By: Nanashi
Neither knew how it started; neither cared. When Yuki and Kyou get into their brawls the only thing that matters is how it ends, not how it began or who initiated it.
"I'll make you sorry you were born onna-otoko!" spat the boy cursed with the spirit of the cat.
Yuki, the mouse, wiped delicately at his mouth and in his most cocky voice he responded, "You sound like a broken record baka neko. Do you know what happens to a broken record? It gets dumped in the trash because it is no longer useful. You were never useful to begin with."
Kyou riled with every hair standing on end.
He pointed a challenging finger at his rival, "You'll eat those words! I'll win this time for sure, and then..and then I'll.."
"You'll what? Well? What is it?" Yuki scoffed.
Kyou lowered his gaze to the floor, his stance lost the rigid confidence it held a moment before. He hadn't exactly thought ahead. What IF he won? Would that be enough to earn the respect he so desperately wanted from the Sohma house? He knew inside that beating the mouse still wouldn't earn him a place in the Jyunishi. The zodiac, with it's 12 preset animals was a tradition so ancient that nothing done now could possibly undo what was already written in stone. It wasn't like Akito would allow Kyou to join in Sohma family affairs anyway, so in the end nothing would really change.
And yet..there was just something he yearned for. The strong overwhelming desire to bury the elegant boy's face in the carpet. Completely trampling him under foot would bring about the deepest fulfillment but still, he didn't fully understand why he craved that power so intensely.
Yuki raked a bored hand through his perfect hair. His eyes half lidded on his face and a suspicious brow raised as he noticed his sparring partner's lack of action.
"Don't hurt yourself thinking Kyou.." he taunted.
That woke the cat from his mental musings instantly and he locked eyes with the mouse in a deep glare.
Yuki smirked, Kyou blinked.
There was something about Yuki he hadn't noticed before. His eyes. Kyou had always made it a point not to look at his nemesis for longer than he needed to, but at this moment he caught himself staring.
Yuki's eyes were large, a deep lavender gray that glittered flawlessly. In turn, they were adorned by the longest, thickest lashes he had ever seen on a boy. They rivaled those of Tohru and the ultra cute Kisa. Kyou shifted his weight. Yuki really WAS a girlie boy. An incredibly attractive girlie boy. Maybe Haru's previous fawnings over Yuki in a dress wasn't such a BAD mental picture after all.
He shook his head. Yuki huffed impatiently.
"Are we going to get on with this or are you going to stand there staring at me like an idiot all day? Because if that's the case I have other, more entertaining, things to do." The effeminate boy growled.
Kyou resumed his former stance, "Are you so eager to taste the floor today kuso nezumi?"
Yuki lowered his head pulling an annoyed hand to his forehead, "You are SO sure I'll be the one begging for mercy aren't you. Well how is this proposition for you. We will end this once and for all; right here, right now, because I'm tired of this nonsense. There is no Tohru or Shigure around to interfere. If I win..like the pattern suggests, then you don't bother me again until 'I' feel like challenging you. If you win, you get to choose your punishment as long as Tohru isn't involved. Sound fair?"
The red head considered the offer carefully. If he won, he could choose his punishment? What exactly would he do? What did he really want?
He looked the other boy up and down. There he was, standing lankily with a hip jutting out in a lazy pose. His thin yet duplicitly strong arms were crossed with his slender fingers drumming impatiently against them.
Humiliation. That's what Kyou wanted. To make the boy that everyone called a 'prince', the boy that everyone held in high regard, the boy blessed with the 'lucky spirit of the rat', to lose that grace with which he held himself. To make him shake and shiver if only for a moment beneath him. To make the mouse fear the cat, as is only natural in the animal kingdom..the way it was meant to be. But he didn't want to go about it the way Akito did in the past. He wasn't going to use violence on him, he didn't want to hurt him. He just wanted to degrade him a little and he knew just how to do it.
A smirk spread on the cat's face. "You're on."
Yuki grinned like a player with all the right cards, "Now this is more entertaining."
In a matter of seconds the boys were swinging fists and throwing kicks at each other. The graceful mouse easily dodged all of Kyou's initial attacks, but the cunning cat was not so easily overtaken this time. He had a goal and he was not about to lose this one. He noticed, in Yuki's fluid half hearted motions that the boy was overconfident. Yuki had it in his head that this would be an easy match and that he would inevitably get his way. Kyou had a surprise for him. Yuki hadn't exactly laid out any specific rules to their style of fighting, and he was quite aware that at no time was it against the rules to use parts of the room to aid him in his quest. He only waited for the right moment when Yuki would be all caught up in his fancy flips to pull out his trump card.
