi. I do this because I live by the code of the samurai and I will protect Japan and her people to the best of my ability. I believe in the ideal of Aku Soku Zan and those who break that ideal or refuse to follow a code of honor will be destroyed."

"You would destroy them no matter who they are?"

"Yes," he answered without hesitation.

"What of Okita?"

"You talk nonsense, woman," he said gruffly, reaching for his haori.

Tokio grabbed his blue and white jacket before he could reach that. "But suppose that Okita's sickness was one that affected his mind. What if it addled his brain and caused him to become depraved or corrupt enough that it violated your code of Aku Soku Zan? Could you kill him? Would you kill him, someone you risked your very life for tonight just because he had become evil even though it was not of his conscious doing?"

Saitou snatched the blue and white jacket from Tokio's hand and put it on before sliding his sword into the waistband of his hakama. "If an illness pushed even Okita to such limits, yes, I would slay him if need be because he would be not unlike a rabid dog that needed to be put down for his own good. Even a beloved family pet can turn into a bloodthirsty animal that must be stopped before the innocent are injured."

He strode from the room, Tokio at his heels. Her blood racing from the challenge this man presented. "Then what of your wife? What if a member of your wife's family committed an offense you deemed punishable by death? Would you slay her father or brother knowing that to do so would devastate her?"

Saitou stopped and looked down upon her, his expression a mixture of scorn and impatience. "I am not married and I will not marry until I am thirty, but to set your foolish mind at rest, Tokio-dono---I would have no remorse in slaying any man that deserved this and my wife would accept this because I would never marry a woman who did not share my beliefs entirely."

With that he strode away to check on Okita's condition before rejoining his squad.

***

Tokio smoothed back the unruly strands of hair that were forever falling into Hajime's eyes and placed a feather light kiss upon his lips. They'd had quite a few more heated discussions over the course of the next six years each time they crossed paths, with the exception of the days preceding Okita's untimely death at the end of the Bakumatsu.

She wouldn't have expected someone like Hajime Saitou to be there as he was as if knowing his presence was a comfort to her cousin though Okita was barely conscious at times. He was there beside her when the end came and she was glad that he was. Orphaned at ten, Okita had come to live in the Takagi household and had been like an older brother to Tokio, closer to her even than her own siblings at times.

She'd known for a long time that the consumption would take Okita at a young age but she hadn't truly prepared herself for the end. It was so hard to sit helplessly by and listen to the painful breathing, watch the blood tickle from his mouth, see him grow weaker with each passing minute until he expired in her arms and she dissolved into wracking sobs.

Without a word Hajime held them both, slowly easing Tokio's hold on Okita's lifeless body, allowing her to cling to him instead until there were no more tears to shed. He said nothing for a long time but as her crying stilled he whispered soft words of comfort and dried her tears with gentle caresses of his fingertips.

"Do not cry for him, Tokio. He is at peace now, though I know he didn't want to leave you...He knew the depth of your feeling for him and he felt the same..."

Taking Hajime's large, rough hand in both of hers, Tokio kissed his palm then held his hand against her cheek, her gaze skimming over the bandaged wounds. The bleeding was minimal now and there was still no sign of fever, both good signs.

Then why am I still so afraid? she wondered, trying not to acknowledge the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach that had no connection with the condition she suspected but hadn't been able to tell Hajime about yet.

Chapter 3

Tokio woke from the nightmare with a start and it took her a moment to get her bearings while the dream faded away as dawn broke and filtered faintly through the window. It was all so real, still so fresh in her mind---The blood, the fear, the pain tearing her apart inside barely held in check by the comforting words of Okita. "He died as he lived--a warrior. Do not be angry with him..."

She sat up, realizing that she was lying where Hajime had been last night. She looked towards the blood spattered uniform she'd taken off him. His katana was no longer resting against the wall as she'd left it. She got up and padded quickly to the rear of the house. She went out on the porch and through the little garden to the fenced enclosure that Hajime used for training.

He was there going through the motions of the kata he'd done every morning since his days with the Shinsengumi She stood and watched, entranced as always by the sight of him doing what he did best. The sword wasn't a weapon it was a very real part of him and watching him wield it as an extension of himself never failed to leave her in awe and yet...

Tokio started to step into the enclosure then stopped herself just inside the gate. There was something not quite right about Hajime's stance, something rigid and stilted as he launched into the Gatotsu's first stance. She told herself it was the injuries. Her gaze shifted to the bandages on Hajime's bare chest. There was blood staining through. She couldn't tell about the leg wounds because he was wearing an old brown hakama but she imagined they were bleeding again too.

Hajime stopped before he normally would have and Tokio said nothing until he reached the spot where she stood. "You should be resting."

"I'm not tired."

"You're bleeding again. It doesn't seem too bad now, but I need to check."

"No. It's fine," he said in a clipped tone before brushing past her without a second glance.

Worried, she followed him inside, pausing only long enough to check the other bedroom to see that Eiji and the baby were still asleep. Hajime was in the main bedroom removing the supplies he used to clean his swords from a lacquered chest in the far corner. She bundled up the soiled uniform and blankets and deposited them outside then returned to take clean bedlinens from the wooden cabinet beside the bedroom window.

As she bent to retrieve a fresh blanket she felt Hajime come up close behind her. An involuntary murmur escaped her lips when his large hands fell upon her hips. She felt his arousal and made no protest when he coaxed her up and slid his hands inside her yukata.

She sighed as he fondled her, her flesh burning everywhere he touched. It had been this way from the first and she hoped it would never change between them even though today it was different.

