Ice Prince

Ch 9

Hello everyone! I'm really sorry I took so long to update this story, but I recently had a sudden inspiration...for this chapter at least.

I also need to say that this is the UNEDITED VERSION of this chapter. Yanikei has been very busy lately, and, since I don't want to make her life even harder, I have decided to post this as a place holder until there is an edited version. So please bear with me.

Enjoy this chapter... and please remember to review!

The next morning Tohru woke up earlier than the others in the house and, after getting dressed, she silently snuck out to the secret garden where she and Momiji went sometimes to talk or spend time together.

It was too early for the teenage rabbit to be at the garden, or perhaps to even be awake, so Tohru sat alone on a rock near the koi pond, thinking.

Earlier when Uo and Hana had told her that they had seen Yuki walking around the city, the girls first thought was that they were playing a prank on her… except for the fact that her two best friends would never do that to her. And so, Tohru believed Yuki was really back in Japan, and even back in Tokyo.

After she had come to that realization, the girl found she could barely contain the excitement at the thought of seeing the grey haired boy again. She had missed him greatly, he was always in her mind these past years, and Tohru had never given up wishing and hoping for his return. The entire time he had been missing, she had believed in her heart that one day Yuki would come back to them.

And now, her wishes had come true.

Finally.

But neither Shigure, Hatori, Aya nor Haru, who she was sure had gone to find Yuki, had told her, or even hinted, if they had actually seen him. Instead the entire Sohma jyuunichi, plus Uo and Hana, had holed themselves up in the living room to discuss something that supposedly did not include her.

The girl sighed; everyone was being so secretive around here, especially about Yuki. It felt as if they were leaving her out of everything, probably because they still thought she was too fragile, even though it had already been three years. They didn't understand that she wasn't too fragile; she was ready to help with this, especially anything concerning Yuki. She no longer needed to be shielded from the real world; Tohru was able to manage perfectly on her own.

Making a decision, Tohru rose to her feet and quickly walked over towards Hatori's house, hoping to receive some insight about what was happening with the Sohma family.

Uotani was the first of Tohru's overnight guests to wake up, groggily laying on the bed before slowly sitting up in the bed, and rubbing her eyes.

A few seconds later she noticed her friend standing patiently at the end of the bed, smiling down at them.

"Tohru! Why're you awake girl?"

The brown haired girl smiled and shrugged lightly, "I just woke up early, I couldn't sleep in."

Beside the blond, Hana shifted under the covers before abruptly opening her eyes and moving into a sitting position. "Your waves are anxious, and edgy."

Tohru smiled at them, "yes, I want to ask you guys some questions," Her eyes shifted off to the side, "about what's happening around here, with…"

Her two friends shared worried glances, how much could they tell Tohru of what the Sohmas had found out about Yuki, especially what he had said to them.

"Sorry Tohru, no one's found much. Just saw 'em out on the street again near here I guess. I don' think they were with him much, jus' for a few words."

The brown haired girls' eyes widened considerably as she heard her friends words. "Someone, someone talked? They talked to him!"

Uo and Hana shared looks again, and then slowly moved towards Tohru.

"Not much, Tohru."

"They did not talk for very long, Yuki was very quiet and distant with them. He refused to say very much, only a few unimportant things."

Tohru blinked sadly at them, her eyes welling with tears. "But they talked to him! He's really, really alive! He's here, and he's alive! He spoke, he knew where we were! He returned to Japan! He came home, came back to us!"

Her friends smiled gently, and Uo slid off the bed, walking up to the smaller girl and wrapping her strong arms around the thin body. "It's gonna be okay Tohru, we'll get 'em back. We'll find 'em and bring 'em here."

Neither of them found it necessary to tell her that Haru had already found where the grey-haired teen lived, and had spoken to him there. At least now they knew where to find him, at least most of the time.

"But he's alive, he's really back in Japan and alive."

Hana nodded, "yes Tohru, he is." But then, she opened and closed her mouth once before commenting softly, "but Tohru, why won't you say his name?"