In one of the gray-haired boy's soft landings, Kyou kicked the rug they had been fighting on causing his opponent to lose his footing on the balancing act he had performed and as the rug flipped over so did the unfortunate mouse. Before he knew it, Yuki's body had made contact with the floor and he didn't even have a second to react before Kyou, in true catlike fashion, pounced on his prey.
Pinning the bewildered boy to the ground, the victor hovered above him, grinning triumphantly and still heaving from the effort he had put into fighting him.
"You lose."
In complete shock and retaliation Yuki began to struggle beneath the cat in vain, clawing at the air with whatever little room he had been given to do so.
"You dirty cheater! No one said you could go tripping people up like that!" hissed the paling mouse.
Kyou chuckled heartily, "No one said I couldn't either. I won and you know it! Don't be a sore loser, I thought the rat always kept his word. Didn't think you would lose did you? Didn't think for one minute what my punishment could possibly be..so you rambled your own verdict senselessly."
Yuki flattened himself gazing at the boy above him with a worried eyes, "Wha-what did you have in mind?"
At that moment a creak in the floor boards was heard and both boys looked up in time to see Hatsuharu standing in the doorway. He clapped mockingly just as he proceeded to enter the room.
"Impressive Kyou, I congratulate you on your win..but really I don't think I gave you permission to grope MY Yuki did I? Besides, the least you could have done was invited me to join."
Kyou lifted himself off his fallen adversary and Yuki only sweat dropped as he realized the tone with which Haru was speaking could only mean he had reverted to Black mode.
"How long have you been standing there?" Kyou asked.
"And what are you doing here Haru?" Yuki chimed in as the Ox-boy helped him up to his feet.
Haru wrapped his arms around the loser of the match.
"Obviously I was here long enough to see the underhanded and witty way in which you earned your victory Kyou." replied the boy, then he tilted his head to answer Yuki in turn, "Shigure asked me to pick up some parchment for him at the store, I was merely dropping it off."
Yuki bristled at the closeness in which Haru responded softly to his ear. Kyou snarled as he saw the obviously distraught look on Yuki's face.
"This doesn't change anything Yuki! With or without Haru you are going to keep your word and I get to pick your punishment!"
Haru's ears perked up. "Punishment?"
He leaned his face over enough to look Yuki in the eyes from the side, "You mean to tell me you actually had a bet riding on this match? And you lost, knowing the consequence?"
"It's not like I did it on purpose! I was just certain the match was mine, like it always is..and it would have been too if baka neko hadn't made me lose my balance. If the coward had fought me based purely on skill he knew he would have lost!"
"Harsh words coming from someone who can't admit he lost. Be a man Yuki and face it!" Kyou taunted.
Then suddenly as if a light bulb went off in his head a mischievous smirk crossed the red head's face.
"But..you're not REALLY a man.. are you onna-otoko."
Haru stifled a laugh and Yuki threw them both a dangerous glare. He was nervous about the expression on Kyou's face.
"Just what are you getting at Kyou! Get on with it!" Yuki yelled angrily.
"Whatever it is..I definitely want to help!" Black-Haru beamed.
Yuki immediately tore himself free from his grasp, "Oh no you don't! You're not in this!"
"There was no rule saying anyone who happened to show up couldn't participate..it's part of the punishment I get to choose out for you." Kyou stated.
Yuki blanched. For the first time in the presence of Kyou, he hung his head defeatedly. "Ok..what do you want me to do?"
Kyou turned to Haru, "Haru, since you are the one with the most fashion sense among us, I want you to go through Tohru's closet real quick and bring me the sexiest dress you can find. Preferably red..to match the color of my hair."
Haru nearly jumped with glee at the thought. Yuki nearly fainted.
"Meanwhile I have some other props to find." added the cocky cat.
The minutes spent looking for the materials went by like hours for Yuki as he drowned in the anticipation. He only hoped it WOULD take them hours to find what they needed..better still, if they didn't find them at all. But to his dismay both boys returned almost in unison.
In one hand Haru held a slinky, red, low cut, spaghetti stringed, dress with slits on both sides to show a little leg. In the other he was holding a small box. Yuki stared at it curiously as if asking what it was.
Haru complied. "Can't wear such a sexy dress without some make-up to make you look extra pretty."
