"Hajime Saito, you will not come with me!" We'd discussed this several times already, yet this samurai was being incredibly persistent about accompanying me. This task had been entrusted to me by Hijikata, which made it a huge deal for me.

You see, I'm not actually a part of the Shinsengumi. No, I'm a part of another group, though we work alongside the Shinsengumi whenever possible or necessary. And this particular task was of great importance, so screwing up wasn't an option.

"I cannot allow you to do such a dangerous task on your own," Saito argued. His usually calm voice was beginning to show just a touch of the anger and frustration that I knew he was feeling right now.

While he was still fairly calm, I was most definitely not. Yes, this task was potentially extremely dangerous, but that was why I didn't want him with me. It would be tougher without his help and it would likely endanger my own men, but I couldn't stand the thought of Saito getting hurt. Sure, it's incredibly selfish, but I wasn't going to risk him getting hurt because of me.

"I will not allow it!" By now I was practically yelling. We'd long since attracted the attention of everyone in the compound, but neither of us really cared. So long as no one interfered, it didn't matter who saw.

Saito's gaze turned to a figure over to the side. "Commander-"

Hijikata only shook his head. "I will not get involved in some lovers' quarrel."

Lovers? I had to restrain a laugh. No, we weren't lovers, more like teacher and student. Saito had trained me for a few years now, but I had yet to defeat him in a match. Well, I wasn't actually his student anymore, but the same mentality was still there.

Saito knew that there was no way to convince me to change my mind. That was like ordering the mountains to fly across the seas. It just simply wasn't going to happen. "We both know you need me with you for this," he calmly argued. As usual, he was right. But that didn't mean I'd give in.

Though the longer this went on, the angrier I became. How could he not realize that I wanted him to stay here so he would be safe? "As Byaku's commander, I will not allow it!"

For just a moment, there was a flicker of surprise in his eyes. Only recently had I been named commander, so few knew of my rank. Saito was among those who I hadn't told yet. I really hated to use such a tactic against him, but he really wasn't giving me much choice.

"I take orders from the Shinsengumi's commander and no one else."

With a frustrated sigh, I realized there was only one way to truly settle this. "Fine. Let's settle this like men."

"That's hardly fitting, seeing as you're a woman."

Regardless of what he thought of this, he still drew his sword as I did. I may not have ever beaten him before, but that didn't mean that I didn't have a chance. Sure, it was an incredibly slim chance, but I was determined.

For the longest time, the match was even. Neither side was showing any sign of backing down. But I was feeling my body weakening. No matter how frustrating Saito could be at times, I had to admit he was much better with a blade than I could ever be. Not only did he have a lifetime of practice, but also incredible stamina. I had no hope of ever catching up to him.

As my body grew weaker, I threw more and more into my movements until finally the matched forces became mismatched. With one last good swing, I sent his katana flying out of his hands and my blade pointed at his neck. Victory was mine.

Unable to stand any longer, I let myself fall to my knees. For the first time, I'd defeated Saito. Even though it took everything I had, I'd done it.

Saito looked stunned. He never expected he could lose to me. By losing, he had to accept my decision. Sure, Hijikata could override it by ordering him to go, but that didn't matter. Unless that actually happened, he couldn't do anything without going against orders. The one thing that was great about that was that Saito would never disobey orders.

"You will not interfere," I said, repeating my earlier decision. "I'm sorry, but that's the way it has to be."

Later on that night, I set about preparing what I'd be needing. As I was focused on my task, I never heard the door sliding open and closing again. I didn't hear his footsteps or even know he was there until I felt arms wrap themselves around me from behind.

"Why?" Saito's voice asked. "Why won't you let me..." His embrace tightened. Apparently his emotions had built up too much and were now threatening to come spilling out. "Why do you insist on going alone? Why is it that you never call me by my first name unless you're angry? Why won't you let me protect you? Can't you see that I..."

Saito's grip tightened even more and I felt his face pressing against the back of my neck. He was barely managing to keep from saying any more. But every word he'd already said was like a knife carving into my heart.

As much as I wanted to answer him, the words caught in my throat. If Saito said anything more, I felt like I might burst into tears. Why couldn't he understand that I was only doing this to protect him? Sure, I wanted him by my side, but I didn't want to risk losing him. Whether he knew it or not, I loved him.

"Why do you have to be so stubborn about this?"

That did it. "Don't..." I said, failing to restrain a sob. I could feel myself shaking. No doubt Saito could as well. "Don't you... Can't you see this is hard for me too?" The arms around my waist disappeared, but I kept my back to him. I was afraid that if I looked at him, I'd say something I didn't want to. "Why can't you understand? I just wanted to protect you. If anything happened to you because of me... I... I'm terrified of losing you..."

Without warning, I felt myself being spun around. Before I could even process what was happening, something soft pressed against my lips. By the time I'd realized what he'd done, he'd already pulled away.

All I could do was stare. Sure, me falling in love with him was no surprise. Him falling for someone like me? Unimaginable. But Saito wouldn't act like this if he didn't truly feel that way. He just wasn't that kind of guy.

"Let me protect you," he pleaded.

I just sighed. "You really aren't going to give up, are you?"

Saito gave just me a slight smile as an answer. "Is it wrong to want to protect the woman I love?"

Couldn't exactly argue that, so instead I wrapped my arms around him. "You realize this is how the argument started in the first place, right?" A moment later, I made up my mind. "Just promise me one thing, alright?"

"What would that be?"

"Mmm... I changed my mind." I smirked. "You can come on two conditions."

"What would those be?" He gave me a questioning smile as I held him tighter.

"Promise me that you won't die or get hurt."

Saito nodded. "And? What's the other thing?"

I leaned up so that our noses were just barely touching before I spoke. "You have to kiss me again."