Alright ya'll, this is chapter 2! The plot will start to develop more after this chapter, so again please read and review. I would really love some feedback! =D
Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket or any of the characters!
Happy reading! =^_^=
Kyo awoke to sunshine streaming brightly through a window, blinding him as he struggled to figure out where he was. He noticed the small bed he was laying on, uncomfortable to say the least, and the room around him was a stark white, enhancing the brightness from the sun. Suddenly and without warning, Hatori walked into the room, and the events of the night before came flooding back into Kyo's memory. The pain in his side immediately became more noticeable as he anxiously tried to sit up straight.
"No no, Kyo. You need to get your rest," the doctor said sternly, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Oh what the hell do you know?" Kyo shot back angrily, shrugging the hand off his shoulder. "As if you even care about me! No one in this family gives a rat's ass about the stupid cat!"
Remaining calm as always, Hatori replied, "Kyo…more people care about you than you believe…" It was the honest truth. But Kyo definitely did not see it that way.
"Oh yeah? Is that why every single one of you stood there watching as both Yuki and Akito humiliated me! Is that why no one felt the need to put an end to it before…well… before this happened!" he gestured to his injured side.
A solemn look swept across Hatori's face at Kyo's words; the truth in them settling deep in his heart. "I'm sorry…Kyo. There is no excuse or valid reason for any one of us to let that happen…and yet…even you must know we cannot defy her…" he trailed off.
"Even if it means someone gets hurt? Oh right, I almost forgot…you let Rin and Kisa both end up in the hospital, near death, because of their affection for someone! And what did she do to you, Hatori? Nearly blinded you in one eye. But no, you don't care about any of that. It's easy for you! You just go on your merry little way letting people get hurt, as long as all you have to do is nurse them back to health!" Kyo replied, with venom. He ripped out the IV that was stuck in his arm and got up. He intended to storm out the room, but the pain in his side was too much to bear so he sat back down on the bed.
Hatori had waited patiently, watching him cautiously as he finished his rant. Admittedly, he was very worried about the boy, and he dearly wished that he could truthfully deny the words that Kyo spoke. Nonetheless, the events he spoke of had indeed happened, but he had done nothing to prevent them.
Kyo turned away from Hatori, who was still scrutinizing him, to look out the window into the courtyard. He simply could not understand how his own family could be so shallow, but he knew one thing for sure; he was going to do something about it. Narrowing his eyes in anger, he vowed to knock Akito down from whatever pedestal she was sitting on, and he would do the same with that damn Yuki! He returned his gaze to the room he was in, and realized Hatori was still standing in the doorway, staring at him. "You need something, Doctor?"
Startled out of his thoughts, Hatori sighed and shook his head. "I was only thinking.."
"Well do it elsewhere! I have my own thinking to do."
Hatori simply nodded, and turned to leave, pausing only in the doorway to say with the most sincerity, "Whatever you do, Kyo, be careful… This family needs you more than you could possibly know." With that said, he left the room.
Kyo rolled his eyes, let out a breath of exasperation, and laid back down to get some rest. He decided that once he was healed, or at the most able to move without pain, he would return to Shishou's house to continue training.
. . .
The next time Kyo awoke it was evening. He had no idea how long he had slept, but judging by the way his side no longer stung, he must have been sleeping for days. Being the early riser he was, he wondered how the hell he could have slept that long in the first place. He looked around the room, still disoriented from the shear amount of sleep he'd had. A lamp was shining from the corner of the room, residing on Hatori's desk.
As his eyes adjusted better to the light, he noticed a young girl sitting in the chair at the desk. She was staring at him, surprisingly quiet for her personality. Kyo took in her appearance carefully, noting the dark circles around her eyes which made her look exhausted. Despite how much she annoyed him, Kyo knew that Kagura was more than worried about him, and had more than likely stayed up waiting for him to wake up. As much as he hated those qualities, he also admired them.
Then something dawned on him, and he quickly became enraged. It was her fault that he was there in the first place, and if she had just shut the hell up, Akito wouldn't have known he was even in the main house.
Kagura watched him the entire time, noticing when his forehead creased and his knuckles clenched tightly. She knew the anger would come out as soon as he remembered it was her fault. And god, she truly felt terrible about the incident, and the part she played in it.
Taking a deep breath, she sighed and opened her mouth to speak. "Kyo…I…I'm-"
"Get out," Kyo cut her off sharply, pointing at the door.
