A/N: So I'm following the manga. I always thought Hiro arrived next (even though I own all the manga, I was wrong). I was taken aback about how soon this next chapter pops up. So be prepared. I combined the next three chapters in the manga together because it just didn't sit right to separate these.
June approached and it was almost always raining, a constant in Japan during this time. "I should've grabbed the laundry." Minami muttered under her black umbrella, while Yuki and Kyo were under their blue and orange one.
"The weather forecast reported that the rain may stop in the afternoon." Yuki said helpfully.
"I wish the rain would stop and it's so humid here." Minami complained.
"What was it like at your old home?" Yuki asked her and she thought back and smiled.
"I was born in the Midwest, so it was almost always pretty humid. The weather was random but we always had the four seasons. But sometimes it was too coldly." Minami explained. "Do you the rain?"
"Not really." Yuki said. "But I'm not really used to the summer season either."
"It must be too hot for you." Minami said, looking at his pale skin without a tan. She looked over at Kyo. "Are you still in a bad mood, Kyo?"
"You bet." Kyo said.
"You seem oddly used to this." Yuki said.
"Kyo would always get in this kind of mood when it rains." Minami said and smiled. "One time he got so angry and annoyed at the park, that they received so many complaints that they were forced to leave." Minami laughed at the thought.
"YOU!" Kyo yelled. "WHY ARE YOU Telling him…" He leaned down and started getting wet which Minami covered him with her umbrella. "Argh! I feel so frustrated!"
"Calm down." Minami said and smiled at him and locked arms with him making him turn red. "You could lean on me the whole way~" She flirted.
"What's wrong with you?!" Kyo yelled making her laugh. "You've been hanging around Ayame and Shigure too much!"
"Minami… are we ready to go now?" Yuki asked looking back.
"Sure thing." Minami said and dragged Kyo along. Kyo started arguing with her. She ruffled his hair and winked. "Come on Kyo, lean on me, you help me when I feel down, the least I could do is do the same for you."
"Whatever." Kyo said and he smiled at her. The moment they arrived back the rain stopped and they were greeted with Kagura at the door, though Kyo immediately slammed the screen door, which didn't last long because Kagura punched a hole into the screen door which made him open the door.
"It was so peaceful." Minami muttered as they went over to Shigure, so they would be out of the way of Kagura's wrath. When Kagura picked up the table, Shigure pushed Kyo over making him call into Kagura. Kagura dropped the table and wrapped Kyo around her arms happily.
"SHI… GURE…. YOU… STUPID…" Kyo said angrily.
"Kagurra, you can borrow Kyo for the whole day.. Why don't you two go on a date?" Shigure asked smiling.
"Shi-san, that's a great idea!" Kagura said happily.
"What?! You can't just let her 'borrow' me!" Kyo yelled. "I AM NOT GOING ON A DATE WITH YOU!"
"Mi-chan, why don't you let them go out and get the groceries for tonight's dinner?" Shigure asked.
"Groceries? Okay! Let's go!" Kagura cheered.
"I AM NOT GOING!" Kyo yelled and Minami passed it to Kagura who immediately dragged Kyo away and slammed the door behind them.
"Mission accomplished!" Shigrue said happily. "If we let them get some alone time together, Kagura won't be so violent, right?"
"True." Minami said, nodding at Shigure's plan.
"I just hope that they take as long as possible… So the house won't be turned upside down…" Shigure said and he sighed. "Geez… I will fine some money from Kyo and Kagrua's bank accounts." He looked over at Minami who had a blank look on her face. "Yuki has a bank account to. The main house transfers money to their account every month!"
"Alright, well I'll get started on the laundry." Minami said, noticing Yuki's annoyed look on his face.
"It will probably rain soon… Yuki, why don't you bring Minami-chan out for a nice little walk before it rains again?" Shigure suggested.
