And Then for Fruits Basket

by Mikazuki Yuriko

Tohru is faced with a challenge with much higher stakesthe futures of the entire Sohma clan...and the destiny of her own heart.

34. Chapter 27: Allies

"And Then….." for "Fruits Basket"

Disclaimer: Thou shalt not steal.

For Caiti, with much glomping.

Chapter 27: Allies

"Hey, looks pretty good," Reiko, Tohru's older, spiky-haired roommate commented as she came into the kitchen. Tohru glanced up quizzically, holding the octopus-stuffed rice ball she was forming motionless in her hands. Reiko was never a morning person, but she seemed to be in a very good mood this today. The tall, lithe girl was digging into the cupboards for a box of cereal, humming to herself. Tohru was a bit amazed.

"Are you feeling okay this morning?" she asked with an incredulous smile. "You seem rather cheerful. It's not even eight o'clock yet!"

"I had a date last night," Reiko confided sassily, dancing a little. That explained the good mood. "And, man, did it rock!"

"Oh, was it Kenji again? From across the street?"

"Sure was." Reiko sank into a chair at the kitchen table and poured her Lucky Charms into a bowl dreamily. "Isn't he just the hottest guy you've ever seen?"

"Hardly," came a third voice. It was Mina—the roommate Tohru saw the least of—sauntering into the kitchen in search of food as well. "I can't stand all that facial hair."

"That's just 'cuz you're only into the pretty boys," Reiko retorted, still smiling like she was in a daydream. "I like 'em rough."

"Hmph," was all Mina had to say to that. She wandered over to where Tohru was making her own lunch and looked at it with a mild expression of disapproval. "Say, Tohru. How was your weekend with Yuki? He hasn't shown that pretty face of his over here for a while."

"Aw, stop it," Reiko said to her. "Just last night you wouldn't shut up about how bad you wanted to get your hands on Kenjirou Kawatani. Leave Tohru's boyfriend alone."

"My what!" Tohru said with a jolt, dropping her rice ball. It hit the floor with a splat, making a mess on the linoleum. Tohru gaped at it, and Reiko just laughed,

"Don't worry, Tohru. I'm sure it's still okay, what with how clean you keep the floor. You can probably still eat it."

"Don't be sick," Mina said with irritation, shuffling over to the fridge to find some breakfast.

"Hey, I don't think I noticed earlier, but why are you wearing an ankle brace?" Reiko wondered. Tohru felt all the color drain out of her face as she cleaned up the spill and scooped more rice out of the cooker to make another rice ball.

"Oh, um…..I fell down when I was back home," she fibbed. "I'm just a clumsy girl, I guess."

Reiko stared at her, clearly doubting her story. "Uh-huh. Sure. I think you were just chasing after boys and tripped over 'em!" From the tone of her voice, she was only teasing, but Tohru's smile was a bit shaky at hearing that.

"That's ridiculous," said Motoko, massaging her eyes as she walked in. "You're not just spouting all those dumb rumors going on about Tohru are you?"

"This place is starting to get crowded," Mina complained, resurfacing with a container of banana yogurt.

"I'm just having a bit of fun, Motoko, lighten up," Reiko said easily.

"You'd think it's true, though," came another girl's voice. Tomiko, who was already dressed for the day in a cute pink sweater and blue denim skirt "…..what with all the time she spends over at the guys' apartments." She brushed right past Tohru as if she didn't even see her there and took Mina's place before the fridge.

"Shut up, Tomi," Motoko bit back with surprising ferocity. She'd been acting very protective of Tohru for some time now, ever since she and Yuki started including her into their friendship. "It's all just a bunch of lies started by some stupid girls who have a crush on the Prince."

"What's all the noise in here?" asked Tash, her short dark hair sticking out in all directions. Her pale yellow bathrobe was dragging on the floor as though too big for her. Looking at her roommates' faces through bleary eyes, she amended, "Never mind, I don't think I want to know."

"Good morning, everyone!" sang Kagura, popping into the already full kitchen. The apartment was fairly large compared to most of the other dorms, but it wasn't well suited to hold seven people at once. Kagura worked her way in to meet up with Tohru.

"Who the heck are you?" Mina inquired coolly. Her other roommates were also staring at Kagura curiously. They had all been in bed by the time Tohru and Kagura arrived home.

"This is my friend Kagura Sohma," Tohru said, making the introductions. "She just stayed here for the night while she's in town."

"Nice to meetcha," Reiko said.

"Oh yeah, I remember you," Tomiko said with a frown. You were here with Kyo Sohma when he moved in, right?" Tomiko had a bit of a crush on Kyo, Tohru had been surprised to find out from Motoko.

"Yeah. I used to be his fiancée," Kagura declared. Tomiko's eyes grew large and hopeful.

"Used to be?"

"Ugh. I can't stand this anymore. I'm outta here," Mina stated, trying to navigate the crowd to return to her room.

"I'd better get a move on, too, or I'll be late for class," Reiko said. Tomiko looked like she wanted to ask Kagura more questions, likely about Kyo, but Kagura turned her back to her and said,

"I've got to go, too. I'll miss a few hours of work today, but maybe my boss will understand. Still, I'm just a newbie, so I'd better get in as soon as I can." She threw her arms around Tohru, wrapping her in a tight squeeze. "Thanks for letting me stay over." As she passed by Tomiko, she said to the stout, calf-eyed girl in a calm, friendly voice, "Oh, and stay away from Kyo, or I'll be the one you answer to. Tohru's the one he's interested in, anyway." Leaving a rather stupefied Tomiko behind, Kagura breezed to the front door, calling over her shoulder in a light-hearted happy tone, "Bye-bye! I hope I'll see you again soon, Tohru! Good luck with your classes and everything!"

Tohru waved back. "Bye, Kagura," she said affectionately. Then the door closed, and Kagura was lost to sight. Tomiko attracted her gaze, and Tohru wanted to shrink at the way her roommate was glaring at her.

"Those other girls are absolutely right," Tomiko said, stomping off in a huff. "You just can't keep your paws off guys!"

Tohru's mouth formed an inverted "V," and she looked at Tomiko's retreating back sadly. Motoko shot a nasty look at the girl as well. Gathering her lunch together, Tohru somberly prepared to go to school. She was already running late. When she opened the apartment door, she was startled to see Kyo standing right there on the welcome mat, fist pulled back as if he had just been about to knock. He looked equally as surprised to see her.

"Oh, uh, hi," he said awkwardly.

"Kyo? What are you doing here? Don't you have your math class at eight?" she inquired.

"Yeah, but I'm not in any hurry. It's such a boring class anyway." He folded his arms and looked at her pointedly. "So are you coming or not?"

