"Honda-san, as a thank-you for your hospitality, allow me to make supper tonight before I leave."

"Ah! I couldn't!"

"But I want to. Would there be something wrong with that?"

Tohru chewed uncertainly on her bottom lip, before nodding slowly. "Well…"

Akira smiled confidently. "I'm very good on the barbeque, and the weathers nice. We can eat outside."

Finally, Tohru smiled. "It'll be fun!" She agreed. "I'll make dessert, then."

Outside, most of the Zodiac, (besides Shigure, who had developed into an overprotective guard dog,) had decided to put the good weather to use and stretch their legs, shooing away the cabin fever. Yuki, however, was somewhat lost.

He hadn't realized how far he'd travelled, following random paths in the damp grass. It was only when the sudden movement of a bird startled him that he lost his footing and slipped down a not-so-steep dip in the ground.

The small rat pulled himself o his feet. Uh oh… where am I? With some difficulties, Yuki managed to climb back up the embankment. It really was a whole lot steeper when you're only a couple inches high.

I don't recognize any of this…great. Teach me to zone out while I'm taking a walk. I feel like Haru… He groaned in disgust.

Just then, a sharp, vaguely familiar scent hit his nose. Slowly, not sure what he would see, Yuki turned.

Behind him had to be the biggest cat he had ever seen.

So it probably wasn't really that big – we've already established that Yuki is only a few inches tall. But it did tell Yuki what was familiar about the smell – it smelled a little like Kyo.

He began backing away slowly, but the cat followed. "Where ya goin', mousey? Smokey wanna play. Smokey hungry!"

Yuki don't wanna help Smokey! Yuki thought, glancing around desperately for a way out.

The sun was warm on Kyo's thick orange fur. He paced around on the roof of the cabin. He approached Kureno, the supervisor.

"Haru, Rin, Kisa, and Hiro are all on the far side, like you guessed. Can I go now?"

Kureno shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "Almost. Have you seen Yuki?"

Kyo hissed in annoyance. "Of course not! He's three inches tall, and I'm on the damn roof!"

The rooster didn't even blink. "Then go find him. Then report back to me and you're free to go."

The cat spun on his heel and leapt from the roof to the nearby tree, then slithered to the ground. He instantly began trying to pick up Yuki's scent.

He found it quickly, and began to follow its long, winding trail through the long grass.

Ah, crap, where'd it go? Kyo began walking in misshapen circles in his attempt to find it again. Instead, a strange sound found his ears.

"C'mon, mousey, play with Smokey."

Kyo's head swivelled, trying to find the source as panic began to build inside him. The fear-scent that hit his nostrils next was clearly Yuki. Damn rat, why are you always in danger?

Letting his paws, guide him, Kyo felt the ground begin to slope sharply downwards.

Something hard collided with Yuki's back. A swift glance behind him told him it was a very big rock. There was no way he could get around it fast enough to escape the cat looming over him. It raised a huge grey paw and swatted at him, knocking him to the ground.

Before either could move a second time, however, an orange blur streaked past, knocking the bigger grey cat over. "Buzz off, fur ball," a familiar voice snarled. "The rat's mine."

Yuki could honestly say he'd never been so happy to see Kyo in his life.

"But Smokey found him first," responded the fluffy grey opponent.

Kyo dug his claws into the ground. "Do I look like I care? I'll…" he cast his mind around frantically, "I'll fight for him."

Smokey stared back at him for a second. "But wont the mousey escape both of us while we're fighting?" he asked, confused.

Yuki was already trying to sneak around the rock without the cat bent on eating him noticing.

"Of course not," Kyo lied smoothly. "He'll be right there." To himself he thought yeah right. How stupid is this cat?

Smokey didn't waste another second. He bowled Kyo over, attempting to use his superior weight to pin Kyo down. Kyo, however, had no intention of letting him. He twisted out from under Smokey and leapt onto his back, claws fully extended. What have I gotten myself into?

Yuki didn't want to travel too far; he was already lost, and he didn't want to run into another unexpected enemy. Plus, the farther he went, the harder it would be for Kyo to find him again. So he just outran the sounds of cats fighting.

And yet he still managed to get even more lost.

A familiar noise echoed through the grass nearby; the sounds of crunching leaves and, well, slithering in general.

"Err, Nii-san?" He called, hopefully. He turned his head slightly to watch a long garter snake rear up to examine him.

"Hello, mouze," it hissed dangerously.

"KYO!"

Kyo sprung away from Smokey's flailing claws as Yuki's terrified call reached his ears. "WHAT!" he screeched back, ducking under a swipe aimed at his face. A sharp pain pierced his ear as a single claw caught hold. Smokey pulled back, tearing a deep V in Kyo's ear.

Then Smokey realized that Yuki was no longer there. "Where'd he go? You lied to Smokey!" He whirled to attack Kyo again, but he was already gone.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" Kyo hissed angrily. He spotted the snake instantly and raked his claws down the length of its body, not even breaking stride.

It too hissed, and tried to swerve and attack the bigger threat, but Kyo's feet were sped by pure anger, and he dodged neatly. When his claws cut a long, bleeding gash along the nose, the snake finally turned and left.

Yuki was shaking nearby. Kyo's piercing eyes found him quickly, and he didn't say a word. He lay down beside Yuki, and Yuki climbed on quickly.

"Smokey found you! You won't escape this time!"

"Screw you," Kyo hissed, still angry. His claws connected solidly with Smokey's throat and eyes. Screeching in agony, Smokey turned and fled.

Supper was good, with Kagura and Tohru fussing over a still-bleeding Kyo and a very much shaken Yuki. The sun was setting when Akira announced that he was leaving.

"You can't leave! The sun's almost gone!"

"Be that as it may, Honda-san, I do have to get going. May the fates will we meet again."

"Good riddance," Kyo hissed, the first words he'd said in nearly two hours.

Shigure, however, watched Akira walk into the woods. "I don't think we've seen the last of him," he predicted direly.

Hatori drifted towards the coiled up Ayame. "What's done is done. Let's decide what our next move should be."

"Yes," Kureno agreed, hopping up to the top of the couch. "Kyo, what did the diary say about overthrowing God?"

I don't own Fruits Basket, and thank you to everyone who reviewed. I just switched the rating to T, because of future chapters, possibly including this one. Finally, a vote: If I were to kill off a character, who should it be? Give reasons, and suggestions, and don't forget to review!