I DO NOT OWN FRUITS BASKET

A/N: hello again ya'll! this chapter is a nice long one. i hope you like. (again it is a little Shigure heavy - but thats the way it's gonna be right now). and also! for those of you readers of the manga out there, be warned that this is in an alternate reality to the one that the manga is currently in. i am well aware of Akito and him being really a you-know-what, but in this particular story, he is not really a you-know-what, and if you have a problem with that, then please stop reading right now before i upset you furthur... that being said, i hope the rest of you will enjoy what i have to offer in this ALTERNATE version. really, this fanfic more follows the anime than the manga really, so again --devoted fruits basket manga readers, if you are easily offended by people not following with the manga plot twists, then please stop reading before i upset you... okay...... phew! sorry about that folks, just trying to cover all bases. anyway! READ!

Chapter 5 – Walk the Dog

Shigure quietly ate as he sat across from Mii, who was eating very sporadically, looking a lot like a little bird. She was adorable in his eyes, as he stared at her from across the table. He had never noticed before that she held her chopsticks a bit strangely, tightly gripping them in her small hands as if they were going to fall from her grip any second. She was going over a schedule of some sorts. It was probably his.

He had considered the various options he had in means of escape, but suddenly eating lunch with her was making those thoughts drift away. When had he started to feel this way? This wasn't like him. Why was he feeling like he should reach out and hold that small hand of hers in his and make her hold those chopsticks a little more at ease? These questions filled his head and he soon shook his head of the thoughts.

He put on a bored look and whined, "Mii, can we switch meals? Mine is boring."

Mii frowned and looked up at him and then over at his food. His plate consisted of rice crackers, soup, and a bowl of chicken on white rice. It looked fine to her. She looked over at her drab salad that she was picking at. Why was he acting like a child? Then again... he always acted like a child. He was at least a few years older than she was, and yet he acted like a teenage boy. He could write like a literary genius, but his attitude made her want to scream sometimes.

"Sorry, Shigure, but I can't have any carbs, I'm on a diet." She replied and went back to going over tomorrow's schedule.

"But you look perfectly beaut—uh, fit to me." He replied, almost letting his mouth say something else. Mii didn't seem to notice, lost in her own thoughts. He sighed. "You really are amazing." He said aloud, and looked back down at his own plate as she didn't hear that last comment either.

-----------

It was already getting dark outside as Tohru walked to where Yuki was sulking under a big tree. When she approached her friend, he looked extremely agitated. "What's wrong Yuki?"

"Everything." He blurted out coldly. He then looked over to her worried eyes and sighed. "I'm Sorry, miss Honda, it's just with Akito here, I feel a bit nervous, on edge a bit." He said. Even though it was mostly true, he was feeling more frustrated with the blatantly obvious developing relationship between Tohru and Kyo.

"Oh, I see." Tohru said, even though she sensed that was not all. She built up the courage to ask him, "w-was it because I leaned on Kyo's shoulder?"

Yuki's eye twitched. "No, of course not."

"You're lying." She retorted, and Yuki was surprised by her forwardness. "Yuki, you're my dear and best friend, and don't try and tell someone like me a lie like that. It's bothering you, isn't it?" She asked, and he looked forlornly into her big eyes.

"I guess I can't hide my feelings from you . . . I should have known better." Yuki replied and then knew he would have to make the choice, right then and there. Even though he loved Tohru deeply, if being with Kyo would make her truly happy, then he was all for it. "Tohru, do you love Kyo?"

"Of course I do, I love all of you." She said, plainly.

Yuki shook his head and reached out and put two hands on her shoulders and looked down at her. "No . . . I meant . . . do you love him?" He reiterated, and saw the moment of confusion in her eyes. But her vision became suddenly clear.

Tohru couldn't deny it any longer, and the fact that it was so obvious to even Yuki made her realize she did indeed love Kyo. She had always loved Kyo, ever since he came crashing through her bedroom's roof. Those times when he worried about her or made her soup when she was sick, or saved her countless times at school from bullies. She really did love him.

But Yuki! She saw his kind but disappointed eyes and knew she was breaking his heart. She knew Yuki had feelings for her, but now she was basically throwing them aside to concentrate on Kyo's. She felt so horrible. Why was she doing this to the people she loved? She began to cry softly. Yuki frowned and held her head in his hands and tried to wipe away the tears. "Oh, Yuki, I do love him . . . but I can't do something like this knowing that I'm hurting you. I just can't . . ." She cried some more.