"Huh?" was all Tohru could manage to say. She was a little stunned. She hadn't really talked much to Kyo since the park. Seeing him here now took her off guard.

Kyo sighed impatiently. "I'm walking you to school," he said with exasperation as though it was plainly obvious. Which it probably was, Tohru realized. She just hadn't expected him to show up as an escort. On the other hand, she was inwardly glad that the barrier between them seemed to have broken down. He hadn't said anything about Kureno. Tohru was a lousy liar, though. She knew from experience. She didn't think he believed her alibi of tripping down the stairs at the library, either. Kagura had bought it. Only Yuki knew the shaming truth about what really happened. But at least Kyo was talking to her again.

"Okay," Tohru said. "So long as you don't mind being late to class. I'm a little slow because of my ankle," she said. Kyo's usual expression of vexation melted into one of his rare, warm smiles.

"Nah, I don't mind."

Tohru found that day of school to be more difficult than usual. For one thing, she didn't get all of her homework done for her classes—the only one she didn't totally bomb out in was her cooking class, and only because they were making sushi that day, which she already knew how to do quite well. All of her studying for English though proved to be of little avail. She still just barely scraped by with a D on her quiz. Mrs. Mikazuki reprimanded her for it, too, when she gave back the papers.

"I expect better from you next time, Miss Honda," she said, and Tohru didn't even struggle in understanding those words from the strict teacher anymore, she'd heard them so often. "This class isn't like the easy courses you took back in high school." Several of the girls in the back giggled at witnessing Tohru put down, and Kyo turned around in his seat to yell at them to shut their holes, earning him a demerit and an extra essay assignment from Mrs. Mikazuki. Yuki just stared at his desk. He looked angry, Tohru noticed. Probably he was tired of her doing so poorly in English and feeling like he was just wasting his time. Tohru couldn't blame him if he felt that way.

By the time she was out of English, she was already up to her eyeballs in homework. And there were still midterms to study for. She would have to work harder than ever—even pull a few all-nighters if necessary—to make sure she didn't fail. She didn't want to let her mom down. Not after she'd come so far. But even more importantly, she didn't want to let herself down.

"Tohru Honda never gives up," she murmured to herself determinedly as she left the classroom in the company of Yuki and Kyo, both of whom had taken it upon themselves to accompany her to her classes and carry her things, together if not in turns. While Kyo was walking her from her last class of the day, Tohru was hit in the back of the head with something heavy. She cried out, more in surprise than in pain, rubbing the spot that was beginning to grow sore. She and Kyo looked behind them—there were two girls with golden badges pinned to their lapels standing just a little ways down the sidewalk cutting through campus. Part of the new Yuki fan club here at Tokyo U. Kyo bent to pick up the object that had struck Tohru. It was a small rock, wrapped in a crumpled piece of paper. On the paper was a cartoon-like drawing. Tohru didn't get much more than a glimpse of it before Kyo crumpled it in his hands into a tight little ball, baring his fang-like incisors at the girls who appeared to be the culprits.

"That's it, now you're gonna hurt!" he yelled. Leaving Tohru standing there with her hand on her head, he charged after the girls, who yelped as Kyo bore down on them like a locomotive, fleeing before him. Some of the students en route to classes laughed at the whole spectacle. A few more girls, traveling in a pack and wearing the gold pins, sidled up to Tohru and pushed her aside.

"Whatcha gonna do about it, huh, Tohru? Why don't you go home and cry to your dead mama!" Laughing loudly, they went on their way. Tohru felt her lower lip starting to tremble, but she wasn't about to break down and cry right there in the middle of campus. She was going to be stronger than that! No matter how those girls treated her, she wasn't going to let them see that they were getting to her. Picking up her backpack where Kyo had dropped it to chase the other fan girls—she hoped he wasn't killing them—she settled it on her shoulders and limped off toward the bus stop, walking as straight and tall as she possibly could.

She'd only been sitting on one of the benches by the stop for a minute or two when a familiar voice called her name.

"Tohru? What are you doing here?" It was Yuki, dressed in a white, short-sleeved shirt and tie. He shrugged off his own bag and took a seat next to her. He looked rather concerned, even though Tohru thought she appeared fine.

"I'm just going back to the apartments," she said, wondering why that seemed peculiar enough for him to ask.

"Oh. Yes. I meant, what are you doing here by yourself? Where's Kyo?"

"He…..went to go take care of something really quick," she ad-libbed. She didn't want to mention running into the Prince Yuki fan girls. She had already caused Yuki enough trouble as it was.

Yuki rolled his eyes. "Stupid cat," he muttered. "Well, I guess it's a good thing I'm going home now, too." He gave her a smile. "It gives me a chance to spend some time with you."

Tohru's eyebrows furrowed a little in wonderment.

"But, Yuki, don't you have soccer practice this afternoon?"

Yuki shook his head. "Not anymore. I quit the team."

"You what!" she cried incredulously. "But Yuki, what about your teammates? There's a big game coming up right after midterms!"

"Yes, I know," Yuki said peacefully. "I didn't make this decision lightly. I just have other priorities in my life that I need to look after now, school being one of them. And I'm not too worried about the team. Even the backup players are really good. They weren't terribly pleased with my announcement, but I'm sure they'll get over it in time. And we can still cheer them on from the stands, can't we?"

Tohru couldn't help showing a tiny grin. "Yes. We can."

The bus rumbled by, pulling over to the curb, and stopped with a loud hiss, shooting out exhaust. Yuki helped Tohru to stand and took her backpack as they joined the throng of people getting in line to board.

"What about Kyo?" Tohru asked, looking back towards the main body of campus. He wouldn't really kill those fan girls, would he?

"I wouldn't worry too much about him," Yuki said serenely. "He can always take the next bus, though he usually prefers to walk home. Serves him right for leaving you alone," he added with a bit more vehemence. When Tohru looked at him, not quite certain she understood his meaning, he clarified, "It's just that with Kureno still out there, we don't want you to be out by yourself." Even now, his eyes were scanning the crowd, on the lookout for a crown of shiny bluish-green hair. Tohru's spirits sank a little. She appreciated Yuki and Kyo looking out for her—she really did. Especially since it seemed they were now at least working together instead of fighting or ignoring each other. But in her heart, Tohru knew she was helpless enough, pathetic enough, to know she needed their protection. 'I have to get stronger,' she told herself. 'I must.'

They walked the few blocks to the apartments from the stop. Yuki wasn't much in the mood for conversation. He answered her questions about his day with simple, short answers. Mostly he kept his eyes on the sidewalk. She thought he might be worrying about Kureno. All on her account. He really was being quite the gentleman, acting like her bodyguard. Tohru wished, though, that she didn't have to cause him so much trouble. She said so, breaking his reverie, and Yuki protested that he was glad to be able to do it.

