A new story! This idea kept nagging and bothering me and it wouldn't go away! D:

So, thus, here we are.

It's AU. And a bit of fantasy. There's a love triangle, but mostly Amuto. And Tadase might seem OOC, but I need him to play this role in this story. Also, he is a dog lover, I guess it fits. So please read and I hope you'll enjoy this!

Also, despite the title, this isn't going to be terribly sexual. XD

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Seductive Fragrance

x-chapter one-x

Just Not Normal

Two houses. Two mighty, grand buildings that constantly earned an 'ooh' or an 'ahh' from passerby. However, no one dared approach any closer than the wrought-iron gate that encased either. There was a mysterious, almost menacing aura cloaking both that just gave one the feeling that they ought to stay away, for the sake of their own safety.

The two enormous homes couldn't be more alike and more different at the same time. One seemed to be modeled after an old-fashioned Victorian-style home, with darker shingles, paint, and an elegant structure. The other appeared to be of a more modern design, and went for the lighter colors such as beige and white, with soft gray shingles and a lovely, intricate front.

To those on the outside, it seemed almost as if the homes were competing, for both were equal in grandeur and splendor, and no other home could compete with the two.

The homes were often popular tourist attractions; anyone and everyone wanted to photograph the wonderful buildings.

However, no one ever dared go inside, no one. But just as no one had ever gone inside, no one had ever come out, or at least, no one had ever seen anyone go out.

The wrought iron gates were always securely locked. There was never even a gardener seen, even though the lawn was in perfect condition. The houses still looked brand new, even though the one who provided maintenance for them was never seen.

Thus, stories erupted like wildfire and out of fear, no one dared go within a good several feet of the beautiful gates.

That was the way the ever elusive occupants preferred it. Of course, if the secrets of the residents in both homes ever got out...their secrecy would never again exist.

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He drummed his fingers on the surface of the sleek, dark desk in a speedy staccato. As usual, their massive, dark home was silent as the grave. It was always this way when the others were out. How they ever managed to get past the tourists was beyond him.

Standing up and stretching, he ran a hand through already messy dark blue hair and strode across the room to the couch, where he lay down on it in a very catlike fashion.

Catlike indeed, he mused, rolling over on his back. The irony is just hilarious.

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Humming a tune to himself as he buttoned up the final button on his white shirt, he strode out of the room and frowned a little. Alone again.

He quickly glanced at his reflection in the mirror and neatened a blond hair that was out of place. His family always expected him to be meticulously tidy and neat.

He cracked a rear window open when he reached one, inhaling the smell of cool, fresh air with his sharp sense of smell. Feeling somewhat elated, he strode cheerfully across the empty room, smiling a little to himself. The tourists were crowding as usual, but just as much as they always had.

'They're like hungry dogs.' His father had once joked, and they had all laughed.

But his mother had added, 'No more dog-like than we are, though.'

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She swayed tiredly from side to side in her seat, biting on the pencil eraser. God, could school seriously get any more boring? Apparently it really could! Finals were coming up, and school was even more of a drag lately than ever. The teachers were getting their ties all in a knot because if the students didn't score high enough they would all be fired. As if the principle would really fire them over that. Some people were just way too easily motivated by such bluffs.

Idly, she stared out the window she luckily sat right next to. From here, she had a great view of those houses. Every day, more people would flood to their completely not-so-special and completely average town and make it look like some kind of zoo. It was ridiculous how some people obsessed over those houses. Obviously they weren't that mysterious. The fact that both were still standing proved that someone was paying the rent.

She was the first out of her seat as the bell rang, haphazardly throwing all her belongings into her bag without thinking twice about it. Her pink hair flying, she dashed out of the classroom as quickly as her feet could carry her, a small smile replacing her look of utter boredom as she reached a place where two others were standing. A boy that could have easily been mistaken for a girl, and his significant other, a small girl with wavy, golden hair.

"Sorry I'm late you guys." She gasped, breathless. It was a long way from her sixth period to where they met, so she was usually late.