"But…Kyo, I'm sor—"
"I said get out! What part of that don't you understand?" he yelled, rising from the hospital bed, and advancing in her direction.
"K-Kyo…j-just hear m-me out…" Kagura sobbed. She waited for him to respond, but he only gave her an annoyed look. "I'm sorry Kyo. I didn't mean for any of that to happen. I was so excited that maybe you were able to attend the banquet…and… I got carried away…" she trailed off at the end, averting her eyes.
"If that's all, you can leave now. I don't want to talk to you…or anyone for that matter."
She got up and walked to the door solemnly, but briefly turned back to him, her eyes glittering with tears. "Kyo, p-please just answer one thing?"
"What is it?" he folded his arms across his chest, getting really ticked off now that all he wanted was for her to leave.
"Please tell me you'll stay? Uhh…I don't know what I would do if you left again…"
"Why? You all get along fine without me," he said venomously. "I refuse to stay in this god forsaken place! I'm going back to Shishou's. And trust me, you don't need me here. No one does!"
"That's not true!" she cried, stomping back into the room to stand in front of him. "I need you here! Haru needs you here! We all need your strength and will to keep us going! You just don't get it Kyo…" she pleaded, waving her hands in the air in frustration, and donning a pouty look.
That was the final straw for Kyo. He grabbed her roughly by the shoulders and shook her violently. "No! Kagura, you don't get it! I'm not strong! I don't have the willpower to do anything! Just what do I have to live for here in this place? Under Akito's divine supervision. I am free to leave…until…until….well you know what will happen to me eventually…." He hung his head in defeat. "I. Can't. Do. Anything. I'm powerless to the curse that controls our lives! And so are you!" He paused for a moment to gather his thoughts. "Why didn't you defend me?" He paused again, waiting for her reply, but all she could do was stare at him in shocked silence. "Because of Akito and the curse, that's why! Do you get it now?"
By the time he was done yelling at her, he was shaking in anger. His voice had risen, and he was clutching her shoulders so tightly that she was wincing. Kagura stood as still as a statue, tears rolling down her face, but she remained silent, even after he let go of her shoulders and turned away from her to regain control of his temper
Finally Kyo heard Kagura shift behind him, and having calmed down, he turned around again to face her. She shifted from leg to leg, unsure of what to say next. His words had left her speechless, so she approached him and cautiously wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning her head against his chest. Speaking into his shirt, she apologized quietly, and was surprised when he wrapped his own arms around her.
Kyo didn't feel anything for Kagura; he never had, but her gesture still meant a lot to him. Truthfully , her persistence drove him nuts, and he refused to even discuss all that marriage crap that she seemed to always bring up whenever they were together. He knew that even if he felt that way for her, there was no way Akito would ever allow that happiness, and she had not realized the truth yet.
They stood there for a couple minutes in silence, until he started to grow impatient again. She noticed the change in his posture and pulled away from him. She was content, but she wished she could actually do something for him. He was independent, and stubborn, and in the end he would do exactly what he wanted with the time he had left. Realizing this, she nodded, gave Kyo a quick peck on the cheek, and left Kyo to his own thoughts once again.
. . .
Kyo wandered through the Sohma estate, trying to find his way out of the damn place. The estate really was ridiculously huge for the small amount of people who actually lived on the grounds. Even so, he could admit that the place was very well kept, and even though it was the dead of winter, it was very tranquil.
He was hoping dearly that he didn't run into anyone on his way out, especially Akito or Yuki. All he wanted was to go back to his master's dojo, and take out some much needed anger on a punching bag, but running into either individual would deter him from that goal, and only piss him off more. Not to mention he'd rip that damn Yuki's head off if he so much as looked at him with that smug look on his face once more.
He turned the corner of a building and finally he saw the main entrance leading out of the estate. He shivered slightly as a wind hit him full on, and he realized it was a lot colder than he first thought. He began to walk a little faster, deciding he wanted to make it back to the dojo as fast as he could. He also felt as though he would suffocate if he spent any more time on Akito's property. He pulled open the giant, ornately decorated door, and stepped outside.
As he was about to push the gate shut, someone threw it open, knocking Kyo on his back into the snow. "What the hell was that all about?" he grumbled, hopping up to shake the snow out of his hair.
"What's the matter, you stupid cat, did you fall down on your ass?" Yuki appeared from behind the door, scrawny compared to its grandeur. That damn rat just had to see him leaving the estate, didn't he? And of course, he wore that damn smirk on his face like always, and god did it piss him off. His fists clenched and his eyes glazed red as his teeth gritted together.
