If You Undertake A Dare, Then Put Your Heart Into It!

An Okita x Kagura fanfiction

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters, they belong to Sorachi Hideaki sensei. Now, that's over, so let's get on with the story!

The never ending hum of intoxicated men and women flowed past the peaceful shop, brightly lit with warm and flickering lanterns. Yoshiwara was as busy as always, though the interior of the room exuded peace and restfulness. Four women, though one of them wasn't older than 18, and a child happily chatted and recounted exciting tales of past adventures over sake and juice.

Kagura, Tae, Tsukuyo, Hinowa and Seita laughed merrily as they listened to Kagura narrate how the Yorozuya once had to save a girl who was the twin sister of a ham from drug dealers and how later, they had to help the very same girl to get her boyfriend, who also looked like a ham, back from the gangsters. From there, the conversation veered onto boyfriends, with Hinowa not so subtly asking Tsukuyo whether she and Gin were going out yet. Seita was about to be shooed away, but he refused to budge, saying that if they could trust someone like Gin-san, they could let him stay too.

It was a Sunday, and Kagura had decided to drop in at Yoshiwara to visit her friends. Worried slightly about her 'little' sister's safety, Tae had accompanied her. In fact, she was also a little curious about Hinowa, Tsukuyo and the others in Yoshiwara, for Shinpachi often mentioned them to her. At the present, all of them were thoroughly enjoying themselves, good friends at almost first sight.

Tsukuyo was already half drunk, even though all she had had was a single cup of sake. Downing another, despite Kagura trying to stop her, she announced, slurring, "Oi, it's getting' t-too boring –hic-just lis-listening hic ta tales! Let's have some -hic- real e-excitement here, yanno!"

"Tsukky, you are already way too excited! Please don't drink any more, uh huh."

"It's all right, Kagura chan. Tsukuyo san deserves to loosen up a bit, after all. Now, if it's something exciting that we need, how about we play a game?"

"That's a really good idea, Tae san. Let me see, how about Truth and Dare? It'll definitely be very exciting. My, my, Tsukky, you really shouldn't drink any more. Come now and let's play, shall we?"

Finally managing to get Tsukuyo to stop drinking, the five gathered around in a circle. Hinowa set the bottle in motion and everyone watched expectantly as the bottle spun, waiting to see whom it would point out. Eventually, it pointed out Tae.

"Anego! Ah, which do you choose, Truth or Dare?"

"Truth."

Tsukuyo erratically blew out smoke from her kiseru, before asking, " Hey, -hic -is yer cooking really dark matter? Gintoki told me that ya-hic- can burn even sushi. He said-hic- that ev'n a gorilla wouldn't eat it, yanno. So, however do ya do it? I'm asking ya to reveal –hic-tha secret behind it!" Kagura gulped in nervousness, knowing that Gin-chan would probably be having a funeral at the same time the next day. And sure enough, a dark menacing aura had begun to spread around Tae. Her smile widened and she said sweetly," I really don't know the secret of my expertise myself. But I'll definitely make some one day, so that you can taste it, well, Tsukuyo san?" Sensing approaching danger, Hinowa quickly made peace, laughing and putting in some small talk, before spinning the bottle again.

This time it was Kagura. She promptly chose Dare, for she felt that her dear friends surely wouldn't ask her to do something too terrible. Moreover, the last thing she wanted was a question which would leave her a flustered mess. Tae smilingly proposed the dare, which would later leave Kagura wishing that she had faced any question they might have asked, rather than having to do what her 'big sister' asked her to do.

"Kagura chan, here is the dare. Starting from tomorrow morning, you have to be really polite and girly with Okita-kun. You mustn't yell at or fight with him, instead you must be all sweetness with him, for a week. Okay? "

"Anego, that's impossible! There's no way in hell I can be polite to the Sadist, uh huh! Please Anego, anything else would be fine!

"Kagura chan, didn't you already hear what I said? You chose dare, so you have to put your heart into it. No backing out, alright?"

