Disclaimer: Fruits Basket is not mine.
Authors Note: Sorry this is so late! I believe the length will make up for it though!
Book of the Cat
Chapter 21
Sohma Vacation House:
Eventually the group at the vacation house began to enjoy themselves. Yuki, Tohru, Haru, and Momiji hung out outside. The cold air brought in snow on Friday night, so the teens enjoyed sledding and a three-hour snowball fight. Afterwards, Tohru made hot cocoa and they all sat in front of a large fireplace to relax. It was calming and peaceful, however the group knew that they'd rather hear a certain persons angry shouting than just the soft crackling of the fire.
Shigure and Hatori also had a lot of quiet time as they did not have to listen to the constant fighting of their cousins. Hatori mainly slept from Friday to mid-Saturday. Shigure caught up on his reading. For most people this would seem like an ideal vacation. However, most people were not related to Kyo.
When Sunday came around, they were all more than happy to go. They quickly piled into Hatori's car and drove back to their home. Shigure's house was the first stop. Shigure turned to Haru and Momiji once they arrived.
"Why don't you two stay the night?"
Momiji was ecstatic. "Yes!" He shouted. Haru simply raised his eyebrow, but agreed.
"Good," Shigure smiled. "You can all settle in. Hatori and I are going out for now, but I'll be back later."
"Okay!" Momiji cheered. "Slumber party with Tohru!" Tohru followed him out of the car with a smile. Haru and Yuki stayed behind.
"You're going to go check on Kyo, aren't you Shigure?" Haru asked.
"Yes," Shigure answered honestly. He turned to Hatori, "Now Hatori, I see what you had to put up with…"
Yuki narrowed his eyes. "We're coming, too."
Shigure thought for a minute. "You'd leave Momiji alone with Tohru? Hmm…what do you suppose they'd do together? Hmm?"
Haru, Yuki and Hatori stared at Shigure in silence. Finally, outbreaks of shouts were directed towards the writer.
"You're disgusting… I don't know how you could even say something like that." Hatori said, shaking his head.
"Pervert!" Haru added.
Shigure seemed unbothered by the comments. Yuki took advantage of the silence of the occupants of the car to restate his argument. "We're coming."
Hatori responded this time. "No. Yuki, you're not. I don't want either of you bothering Kyo right now."
"What? Why?" Haru shouted.
Hatori whipped around in his seat. "It's dangerous! He tried to kill you, Yuki. I don't know if he'll try it again… He's not in the right mindset right now. And lets not forget Akito. If you two come by so much, he'll punish Kyo most likely. Leave Kyo alone for now. I'll tell you what's going on, just do not come."
Yuki and Haru looked pissed, but they consented. "Fine…but if he's in real danger, we're coming." Yuki said. They exited the car and walked towards the house. Momiji and Tohru were waiting for them by the door. Hatori sped off before the two teens could turn around and get back in the car.
"Are you guys ready to go inside?" Tohru said, holding up the key.
"Yes!" Momiji shouted. Yuki and Haru just nodded.
Tohru opened the door and the group walked in, a little relieved to be home.
Boy were they surprised when two people were already sitting on the couches waiting for them.
One Day Earlier:
"So…Haru's the ox… maybe… Yuki's the rat and Kyo's the cat?" Uo turned to Hana, reaffirming their beliefs.
"Yes… so it seems." Hana replied.
"I wonder what that blonde twerp and the writer guy are… And maybe the doctor guy from the culture fest a couple of years back. What do you think they are?"
Hana sat still. "I don't know." She said, turning her large eyes on Uo.
Uo walked back and forth across Hana's room. "I just can't believe it… I mean, yea, I believe it… but it's so bizarre."
"Uo--"
"And I mean, wow… they've been hiding this secret for years probably… Maybe even centuries…"
"Uo--"
"And Tohru, too! I wonder how long she's known… I wonder if she's ever seen them in their animal forms…"
"Uo--"
Uo turned around quickly. "What?"
"Do you remember the bad waves I felt?"
Uo stared. "Yea… what about them?"
"They're growing stronger. Everyday. Something's feeding off of Kyo. It's getting stronger."
Uo opened her mouth. "What?"
"It's using Kyo. And it's gaining strength everyday. We need to stop it."
