A sadistic Princess should have a sadistic knight.

Disturbances.

Kagura awoke to the alarming thud of a seemingly hefty object. She sat up suddenly, her fingers immediately finding and massaging her temples at the painful throbbing that invaded her head. Her fever has dropped drastically, however, and she inwardly(and bitterly)thanked her knight for making her drink that repulsive amalgamation he called a 'poison remedy' last night. Was it even a drink? It's texture was fluid, but... She blanched at the thought; Its taste appearing fresh on her tongue. Oddly, it feels like I'm forgetting something... I drank something gross last night, that's for sure... But why do I keep remembering the word 'chapped'? Her head pulsed again, snapping her back to reality.
       "Just don't think about it..."
She whispered curtly. Her room was engulfed in darkness, apart from the centre of her room that was illuminated by the dim glow of the moon just outside her window. It was slightly ajar, and she relinquished her blanket to be met with the crisp night air. Shivering, she slid off of her bed and elicited a silent yell when her bare feet met with her wooden floors that was even colder than the air that intruded her bedroom. Running over to the window, she slid it closed and scanned her room for the object that fell. She was quite disappointed when it revealed itself as simply a book and nothing more interesting. Sighing, she skimmed through the pages for any wrinkles or bends; failing in finding any, she shut it closed.
She walked out of her bedroom, deducing that it would be a futile attempt to try and fall asleep again. Now that I think about it, I've never been in Sadist's room. Not that that's going to change. Wondering without purpose or location, she walked past the bedroom of a certain glasses-wearing man. His room was just below hers and occasionally, she'd hear girlish squeals of delight, assuming he was simply gossiping with one of the maids.
On the lower level stayed all of the workers of the castle, resulting in the corridors stretching as far as it could reach. Those that stood higher in importance got the larger and outer rooms of the castle; allowing them to have decks interspersed with smooth tatami mats for training. It was quite unfair for maids and butlers to have to sleep in such small rooms, and Kagura always fought for them to have the more comfortable sleeping areas, her reasoning being they do more work than any of the men in Gintoki's army. Which was undoubtedly false, and she had to apologize to the colonel later.
       "He wasn't even angry though."
She grumbled. Which wasn't a lie. All the tenants of the castle truly enjoyed Kagura's presence, and had a good laugh over her silliness. I remember that as clear as day.
There were many servants in the castle, but Kagura has brought it upon herself at five that she would memorize each every one of their names. And she has.
She passed Otose's room and winced when she violently coughed. She brought her hand to the doorknob and let it linger there. She had wished to enter and check on her, but didn't; not wanting to get yelled at. Continuing her leisure gait, she bypassed Sarutobi's bedroom, one of Tsukuyo's best friends. She was in charge of making the clothes, and was gifted at it. Beside her was Otae, another one of her mother's close friends. She ran the dojo with Shinpachi, her strength surpassing many of the men in the army. Kagura believed the man that stayed next to her, Kondo Isao, liked her with overwhelming passion, that he made the woman repulsed whenever she'd see him. Poor guy. Beside him was Kyuubei, the knight just below him. She was much more serene than he who was the flamboyant type. She likes to train with the Shimura's, and it always brought a smile to her face. Zenzo was beside her, a man with an astounding war acumen. He usually remained in his bedroom, training and reading. Kagura liked talking to him when he had the time. He always had the craziest stories to tell.
And finally, at the end of the hall, was Sougo. I guess I'll talk to him then.
Unconsciously, she grew nervous. The light that seeped through the cracks of the door meant that he was awake. Otherwise, she'd be damned if she opened the door to find that he sleeps with the light on. Already feeling herself losing composure, she lightly tapped on his door. Barely able to utter the words:
     "Sadist? It's Kagura, let me in."
She heard the floorboards creak beneath his weight, and she knew the comments she was going to receive from him as soon as he reveals himself. Squeezing the hem of her sleeping wear, she kept her gaze lowered, unable to face him. She flinched when she heard his deep voice ring through the silence,
     "Hime, what the hell? What are you doing here? Go back to bed."
     "I don't remember receiving orders from you. I've missed my daily teachings thanks to you. Now, I'm going to study here,"
She said casually, still refusing to look him in the eyes. Her face was placid as she began to enter his room only to be halted by a broad chest.
     "And what's wrong with your room?"
He intoned suspiciously. Suddenly, her headache came back.