Trapped between the devil and the deep sea, Kagura decided, terrified, that she preferred the deep sea. She meekly nodded her head, agreeing to go ahead with the dreadful dare, though she wished she would die before she had to be polite to that hated sadist. Hinowa smiled, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes as she pushed the pointer again, continuing the game. The game continued well into the night, the dares getting wilder with every spin. Tsukuyo resumed drinking again and eventually everyone began to choose truth, for no one wished to be trapped in one of Hinowa's or Tae's amazingly sadistic dares. Seita soon slipped away, deciding that he valued his life more than a night of fleeting enjoyment, when Tsukuyo began to throw kunai carelessly, trying to knock down the alcohol induced illusions in front of her eyes.

The next morning, tired from the wild night she had just spent, Kagura woke up at noon, much to Shinpachi's annoyance. Recalling the events of the previous night, she shuddered when she realized that she was going to have to be polite to that aggravating sadist for the entire week. Why, she didn't even want to see his damned face!

But, wait… If I don't even meet him, then I won't have to be polite to him, right? That way, I'm not technically violating the dare, uh huh. Anego can't be mad, too. So I'll just stay inside and not go out for this whole week! I'm truly a genius! Eyes sparkling at her brilliant plan, she jumped out of her closet, only to see the terrifying sight of Anego standing over a trembling Gin-chan. Kagura took in a deep breath as Tae smiled. By the time the older woman had asked," Ne Kagura chan, don't you have to go outside? It's not good to stay cooped up indoors for too long, 'kay?", our brilliant heroine had grabbed her umbrella and rushed straight out of the Yorozuya office.

Kagura walked or rather ran down the streets, praying that she wouldn't have to run into the sadist that day. Upset that her brilliant plan hadn't been of any use, she tried working out another as she walked down the street. So there's no way I can stay back at home, because anego will never let me to now. But if I wander about, I'll definitely be meeting someone I want to avoid at all costs! I think I'll go visit the park near the sukonbu shop, it's quite far away from the headquarters of the tax robbers. The chances of me meeting him there should be less, uh huh. Please may it be so! Thus her thoughts ran as she directed her footsteps towards the said park.

However, it seemed that no one was lending a ear to her prayers, for the first person she saw there was the last person she wanted to see, apparently patrolling the area. And worse, he noticed her, so there wasn't any way to run off as if she had seen nothing.

Sougo's eyes brightened as he spotted Kagura walking towards the park he was slacking off at. It had been a long and boring morning for him; Hijikata was unfortunately still alive, despite the poisoned mayonnaise and exploding lighter. Worse, he hadn't even been able to get as much sleep as he wanted, for Kondou san had assigned him patrol duty in Kabuki Chou. But now that China was here, Sougo was certain that his day would definitely get a lot more interesting.

"Oi China, came to buy that disgusting snack you are addicted to? No wonder you're so ugly, it's all that rubbish you constantly keep eating."

'I'M GONNA MURDER THAT SADIST!' Was the first thought that entered Kagura's mind before she recalled her Dare and her Anego's smile. Clenching her fists and taking a deep breath, she forced her voice to be as polite as possible as she made a small curtsey, as she had seen ladies do in serials, saying, " No, S-Sougo san, I'm not here to buy sukonbu. I was just taking a walk. I do hope that you have a good day, uh huh." Giving Sougo a bright, utterly fake smile, her cheeks flaming red with embarrassment, Kagura quickly shaded her face with her parasol before practically dashing away from the spot, leaving behind a frozen sadist.

Sougo stared, totally bemused at her diminishing back. He couldn't believe what had just happened. China, rude, violent China had just been polite to him. She had curtseyed to him and had wished him a good day. And she hadn't reacted at all to his insult, which he thought was a pretty good one. She, who always tried to ruin his days as much as possible, she, who disliked him immensely, to say the least, had just been polite to him. Hurriedly deciding that he had probably been hallucinating and that the girl had just been one of his numerous admirers, he resumed patrol duty, trying his hardest not to recall or analyze China's sudden politeness.

