After all the fuss in the house, Tohru decided to do the laundry. She gathered the clothes that piled up in the Sohma's rooms, also on her room and in Shigure's office. Unfortunately, she didn't have the chance to clean up Gure's room because of her great "fear" of Shigure's weird side : the riddler, short.
"Ne, Tohru-kun, I have another riddle for you---"
"Aah, Gomenasai, Gure-san, I have a lot of things to do! Maybe sometime later! Bye!" She quickly left the room and sighed heavily.
"Is he bothering you?" Yuki suddenly appeared beside her.
"Ne, I'm just scared that… I won't answer his questions." She replied.
"It's alright, Tohru. You can leave his office dirty like that." He smiled. "You've worked so hard already. Why won't you take a break?"
"But, Yuki---"
"Put that down, Tohru-chan." He smiled in concern as he gently took the laundry basket off her hands and placed it in front of Shigure's office. "He'll just place his laundry there."
"Ah… Sou ka…" she whispered. "Is there anything I can do for you, Yuki-kun?"
Yuki chuckled after she said that. "Tohru, I just told you… you've done enough. You should take a rest. Kagura and the others won't arrive by lunch. You know Kagura. She always likes her freedom." He chuckled once more.
"Freedom…" she whispered. She felt herself crying so she looked away from him.
"I'm sorry… did I…"
"No, Yuki. It's not your fault. "She said gently. "I trust you… and the rest of my masters… that they would grant something for me… and I understand… that someday, you might not let me go…"
"That's not true, Honda-san." He hugged her from behind. "I will give you your freedom… but not now… okay?"
"Hai." She whispered. "But I tell you this. The sooner you wish for it, the better."
"Why?" he held her shoulders to look at her. "Do you want to leave us?"
"No!" she shook her head. "No, no, no… it's not that…"
"Then what is it?"
She kept her eyes on the floor and not at him. "Um… er…"
"What are you two~ doing here~?" Gure opened his door and sing-sang his question. "Customers I see. It's about time to test my gift once more." He grinned. "Is there anything that the love master can advice to you?"
"Love…master?" Tohru repeated the words from Shigure.
"Oh no…" Yuki slapped himself lightly. "You're not back again…"
"Of course I am, my dearest prince!" the novelist cooed. "Since I can't be the riddler because you either ignore me or answer my question correctly, I decided to be back where I first was: to be a love master!" he posed in front of them, making both Yuki and Tohru sweatdropped.
"Ah, Shigure-san, can I get your laundry?" Tohru whispered.
"Why, certainly, my little angel of cleanliness! Please, enter my love office…"
"CUT THAT OUT, SHIGURE!"
"That was harder than it looks…" Tohru hanged the last T-shirt on the clothesline. "I guess that's it then. Thank you, Yuki for helping me."
"No, it's nothing, Tohru-kun." He smiled. "Do you help on something else?"
Tohru chuckled lightly. "Yuki, now you're the one who's asking!"
"I guess I am…" he laughed.
"Ne, all I had to do now is cook." She clapped her hands excitingly.
"Tohru, it's ten thirty in the morning." Yuki glanced his watch. "Is there anything you need to do besides cooking?"
"Um… no, I guess…" she smiled
"I see… then I had no other choice then." He replied. "Do you need help in cooking…"
"Ah, we lack some ingredients though." She thought. "Could you go to the store for me?"
"Sure, I think I can help you with that rather than cooking itself." He laughed. "You know, I suck in culinary arts."
"I see…" she giggled.
As soon as Yuki left, she prepared all the ingredients on the counter. She hummed as she sliced the potatoes and chopped the carrots. As soon as she was finished, she heard noise behind her. She spun around and saw Hiro near the refrigerator.
"Hiro-san…"
"Ano… I'm a bit hungry." he said firmly, mimicking Yuki's stern voice. "I'm just getting something in the ref. Why, do you want to fight about it???"
She smiled at him, to his surprise. "There's pie inside. Don't eat it all. Just save some slices for Shigure-san and Yuki-kun and… oh, by the way, for Kisa-chan…" then she went back to work.
She was humming once more when she heard Hiro eating hungrily at his plate. She giggled when she heard him burp.
"What???" Hiro asked angrily. "Why are you acting so weird?!"
"I'm not…" she turned to look at him. "You are."
"Eh?" he smirked. "What's so weird about what I act?"
"You seem to act so mature that you're telling everyone…" she explained. "…that you're old enough to take care of Kisa-chan."
"I am old enough." He growled. "It's only that stupid doctor who tried to take her away from me!"
"Hatori is just concerned about her health, as a doctor." She replied calmly.
"I though this news is only for Sohmas. How come you know???" Hiro asked angrily.
"I can read you mind, Hiro-san… and I can see that Kisa is sick…" she said sadly. "I know you're trying your very best to show Kisa that you care for her but that does not mean that you own her, like you're taking her away from the rest of your cousins. They cared for her as much as you cared for her---"
"NOBODY UNDERSTANDS KISA LIKE I DO!!!" he yelled.
"If you understand her, then tell me, why are you hiding from her?" she asked. This made Hiro silent. He sat back down on his chair while Tohru leaned on the counter. "Is there anything you want to tell me, Hiro-san?"
"…Kisa gave me a great birthday gift last year. It was so expensive… and she saved for 5 months just to give me one. I hardly accepted it but she insists. She said that it's a birthday present… and something I couldn't resist to take." He whispered. "Now, her birthday is near… and I know what she wants but…"
"You don't have enough money…" Tohru ended his sentence.
"I tried hard to save everything for something she really wants… but I just…" he stopped and looked at her. "I heard that you're a goddess so… I came here to ask a wish."
Tohru almost fell back on the counter. "Hiro, you can't ask a material wish, remember that."
