Kyo glowered at the bag of groceries sitting beside the sink

Kyo glowered at the bag of groceries sitting beside the sink. The smell of its contents told him all he needed to know. Yuki had been entrusted with the task of shopping again. It was another surreptitious attack. The kind that nobody else seemed to notice, and yet they called the cat on every move he made to get back at the shitty rat who deserved it.

Kyo growled at the groceries and slunk away, opting to skip dinner. He made it as far as the doorway and bumped into a short, slight figure that gave a startled gasp as it bounced off of him and momentarily disappeared in the cloud of smoke that engulfed them both. When it settled, Kyo was sitting in the pile of his clothes, looking as angry as any cat ever had.

"K-Kyo-kun! You surprised me!" Tohru exclaimed with her familiar flustered smile as she popped back up from the floor where she had fallen.

Kyo was almost glad to be a cat at that moment so she couldn't see the blush that rose to his cheeks. "Be more careful," he advised gruffly, picking up his pants in his sharp feline teeth. "Or you might get hurt," he added without thinking, and truly did feel gratitude for being in cat form. He slipped past her on his way toward the open sliding door with his orange tail twitching in irritation.

"Okay, I will," she replied with her invincible cheerfulness completely unscathed by his unfriendly tone. She was used to it, and she could see past it by now – she knew that Kyo was good, deep down, even if he didn't want to show it on the surface. Then, as he reached the door, she realized that something was amiss. "Aren't you staying for dinner, Kyo-kun?"

"No." And he stalked outside without a backward glance.

Tohru stood watching the empty doorway for a moment, surprised and concerned, her small hands gripping folds of her yellow dress. She sighed and her face brightened a little. "Well, worrying will do no good. I'll work twice as hard to make a good dinner and save him all of the leftovers." She went about her task with determined optimism.

Outside, Kyo had climbed to his usual place of sanctuary on the roof. He had changed back into a human boy and gotten dressed, but was bare-chested because he couldn't carry all of his clothes in the small jaws of his cat form. Pants were most important, so he'd taken his pants. The practical side of him had prevailed this time.

It hadn't been long since she'd discovered his hiding place, but he didn't mind, somehow, that she knew where to find him. And when he realized that he felt that way, he quickly tried to justify it to himself by muttering, "She can come and get me for meals that way. A-and it's not like I invite her or even want her to come up here, anyway."

He stretched out on his back and folded his arms behind his head, glaring up at the thick clouds that floated by on a light, cool breeze. The air smelled like rain. Kyo wrinkled his nose and made a face, turning over onto his side.

Without warning or prompting of any kind, his mind replayed the scene of a few moments before. Color rose to his cheeks again, visible this time on his pale skin. What was it about the moment of impact that made him blush? It was one of those things that he didn't understand and it made him frustrated. The only girl he'd ever been around for any long period of time was Kagura, and that was definitely not an experience he enjoyed. But Tohru and Kagura were as close to opposite as two girls could be. So what was it about the hard-working little Tohru that brought such a confusing feeling to life in him? She had felt soft and delicate in that moment when he had carelessly bumped into her. Stupid. What kind of martial artist was too clumsy and unaware to avoid a collision with a klutz like her? He had to admire her resilience, though. Maybe it was the special defense mechanism of a clumsy idiot to be nearly impervious to the mild pain of falling or running into things. She did it often enough that he might have been impressed that she never seemed to get hurt if he'd taken the time to think about it.

There was something else, too. He'd noticed it before. Her smell. It was good and clean like flowers and sunshine, and mild and modest like her. It was good. Like he'd never breathed in better, purer air than the air that smelled like her.

What the hell are you thinking? he demanded of himself as he realized where his thoughts were heading. You really are a piece of work, you idiot.

He shivered. The sky had rapidly grown dark and ominous with heavy rain clouds. He groaned as it occurred to him that he felt too weak to move more than a few feet toward the edge of the roof.

Oh, shit.

