Editing
Shigure happily hopped around the kitchen, looking for something to make coffee in. It was another lovely morning and he had just rushed Yuki, Kyou and Tohru out of the house at an astounding speed. Happy thoughts of seeing Akane again pranced around in his head. Suddenly, he stood at attention, his ears telling him that they heard a knock on the door. He squeaked and ran to open it.
"Ha-san.." he said upon seeing the figure standing on the other side, "what a surprise."
"If I didn't know better, I'd say you didn't want to see me." Hatori said as Shigure opened the door to let him in.
"Maa, Don't be silly!" Shigure waved the thought away. "You know my heart leaps when you're around."
Hatori sighed. He should have seen that coming. "I actually came to visit Yuki for his monthly checkup. He tends to avoid coming to see me."
"Well, you actually just missed him but then again, you don't appear to mind seeing him at school anyway."
Hatori raised his eyebrows and began walking towards the door again. "You're right."
"Ah, Ha-san, just wait a moment. I was actually looking forward to talking with you." Shigure said, taking a step between Hatori and the door.
Hatori examined his face just to make sure that he was joking. He decided that he could spare a couple of minutes and made himself comfortable on the couch. "What about?"
Shigure sat down next to him, trying to hide his excited grin. He was actually a bit nervous saying this to Hatori, considering his thoughts on such topics. He knew; however, that it would be better for him to know sooner than later.
"I know you're not going to want to hear this but nothing you say can talk me out of it... I've met someone," he announced, watching Hatori's expression for any sign of emotion.
"Who is she?"
"Her name is Akane and I can't seem to stop thinking about her." Shigure braced himself for a lecture.
"Why haven't you told me about her before?" If Shigure hadn't known better, he'd say that Hatori sounded a bit hurt that he hasn't spoken of her yet.
"I just met her two days ago.." he suddenly realized how absurd that made the situation sound. "But I feel so connected to her. She seems perfect to me, Ha-san. And I know how you feel about these things but.."
Hatori wouldn't let him finish. "I say things that I don't mean sometimes." He hung his head a bit, keeping his eyes from meeting with Shigure's. "If you really feel so strongly about this woman then I wish you the best. I do; however, want to give you some advice. Show her who you really are and if she accepts you for it, then you can move on from there. If it gets to a very serious point where you feel the need to inform Akito about it then.. I'll make sure that you don't get hurt like I did."
"Ha-san.." Shigure began, not sure rather he wanted to thank or comfort Hatori.
"On the other hand," Hatori continued, "if she's not as accepting as you may believe, then we can end it quietly, without Akito knowing about it at all. If you need them, I will use my abilities."
"Arigato, Ha-san!" Shigure flung himself on top of his friend, unwilling to mask his feelings with humor this time. He was incredibly grateful. "You don't know how much that means to me."
"Shigure, the single greatest thanks would be if you got off me right now."
A drop of sweat appeared on Shigure's forehead and he immediately removed himself. "Maa, Ha-san, you know you like it!" He joked.
Hatori sighed and stood up. He simply ran out of things to counter that with. "I'm going to see Yuki now, I don't have much time until I have to be back at Akito's."
Shigure sighed a disappointed little sigh. "And I was really hoping you could get to meet her today."
"If she's as great as you make her sound then there will be plenty more opportunities," Hatori told him as they walked towards his car.
"I suppose you're right.. besides, I wouldn't want you to get too jealous.. of her," Shigure winked at Hatori as he started up the car.
"Good-bye, Shigure," he said after making an obvious attempt at rolling his eyes as far as possible. He drove away and Shigure stood in the middle of the road, waving to him in his regular goofy fashion.
Shigure sighed contently and walked back to the house. Before opening the door, he had briefly wished that Akane would get there soon. He was nervous about seeing her today because he'd have to tell her about the Juunishi and he wasn't exactly sure what words to choose to let her know that he'll turn into a dog if she gets too close. Almost as if reading his mind, he suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to find Akane smiling sweetly at him.
"You know, I was just thinking about you.." Shigure said and added, ".. for the past twelve hours." He grinned at her.
"Good to hear," she said and laughed. He slid open the door for her, which he proudly managed to salvage this morning from the wrath of Yuki and Kyou.