There were no lingering caresses, no playful kisses, no nipping at her neck or earlobes. His touch was heavy and leaned her forward over the cabinet top and jerked aside her yukata then buried his length inside her with a single thrust. Their coupling was swift, furtive, undoubtedly like something that would happen at a brothel, but Tokio did care because the feeling was the same as it always was when she fell over the edge of desire with him.

Hajime relaxed his weight against her back, his cheek resting against the back of her head, his hands on the cabinet top on either side of her. There were no tender kisses, no soft words of endearment as there usually was. He simply pulled out of her, settled the yukata over her once more then stepped away to retie his hakama.

Tokio felt a tightness in her heart and turned just as Hajime was reaching the door with his katana and cleaning supplies.

"Do you want to talk to me?'

"No," he said in a gruff tone before disappearing down the hall.

Without warning bits and pieces of the dream filtered back to Tokio, more as feelings than mental images and she shivered despite the warm sunshine that streamed in the window beside her, trying to dispel the nauseating smell of so much blood, so much death.

Her hand instinctively grazing across her abdomen, her heart praying that the dreams of death had nothing to do with the child she was certain she carried.

Hajime was sitting on the rear porch polishing the wakazshi that was part of his favorite daisho, the set of swords he'd had since his days with the Shinsengumi. Tokio watched him from the corner of her eye as she busied herself making breakfast. Something was very, very wrong she was certain of it now. She could tell by the fact that the katana, his most prized possession, sat neglected beside him. He always cared for that first, spending hours cleaning and sharpening the deadly blade, especially after he'd had occasion to use it. He set aside the wakazshi then started on the tanto, spending what seemed like an unusually long time with the sharpening steel for a blade that was no longer carried that would never have be drawn when it was carried except to commit seppuku.

What happened in Kyoto, Hajime? She wondered, silently asking the question again as she watched her husband pick at his food, despite the fact that his stomach rumbled with hunger.

She studied his face. It seemed more haggard than she remembered after a hard fought battle. "I would like to check your wounds, apply fresh bandages."

Finally he looked up. "I can do it myself."

There was something in his eyes, something so odd, so unnatural that it took Tokio time to fathom what it was. But once she did, her blood ran cold.

The fire was gone.

That feral amber gleam, that hot spark of life that had colored Hajime Saitou's eyes since the moment she met him was missing.

She reached out to touch his hand. He pulled it away and stood. "I heard Tsutomu. I will get him."

Tokio swallowed hard as part of the nightmare assailed her once more. "He died as he lived--a Samurai. Do not be angry with him..."

Chapter 4

The baby toddled beside Hajime, chubby hand gripping the edge of his father's hakama while Eiji trailed behind them. It was clear to see the boy looked up to Hajime and she hoped he knew that being welcomed into their home meant that Hajime thought highly of him as well. She also hoped that this uneasy feeling gripping her was not a portent of something to come. Eiji had suffered enough in his short life. He didn't need a tragedy.

None of them did.

"I need to go bathe. Please see that he boys eat." Tokio paused, waiting for her husband to make one of his usual cutting remarks at the mention of woman's work. He'd always made a big show of protesting when she asked for help around the house but he'd always complied, giving her a sly wink before doing so. The fact that he said nothing served only to increase the tense knot in her stomach.

***

Tokio had just gotten out of the round wooden tub when Hajime entered the room they used for bathing. "Let me empty it. You shouldn't do that in your condition."

Tokio gasped, her hands sliding towards her towel clad midriff. "How did you know. I can't even be sure for a week yet."

"You feel different inside," he said simply, lighting a cigarette. He dragged the tub to the door in the floor, emptied the tub beneath the house then flicked his cigarette away it sizzled as it hit the water soaked ground. He closed and latched the door then turned to look at her his eyes still dull, his voice a shadow of its usual crisp timbre. "I didn't hurt you earlier, did I?"

"You could never hurt me," Tokio said going to him. She placed her hand upon his bare arm, sighing softly when he pulled away. She put on a clean yukata and took the towel to hang on the drying pole out back. Hajime was there staring off into the trees surrounding their property. "How are your wounds?" she asked noting the fresh bandages. "Did you notice any signs of unusual redness or didn't you look?"

He smirked. "What do you think?"

"You don't want to know what I think."

"Probably not," he said, walking away and around the side of the house.

Tokio was about to follow when Eiji came to her, Tsutomu in tow. She caught a whiff of the problem immediately. "He made a mess of himself."

"He isn't the only one," she mumbled thinking aloud.

"I don't understand, 'kio-san."

"It's nothing. Please, go finish your breakfast," she said softly, going back inside so she could clean and change her son.

"I did finish," he said following her at a distance. "'kio-san?"

"Yes, Eiji."

"Is Saitou-sama hurt very badly?"

She gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "He'll be fine once he's rested a few days. You don't need to worry."

"Oh." He paused. "Should I cut more firewood?"

"Yes. Thank you."

Eiji gave her a polite bow then left.

She cleaned the baby's soiled garments then hung them out to dry, scooping up the trotting boy before he could reach his father who was once again sitting on the rear porch sharpening his dagger. ""I'm worried, Okita, please watch over him..."

Wanting to lighten the tension in the house for the sake of the boys, Tokio decided to distract them with origami toys. She was cutting old newspapers into squares when Hajime came in, his dagger and sword cleaning supplies in hand.

"A carriage is coming. No one is to know I'm here," he said sharply before disappearing into another room.

Tokio told Eiji not to let on that Hajime was home then went around to the front of the house, Tsutomu on her hip, to watch the approach of the carriage. It was the police commissioner Kawaji. He descended, looking quite grim and if she didn't know Hajime was alive and well she would have feared the worst.

"Commissioner Kawaji, please come in."