He pushed himself up, but the familiar weakness that plagued him during rainstorms had already set in and he gave up. The heavy-headed sickness came next. He curled up and scowled at his own stupidity. Too caught up in the stupid scatterbrained girl to keep an eye on the clouds. Stupid. He could have kicked himself if he'd had the strength.

A roar of thunder and the flash of lightning that followed an instant later made Tohru start, dropping the ladle she'd been using to mix vegetables into the soup. The ladle clattered on the floor, scattering hot droplets in every direction. Tohru picked up the tool and put it in the sink, then crouched down to wipe up the spill with a less-than-clean cloth. She had planned to do laundry as soon as dinner had been cleaned up, but that was out of the question now. She turned to peer out the window as she straightened. The sky was gray and tumbling with fast-moving clouds that promised rain. She'd have to wait to do the laundry.

The thought struck her suddenly that there was a bigger problem than postponing laundry day. "Kyo-kun!" she cried as she spun around. She slipped on a spot of the spilled soup that she'd missed, but she was back up in a second and ran out of the kitchen, worry furrowing her brow and flashing in her brown eyes. She hurried past Yuki and Shigure as they came in from the living room.

"Honda-san, we heard a crash – are you okay?"

"Yes, but Kyo-kun –" She gestured toward the door.

Yuki's violet eyes widened. "Don't tell me –"

Another crash of thunder drowned out his words. He glanced at Shigure as Tohru ran on toward the door and they both followed close behind her.

"Kyo-kun!" Tohru called as she ran barefoot onto the deck. The air hissed and an instant later a wall of rain slammed down. The girl's voice was lost in the roar of the storm. She perceived immediately that she wasn't doing any good standing on the deck. She quickly braced herself with a deep breath before plunging into the rain. Behind her, Yuki called to her but couldn't be heard. He dashed after her while Shigure stood with his hands in the sleeves of his robe, staring blankly at the receding shapes of the girl and the boy as they disappeared into the streaked gray darkness of the storm.

"Kyo-kun!" Tohru yelled again as loudly as she could, but the sound of the storm muted her cries. She was drenched within seconds of leaving the deck, her bare feet sinking into the muddy soil. "Kyo-kun, where are you?"

"Bakaneko!" Yuki shouted, his wet clothes sticking to his thin frame.

Tohru searched the rain frantically for any sign of the orange-haired boy, pushing back the hair that was plastered against her forehead and clinging to her face. She knew that he didn't feel well when it rained. He was independent and stubborn most of the time, but she knew that he needed her help now, even if he didn't want it. She tried to think. Where would he have gone?

"The roof!" she cried, spinning around, slipping in the mud but managing not to fall. She clambered up the ladder propped against the house, taking twice as long as usual because the rungs were slippery with rain. She gripped the edge of the roof, pulled herself up, and gasped as Kyo came into view, lying soaked and motionless on his side with his face toward her, covered by his dripping hair, his bare upper body streaming with raindrops. Tohru scrambled across the slick roof on her hands and knees and reached out to touch his shoulder. As she did, she slid on the wet shingles and grabbed onto the boy without thinking, instinctively trying to find a handhold so she wouldn't fall. He transformed in a burst of smoke that was quickly torn away by the wind and rain. She rolled and slid toward the edge of the roof with the cat in her arms.

"Honda-san!" she heard Yuki shout as he splashed closer to the house. He knew he would transform if he caught her, but he would try to cushion her fall in the instant before he became the rat.

Tohru rolled so that her feet were directed downward and braced them against the roof, slowing her sliding descent. She saw what Yuki was going to do and took one hand away from Kyo to try to grip the shingles. "No, Yuki-kun! You'll be crushed!"

He stretched his arms toward her. "It's okay, Honda-san. I'll be fine. I'll catch you."

"No!" she repeated, clawing at the wet shingles as she tried to pull herself toward the edge where the ladder stood.

