Well, the good news is, for every 137 people, I get a review…. sigh seriously, out of 2740 people, only 20 felt like saying something…anything? Come on people, yell at me, and tell me I have smelly feet, or you could say 'hey, I really wish Kyo was real. I'd totally do him'. I like reviews, they're the only thing that keeps my little insane brain from taking a break at the mental institution to visit my spleen and left lung….

The last few weeks, since Kyo hadn't turned up, Yuki decided to help Shigure out at the house. He spent most afternoons when Tohru was busy monotonously cleaning.

"Akito?" Yuki almost fell out of the window he was cleaning. "Why? I mean, yeah. Ok." He finished the window and rushed down the stairs and out of the house.

"Ah, master Yuki, Akito-sama has been expecting you." The servant bowed as Yuki passed him by nervously.

"So good to see you. Come in come in. I have some things that I want to discuss with you.

Meanwhile, at Shigure's house

"Ah, Kyo-kun. It seems that Tohru was successful in bringing you back." Shigure smiled, watching both Kyo and Tohru step in and take their shoes off.

"Good evening, Shigure." Tohru nodded. She had almost forgotten that she had only a brief time to stay there. It wasn't her house anymore.

Kyo walked silently up the stairs and Tohru followed after. "Tohru, if Kyo-kun tries anything, just yell." Shigure called up the stairs with his hands cupped around his mouth. His statement was followed-up with a sneaker flung down the stairs at his head.

"You should probably be getting back soon…"

"Why'd you leave?"

"What?"

"Shigure-san said you were gone for 2 weeks. Why'd you leave?"

"I-umm…" He wasn't sure how to put what he was feeling into words. He had never exactly been the most skilled when it came to that. He wanted to say something like 'I just couldn't stand your cuts, your bumps, your bruises. They were constant reminders that I had failed to protect you yet again…that I once more unsuccessfully kept you from harm. And every time I how much pain it caused you, the more I just wanted to die. The sight of you like that was more than I ever wanted to bear…I'm so sorry that I left you alone for all those days and nights, but I'm hear now.'

That's what he wanted to say, and he had repeated it and practiced it to himself several times. But, being the conversational expert that he is, it came out significantly shorter than he planned for it to be. "I couldn't stand the sight of you…."

"…!"

"No-wait. I meant, seeing you…like that…What he did to you, it just, it made me so mad…I couldn't look at it anymore…"

"Kyo-kun…"

Sohma Main House

"Akito-san…I-"

"Yuki-kun, think this over carefully before you make your choice.

"I will do it." Akito smiled when Yuki agreed.

Shigure's House

"I'm back." Yuki called up the stairs of the house. "Tohru, Hatori told me to bring you back since it's getting late." She was down the stairs with Kyo in seconds. They weren't going to take any more chances with Akito.

"Oh, I see you're home…" Yuki said almost in a hostile way.

Kyo just nodded, leaning on the wall with his hands in his pockets. "Tohru, take care…" He mumbled gently, his only clue that she heard him was her sweet smile before she took off out the door.

"Tohru…"

"huh?"

"I need to talk to you…"

"…? What is it?" They had stopped just outside of the main house, and she was pretty sure that she saw Momiji's head in the window but she chose to ignore it.

"It's about Kyo…I talked to Akito and…he decided that he's too out of control and needs to be tamed. He feels that one of the reasons that he's so defiant is because of-well, you."

"…! Yuki-kun. Please talk to him again! I don't want to be the cause of anything!"

"Let me finish." He looked sincerely sad. "Your memory was already erased, Hatori can't do it again, so he's going with another solution. He's going to erase Kyo's memory…of you."

Tohru couldn't help bursting into tears. It wasn't possible…he couldn't do that…he just couldn't. Kyo- he'd be stronger than that, wouldn't he? He promised her…he promised that he'd never forget her…"He promised…" She muttered.

"What?" Yuki asked, placing his hand gently on her shoulder. She looked so sad, but he didn't have any other choice. He had argued with Akito all night over how to handle the problem. Akito's initial reaction had just been to kill her and be done with it, but after hours of pleading and begging, and striking a very pricy deal, Akito agreed to let her live.

"N-nothing. L-let's go inside." The tears never stopped, they only got worse when she closed her bedroom door and flopped onto the bed.

The Next Morning

Tohru-kun…" Momiji poked her shoulder gently, trying to wake her up as nicely as possible. "It's- It's time for school.

Tohru opened her still puffy red eyes, looking up the rabbit. She simply nodded and pushed herself out of bed. The morning appeared to have had all of its memory drained out of it. Neither one of them cared to say much or start off the conversation about last night. In fact, no one said a word until the got outside, where Yuki, Kyo and Haru were waiting for the unusually slow duo.

"Eh! I'm so sorry to keep you all waiting." Tohru said rushing over to Kyo and Yuki. She looked over at Yuki, who smiled weakly. "Does he-"

"No…" Yuki said, falling back to walk with Momiji and Haru.