"Us? What can we do? We're not even supposed to know about the curse!"
"We do now… and now Kyo needs help. We must tell them what we know."
Uo looked pensive for a moment. "Alright… let's go now."
"Wait," Hana said. "Tohru's on vacation with the Sohma's right now."
Uo thought for a minute. "Well, then, we'll just have to go and wait for them to come home."
Hana smiled. "I hope the house has snacks."
Present Day (Sunday), Shigure's Home:
"Uo! Hana! What? How?" Tohru said.
Uo smiled nervously. "Um… hey…"
Haru stared at them. "Isn't this breaking and entering?"
Hana nodded. "Yes, but we watered the plants."
Yuki stared. "We don't have any plants."
Hana turned her large eyes on him and remained silent.
Tohru regained control. "What are you two doing here?"
Uo bit her lip. "We need to talk."
Haru raised his eyebrow. "Is this a girl thingy… because we'll leave the room if we need to."
Uo shook her head. "No… it's more of a… Sohma thing."
This caught the boys' attention. "Um… what?" Haru said, confused.
Uo stared at Hana, waiting for her to talk first.
"We know about your… predicament." She said slowly.
Momiji looked confused. "What 'predicament'?" He asked.
"Well, we don't know the full story…" Hana began.
"But we do know something about a curse…" Uo concluded.
The room was frozen.
Haru spoke first. "What curse? What are you talking about?"
Hana responded. "Something involving the Zodiac."
Momiji quickly answered. "What? There's no curse!"
Yuki jumped into the conversation. "Ms. Uotani, Ms. Hanajima. We're very tired from out trip and we really have no clue what you're talking about. I'd hate to sound rude, but would you mind just leaving the topic alone and letting us rest." Yuki's voice was calm but firm. Uo grew annoyed and frustrated. She stood up and walked to the door. Hana closely followed. Uo turned as she approached the door.
"When you get over yourselves, call us. Kyo's in trouble." Uo slammed the door on her way out. The moment they left each boy nearly collapsed. Tohru looked extremely upset.
"I didn't tell them anything! I swear!"
Yuki bit his lip. "No… Tohru… we believe you… don't be upset."
Haru shook his head. "How did they know?"
That thought echoed in all of their heads for the rest of the day. Momiji asked the next question on everyone's minds.
"What do you think she meant about Kyo?"
The group could only sit and wait for Shigure to return.
3 Days Earlier (Friday) Sohma Estate:
Kyo watched Hatori's retreating car and felt the dread increase inside of him. He could feel Akito still behind him, and his body involuntarily shivered. Akito saw this and laughed.
"Come Kyo, it's time for lunch." Kyo was shocked that Akito had not threatened him or hit him by now. He followed Akito to the dining room, where food was already laid out on the table. Kyo was nervous about eating with Akito, but he knew that if he ever wanted to get better, he needed to eat. He took the seat the servant pushed out for him. Akito sat opposite and stared at the food bored. Kyo stared at the food in awe. Akito took two bites of everything, pronounced it as 'disgusting' and then moved on to the next piece of food. Kyo devoured everything on his plate.
After the meal was finished and the table cleared away, an old man walked in with a few bundles of paper. Akito introduced him.
"Kyo… this is a tutor to catch you up on the work you missed this week in school." The shock must have been evident on Kyo's face because Akito laughed loudly. "I don't want a stupid monster on my hands… And I promised Hatori that I'd keep you up to date on schoolwork. I'll be back in two hours to check on your progress."
The tutor took no time in teaching Kyo the lessons and giving Kyo the helpful packets that Mayuko-sensei had sent to the main house. In less than two hours, Kyo had managed to condense an entire week of class into one lesson. Kyo was impressed. Akito returned and dismissed the old man.
"Are you caught up?" Akito said coldly.
"Yes." Kyo quietly answered.
"Good." Akito replied. All of a sudden the door burst open and four large guards entered the room. They surrounded Kyo while Akito looked on emotionlessly.
"What's going on?" Kyo shouted.
Akito smiled. "I promised Hatori that I would not lay a finger on you… I didn't say that they wouldn't." With that two guards seized Kyo's arms and pulled him upright.