"So, tell me all about your day," Shigure sat down on the couch and tapped the space next to him, signaling her to sit there.
"Not much to tell," she said as she sat down in the designated spot. "You know this is my last day as a substitute for Mit-chan. She'll be back tomorrow to pick up the manuscript. How's the editing coming along?"
"Eh.. well..," Shigure laughed and a drop of sweat appeared on his forehead.
"Well, let's see it," Akane suggested.
Shigure hesitated for a moment, wanting to tell her his secret before they start working. No words came to him so he nodded dumbly and walked out of the room. As he made his way to his bedroom, he thought about all the possible ways he could tell her. None of the words he thought of felt natural to him. He'd sound absurd if he just blurted it out but there really was no way to casually approach the topic. He fished out the manuscript which he hadn't worked on at all and strolled back into the living room.
"Ta da!" He said and placed it on the coffee table in front of Akane. She picked it up and after a moment of going through it, gave him a very dissatisfied look.
"You didn't edit anything at all?" She asked.
"Writer's block." Shigure shrugged. He sat down next to her and she started telling him about the different possibilities for endings but he wasn't listening. A million ways to tell her about the Juunishi but every single one was wrong. He had to tell her before he could really be sure that they can be together. He hasn't ever spoken about it to anyone who didn't already know. He realized that it certainly isn't an easy thing to explain, especially to someone that he'd be afraid to loose because of it.
"Shigure, are you listening?" Akane frowned at him.
"Of course," he lied.
"What did I just say?"
Shigure's smile faded. He laughed nervously. She crossed her arms and looked very stubborn to him. "Gomen," he said, realizing he couldn't win.
Akane sighed. "What were you thinking about so diligently?" Her expression softened and she even seemed to smile a bit.
Alright, this is it. There is not going to be a better time to tell her and he knew it. Usually he was a very smooth talker but he was just completely stuck on this one. He stared at her, as if in shock, his lips moving but no words coming out.
"Shigure, what is it?" Akane asked, started to worry about him. She's never seen him so nervous. In fact, she's never seen him nervous at all. This was definitely strange behavior.
Shigure realized that words seemed to be getting him nowhere. He shut his eyes, in fear of what was about to happen, and kissed her. He figured it would be easier to explain once she had a visual. A moment later, he was still kissing her. He opened one eye and surveyed his hand which rested on her shoulder. He was stunned, just completely and entirely struck dead.
He pulled away, dumbfounded. Why hadn't he transformed into a dog the moment he touched her? He couldn't even begin to explain this to himself.
"Shigure.." Akane looked worried for a moment. "What's the matter?"
"It didn't happen," Shigure mumbled to himself, only partially aware of her presence next to him.
"It was only a kiss, Shigure." She wasn't exactly sure what was bothering him so much.
Only a kiss? He's never been able to do that before and he had accepted the fact that he never would. He acknowledged the curse and understood it fully.
"It's not that.." he said, his eyebrows scrunched in continuing confusion. Maybe the curse was broken? But how?
"What's wrong then?"
Shigure quickly came to the realization that above anything else, this was definitely a good thing. Even though he couldn't explain it, he could not deny that he was thrilled by it. "Nothing at all," he said and decided to kiss her again, just for kicks.
He pulled away to make sure that he was still in human form. When that was confirmed, he couldn't help but laugh.
"You're so strange!" Akane exclaimed and started laughing with him.
"I like this," Shigure said and kissed her again.
"I can tell!" Akane giggled in between another kiss. She thought his behavior was extremely playful and she couldn't help but be reminded of a puppy. "You know, I'd hate to break this up but I really should be going soon."
"Maa, Akane-kun!" Shigure seemed to be heartbroken. "Why so soon?"
"I have other work to do and so do you. Besides, we're not getting any done together anyway." She joked and laughed.
Shigure pouted. "Come back soon, ne?"
"Sure," Akane smiled and reached for the door. Shigure slyly inserted himself between her and the entrance and grinned at her. She sighed knowingly, then lifted her head to kiss him, more seriously this time.
As she walked down the street, Shigure smiled at her and said, "You're more perfect than I could have imagined," not loud enough for her to hear. He didn't want her to, though. He'd have plenty more chances to tell in more romantic ways. After she left, Shigure did a happy little victory dance and pranced back inside.