"Kyo-kun I-I-I-" Her lip was quivering and soon she burst into tears.

"! Tohru, what's wrong?" Kyo felt partially guilty. Especially seeing as she only broke out into the tears after she started to talk to him. "Come on, don't cry." He pleaded, waving his hands up and down, trying to get her to calm down.

"I-umm, nothing…" She lied, wiping the tears off her face.

"You can't just start cry and then tell me it was nothing." He stopped in front of her and grabbed her shoulders. "No come on, what's wrong. We're not moving another inch until you tell me."

Yuki couldn't just let Tohru be forced into being the one to tell him his fate. "Oh, let it go for now baka-neko. It's probably a girl thing. I mean, she seems fine now."

"Yeah, nice try. No." Kyo turned back to Tohru for an answer right before Momiji hit him playfully in the head.

"Oh let it go sour puss. We're going to be late for school!" He said before darting off ahead of them.

Kyo huffed; it was obviously something they didn't want him to know. Probably a banquet or something that he couldn't go to, nothing big. He'd find out later. "Fine." He mumbled, turning around and walking school bound again.

Surprisingly Tohru walked up next to him, grabbing his hand while they walked, ignoring his bright red face and his constant peering over at their hands. Like he didn't believe she was actually doing it. "Kyo-kun…" She said quietly, looking up at him.

"Yeah?"

"No matter what happens, I'll never stop-"

"That was the late bell!" Yuki screamed, darting past them, pulling Kyo and Tohru with him (with the help of Haru, who wasn't trying quite as hard to make it to school).

Tohru avoided Kyo for almost the entire school day. She just happened to be on the other side of the classrooms or taking a make-up test or having to leave early every period. He hardly noticed though and decided he'd leave it be until the way home, only to find that Tohru and Momiji took off before him.

Later that day, Sohma main house

"Oh, hey Kyo-kun…" Momiji stood at the door, he didn't really want him seeing Tohru, she'd just cry again. He'd have to tell him so she wouldn't have to.

"Is Tohru inside?"

"Yes…"

"Can I see her?"

"No."

"What did you say?"

"I said no…Kyo-kun…Tohru's kind of a mess right now…"

"That's it, let me in." Kyo went to plow right through the pint size bunny but Yuki grabbed his shoulder. "Arg. What do you want?"

"To tell you why she's so upset."

"Well?"

"Akito has decided that your memory of Tohru…will be erased completely."

"Wh-what?" Kyo didn't even know what to say, or even what to think. All that came to his mind were groups of jumbled thoughts and feelings. He couldn't do it, he'd never let himself forget her. She was too important to him to forget. Not to mention he'd never make her suffer what he did when she lost her own memory. He'd run away, he'd simply not do it, he'd- he'd talk to Tohru first off.

Kyo pushed through Momiji and rushed down the hallway (which he wasn't supposed to be in). Out of breath he stopped at Tohru open door, looking in on a girl lying on her bed face down in wet pillow, surrounded by tissues.

"…Tohru."

"Eep!" Tohru tried to pull herself together as fast as possible, pushing tissues off the bed and wiper her eyes several times.

Kyo just laughed, brushing aside some tissues to sit down by the end of her bed. "Tohru…I know."

She stopped what she was doing completely, falling forward on her bed, her into his lap. She just started crying again. He placed his hand on the back of her head. "Hey, I made a promise, didn't I?"

Tohru stopped crying and looked up at him. "Don't you worry about anything. I could never forget you…no matter how hard they try…you're memories will always be with me…"

"-"

"I thought I smelled something fowl…" Akito peered into Tohru's room. Kyo shot up off the bed, glaring at him.

"Kyo, would you mind following me to my room."

"yes." He growled under his breath, hesitantly trailing behind Akito. He looked back momentarily, giving Tohru a reassuring smile. He would fight it with everything in him, he had to.

They made their way silently to Akito's room. Hatori was sitting there, waiting patiently. "Oh." Akito said, turning to Kyo, out of Tori's earshot. "You know, I'd never force you do this, you can say no now and walk away."

"What's the catch?"

"Well, I seemed to have a little problem on my hands, so I can either to this, or if you chose to keep your memories, I can always just kill off our dead weight."

Kyo eyes widened and his jaw dropped. For a fleeting second he thought that he wouldn't have to do this, but it was a way choice than having him hurt Tohru again. And then the thought hit him. Right now, he'd do anything to keep her safe, to protect her from everything, but, if he forgot her…what then? What if she was hurt or got hurt or heaven forbid, he hurt her himself. How would he react. He tried desperately to tell himself that he'd do something, that's stand up for her and keep her safe…but, he couldn't believe himself…

Kyo nodded solemnly, sitting down slowly in front of Hatori. "Alright. Let's do this"