Dun dun dun! Big things happening this chapter!:) being a stay-at-home mom with an overactive imagination means I can post new chapters fairly regularly. I think I've been doing two a week- ish? 😊 please review and let me know what you think so far! My mom heart went out to these characters as soon as I saw the anime and then read the manga so Kyomi is my attempt to give these guys a little more motherly care that they all so sorely need. This is also my first writing attempt after years of avid reading so please bring on the constructive criticism! The author wrote this story so well, I want to do it as much justice as I can. It deserves that😊

Chapter 6

Somehow, they had managed to make it to the dojo without getting lost. Kyomi stood outside the dojo with Luc looking at the flowers helping him say the colors so she could take a minute to gather her thoughts. "What color is this flower Luc?"

"Purple!" He replied enthusiastically. Kyomi couldn't contain her laughter. The door of the dojo opened and the students from the last class of the day came filtering out. Last was a certain orange haired boy. He wasn't paying much attention to what was around him, more intent on getting home before Kagura got a look at him. Kyomi saw the hair and was confused as to how a high school student could get away with that color when it dawned on her that she had seen hair that exact shade, years before. She turned back to the dojo to see a young man standing in the doorway.

"Hello! Do you have a meeting with Kazuma Sohma?" The kind man asked.

"Good evening! Yes, I do. I'm Kyomi McLeod and this is my son Luc." She smiled at the young man as he gestured for her to follow him into the dojo. She felt eyes boring into her back and she turned around to see who it was. Kyo stood at the bottom of the walkway looking pale as a ghost. He had gone white at simply hearing her voice but went almost green at seeing her face. Kyomi gave him a sad smile and a nod then turned to help Luc up the steps with tears pricking her eyes.

Kazuma was standing in the hall, eyes narrowing as he gauged his son's reaction to this strange woman who bore a similar sounding name. He also took in her face as she turned and saw him standing there. There must be a reason Kyo reacted to her the way he did. I wonder if she knows from the sadness I see in her.

Kyomi looked up from helping Luc up the steps and noticed who could only be the dojo master standing in front of her. Kyomi's eyes went wide at the resemblance he bore to that old friend she had made as a child in the back woods of the Sohma estate. Where everyone had warned her not to go, but she went anyway.

Kunimitsu, Kazuma's assistant who had met Kyomi at the door, looked between the two standing in the hall as he closed the door. He broke the silence, "I'll go make you some tea."

Kazuma finally spoke, "We will be in my office. Please, come with me. There are a few toys for your son to play with as well." Kyomi nodded and followed him. So that was my little brother. And I wonder if he is somehow related to Neko-chan. They both have something remarkably similar in their demeanor, but I wonder if they're family. Kazuma reminds me so much of him.

They settled in Kazuma's office with Luc playing with some toys in the corner. As with all new things, it all needed to be inspected and analyzed. He was currently trying to take apart a wooden train set.

Kazuma watched the boy. "That set used to be my son's when he was not much older than yours. You said his name was Luc?" Kyomi startled with the question. "Oh! Yes, and I am Kyomi McLeod. Thank you very much for meeting with us on such short notice, Sensei. I'm sure you have a busy schedule.", she said with a slight bow of her head. Kazuma returned the pleasantry, "I've actually been back in town a few days, but spent a few days with my son before returning to the dojo. I hear you wanted to speak with me about him." Kazuma leveled his intense gaze at her with those words.

Kyomi took a deep breath and let it out slowly to calm her nerves and gather her thoughts. She sat for a moment. "Yes, I wanted to speak with you, but also apologize to you." Kazuma's intensity turned to confusion with that statement. "I grew up not far from the Sohma estate with my mother. I was actually very close friends with Shigure, Hatori, and Ayame. We were all the same age and studied and played together. Well, Tori and I studied and Shi and Aya played more often than not." She smiled slightly at the memories. "My mother gave me up for adoption before we started middle school and I was sent to the US and I've lived there since. Since I was so close with my friends, I knew of the Sohma's secret. Hatori's father erased all memory of my life to that point before I was sent to the States." Kyomi stopped to take a breath and noticed Kazuma's gaze had gotten both softer and more confused.

"I still don't understand what this has to do with Kyo." Kazuma pointed out.