He couldn't stand seeing her cry. "No Tohru! Don't! You can't give up before you even begin. I know being with Kyo makes you happy, and that makes me happy. Don't you see, Tohru, I love you too, but I won't be the one to cause more sadness for you, I won't be the one that stands in your way. I want you to be with the one you truly love, that's enough for me . . . "

"Yuki . . . why does this have to be so hard?" She asked in between sniffles.

"Love's often not an easy path to walk across." He said, and bent down and kissed her forehead. She smiled at the warmth, and closed her eyes. "I'll be your guide across it, Tohru. I'll help you whenever you need me. And I must say, you'll probably need me a lot, considering Kyo will surely make the path full of rocks and boulders." Yuki chuckled, and Tohru giggled. "So . . . when are you going to tell him?"

She went stiff and slinked to the ground in a heap of worry. "Ohhh . . . I can't now, not with Akito and Hatori here, and Uo and Hana coming tomorrow . . . oh Yuki, this is turning out to be a disaster . . . you're my guide right? Help me, please?"

Yuki smiled a genuine smile. "Of course." There was a gust of wind as the storms began to settle their way into the evening sky. "We better get in, it might start raining."

------------

Akito watched them from the upstairs window. What was going on down there? He would surely have to figure it out.

-------------

Shigure and Mii walked back to the conference room after eating to find it completely empty. Most of the people had left for the night or were heading out for dinner as well. Shigure felt somewhat relieved. He didn't feel like signing any more books. But now they had nothing to do, and he saw Mii tilt her head in thought.

What were they going to do now? Everyone was gone! She started to panic. Was it really that bad? Did everyone leave because they were boring? She suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked over at Shigure, who draped his jacket over one of his shoulders.

"Let's go walk outside in the garden for a bit, huh?" He asked, and started to walk out the door.

"Shigure, wait! We need to get ready for tomorrow!"

"C'mon Mii, just for a little while. I could use some fresh air, how about you?" He asked, and she finally broke down and nodded. A nice walk might be nice. He led her outside and they walked quietly in the evening light in the large garden in the back of the hotel. There were small lanterns lighting the path as the sun began to fade in the distance against a colorful array of darkening clouds.

Mii sighed. This was actually kinda nice. She couldn't remember the last time she walked out in a garden. She almost never had time, she was always busy with work. It was really beautiful. And for once Shigure wasn't saying something stupid, or trying to run away from her. He was simply walking besides her in total silence. She looked over at him, to find him already looking at her. He tried to play it off by smiling a goofy grin and then looking back ahead as if nothing had happened.

There was a rumble of thunder as the sun finally ducked behind the mountains. Mii looked up at the dark sky and felt drops on her face. Then it began to pour. Great, and she hadn't even brought an umbrella. She felt a tug and Shigure pulled her out of the rain and under a low tree with a lot of leaves to protect them against the downpour.

She suddenly noticed Shigure basically had her pinned between him and the tree trunk. She shivered, looking away from him, and he pulled the jacket from his shoulder and placed it over her. She looked up at him, and saw an emotion she had never seen on Shigure. She couldn't quite place it, either. It was a mix between hopelessness and happiness, if that made sense. She couldn't tell what he was thinking.

She smelled that fragrant tea smell emanating off of him, and she couldn't help but think he looked really good with his hair wet, the dark strands sticking to the sides of his face. His white shirt was soaked, clinging to his wet body. His tie was crooked again. Being the perfectionist that she was, she reached out to straighten it, and to her surprise, he didn't pull away this time. He let her straighten it, and she felt her heart race. But why was it doing that? She felt nervous and peeked a look into his eyes again. This time his eyes were scared. He was scared of something. What was he scared of? She wanted to know.

He was scared that any moment he was going to . . . and if he did, then he would have to eventually face Akito. He had seen it happen to Hatori. He didn't want that to happen to him or Mii . . . he couldn't bear to see her not being . . . herself. A million what-ifs ran through his head. But even though he was scared about the future, he didn't want to pull away from her . . .

---------------------------

uhoh..... well, isn't this getting interesting? anyway, you all are gonna have to wait a little bit for the next one.... oh, and special thanks to: SeleneStarr !!! You are the best! Thankyou so much for all the info and help!