"Believe me, you're important enough, Tohru."

Tohru considered that and also what Motoko had said. Yuki always seemed to have something else on the tip of his tongue, something he was holding back, but she never heard it.

"Thank you, Yuki, for being such a good friend."

The boy's pale cheeks colored ever so slightly, but all he said in return was,

"No problem."

When they reached her apartment door, he offered to help her study for midterms. Tohru felt a little embarrassed accepting his offer. It wasn't that she didn't want his help. She needed it badly, considering how poor her grades were in English. But she wondered how he was feeling, seeing all his time and effort go to waste on such an inept student. They were just crossing through the living room and entering the hallway when someone bowled into Tohru from the opposite direction. Tohru was knocked back, right into Yuki, who was only a step behind. Tohru couldn't help the gasp of surprise as she heard a loud popping noise and fell all the way to the floor.

POOF!

"Uhh….." Tohru said nervously as the smoke began to clear. When it did, she saw Mina, decked out in a tank top and miniskirt with big fur-trimmed boots, getting up as well.

"Hey, watch where you're going, clumsy oaf!" Mina scolded her. She looked at her wristwatch. "Argh, I'm gonna be late!" She got to her feet, not offering to help Tohru up, and paused when she noticed the dissipating smoke. "What the—?"

"Ahh, it's really dusty!" Tohru cried, slapping a positive mask over her features. "I haven't been here to clean in the last few days. I'd better get right to it!"

"Yeah, whatever, just get out of my way!" Mina ran past, clearly in a hurry, and shut the door—slammed it, more like—behind her. Tohru hoped she hadn't seen Yuki transform! The apartment seemed to be quiet now. If she was lucky, her other roommates weren't even home yet.

Remembering Yuki, and hoping she hadn't squashed him when she fell, she called his name.

"Yuki? Are you alright?"

"Unnnngggghhhh, relatively speaking," she heard a tiny Yuki-like voice respond with a groan. A white rat poked his nose out from under the clothes she'd been sitting on. She really had almost squashed him! Tohru labored to get to her feet then hurriedly scooped up Yuki and his clothes, carrying them in her arms to her bedroom. To her great relief, Motoko was still away.

"Wait right here," she said, depositing him on her bed. She limped back out to get their things. Once she returned, she closed the door and locked it and quickly pulled the blinds over the window, shutting out most of the afternoon sunlight. "Phew," she breathed. "That was close."

"I'll say," Yuki the Rat echoed. "You don't think she saw, do you?"

"No, I think it's alright." She slumped into her desk chair. Yuki scrambled over her bedcovers to see her.

"Is your ankle feeling any better?" he inquired.

"I sort of fell on it just a moment ago," Tohru said, smiling through a wince. "But I'm sure it'll be healed up in no time."

"Maybe we could schedule an appointment to see a doctor this week," Yuki said.

"Maybe. I don't know when I'll have time to go see one, though. I've already got a lot on my plate."

Yuki jumped down to her desk, his little claws scrabbling on the wood. "At least I can still tutor you like this," he said. "So long as your roommate don't come home too soon."

Tohru let him climb up her arm to sit on her shoulder. His ropy little tail twitched to keep his balance, ticking her neck. Through her giggles, Tohru said, much more cheerfully,

"Okay. Let's see. What's next on the reading list?" She pulled a book out of her backpack. "'Hamlet,' by William Shakespeare."

They took turns voicing the various parts of the play for the next ten minutes. Yuki helped her with some of the stranger words and pronunciations. He could read it as he'd written the play himself. They were making good progress when they heard female voices coming from the living room.

"Tohru Honda? We know you're in there! We've got some business to settle with you!"

Tohru nearly jumped out of her seat. The voices weren't familiar to her, but Yuki moaned. He still hadn't transformed back. She couldn't very well let whoever was out there see him like this!

"Wait here," she whispered to him as he leapt off her shoulder and onto the bed. "I'll go take care of it."

"You're sure you don't want me to come with you?" Yuki asked, looking at her with beady eyes and a twitching nose.

"You'd probably better change back first," she said. "Or you might cause a scene."

Yuki sighed with displeasure. "You're right," he said. "But if there's any trouble, I'll be out there in a flash, regardless of what shape I'm in."

Tohru stifled a laugh. How would a bunch of girls react to a rat running all over their feet?

She peeked out her bedroom door and came out of the hallway into the living room slowly. She was startled to see the room packed with girls of varying ages. Every one of them bore the gold "Prince Yuki" pin on their shirts, though. And they all glared at her when she came out.

"Um," Tohru stammered, not really sure what to say. "Is there something I can help you with?"

The foremost among them, a tall girl with short, silvery hair and a face that seemed vaguely familiar, took the lead.

"We meet again, Tohru Honda. My name is Rika Aida, former senior member of the Kawaia High Prince Yuki Fan Club. I am now the President of the Collegiate League of the Prince Yuki Fan Club." Her bold manner of speaking and posture was enough to cow Tohru. Lightning bolts seemed to fly from her eyes, and thunder rumbled all around her. Tohru looked to the windows—there was a thunderstorm rolling in, which explained it. "I'll tell you what you can do for us," Rika continued. She pointed her finger at Tohru's nose and practically shouted, "You can get your hands off Prince Yuki and go back to whatever hole it was you crawled out of. We have given you plenty of warning. We're not going to allow you to hog Prince Yuki any longer, you evil temptress!" Another boom of thunder seemed to accent her words. "We've run out of patience. Prince Yuki will be ours! Since our demands have not been met, we're going to punish you for your crime!"

"Crime?" Tohru repeated in disbelief. "But I haven't done anything wrong!"

"Don't play innocent with me, Tohru!" Rika yelled. The expression of anger on her face was multiplied by those of her cohorts. "We know all your dirty little secrets now! We know that you've been using Prince Yuki all this time. You tricked him into taking you into his house. You cheated to get into school with him. And now that you're here, you're sucking away all his time and energy just like a leech!"

"It's a pity that even with all his help she still can't get good grades in school," a girl in the back said mockingly. Rika held up a hand for silence and resumed her tirade. "Anyway, we've been more than fair. All we've done is ask you to stop associating with the Prince, but you just had to go ahead and bewitch him with your devilish spells! You may not be a psychic like Electric Girl, but you have your own brand of black magic, and you use it to keep Prince Yuki a slave to your will!"