"Ah, Amu. It's all right." The boy nodded, smiling at her. The smaller girl just shrugged indifferently, although she probably forgave her as well.

"Thanks Nagihiko." She smiled in return; it was too difficult to not smile at the guy.

"Nagihiko, Amu. Let's go. We'll miss it." The girl spoke in her almost childish sounding voice.

"We won't miss it Rima," said Amu, "we still have twenty minutes left."

"Fine. Whatever. For your sake you had better hope so."

"Ehehe. Right, of course." Oh she hoped now that they would make it.

Nagihiko broke in, much to Amu's relief. "Well, shall we go then?"

The two girls nodded and followed his lead as he walked. The three friends talked amongst themselves, but Amu paused as they walked by the houses, where crowds of tourists were gathering. Was it just her, or did something seem off about those houses today...?

"Amu?" She quickly snapped out of it and caught up to the two, who were a good few feet ahead of her.

"Sorry. Just spacing out."

"Amu, we don't want to be late." Rima said insistently, he eyes flashing.

Amu smiled nervously. "O-of course we don't Rima, of course we don't."

What they were intending to see was a new movie, a comedy that Rima had been dying to see for a long time. And neither Amu nor Nagihiko did not want to stop her from seeing it, just as they had not choice when dragged along. Poor Nagihiko had even less of a choice; he was dragged to all of Rima's comedy shows. He hardly seemed to mind though, which was probably why they had been together for so long. It was pretty much his duty as a boyfriend anyway.

The three talked again as they walked to the theater. The sun shone warmly upon them, and it was a lovely autumn Friday. For some reason, Amu felt like she was in an inexplicably good mood today. Perhaps it was the fact that there was no school to worry about over the next few days, or the fact that her sixteenth birthday was fast approaching. Either way, she felt almost cheerful as she and her two good friends reached the theater, paid for tickets, and sat down comfortably inside.

However, there was one strange feeling Amu could not shake...

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Before he knew it, he was being rudely awoken. Ugh. And he had planned to sleep all day, too.

"Ikuto! Wake up! We're going!" Someone hissed in an urgent whisper.

He cracked an eye open and immediately identified the person as his sister. Groaning, he sat up and stretched, blinking sleepily. "What is it, Utau?"

"We're holding a meeting." She said in a hushed voice, her eyes cast downward. "With that family. Father, Mother, and the others are already there. I came back to get you, because you have no choice but to be there."

He frowned, immediately awake as he stood up, brushing off his clothing. "Let's go."

Utau nodded seriously, and led the way outside. No tourists were ever around when the sun set. According to some stupid superstition, most believed the spirits of the dead came out at night. On occasion, there were a few stragglers who wanted to take a picture of 'the ghost' so they could show off and be famous. Needless to say...it never worked. They made sure of that.

It wasn't a terribly long walk to their usual meeting place; it was an underground room that lay exactly in between the two homes. It was considered the 'neutral' ground where no fighting or arguing was allowed. U

Utau wandered about the grass, pausing here and there, until she stopped over one spot in the grass and bent down, fumbling with something hidden in the blades.

Not long after, she opened a grassy, wooden door with crumbling steps that led downwards into an unknown abyss. It was rare that they held a meeting such as this. Ikuto sighed as he descended after his sister, closing the door over them as they proceeded in the darkness. However, darkness was never a problem for either of them; if anything, it suited them the best.

The reason that they had to have a 'neutral' ground so to speak was because of an age-old feud between the two families, a feud that ran deeper than blood...and species.

After several minutes, the staircase lead into a room lit with dim lanterns. The room resembled a dungeon, almost, with a circular, low ceiling and stone floors. In the center of the room, there was a wide desk, where sat a row of four people. Surrounding the room there were several desks where others were seated. They had all been talking until Ikuto had entered. They all fell silent immediately.

Each person in the room was different, but they all had one thing in common—each had ears and a tail. About half had the appendages of a dog; the other half, those of a cat. The cat-eared people were sending distrustful glares in the direction of the dog-eared people every few seconds or so, and the dog-eared people returned the favor.