The brown haired girl stared at them before blinking as tears welled in her eyes again. "I-I don't know. I just-"she broke off to roughly wipe the tears away with her pajama sleeve. "It feels, it feels like," she sniffed softly; "it feels like a jinx, if I say his name, I'll, I'll jinx the chance of him ever returning to us. Of our lives having a chance to be like they once were, like three years ago."

"Can only hope Tohru, there's not much we can do 'bout it." Uo replied, trying to lift her friend's spirits slightly, but instead Tohru frowned and sighed softly.

For awhile silence reigned between the friends, a thoughtful and uncomfortable silence.

"I want to see him again, for myself." The brown-haired girl suddenly declared and turned towards the door.

But a gentle hand placed on her shoulder slowed the headstrong teen. "Please Tohru, you should wait. This is all very sudden. You should stop and think before you see him."

Tohru's expression saddened, "why?"

Her two friends exchanged looks again, still leaving Tohru in the dark about what was currently happening with the Sohmas.

Annoyed and saddened at the same times, the brown-haired teen turned back towards the door, this time walking determinedly to, and out of the door, ignoring the words her friends called to her receding back.

A shadow walked cautiously through the forest, their long hair pulled back into a messy low ponytail, wearing a thin jacket that caused them to seem more scraggly then they really were.

The shadow seemed to flit in-between the trees, striding confidently yet slowly down the path, an effect more suited to someone wearing a trench coat, or hat, although the tall boots were present.

Whoever it was stayed mostly in the darkness of the forest at first, but, as their surroundings became more and more familiar, the person began straying into the lighter areas of the path. They started glancing around curiously, observing the many changes that had occurred while somehow feeling a slight déjà vu at returning to the place that had once been his home.

But now, it was just a place full of haunting memories, ones that he would rather forget- those were the reasons why he had fled to America, years ago.

The gray-haired man shook his head, loosening most of the gray strands from the elastic hair band. He didn't know why he had come back to Japan, or why he had even considered returning.

He hated this place; he had always hated his home, hated his family, but he specifically strongly hated the head of their family, the man who had put him through so much in his short life. If he ever saw that man again, the teen didn't know how he would react. What he would do.

This morning he had woken up with no intention of leaving the house, or going outside of his bedroom. He had lain in bed most of the morning, had listened to Chris leave early, making more noise than seemed humanly possible, and then had stayed there alone, enjoying the silence.

Time had passed for several hours as he stared into the peace, unmoving, surrounded by complete and utter silence. He had done nothing but stare into the distance and reflect, thinking about everything.

And then, in the middle of all those thoughts and reflections, the man had had a sudden urge to return to the place where he had lived for many years after his cousin rescued him from, that, that monster. Where, even though everyday he had to deal with his annoying cousins, he had still had a life, one that he could call his own. For those few years he had almost enjoyed that life, and would have described it as near 'happiness.' He had actually been 'happy,' for once in his life.

So, almost as if he were in a detached state of mind, the man rose from his bed, dressed, and left the house.

After that he had walked down the streets, moving only forward, not watching where he was going. The teen knew if any of his cousins were there, or nearby, he would have to hide. By now most of the Sohma family had to know of his return, but he didn't want anyone who didn't to learn.

That brought him to where he was now, walking through the forest outside of the city, the forest surrounding his cousins house. A forest where he had often found solitude, and also where he had once found peace.

The grey-haired teen slowed slightly as he neared the house, taking time to be careful on the steep path of dirt and rocks leading to the house. He stayed discreetly to the side, trying to blend into the background while at the same time cautiously watching the house, making sure that no one saw him.

Just seeing the building was forcing a lot of emotions onto him, keeping him rooted in place while struggling between the instinct of running down to the house and exploring it, or running back to his new house and never coming back- even returning to America.

But he was stronger than that now. He wasn't running anymore. He wouldn't run.

And so, the teen crept up to the house, his eyes scanning the landscape for other people, while his mind wandered through his memories that had occurred here.

He shook his head, trying to focus his mind. It worried him that there was no noise coming from within the house; there should at least have been Shigure being his usual noisy, perverted self, or Kyo yelling at something, anything, as usual, but the house was completely silent. Only the sound of nature surrounded him, the natural sounds of the forest.