"We're just friends!" Tohru protested, legs feeling shaky despite her injury. Punishment? Just what did they plan to do to her? From the looks on their faces, nothing good! They may not be as savage as Kureno's gang, but they weren't playing around, either. And what was all this nonsense about black magic?

"That's not true," said a calm, breezy voice. All eyes went to the figure in the doorway, Tohru's as well. A tall, willowy girl with long auburn hair was coming into the apartment, dropping her backpack and purse by the door. Then, nonchalantly, like a soldier marching to the front lines, Motoko strode into the living room, approaching Tohru. "It's a lie," she said with a disapproving frown.

"Rrrrrr, Motoko, you're no longer involved in this, so butt out!" Rika said as whispers of "traitor" rustled among the group behind her. "You've always wanted Prince Yuki for yourself. If it weren't for the fact that you didn't shack yourself up with him, you'd be guilty of the same crime! And don't try to protect this little tramp here. We know what's really goin' on!"

"So what?" Motoko lashed back. "So what if she wants Yuki's friendship? Isn't that what you're all after? Except you all know that you'll never have it. Deep down inside, you look at yourselves and realize how horrible and ugly you've all become! You'll never have anything more than diaries and photographs and daydreams! At least we have something real!"

A vein was beginning to pop out on Rika's smooth forehead. "How dare you talk to me like that? And to think we used to be such good friends! It's a wonder I didn't get rid of you sooner, Motoko! Fine! If you want to throw your lot in with her, then go ahead! We'll teach you both a lesson you'll never forget!" The girls began to fan out to encircle them, promising glints shining in their eyes. They reminded Tohru of hungry jackals.

"What're you gonna do, haze us? You guys are pathetic," Motoko answered, unafraid. "Prince Yuki can be friends with anyone he wants. That's his prerogative as the Prince! He can even fall in love with anyone he wants! I've gotten to know him better in the past few weeks than I ever did back when I stalked him like the rest of you. And from what I've learned, I can tell you whole-heartedly. He would never be interested in dating the likes of you."

"Yeah?" Rika retorted, bristling, "well, we're not going to give up! We shall prevail! But even if we don't, we certainly would never let the Prince stoop to dating this kind of trash!" She jabbed her pointer finger again in Tohru's direction. Tohru was looking at everyone frantically, the fan girls and Motoko. Was there something she could do to stop this? Could they somehow reach a compromise?

"Please, everyone, listen! Yuki and I aren't even dating! Actually, I don't think he's even really interested in me anyway!" Motoko took a step back looking shocked, and Rika and the other girls seemed just as astonished gaping at Tohru with open mouths. "So I really don't think you have anything to worry about."

"Oh? But what about you?" Rika said, eyeing her like a crazed lioness. "Aren't you interested in him at all?" The question was weighted with danger. Tohru felt hypnotized by that stare. "Tell me to my face that you don't love him! Go on! I dare you!" Tohru's voice cracked as she attempted to get the words out.

"I…..I….."

"What's between Miss Honda and myself is really none of your business," said Yuki, emerging from the hallway. He was back to human form now, fully dressed, and looking as stern as she'd ever seen him before. He marched right into the circle of them and faced Rika eye to eye. "And I'm tired of all of this fan club business. You've done enough damage already. Give it up."

Rika's eyes bulged, and her mouth worked like a fish. The vein in her forehead disappeared, but her eyebrows knit together to form deep wrinkles on her dumbfounded face.

"But…..but…..Prince Yuki!"

"And don't call me that," Yuki said in a low voice. "I'm not going to be your Prince anymore."

One of the fan girls in the room emitted a shrill shriek and clapped her hands to her face. The others all looked as shell-shocked as Rika, who was utterly blown away. Her fingers unconsciously went to the badge on her front.

"I…..I…..I love you, Prince Yuki!" Her words didn't appear to appease him any.

"Please leave. Now."

The room was filled with silence except for the sound of a couple girls weeping into their sleeves. Rika stared wide-eyed at Yuki's face for several moments, hurt and anguish etched in her features, before saying in a weak, airy voice,

"Come on, girls. It's…..time to go." Her feet seemed leaden as she made her way for the door, accompanied by an entourage of disbelieving girls. They all fixed Yuki with betrayed, heartbroken eyes as they exited. The last one closed the door so quietly there was barely a sound, as if she was afraid of invoking Yuki's wrath. When they were all gone, Tohru heaved a huge sigh of relief.

"Well, that was easier than I thought it would be," Motoko said in a low tone. Then she turned to Yuki. "That was pretty bold of you, Prince Yu—um, Yuki."

"Don't worry," he told Motoko, giving her a small smile. "It's not that I mind the nickname that much. It's just that those girls all believe that I'm something I'm not."

"After that display, I think you'll always be a prince to me," Motoko replied admiringly. "Who knows what those girls might've done!" She seemed to perk up instantly. "Well, now that they're taken care of, I don't think you'll need to worry too much more about being picked on, Tohru! That is, unless they recover from this incident and are even more vindictive than ever. But I wouldn't count on it. You've got the Prince to back you up, anyway, and none of them would dare mess with him!"

"I…..suppose," Tohru said, bewildered.

"Well, I think I can breathe a little more freely now that I know the Prince Yuki Fan Club is through," her roommate said with a satisfied smile. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a ton of homework to get started on." Regaining her backpack, she practically skipped to the door. Before she disappeared, however, she mentioned to them,

"Oh, and I don't suppose it's any of my business what you two are doing when I'm not around, but Yuki, one of your buttons is done up incorrectly. Watching you so long, I've developed an eye for detail." Without further comment, she went back to their bedroom. Yuki, startled, began blushing fiercely for some reason as his fingers fumbled to correct the error.

"I changed back just a few minutes ago and got dressed as quickly as I could," he explained to Tohru. "I could hear everything from back there."

"Everything?" Tohru asked, paling.

"Yes, but it's all over now. I don't think those girls will bother you anymore. And if they do, Motoko's right. They won't argue with me." He looked went to the window and looked outside. "I thought I sensed him. Kyo's coming down the block. He doesn't look too happy." Stepping back, he added, "I'm going to tell him off for abandoning you. It's the least I can do."

They stood there for a few moments, drinking in the uncomfortable silence. Yuki broke it by saying,

"I'd probably better go. You're still coming over for dinner tonight?"

"Yes," Tohru answered. Yuki smiled at her, but something was weighing the corners of his mouth down.

"I'd be happy to help you with your homework then."

"Oh. Okay." As he made to leave, Tohru, pondering Rika's and Motoko's words, said, "Yuki?"

"Huh?" He looked back at her with gentle violet eyes. His hand was on the doorknob. Tohru looked down at the floor.

"When you came in, just when you did….."