He stepped inside refusing Tokio's offer of tea. "Thank you, but I'm here on business," he said averting his gaze. He looked to her once more. "As you may know-"

He was interrupted by the sound of Hajime's low voice emanating from behind the decorative screen near the door. "Kawaji," Hajime said stepping from behind the screen. He was wearing a brown haori and new hakama. "Come," he said leading the way to the small room he used as an office.

Tokio was standing outside watching the boys make their paper birds "fly" when the commissioner left. She was pleasantly surprised when Hajime joined her after the carriage reached the end of the private lane. He stood behind her, his arms possessively around her waist. She placed her hands upon his and leaned back against him taking comfort in the feel of his solid frame against her.

"He thought you were dead?' she asked quietly.

"Hnnn. It's best to let the rumor stand for now. It might draw some of Shishio's supporters out into the open." He paused and rested his chin lightly on top of Tokio's head. "Do you have any more of that ointment?"

"Yes," she said turning in his arms. A great sadness overcame her as she gazed into his now dull eyes. It was as if part of him really was dead and she couldn't stand it. She touched her fingers to his cheek, brushed them across his lips then pulled away knowing that she would burst into tears if she stayed a moment longer.

A small spark glowed in Hajime's eyes when he came to get the ointment, but it was an angry spark. He took the small jar from her roughly, his amber eyes narrowed and locked onto hers. "Don't pity, me, wife. Don't ever pity me."

Chapter 5

Tokio concentrated on keeping her body still and her breathing even as Hajime eased himself out of their bed in the dead of night as he'd done every night for the past few days. In the faint moon glow coming in the window Tokio watched as he slipped on a kimono and old hakama.

How desperately she wanted to touch him, to caress his firm muscled chest, to have his strong arms encircle her and hold her close. She wanted to run after him to beg him to speak to her to tell her what had him so troubled that it was affecting not only her but Eiji and their son as well. But to confront him will make him withdraw further, Tokio thought. So she did as she had done for the past days and remained alone, getting up and peeking out the bedroom window to watch with an aching heart while her husband prowled the perimeter of their property like a caged animal yearning to be free.

****

With the keen sense of the wolf Saitou sniffed the air still detecting the faint trace of fire that lingered from the conflagration that had consumed Mokoto Shishio's mountain fortress.

And for a fleeting moment he wished that he had perished in that inferno. At least then he wouldn't be as he was now---damning himself with each breath he took for his own inefficiencies during the battle he'd faced that day. He'd dishonored himself, first by allowing that blind dog Usui to injure him and then for failing to dispatch Shishio with his initial Gatotsu.

He should have been able to take the bastard's head off and he would have were it not for the metal band he wore. And he should have known about that, he should have known all along and been able to compensate, to adjust his attack to make the kill.

But of course the worst humiliation he'd faced was having to sit back and watch the Battousai triumph, bound back from the very brink of death to do what he, Hajime Saitou had been unable to do.

But even that isn't what taunts you the hardest, is it?

No. Himura's triumph over Shishio was an annoyance but the true humiliation had come far earlier when they faced off at the Kamiya Dojo in Tokyo, when Himura avoided his Gatotsu and drove him through the wall with one well placed strike to the back of the neck.

Saitou rubbed the spot that was still tender to the touch. If Himura hadn't had his sakabatou or if he'd flipped the blade at the last moment he would be dead now. Of course dying at the hands of one's greatest rival was nothing to be ashamed of, but dying--even almost dying--at he hands of a rival whose skills had diminished to the point of being laughable was a humiliation he was finding hard to bear.

****

"If you aren't hungry you don't have to finish," Tokio said to Eiji the following day as the boy picked at the eel now growing cold on his dinner plate.

Eiji looked to Saitou then rose from the table after receiving a quick nod in reply.

"You don't need to eat the boy's leftovers," Saitou said dryly as he watched his wife scrape the contents of Eiji's dish onto her own.

Tokio looked at him. "I don't like to waste especially since you work so hard to provide for us."

"You should heat that."

Tokio took a bite of the eel. "It's warm enough." She cast her gaze down to the plate for it pained her to see the dark circles showing beneath his usually penetrating eyes.

"Is Tsutomu ill? He seems to have fallen asleep rather early."

"He woke just before dawn and was outside playing with Eiji all afternoon. I imagine he's just tired."

"As you are."

Tokio's pulse quickened as it always did the instant Hajime's strong fingers caressed her face. Impulsively she took hold of his wrist, held his hand against her cheek, hoping that he would not pull away. "Talk to me. Please. Tell me what's bothering you."

"Nothing is bothering me. Don't worry yourself on my account."

Though he showed the barest hint of a reassuring smile, Tokio's heart tore when Hajime moved his hand from her grasp. Watching him leave the room she felt like a maiden again longing desperately for his kiss that never came.

Exhaling a sigh she finished the leftover food then cleared the table before going to finish sewing the new hakama she was making for Eiji.She was thankful when she felt herself falling immediately asleep a little while later after settling down on the futon while Hajime sat outside smoking and gazing at the stars.

****

The sun had just risen when Tsutomu called for his mother. Tokio sat up and winced at the dull ache in her stomach. She stood with great effort, mindful not to wake Hajime who'd come back to bed just a short time ago. A wave of nausea swept over her before she reached her son's room and she waited for it to pass.

This was the part she dreaded most about pregnancy And she hoped that this wasn't a sign that every day would start this way until the early stage had passed. She was rarely ill with Tsutomu but she knew from her sister and also Dr. Takani's lessons long ago that many women experienced different things with different children.

She almost retched twice while fixing breakfast for her son and Eiji and was becoming so unsteady on her feet that Eiji insisted on finishing the cooking. Tokio didn't object and went to lie down, her stomach now aching steadily. The pain grew worse as she tried to find a comfortable position and her fear increased.