"But I need money!" he begged. "I need money to but her something she truly wanted. She kept on telling me about it and I always promise her that I would give her one and… Please, just grant me this wish!"
"Hiro… something bad will happen once I grant your wish. It's a price to pay from a wish full of greed---"
"It's not greed!"
"You don't know what it's after." She explained. "Even if you got this material thing that you think will make you happy, this… other thing that will happen will never fail to make you sad, Hiro. Believe me, it happens."
"I… need… the money, whether you like it or not…" he demanded. "Grant me this wish, goddess!
She sighed heavily and held out her hand. "Once I grant this, Hiro, there's no turning back. It's your choice and the risk is what you should take, the burden is what you should bear."
"I'm ready…" he declared.
Tohru held out her hand and there was a blinding light in front of them. After a few moments, a thick envelope appeared on her hand. "I believe this is enough to buy that 'thing' of yours." She whispered.
He quickly took the envelope and grinned at the goddess. "Thanks, I owe you one…" then he left.
"No, Hiro…" she whispered sadly. "You owe Kisa… a life…"
"Why did you do that?" She was surprised to see Shigure behind her. "You know the consequences. Why?"
"I believe that Hiro can use that money to help Kisa." She replied.
"But he's going to buy---"
"—nothing." She nodded. "Nothing yet… until he hears what happen to Kisa…"
"What will happen?" Shigure asked quickly.
"I don't know…" she clamped her hands in front of her chest. "But I pray deeply that the goddesses of fate will spare such innocent life, Gure-san…" And I pray it's not Kisa's She thought deeply.
The phone rang in between the silence which made Tohru jump from her place. Shigure noticed that and chuckled.
"Tohru-chan, you've been here for quite a few days now. Why are you still surprised that the phone rings?" he chucked.
"Ne, I don't know…" she laughed. "I'll get it."
"No, I will." He grinned as he went towards the phone and picked it up. "Ah, Sohma's Residence---ah, tori-san---ne? Tohru's here---iie, Yuki went out for--- yes, Kagura left with the neko and the cow---yes, they dragged our little angel---"
The novelist's face changed quickly. "What do you---Kagura called you---that can't be--- do you know where she is?--- I see… have you informed the police?---- I guess you're right--- yes, once Yuki comes back---yes, Tori--- I'll see you then---" Shigure hung up the phone and looked at Tohru worriedly.
"What happened to Kisa?" she quickly asked.
"She's missing." The novelist replied sadly.
"Oe! Nezumi!" Yuki glanced at his right and found Kyou running towards him.
"DO you think it's quite odd to call each other like that in the public?!" he whispered hoarsly.
"I didn't come here to beat you up." Kyou explained. "Kisa's missing."
"What?!" Yuki fell back on a wall. "I thought she was with you?"
"Yes, she was… a while ago." The neko explained. "We were at the park. Suddenly there was a bit of a commotion and people are rumbling and bumping each other. Kagura also mentioned that she lost hold from her grip with Kisa. Then we heard a child screaming like 'let me go! Let me go!' or something. Then we lost her."
Yuki sighed heavily. "Have you informed the police?"
"We did… and we also searched the park. They said they found a cloaked stranger carrying an unconscious child in his arms. It was a girl, they say, with a short hair." Kyou explained quickly. "We showed them a picture of Kisa and the witnesses said that it's her. SO we thought that the stranger is---"
"---the criminal who is after Tohru." Yuki finished. "DO me a favor. Call my brother and tell him to get sensei."
"Of course but… why sensei?"
"Trust me…" Yuki quickly snatched the grocery bags and ran across the street. "I think sensei was there when Tohru first descended… and I think he's the only one who can stop that criminal from meeting Tohru."
"But… what can he… … drats, the nezumi's quick…" Kyou mumbled.
"Yuki's not back yet?" Hatori asked as he came inside the house.
Shigure nodded quickly. "Yes, Kagura and the others are not back yet either."
Tohru remained silent in front of the two men. Hatori grabbed her hand and forced her to look at him.
"I shouldn't get you involved." She whispered.
"But we have no choice, Celeste." The doctor replied. "We need you to get out of here."
"But what about Yuki?" Shigure asked.
"He can take care of himself. How about you?"
"I'm coming, Tori-san!!!" the novelist called out.
"Why are you closing???" Hiro yelled at the toy storeowner that same day. "It's 2 in the afternoon, for crying out loud!"
"Haven't you heard, you brat?! There's a criminal on the loose." The man yelled. "I don't want my business to be ruined because of him. Besides, we're near the place where it happened!"
"What do you mean?"
"A little girl was kidnapped by some criminal. He didn't threaten anyone or demands anything but the witnesses saw that's he's quite evil… and poor little girl…"
Hiro stood there stiffly. It can't be Kisa… it shouldn't be Kisa… He clasped the envelope in his pocket. I just asked for money… what happened?? Why am I so scared? Why do I have this feeling that she's in trouble?
Once I grant this, Hiro, there's no turning back. It's your choice and the risk is what you should take, the burden is what you should bear. Tohru's voice rang on his head.
"Where did this criminal go?" Hiro asked.
"They say that he went to the forest, next to the park and--- you kid! You shouldn't go there!"
He took his pace and went straight to the place where the storeowner told him, ignoring his warnings.
The risk is what you should take…
The burden is what you should bear…
"Please hang on, Kisa…" he whispered to himself. "Please hang on…"
"Ano…" Kisa's head tilted sideways. "Where…"
"Hush, Kisa-chan…" she heard a hoarse voice. "It will be over soon… just sleep tight…"
Just a few moments…Celeste… you'll come back to me… and this time… I won't let go of you…
I won't let him take over you…
Because I'm your only master…
The only one you'll look up to…
The only one you'll love…