Yuki followed on the ground, staring up at her in fear and worry. "Be careful!" he cried as one of her feet slipped, but she was close enough to clutch the side edge of the roof. She pulled herself onto the edge and lowered her leg over to the first rung of the ladder. Carefully and slowly, she lowered her other leg over, turned around, and started to climb down, holding the side of the ladder with one hand and clutching Kyo with the other. Halfway down the ladder she slipped, crying out as her hand slid down the slick wood and she swung away from the ladder. She let go and fell for a few seconds before her feet hit the mud. Her knees buckled and she sank down just as Yuki reached for her arm.

"Are you okay?" he asked quickly, his voice strained with frantic concern as he took her arm and helped her up.

"I'm okay," the girl assured him breathlessly as she staggered to her feet and stumbled back toward the door, holding Kyo tightly against her chest in an attempt to shield him from the rain. She didn't notice the mud that she brought with her into the house. Her worry for the boy blocked out all other thoughts.

What if he catches a cold? He was limp in her arms, but she could feel his ribs moving as he breathed in and out, and the faint heartbeat in his chest drummed against hers. The cat was alive, but the possibility that he could become dangerously ill filled Tohru with a quiet, consuming terror.

Yuki followed close behind her as she hurried to a closet for blankets and towels. He started to cough as she was pulling out what she needed and she turned quickly, the distress on her face turning to alarm. "Yuki-kun?"

He put up the hand that wasn't covering his mouth. "Don't worry, Honda-san. I'm –" His words were cut off by another coughing fit.

Tohru was in a panic, but she maintained as calm a demeanor as she could for their sake. She sent Yuki to take a warm bath, pleading against his protests. She understood his reluctance to leave her to take care of Kyo on her own – it was his nature to think of her that way and try to help her when he could. But she couldn't bear the thought that he might get sick, that his cough might become worse, that she might lose another loved one to illness. "Please, Yuki-kun," she insisted, holding the thickest towel out to him. "I don't want you to get worse." He went after that, seeming to understand, leaving her with a quiet look of concern.

She carried Kyo and the blankets into the sitting room and did her best to dry the drenched ginger fur before wrapping him in the blankets, cradling the small feline body in her arms. She had done the only thing she could think to do. She had to wait now, hoping that he would be all right. She didn't like to wait. Waiting was hard – doing things, trying to help, doing everything she could, putting all of her heart and energy into something – that was easy for her. But to wait, unable to do anything more to help, was torture. She wanted to cry, but she couldn't give in now, when she didn't know if Kyo would be okay. She curled around the cat, trying to share her warmth even as she trembled with cold. She was still dripping wet, but she had to take care of him before she could think of herself. He had looked so frighteningly still and sunken on the roof. She couldn't stand to see someone she cared about lying that way, as if it were already too late.

"My, you're looking serious, Tohru-kun."

"Shigure-san!" She looked up and the dark-haired man noticed the paleness of her face and the tears that she was fighting to keep from her eyes.

He sat down beside her with a sigh. "This isn't the first time he's been outside in a storm. He'll be fine."

"But…" She lowered her eyes, her kind face pale with worry.

"Trust me," Shigure reassured her, patting her shoulder. "Let's get you into some dry clothes. No, it's okay, I promise," he interrupted when she tried to protest. "He's not going anywhere."

She didn't want to leave him alone. The loss she had suffered as a child tore at her heart, awakening the old fear that seized her whenever someone close to her fell ill, even with a simple cold. "I'm okay, Shigure-san. I'll stay here."

The man studied her for a moment with his dark eyes, then smiled with a shadow of some hidden thought in his eyes as he stood up. "Suit yourself. I'll bring you some tea."

"Thank you." She watched him leave, then looked down at Kyo again, gently stretching the fabric of the blanket away from the small feline face, making sure yet again that he could breathe. The cat turned his head slightly toward her fingers.

"Kyo-kun?" she whispered, leaning closer.

A plume of smoke burst into the air before her eyes, momentarily blinding her. As it cleared, Kyo's face came into view, his head on her lap. His broad-shouldered, lanky body was curled up beside her, the blanket draped over him. His breathing was slow and steady, his face smooth and peaceful.