"Hey!" Kyo yelled. "Leave me alone." They began to drag Kyo out the door of the main house. Akito followed with a smile. The coldness of the air stung Kyo's body. His t-shirt and thin pants did very little to protect him. He tried to struggle to break free from the guards, but days of sickness had left him weak.
As they rounded the side of the building, Kyo's fighting increased as the source of his nightmares loomed in front of him. The Neko House. He struggled, trying to break knock off the guards, but their grips only tightened.
Closer and closer the house came until Akito stood in front of it with the key in one hand. He turned the handle and the door squeaked miserably open. The two empty-handed guards walked in and kneeled over an ancient pipe in the middle of the room. Akito turned to Kyo as they worked. He smiled as he saw Kyo's horrified face.
"As you can see by the cobwebs… this room hasn't been used for quite a long time. The plumbing in here, the pipe you can see, used to supply heat or water or something… but I'm afraid I don't know how to turn it on… oh well… what a pity."
Kyo struggled a bit but he seemed to have given up.
"Stop moving… it's pitiful to watch… and don't look so frightened." Akito continued eerily. "Consider this a… gift… you'll be spending the rest of your life here after graduation… right now I'll let you experience three days."
Kyo's eyes grew wide and his body froze.
Akito smiled. "And do take notes… I'm terribly fascinated with how it feels to live… here."
The guards holding Kyo pulled him closer to the two guards leaning over the pope. They pulled away to reveal a set of handcuffs. Kyo tried hard to get away, but they easily pushed him down on the floor and locked his wrists behind his back. Kyo pulled hard, but despite the ancient age of the pipes, they did not come loose.
"You can't leave me here!" Kyo shouted.
Akito turned to the guards. "You're all dismissed for the rest of the weekend." He turned back to Kyo. "Yes, I can…because I promised Hatori I would not touch you… and well, now there is no staff available… you'll just have to stay put." He gave Kyo the evilest of grins and exited with a flourish of his kimono. The four guards smiled and each delivered a kick to Kyo's ribs before they left.
The door slammed shut behind them and Kyo was left in a small room, with only a tiny, barred window to the outside world.
Friday Night, the Neko House:
The already freezing temperature continued to drop throughout the night. Kyo shivered. Staring out the window he came to a conclusion: he really wished it had been boarded up. That wish intensified as small flurries of snow started to become visible.
The metal bands around his wrists bit into him with coldness. It almost made him call out, but he had done that for the past few hours and had long ago lost his voice. It was really too cold to function. Kyo felt his body grow numb and slowly fell into an uneasy sleep.
Saturday Morning:
When Kyo woke up, some snow had fallen through the window. A few flakes had landed on him, mixing in his hair and gently spreading their icy touch across his skin. His whole body shivered and he tried to get comfortable.
He felt really dizzy once more and contemplated the idea that his fever had returned. He frowned, as more flakes drifted through the open window and made a small pile. He wanted to smash each crystal, but his arms were still stiffly locked behind him. He opened his mouth to call out, but once again he remembered his lack of voice. With nothing else to do, he began to count the snowflakes. After four hundred, eighty-seven, Kyo fell asleep again.
Saturday Night:
Kyo woke up as his stomach growled. The snow was falling thicker now, and the temperature seemed colder. Kyo would have shivered, but his body wasn't responding. 'I hate snow,' Kyo thought miserably, falling back to sleep in his weakened state.
Sunday Morning:
Kyo couldn't wake up. He was awake, but his body wouldn't let him stay in this conscious state too long. After thinking "help" feebly one last time, Kyo fell back into oblivion.
Hatori's car rolled back into its special, reserved parking space at the main house. Shigure put out his cigarette as he opened the door and stepped out. A foot of snow had fallen this weekend, and many of the main house residents were out shoveling snow from the walkways. Several of the relatives waved to Hatori as he walked in. Shigure danced around and waved back until Hatori told him to knock it off. They entered the main house.
Hatori quickly deposited his suitcase into his office, than followed the corridors to Akito's quarters. Shigure walked besides him. Hatori passed Akito's room and walked to Yuki's old room. He knocked. No one answered. When he knocked again and nobody responded, he gave Shigure a concerned look, and pushed the door open. The room was empty.
Shigure gave Hatori a confused look, and the two exited the room. Hatori knocked on Akito's door next.
"Come in." The cold voice answered.
Shigure and Hatori entered. Akito was draped over a chair, watching something outside of the window.