The man stopped next to the side of the building, gazing carefully at it while a confused expression flickered on his face, an emotion that soon vanished.

No one had been here in awhile; the entire structure was quickly deteriorating while the sliding doors had been permanently broken and the paper ripped a long time ago. The grass surrounding the house had long overgrown, past any taming point, and was now even taller than knee height.

It seemed like his cousins had abandoned this house ages ago, and because of that it had fallen into disrepair. It was obvious no one had returned to take care of the building, after he…had disappeared. They must have moved to another place, and made another building into their home.

He shrugged carelessly, fine then, who cared. So what if they moved away? So what if they had cut all ties with him, he would do the same then. If they didn't care about him, then he didn't care about them. He never had, and never would. Who cared about them, or anything, or anyone.

It had been a mistake for him to return to Japan. He should never have considered returning, or even leaving America. But somehow Chris had convinced him to come to Japan with his friend; Chris had helped him forget what the teen had left behind, and the consequences that would come for returning.

And it was only now he realized what he had done.

The man moved into a standing position before sighing and walking back into the forest, putting his hands in his pockets as he moved.

There was one last place he had to visit before he would ever be able to cut ties with this place, to walk away and never return, once and for all.

A place where he had always found solitude, a place that had symbolized comfort to him, a place that he had only ever told one person about, a person he had cared about, a person who was now gone. Left. Gone, forever.

His head rose abruptly at that random thought. Who was he talking about; there had never been a person like that. He had never told anyone about his secret place, no one knew anything about it, or even that such a place existed.

And it would stay that way. No one would ever know about it. He wouldn't and couldn't let anyone find out.

A soft laugh escaped his lips, it didn't matter anymore anyway. There was no one left here, nothing here mattered. Not even his secret place was of any significance anymore; no doubt it was completely overgrown after all this time. It probably didn't even exist anymore.

But, even if it wasn't there, the man still wanted to see where it had been. And so, he continued on his way.

The brown haired girl cautiously made her way through the forest, brushing aside stray branches that blocked her way, while the bright brown eyes stayed set on her location, the place where she was going.

Every week, or at least once every week, Tohru would journey from the Sohma compound to the large house in the middle of the forest where she had lived with Kyo, Yuki and Shigure. It was a time for her to reminisce about those times, and worry over Yuki's disappearance, but more importantly it was a time for her to take care of the garden that the grey-haired teen had cared so much for.

Ever since Hatori had let her out of the house, the girl had come here to watch over and take care of the garden, doing everything she could to keep it growing.

And now in the fall, it was more beautiful than during the rest of the year, with the flowers still in bloom and the vegetables sprouting colorfully against the soil.

Sometimes, when she lost herself in memory she could picture Yuki kneeling on the other side of the garden. He would smile softly at her, or speak quietly as he worked. They would exchange quiet, harmless remarks, all the while enjoying each other's company.

The girl sighed and slowly kneeled beside the garden. Part of the reason why she continued to nurture it was because of her strong hope that Yuki would return, and, by seeing the perfect form of his garden, everything would return to normal again, as if he had never left.

She cautiously reached out and gently played with a flower petal. But what if all that hard work had been for nothing? What if all those hopes and wishes had never been heard? If that was true, then there had been no point. She had been naïve in thinking that a garden could accomplish such an impossible thing.

Tohru lowered her arm and slowly straightened, standing beside the garden while gazing down at the flowers. A few minutes later she drew herself out of the memories and leaned down to pick up the bucket she had brought with to walk towards the stream.

The gray-haired man strode out into the clearing, his breathing unsteady while his clothing was torn and stained. It had been awhile since he had strolled through a forest and it was not an experience he wanted to repeat soon.

A few steps past the line of trees, he looked around the clearing before slowly lowering his head to gaze at the ruin which had once been his beautiful garden.

But, it wasn't a ruin; it wasn't overgrown or abandoned at all.

The garden was still a neat, small colorful square amongst the green grass; bright flowers grew in groups near the vegetables, some sprouting while others remained hidden beneath the ground.