"I promise I'm not here to make your lives more difficult. I don't know Kyo's story, nor am I certain I have any right to know, but I wanted to at least make my presence known to you. I am sure he has been through more than enough in his short life and after basically abandoning him to be raised by our mother and my step-father, I'm not sure I have any right to ask to have a part in his life, but that is what I'm hoping for." She bowed her head again and dug in her purse for a tissue. Luc came over and noticed the tears on his mother's face and he kissed one off her cheek before giving her a hug and going back to his train. Kazuma sat stunned staring at the woman in front of him. "So Kyo has an older sister? You say you abandoned him. Did you have any choice in leaving your family and being sent away?" He was confused by her explanation, but also wondering if she was more like her brother than she realized. He was always taking all the blame onto himself whether it really was his fault or not then he would push it away onto someone else when he couldn't bear the load.

"Well, no, not really. I didn't realize what was happening that day until we were with Hatori's father and he was explaining the process. They actually had to drug me to get me to calm down." Kyomi managed to pull herself together and answer his question quietly. "I never got a full explanation, but from what I gathered my mother didn't really have a choice herself. She had just married my stepfather and he didn't want children. He was from the prestigious Sohma family, so the match was desirable for her regardless of her feelings about it though I always got the feeling that she married to take care of me."

Tears were silently falling down her face as Kazuma pondered what she said. He had been worried about who would want to speak with him about Kyo, but the woman in front of him was nothing like he had imagined. He was still concerned that she might have some ulterior motive for coming to him now, but from her demeanor, he barely believed that it might be true. He was also still confused as to how she knew all this when she had had her memories taken from her. He had heard that method was all but infallible. He pulled his handkerchief out of his pocket and handed it to her. "How do you know all this when your memories were taken?"

Kyomi accepted the kerchief gratefully and wiped her eyes. "Hatori isn't even entirely sure. Someone regaining their memories after so long has never happened before to his knowledge at least. All I know is that after my husband passed a few years ago, I settled in this town out of instinct. It felt like a good place to raise my son, so we stayed. I ended up working with Ayame at his shop and my guess is that after working there for so long, the dam holding everything back just broke. One day I was just working as usual and then everything came back. Some things are more concrete, some memories are more like an old dream, but most things I remember now. I get headaches if something new comes back, but that hasn't happened in a while." She sighed. "That's why I'm here now. I regained everything about a month ago. I've been catching up with Ayame, Shigure and Hatori since then and avoiding Kyo because I didn't want to hurt him by doing something rash. I had two adopted brothers I was very close to and I miss them dearly, but if someone had come out of the woodwork and sprung something like this on them, I'd probably deck the person." She let out a laugh at that statement. "I didn't want to do that to Kyo." She said sadly. Kyomi looked at Kazuma with a hint of fire in her eyes. "I may not have known I had a brother until a month ago, but Shi told me a little of his past and what he's been through. He also told me you were the best thing that's ever happened to him. I knew I owed you an explanation before speaking with him. I also owe you a debt that can never be repaid for taking care of our family." She bowed her head again in thanks. "I trust you to know what is best for him. If that is him not knowing me, I'll accept that. However, I can't leave the small family I have found here again. We have nowhere else to go otherwise I would gladly make that sacrifice for him." She wiped her eyes again and felt a hand on her head. Kazuma was kneeling next to her and she startled a little at his closeness.

"I know what it's like to lose family. I could also never ask you to leave yours nor could I keep Kyo from any of his who genuinely care for him." Kazuma sat next to her and took his hand back. "Kyo has been through much in his short life, more than most adults could handle. However, he is finally starting to live his life again." Kazuma smiled at the memory of just a few days ago seeing Tohru come through the trees carrying his happy and exhausted son in her arms. He also remembered the smile that was finally back on his son's face. "I'm not entirely sure what the best way to tell him this news is, but I can't make this decision for him. If he wants to be a part of your life, I will not stop him. I can tell you have his best interests at heart."

Kyomi smiled as more tears fell down her face. "Thank you. I can't thank you enough. I am sorry for the imposition and I am also sorry for all the tears. I don't think I've cried this much in years." She said with a small laugh.