"Let's go." Yuki said and smiled at her. "I know going to the secret base isn't much of a date, but…"
"Sounds great!" Minami said and gave him a happy smile. They go out and quickly check on the plants. Then return back. As they were walking back Minami bumps into Yuki's back.
"Ow…" She whined. "Yuki what are you-" She looked over and saw a man with a tall and broad stature. He had their back to them and had had straight, dark brown hair. That went down to the middle of the back and was tied into a ponytail at the back, secured with a traditional white hair tie. His bangs were long, quite messy and framed his face. He had a pair of slightly sharp, but kind and calm, dark brown eyes and wore very traditional clothing: a dark blue kimono with a black belt.
"So he's back…" Yuki said.
"Shi.. Shi… Shishou." Kyo said and Minami paused as Kyo walked over towards the man and he turned his face to look at Kyo who had a happy look in his eyes. The man's eyes softened as he looked at Kyo and he smiled.
"You look well… Kyo…"
Minami felt a wave dread as she looked at the man. She knew exactly why he was here, and she couldn't help but hold her breath. This was going to be a long day… Kazuma goes inside and sits down at the table and speaks to Shigure for a few minutes. Kagura and Yuki greet him happily.
"Minami-chan, this is Sohma Kazuma." Shigure said and she looks at Kazuma whose eyes widen in surprise. He recognized her. "He is not only Kyo's Shishou… He also teaches Yuki, Kagura-kun, and Hatsuharu martial arts." Minami says nothing as they have a long period of silence and eye contact between them.
"Minami…-chan.. May I call you like that?" Kazuma asked her ans she nodded.
"Yes, of course." Minami said. "I… wasn't expecting to see you again…"
"I'm surprised you remembered me." Kazuma said.
"You two know each other?" Kyo asked with an confused look on his face.
"He was always around." Minami explained to the group, she could see the look of jealously on Kagura's face. "When we played as kids. I think I bumped into him once, but he didn't say anything back then."
"You never…" Kyo said shocked. "Told anyone about her?"
Kazuma shook his head. "No, she was your first friend." His eyes darkened for a bit. "But now… I heard… you.." He paused and Minami could see the helpless look in Kyo's eyes. "... You know about the secret.. About the curse…" They started at each other again and she didn't look away. She knew exactly what he was trying to talk about, but in truth she had yet to see Kyo's true form yet. It was strange… Kazuma was the first Sohma who was actually mentally older than her, she knew he was in his early 40s, though he didn't look like it.
"Yes…" Minami said.
"Is that so…?" Kazuma asked and he close his eyes with a distant smile on his face. Kyo storms up the stairs after a few minutes and Kazuma follows him easily. Giving her a look before he passes.
"Can I… talk to you… for a minute…?" Kagura asked.
"About what?" Minami asked and she shook her head and her eyes flickered over to Yuki who was talking to Shigure. Minami nodded and they went out to another room.
"Do you… know?" Kagura asked.
"About what?" Minami asked, folding her arms. Kagura's face flushed red in anger.
"I know you've known Kyo for as long as I have!" Kagura snarled. "Even longer! So you have to know!"
"I don't know." Minami said firmly and she eyes glazed over. "Not completely at least. I know something happened between you and Kyo when we were kids and ever since then… Kyo stopped playing with me when we were kids. It was the same day… when Kyo showed up.. That I saw bumped into Kazuma. I know he did it on purpose, he never bothered me before."
"So you really don't know?" Kagura said and her face flashed through a range of various emotions. She looked like she wanted to tell her something, something that she already knew. But instead she changed the subject. "Sensei is part of the 'inner' clan. His grandfather was possessed with the spirit of the cat before Kyo-kun was. So.. Sensei probably understands what Kyo-kun is going through better than anyone else. He really cares about Kyo-kun, and he tries to protect him, so he doesn't get hurt… Like a father figure…"
"He's going to tell me, about this secret… Isn't he?" Minami asked and Kagura started at her with a strange look in her eyes.
