Chapter Three – Dantei (Decision)

Tohru watched the orange-haired young man traipse off into the distance, then hobbled into the house through the doors she had used before.

She sat carefully upon the mattress, and peeled out a section of the orange. She popped it in her mouth as Kyo had done, and chewed slowly. The corners of her mouth twitched into a small smile, and she whispered her first word of the day. "Oishii!"

"Ah, so you can speak, Honda-san."

Tohru looked up in surprise, to see Yuki leaning against the doorway that led into the rest of his abode. She blushed and nodded, too tired to think up a response. Even walking outside had been a chore, and her strength was drained.

However, fingering the clothes that she wore, that didn't belong to her, she felt the need to ask a question. "Whose clothes are these?" she inquired in a raspy voice.

That question provoked a blush from the lavender-haired man, and he looked away from her. "They're my cousin's. She dressed you too, if you were wondering," he added after a pause.

She nodded slowly, filled with an odd sense of trust in these people, whose names she had just barely learned. "I didn't mean to be rude, Sohma-kun," she stammered, suddenly wondering if he thought her rude. Or maybe she had made him think that she didn't appreciate their hospitality. Or--

"Iie, I wasn't offended," Yuki replied, interrupting her thoughts, and smiled as she yawned. "You should get some sleep, Honda-san."

Tohru nodded and lay her head on the pillow, hearing Yuki leave and close the door behind him before she drifted off into a comforting sleep.

- - -

Hatori knelt reluctantly in front of a black-haired and gray-eyed man, lying on a futon before him. "You wanted to see me, Akito?"

"Yes," came a quiet voice from the figure in front of him. "There is something you want to tell me."

It wasn't a question, but a command. Hatori did not yet think that he was well enough to be bothered with the trivial news of a female visitor, but he knew better than to try and hide something from the family head. He related the tale slowly, and was shocked at Akito's response.

"I knew it. She is the one," a cold voice muttered. "She is the one from the prophecy. She is the one who will break the curse we have suffered under for so long. Do not let her leave the island. You know what to do."

Hatori stared at the family head with a shocked look, but he knew better than to question the man, no matter how sick he appeared to be. "Yes, Akito-san."

He stood slowly, and exited the room, heading for the house that lay far in the distance, on the other side of the island.

- - -

Shigure surveyed the damage done to his house. It wasn't damage, to be truthful, but it was bad enough. Television, telephones, and computer were all gone, with trinkets to cover the places where they had been. Said appliances sat in a locked cupboard in the corner of his study.

It was unlikely that the girl would ever go in that room (thanks to Yuki and Kyo, the inu jokingly grumbled), so it was the safest hiding place there was. All this 'destruction' to his beloved home was thanks to a scatter-brained idea from Akito that the young woman was the one who would save them from their curse.

Shigure snorted. The family head had said the same thing about a woman so long ago, but there was nothing he could do. If Akito wanted to think that this young girl was the one who could help them, the inu could to nothing to stop him.

- - -

Yuki stared in disbelief at his older cousin Shigure. "So what you're saying," he clarified, "is that we must lie to our new 'guest', prevent her from getting into contact with her family, and somehow give her knowledge of our secret, all because he says she's the 'one who will lift the curse'."

Shigure nodded with a weak smile. "Pretty much." He shifted in his seat to meet Yuki's glare.

The two were relaxing, if you could call the atmosphere in the room relaxed, in Shigure's study, sitting across beside each other on cushions on the floor. Yuki wrinkled his nose in disgust, then leafed through the book he held.

Kyo cursed and paced angrily around the room. "What the hell right do we have to keep her here? Just get rid of her, I say. She's a bother and a pest, and she needs to go back to her family."

The other two men in the room shook their heads, one disagreeing and aloof, and the other with a look that meant that nothing was quite that simple. "We have to do what he tells us," the inu said softly.

The room fell silent.

- - -

Tohru woke to the delicious aromas of breakfast, coming from a tray lying beside her pillow. She sat up slowly and pulled the tray onto her lap, munching happily.

Her thoughts turned for the first time to this island, and the people living on it.

What should I be doing? she thought anxiously. I can't stay here, even though I have no wish to go home. I suppose I'll tell them that once I'm feeling all right I'll call my family. Oh! But I don't want to impose upon their kindness! I'm fine really, just a bit tired, and I can recuperate as easily at home as I can here. I'll tell that to one of the Sohmas, the next time they come in.

By some odd twist of fate, at that moment, Yuki walked through the door. He presented her with a smile, though it seemed much less warm and kind than it had before...

"Anou," she began slowly, "what... Eto... What time is it?" She mentally kicked herself for being unable to ask so simple a question as hers was. She was getting herself out of their hair, anyhow.

"You slept since yesterday afternoon until now, and I'd say it's about ten." Yuki seemed to be looking anywhere in the room, except at her.

Tohru attempted a small smile. "Oh. I was rather tired. Anou," she tried again, hesitant.

"Honda-san?" Yuki urged her on.

"I don't want to be a bother to you and your family," she said while blushing heavily. "If you could just direct me to a phone, then I could call my par—" She stopped, a frown creasing her features.

She noticed that the lavender-haired young man had his attention on her, and wore a concerned look, so she continued quickly. "Then I could call my uncle," she concluded softly, her eyes overbright.