This wasn't at all like the early morning sickness she'd felt with Tsutomu or the two sons before him that had been born dead. She bit her lip to the point of bleeding as she fought to contain the moans that wanted to escape when the ache intensified.

Chapter 6

Sounds and smells assaulted him as they always did.

Moans of the dying.

The scent of their blood.

The sound of the cowardly ones' whimpers.

The vile stench as fear propelled their bodies to let go of its waste.

But something was missing. Some key ingredient was needed to cement this scene in his mind.

Saitou felt the sun's rays settle on his face slowly burning away the fog of sleep.

A dream. It was just another dream of the Bakumatsu---

Wait.

The fear was real. He could feel it leeching towards him.

The whimpering was audible, the smells existed.

Amber eyes snapped open and he bolted upright, jostling the futon enough to make Tokio moan. She bit her fist as it to stifle the sound then clutched at her stomach and threw up on the floor.

Saitou knelt beside her, his stomach knotted with tension. "Tokio. Tokio, can you hear me?"

Her reply was another low moan and she struggled to open her eyes. She clutched her belly again and drew her knees up as a pain rocked her causing more watery waste to escape her bowels.

"Hajime. Leave. Please."

"No," he said tersely, wiping sweat dampened strands of hair from her face. A muscle twitched at his jaw when she heaved again but did not throw up. "I will be right back."

"No. Just go...."

Saitou ordered Eiji to take the horse and bring the doctor back as quickly as possible then placed his son in his room.

With a calm and gentle precision he stripped and cleansed his wife's flushed body then transferred her to a clean sleeping mat before tossing the soiled things outside.

She was rocking back and forth when he returned to the bedroom, her hands between her drawn up knees, her eyes shut tight. She gagged but did not throw up more than a few drops of greenish bile onto the towel he'd left beside her. He removed it then took a fresh damp cloth and wiped her lips and cheek.

"The doctor is on his way. I sent Eiji."

"Eiji," she whispered "So like a son."

"Yes he is and soon there will be another little brother for him to play with."

Tokio looked at him with haunted eyes and he knew that despite his effort to conceal the truth she could see that he had seen what she'd felt within her body.

There had been blood when he cleaned her. Not much, but with her past history it could only be a bad sign.

The doctor arrived and began examining Tokio. After a few moments he asked Saitou to step outside. He refused. Again Tokio looked at him with her haunted sunken eyes. "Please Hajime. Please go."

Reluctantly he did. He looked in on Tsutomu. Eiji had joined him and was helping him eat a soft rice cake with fruit jam. "I will look after him, Saito-sama. How is 'kio-san?"

"The doctor is still examining her."

The boy's stricken expression touched his heart. Tokio had become a mother to him in these short weeks as much as he'd become a son to her.

Saitou went to the small prayer room they'd erected in a rear corner of the house. He knelt before a small table decorated with flowers and picture of deceased family members. He took the picture of Okita in his hands.

Give King Yemma a message for me old friend. Tell him that if he takes my Tokio I will hunt him down in every far corner of the afterlife and I will make him pay.

He couldn't lose her. Not now, not ever. She was half his soul, she was the warm and shining light that kept his humanity intact for so many years and through so many battles. She was his anchor to the normal world. Her quiet strength and undying trust helped keep his sanity unbroken when so many others saw theirs fray during the horrific bloodbath of the revolution and ensuing wars.

"Saitou-sama?"

Saitou glanced over his shoulder to look at Eiji.

"The doctor is asking for you."

(Thank you so much to everyone who's been reading and taking time to comment. Chibi-chan-Okita is in the anime episode 28 the one where Saitou makes is first appearance. It's early on when Kenshin's dreaming of the Revolution. Okita is Captain of the Shinsengumi first squad. He looks like a kid but was actually in his 20's. I decided to make him related to Tokio since I have no clue as to how Saitou and Tokio met for real.

This chapter is kind of short too, but I wanted to post it since I'm not sure how to wrap things up just yet…)

Chapter 7

Piercing pain gave way to a nagging ache and Tokio felt herself cradled in the strong branches of a tree. A gentle warm shower washed over her face and body before she drifted on a breeze. The tree settled her onto a dense cloud then stepped back allowing the warm sun to shine upon her.

She murmured and stirred as soft scents surrounded her-- earth and grass and the wildflower she'd loved since her childhood back in Aizu. There was quiet bubbling laughter, a child's laughter, and she saw her beloved cousin Okita standing over her. He smiled a sad sort of smile then began to fade away.

Tokio reached out to him her arm suddenly feeling so very heavy. She grunted with the effort it took to keep it raised.

"Saitou-sama! She's waking!"

"kaasan, kaasan!"

Tokio opened her eyes, the sun hurt. She could barely focus. With great effort she raised her hand to shield her eyes. Familiar faces swam into view through the blinding glare. Her son Tsutomu, young Eiji and finally Hajime.

Hajime knelt beside her and she realized that she was on a low couch on the porch outside the bedroom that overlooked her flower garden. "You had us worried. The doctor expected you to wake yesterday."

"How--long?" she croaked, her throat parched.

"Two days. Three if you count the day you took ill."

Tsutomu scrambled up and lay beside her to hug her. Hajime tried to move him. Tokio shook her head. "It's all right." She looked to Eiji and smiled then held out her hand. He held it then kissed her cheek in greeting.

"I'm thirsty," she said to her husband.

"I'll get you some green tea. The doctor said you should drink it," Eiji offered eagerly. He hurried back inside followed shortly by Tsutomu who was anxious to see what his companion was up to.

Tokio gazed at Hajime, wondering if she were dreaming or if that passionate fire really was burning once more in is amber eyes. He reached out and stroked her cheek, smoothed back her hair and brought his mouth to hers for a soft kiss that made her heart race just as it had back when she first began to fall in love with him.