Shigure happily hopped around the kitchen, looking for something to make coffee in. It was another lovely morning and he had just rushed Yuki, Kyou and Tohru out of the house at an astounding speed. Happy thoughts of seeing Akane again pranced around in his head. Suddenly, he stood at attention, his ears telling him that they heard a knock on the door. He squeaked and ran to open it.
"Ha-san.." he said upon seeing the figure standing on the other side, "what a surprise."
"If I didn't know better, I'd say you didn't want to see me." Hatori said as Shigure opened the door to let him in.
"Maa, Don't be silly!" Shigure waved the thought away. "You know my heart leaps when you're around."
Hatori sighed. He should have seen that coming. "I actually came to visit Yuki for his monthly checkup. He tends to avoid coming to see me."
"Well, you actually just missed him but then again, you don't appear to mind seeing him at school anyway."
Hatori raised his eyebrows and began walking towards the door again. "You're right."
"Ah, Ha-san, just wait a moment. I was actually looking forward to talking with you." Shigure said, taking a step between Hatori and the door.
Hatori examined his face just to make sure that he was joking. He decided that he could spare a couple of minutes and made himself comfortable on the couch. "What about?"
Shigure sat down next to him, trying to hide his excited grin. He was actually a bit nervous saying this to Hatori, considering his thoughts on such topics. He knew; however, that it would be better for him to know sooner than later.
"I know you're not going to want to hear this but nothing you say can talk me out of it... I've met someone," he announced, watching Hatori's expression for any sign of emotion.
"Who is she?"
"Her name is Akane and I can't seem to stop thinking about her." Shigure braced himself for a lecture.
"Why haven't you told me about her before?" If Shigure hadn't known better, he'd say that Hatori sounded a bit hurt that he hasn't spoken of her yet.
"I just met her two days ago.." he suddenly realized how absurd that made the situation sound. "But I feel so connected to her. She seems perfect to me, Ha-san. And I know how you feel about these things but.."
Hatori wouldn't let him finish. "I say things that I don't mean sometimes." He hung his head a bit, keeping his eyes from meeting with Shigure's. "If you really feel so strongly about this woman then I wish you the best. I do; however, want to give you some advice. Show her who you really are and if she accepts you for it, then you can move on from there. If it gets to a very serious point where you feel the need to inform Akito about it then.. I'll make sure that you don't get hurt like I did."
"Ha-san.." Shigure began, not sure rather he wanted to thank or comfort Hatori.
"On the other hand," Hatori continued, "if she's not as accepting as you may believe, then we can end it quietly, without Akito knowing about it at all. If you need them, I will use my abilities."
"Arigato, Ha-san!" Shigure flung himself on top of his friend, unwilling to mask his feelings with humor this time. He was incredibly grateful. "You don't know how much that means to me."
"Shigure, the single greatest thanks would be if you got off me right now."
A drop of sweat appeared on Shigure's forehead and he immediately removed himself. "Maa, Ha-san, you know you like it!" He joked.
Hatori sighed and stood up. He simply ran out of things to counter that with. "I'm going to see Yuki now, I don't have much time until I have to be back at Akito's."
Shigure sighed a disappointed little sigh. "And I was really hoping you could get to meet her today."
"If she's as great as you make her sound then there will be plenty more opportunities," Hatori told him as they walked towards his car.
"I suppose you're right.. besides, I wouldn't want you to get too jealous.. of her," Shigure winked at Hatori as he started up the car.
"Good-bye, Shigure," he said after making an obvious attempt at rolling his eyes as far as possible. He drove away and Shigure stood in the middle of the road, waving to him in his regular goofy fashion.
Shigure sighed contently and walked back to the house. Before opening the door, he had briefly wished that Akane would get there soon. He was nervous about seeing her today because he'd have to tell her about the Juunishi and he wasn't exactly sure what words to choose to let her know that he'll turn into a dog if she gets too close. Almost as if reading his mind, he suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to find Akane smiling sweetly at him.
"You know, I was just thinking about you.." Shigure said and added, ".. for the past twelve hours." He grinned at her.
"Good to hear," she said and laughed. He slid open the door for her, which he proudly managed to salvage this morning from the wrath of Yuki and Kyou.