"Get out of my way, you damn rat! I don't have time for this." He made to leave, but Yuki crossed his path, preventing him from proceeding any further.
"Where do you think you're running off to? Akito won't be too happy… don't you think? Besides… I believe we still have a fight to settle." He took a step back, settling into a fighting stance, preparing for whatever attack Kyo would futilely try first.
"Shut up! What's it to you where I run off too? I'm free to go where I please. Unlike you, forced to stay on the Sohma estate as Akito's little pet! It's fitting considering the legends…." Kyo crossed his arms proudly, giving Yuki that same smirk that he always received from the rat. He should have expected what came next, but as always he was startled by the back of Yuki's swift hand making contact with his face. And damn, it hurt every time!
He attempted a right uppercut to Yuki's chin, but was blocked and sent flying into the estate wall. He hit the ground with a thud, and rubbed the back of his head as he got up from the cold, wet ground. Shaking from anger and the cold, he glared daggers at the rat, who looked just as pissed as he felt.
"Don't you ever call me a pet...or a toy. Ever again, you stupid cat," he spat.
"Why not? Are you afraid that I might actually be right for once in my life?" he chuckled slightly. He wondered how long Yuki would continue to believe every lie that Akito had filled his brain with. That damn rat was completely brainwashed by her, and the irony in it was amusing to him. At least Kyo was free from that for another year.
"Shut up." Yuki's voice was menacing now, the hatred and contempt he held for the cat apparent in his tone.
This made Kyo smile. He enjoyed getting under the rat's skin the way Yuki always got under his. He enjoyed watching Yuki get angry with him. That rat really was way too sensitive. Then again, so was Kyo, except that when he reached that point he could never control his temper, while the rat could.
"At least I won't have to spend the rest of my life in confinement. I would rather be Akito's pet than be locked in a filthy, cold, dark cage until I die. You decide what's worse… I think you'll come to the same conclusion if you use that brain of yours for once!"
He knew he struck a nerve the moment the words came out of his mouth. Kyo moved quickly, but not smoothly, and threw a right hook to Yuki's left cheek. Yuki blocked it smoothly, but was not expecting Kyo's left hand to come flying at his face from the opposite direction. Kyo's fist connected with his nose, feeling it crack painfully. Yuki backed up, holding his now bleeding nose. That was the first blow he could ever remember Kyo actually landing on him.
Kyo was ecstatic. For the first time in his life he had been able to hit Yuki. Not to mention that he actually broke the rat's nose, which was even less likely to happen. Unfortunately, this did not mean he had finally beaten the rat. He knew that in order to do that, Yuki had to be knocked to the ground, unconscious even. Still, this at least proved that he was capable of succeeding, and if he did just that, Akito would be forced to hold out his end of the bargain and release him from his fate.
Kyo backed away and headed off for the dojo. He figured it was best to not hang around, just in case Akito decided to show up to see what was going on. He ran as fast as he could, exhilarated by the cold air whipping his orange strands around his face. When he arrived at the dojo, his adoptive father and master was pleasantly surprised to see him, and offered him some tea to warm him up from the cold outside. Their conversation was kept short and simple; it was implied that Kyo would be staying there for awhile again, and Kazuma asked no questions why. He was concerned about Kyo's injury, but he knew his son was strong, and he would recover in no time at all.
. . .
Once Kyo had disappeared from sight, Yuki bolted through the door into the main grounds of the estate, and made to find Akito immediately. The blood from his nose had slowed and was beginning to dry into a crusty, uncomfortable scab. He just could not believe that the stupid cat had actually managed to break his nose. Mind boggled, he ran faster, hoping his asthma didn't act up on him. This was bad; very bad; and Akito would be pissed as soon as she found out what had happened.
Out of breath and panting as he felt his asthma start to tug at his lungs, he collapsed through the door to Akito's room. Akito rushed over to him and grabbed a wet rag from her bedside table.
"Yuki, my dear, are you alright? What happened to your nose?" She reached up to wipe the blood away but he flinched and turned away from her, coughing from the strain on his lungs as well.
"Kyo…he…stronger… not good!" he gasped between coughs. He saw Akito's eyes flash in anger, and then the room around him turned dark and he collapsed to the floor.
. . .
Alright, that was chapter 2. It may take me awhile to get chapter 3 up, but please be patient!
I hope you enjoyed it!
-Aya Mae