"How do you feel?" he asked.

"Weak, and my stomach aches a little." She tried to sit and he immediately helped her, sitting beside her letting her rest against his solid frame, his arm protectively draped around her shoulder. He rested his cheek against the top of her head and she breathed a contented sigh. "What happened? I thought it was a morning sickness---she pulled away to look up at him. The baby?"

He smiled. "He seems to be fine. The bleeding stopped before the next morning. The doctor thinks it was a fluke, but he wants you to rest as much as possible."

"Then, what was it?"

Hajime gave her one of his wicked smiles and she felt a flush spread over. "It appeared to be a case of too much worrying, too little sleep, and a very bad piece of eel." He gave her a long look. He was trying to look harsh but an old familiar glint in his eyes gave him away. "I told you not to eat that cold eel."

Tokio couldn't help but laugh, though it jostled her still sore stomach. "That you did, husband. That you did."

The men in Tokio's life pampered her like an Empress in the days that followed. And though she rather enjoyed it at first the charm wore off rather quickly. She woke before dawn at the end of the week and began the washing.

"Back to bed, onna, you're supposed to rest."

Tokio shot her husband a defiant look. "Ihave rested. You're the one still in need of bandages. You rest now."

"Hnn," he grumbled, crouching down near the wash tub. "Don't push yourself if you start tiring."

"I won't."

Tokio continued washing out the boys' things, aware that Hajime's fiery gaze was locked onto her every movement. He was back. Her Hajime was back-at least she hoped he was.

But what had been troubling him? What had taken that darkness away? She wanted to ask but she knew after all these years that he would tell her if and when he was ready.

She glanced up when he rose and stepped inside. He returned a moment later with his katana. He took a few steps towards the enclosure where he practiced the stopped and came back. He tugged on the back of her yukata until she rose, inadvertently splashing soapy water on him.

Before Tokio could apologize, Hajime swept her into a one armed embrace. His mouthed swooped down to cover hers, devour hers and she lost herself in the heat he roused deep inside. He let her go long before she was ready then he winked and continued on his way to practice his kata.

Tokio pressed her cool damp hands to her flushed cheeks then finished her washing, a dreamy smile upon her lips.

Chapter 8

Perhaps I should have bitten back my pride and let them pamper me, Tokio thought days later as she watched Hajime from the corner of her eye.

He was sitting at the far end of the porch at the rear of the house polishing his dagger as he'd been doing for countless hours since her recovery. He'd withdrawn again and it ate at her more than it had the first time.

Her brow creased as a disturbing thought entered her mind. She dismissed it at once when her son was called her to come look at something he'd discovered in the rock garden.

Holding the prize in his chubby hands, Tstuomu ran over to his father who gave the insect a cursory glance. Hajime's clipped responses to Tstuomu's many questions made Tokio's imagination spin out of control once again.

She knew very well that her husband wasn't the talkative type but he valued learning in all its forms and rarely pushed aside anything their son or even Eiji found to be important. Her gaze fixed on the gleaming deadly blade of the dagger balanced on her husband's knee, Tokio made a silent plea. Don't distance yourself, Hajime. Don't try to make it easier to abandon us.

For the remainder of the day Tokio told herself time and again that she was being foolish. Hajime was entertaining no notions of killing himself. Why would he? Seppuku was not something one took lightly and the only thing that could remotely make him consider such a thing would be if he violated the bushido.

But such a thing was impossible. As sure as she knew her own heart, Tokio knew that everything about Hajime Saitou was centered around the Samurai code. Justice, courage, benevolence, truthfulness, honor, loyalty, self-control--- these ideals came as naturally to Hajime as breathing. To think that he could have violated any of these things was unthinkable. He wouldn't, he couldn't even if he tried.

She bit her lower lip, her dark eyes trying desperately to peer into her husband's soul. What happened during that battle with Shishio? What could have driven you to this?

***

"I might take the boys to visit my sister tomorrow," Tokio said as she readied herself for bed. "Her son is Eiji's age. It will be good for him to be with someone older for a change." Hajime said nothing. "Would you like to come along? A outing might be good for you."

Hajime shrugged off his yukata then slid beneath the thin blanket on the futon. I'll stay here if you don' t mind. If I hear the stirring tale of Watanabe-san's business success once more I can't be responsible for my actions."

Tokio chuckled and undid the braided knot pinned atop her head. Her sister was rather obnoxious in touting her businessman husband's success. And to be honest she had often come close to an argument when her sister commented on Hajime's lowly government job. If she only knew how handsomely the Meiji government paid Hajime for his considerable services, but no one could ever know. They lived as humbly as they had from the start with the extra money quietly invested and set aside to help their children when the time came.

She was brought out of her musing by the sound of Hajime's deep voice, which held an especially husky tone.

"Come here, let me comb out your hair."

Concentrating on the look in Hajime's amber eyes, Tokio told herself that her foolish worries had been just that--utterly foolish. Hajime was fine, better than fine. He was mostly likely exhausted from the extra work, the traveling, the battle.

Her pulse quickened when his strong fingers brushed hers when he took the comb from her. She knelt on the futon, caressed his scratchy cheek then sat with her back to him. Her body tingled from the feel of his strong fingers undoing her braid, her blood rushed through her veins, warming her inside and out as he slowly brushed the thick ebony strands of her hair, his hand skimming her back as he held her hair from beneath to keep the comb from scratching her.

Hajime chuckled when she murmured and sighed. "It has been a while since I've done this, hasn't it?"

"Mmm-hmmm."