Yuki glowered furiously while Kyou nodded approvingly of Haru's judgment. Kyou set down his own materials. Yuki could plainly see that he had brought a Polaroid camera and Shigure's dog collar with leash.
"You have to be kidding me!" the rat protested.
Kyou shook his head, "Better believe it."
"This is beyond humiliation Kyou. I would have never done this to you!"
Both tormentors gave him a sarcastic look.
"Only because Kyou couldn't pull off looking good in a dress..not the same way you do, of course." Haru sung.
Yuki crossed his arms, "Don't talk to me Haru, I am extremely angry with you."
"Too bad I wont remember that." Haru teased.
Kyou cut in. "Right, so I believe you have to change into this now."
Yuki grumbled snatching the dress from Haru. He inspected it carefully.
"I wonder why Tohru would have such a dress?" he pondered.
"Actually I think it was her mothers, because it is much taller than Tohru's frame." Haru offered.
Yuki shrugged and proceeded to sulk sluggishly out of the room to change. Haru stopped him.
"Change here. In front of us."
Yuki turned to his audience horrified.
"Kyou said I could help." Haru smirked, "So strip."
Yuki groaned but did as he was told. He quickly removed his clothing, down to the boxers and began stuffing himself into the dress.
Haru stopped him again. "No no. You will have to take off the boxers too. Those slits on the dress are too high and your boxers will stick out of them dreadfully. You are supposed to show some leg, not underwear."
Yuki snarled angrily but Haru only shrugged as if the subject was unavoidable.
"It's not like we haven't seen you naked before Yuki, it's no big deal."
Kyou thought about this. It's true the boys had been naked around each other before, during their transformations. But it wasn't like they had actually LOOKED..well maybe with the exception of Haru who was always quite the exhibitionist.
Yuki blushed wildly as he slipped out of his boxers, his hands trembling slightly from the embarrassment. Haru tried to look discreetly around the room in an attempt to make the discomfort easier on the victim. Kyou on the other hand was transfixed on the fair skinned body. He shifted uncomfortably after he caught himself staring too long at the suffering boy. A faint trace of heat rose to wash his face. There was something unmistakably different about everything this time. Maybe Hatsuharu had finally corrupted his mind.
The white haired boy grinned cheek to cheek when Yuki finally slid into the dress. It fit him like a glove and Kyou noticed for the first time that Yuki truly was very femme. His hips were far curvier than Haru's and his own. His impeccable skin and slender legs only helped to reinforce this new revelation. Why hadn't he noticed it before? Or maybe he always knew but just didn't want to think about it.
Haru pounced upon the boy and quickly applied some lipstick. Since he wasn't too keen on women's products..it was about the only thing he knew how to put on properly. The rest were a mystery to him so he relented on trying anything else. Now it was Kyou's turn. He snapped on the collar and leash with ease and then motioned Haru for the camera.
"Now what?" Yuki dared to ask.
"Now, you pose for the camera." Kyou commanded with a pull of the leash.
As if Yuki was a mold of clay, Haru pulled the boys body into all sorts of positions before taking a picture. The first picture had Yuki's leg draped over Kyou while a delicate hand rested on his chest. Kyou in turn held the boy in place by an arm around his waist and a silly look on his face to assure whoever might see this that it was all a gag. The final pose decided on had Yuki on all fours. Kyou stood by his side with a leg propped up on the captives back and the leash pulled to it's fullest. It looked as if Kyou the cat had conquered the beastly rat and was taking it out for a walk. Haru relished the whole time taking snap shots of the two.
"I should be a photographer!" he praised himself.
Yuki only began popping nerves in various regions of his forehead. His tolerance finally boiled over.
"Enough of this! You two had your fun and I am getting out of this NOW!"
With that said, he picked himself up off the floor quickly stomping by Kyou on the way to his room.
Haru shrugged, gazing adoringly at the Polaroid's. "Guess the fun is over."
Kyou busied himself by arranging the room as it was originally, "If you call that sort of thing fun."
Haru raised an amused brow, "Oh please Kyon Kyon. Don't try to fool me..I saw the way you looked at him in that dress."
Kyou narrowed his eyes at him, "I like you better when you are white Haru you know that? When are you going to change back?"
Haru dismissed the comment as he waved one of the photos in the air, "Photos don't lie. I see that blush on your face when Yuki had his hand on your chest."
Kyou shoved him over snatching the condemning photograph to inspect it closely, "Let me see that!"
He searched the picture warily looking for any proof of what the other boy was saying. Haru had caught him at a bad time. Kyou definitely looked tense at the very least.