"So, tell me all about your day," Shigure sat down on the couch and tapped the space next to him, signaling her to sit there.
"Not much to tell," she said as she sat down in the designated spot. "You know this is my last day as a substitute for Mit-chan. She'll be back tomorrow to pick up the manuscript. How's the editing coming along?"
"Eh.. well..," Shigure laughed and a drop of sweat appeared on his forehead.
"Well, let's see it," Akane suggested.
Shigure hesitated for a moment, wanting to tell her his secret before they start working. No words came to him so he nodded dumbly and walked out of the room. As he made his way to his bedroom, he thought about all the possible ways he could tell her. None of the words he thought of felt natural to him. He'd sound absurd if he just blurted it out but there really was no way to casually approach the topic. He fished out the manuscript which he hadn't worked on at all and strolled back into the living room.
"Ta da!" He said and placed it on the coffee table in front of Akane. She picked it up and after a moment of going through it, gave him a very dissatisfied look.
"You didn't edit anything at all?" She asked.
"Writer's block." Shigure shrugged. He sat down next to her and she started telling him about the different possibilities for endings but he wasn't listening. A million ways to tell her about the Juunishi but every single one was wrong. He had to tell her before he could really be sure that they can be together. He hasn't ever spoken about it to anyone who didn't already know. He realized that it certainly isn't an easy thing to explain, especially to someone that he'd be afraid to loose because of it.
"Shigure, are you listening?" Akane frowned at him.
"Of course," he lied.
"What did I just say?"
Shigure's smile faded. He laughed nervously. She crossed her arms and looked very stubborn to him. "Gomen," he said, realizing he couldn't win.
Akane sighed. "What were you thinking about so diligently?" Her expression softened and she even seemed to smile a bit.
Alright, this is it. There is not going to be a better time to tell her and he knew it. Usually he was a very smooth talker but he was just completely stuck on this one. He stared at her, as if in shock, his lips moving but no words coming out.
"Shigure, what is it?" Akane asked, started to worry about him. She's never seen him so nervous. In fact, she's never seen him nervous at all. This was definitely strange behavior.
Shigure realized that words seemed to be getting him nowhere. He shut his eyes, in fear of what was about to happen, and kissed her. He figured it would be easier to explain once she had a visual. A moment later, he was still kissing her. He opened one eye and surveyed his hand which rested on her shoulder. He was stunned, just completely and entirely struck dead.
He pulled away, dumbfounded. Why hadn't he transformed into a dog the moment he touched her? He couldn't even begin to explain this to himself.
"Shigure.." Akane looked worried for a moment. "What's the matter?"
"It didn't happen," Shigure mumbled to himself, only partially aware of her presence next to him.
"It was only a kiss, Shigure." She wasn't exactly sure what was bothering him so much.
Only a kiss? He's never been able to do that before and he had accepted the fact that he never would. He acknowledged the curse and understood it fully.
"It's not that.." he said, his eyebrows scrunched in continuing confusion. Maybe the curse was broken? But how?
"What's wrong then?"
Shigure quickly came to the realization that above anything else, this was definitely a good thing. Even though he couldn't explain it, he could not deny that he was thrilled by it. "Nothing at all," he said and decided to kiss her again, just for kicks.
He pulled away to make sure that he was still in human form. When that was confirmed, he couldn't help but laugh.
"You're so strange!" Akane exclaimed and started laughing with him.
"I like this," Shigure said and kissed her again.
"I can tell!" Akane giggled in between another kiss. She thought his behavior was extremely playful and she couldn't help but be reminded of a puppy. "You know, I'd hate to break this up but I really should be going soon."
"Maa, Akane-kun!" Shigure seemed to be heartbroken. "Why so soon?"
"I have other work to do and so do you. Besides, we're not getting any done together anyway." She joked and laughed.
Shigure pouted. "Come back soon, ne?"
"Sure," Akane smiled and reached for the door. Shigure slyly inserted himself between her and the entrance and grinned at her. She sighed knowingly, then lifted her head to kiss him, more seriously this time.
As she walked down the street, Shigure smiled at her and said, "You're more perfect than I could have imagined," not loud enough for her to hear. He didn't want her to, though. He'd have plenty more chances to tell in more romantic ways. After she left, Shigure did a happy little victory dance and pranced back inside.