A word before we begin, and then most likely no more author notes ever again, and that's mostly to explain the fic's exact setting.
The story will have followed the manga timeline most of the way through- it splits off when the curse starts to break. It follows so far because all throughout Furuba, Tohru inspires personal growth in pretty much everyone she meets. These character developments are extremely important: this story could not take place if Kyou and Yuki had not changed as people as much as they did, and wouldn't have been what it is if everyone else hadn't changed, too. As such, everyone's relationships developed normally (aside from the Kyou and Tohru romance, obviously), and Akito is not only outed as a woman, but also has some level of minor mental stability. In other words, this story follows canon except for the key fact that the curse does not break. Well, except for Kureno's, since that happened pre-storyline and would be pretty hard to undo, haha. Anyway, since the curse never breaks, Kyou is locked up.
And also... because in actuality, I LIKED how the manga ended. There was pretty much nothing about it that didn't satisfy me. Which is honestly making it a little hard to write an AR fic, haha. But here I am, writing an epic romance for a pairing I didn't even consider while I was reading the manga, because I do things like that when I can't get rid of an idea.
I do believe that's all, so here we may go.
-
Kyou's world had been reduced to a very small space.
Twenty steps across, fifteen wide. Eight steps from his futon to the window. Seven steps from the futon to the icebox, on the left side of the east wall. Eighteen steps from the icebox to the window. Next to the icebox, the oven, on top of the oven a stove. Above the stretch between them a cabinet. In the right corner a standing shower, ten steps from the window. Between the shower and the window is the toilet, next to the sink, two steps from the window. The window is four steps wide, his futon four steps by six. Underneath the window is a chair, and next to the chair a stack of 9 books (4,387 pages total, 861 plus 278 plus 433 plus 189 plus 270 plus 532 plus 648 plus 306 plus 870).High on the wall in between the icebox and the futon is a nail, whereupon hung three spare kimono (four total, two summer and two winter). Two light fixtures, one above his bed and one above the "kitchen." On the window were shutters, on the outside of which stood three wooden bars, evenly spaced from eachother across the length of the window.
In the wall between the futon and the window was a door. There was no handle on it from the inside, and the outside handle only opened with a key.
For the past twenty-six months and four days (795 days in total, or approximately 19,083 hours, which is the same as 1,144,980 minutes), this has been Kyou Sohma's entire universe.
Yuki's universe for the past three years has been much larger, and with significantly less free time to devote to counting inane things.
It had consisted of graduation, and with it independence. Yuki's world had, for the first time, been one of freedom. The freedom to start college, the freedom to move out of Shigure's house, the freedom to declare financial independence from the Sohma house.
It also came with the freedom date, and with it the freedom to fail miserably at dating, with which brought the freedom to realize he was probably gay, which further carried the freedom to fail even harder at dating.
He also discovered the freedom to decide he hated his major; the freedom to get kicked out of student housing because the girls stalking him had caused too many building-wide disturbances, the freedom to be plunged into financial ruin because there's no such thing as a reasonably apartment in the city, the freedom to get evicted when he couldn't keep up with rent, the freedom to ask if he could move back in with Shigure, the freedom to get told that Shigure was sure Akito would love to pay off those student loans if Yuki would move back to the main house, the freedom to tell Shigure to go fuck off, the freedom to beg anyone and everyone if he could move in with them for a little while until he got back on his feet, the freedom to get further rejected by everyone he knows, the freedom to stoop to levels of desperation deep enough to seek even his brother's help, the freedom to get rejected fabulously, and of course, the freedom to give up and move back into the Main House because he hadn't eaten in two days.
Which was pretty much where that little "freedom" kick of his had ended.
When the story really begins, it's raining. Considering that it was spring, this wasn't strange at all; it was however, inconvenient. The rain had started two days earlier and continued nearly non-stop, only to lighten into drizzle by third day. The reason this was inconvenient is because Yuki had been moving back into the main house the day before, and it seemed to him that the rain had let up just as he moved the last of his belongings into his new home.
Even though it was still raining a little, a few windows had been opened to try to air out the stale mustiness of Yuki's small flat. In the only act of defiance he could manage under the pathetic circumstances, Yuki had chosen to live as far away from Akito as possible while still remaining within the main house, and as such had ended up in a one-room shack that was only barely more hospitable than the servants quarters, way out at the edge of the Sohma's property. It was located the beginnings of a wooded area, and no one had lived in it for close to a decade, so the entire place smelled vaguely of mold. But, small and inconveniently placed as it was, it still had electricity and plumbing, and considering that Tohru had lived in a tent, Yuki figured that was more than enough.
So it was raining lightly outside, Yuki was unpacking his belongings, and the windows were open, and that's how the cat got in.
The animal was there so briefly, if the place hadn't been so small, Yuki probably wouldn't have even noticed it. But it was, and so he heard the gentle 'thump' of the cat landing on the ground, and came in time to see a small black-and-orange cat wander around his room, sniffing at his belongings. And it was a good thing he did see, because while poking around at his desk the cat decided that it rather liked the cell phone charm sitting on the desk, picked it up with it's little cat teeth, and then jumped back out the window.