Leaning against a wall, Kagura felt like sinking into the road and going straight to another dimension. Whatever had the sadist thought?! Was he now laughing at her 'submissiveness'? Or was he celebrating his rival making an utter fool of herself? Or, was he disappointed that they hadn't fought as usual…. Shaking her head to rid herself of the thoughts, Kagura rushed straight back home, not caring whether Anego scolded her or not, making up her mind to lock herself up in her closet the remainder of the day.

The next day, Kagura made a firm resolution to stay cooped up in the Yorozuya office. But she couldn't keep it for more than a few hours, for Gin soon asked her to go and fetch strawberry milk, which they had run out of again. Kagura had protested and refused flat out, but she was forced to agree when Tama told her that her Gin-chan would probably die of hypoglycemia if he didn't get his favorite drink soon. And thus she was now walking as quickly as she could towards the nearest store. Kagura hurriedly bought a few cartons of the beverage, she didn't want Gin chan to die, and began to rush home, deciding that the quicker she went home, the lesser were the chances of her meeting the Sadist.

Suddenly, the scene before her eyes blurred and she heard a crashing sound, accompanied by a splash. In her haste, Kagura had bumped into a passerby, dropping a carton of strawberry milk in the process. Looking up in order to give the passerby a good piece of her mind and a beating, she nearly had a heart attack when she saw it was Sougo. To make matters even worse, in the distance, she could see Shinpachi and his sister approaching. And whatever would happen now to Gin chan?!

"Huh, China? Are you blind as well as stupid, that you can't even see where you're going? And three cartons of strawberry milk? I know you're a glu-"

" Shut it! I-I mean, I'm really sorry, S-Sougo san. I didn't mean to bump into you. Please excuse me now, I have an urgent matter to take care of…" Unable to say any more, Kagura ran past the frozen policeman, straight towards the Yorozuya office. Sougo tried calling out to her, but she paid no heed.

Staring after her, Sougo decided that he was definitely not dreaming or hallucinating this time. It was definitely China and she had just as certainly addressed the words 'sorry' and 'please' to him. She hadn't beaten him or shot him or yelled at him.

He pinched himself hard. Yep, even for a sadist like him, it hurt. He wasn't dreaming. Hijikata hadn't died yet, despite the exploding cigarettes. The sun definitely hadn't begun to rise in the west either.

So why the hell was China being polite with him?!

The next day, after a sleepless night, Sougo decided to head straight to the Yorozuya office. He couldn't rest until he found out why China's behavior towards him had suddenly turned a 180'. There had to be something which he didn't know yet. But more than anything else, though he would never admit it, he wanted his old China back.

At noon, when he dropped by the office, the one who opened the door wasn't Danna or China, but the 'glasses stand' Shinpachi.

"Ah, Okita-san, it's a surprise to see you here! Why ever have you come here today?"

"I don't feel like talking to a Megane like you. Where's Danna? I have to ask him something."

"I'm not a Megane! Gin-san's gone to Yoshiwara to meet Tsukuyo-san. I'm the only one here, since Kagura chan's taken Sadaharu to the vet, so why don't you ask me?"

Sougo hesitated a bit, but decided to proceed anyway. He was not going to lose another night's sleep over a rude, idiotic, gluttonous Amanto and whether she had suffered brain damage or not.

"Has China recently suffered major brain damage or what? Because she's behaving in a way she would never do, and she seems to have lost all her sanity as well."

"Eh, Okita san, whatever made you think so? Kagura chan's just as she's always been. She still beats Gin san and me up every day, eats a lot, sleeps a lot, in fact, there's been no change that I know of."

"If there's been no change, why is she behaving so, well, out-of-character? You had better not hide anything, Megane, if you don't want to find out how sadistic I can get."

Shinpachi sighed, shivering slightly, wondering how he got stuck with such dysfunctional idiots in the first place. He shook his head and told Sougo that no such thing had happened, as far as he knew. Sougo gritted his teeth in chagrin before leaving immediately. As he strolled down the street, he hoped that he would get the answer he was searching for soon enough, at least before he lost his sleep again.