"Akito," Hatori said, bowing, "How are you feeling?"
"Back from you trip? Did you enjoy yourselves?" Akito said, not really caring. His eyes continued to stare out the window.
"Yes, we had a lot of fun. Thank you, Akito." Shigure answered.
Akito nodded. "I am a good person… I care so much."
Hatori and Shigure nodded.
"Akito, would you happen to know where Kyo is?" Hatori asked hesitantly.
"Who?" Akito said with a grin.
"Kyo." Shigure repeated.
"No idea." Akito smirked.
"You…haven't seen him this weekend?" Hatori asked.
"I haven't laid one finger on him." Akito answered, still looking out the window.
"Well, he's not in his room." Shigure said.
"There are many rooms here…maybe he got locked in one and has been calling for help… but no one can hear…" Akito said, chuckling slightly.
Shigure noticed something odd. "Akito, where are the guards?"
Akito laughed. "They have the weekend off."
Hatori followed Akito's gaze. He was staring at a small room off the main house. "Akito… what are you looking at?" Hatori asked, dread rising. Shigure also noticed the room Akito was staring at… the Neko House.
Akito grinned wickedly and his eyes narrowed on the window. "Kyo."
Shigure and Hatori were already halfway out the door.
Authors Note: Thanks to my reviewers. (Just so you know, I only reply to the last chapter here, so if any of you reviewed to earlier chapters, you won't see a reply. Sorry! I still read each and every one of my reviews.)
Fruits Basket Fan: I'm glad you like my story! As to the spoiler, I do know that Akito is a girl. However, because that particular manga was not released in English yet, I do not incorporate it into my story. I hate to sound mean right now, and please don't take this offensively at all, but I really don't like when people send me spoilers… so in the future: please don't! It's not like a major thing however; I do like to keep the manga a surprise as I get it… I'm just weird like that. Also, yea, I know Kyo's hair is orange… I just say red every now and then because I refer to orange haired people as redheads. It's not that I'm changing Kyo's hair color; it's just another way to write it for me.
Kyo'slittlekittenkisa: Yea, Hatori had to make a hard decision leaving Kyo with Akito… and well, you can see what happened….
Fullma8712: Ha! Yay for not getting confused on the last chapter! Also, in the future please don't send me spoilers! I don't like to have the manga ruined for me!
Bouncing Shii-chan: You (mini) cackled! That's so much fun!
Shadow7272: Oh dear, I killed your heart? Don't worry; I'm trained in CPR and with the AED! Ready… 1, 2, Clear! (Seriously, I am certified with both, isn't that awesome?)
Dark Inu Fan: It would be helpful if Momiji could sneak in to help Kyo…but remember, Kyo's room is right next to Akito's! That'd be kind of hard.
Dark-wolf-soulx: That's not the cliffy-est cliffhangers! I've read eviler! But, Kyo abuse will come more and more… I mean… what, no! Who said that? And, oh my gosh, you thought they said 'pots of golden rainbows' too? I thought I was the only hard-of-hearing one! Yay! Twins! And yes, trilogy… I've been planning that since the beginning. Muffins ready? Of course Hatori shall know!
ShadoWalker: Wow, basically you're review implied that you'd read more story even if I wrote a chapter that consisted of the word "Homergeohare" for like, 3 pages. Now that's dedication. I'm impressed! Thanks!
The Cheshire Katt: Writing chapters like the last doesn't really depress me. I blame that on the fact of me being an emotionless twit. (Yes, I am an emotionless twit). I can write and write and not feel a thing… I suppose it's because I separate myself from the story or I try to hard to make emotions and I wind up not feeling anything else at all… I don't know… The only things that really depress me are boys (who needs em'?) and the 5th season finale of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (had me bawling like a baby.) Oh, and the Notebook (the book… the movie just made me laugh… a lot… isn't that awful?)
Starship Gazer: Yay! Confetti! Wee! And yea, I'd say Kyo is already cracking… but if I was Kyo and I didn't have a mirror and I couldn't see myself everyday, I'd crack, too… because I can't see the beauty that is me… I mean, wait… what? Who wrote that? I'm not crazy.
Narutofreak22: Has Kyo given up on killing Yuki? The Cat thing is still around… so we'll just have to wait and see…