"Well, it's not every day you pose with your cousin in drag you know!"
Haru offered him a patronizing look.
"And he looks like a damn girl anyway! Sorry if that's a crime!"
Haru's lips quirked, "So you admit you were attracted then."
"No! I was not attracted! Not really.."
Another look from Haru.
"Kind of. Ok..maybe a little..but very very little!" the bristling cat-boy snapped.
"Very little what?"
The arguing boys turned to see Yuki strolling into the living room with a bathrobe on. He eyed the two suspiciously. Haru, with his devilish smile, made is if he was going to answer Yuki's question but Kyou quickly changed the subject.
"What are you doing here!" he blurted.
Yuki blinked, "I was going to get something to drink in the kitchen..we normally walk through here to get there right? I mean, you haven't smashed down another wall or something in your spare time have you?"
Haru tried again to get his word in but Kyou continued stalling.
"Why are you wearing that bathrobe?"
Yuki looked annoyed at his stupid questions and he began heading for the kitchen as he responded, "One because I can; and two because I am taking a bath after this. That damn lipstick wont disappear completely for your information."
Yuki disappeared into the kitchen and Kyou jabbed Haru hard in the ribs. The other growled at him menacingly.
"I'll do more than that next time if you dare to say something smart to Yuki!"
Haru's eyes glinted, "So you mean you want to..hurt me? Is this in a pleasurable sense, because you know how I love your feline touches my kitten."
Kyou rolled his eyes just as Yuki reappeared in the room and on route to the bath.
"So anyway like Kyou was saying.." Haru began.
Kyou face-faulted as Yuki stopped in his tracks to hear what Haru had to say. Kyou quickly recomposed himself and sent the Ox a pleading look. Haru waited out the moment, just to see Kyou sweat.
"Well?" Yuki prodded on, the sternness of his face becoming evident of his annoyance.
Kyou gulped. Haru smiled.
"He was saying that the bet is not over!"
At this Kyou sighed from relief. Yuki only slapped his forehead, letting his hand drip down his face in a show of thinning patience.
"What is it this time?" said the boy with a hand on his hip.
Black Haru grinned significantly.
"You have to kiss me." he winked.
"You're not serious." Yuki muttered, his face blank.
Kyou looked away, finding the ceiling very interesting, this was not his idea. Haru nodded vigorously.
"Forget it. I'm not doing it! I told you I'm done."
Yuki dismissed the idea with a wave of his hand and a swish of his bathrobe in the direction of the washroom.
Haru fanned himself with the photographs he held in hand. "That's too bad, I guess I'll have to find some other form of entertainment. I wonder what the look on Tohru's face would be if I showed her these.."
At this comment Yuki stopped in his tracks and Kyou whirled to face the evil side of Haru. A huge sweatdrop and looks of panic crossed the cat and mouse.
"You can't do that Haru! I'm in those pictures too!" Kyou rebuked.
Haru shrugged, "True..I suppose you'll have to join us too then Kyou."
Kyou blanched. Yuki coughed.
"But this was MY match and MY victory and MY punishment for Yuki. You can't turn the tables on me!" Kyou menaced.
Haru yawned. "But whose the one with the pictures in hand?" He then checked his clock, "Time is running out..she could be on her way home right now."
He whistled as the two boys in question contemplated their sudden twist of fate.
Yuki dropped his shoulder and hung his head after some thought, directing his speech to his rival. "I'll do it if you will."
Kyou effectively hid his eyes as well, "Yeah I guess.."
Haru clapped in mock excitement, "Great! So then we agree! Who goes first? Or do I just use my Ultra Haru Pimpin Skills™ and tongue you both at once? hmm? I'm open to suggestions, foreplay and whatever else you minxes desire."
"He's having too much fun with this.." Kyou muttered vacantly under his breath.
"It's all your fault Baka Neko..don't complain. You go first!" Yuki said shoving the poor victim in Haru's direction.
The boy with many necklaces outstretched his eager, greedy hands complete with recoiling fingers to nab the cat.
"You're a brave one my kitten." Haru teased, "Try not to purr too loud once I lay the Haru Love™ on ya."
Kyou squeezed his eyes shut and just wished it to be over with, as he felt the younger boy dip him for easy access. All too soon his lips were seized by the hungry ones he knew belonged to Black Haru.
