Part Two:
Kagura sat in a stupored daze at her table. She had made enough of the homemade potato soup that Kyou had taught her to make for the both of them. She knew he wouldn't be back before it needed reheating though, even if he had given her a kiss on the cheek promise. She'd be eating her lunch alone again. Never before had she minded eating alone, but today was different. Kyou had left without saying where he was going or what he planned to do. The look in his eyes had begged her not to ask and so she respected it. There was only one place he'd be, Kagura knew. Her body still seemed to be singing praises to Kyou for the ecstasy he had given it the night before. Her mind couldn't let go of the fact that he'd been on his hands and knees afterwards, crying his heart out, and calling out for Tohru. It took all her strength to let him go to her.
And she was right, too. Down a few roads and past a few houses, Kyou had found himself at Yuki and Tohru's door. It was pure luck that he had caught her home alone with nothing to do but some household chores. Tohru was quick to push them aside when Kyou had said he needed to speak with her and wouldn't meet her eye. When he asked if there was a place where Yuki couldn't sneak up on them, she had to think for a minute. She took his hand and led him out of her backdoor, past the vegetable gardens, and into the woods. Yuki's land shared borders with Shigure's land. Soon she had led him to the pond where she had accepted the real Kyou for the first time. "Is this all right?" she asked him.
Kyou nodded, shoving his hands deep within his pockets. So many questions had run through his mind since the night before when he had finally gotten off of the floor and back into bed. Kagura had her back towards him and winced when he put his hand on her. He had sighed, knowing he deserved it but knowing she didn't understand either. He had turned over to stare at the alarm clock for the rest of the night. Tohru didn't deserve a life like that and Yuki was selfish for giving it to her. He knew he'd have to talk to Tohru and find out why she'd let him do that to her. He knew he'd have to do it without Yuki around, too, or else a fight that he might even consider removing his beads to win would occur. "Tch," he had thought, quickly putting it out of mind. For now, he had to find a way to talk to Tohru about it.
"You don't look as if you rested well last night, Kyou-kun. Did you and Kagura-san have another fight?" she asked, pulling off her shoes to dip her feet in the cool water.
"What?!" he asked, instantly annoyed and on the defense because once again, his marriage was getting questioned. He looked down to remember it was Tohru he was speaking to. "No. Well, maybe, but I don't know yet. That's not why I'm here."
She looked up at him with big, innocently blue eyes that brought that pang of guilt back to his heart. "I'll wait then. Whenever you're ready."
"I am ready!" he snapped.
"Then go ahead," she said, smiling broadly.
He huffed and looked away, almost telling her not to smile all the time again. Tohru laughing at him was just what he needed. "I have no right to be asking you such things, I know. But I need to know this and I want you to be honest and not worry about anyone else's feelings."
Tohru cocked her head to the side. "I'll try my best, then."
"Are you…" Kyou stopped and sighed. Taking another deep breath, he tried again. "Are you truly happy with Yuki? Being his wife and everything?"
Tohru smiled. "Of course I am. I wouldn't have said I do if I wasn't."
"Tch. How can you be? I just don't understand."
Tohru thought about it, trying to figure out just what he was getting at. "I love Yuki very dearly and I'm honestly happy with him. Aren't you happy with Kagura-san? I know she loves you dearly as well and she's very happy."
"Yeah. This isn't about me and Kagura though. I love her, you know, and because of that… I can't understand how you and Yuki can be happy at all."
"We are, Kyou-kun. We really in truly are. Is it really that hard to understand?"
Kyou shook his head. He had no right whatsoever to question her or her affairs any further. She was happy with Yuki and that should have been enough. "I just can't begin to imagine…" Kyou stopped himself once more, trying to repress it.
Tohru was humming almost happily, kicking her feet in the water. Was she just playing with him? Did she know what he was getting at? "It's hard at times, but I love him."
"Hard? I can't imagine it possible. How can you restrain yourself from wanting to hold him close? I don't understand at all."
