He stood in a meadow, the gentle breeze blowing through his blonde curls. It looked around mid-day, Spring. Creamy chocolate eyes scanned his surroundings. A few trees, some flowers, a bird or two in the sky, it was ... peaceful. A smile crossed his lips, a gentle smile, one that hadn't graced his face in so long. It was a few minutes before he saw it, and his face immediately fell. No. It couldn't be. It just couldn't.

It stood up out of the grass. A giant creature. A rabbit. It looked much like he did in his cursed form, but it was all black except for the deep brown ear tips, and the deep, piercing blood-red eyes.

Come here, little rabbit ...

The voice that came from it seemed to claw at his brain, and Momiji slowly began to back away from the huge rabbit.

Now, now, little rabbit ... do you honestly think you can run from me?

At this, the blonde turned tail and ran. The happy world in which he had once stood slowly deteriorated around him. The trees began to wither, their leaves slowly turning brown and falling, the grass on the ground slowly turned a brown, withering under his paws. Wait ... paws? He could see the ground coming closer, almost as if everything was getting bigger. No. He was shrinking. He looked down at his hands. Furry yellow paws. Shit. He was in his animal form now. He hunkered down on all fours, hopping as fast as he could. He could see a big area of withered trees up ahead. Surely he could hide there.

Who's in the forest strolling? The birds and the bees sing Momiji ...

Just as he got to the trees, there was this loud noise.

"Momiji ... "

The little bunny looked around, just in time to see a large hawk swooping down at him. He quickly ducked, feeling the soft breeze it made as it passed over him run through his fur. That was really close ...

Not as close as this will be ...

The bunny quickly turned around, the dark rabbit towered over him, the grass at its feet a deep shade of black, almost as if a touch of the black rabbit burned and killed the blades instantly.

Oh, Momiji ... you shouldn't have RUN!

Just then, the dark rabbit lifted a hind leg and kicked the poor little bunny, Momiji tumbling across the ground, ending up face-first in a puddle. The dark rabbit chuckled deeply and stepped around the fallen bunny. It then stood in front of him, its eyes glowing brightly.

The world around him had grown dark now, and he could see nothing other than darkness and the horrible rabbit that towered over him.

Know your place, filth ... came the voice once more and the dark once lifted its hind leg once more, setting in on the poor bunny's head and pushing him deeper into the puddle. The puddle felt thick ... it ... it did not feel like water, and he didn't want to know what it was. You can't run from me ... you can't hide ... you need to be punished. It lifted the hind leg one last time, sneering down at the poor yellow bunny. The hind leg then thrusted forward, but just before it hit his face, the blonde was jolted awake, a cold sweat dotting his forehead. He panted, having a bit of trouble breathing now.

He felt warmth rising up in his throat and he just swallowed it back down. No time for such things. Momiji glanced around at everything. It was the same as it had been the night before, the cold alley in which he had passed out was damp with dew, the make-shift hovel he slept in sagged from the previous night's rain. He moved a hand up to push the cardboard that was over him up, water cascading down the sides of the trash cans that held it up.

He then looked up at the sky. Morning? How long had he slept? At least he had been asleep most of the night, even if he hadn't slept too well due to the dream. He shook his head a bit before jumping as he heard something in his pocket. Was that ... ? He pulled out the handheld device from his pocket and glanced groggily at the screen.

'Momiji, I have clean clothes at my home if you wish to come over. I won't ask any questions this time. I just want you to be ready for school. Hatsuharu said there was a test today. You should go. Hatori.'

The rabbit sighed a bit. Of course. Hatsuharu had to tell the dragon that there was a test today. Whelp, there was no way out of it now. Momiji shakily stood up, pulling the sleeves of his dirty sweater over his bruised and scarred up wrists, trying to hide the damage as much as possible. He then brushed off his pants, grabbed the bag he used for school things, and made his way towards the Sohma estate.

By the time he got there, he was shivering from the cold, even with the sweater. He then bounded over the large wall as he normally did, he was the rabbit, after all, and he shuffled along to Hatori's. As soon as he stepped up on the porch, the door quickly opened to his surprise, and the dragon ushered him inside.

"Ah? Ha'ri ... ?"

"A little birdy said he saw you jump over the gate, get in here before you catch a cold."

A scowl crossed his face. Joy, the bird had seen him, meaning that everyone else probably knew he was there. The dragon ushered the youth into the bathroom, taking his school bag gently, and closed the door. Momiji blinked a bit before looking around. There was already clothing there, along with a hair brush and a few other things the blonde needed to get ready. He heaved a sigh before doing as he was supposed to. He got ready for school. The shower was nice on his cold skin, and warmed him up considerably. The school uniform felt much nicer on him than the dirty clothing he had previously wore, and his hair felt much better after being combed.

Momiji then opened the door and peeked out. Hatori was nowhere to be found. That was good. Maybe he could make it back out without much incident. He started towards the door before it occurred to him. His bag. He couldn't go to school without that damned bag. He shook his head before sighing once more and walked around the familiar home, looking for the bag.

As he made his way around, he found it, but he didn't really like where it was. Hatori sat at the kitchen table, Momiji's bag hung on the chair across from him. A nice warm breakfast on the table. The blonde made a slight face. He'd have to eat with Hatori. He cared for the dragon, he did, but he really didn't want to get into a fight with him, or worse ... let the darkness take control and hurt the dragon.

Momiji heaved another sigh before making his way into the room. He moved the chair out and sat across from his cousin, the blonde rubbing his cheek a bit.

"How are you feeling, Momiji?"

"Mm ... I-I'm alright ... " came his response, as soon as the voice came out, he cursed at the tick he had. Anytime he tried to lie, the blonde always stuttered. He could never lie well. Hatori raised an eyebrow. He knew Momiji was lying. He knew he probably wasn't well, but he let it go for now.

"You better eat up, school will be starting soon. I also packed you a lunch, and put a granola bar in your bag."

The blonde made a face. Yuck. Granola.

"I know, I know, you don't like it, but it's better than nothing. I also put some more money in your bag, I noticed you were running low."

"Mm ... danke, Ha'ri ... " he responded before starting on the breakfast. It tasted so wonderful. If the dragon hadn't become a doctor, he probably would have been a wonderful chef. As the rabbit finished off the food, he shifted a bit in his seat before glancing over at a clock. Shit. He quickly got up and grabbed his bag, running off for the door.

"Oh, and Momiji, good luck on your test."

"Danke! Auf Weidersehen, Ha'ri!" he said simply as he bounded out the door, grabbing a coat that was on a rack. As he dashed out, he slipped the coat on. It was so nice, so warm, so soft. He almost wished he had it all the time, but he knew it needed washing regularly, and the rabbit couldn't do that.

Momiji bounded over the wall once more and ran down the street. It was his last year in high school, and Yuki, Tohru, and Kyo had all already graduated. He was rather happy that none of them went to the school anymore. Tohru would worry too much, Yuki would be concerned about his state, and Kyo ... well ... he seemed concerned, but acted like he wasn't. Momiji panted as he continued on his way. He was just at the building and then he heard it. "'Ey, Momiji!"

Shit.