It was awkward at first. He knew this was all a big gag, but even so it was his first kiss with a boy. He stiffened and strained against the soft lips on contact but Haru seemed to pay no attention to the agonies the cat was going through. Instead he softened the kiss, giving Kyou more time to relax into the act, and to his surprise he did. Kyou's body limped as the gentleness of Haru's manner surprised him. He found himself kissing back, as he nipped lightly on his bottom lip, tasting the sweetness offered by the tip of his teasing tongue. Immediately Kyou realized what he was doing and pulled himself away.
"OK! Mission accomplished! The end!" he squeaked trying to sound bold.
He added an "I'm definitely having Hatori erase my memory of this event." for good measure.
Haru shrugged, "Sucks for you..you wont remember your victory against Yuki then. And the pics will always be around to remind you anyway."
Kyou stamped the ground as it dawned on him that Haru was right. Yuki had been staring the whole time with wide eyes and his astonished gaze was still fixed on Kyou. With one last odd look, Yuki advanced hesitantly on the beckoning Haru.
Kyou watched with interest as Yuki went through the same process of squirms he experienced. And still he couldn't stop gawking at the smooth pink lips that Haru so happily devoured. As expected Yuki too sank into the kiss and eventually began his own exploration. Haru was much more eager with Yuki in his arms, it was no surprise to anyone whom he preferred. Was Kyou jealous? No! Of course not..well maybe just a little. Jealous because Haru had been his first kiss, but also jealous because he wanted to be the one kissing Yuki.
He shook the thoughts out of his head and decided to concentrate on something other than the two writhing figures, but his eyes always strayed back from sheer morbid curiosity (that's what he decided it was). By now Yuki had wrapped his arms around the younger Sohma and Haru was wasting no time in groping most of the mouse under his bathrobe. Under his bathrobe!? Kyou decided that was enough, he needed to be somewhere else to get the mental images, and the funny feeling in his lower half, out of his system. Just as he began strolling towards the stairs the two preoccupied boys broke their makeout session.
"Where do you think you are going?"
Kyou was surprised to hear it was Yuki's voice; Yuki's VERY seductive voice. Haru grunted in agreement as he raised a single calling finger. Kyou only had one minute to ponder the implications they were presenting, but something about the way Yuki licked his lips caused the kitty to forget his train of thought and cross the distance between them reflexively.
Before he knew it his lips were pressed fervently to those of his nemesis. To his surprise those lips were just as unapologetic. After tangling their tongues a while, Kyou broke off, brandishing a cocky grin.
"I win again Yuki. You're mine!" He teased, with a victorious tone to his voice.
"I don't think so!" countered Yuki, tackling the boy to the floor.
Haru stood blinking at the scene before him.
"Is this your way of venting your tensions for each other?" he asked, but only muffled sounds escaped the boys who were in a lip locked battle for dominance.
Haru shrugged, "Whatever..I want some too!" with that he dove in for some of the action.
The mingling kisses continued on until the session was broken by the sound of a sliding door. All three boys tore their faces away from patches of skin they had occupied and tried in vain to scramble off each other; but it was too late. Tohru's head popped in through the door and froze seeing the tangled mass of boys. She gasped and lifted a hand to her mouth.
"W-W-What is going on here!" she stuttered.
The flustered boys slowly preened themselves presentably giving each other worried looks. But before either had a chance to speak, she strode into the room uncharacteristically and crossed her arms.
"Yuki-kun! Kyou-kun! Shame on you!" she lectured.
The rivals looked in opposite directions.
"I can understand when you two fight, but dragging poor Hatsuharu-san into it is not very fair right?" she reasoned.
Yuki and Kyou's ears perked up at her words.
"Poor Haru?!" they yelled in unison at each other and automatically turned to look at him.
Haru had reverted to white mode and was blinking innocently at the two of them.
"Haru must have reverted from the shrill tension of being caught." Yuki mumbled under his breath to Kyou.
"Make a mental note to punish him severely when in private." Kyou whispered back.
The two boys slumped defeatedly and snatched the passive Haru up ready to sneak off.
"We're sorry Tohru, we promise to behave." they chimed together and subsequenty dragged Haru with them to another part of the house while a dumbfounded Tohru strolled into the kitchen to start dinner.
In Shigure's study, Yuki slid the door closed and turned to the two other boys.
"What was that about punishment Kyou?" Yuki grinned slyly.
Kyou did the same turning in Haru's direction, "Yeah where were we?"
Haru only blinked, "Guys..I feel like I'm missing something."
Sweatdrops appeared on all three heads as a voice from the living room boomed through the halls.
"Yuki-kun!? Why are you wearing my dress and Shigure's collared leash in these pictures!!!?"
~ Owari