He set aside the comb, slid his fingers through her hair to part it at the back of her neck. "And it's been even longer since I've done this…" His velvety voice trailed off as his lips skimmed her skin and Tokio leaned back, moaning softly when he slid his arm around to cup her sensitive breast through her yukata.

Tokio turned, kissed him fiercely. He responded with a passion she so desperately wanted and lay back, pulling her down on top of him. She felt the heat of his bare chest through the thin cotton of her robe, felt the hardness of his arousal pressing against her. She ached for him, sighed his name when his kisses moved from her lips to her neck.

Their son woke, crying.

Tokio and Hajime pulled apart, both listening, the sound of their labored breathing echoing through the still room.

"A nightmare," Tokio whispered. "He'll fall back to sleep."

"You should go to him."

"He'll be fine. Eiji is with him."

"He's calling for you."

Tokio blinked back a tear then moved off her husband. His tone was final. He was in total control once more and she had no choice but to leave the room.

He was standing near the window smoking a cigarette when she returned a short time later. The sight of him silhouetted against the silvery moon, so tall and muscular tore at her heart, overwhelmed her body with longing. She stepped forward, reaching out to him.

"He's sleeping again?"

Tokio stopped, her hand dropping back to her side when she felt the emotional distance he'd placed between them once more. "Yes. He dreamed of that caterpillar. Such a small thing to be frightened of."

"Sometimes the smallest things can be the deadliest." He flicked the cigarette out into the rock garden. "I'm going to take a walk. Get some sleep. It will be a tiring trip to Kobe."

Tokio managed to hold her tears until Hajime slipped outside. She cried into her pillow her nails digging into her palms. Her imagination ran wild once more, and the sensual ache in her body turned to a stinging, painful fear.

What if he wasn't here when she returned? What if he committed suicide for some reason she'd never know? What if his lovemaking tonight was meant to be a farewell?

If only the baby hadn't woken. If only she'd insisted on letting him get back to sleep on his own. If only…

Chapter 9

During the train ride to Kobe, Tokio could not get the image of Hajime's face out of her mind. The lifelessness in his eyes haunted her as it had in the days following his battle with Shishio. She was losing him. He had meant last night's disrupted intimacy to be his farewell.

A horrible mental image of him lying face down in a pile of his own blood and entrails in their bedroom assailed her and she gagged.

"'kio-san are you going to be sick again?" Eiji asked, his young face tight with worry.

"No. I'm fine," she said flatly. "I'm having another baby and queasiness is a part of the early weeks."

He nodded then turned his attention back to the book he'd been reading and Tokio hugged the dozing Tsutomu a little tighter. She closed her eyes and took a calming breath. If Hajime had indeed set his mind on Seppuku there was nothing she could do to change it. And if he did her certainly wouldn't do it in their home where she would find him. No, if he chose to die as a matter of honor then he would die as he lived, in complete control and with extreme dignity.

Still, Tokio could not find peace with these thoughts and when she arrived at her sister's she placed the sleeping Tsutomu in the bedroom then made her way to the temple to meditate and pray. She was half way there when Eiji caught up with her. He refused to go back, instead pressing her for information and she decided that it was best to tell him as much as she could without causing him undue worry.

"Hajime has been troubled and I don' t know why. I thought that praying for him might help to ease his worry."

"Let me come. Please."

Tokio took the boy's hand. "All right."

***Saitou sat polishing his dagger as the day edged into late afternoon then twilight. A shaft of fading sunlight glinted on the weapon's blade blinding him for a moment, causing him to drop it. He bent to pick it up. A shadow fell upon him and his head shot up. His mouth fell open and he gaped at a sight he could not possibly be seeing--It was his dead best friend and comrade, Okita Souji.

The waning sun cast a golden glow around him as if he were a being of light. Saitou set down the dagger and rubbed his eyes. His blood ran cold when the specter of his dead friend laughed that annoying boyish laugh of his. It sounded so real, so alive.

"No Hajime, your warlord mind is not playing tricks on you. I'm very real if only for a short time."

Saitou stood, approached then stopped, still certain that he'd crossed the line into hallucination and madness. Okita laughed again and Saitou studied him, marveling at how alive he seemed. And alive like in the old days before the consumption took him. Gone were the shadows and lines on his young handsome face, returned was the youthful glow, the faint roundness of his cheeks, the odd lilt in his laugh.

"How? Why?"

Okita smiled and stepped forward. "The love of a pure-hearted woman is a powerful thing, Hajime, and the prayers of one bearing a new life even more so. Add to that the devotion of an innocent child and you have a force that even Kami cannot ignore."

"I don't understand."

Okita's expression grew serious as his gaze fell upon the dagger. "You understand perfectly." He placed his hand on his friend's broad shoulder. "Walk with me."

They took a handful of steps and suddenly they were far from Saitou's house. They were atop a hill overlooking Kyoto. It had been Okita's favorite place to go and think, especially at this time when day slipped into night and the air was still and glowing with the sun's dying rays glinting off the water of the river.

"My uncle wanted 'kio-chan to marry a government official, a businessman, a teacher, a farmer, anyone but you."

Saitou grunted. Okita laughed.

"Can you blame him? Think about it, ahou. You kept her hanging on for close to seven years before you asked her to marry you. You took off to the Seinan war not long after Tsutomu was born and were gone for a year. You took the position Okubo offered and have been traveling from one end of Japan to the other and all the time Tokio has quietly supported you.

"She's waited patiently though it pained her to do so. She's spent countless nights alone and lonely because she knew that you had a job to do. She's tended your wounds when you straggled home, she's put up with your insolence and foul moods, all the while loving you and your ideals beyond belief.

"Is your damaged pride really important enough to rip her heart out and dispose of it like rotting garbage?"

"You make no sense," Saitou snarled.