Her feet stopped. Her humming stopped. "I think… I think you're trying too hard to understand it. Our love for each other is going to get us through anything. It's not as horrible as you might imagine. There's so much that we can still… do… without having our arms around each other. It's quite… tricky. It's hard to be able to just let go of reality and enjoy things because of it, but if you want it to work, it does." Her cheeks were getting redder with each word.
"Still, you won't know what it's like to be so completely happy that way."
"What way?"
"Getting to hold one another." Kyou looked back down at her to see her blush fade and a look of realization spread across her face.
"You still worry about me so much, don't you?" She sighed as she chose her words carefully. Kyou waited for it. She always had to say just the right thing to set his mind at ease. He held his breath hoping he'd get it. "Yuki and I hold each other all the time."
Kyou's eyes narrowed and he couldn't help but spit out a "What?!"
Tohru nodded, smiling again. "We do. I hold him close to my heart and he tries to wrap his paws around my finger as he nuzzles my chest."
Kyou's face plainly fell. She always was a bit of an idiot, but surely she couldn't be serious. "I mean you can't hold *him.* You can't hold Yuki. You can hold the mouse but it's not Yuki."
Tohru's face got serious. "No, Kyou-kun. It is Yuki. All of it is him. No matter what he looks like, what his body is like, what form it's in. No matter what. It's Yuki. I can hold him close anytime I want to. No matter what he looks like, he's Yuki. Forms don't matter. I don't regret getting into this with him one bit. I love him so much and don't know what I'd do if I were to lose him." She was shaking with honesty.
Kyou thought for a few minutes, kneeling before Tohru to put his hands in hers to try to get her to stop shaking. "No matter what, then? It is still Yuki. And your love for him makes you feel as if you aren't missing out on anything?" he asked quietly.
She shook her head. "No. My love for him tells me that I'm not missing anything. It doesn't make me feel that way, it lets me know I'm not."
"I see." He didn't like the answers, but they were her reasons and she was content with them. Maybe Yuki hadn't blindly led her into this. "I still can't forgive him."
Tohru laughed. "You never will. But we made sure we could do this before we were married. Making sure we would be able to handle what seems to worry you now."
Kyou's eyes widened. "You mean you slept with him before you two got married?!?"
Tohru's face went red and her hands jerked from his to hide her face.
Kyou chuckled. "No. I'm… sorry. I didn't mean to say it like that." How come he could still apologize so quickly to her but not to Kagura?
"We… wanted…" she started as she lifted her head again. "We wanted to be sure that we could do so comfortably. And I promise you, just because our arms can't go around one another doesn't mean that we're less intense of a couple behind closed doors. From our first time it was wonderful and it still is." Her blush was still glowing.
Kyou nodded and looked up to the sky. Clouds seemed to be moving in and he was sure it'd be raining later on that afternoon and into the evening. "Last night was the first time I'd really made Kagura happy as a lover. All this time I've been married to her and I'm able to hold her, I still couldn't make her as happy as you seem to be with Yuki."
"Then don't compare. What's right for Yuki and I is right for us. What's right for you and Kagura-san is right for you two."
Kyou hung his head, smiling inwardly. Tohru, as usual, was right. The matter was definitely settled in his heart and mind. Tohru was happy, Yuki was happy. He'd made Kagura happy. And dammit, he was going to be happy and have his perfect marriage. Anyone who wanted to argue that his wasn't perfect would answer to his fists.
"I'm glad to know that you two are really happy though. I've worried that maybe you two didn't get along very well when you were alone." Her voice was so innocently honest that Kyou couldn't get angry over it.
"I think we are. We argue a lot, but we don't hurt each other." He sighed deeply. "I think we should be heading back before the rain makes a mess of us."
Tohru nodded and pulled her shoes back on even though her feet were wet. Then she led Kyou back to her home where she kissed his cheek goodbye as he said he had to get back home to Kagura. He had promised to be back by lunch but that promise was far broken. Maybe she could forgive him.
