Hello again!!!!! Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Year and now I have returned. Huge thanks to all reviewers, the result of which HAHA this one should be longer…I hope. Anyway, I'll stop taking up your valuable reading time and ENJOY!!!!

Chapter 2: Help From Hatori

"SHIGURE!"

The dog scrambled to his feet and rushed to the entryway. Yuki was gone, but what was that…? He stepped forward to meet the grey rat scurrying towards him.

"Yuki?" he called. "What happened? Is Tohru here?"

The rat ran straight past him into the house. A few moments later, Shigure heard a 'poof' as Yuki returned to human form. He reappeared almost immediately, fully clothed and carrying a blanket.

"Miss Honda's sick," the teen gasped breathlessly, dragging his cousin with him as he hurried along the path. "She's unconscious, we need to get her inside and call Hatori." His voice was panicky and his breathing sharp. Shigure loosed his arm from Yuki's grip and jogged alongside him. As they came over the hill, he paused. Tohru was lying on the ground, slightly on her side. Her eyes were closed but she looked anything but peaceful. Sweat glistened on her brow. She looked so pale, so vulnerable. Like a trampled flower…

Yuki stood at the top of the stairs, listening to Shigure's conversation on the phone. At least the stupid dog isn't fooling around with Hatori like he normally does the rat thought, as he stepped out of the shadows and returned to Tohru's bedroom. His heart sank as he slid the door open. She looked worse than she had done when he'd left her. She wasn't even writhing around anymore. She just lay still…and silent…almost like she was…

"Hari's on his way." Shigure looked over Yuki's shoulder into the room. He couldn't think of anything else to say. After all, if he were Yuki, that's all he'd want to hear. A blanket of silence descended over the whole house. The Sohmas didn't move from beside the door. Tohru didn't even seem to breathe.

"She looked pale this morning," Yuki muttered softly. "And at school."

"She worked every night this week and last," Shigure added, half to himself. "But that's Tohru for you…"

With this, he retreated from the doorway, and went downstairs. He slid open the door to his study and stepped inside. Kneeling behind his desk, he lit a cigarette. The moon reappeared from behind a murky cloud and illuminated the room. The embossed text on the jackets of his favourite novels glinted. Light bounced off of the paperclip securing the manuscript he had successfully concealed from Mii the day before. Shigure exhaled a mouthful of smoke. He had driven her into the woods…and Tohru had spent almost an hour tracking her down and bringing her back, despite having homework to finish and dinner to cook. Tohru had only met Mii a few times…yet she was still as kind to her as she was to any of the Sohmas… Shigure inhaled deeply. Yes…what would the other members of the Zodiac make of Tohru's sudden illness…? His train of thoughts was disrupted by a sharp knock on the door. By the time the cigarette had landed in the ash-tray, Shigure was already closing his study door.

Hatori placed his stethoscope against Tohru's chest and listened. He could not help but notice how quiet the house was. Even with only 3 people living in it, when he'd previously visited, it had always seemed alive, somehow. Not now though… He returned the instrument to his bag, and took his watch in one hand and Tohru's wrist in the other. It was so frail… Hari shook himself mentally. This was not a good time for an emotional overload. Especially bearing his diagnosis in mind.

Slipping his watch back onto his wrist, the dragon glanced over his shoulder at Yuki and Shigure, both of whom were standing motionless by the door, nervously awaiting his verdict. The dog's tight-lipped, solemn expression was almost enough to prompt a reaction from his childhood companion. As for Yuki…he looked like he was about to be sick.

Sighing heavily, Hatori stood up and turned to face his cousins. "I'm afraid it doesn't look good," he stated blankly. "She has a very weak pulse and a high temperature. There's nothing I can do for her here. I'm going to call for an ambulance."

The room fell silent. Yuki stared blankly at the floor as the news sunk in. Shigure gazed emotionlessly out of the window at the bleak night sky, for once speechless.

"I'll…pack of her things for her…" Yuki stuttered eventually. Hatori nodded and made for the door.

As he passed Shigure, the dog muttered, "How can you stay so calm?"

Hatori paused, one hand on the door frame, and looked him in the eye.

"Somebody has to."