The gray-haired boy hung his head. "I'm a bit ashamed to admit it," Yuki said quietly, "but I was afraid of the answer."

And then he left.

Tohru returned to her room. Motoko was at the other desk, furiously scrawling lines and numbers over paper as she did her calculus homework. She didn't look up when she entered. She stood there for a moment, admiring the back of the girl who had stuck up for her so fiercely just a few minutes ago.

"Motoko…..thank you," she said to her sincerely. The pencil froze, and she heard Motoko's voice say,

"No, Tohru, thank you." The eraser tip resumed its gyrating motions. Feeling no desire whatsoever to return to her studying—yet—Tohru settled down on top of her bedcovers, pulling out a small book from the shelf her mother's photo graced. It was a photo album. Shigure had given it to her on her birthday after she'd entered his employment as his housekeeper. It was full of pictures of so many wonderful times. So many memories. The first few pages were trial runs with the camera—a lot of odd angles and fuzzy shapes that sort of resembled people. There was a picture of the house, taken from the road. It looked so pretty nestled among the trees and the flowers in the yard. The next few pages held other photographs of Tohru's mother, the few she had remaining. Kyoko was such a happy, loving person. So full of life. Each picture of her was bursting with energy. It was how Tohru always liked to remember her. Tohru had a few childhood photos and class pictures in her collection as well, though she usually skipped over those. Hana and Uo had spotlights here and there—pictures of them when they were younger and more recent ones, too. And then, filling most of the rest of the album, pictures taken of her with her new family—Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo, and other Sohmas as well.

In one photo, she and Shigure and Yuki and Kyo were dressed in colorful yukata to go to the Tanabata festival in town. Momiji and Kagura and Hatsuharu had tagged along as well. There were so many fun games to play and snacks to eat—Kyo won her a live goldfish at the little kiddy pool set up for a booth. It had been a piece of cake for him to catch, probably because he had cat-like reflexes. In another photograph were she and her friends laughing and smiling at a sleepover at Shigure's house that they had shortly before Tohru moved away to go to college. There were a lot of photos from class activities, like the Summer Splash day where all the classes competed in various aquatic games and set up booths for activities. She laughed at the picture of Kyo with a water balloon exploding right in his face and at the one of herself shivering in a bathing suit after getting dunked in a tank for her class's booth. Uo, looking fabulous in a ponytail and bright red two-piece, was wrapping a towel around a soaked Tohru. On the next page was a photo Shigure took for her at Yuki's choir recital in which he had a solo. She couldn't get off work, unfortunately, but Yuki gave her a personal performance later that evening. Kyo had his own highlights, too. She took pictures of the time she had accompanied him to a martial arts tournament in the next town last winter. He wasn't competing, but he'd invited her to come along with him anyway to watch, which was nice of him. They got to see Kazuma, who was sponsoring a student at the match. It had been a lot of fun. Afterwards they made snowmen shaped like Darumas with some other children in a public playground. The ensuing snowball fight had been terrific, too. Kyo really got into it, determined to protect Tohru and their snow fort from invaders. Kyo had taken her out for hot chocolate and roasted chestnuts from a street vendor once they were worn out from all the snow games.

Then there were more pictures of Shigure and the boys at home and of other Sohmas who came to visit from time to time. The Tiger, the Ram, the Monkey, the Cow, the Rabbit…..all had a couple of pages to themselves or together. Tohru looked up at the zodiac display on her desk. The pedestals among the tree-like branches contained the brass figurines of all the animals. Sharing the highest place was the Rat and the little porcelain cat she'd added to the collection. Whenever she saw the two, she thought of their human counterparts, Kyo and Yuki, fondly. Her two best friends. And maybe more, but she still found it difficult to choose between one and the other. Though from the looks of things, Yuki didn't seem too interested in her. He'd left so abruptly, she hardly had a chance to talk to him. What if Motoko had it all wrong? What if Yuki really did see her as nothing more than just a friend? And Kyo had told her so sweetly that he loved her, and he had been so wonderful to her all these years. If Yuki really didn't care for her the way Motoko thought he did, then she supposed that made her choice easier at least. But then…..why did she still want to know Yuki's feelings, too?

'Akito said they rarely marry. There's no way he'd ever let me be with either of them,' a melancholy voice spoke in her mind. The head of the Sohma family barely approved of her even associating with them at all. The curse caused them all so much pain. They couldn't grow close to one another because of it. They couldn't love, they couldn't marry…..it only brought them heartache.

She recalled the conversation in the car on the way back to Tokyo. If the curse could be broken, wouldn't someone have done it by now? The original Cat and Rat were centuries dead, and whoever had cursed them, too. The story had been passed down for generations among the Sohmas, however. What if someone else remembered the old folk tale's true beginnings?

Like an itch, the idea persisted until she could scarcely think of anything else. If the curse was abolished, Yuki, Kyo—all of them—would be happy. They would no longer transform into the animals of the zodiac. Akito, and maybe even Kureno…..might not hate her anymore. And maybe that dark cloud that overshadowed their family would disappear at last.

She wanted to help them, these people who had done so much for her. More than anything. What if she could find the answer?

Tohru left the room in a rush, filled with an excitement she had not felt for days. Motoko glanced up from her homework and said her name questioningly, but Tohru hustled out the door without responding. There was still time before dinner—the yakitori and stewed leeks were already made and in the fridge—so she stepped out of the apartment and trotted down the stairs, ignoring the sideways looks from her neighbors mingling outside. The Prince Yuki Fan Club was nowhere to be seen, thankfully. She headed towards a public phone booth that was on the corner of the block, not far from the management office. She cloistered herself inside, inserted her calling card into the slot of the lime-green phone, and dialed Shigure's number.

BRRRRRRRRRRR. BRRRRRRRRRRR. He answered on the third ring in a high, silly voice.

"Hellooooooooo? Shigure Sohma speaking."

"Um, hi! Shigure? It's me, Tohru," she spoke into the receiver."

"Tohru?" Shigure's voice became grave in an instant, very much unlike him. "Is everything okay?" She was a little taken aback by his sudden change in attitude.

"Uh, yes, I'm fine," she replied. "I'm just at my complex. I was wondering. What do you know about how the zodiac curse started?"

There was silence over the line for a few seconds, but then the Dog asked her,

"Are you alone?"

"I'm in a phone booth, so yes." She checked to make sure the door was firmly shut and that no one—especially Kureno—was around to notice her.

"Why do you want to know at just this particular moment?" Shigure inquired.

"Well, you see, Akito told me a bit about it when I was at the main house this weekend, and—"

"And you want to find a way to break the curse, is that it?" His frank response was so unexpected Tohru nearly dropped the phone. Before she could respond, Shigure declared,

"I had a feeling about you since the first day you moved into my house, Tohru. I believe that if anyone can break this curse of ours, it's you."