1.1.1.1.1.1.1 To be continued yet again…
A/N: I don't think I can write Tohru that well… But one more part will come. Kagura's heart is hurt and we still have to make our hero fix it, ne? Someone call a locksmith for Kyou, he's gonna need one ^^;;
Kagura sat in a stupored daze at her table. She had made enough of the homemade potato soup that Kyou had taught her to make for the both of them. She knew he wouldn't be back before it needed reheating though, even if he had given her a kiss on the cheek promise. She'd be eating her lunch alone again. Never before had she minded eating alone, but today was different. Kyou had left without saying where he was going or what he planned to do. The look in his eyes had begged her not to ask and so she respected it. There was only one place he'd be, Kagura knew. Her body still seemed to be singing praises to Kyou for the ecstasy he had given it the night before. Her mind couldn't let go of the fact that he'd been on his hands and knees afterwards, crying his heart out, and calling out for Tohru. It took all her strength to let him go to her.
And she was right, too. Down a few roads and past a few houses, Kyou had found himself at Yuki and Tohru's door. It was pure luck that he had caught her home alone with nothing to do but some household chores. Tohru was quick to push them aside when Kyou had said he needed to speak with her and wouldn't meet her eye. When he asked if there was a place where Yuki couldn't sneak up on them, she had to think for a minute. She took his hand and led him out of her backdoor, past the vegetable gardens, and into the woods. Yuki's land shared borders with Shigure's land. Soon she had led him to the pond where she had accepted the real Kyou for the first time. "Is this all right?" she asked him.
Kyou nodded, shoving his hands deep within his pockets. So many questions had run through his mind since the night before when he had finally gotten off of the floor and back into bed. Kagura had her back towards him and winced when he put his hand on her. He had sighed, knowing he deserved it but knowing she didn't understand either. He had turned over to stare at the alarm clock for the rest of the night. Tohru didn't deserve a life like that and Yuki was selfish for giving it to her. He knew he'd have to talk to Tohru and find out why she'd let him do that to her. He knew he'd have to do it without Yuki around, too, or else a fight that he might even consider removing his beads to win would occur. "Tch," he had thought, quickly putting it out of mind. For now, he had to find a way to talk to Tohru about it.
"You don't look as if you rested well last night, Kyou-kun. Did you and Kagura-san have another fight?" she asked, pulling off her shoes to dip her feet in the cool water.
"What?!" he asked, instantly annoyed and on the defense because once again, his marriage was getting questioned. He looked down to remember it was Tohru he was speaking to. "No. Well, maybe, but I don't know yet. That's not why I'm here."
She looked up at him with big, innocently blue eyes that brought that pang of guilt back to his heart. "I'll wait then. Whenever you're ready."
"I am ready!" he snapped.
"Then go ahead," she said, smiling broadly.
He huffed and looked away, almost telling her not to smile all the time again. Tohru laughing at him was just what he needed. "I have no right to be asking you such things, I know. But I need to know this and I want you to be honest and not worry about anyone else's feelings."
Tohru cocked her head to the side. "I'll try my best, then."
"Are you…" Kyou stopped and sighed. Taking another deep breath, he tried again. "Are you truly happy with Yuki? Being his wife and everything?"
Tohru smiled. "Of course I am. I wouldn't have said I do if I wasn't."
"Tch. How can you be? I just don't understand."
Tohru thought about it, trying to figure out just what he was getting at. "I love Yuki very dearly and I'm honestly happy with him. Aren't you happy with Kagura-san? I know she loves you dearly as well and she's very happy."
"Yeah. This isn't about me and Kagura though. I love her, you know, and because of that… I can't understand how you and Yuki can be happy at all."
"We are, Kyou-kun. We really in truly are. Is it really that hard to understand?"
Kyou shook his head. He had no right whatsoever to question her or her affairs any further. She was happy with Yuki and that should have been enough. "I just can't begin to imagine…" Kyou stopped himself once more, trying to repress it.
Tohru was humming almost happily, kicking her feet in the water. Was she just playing with him? Did she know what he was getting at? "It's hard at times, but I love him."
"Hard? I can't imagine it possible. How can you restrain yourself from wanting to hold him close? I don't understand at all."