This was who they really were. This was why they had to hide themselves from the public eye. Ikuto felt his ears and tail appear and saw the same change occur in his sister. They were required to show their 'true selves' for this meeting.

In the center of the room, there were two chairs seated just before the desk where the four people sat; two he recognized as his own parents, the other two as that family's heads.

However, that wasn't what bothered him. What bothered him was who was seated in the chair before them. Narrowing his eyes, he took the seat next to him.

"Tadase." He said stiffly, eyes narrowing slightly. It was a rule to keep hostility to a minimum.

The one called Tadase nodded, his expression dark. "Ikuto."

The two spoke no more after this exchange, for the family heads spoke up.

"Everyone! Silence!" The cat-eared woman called out in a strong voice, her blond ears twitching in mild agitation. The room was silent at once, and her ears relaxed.

The four heads then next called out their names before starting the meeting, as was the custom.

"Souko Tsukiyomi, head of the feline family." The cat-eared woman spoke.

"Aruto Tsukiyomi, head of the feline family." A dark haired man at her right spoke next.

"Yui Hotori, head of the canine family." A dog-eared male spoke up.

"Mizue Hotori, head of the canine family." A bitter looking female seated next to him spoke.

"Those who have been called to the center, state your names." Commanded Souko, her violet eyes intense.

Ikuto sighed quietly before speaking. "Ikuto Tsukiyomi, heir of the feline family."

Tadase spoke next. "Tadase Hotori, heir of the canine family."

Aruto called out in his deep voice, "The meeting shall commence." His cold, sapphire-like eyes swept around the room. Not a single person in the room spoke, everyone from both families was completely silent and waited with bated breath. Ikuto saw Utau in the crowd, her gaze fixed on her father, her expression nearly as cold as his was.

"You have been called her because the heads have discussed that now is the time to get rid of this balance. We have decided that there should be one family to rule, and one alone. We have decided to use each of our heirs to accomplish this." Yui said, his voice firm.

Still no one spoke or moved, all eyes fixed upon the family heads and the heirs seated before them.

"It would seem that a certain girl has appeared," Souko said flatly, "and that she will determine which heir's family will control."

"One heir must make the girl his mate in order to be victorious. She is unique because she has the ability to bear our kind and survive easily. Also, her scent is different from any other smell belonging to a human. It is sweeter, stronger, and alluring. You will be able to identify her through her scent. Whichever heir is able to woo her first will win their family all control over all lands except for that which their house stands upon." Aruto's voice was still cold as ice.

There was again muttering as the family members spoke amongst themselves in evident surprise. Utau clearly wasn't expecting this any more than the rest of the family was; when Ikuto glanced over to check her reaction, her mouth was slightly open and her eyes wide.

"Silence." Mizue spoke now, the frown still etched on her face.

Once again, they fell silent.

"Thus, you two will attend the local high school; my own son as an instructor, and the Hotori's son as a student. Do you both accept these condtions and swear, upon the dignity of your families, that you will carry out this deed to the best of your ability or risk banishment?"

"I swear." Ikuto and Tadase spoke in unison, not looking at each other.

"Then," Yui Hotori called out in a clear voice. "This meeting is adjourned."

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Amu stretched, yawning as she glanced up at the darkening sky. It was that late all ready?

"Bye, Amu."

"Goodbye, Amu."

"See ya, Nagihiko, Rima." She hefted her bag up over her shoulder and headed home, shoving her hands in her pockets. It was hard to believe that it was nearly her birthday. Time seemed to fly by so fast sometimes, so fast that it was scary. It felt like her fifteenth birthday had gone by in a heartbeat and now she would be sixteen in a weeks time. It was still hard to believe.

Sighing wearily as she recalled all the weekend homework she would be having, she unlocked the front door and walked in, flipping on the lights as she went. Her parents were rarely home; they were usually out on business trips, leaving her to fend for herself. That was fine, it was easier being alone. More peaceful and calming, somehow.

She hummed to herself as she dropped her schoolbag on the floor and proceeded to flop down on the couch and turned on the television. She watched what was on without any real interest, only vaguely realizing that she was watching the news. (Well, not watching, not really.)

