DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. I am just a fan writing a fanfiction.

TITLE: Stronger Blood

SUMMARY: Alright, well, in this fanfic, Kyou is insanely desperate to beat Yuki. So desperate, he might just do something crazy. So crazy, he might hurt himself and break everyone's heart.

RATING: T

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Hey there, everyone! I'm new to FFN and this is my first fanfic! Yay! Go me! I'd like to recognize Kai the Tiger Princess for being the FFN welcoming committee. She was so nice and helped me to get a better of idea of what writing fanfictions is all about. Thanks, Kai-senpai!

"Why is he always better than me?!" Kyou would never say that within Yuki's earshot.

All he could do to preserve his dignity was grimace and glare up at that "damn rat's" face and scream inside his own mind. He was pinned to the
floor, facedown, Yuki's right foot pushing triumphantly on his back. It was yet another failed attempt to officially enter the twelve zodiacs. Kyou growled and squirmed out from underneath Yuki's hold. As always, Yuki's face seemed impassive, as if it were boring for him to fight Kyou. A snide comment or two, something about weakness, and he was off to his room to finish homework.

The "stupid cat", though, saw more than that in his rival's face. He knew that Yuki mocked him with more than just words. Yuki thought that he was better, that Kyou wasn't even worth his time. Oh how Kyou hated being thought of like that. He trained hard, he wanted to defeat Yuki, it was the most important thing in his life. How dare someone think of him as worthless. How dare someone think he, a person who tried so assiduously to reach his goal, was undeserving of a chance to gain what he desired most. How dare Yuki look down on him like that. How dare he.

Kyou clenched his fists and a vain could be seen popping up on his temple. He couldn't stand it anymore! He growled lowly to himself, desperately trying to figure out what could make them so different that he was never strong enough, no matter how much he tried. As he stood there seething, Shigure happened to walk into the room. Immediately after breaching the doorway and seeing Kyou in such an anguished state, he promptly turned right around on his heel and quickly marched back to his office, fearing the wrath of his very angry relative.

Kyou set out for his own room. It was almost a sanctuary. It was quiet, and he could be alone and think there; but his only thoughts that day were focused on Yuki, as they were many days. He sat on his bed, brow furrowed in deep concentration, thinking so hard he almost entered meditation. Then he had a thought, something he hadn't thought of before. It sounded silly, but in a way it did make sense to him.

"What if it's biological?" Kyou wondered if maybe there was something genetically wrong with him, or if Yuki had inherited better genes. Better blood, even? "Yes, that has to be it!" Better blood! Why hadn't he thought of it before? Blood was the most important thing in the body, without it, the body cannot function. Blood brought oxygen to the body's muscles and carried away wastes and toxins. Yuki's blood must have been doing it's job better than his blood. Now, Kyou only needed to make his blood better than Yuki's, so his muscles could function more efficiently. "Then I'll finally be stronger than that damn rat!"

Kyou was elated, to say the very least; but there was still one formality left for him to deal with: how to do it.

As a monotone voice droned on from the front of the room, Kyou sat at his desk and heaved a bored sigh. It was the day after he'd had his idea, and he wished he were at home improving his blood instead of in his fourth period science class. He fiddled with his pencil and absently daydreamt of his victory over Yuki. In boredom, he glanced over at Tohru, who was furiously scribbling into her notebook, as if the teacher were explaining the meaning of life and she needed to document his every word. He glanced at Hanajima, who was unmoving and sat perfectly still, so still in fact, Kyou though she might just be sleeping with her eyes open. He thought she probably could. He didn't bother to look at Uotani or Yuki, he didn't like either of them and the prospect of being caught in a two-against-one staring match was too great. It wasn't worth the risk of another humiliating defeat at their hands.

Suddenly, a certain word caught Kyou's ears and he turned his attention to the front of the classroom. The teacher continued to speak.

"The test next Friday will be focused on Chapter 12, Section 3: The Importance of Blood in the Human Body. Make sure you study it thoroughly, because there's a lot of important information in there. Do that, and you'll do well next week. Now, class, I'm going to write several key terms on the board. I want you to copy them down and-"

That was all he needed to hear.

When the school bell rang at the end of the day, Kyou didn't wait for anyone. He dashed through the hallways, ignoring the shouts and glares from random teachers, and burst through the front doors. He ran all the to Shigure's house, almost forgetting to remove his shoes in his excitement. He rushed up to his room and slammed the door shut, making a point to ensure it was locked. He wasn't sure why, but Kyou felt he should keep his plan a secret. Maybe he would catch Yuki off guard that way.

Kyou grabbed his home copy of the science textbook, flipping the pages to Chapter 12, Section 3, and began to read. He scanned the pages, looking for anything that might help him get stronger.