About three quarters of an hour later, Kagura returned with Sadaharu in tow, looking quite pleased about something. However, she didn't elaborate to Shinpachi that the reason she was happy was because she hadn't run into the sadist at all that morning. Truthfully, being polite to her hated rival was almost killing her. Recalling Sougo's words, Shinpachi felt a little worried, wondering whether something had really happened to Kagura. Now that he thought of it, she had been just a little strange recently, staying cooped up in her closet, refusing to go out and muttering curses. So he decided to ask her about it.

"Ne, Kagura chan, is everything alright? Has anything, um, weird happened? Can we do something to help?"

"Eh? Whatever makes you think something weird has happened, Megane? Everything is fine, uh huh!"

"Well, it was just that Okita san came over, enquiring if anything had happened… he said that you had been behaving real strange recently, so that made me worry, you see."

Eh, that Sadist came to enquire? Was he really so shocked at me being polite to him? Shinpachi doesn't know about the dare and all, but why ever would the sadist himself drop by?

"Why ever did you believe that tax robber, huh? I'm totally fine! "

"I see, I'm relieved to hear that. Okita san looked really perturbed and anxious, I was really very much concerned. After all, you did seem a little different lately…. But I guess there's nothing to worry about. Hey, don't just go and laze on the sofa! Help me in cleaning, you lazy poke!"

Kagura merely rolled her eyes at her foster 'brother', picking her nose. A mischievous smile spread on her face as her thoughts began to wander. So the sadist really was troubled, uh huh. So much so that he even came here! Let me see, there are three more days of the dare left… While it's true that being polite to the idiot makes my blood boil, it's quite fun to know that he's disturbed because of me! Just you wait, Sadist, I'll pay you back for all the times you've insulted and meddled with my head… Anego was right, if I'm gonna do this dare, I'll put my heart into it! I'll be politer than a hostess and sweeter than strawberry milk. You so do not have a monopoly over sadism, uh huh. Now just wait and see how sadistic the queen of Kabuki Chou can get!

She giggled in happy anticipation. Meanwhile, several miles away, a certain sandy haired policeman felt a slight shiver run down his spine.

The next morning, Hijikata Toushirou was in for a big surprise. The Vice commander of the Shinsengumi took a deep breath of his cigarette as he watched his men do their daily exercises, early in the morning. But what had surprised him was that Sougo himself had woken up early and joined in. Normally, he would have to yell, threaten and throw stuff at the First captain to wake him up, even at high noon. For that same devil to get up early today and take part in the morning routine instead of sleeping through it was certainly extraordinary. Hijikata only hoped that the sudden change was something for the better.

Unfortunately, his share of surprises that day was still far from over. And he would swear to that fact, for the China girl from Yorozuya had now barged in uninvited, holding something in her hands. Her eyes were shining and she was smiling to herself, an expression most people would have mistaken for the innocent, lovable grin of a happy young girl. But not Hijikata. For the Shinsengumi demon Vice chief had seen Sougo's eyes shining in the exact same way, and it was always before a particularly dangerous assassination attempt or an especial show of sadism. He was definitely beginning to have a bad feeling about this.

Within seconds, Sougo too noticed Kagura standing by. His red eyes flashed with curiosity, before reassuming their deadpan look. The exercise finished soon after. Spotting an opportunity, Kagura walked straight over to Sougo, sporting a brilliant smile. The sandy haired sadist could hardly deny that his heart skipped a beat on seeing her, even though he had a feeling that there was something far too fishy going on. The girl, however, did not lay a hand on him, but simply handed over the box, grinning as ever. "Sougo san, I'm really pleased to see you working so hard! Here, I made a bento for you, Mami always said that you have to eat well to work well, uh huh. I hope you have a good day!" And she gave him another smile, before skipping out of the Shinsengumi headquarters, leaving more than thirty men in absolute shock behind her. And no one more shocked than the Captain of the First Division.

Maybe to say Sougo was shocked was an understatement. The sadist had no clue of what was going on. China being polite to him was disturbing enough but China giving him a bento like a shoujo manga heroine was worse! Not to mention that Kondou san had started weeping, blabbering something about how his child had grown up so much and had found himself a life partner. But China had looked pretty cute… it was really rare that she ever smiled at him; they were always too busy yelling and cursing each other…. I should just commit seppuku now.