"You rotten little thief!" Yuki cried, running outside to chase down the animal. "I knew I hated cats for a reason," he muttered, dashing after the sprinting cat. The charm had been given to him by Machi when they had started dating, and even though they broke up rather quickly he had still remained friends with her. It was the only thing she'd ever given to him, which meant that it was an important sentimental object, and he'd be damned if he was going to let some dirty stray run off with it.
The cat, Yuki realised, was not a stray after all, because it ran straight to a building even smaller than Yuki's that he had previously not known existed and jumped onto a window sill, scratching at the closed shutters and obviously expecting someone to open them.
They did open, almost immediately, and though from the angle Yuki still could not see inside, he heard a strikingly familiar voice speak. "Back allready, Kiku? I was wondering how long it would take before you got tired of the rain. What's that you've got there? Is this a keychain?"
"It's mine," Yuki said, walking to the now open window slowly. That voice couldn't actually belong to who he thought it did, not unless...
He arrived at the window, and for the first time in nearly three years, Yuki and Kyo's eyes met.
...Not unless this little shack was the Cat House. Way out on the edge of Sohma property, where no one ever went. The unused state of his new home suddenly made a lot more sense: no one wanted to live so close to the cursed cat.
For a moment, nothing happened. The two only stared at each other, the only sound that of the rain gently falling. Wordlessly, Kyou's hand extended through the bars of the open window, the stolen cellphone charm offered in his open palm.
Slowly, Yuki walked the rest of the way to the window, and picked the charm out of Kyou's outstretched hand. The redhead's hand withdrew, just as slowly and silently as it had been proffered.
The silence continued, both men still looking at each other with no idea as to what to say. Kyou, Yuki decided rather quickly, did not look right. It wasn't that he was older- that kind of change was obvious considering the three years that had passed. But he looked tired; his eyes cold and dull, lacking the spirit and passion Yuki was used to, and even in some way naturally associated the other man with.
Eventually, Kyou turned away, eyes focusing instead on the cat who had moved to the floor to clean herself of the rainwater, if only to have something to look at other than Yuki.
"You don't have to say anything," he said, after a another moment. "This is probably pretty awkward for you. You can just walk away and pretend you never saw me, if you like. That's probably even what you're expected to do. It's certainly what the servants do, anyway."
The rat's eyebrows furrowed, and for a moment, it was if time had rewinded and they were both back in Shigure's house arguing over dinner. "S-stupid cat! Don't just presumptuously tell me what to do! You act like I'm so cold-hearted, and don't even consider that maybe I actually care that you're in here!"
At that, Kyou's eyes flashed, and for just an instant they were just as clear as they were back then. "What the hell are you yelling at me for? I'm just saying you're not obligated to try to make me feel better, or whatever bullshit you were thinking. You and I have nothing to do with each other anymore, and we barely did back when we lived together. I'm trying to give you an out and you act like I'm the jerk? Damned filthy rat, now who's thinking only of themselves, huh?"
"Maybe I wasn't looking for an out, or an excuse to leave! Just because we never got along doesn't mean I wanted you to be thrown in here! I tried to convince Akito not to, just the same as Kazuma-san and everyone else did!"
Instead of the argument Yuki may have expected, Kyou's eyes widened. "You tried to get me out?"
The rat averted his eyes, a little embarrassed at the admittance. "Well, of course. Like I said, we all did. Kazuma, Shigure, Kagura, Hatori, Haru, Momiji, Ayame... All of us were on your side. I heard even Kureno tried to put in a good word. But the more of us that tried to help, the angrier Akito got, instead. So yes. I tried to help. Not even an idiot like you deserves to be locked up."
Kyou didn't say anything for moment, but Yuki watched as the fire in his eyes died out again, and the cat once again turned back inside. "I didn't know. I knew that Shishou tried, but I had no idea everyone... Thank you. For telling me. But I think I really would prefer if you just left. It'll be easier if we just pretend you never came here."
Yuki could feel his face flush hot with
-51 /anger, snapping back "Y-you can't just decide that the conversation's over on your own! How am I supposed to just walk away from this?"
Kyou didn't bother to reply, and Yuki watched, a little helplessly, as Kyou turned in on himself again, closing the shutters of the window to effectively shut Yuki out.
"I'm trying to be nice, you jerk. At least, I sort of was..." He mumbled to the closed shutters, which naturally, failed to reply. After a minute or so of staring at the closed window, desperately trying to think of what he was supposed to do now, Yuki gave up with a sigh, turned back and headed home.
It seemed like the years of isolation had broken him. Yuki was honestly disappointed. He had allways thought Kyou was stronger than that; but it seemed like no one could fight off Akito's will, or three years of hopelessness and isolation.
But... for a moment, Kyou had argued with him, and insulted him, and acted like he did before. If his spirit had completely broken, Yuki would never have been able to see the life flash through his eyes like that, right? Didn't that mean that the real Kyou was still in there, disheartened, but not completely beaten?
For the rest fo the day, Yuki could not fight off the depression that overwhelmed him after the encounter. Perhaps a little desperately, he wondered if there was anything he could do to get Kyou back to how he was supposed to be. Anything he could do for Kyou at all.
It was a little twisted, but Yuki had missed their stupid and inane arguments. He had actually missed Kyou.
He still missed him.