"Can you handle it?" Kagura asked and paused, her eyes lowered to the ground. "Or are you just going to hurt him, just like I did…" She looked like she wanted to cry for a second but met her eyes with a fierce passion. "If you hurt Kyo-kun..!"
"I won't." Minami said, determination in her voice and Kagura walks away to join Shigure and Yuki. Minami makes dinner and once they finish, Kazuma and Kagura decide to stay the night. As Minami finished cleaning the dishes she walked up the stairs and noticed that Kazuma and Shigure were outside. Kagura stood by the doorway and looked at her as they listened in on the conversation.
"Tonight… I will be taking 'that' off.." Kazuma said. "'That' may cause some commotion. So I would like to apologize in advance…"
"Not at all…" Shigure said. "But why did you decide to do that?"
"When… When I saw… His face today.. I think that she may be able to open up his heart… and accept him… And this is the best way to prove my idea. This is the best time to do it…"
Shigure paused. "There's no guarantee that this would work, right? Even if she accepts him, there's a possibility that Kyo will reject her.. This will devastate him.. He may even hate you for it. Maybe… he will never smile again… Are you still… willing to risk all of that?"
Kazuma bows his head and says nothing. "He'll call you soon…" Kagura whispered. "You should go back to your room."
"I know.." Minami said and did as she wished.
"Could you spare me a little bit of your time tonight?" Kazuma asked her, once he knocked on her door. Which she agreed. She watched as Kazuma and Kyo walked down the stairs and followed them. Noticing Kagura with a distant look on her face as she passed. Minami paused at the door. Kazuma glanced at her, but didn't seem to mind that she was there to hear this. Kyo hadn't noticed yet, he was hunched down because of the weather.
"Shishou… Can we talk inside? You know how I am in this kind of weather…" Kyo said.
"Just like my grandfather… His conditions weaken on rainy days too…" Kazuma said. "Maybe because of the cat spirit. Or maybe because the 'original form' of the spirit hated rain?"
"...Hmph." Kyo said and looked away.
"If you can't accept your 'original form'... You will never be able to move forward…" Kazuma said.
"I accepted it already!" Kyo said and looked at Kazuma with a look of determination and rage in his eyes. "My life has been miserable because I was born with the cat spirit… It's all because of the rat! Yuki.. He's the source of it!"
"You haven't changed at all.." Kazuma said and stopped forward. "So are you.. Going to keep on living like this? With your eyes shut, and your hearts plugged? Is that the only way you could support yourself? Then… As time goes on… you will die.. All alone.." He paused and an unspoken sentence went through the air. "You said earlier that.. You hated it here.. But I know you don't really hate it.. You re just trying to run away from it…"
Kazuma grabbed his hand where the beads were. "You know that place that you described as 'luke wam water'...? It's slowly healing you.. But.. You don't want them to know your 'original form.' You are afraid that you will lose everything if they know about it.. So you are trying to run away from those ambiguous circumstances,,, No… So… In that case, I will grasp your hand as you run away… I will lead you to the final result.. To see if you will lose or not.."
Kazuma looked over at her and Kyo finally noticed her standing at the doorway. "Kyo... are you really.. Born with a miserable life?" Kyo's eyes widen as Kazuma rips the beads off.
"DON'T LOOK AT ME!" The transformation of his true form was out of a horror movie, his bones bent in unnatural waves and his skin changed into a deep color. It was too unbearable to watch, but she knew she had to. His true form was a grotesque and foul smelling, orange colored monster with orange eyes. Kyo had sharp claws and teeth. The smell was that of a corpse rotting.
Minami opened the door. "Kyo.." She said and he jumped away and ran through the forest at inhuman speeds. She didn't even think. "Damn it Kyo." She muttered and ran forward. She tripped and fell as she ran through the dark and muddy forest but continued onward. Noticing the broken branches and marks of Kyo's claws on the surroundings. The closer she followed, the more she threw up because of the smell. It was rotten and disgusting. All of her instincts were telling her to run away, to leave, that it won't be that bad if she left.