Tohru kept her eyes on the floor in front of him, hoping he couldn't see the tears she was holding back. It had been a while since... since they passed away, but the pain was still fresh, at times. And no matter how much she disliked being a bother to them, she almost hoped that she wouldn't have to return... to her uncle.

"Sumimasen," Yuki announced after a long, silent moment, his voice filled with an emotion that she couldn't guess. "We don't have a phone." She could feel his gaze hang over her for a moment, before he turned and walked out, slamming the door behind him.

Tohru winced, then let the tears spill out. What now? I have no way to contact anyone, and it seems like the Sohmas wish that I could! They don't want an intruder on their island...

- - -

Yuki couldn't bear to be around Tohru any longer. It hurt him to see her eyes fill with tears at the thought of her family. She must miss them quite a bit, he thought sadly. And it hurt to lie to her. She seemed like such a simple, sweet, innocent girl... What would she say if she found out?

However, Akito was taking great pains to see to it that she did not. Phone jacks were covered, as were all the outlets, except in the kitchen. But that was only because no one really wanted to go in the kitchen to cover the outlets.

He stood in the doorway of the kitchen, wrinkling his nose at the foul odors that seemed to drift out of the room. Yet he didn't move away, but drifted into thought, not noticing Tohru standing beside him until she tapped his shoulder.

He jumped back from her touch, being too close to her for comfort. As he struggled with words, he began to sweat slightly.

"Anou," she began quietly, "I want to help the Sohmas. You're kind to have given me a room to sleep in for a few days, and good food to eat. But I cannot ask you for that forever, Sohma-san."

Yuki looked at her blankly, then offered a weak smile. "We're more than happy to give you a room, Honda-san. And you're in no condition to offer us anything but gratitude, which we do accept. You need rest."

Tohru ignored his suggestion, and stepped into the small kitchen. "Hmm... It would take a lot of work, but I could clean this up! It's one of the things I do best." She flashed him a smile, then tilted her head to one side. "Anou, where do you keep your cleaning supplies?"

Yuki began to answer, then paused in thought looking confused. "Uh..."

Shigure appeared beside him in the doorway, laughing and smiling impishly. "He's the wrong person to ask, Tohru-kun. He's never cleaned a day in his life!"

Once Tohru was outfitted with a mop, a bucket of water, and several garbage bags, the two men left her to do what she did best, and she surveyed the mess before her. I can do this, she thought, and dove right in. Not literally, of course.

After a long hour, Yuki returned and gazed at the sight that awaited him. There were several bags piled beside the door, and he could see nearly all of the floor, and parts of the counter, too! They even had a sink in there.

Tohru was resting when he walked in, but she quickly jumped up and shooed him away. Once he was out the door and around the corner, she tackled a pile of dishes that had been sitting on the counter for who knows how long. She even cleaned the dishes in the cupboards, seeing how much dust they had on them.

She mopped the rest of the floor, and bagged more garbage. She wiped down the counters, and cleaned out the sink. She plugged the stove and refrigerator back in, while clearing moldy foods from both appliances. She uncovered a rice cooker and a toaster as well, and placed then on the counter.

Tohru was unsure of where to put all the bags, so she carried them through a back door of the kitchen, and piled them outside. Decidedly tired from the kitchen ordeal, she knelt in the shade of an orange tree, and watched the ocean in the distance as the waves crashed onto a sandy beach.

After Tohru had been sitting there for a time, a shadow fell over her, and she looked up. Yuki looked down at her with a smile of awe. "The kitchen hasn't looked that clean in years," he said softly.

She stood quickly, prepared to bow repeatedly and play down her cleaning abilities. However, still being tired and admittedly weak from her ordeal, her knees seemed to buckle, and she fell towards Yuki.

- - -

Yuki saw her begin to fall, and several thoughts raced through his mind.

First was the fact that if he caught her, he'd be doing exactly what Akito wanted him to. He hated the thought that his actions could play into the family head's sick little plot, and he rebelled.

Then he thought of what would happen after. She was bound to know that he could've caught her—he was quick as a mouse, pardoning the pun. And how was he supposed to explain that away?

But before his mind had a chance to decide, his reflexes took over, and managed to catch both her shoulders and cushion her against his side, before lowering her back to the ground. Thankfully, years of being in a co-ed school with a flock of girls trying to get a hug out of the 'Prince' had paid off—he hadn't gotten anywhere near to hugging her.

Once she was sitting on the ground again, apologizing profusely, he let out a sigh of relief. She paused and gave him a curious glance. "Anou... Sohma-kun? Daijoubu?"

Regaining his wits, Yuki nodded and offered a small smile. "Hai, daijoubu."

A/N: Sorry for the long wait in uploading... I want peoples' opinions.. what member of the zodiac should Tohru meet next? Tell me what you want! Whatever person you people tell me won't show up in the next chapter.. but maybe the one after that.

Glossary for Chapter Three

Oishii – delicious!
Iie – no.
Inu – dog, meaning Shigure.
Anou/Eto – humming and hawing... o.O um, er, uh.. that kind of thing.
Sumimasen – excuse me, in a sorry kind of way.. lets just say it means sorry.
Daijoubu – are you okay?
Hai – yes.