A smirk drifted across Hijikata's lips as he watched the entire act play out. He had been as surprised as anyone to see China act like a shoujo manga heroine, but the grin she wore as she left, that only he could see, was more like that of a sadistic devil. It was pretty simple for him to guess that the girl was only messing around with Sougo's mind. Well, the brat deserved it, high time.

Kagura cringed as she recalled how sickeningly sweet she had behaved to the sadist in the morning. But the pleasure of seeing his shell shocked face was definitely worth it. It was filled with an expression so different from his usual deadpan look or sadistic smile. It was more like that of a bewildered child, who couldn't believe what was happening to him. As she thought back about it, she mused that it was definitely rather lovable…. Wait, what the hell was she thinking? She only wanted to torture the sadist, not fall for him! Though still, it wasn't too bad passing a few moments without cursing and trying to kill each other…. Yep, I'm totally out of character today.

That day, in the evening, Kagura decided to drop by at the Snack Smile hostess club to see Tae and tell her about how the dare was going. She hoped that her Anego wouldn't be too busy to listen and anyways, she could wait. One of the first things that caught her eye when she entered was the back of an oddly familiar sandy haired guy wearing a Shinsengumi uniform, talking to a hostess seated beside him. Kagura racked her head for more than ten minutes, wondering who the guy was, before the obvious occurred to her. It was the damned Sadist.

A wave of emotion, eerily akin to jealousy rose within her. Kagura couldn't in the least explain why, but she felt like taking out her umbrella and vaporizing the hostess, who was now giggling as she poured out drinks. Annoyingly, she couldn't even see the woman's face, except that she had brown hair. That damned sadist is underage; he has no right to be in a cabaret club! Some policeman he is, forever breaking the law! I really wanna blast both of them now, uh huh…

Her inner rant abruptly came to a dead end when she saw that the woman Sougo was talking to was none other than her dear Anego. Huh? What the hell is going on here? Ducking behind a nearby table, she strained to catch a few words of their conversation. Phrases like 'don't worry', 'why the hell' floated on the air. Suddenly Sougo rose, causing Tae to say, "Ah, Okita san, won't you have some snacks?"

He shook his head, adding, "I already had a bento. It was so large that I won't be eating anything for a week." Then, without any more ado, he walked out. Tae smiled after him, her eyes twinkling. Kagura felt too puzzled for words. Is he talking about the bento I gave him? It wasn't too large, it was only fifteen boxes! But he ate it? Did he like it? Oi, whatever am I thinking about now? Oh no, I knew it, staying with Gin chan would definitely make me crazy one day!

The next morning, Kagura decided to go visit the sukonbu store once again. All her stock had been exhausted the previous night as she munched through it, trying to make sense of her emotions. Not that she had succeeded. But whatever, she badly needed more sukonbu. And on the way, maybe she'd drop by the tax robbers' den and disturb the sadist…..Even if her mind too got distracted in the process, she had to keep up the dare, because giving up was the same as admitting defeat and she'd die before she did that.

But no matter how firm her resolution was, it still gave her a jolt to see the sadist once again slacking off at the very same park, his face hidden underneath a sleeping mask. However, it soon became apparent to her that he was doing anything but sleeping, when she heard his annoying voice call out, "Oi, China! Come over here a minute, you pig."

All right. That does it. The moment this dare is over, I am going to boil him in oil, break his teeth, smash his nose, send him to-

"Hey, didn't you hear me? You just gave a bento full of crap yesterday, and now you can't even come if I call you? You don't have any idea of how to stay in character, do you?

Exercise restraint…. Let's just be polite and girly this one time, we can beat him up as much as he deserves after tomorrow….

"I'm s-sorry, S-Sougo san.' Coughing to conceal a sudden desire to vomit, 'do you want anything from me?"

"Sit beside me, would you? I just want you to relieve my boredom for a little while." Goodness, I can't believe how OOC I'm acting right now… But then, nothing lost means nothing gained. Just watch the prince of the planet of Sadism now, China. Though you aren't too bad a sadist yourself…

The girl sat down beside him, utterly surprised by his behavior, but decided to play along. After all, she too was playing a part, wasn't she?