Tohru was astounded. "What? Really?"

"Of course! You're quite a bright young lady. It certainly couldn't hurt to try, now could it? No one's tried lifting the curse for over a hundred years. Everyone's just given up."

"Oh." Tohru knew she sounded a little crestfallen. She'd been hoping that Shigure might be able to give her some leads.

"Don't worry about it," Shigure assured her warmly over the phone. "That doesn't necessarily mean you won't find something. A girl as determined as you are is bound to succeed."

Tohru suddenly felt very nervous from Shigure's good faith in her. She'd never realized that Shigure had been thinking that about her all this time! Did the other Sohmas think the same thing?

Did Akito?
"What if I can't do it though, Shigure? What if I just end up letting you down, too?"

His answer was sure and gentle, the most genuine and serious she'd ever heard the man.

"Tohru, you have never let me down. Not once. Just be yourself, and you'll have nothing to worry about. The rest will follow in due time."

She nodded her head to no one in agreement.

"O-Okay."

"Now, let's see then. Really, the person who knows the most about the zodiac curse is Akito, naturally, though I've been able to glean a few tidbits of information in my years. I can't guarantee how much is factual—it's a very old folk tale after all, but there may be a few clues to help you get started. Long, long ago, our family immigrated to Japan from China with some of the Buddhist priests who were transplanting Chinese culture into the country. Those early Sohmas—we were known by the name Kao-Ma back then—settled on the island of Hokkaido, at the base of a great mountain. I assume that's the mountain that figures in the story. We lived there for several generations and did very well. Then, for seemingly no reason at all, the entire clan relocated down south and settled here, and by here I mean the town we live in now. The estate has been where it is ever since, a steady rock in the raging sea of history. Of course, it's gotten much bigger as time's gone on."

"Wow, that's amazing!" Tohru said with awe. "Your family sure is interesting."

"Hm, I suppose," Shigure replied. "Being cursed does make us a little more so to the rest of the world, it seems. Anyway, we Sohmas were very accurate record keepers—that was our duty in society for a long time—but for some reason, not much is said about the migration from Hokkaido to the main island, or the reasons for it. Just that we did. This is just my theory, but…"

"That's when the cursed was placed upon you, right? So you were forced to make a new start someplace else?"

Shigure sounded appreciatively surprised at her conclusion.

"Well I'll be. You've already figured it out. Took me much longer than that to piece things together."

"So there's a town in Hokkaido where you think the whole curse started?"

"It's a good bet. I'm not sure if it still exists, though, Tohru, or even where it was. This was all hundreds of years ago, after all."

"Ah, I guess you're right." Hokkaido was a big island after all. It could take months—maybe even years—to find the ancient home of the Sohma family.

"Still, it couldn't hurt to take a look, now could it?" Shigure commented. He paused then asked, "Are you really going to try to do this?"

"I want to, so I'll do my best. It's just that I've gotten to know the Sohmas so well over the past few years, and I love you all like my own family. You've done so much for me—everything, really!—and I think it would be wonderful to do something for you all, too. Or try, at least."

"Tohru," Shigure said in a cautioning tone, "you've done enough already. More than enough. You don't have to involve yourself in our family's problems. Not unless you want to, of course."

"I know. I do want to. I almost feel like this is something I have to do. I want to find a way to help if I can."

"Well, we would surely appreciate anything you could do for us," Shigure said to her. "I'll try to do some checking at the main house. Akito doesn't really like to talk about our origins much—I'm surprised he said anything to you of them—but there might be some old books in our library with some clues. If I can find out what the name of that town was or where it might have been, that would probably be the best place to start. I'll let you know."

"Thank you, Shigure," Tohru told him. "For everything. Oh, and just one other thing. Could you please not tell anyone about this? About what I want to do, I mean. You see, I don't want to get anyone's hopes up if….." Her voice trailed off, but Shigure understood.

"It'll be our secret," he responded. "You'd best run along now. I'll contact you soon. Say hi to Yuki and Kyo for me, next chance you get."

"Sure thing."

Kyo Sohma wasn't in the best of moods as he walked home from campus by himself. The past two weeks since the stay at Shigure's house seemed to come and go in the blink of an eye. Things were back to their normal routine now, which was fine with him. He didn't even mind escorting Tohru around everywhere she needed to go. Yuki went with him more and more lately, almost as if he didn't think that he, Kyo, was good enough to handle the job on his own. There had been no sign of Kureno so far, but Kyo wouldn't have been surprised if that dirty Rooster was lying in wait for them somewhere, just waiting for an opportunity to jump out at them. What really annoyed Kyo was that with Yuki constantly looking over his shoulder at him, Kyo didn't have the chance to talk to Tohru alone much. His "I love you" was still up in the air, as precarious as a balloon straying towards a flame. He knew Tohru would need time to figure out her own feelings—he had brought it up pretty straightforwardly, and she hadn't been expecting it. He knew, though, without a doubt, that she had feelings for him. At least, he kept telling himself that. He would just have to be patient, something he wasn't very skilled at, and wait for her to come to him in her own time. Until then, he had to put up with his moron of a cousin, unfortunately.

He'd realized with some surprise that he no longer worried about what Yuki might be doing or saying around Tohru. Kyo had already said his piece, showed his true feelings to her, and Yuki was powerless to stop them. He trusted Tohru to make her own decision without being influenced by that low-down, sneaky Rat. Still, even though he wasn't worried, he was still jealous of the time Yuki, not Kyo, got to spend with Tohru. Like today.

It was midterms week already. Kyo wasn't sure why the exams were called midterms, since it wasn't even halfway through the semester yet, and because there would be at least two more tests distributed in all his classes over the following weeks. All the same, the whole campus was keyed up and stressed as though finals had already arrived. Kyo had tests scheduled almost every day this week, with two being on the weekend. It was Saturday today, and Kyo had his first test—math—earlier in the afternoon. So far his day wasn't shaping out too well. He'd done pretty well on his test—he was sure of at least an A-, if not an A—but having to go to spend a few hours of his precious weekend on Saturday was a pain, and the thought of having to go home and spend a few more hours studying for the next exam made him feel somewhat less than enthusiastic. Plus today was apartment inspection; every unit was regularly checked to make sure it was spic-and span. Kyo had to go home and take care of his own cleaning duties, in addition to the homework and studying that lay ahead of him. Then there was going to be a party later in the evening—some sort of luau-type thing. Kyo had absolutely no interest in going. He didn't like his roommates, let alone the other people in the complex; they were all mostly rich kids with major ego problems that liked to do nothing but gab about the opposite sex. Kyo planned to lock himself in his room and try to get something practical accomplished at least.