Tohru was too startled to move for a few seconds. Then she brushed away his orange hair and lightly pressed her hand against his forehead. It didn't feel feverish. She breathed a quiet sigh of relief and sat back on her feet. It was only a second later that it hit her – the boy had his head on her lap and was covered only in a blanket. She blushed deeply, suddenly flustered and fretful, feeling the need to move but not wanting to wake him.

Shigure appeared in the doorway that led to the kitchen, carrying a tray with two cups of tea. "What's the matter, Tohru-kun?"

"Ah, Shigure-san, help me! I don't want to wake him up, but…"

Chuckling, the man placed the tea tray on the table and leaned over to lift Kyo's upper body gently. Tohru scooted away and stood up. Shigure lowered the boy back down onto the floor and smiled at Tohru with an air of patronizing fondness as he straightened up. "That was kind of cute, Tohru-kun."

Her blush deepened. "Thank you for your help, Shigure-san."

"No problem." He knelt at the table and picked up one of the steaming teacups. "Tea?"

She looked at Kyo, still sleeping. "Shouldn't we take him to his room?"

"Give him a minute or two. He'll be fine." He took a sip of his tea, closing his eyes as the steam clouded his face.

She knelt on a side of the table that allowed her to watch Kyo. She sipped the tea, feeling the comforting warmth spread through her, making her realize just how cold she'd been. Her hair was still damp and clung to her neck and forehead.

Just as Shigure had predicted, Kyo uttered a soft moan a few moments later and turned over. Tohru turned away immediately with wide eyes and a reddening face.

"What…oh, dammit!" Kyo sputtered as he grasped the situation, snapping out of his sleepy state in an instant and snatching at the edges of the blanket, wrapping it around himself. "What the hell is this?!"

"Relax, Kyo-kun. Tohru-kun here was taking excellent care of you."

"What –" His face turned bright red.

"Are you feeling better, Kyo-kun?"

He turned to her, to the open, heart-shaped face full of care and concern, and he melted a little. His eyes registered her drenched appearance, the mud that covered her legs and clothes, the scrapes on her knees and hands, and felt an unexpected stab of worry. Still, his reaction was as sharp and habitual as always. "I'm fine! Mind your own business!"

The last part stung her – he could see it. He almost tried to take it back, almost tried to say something to make it better, but he couldn't find the words. His confusion over the whole situation – having her in the house, strange stirrings inside him, being accepted by someone other than his master for once – made it hard to express anything at all. It only frustrated him, and he didn't like it. So he withdrew the hand that reached consolingly toward her, closed his mouth on the unformed words, and retreated to his room. There he spent a restless, sickened evening alone until Tohru brought a bowl of hot soup to him for dinner.

His first impulse was to sniff the food to see if it contained the leeks from the grocery bag, but something held him back. I'll just have to get through it, even if it does have leeks in it, he resolved, and shoveled a spoonful into his mouth as Tohru headed toward the door.

"Hey."

She turned and smiled. "Yes?"

"You didn't put in the leeks that shi – that Yuki bought."

"I know you don't like them, so I left them out. I don't want to waste what Yuki-kun bought, though, so I'll use them for lunch tomorrow."

He stared at her. What was this sensation that made the room move, made the distance between them collapse, made him feel as if he stood at the edge of the world and all he wanted to do was fall into the sky, fall into the sun, fall into something vast and incredible – and why did it seem that she was all of these things, that she had somehow become the center of his small, dark world?

She smiled, a light blush tinting her cheeks. "I'm glad you're feeling better, Kyo-kun."

He wasn't quite himself for a few days, even after the storm had passed. He tried a few times to apologize for what had happened, but failed, as usual, to articulate his true feelings. His cheeks became vividly scarlet when he tried to speak to Tohru, but she was so good, so kind, that she pretended not to notice, and told him that he had nothing to worry about and nothing to apologize for.

What is it? he wondered as he watched her from a doorway, cleaning and smiling and being Tohru. Why is it her? Why is she the one person I want to see when the rain stops and the clouds part forever?