Song of OkiSai Masterpost
Thank you all for your headcanons and amazing songs you’ve sent in! In this post they can all be found in one place, along with a playlist.
Playlist (from the links shared, some are AMVs)
[Explainations under cut, ordered by answer length]
@kondo-hijikata:
The Call by Regina Spektor paralleling when saito left the dojo, just to show up in kyoto…and when he goes off to fight while okita remains behind
Don’t Be So Shy by Imany the sait is shy when the clothes come off ;)
Sakura Nagashi by Utada Hikaru translation in the cc. this is…………………………….fine.
@soujthings:
Partners in Crime by Set it off I mean… Look at the title. (Okay, that’s not a good reason.) I really feel the refrain fitting their teamwork, the way they belong to and depend on each other until the very end. In all of the other parts it’s the music: the rythm and effects remind me of a swordfight, it has a pulse similar to calculated but instinctive movements. It’s just awesome, like the two of them fighting side by side, lives on the line.
Flesh by Simon Curtis (Uhm… How does one make this sound good? ) This is the song that inspired me to write my first OkiSai smut (it’s in Hungarian and way too long to translate alone, sorry). I can’t explain it, somewhy I can totally see them engaging in more violent bedroom activities to let steam out from time to time. I know their job is a violent one too, but maybe that’s exactly why. I mean… Souji is good with knots and his hands, both of that is canon, right?
@impracticaldemon:
Angel With a Shotgun by Imagine Dragons This could be either romance, or deep friendship, and/or deep understanding. There is the sense of fighting for a cause without regard to moral standpoint; more than that, the person is saying I will stop being an “angel” ( a “good” person?) in order to do whatever has to be done: to me that’s both Okita and Saito, not so much for the Bakufu, but for the Shinsengumi (Kondo and/or Hijikata) and very much including each other. Whatever else they may be to each other, the thing that comes across very strongly is the sense of “this is the person I trust at my back absolutely”. Whatever it takes for me to protect this person, we fight together.
The Greatest by Sia This exemplifies the concept that these two are each other’s peers - rivals, comrades, more-than-friends (the concept of nakama comes through for me). The one person that they pit themselves against, over and over again, and in whose strength and skill they trust absolutely (as a peer, not a leader/parent). This song also brings in that concept of exhaustion, and fighting through exhaustion, that I associate with both of them as they strive to be the best because they have to be. Incidentally, I’ve always had a strong head-canon that Souji is low-key jealous of Saitou as time goes on, especially after Serizawa fans the flames.* (This is also worsens as Okita’s health fails, while Saitou remains healthy and mostly undefeated - depends if you’re counting Kazama. But this is a personal hc.) Anyway, there is both exhaustion and desperation about the song, along with a keen edge of brutally-won victory. That’s a feeling, an aura, which I perceive swirling around these two very young, damaged, brilliant swordsmen. Again, I think this song could work for friendship, or for a romantic, and/or a sexual relationship. But I think I prefer it for something strong - it would be a profound ‘beyond words’ kind of thing, even if non-romantic, and I see a potential sexual edge to it.
*Serizawa points out Saitou to Souji saying “now there’s a man who has killed” (effectively) - and it conveys a strong weight of “being a ‘real’ man.” That triggers Souji’s increasing bloodlust and/or need to prove himself (which Saitou never does approve of, in my opinion).