He hadn't really paid that much attention to where he was going—his feet knew the way home automatically—but when someone grabbed his shoulders roughly from behind, he snapped out of his thoughts, crying out,

"What the—!"

Before he knew it, he was seized under the arms by a couple of thick, burly guys and being forcefully dragged backwards into an alleyway. He twisted his neck to see identify his attackers, but all he could make out where black bandanas. He tried resisting them, swearing and kicking. He dug his heels into the ground to try and slow them, but whoever these guys were, they were strong. One of them clobbered him upside the head for his trouble, making him see stars. While he tried to get his bearings straight, Kyo couldn't help thinking, 'Great. That's all I need today is to get mugged.' He'd heard about a rash of muggings occurring close to campus recently. He'd been an idiot for letting his guard down. Yuki would never let him hear the end of it. At least Tohru wasn't around, he thought wryly. She wouldn't be in danger, and she wouldn't have to see how pathetic he was just at that moment.

When the thugs had dragged him all the way to the back of the alley, they shoved him roughly against the dirty brick wall. Kyo managed to keep his feet, and he glared at his assailants. The two guys dressed in black folded their arms and staring at him through sunglasses. It was difficult to read their expressions. Kyo was puzzled. Why were they just standing there? Weren't they going to demand his wallet and any cash he had on him and then beat him up?

"What gives?" he inquired massaging his shoulder. "Who the heck are you?"

"These are just some friends of mine, Kitty Cat," came a familiar voice. Kyo groaned inwardly when he recognized it. Another person was coming down the alleyway. He didn't bother to conceal himself with bandanas and sunglasses like his cronies, but with that vivid blue-green hair and eyes the same colors as Kyo's, it would have been a good idea. But Kureno had an ego to top any. He liked being seen. Kyo was suddenly very glad that he wasn't with Tohru, after Yuki had told him about Kureno's threat to return.

"Business must be pretty bad," Kyo mocked him, "if all you have to do these days is follow me around."

Kureno grinned. "On the contrary. Business is booming. You'd be surprised what people will do for you if given just the right motivation." One of his thugs had pulled out a pistol and was tapping it idly on his shoulder. Kyo had the feeling he, too, was grinning under the bandana concealing his jaw.

"You're a real scumbag, you know?" It was a pretty useless jab, but at the moment, there wasn't a whole lot Kyo could do about his situation. And he didn't have Yuki's powers of sweet-talking to try and get out of this mess. Most likely he'd have to resort to fighting the Rooster. His odds of winning weren't too great, but it seemed the only option available. Memories of his last encounter with Kureno were all too fresh in his mind—he wasn't eager to do it again in the slightest. "I heard about what you tried to do to Tohru. You're not gonna get away with it. Mess with her and you're messin' with me."

Kureno looked thoroughly unimpressed. "What, are you going to run to Akito just like that Rat threatened to do? Go ahead, by all means."

Kyo spoke without thinking. "I'm gonna make you pay for it, is what I'm gonna do! Through the nose!"

"That's pretty big talk, don't you think?" Kureno told him. "You're outnumbered three to one. I could take you on myself. I should think you would have learned that after my last little demonstration." One of his pals—the one without a gun—snickered. "And I'm not sure I understand why you're so worked up over a girl that's in love with Yuki anyway."

Kyo's eyes widened. He knew Kureno was only saying that to get at him—wasn't he?

A high-pitched, rapid beeping suddenly rang out in the alleyway. Kyo's head whipped around to locate the source of the sound. Kureno and the others didn't appear as surprised. Kureno held up his wrist and deactivated the alarm, checking the time.

"Hmph," he said, addressing Kyo. "It looks like we'll have to play again later, Kitty Cat. I've got somewhere else I need to be. Furugawa, Okawa, we've got an appointment with Mr. Torijima. He owes us some money. Leave our calling card and then let's go." Kureno turned his back to all of them and started walking towards the entrance of the alley. The two men with their faces concealed with black bandanas and sunglasses moved in on Kyo. One pointed a gun at his head, and Kyo was very careful not to move. Even the best fighter was no match against a bullet, he knew.

While the man with the gun kept his finger on the trigger, the other punk assailed Kyo with punches and kicks. Kyo wrapped his arms around his head to protect it, accepting the beating without complaint. An angry fire smoldered within him, though, and shame fanned it to open flames. When the two thugs had had enough they left him there on the ground by the dumpster.

Kyo pushed himself up with his hands and knees and sat back against the brick wall, squeezing his eyes shut and mentally assessing the damage. Nothing was broken that he was aware of, and his face had been spared except for a cut in his lip from one of the gangster's shoes. But he would be pretty bruised and tender for the next few days. This sucked. His welts and bruises from his last run-in with Kureno had just barely healed. Next time he saw him, Kyo vowed, he was going to take him out. No matter how many of his Yakuza buddies stood in the way. In a way, being treated like this was more insulting than when he'd lost to Kureno a few weeks ago. At least Kureno took it upon himself to fight him instead of let his buddies do the dirty work.

It took a few minutes for him to get to his feet. When he staggered out of the alleyway into the brighter daylight, the sight of him frightened an old lady walking by with her little toy poodle. The dog growled at him, naturally, but that may not have had anything to do with his roughed-up appearance. He started the rest of the trip home, and by the time he had walked a block or two he was feeling a little steady. His arms, legs, and abdomen were throbbing, and his backpack felt ten times heavier, but he was functioning under his own power, if nothing else. When he got home, he would get himself an icepack, take a few painkillers, and go to bed. Midterms were the least of his concerns.

He got strange looks and a couple offers of help by the time he reached the parking lot of his apartment building, but Kyo shrugged them all off with surly statements of "I'm fine."

He trudged up the stairs to his level and almost fell through the front door. The twins, permanent fixtures on their living floor, were staring up riveted at the TV, fingers flying over the game controllers as they engaged in one of their favorite monster-slaying role-playing games. Ryuuichi had left a note on the marker board announcing that he would be out at the skateboard park with his friends till late. Yuki was out "studying," which was also no surprise. Kyo erased his own "testing" status off the board and slunk into the kitchen. He was supposed to clean the oven and the refrigerator today before inspection, so he figured he might as well check out the damage to judge how long his nap should be. To his surprise, Kagura was in the kitchen, bent over oddly as she scrubbed out the inside of the electric stove.

"What the heck are you doing here?" he asked loudly. Not that he meant to be rude. Really. She was just about the last person he expected to see today. And why on earth was she cleaning out the oven?