     "It's too cold. You're not allowed to refuse my requests so let me in."
Pushing him aside, she hummed amusedly at how tidy his room was. His futon was a plain grey, not that she expected it to be patterned. A white bureau rested in the corner, expected to be filled with his uniform and personal clothing. His sword rested against its birch wood, sheathed and clean. She turned to his desk that was the same pristine white as his dresser. A shelf held books that were stacked neatly atop each other depending on size. It's content varying from sword techniques to a few books she lent him to read.
Honestly, it couldn't be more normal. She half-expected torture weapons to hang from the ceiling; axes, bear traps, and whatnot swinging precariously over his sleeping body.
     "I don't know what you're thinking, Hime, but I feel like I should be concerned,"
Came indifferent orotund from behind her. She stared at him intently and he grew stiff with alert. He crossed his arms and lolled his head to the side,
    "Hime?"
She voiced no response. Just say it, Kagura. 'Thanks for taking care of me today.' Come on. Cerulean eyes flickered to his devilishly handsome face, and he furrowed his eyebrows at her odd behaviour. He kept his stare on her, refusing to tear away.
     "Th-thanks......"
He lightly scoffed,
     "I'm not an elephant, Hime. What was that?"
She bit her lip. Closing her eyes, she inhaled a deep breath and exhaled before looking into his eyes once more.
     "Thank you for taking care of me today. It was a voluntary good deed. I'll definitely repay-"
She was interrupted by his sudden laughter.
     "Are you stupid? I'm your Knight. Why do you think I'm here right now? I'm not just gonna sit there and do nothing when you just consumed a virulent poison."
He said it matter of factly, and she cursed his parents for giving him such good coercing skills. She allowed her professional facade to shatter completely. Loosening her shoulders, her expression remained docile, but her laxness manifested greatly. A smile crept onto her face.
"Thank you."
A silence grew between them as he averted his gaze so that his expression was unseeable to her. He cleared his throat before awkwardly changing the subject. Such a child.
"So... Do you need help studying?"
She fluttered her thick lashes, openly perplexed by his offer.
"Clearly there's a catch here. You're planning on ripping out various pages from my books, aren't you? Or tantalizing me nonstop while I practice mathematic problems?"
He grunted in annoyance, moistening his lips before approaching her with balled fists. She blinked in surprise as his forefinger lightly tapped against her smooth forehead in a teasing flick. This quelled her into silence, cerulean orbs widening.
Sougo snorted,
"Why do you look like you've just witnessed hell? I just flicked your forehead cause you were being annoying."
Her slender fingers grazed against the spot that had been tapped, a dumbfounded look still on her features.
***
Sougo wasn't sure how often one must not be around the opposite gender to carelessly trespass into their rooms without balking even the slightest bit. But soon shook his head, immediately being reminded of Shinpachi, and he seethed at the thought of her visiting him so late at night.
But it's a possibility. Maybe her entering my bedroom so casually is out of habitual reasons.
The proximity between them was small, he was leaning over her shoulder to correct the occasional mistakes she made. Her face displayed complete concentration, and he couldn't help but find it appealing. A million strands of vermillion lazily tied up in a high ponytail, her entire doll-like face open for everyone to see. Rose petal lips slightly pursed when a specific problem was challenging. Eyebrows furrowed permanently, engulfed in her studies.
     "Oi, Sadist."
     "What," he deadpanned, trying his best not to lean in as their faces were merely centimetres apart.
     "I finished."
She lifted her filled-in papers as proof, promptly stretching her arms and emitting a moan of relief. Her clothes hung loosely on dainty shoulders. He acknowledged her attire with a smirk. Ah, yes. I dressed her.
     "Hey, Hime."
She hummed in acknowledgement.
"Y'know I dressed you, right?"
Her face contorted into a horrified expression as she rubbed her head slowly, as if regaining lost memories.
"Th-that's right... You did... Y-you also... Kissed.."
She jumped and flushed completely red. If she keeps acting like this, I may have to do it again. He thought calmly, blinking indifferently at the obviously frantic girl. She clutched his shoulders like a vice and hissed,
"I also said I'd kill you afterward."
After what seemed like years of childish chasing, she grew tired and collapsed on his futon, burrowing herself in the sheets that had his scent. He watched in amusement, and played with her hair until he, too slipped into unconsciousness.

A/N: I apologize if this one was less interesting, I just wanted to clarify the closeness in the castle, and get as much gintama characters in there as possible. Hijikata and Katsura will come back, too so look forward to that. And I have a big arc in this planned as well. As always, thanks for reading.