"Oh, but I do," Okita said in that deathly calm tone he'd used on more than one member of the Ishin Shishi just before cutting him down with a single thrust of his katana. He turned to face the canopy of thick trees being them and waved his hand.

Amazingly the images that had haunted Saitou's dreams played out before them, his injuries at the hands of the blindman Usui, the failed assault on Shishio, the battle with Himura at the Kamiya Dojo. That final scene, his greatest humiliation, replayed itself over as it had in his mind, each moment dragging by, taunting him, the dull edge of the sakabatou hitting his neck, driving him through the thin wall...

Okita waved his hand again and the images were gone though the humiliation and inner rage they caused remained, tensing Saitou's body like a tightly wound spring.

"You were not defeated, you were not overcome. If you had done a truly dishonorable thing you would never have wavered this long. The choice of Seppuku would have been clear from the start."

Saitou growled.

"Fate smiles at Destiny." Okita touched his friend's shoulder. "Fate crosses your path with Himura's but Destiny has not decreed that you die by one another's hand. " He paused. "Did you know that 'kio-chan considered killing herself. Twice in fact."

Saitou's eyes narrowed. "You lie."

Okita laughed. It was a derisive laugh. "I know. I saw."

Saitou's expression changed to one of mingled shock and fear. "When? Why?"

"The babies. Losing your first conceived sons injured her soul in ways you can't begin to imagine. She felt that she failed you, dishonored you by not being able to bear healthy children to carry on your name."

Okita's glowing eyes burned into Saitou's own. "You were gone so much, were so absorbed in your work that you only saw the brave face she wanted you to see. Have you never noticed the scar at the base of her throat?"

"Of course I did. She said it was an accident, that she fell."

Okita smirked. "Twice she gave birth to dead sons. Twice she woke in the night so saddened and alone that she couldn't bear to live. Twice she took the tanto you gave her for protection and tried to pierce her throat. Twice the image of your face swam before her teary eyes and the love in her heart would not let her leave this world as long as you were in it."

"I don't know what to say."

"Surprisingly," Okita said with a knowing grin. "Words are not necessary, Hajime, only actions. Show your wife what she means to you by allowing Destiny to lead you not the other way around."

Before Saitou could say anything else Okita shimmered, almost faded in the last rays of the sun. He clasped Saitou's shoulder and gave him a sad smile. "My time is almost gone and there's one thing I have left to do. "Goodbye, my friend. We'll meet again one day."

"Goodbye, Okita-kun. And thank you."

***

Tokio was in that dreamy other world which lies between sleep and wakefulness when the door slid open and her sister, Tami appeared.

"Tokio. There's a man to see you."

"Hajime?"

"No. He's....not someone I would expect to come looking for you."

Tokio's blood ran cold as she rose from the Western style divan but then she remembered the dream that her sister had interrupted and her fear melted away.

Fear not, sweet Tokio. Mibu's last wolf will be with you for many years to come. Together you will raise healthy sons, and hear the laughter of many fine grandchildren...

Chapter 10

Saitou slipped into the Watanabe house undetected by the bustling servants and took up a position where he could watch his wife and her sister.

"I'm sorry to bother you," Cho said with politeness that was clearly painful. "But the boss wanted me to bring these things to you right away," he said handing Tokio a set of three gaily wrapped boxes each one larger than the next. She sat on the closest chair and stared at the parcels on her lap while Cho handed Tami a note.

"The boss asked me to give this to you and wait for an answer."

Saitou watched his sister-in-law's surprised expression with pleasure.

"Tell him that I would be happy to oblige. The boys are more than welcomed to spend tonight and tomorrow here."

Cho bowed then turned towards Tokio. "Tokio-dono, the boss wants you to know that he'll send a carriage around for you at eight sharp and he asks that you wear what's in those boxes."

Tokio's fingers fluttered across the crisp patterned paper. "I will."

Cho bowed then took his leave and Saitou continued to watch as Tokio gave in to her younger sister's insistence that she open the gifts starting with the largest.

Tami gasped and Tokio could only stare in disbelief as she lifted from the box an exquisite white silk kimono decorated with irises embroidered in real gold thread. The next box contained an embroidered gold silk obi and jeweled hair combs which elicited a wistful sigh from Tami who looked as though she'd just witnessed Meiji himself coming to worship at Tokio's feet.

Saitou smirked. The ahou you married can't provide that on his tradesman's income, can he?

Finally Tokio opened the smallest box and her previous look of disbelief melted into an expression that Saitou could not find suitable words to define it. All he knew was that this was what Okita meant by the power of a woman's love. If his life were to end at this very moment he knew that he would die happy knowing that Tokio loved him with the immeasurable depth of feeling that shone in her dark eyes.

"Oh my," Tami said as Tokio removed the pendant from the box and and held it before her.

He'd found the necklace in Tokyo in the shop of an American merchant who'd given him information on illegal arms trading. It was an unusual thing, one of a kind and the instant Saitou saw it he had to have it for his wife.

Crafted from solid gold the pendant was formed in the shape of a wolf's head. The detail was so impeccable that the strands of fur looked as though they were actual hair dipped in gold. The eyes were two gleaming amber topaz stones that reflected the light with an odd reddish glint making the creature appear alive and about to strike.

"He can't expect you to wear that thing. It's frightening," Tami said.

Tokio gave her sister a self satisfied look as she undid the clasp and placed the pendant around her neck. She touched her fingers to it and smiled. "I'll wear it always. It's the perfect thing for the wife of Mibu's Wolf."

Though he wanted to swoop into the room and whisk Tokio into his arms that instant, Saitou contained the impulse then left eh house as stealthily as he'd entered to put the last of his plan into action.