It was still here, it still existed.

Who had done this? Who had taken care of his garden?

Yes, a voice in his head sneered, your garden, the one you cared so much about and then abandoned like it was nothing.

How had someone taken care of this place, when no one else knew that it even existed?

Doubtful, the man slowly walked over to the garden and knelt beside it, not noticing the slight imprint in the grass made by another person who had knelt in the same position.

He cautiously reached out and touched a finger very lightly to one of the flowers, reassuring himself that it was real. When the man realized that it was, he touched more of them, even running a finger over the stalks, to make sure that it wasn't a flaw.

He abruptly raised his arm and wiped his forehead on his sleeve. Who was he kidding? This garden didn't matter to him anymore; it was just a symbol of bad memories, and reasons why he had left Japan. He didn't care if this place was the ruin he had expected, or the perfectly maintained garden he found.

The man closed his eyes.

He didn't care.

Tohru slowly made her way back along the path, her forehead slightly damp with the effort of holding the now filled water bucket. She had to use two hands to carry it because of the weight but also due to her weak, still healing, body.

But the girl was never one to complain, and instead whistled softly to herself as she walked, enjoying the day.

She always enjoyed these frequent visits, it made her feel good to believe that she was taking care of a living thing, and was responsible for its life.

As she neared the garden, the girl glanced up and abruptly stopped at what she saw, the bucket dropping to the ground from her loose grip.

There was a young man kneeling beside the garden, in the exact place she had left just minutes earlier. He was wearing jeans and a long sleeved shirt, but what was the most unusual was his hair color.

It was grey.

The girl took a single step closer, peering intensely at the figure, hoping it would help her to see him better.

A single word escaped her lips, one she hadn't said in many years.

"Yuki?"

A dull thud from nearby startled him out of his inner thoughts, and he glanced in the direction of the sound to watch in surprise as a wooden pail full of water seemed to fall, and hit, the ground in slow motion, and the liquid to slosh onto the grass.

But someone had to have been carrying the bucket in order for it to fall.

So slowly, and warily, the man raised his gaze to meet the eyes of….

"Miss Honda?"

The name was whispered aloud even though he hadn't meant to do so, and the words sounded foreign on his lips.

A few seconds later the woman, who was a stranger but at the same time wasn't, mouthed a word back to him. However, his mind was reeling from seeing her, and he was too busy to process anything.

She was dead, he had seen her die. She was dead.

It became a mantra in his confused mind as he slowly rose to his feet, still staring at the woman.

He stared for a few more deathly silent moments, until he abruptly turned and fled into the forest, fleeing the scene like a frightened animal.

She's dead, I saw her die. She's dead.

There you are folks, we have finally made it to the fated meeting of the two seperated lovers... sorry, I think I've been reading Shakespeare too often lately.

But, yes- so Yuki and Tohru have finally seen each other after all these years... even if he doesn't fully remember her.

About Yuki's memory, when he left for America, and during his years in the United States he had no memory of Tohru. Because of this his personality changed into the person he would have been had he never met Tohru. However, since Yuki has returned to Japan, his memory has begun to come back in bits and pieces. Its mostly an unconscious thing, as you saw in this chapter. These memories usually come in dreams, or when people (namely his family so far) mention Tohru to him. But, now that he has seen her again, his memories will slowly begin to reveal themselves more.

Thanks for all of you who waited for this chapter, patiently or impatiently, I am still grateful for your interest and enthusiasm.

I... can't remember if I responded to those of you who reviewed last chapter... if I didn't I'm very sorry for not doing so...

Thanks to Myou Matsuro, Falling Demon, cocoke5, Tuki, pinkyapple3.0 and aya-heart-tooya for reviewing!

One last note... although the other new chapters that are already written for some of my stories have not yet been edited, I may still post them. I promise that they will be edited sooner or later, if not by Yanikei then by another trustworthy person. I don't trust myself enough to edit my own work. Same goes for this chapter.

I also tried to write a longer chapter this time, since this is very important to the story, so I hoped all of you enjoyed it.

Ja ne (hopefully)

mijichan