Her feet stopped. Her humming stopped. "I think… I think you're trying too hard to understand it. Our love for each other is going to get us through anything. It's not as horrible as you might imagine. There's so much that we can still… do… without having our arms around each other. It's quite… tricky. It's hard to be able to just let go of reality and enjoy things because of it, but if you want it to work, it does." Her cheeks were getting redder with each word.
"Still, you won't know what it's like to be so completely happy that way."
"What way?"
"Getting to hold one another." Kyou looked back down at her to see her blush fade and a look of realization spread across her face.
"You still worry about me so much, don't you?" She sighed as she chose her words carefully. Kyou waited for it. She always had to say just the right thing to set his mind at ease. He held his breath hoping he'd get it. "Yuki and I hold each other all the time."
Kyou's eyes narrowed and he couldn't help but spit out a "What?!"
Tohru nodded, smiling again. "We do. I hold him close to my heart and he tries to wrap his paws around my finger as he nuzzles my chest."
Kyou's face plainly fell. She always was a bit of an idiot, but surely she couldn't be serious. "I mean you can't hold *him.* You can't hold Yuki. You can hold the mouse but it's not Yuki."
Tohru's face got serious. "No, Kyou-kun. It is Yuki. All of it is him. No matter what he looks like, what his body is like, what form it's in. No matter what. It's Yuki. I can hold him close anytime I want to. No matter what he looks like, he's Yuki. Forms don't matter. I don't regret getting into this with him one bit. I love him so much and don't know what I'd do if I were to lose him." She was shaking with honesty.
Kyou thought for a few minutes, kneeling before Tohru to put his hands in hers to try to get her to stop shaking. "No matter what, then? It is still Yuki. And your love for him makes you feel as if you aren't missing out on anything?" he asked quietly.
She shook her head. "No. My love for him tells me that I'm not missing anything. It doesn't make me feel that way, it lets me know I'm not."
"I see." He didn't like the answers, but they were her reasons and she was content with them. Maybe Yuki hadn't blindly led her into this. "I still can't forgive him."
Tohru laughed. "You never will. But we made sure we could do this before we were married. Making sure we would be able to handle what seems to worry you now."
Kyou's eyes widened. "You mean you slept with him before you two got married?!?"
Tohru's face went red and her hands jerked from his to hide her face.
Kyou chuckled. "No. I'm… sorry. I didn't mean to say it like that." How come he could still apologize so quickly to her but not to Kagura?
"We… wanted…" she started as she lifted her head again. "We wanted to be sure that we could do so comfortably. And I promise you, just because our arms can't go around one another doesn't mean that we're less intense of a couple behind closed doors. From our first time it was wonderful and it still is." Her blush was still glowing.
Kyou nodded and looked up to the sky. Clouds seemed to be moving in and he was sure it'd be raining later on that afternoon and into the evening. "Last night was the first time I'd really made Kagura happy as a lover. All this time I've been married to her and I'm able to hold her, I still couldn't make her as happy as you seem to be with Yuki."
"Then don't compare. What's right for Yuki and I is right for us. What's right for you and Kagura-san is right for you two."
Kyou hung his head, smiling inwardly. Tohru, as usual, was right. The matter was definitely settled in his heart and mind. Tohru was happy, Yuki was happy. He'd made Kagura happy. And dammit, he was going to be happy and have his perfect marriage. Anyone who wanted to argue that his wasn't perfect would answer to his fists.
"I'm glad to know that you two are really happy though. I've worried that maybe you two didn't get along very well when you were alone." Her voice was so innocently honest that Kyou couldn't get angry over it.
"I think we are. We argue a lot, but we don't hurt each other." He sighed deeply. "I think we should be heading back before the rain makes a mess of us."
Tohru nodded and pulled her shoes back on even though her feet were wet. Then she led Kyou back to her home where she kissed his cheek goodbye as he said he had to get back home to Kagura. He had promised to be back by lunch but that promise was far broken. Maybe she could forgive him.
1.1.1.1.1.1.1 To be continued yet again…
A/N: I don't think I can write Tohru that well… But one more part will come. Kagura's heart is hurt and we still have to make our hero fix it, ne? Someone call a locksmith for Kyou, he's gonna need one ^^;;