***

Tami Watanabe watched as her servants put the finishing touches on her older sister's hair and obi.

"You look absolutely beautiful, 'neesan. And far too good for that baka you insisted on marrying."

Tokio laughed, her spirits lighter than they'd been in ages and she touched her fingertips to her necklace. "I love him, Tami. I always will."

Tami groaned and shook her head. "I don't even want to think about how he came by the money for those things you're wearing."

"You'd be surprised."

"Disgusted, I'm sure."

Tokio laughed and kissed her sister's cheek. "Thank you for watching the boys."

"I'm doing it for you. Only you."

Tokio laughed again then went out to the waiting carriage.

She was taken back to Kyoto to the finest hotel where Hajime was waiting, dressed in a new outfit of his own-yukata, haori, and hakama in colors reminiscent of his Shinsengumi uniform but without the triangles and this time made of thick silk instead of the simple cotton and wool. He led her to the hotel dining room where a sumptuous dinner awaited.

The gazes of the other diners kept straying to the richly dressed couple and Tokio felt so very proud to be in her husband's company.

"The Battousai was right," Saitou said once some time later when he'd escorted Tokio up to their elegant suite of rooms. "You are a Goddess."

Tokio blushed. "You shouldn't say such things."

"I speak only the truth that I see," He said taking her into his arms. "You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen .."

His words dissolved into nothingness as he brought his lips to hers.

With the dark cloud lifted from her spirit, Tokio responded to her husband's kiss with the abandon of a new bride lost in the heady excitement of her first physical expressions of love. To her complete delight, Hajime responded in kind, making love to her with even more exquisite care than he'd done on their very first night together.

They were lost in a perfect world of kisses and caresses, all worries and responsibilities banished. The only thing that mattered was boundless love they shared and the burning passion between them that took them to unimaginable heights of desire all through the night.

The sky was just beginning to lighten with the encroaching dawn and Tokio lay sweetly exhausted in the circle of Hajime's strong arms. She murmured as he toyed with strands of her long hair then traced delicate designs across her bare shoulder and along her neck. He sifted his position to lay on his side, raising himself on one elbow his other hand still skimming across her flushed skin. His calloused fingertips lingered on the spot where her collarbone came together.

"Why did you never tell me?" he asked softly.

"Tell you what?" she asked, brushing those forever straying strands of hair away from his piercing eyes.

"Why didn't you tell me the truth of this," he said his fingers stroking the small scar.

Tokio stiffened. "I don't understand," she mumbled, wanting very much to avert her gaze from those sharp eyes, knowing that if she did he would see the truth.

He exhaled a sigh then hugged her to him again and lay back on the soft feather bed. "I know now what happened and I wish I could take away that pain."

"But---"

He silenced her with a kiss then shifted again, so that she was beneath him. He gazed down at her. "I would be lost without you, Tokio. Don't think even for a moment that I could ever blame you for the children we lost." He kissed away the tear that trickled down her cheek.

"H-how could you know?"

"Okita. He came to me. I don't know if it was a dream or real but I do know that he told me a truth I was too stubborn to see."

Though he'd always kept details of his work and battles to himself Hajime Saitou knew that now was the time to share his recent experiences with his wife. He told her of the events at Shishio's mountain fortress and confided the silent humiliation he'd felt back in May following his battle with the Battousai at the Kamiya Dojo.

Tokio listened intently but said nothing. She didn't have to. It was enough that she was there for him as she'd always been, a calm and lovely presence in a world filled so much violence, blood and chaos.

They fell asleep in each other's arms as dawn broke over Kyoto. They woke in the early afternoon and spent the day together in their suite acting as carefree young lovers. They went home that night then went to retrieve the boys that following morning. That afternoon following lunch Hajime Saitou again donned his police uniform.

"You're going to the office this late in the day?" Tokio asked.

Saitou gave her a wicked grin. "I have to earn back the fortune I spent on your trinkets don't I?"

Tokio laughed. "If it's such a hardship I don't mind doing my part to help. We could take in a boarder or I could take in some laundry, perhaps once the new baby comes I can try for a position in town at the shirobeko. That would be perfect. I can wait on customers, perhaps cook---"

Saitou gave her playful swat on the rear. "The only one you will wait on and cook for is me."

Epilogue

May 1880

Tokio was content and very happy as she made her way to the police headquarters with her sons to meet her husband who was taking them out to dinner before they went to spend the evening at the festival. They'd officially adopted Eiji when Hajime's investigation failed to turn up his remaining family. Little Tsutomu was four now and trying to play the role of "big brother" to fifteen month old Tsuyoshi who was intent on running ahead to catch a strolling musician who was headed to the festival.

Tokio's smile widened and she waved when the station came into view and she saw that Hajime was already outside waiting for them. She giggled like a girl when he scandalously pulled her to him for a quick kiss and touched his hand to her belly which was already beginning to swell with their third child.

She smiled when Hajime asked Eiji to carry his hat then hoisted Tsutomu onto his shoulders while she picked up Tsuyoshi. "I thought we might get something to eat at the Aoiya," she said lightly already knowing what Hajime's reaction would be.

"I'd rather starve than eat at the table of the Oniwabanshu, however 'retired' they are."

Tokio laughed. "The food there is very good, the price is reasonable and," she lowered her voice. "I think Eiji is sweet on that cute little girl you think looks like a weasel."

Hajime smirked. "Really? Well I'm sure Shinomori will tremble in fear of being replaced."

"Shinomori-san? Oh, isn't he the tall handsome one you spoke with last time?"

Saitou snorted. "Handsome? I think we should skip the festival and go seek out some spectacles for you. Your eyesight is obviously failing you, wife."

Tokio laughed as she followed her husband through the busy streets.