Kagura—though she had her head stuck in the oven, he recognized the orange cat backpack she wore constantly—jumped at his voice, banging her head on the mouth of the oven. She emitted a yelp and rubbed her head vigorously. She turned her face to see him, wearing black smudges here and there on her cheeks like some sort of peculiar makeup.

"Oh, hello, Kyo," she replied with a smile. "I just came over to visit everyone. I've been across the street with Yuki and Tohru most of the afternoon. Then I came over here and saw you hadn't done your cleaning yet." She pulled a disgusted face. "You boys are really dirty, you know! Anyway, your roommates said you were out taking a test. I hope you don't mind my coming by without calling first."

"Uh…..sure….." Kyo responded uncertainly. Hey, at least she was doing his cleaning job for him. "I'm…..gonna go lie down."

"Are you feeling okay?" Kagura asked with concerned features.

"I've felt better," Kyo told her irritably. "I ran into Kureno on the way home." He felt kind of embarrassed telling her. He didn't know why he did, really. They'd always been open with each other when they were kids. Why had that changed, he wondered? "Needless to say, I think I've filled my exercise quota for the day." He began shuffling back towards the bedroom area. Kagura tagged along after him. In his room, he chucked his backpack into his cluttered closet—studying so hard the past few days left him with little time to pick up after himself; he didn't know how that stinkin' Rat managed to stay so tidy—and flopped onto his unmade bed, burying his face into the blue sheets.

"You and Kureno got into a fight again?" Kagura interrogated him, standing at his bedside. Bad enough she'd seen him get his butt kicked the last time.

"Sort of. Actually, I didn't fight him," Kyo admitted dismally. "I wanted to, but I was a bit outnumbered."

"Oh, this is terrible. I really don't like the idea of him lurking around, stalking you like some predator. Maybe if I went to Akito and—"

"Are you crazy or somethin'?" Kyo cried, though the sound was muffled by his mattress. "What if he decides to go after you next for squealin'? He's not the kind of guy to be merciful just 'cuz you're a girl. This is my business anyway, so just stay out of it, will ya'?"

He took Kagura's silence as acquiescence. The side of the mattress dipped down a little when Kagura sat on it.

"Where does it hurt?" she asked sweetly, like he was a little kid that had just gotten a boo-boo and she was going to kiss it better. He thought she was patronizing him until she said, "Tell me."

"You name it, it hurts," he sighed, resting his chin on his folded arms. "I'll be fine, though. Don't worry about it."

Kagura got up again and left—Kyo wondered whether for good—but came back a few minutes later with some ice packs and a bowl of hot water and some cloths.

"Take off your shirt, Kyo," she ordered him.

"No."

"Take it off, or I'll rip it off," she said in a sweet voice that somehow made the threat seem more dangerous. Kyo groaned, but not from the pains he received earlier. "You're always such a…..a…..man when it comes to pain." She almost made it sound like an insult. "I just want to help, Kyo."

Kyo reluctant rose up and sat back on his knees, stripping off his red T-shirt. His torso was sparsely dotted with purplish green splotches. He felt like wincing, but didn't. He wasn't being a "man," not in the sense Kagura had meant, but the damage was a bit worse than he thought it would be. At least he should be grateful he didn't have any broken bones.

Kagura made him lie back down on his stomach for a while as she applied the ice packs on some of the welts, and hot, damp rags on the others. Every few minutes she rotated them.

"Do you want me to give you a backrub?" she offered.

"No," Kyo replied flatly. "That'll just hurt worse." That was all he needed, Kagura grinding her fists into his already tender muscles. He'd be howling loud enough to be heard back home.

"Kay." With a small smile, Kagura went about her work. She didn't say anything more to him until, out of the blue, she asked, "Do you remember back when we were kids, and how I'd always take care of you when you got injured?"

Kyo clenched his teeth as a freezing cold object settled on the base of his spine.

"You caused most of those injuries," he didn't hesitate to point out. It was true. Ever since Kagura hit puberty and the Boar's aggressive tendencies started coming out—or maybe it was just the female hormones running amok—Kyo found himself the unfortunate victim of most of Kagura's "love attacks." She could be a perfectly normal girl when she wanted to, but then she would just suddenly transform into a Kyo-crazed, psychopathic maniac at the drop of a hat. The worse part was that she never showed any remorse. When she wasn't trying to maim him, she'd go back to acting like life was all flowers and butterflies again. Kyo sometimes wondered if she was afflicted with short-term memory loss. Or mental illness.

Kagura made a faintly amused sound like half a chuckle. "Yes, I suppose I could get pretty wild back then."

"Back then?" Kyo replied incredulously. "Try just last year!"

Kagura simply smiled at him gently. "I suppose I just can't help myself sometimes. People are like that when they're in love."

Kyo's eyes bulged slightly, and he went rigid. He'd been hoping not to touch on that subject. Kagura had been acting strangely friendly toward him recently, even after he dashed all her dreams of ever marrying him. Had she been the old Kagura, Kyo would have been pulverized even worse than anything Kureno could ever do to him. Kagura would have strapped him to a medieval rack and tortured him for hours and left him dangling by his toes off the edge of a cliff. Or she would have clubbed him like a baby seal and flayed him alive. Or she would have—

"I'll go get some more hot water. I might have to go next door to find some more ice for your arms and legs, though," Kagura said. She collected the spent ice packs and rags and got up from where she knelt on the carpet. She had only crossed half the floor when Kyo pushed himself out of bed and closed in from behind. He wrapped his arms around her short, slender frame in a tight embrace. Kagura made no sound except to inhale sharply in surprise. A little bit of tepid water sloshed out of the pot.

"I'm…..I'm sorry," Kyo told her quietly. "For hurting you." He felt a slight tremble go down her spine, and she bowed her head slightly, murmuring in a low voice.

"It's okay. I've never really been able to stay mad at you for long. It'll take some time, but I'll be alright." He held her for a moment longer then released her so she could re-supply. Kagura turned around and smiled at him brightly.

"You just wait right here," she ordered him like an overbearing mother. "I'll play nurse and you just lie down and rest for a while. If you like, I can make you a snack."

"Fine," Kyo sighed with mock indifference.

Author's Note:

Yay. Another chapter over and done. School's busy lately, but I still have time to write here and there. I really liked writing this chapter, especially the Prince Yuki Fan Club scene. I wonder how Minami and Mio and Number 2 will take it when they get the news? Anyway, next chapter will be pretty good. I'm excited to get started on it already! Thank you everyone for reading and for being patient with my slowness. Till later! Jaa!

Next Chapter: "And Then….." for "Fruits Basket" Chapter 28: The Tragedy of the Seahorse—What Lies Within