"China, do me a favor and close your eyes."

Huh? Why is he asking me to do something like that? No way I'll listen to him, it's obvious he'll be doing something really sadistic like drawing on my face, uh huh!

"I get what you're thinking, but see, I've got nothing in my hands. And why would I try to mess with you when you're being so sweet to me?"

That's the very reason you'd want to mess with me! But I do have to keep up the act, so I'll agree, even if I want to hit myself for obeying the damned brat! And if he tries anything suspicious, I'll blast him to outer space, uh huh! And Kagura took a deep breath, her cheeks slightly pink, as she reluctantly closed her eyes.

She has been expecting a lot of things, from a sword slash to the felt touch of a permanent marker to a drenching by cold water and much more. But what she wasn't expecting was the rough, yet gentle touch of a hand cupping her cheeks, and the feel of his lips on hers. Her brain totally short circuited at that point; she was completely frozen as the sadist kissed her, pulling her closer. Almost unthinkingly, she kissed him back, tangling her hands in his silky, sandy hair. It all felt so natural, his lips on hers….. and everything else slowly began to blur….

Abruptly, Sougo pulled away, far sooner than he wanted to. China stared at him, unbelieving, her lips quivering and her cheeks slowly turning redder than her dress. He sighed as he guessed that realization still hadn't hit her yet.

But it soon did, and he got hit too. The furious girl gave him such a punch that he was sent flying backwards into the nearest tree. Sougo couldn't help but grin, even though he was certain that a few of his ribs were definitely broken. This was the China that he knew.

"YOU DAMNED SADIST! HOW DARE YOU TAKE MY FIRST KISS LIKE THAT, HUH? I'M SO GONNA KILL YOU! NOW HOW WILL I EVER GET A HUSBAND, HUH?!"

Yep, that was definitely the China he knew. And boy, was he glad that she was finally back.

"Looks like you've forgotten your dare, China. Aren't you supposed to be polite to me for this entire week? Looks like Boss Lady's going to be punishing you soon…."

She stared at him, forgetting to yell for once. Feeling something crumble within her, she asked, not bothering to hide the tremble in her voice, "So that was the only reason you k-kissed me, huh, Sadist? J-Just to make me lose my dare? I-I hate you, I absolutely h-hate you!"

He could only stare back at her, bewildered, as she suddenly began to cry, tears dropping down freely from her azure eyes. Every tear hurt him, worse than any physical wound. For hell, he had only wanted to get back at her for all her acting, but he had never dreamed that she would cry. And he knew that her tears were his fault and also that he was responsible for wiping them and making her smile as usual.

Walking over to her, ignoring the pain all over his body, he grudgingly bent down to wipe her tears with his hands. Clumsily ruffling her head, he touched his forehead to hers, forcing her to lock eyes with him.

"You're seriously way too dense, China. Were you honestly able to believe that I was going to kiss a girl just because I wanted to beat her at some silly dare?"

"Well, that's just what an extreme sadist like you would do, uh huh!"

"Fine! I'll say this for the first and last time, I kissed you because… I like you, China. Well, I also wanted to make you lose, true enough… I don't really have any idea how it all turned out like this, but I guess I really ended up caring for a rude, gluttonous brat like you."

"Hey, that's my line! I'm the one who's supposed to say that I've no idea how I ended up liking a horrible sadist like you!"

Sougo grinned at that, murmuring, "I think that justifies another kiss." And before the girl in his arms could protest or pout, he kissed her again.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Really, Tae san, you are a wonderful matchmaker!"

"So those two finally got together, huh. Yer idea of that dare really did work, yanno."

"Thank you, Hinowa san, Tsukuyo san. Now then, let's get a picture, shall we? I do want to give Gin san a heart attack."

"Count us in."

A/N: And so the curtains fall on this fanfic! To everyone who's read it, I truly thank you for spending your time to read my story. I hope you enjoy it. If not, well, I'll definitely work hard to improve! Please do send reviews, I love to know what your thoughts about this story are. Constructive criticism is always appreciated and a little praise always makes my day, hee hee. So please feel free to send me anything you like!