Fruits Blossom

Prologue:

Far after the first memory everyone forgot and much before the story of when the cat's words came true, there is another story. The foundations of a promise were uncovered, and the 'bond' would come into question. It is the story of the beginning of the end, when the burden of a long made promise had just begun to weigh on those who made it, when the promise was just beginning to become a curse . . .

'Damn it! It's going to rain, I just know it. I'll have to go find shelter,' Nekai thought to himself as he gazed upwards into the gradually darkening sky. Heavy black rain clouds looked as if they would pop at any moment. The sight concerned the traveler. He would have to conceal himself before the clouds released their tears.

The young man, still soft looking with youth, retreated into the forest. The thicket of trees would protect his secret. He didn't want to expose himself to the people of the village. He couldn't find a reason he should care about what they thought of him, but he did all the same. He wouldn't have been trying to hide otherwise. He finally settled into a dense part of the forest, well away from the village and the people.

It was just in time. As Nekai settled himself under an out cropping of rock, the first drop fell from the canopy above. He felt the strange lethargy overtake him. It happened every time it rained. His master had told him it was that his body was using all its stored energy to try and fight the beast with in. The beast would win, it could always overtake him. It was the curse the cat carried.

oxoxox

He watched the rain, his back propped against the door's frame. There was an unconscious sneer on the man's delicate features. The Main House was so full of silence it was almost deafening. The silence spoke of all that was being avoided. Everyone in the Main House knew what the rain brought. Deep within him, with a force that he didn't fully comprehend, the thought disgusted him. Haruki couldn't smell the cat's reek upon the evening air, so the fool must have been upwind of the village. Thankful for small blessings, Haruki couldn't help the lingering thoughts he wasted on the cat. Why did he feel the need to wander 'outside'? The protection the 'inside' gave him was enough to give Haruki comfort. After all, it was expected for him to stay 'inside'. The rat was the closest animal to god.

Mousy brown hair fell into his eyes, the longer part was tied into a top knot, but his bangs bothered him every now and then. Though paired with his large brown eyes, his features made him quite the attractive man. This both delighted and blighted him. It attracted the attention of the village girls. As a member of the zodiac he was naturally weary of the opposite sex, that didn't mean he lacked appreciation for the interest. The secret the Sohma family kept had to be protected at all costs. One accident and they were exposed. Then they would have to hire a ninja to silence the witnesses. It would be messy; Haruki wrinkled his nose at the thought. The Sohma family hadn't done business with the Shikyo-te clan in many years. It was a good record, one he personally wanted to see continue.

"Haruki-sama," chimed a sweet and unfamiliar voice. Haruki turned his head; a servant girl was bent in a bow before him. She was most definitely new. She wore the somber kimono of a maid, but that didn't hide her beauty. He smiled to himself, he would have to make sure and welcome her properly later. While physical relations as a member of the zodiac was a tricky, it wasn't as impossible as many thought. The rat always enjoyed a challenge. He was famous for being able to overcome such things as challenges. Besides all that, everyone in the 'inside' knew about his condition. Though he didn't prefer his transformed state, there really wasn't anything to hide.

"Please, go on," he encouraged the girl gently.

The maid never looked up. "Akiko-sama requests you."

"Very well, you may go," he waited until the girl exited the room before he moved deeper into the Main House, towards the collection of rooms referred to as the Inner Sanctum by many of those who live 'inside'.

When he came to the door, he announced himself before sliding the door open. He revealed a kneeling Akiko. The man had a frail look to him that encourage all to speak gently ton him for fear he would break at any moment. His hair was the colored like gossamer from a spider's web, a light silver gray. It was long and pooled around him where he sat. Haruki knew Akiko was much stronger then he appeared. At twenty-nine, he had already outlived his father. Akiko attributed it to the fact that he had no child to replace him, and as long as he had none he would continue to live.

Haruki thought Akiko was playing a dangerous game. With out Akiko, or an heir to take his place as Head of Household, the Zodiac would be no different from the cat demon. The thought mortified him. He wanted nothing in common with that piece of filth. Soon he would have to take matters into his own hands. He had already consulted Akiko's wife, Suzuki, on the subject. She longed for little else in the world then a child to call her own. She thought her husband rather cruel for denying her what she felt was her right to have.

"My lord," he addressed the frail man, falling into a bow.

"As you know, our kitty cat seems to have gone astray. I have decided to allow it no longer. In that form of his, he puts us all at risk. Every time it rains, stories from the village tell of a stench that turns rice to mush in the fields. Probably just tales for the simple, but I half believe the tale having borne witness to the foul odor of the cat demon myself. Disgusting. I want you to go with my seal to the Shikyo-te village. I've shown you the path before. The Cat is much stronger in that form then any of the Zodiac, including you Haruki. We need one of their specially trained ninjas to bring that abomination back to us. Can I count on you?" Akiko watched for any flicker in his demeanor.

"I can bring the Cat back, he has never . . ." he was interrupted by Akiko.

"In his human form, yes; you have never been bested. However the cat demon is a monster. I cannot take a risk, you are far to valuable to me. To catch a demon we need a demon."

Haruki didn't like it, but he knew Akiko spoke the truth. "I understand," he said bending to his master's will.

Akiko held out the ring in the palm of his hand, it was a gold ring with the family crest engraved on it. It would guarantee his safety. Yes the Shikyo-te were demons, there was no better way to describe a ninja.

First of all I would like to thank everyone who has started reading Fruit's Blossom, I plan it to be a thrilling epic that sheds some light on a past the Sohmas could have had. If you are reading this, then you have read the story, please review. Good or Bad, I want to know how I'm doing. Thanks!