But she thought back to the sad little boy that she met, alone in the world. How much he was filled with regret and anger when he first saw her. The boy that she had grown to care for and give advice to when he felt alone. Those thoughts were the only things that kept her going forward. Her hands had just recently healed, but it seemed like the world didn't want her to win. She felt twigs cut her skin and make her bleed. But couldn't imagine how Kyo must've felt, when he transformed into that, the pain he must have endured. She could understand how Kagura could run away and couldn't help but forgive her. Kagura was only a child when it happened, she didn't look above the age of eight when it happened, and it made her feel stupid for ever having the satisfaction… the ego to judge her.
She could see Kyo in the distance. "SHUT UP!" Kyo yelled and slammed his hand on the rocks. "... That's enough.. I am…" Kyo said and he noticed her footsteps. "DON'T COME ANY CLOSER! What.. What are you doing here? Can you stand the smell? Why are you.. FOLLOWING ME?!"
She took a step forward, aware that it was a possibility that she could get hit by his large hand. She couldn't find anything to say so she just listened to him. "I TOLD YOU NOT COME ANY CLOSER! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? CAN YOU NOT SEE? CAN'T YOU SMELL? It's weird, isn't it? It's disgusting, isn't it? Why can't you just leave me alone! I DON'T WANT YOUR PITY!"
She aimed her shaking hand to Kyo's arm. "DON'T TOUCH ME!" He yelled and she felt the impact of his palm hit her and the slice of the claws. She felt her body hit the ground hard. "YOU ARE SO ANNOYING! YOU MAKE ME SICK! NEXT TIME I WILL SLASH YOUR FACE INTO PIECES…! GO AWAY!"
Her entire body stinged and she could feel pins and needles up her skin. She didn't have to feel her neck to know that part of it was cut with his claws. She pushed herself off and thought back to the first moment she met Kyo. He had collected a bunch of flowers and had named all of them, so that they could be his friend.
She grabbed his arm when she noticed he was lost in thought and said the same words that she said that day. "I like your orange hair." She said when he tried to move her away. "Do you remember that day Kyo? Your face turned red, you were so embarrassed." She wanted to smile but her face was in too much pain. "But no I don't like your hair anymore." Minami said and she could feel him flinch. "I love your hair. I love your eyes too. Your personality. Your attitude. Your anger. Your fears. Your regrets. Your loss. Don't you remember what I said when I saw you again? 'That having friends, close ones, mean that they loved you in some way'…? So I'm not going to let you run away and feel ashamed of yourself because something you can't control. I don't care if you're stuck this way for a million years, you'll always be 'the same sad little boy I met all those years ago."
She paused. "Is it bad that I'm afraid of you? That I'm terrified of you? That I'm upset that you hurt me? That you insulted me? That I feel like crying right now because of the things you said. Because you didn't feel comfortable enough to tell me this part of you. You never even mentioned it! We're supposed to be friends, best friends Kyo! Yet even though you could tell me all about the other things that you didn't like about yourself, about the people around you, you couldn't tell me the one thing that was eating away at you?!"
Minami released a deep sob. "D-Don't you know how stupid that makes me feel?!" She yelled at him and paused. "But… But what hurt the most.. More than the pain that I'm feeling right now… more then the blood rushing down my body and soaking my clothes… Was that thought that the person I loved felt so alone… so broken.. That he had to carry on this burden alone… I don't understand… Kyo.. I really don't… But it doesn't matter what you do… You can curse me until your final breath… But I won't leave you… Not now, not ever."
She wiped her ears away. "Do you mean that…?" Kyo asked her, his voice normal and she looked up and saw that he was in his human form.
"Of course I do." Minami said and she could see tears running down his face. He leaned forward and was so close that she could feel the heat of his breath. He grabbed his arms around her and she returned it. "I love you Kyo."
"...I love you too…"
It felt like the purist kind of love.