"The average humans body contains approximately six quarts of blood at any given time." That seemed important. Kyou thought for moment, trying to remember measurement equivalencies before deciding that six quarts was equal to a gallon and a half. Kyou was surprised, he had thought that the entire human body would be able to hold more blood than that. At least it was safe to assume that Yuki wasn't stronger because he had more blood than him.

"In case of excessive bleeding, the body can produce more blood to replace that which was lost. On average, it takes approximately 24 hours to replace a single pint of lost blood. The consumption of large amounts of fluids during that time is vital to the process."

"So, my body can make new blood if I lose any of what I've already got." In the back of Kyou's mind, he started to devise a scheme. Kyou stared at the page, as if the answers to all his problems were there. They really weren't, but he saw them there anyways. He felt strange and unlike himself. He felt... a little crazy, actually; but the part of him in the back of his mind that was almost finished creating the plot told him it was a good thing.

"I'll finally beat him. I'll be a member of the twelve zodiacs. All I have to do is..." He thought hard about exactly what he wanted to do. He had to get better blood. At least as good as Yuki's. How would he do it? At that moment, having hurled itself from the back of his mind, the plan slammed into Kyou's consciousness.

"That's it!"

"What is that idiot cat up to now?"

"Maybe Kyou-kun is studying."

Yuki and Tohru hadn't gotten home until a full ten minutes after Kyou first burst through the doors. They'd both been wondering why he had left school in such a rush. They sat in the kitchen thinking, while Tohru began to pour tea for the four of them. Before long, Shigure entered the room to greet them.

"Good afternoon."

"Good afternoon, Shigure-san," Tohru replied politely. Yuki didn't answer, but only sipped his tea.

"Do either of you know what seems to have gotten into our little kitten?" Shigure inquired. Both Yuki and Tohru shook their heads as a response. The dog zodiac was frustrated. Just before the orange-haired boy arrived home, he had actually been writing after receiving a sudden jolt of inspiration. Then came Kyou, stampeding through the house slamming doors. Shigure's concentration had been shattered, much to the dismay of his suicidal editor.

"Would you like some tea, Shigure-san?" Tohru offered.

Shigure considered the young girl before him holding a tray with three steaming cups of tea carefully placed on it. Perhaps she could solve this mystery.

"Yes, of course, thank you. Do you think-"

Yuki interrupted his elder cousin saying "Honda-san, when you offer that stupid cat his tea, maybe you should ask him what's wrong."

"Of-of course I will! I'm happy to see that Yuki-kun and Kyou-kun are finally starting to care about each other."

"I don't care," was his blunt reply. "I'm just curious. What is his problem?"

Tohru almost dropped her tray. "Oh well," she thought to herself. "Being curious means he at least cares just a little bit... doesn't it?" They were family, after all, and family cared about one another. Now a girl on a mission, Tohru marched off to Kyou's room. She was determined to find out what was wrong with the aid of hot, delicious tea.

"Alright," Kyou thought, "I'm going to need a couple things." He couldn't lie to himself, he knew he was nervous. He thought his plan was crazy, but it still made sense to him. It was a crazy but sensible plan. He was anxious to get started. He stepped over to his door and opened it only to find Tohru there, holding a tray with two cups of tea.

"Oh, hi." He was suprised. He hadn't expected his plan to come into jeopardy so soon; but he could easily hide it from Tohru.

"Hello, Kyou-kun. Would you like some tea? I made peppermint." She held the tray out to him.

He thought for a moment before making a decision. "Well, I might as well start now." Then he said aloud, "Is anyone else having any?"

"Yes, Shigure-san and Yuki-kun already have theirs." She smiled, hoping he would take some.

"Alright then, sure." Kyou reached for a cup of tea before continuing, "Tohru?"

"Yes?" Maybe he would come out and talk to her instead of having to be questioned.

Kyou sighed, reminding himself that it would all be worth it once he defeated Yuki. "Could I... help you cook dinner tonight?"

Tohru was slightly surprised. She didn't think Kyou would have asked her anything like that. As always, she chose to think positively. She figured, that if Kyou helped her cook, then they would get a chance to talk. Cooking with someone else was always a good way to start a conversation with them. Her mother had told her so.

"Yes, of course! We can start as soon as I finish my homework. Is that alright with you, Kyou-kun?"

"Sure, I'll see you then." With that, Kyou shut the door. He could get everything he needed tonight. He took a sip of peppermint tea, picked up his science book, and continued reading the lesson.

Yay! The first chapter of my first fic is finished! R&R please! Reviews make me happy! Don't you want to make me happy?