Figuring that there wasn't anything interesting on, she was just about to turn it off when the over-excited voice of a screeching female reporter caught her attention.

"I-it would seem that the ever elusive inhabitants of the homes have come out! From what it looks like, two young men have exited the homes."

Curious, Amu sat up, furrowing her eyebrows as she watched with avid interest now. Despite the fact that she never understood why on Earth people were so obsessed with the houses, it was truly interesting and astonishing news to hear that someone had actually exited it. That had never happened, at least, not that anyone had even seen.

She watched the footage; it wasn't very good, probably from an unreliable source. All the same, it was curious indeed. Two figures, one from each house, slipped out the gates at the same exact time and strode across the fields before taking cover behind the small forest that was nearby.

After this newsflash, a commercial came on, thus signaling that there probably wasn't going to be anything more of interest after this.

Still intrigued, she turned off the TV and leaned back against the couch, running an hand through her pink hair, golden eyes lost in thought.

Shaking her head she stood, walking over to the kitchen to get herself something to eat; the food at the theater hadn't exactly been satisfying.

She idly popped some bread into the toaster and poured herself a glass of milk as she stared boredly at the wall across the room.

"Ah!" She smiled a little to herself as she thought of something that might help to put her in a better mood. "Chocolate milk, of course."

Sighing, she quickly drank the milk and ate her toast before donning her jacket and sneakers before heading out and locking the door behind her. Patting the wallet in her jeans pocket, she quickly dashed to the market, hoping it wasn't closed. Chocolate milk sounded so good right now...

She jogged quickly, breathing steadily as she had nothing more than the thought of sweet, creamy chocolate milk on her mind. She felt like such a glutton, how horrible. At the moment, she didn't care; all she wanted was the milk.

After about ten minutes of jogging she stopped to catch her breath, bending over and grasping her knees as she panted breathlessly. She spared a quick glance at her cellphone; it was about 7:15 now, which explained the darkness.

She leaned back against a lamppost, thinking quietly to herself. Next week was her birthday, she still couldn't believe it. All she hoped was that her parents would be home in time for it.

Shaking her head, she began to jog again, eager for the treat she had been so craving. She dashed past the two homes that were on either side of her, too preoccupied to spare a second glance.

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Ikuto stretched out lazily on the grass, the words of his parents as well as Tadase's echoing in his ears. He had to seduce a girl? And get her pregnant in order to gain 'honor' for his family or whatever? Somehow, that plot seemed ridiculous and just not worth it.

Yawning, he rolled over on his back, wishing that he could head home but not wanting to at the same time. His mother would just pester him more about finding the girl. Besides, she had already told him enough; he didn't want to do it. So, he wouldn't.

He inhaled deeply through his nose, feeling worn out, but stopped. That smell. What was that smell? He inhaled again, a scent so sweet that it made him sit up, cat ears and tail out and he didn't even remember making them visible. Animal instincts were taking over; he must find that smell.

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He stood just upon his balcony, staring off into the night sky.

What the heads asked of them was absolute. Neither could refuse such an order. Tadase sighed. He wasn't interested in the least at the thought of wooing a girl. He never even really wanted a girlfriend, he was content with life the way it was. The fact that his own parents had decided and agreed to this as well was unnerving.

He sighed, breathing in the crisp, fall air. However, he smelled something on the wind that nearly made him want to leap off the balcony. Thankfully, he caught himself and was dashing out his room and down the stairs, his canine ears twitching atop his head. He had never smelled a thing like that before. He wanted to find it.

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Amu strode on homeward cheerily, a bottle of chocolate milk in one hand, and a bag containing to more in the other. She casually took a drink, her mood taking a turn for the better.

Too bad she didn't notice the fact that she was being followed...

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Well, my new story! Yay! I'm not going to focus on this one so much though, until I finish Stolen. I'll update between the Stolen updates, but don't expect it weekly until Stolen's out of the way.

Please let me know if you liked this! It's extremely important. I won't continue if not enough people like it, so please review and give me your honest opinions.