"I've found that tears can be healing. You should never apologize for them." Kazuma smiled at her. They both jumped as train pieces were dumped unceremoniously on the table in front of them and a little toddler pointed at them and yelled, "Hawlp!" Kazuma was confused, but Kyomi just laughed at her son.

"He took it all apart and now he can't put it back together." She laughed some more as she calmed her son's frustration and asked what he needed to say. "Pease, Mama. Hawlp." He replied more quietly this time and Kyomi showed him how to reattach the train pieces. He drove the train off the table and around the floor as Kazuma watched their interaction. She seems nothing like what I heard of their mother. Perhaps some good came from all their pain. As much heartbreak as she has gone through, she still seems to be more present for her son than their mother managed to be for them. I wonder if she can have a similar effect on Kyo.

Kyomi was wrapped up in her own thoughts. I can't believe he believed me. If I were in his shoes, I wouldn't have believed it if someone had come to me with a story like this. I don't feel right about asking about Neko-chan, but I hope I can at some point. I don't want him to think the only reason I want to know my brother is because of the stupid family secret. My heart broke for him when Gure told me he was a part of that mess. It never did any good for them growing up, it probably caused them more pain than it helped them.

Kyomi and Kazuma sat with their thoughts for a few seconds until Kunimitsu came through the doors with a pained expression on his face. "You should know I just found Kyo sitting outside the door. He ran off as soon as he saw me. I am sorry, I didn't know that he had come back in."

Kunimitsu set down the tray of tea and bowed low in apology. Kyomi and Kazuma sat shocked. They looked at each other.

"I'm going to see if I can find him. Call Shigure in case he goes home. Since he knows you, explain what Kyo probably heard." Kazuma launched into action. "Kunimitsu, Kyomi, are you comfortable with him watching Luc so you can come with me? I feel it is probably best if you come to explain your side of the story as well." Kyomi nodded a little dazed before she shook herself and picked up her phone to call Shi. Once that was done, Gure promised to let her know if he came home, but he hadn't yet. Kyomi pulled out a pen and paper from her purse and wrote her number quickly for Kunimitsu. "Here is my phone number in case you need anything or Kyo comes back here. If Luc gets bored of the toys, he loves to play outside or heck, show him some martial arts moves. He would probably love that. Please let me know if you have any questions." She hurriedly said to the assistant who took the paper and nodded. "I'll keep a good eye on him." Then he went to sit and play with the train with the boy. Kyomi walked after him and gave her son a hug and a kiss on the head. "Mama needs to go do something. You play and be good. Listen to Kunimitsu-Sama. Mama will be back soon. I love you buddy." Luc responded by pointing to Kunimitsu and saying, "Ku ma pay!" and returning to his train. She smiled and turned to follow Kazuma out the door, her worries for her brother returning now that her son was happily settled in good hands.

"Kunimitsu used to help with Kyo, and he teaches at the dojo as well so Luc will be fine. I'm trying to think where Kyo would go if not home to Tohru. Let's start in that direction and see what we can find."

They started down the street asking people they met along the way if they had seen an orange haired teen run this way. After they had almost gotten to Shigure's house, Kyomi called him again. Kyo wasn't home. Kyomi sat on the curb in frustration trying to think like the brother she didn't even know yet. She put her head in her hands. Kazuma finished asked a gentleman about Kyo before returning to Kyomi.

"He's not home and we are almost to Gure's." Kyomi said as she heard him approaching. Her head suddenly shot up. "Where is our mother buried?" She asked looking at Kazuma.

Realization dawned on his face. "He hasn't been back there since her funeral, but maybe this would have pushed him to go. It's back closer to the estate." He replied turning around and going back down the street they had just come up. Kyomi wondered in the back of her mind why he hadn't been back there, but having no answers, she thought ahead to where else he might be in case they were wrong.

They continued in silence as the sun was starting to set. Kunimitsu called once to ask what to feed Luc, assuring her that he was a decent enough cook and she told him of a few things the boy liked to eat. Not long after that call, they arrived at the gravesite. They saw a boy with orange hair glowing in the setting sun crouching at the grave of his mother, head bowed, arms wrapped around himself like he was trying to stave off some unknown attacker.

"Kyo…" was all Kyomi could get out. Kyo stiffened, then turned to look at his sister who looked so much like his mother.