I DO NOT OWN FRUITS BASKET

A/N: Lol. Did anyone else get a flash of ANIMORPHS from the little 'meeting' the five were having last chapter? I did! After I wrote it too! Lets see, Yuki is Jake, reluctant yet handsome, leader. Uo is Rachel, strong and independent. Tohru is Cassie, sweet and compassionate. Kyo is Tobias, the brooding outsider, very heroic(and mostly everyone's favorite). Hana is Ax, the enigmatic weirdo who likes snacks. Does anyone else see it? Does anyone know what I'm even talking about? Lol –okay, then, read this chapter, and regret that it is almost over.Ya know, a sequel does sound good.

Chapter 17 – Akito and Arisa/Asa and Aki

The five had left without talking to Shigure, who seemed rather busy in the 'dining room'. Yuki and Kyo led them to the house, which was a good walk away. When they got to the main entrance, mostly everyone but Uo was having second thoughts. Tohru reached for Kyo's hand, and held it tight in hers. He looked down, surprised for a second, but then held hers just as tightly. Hana stood close to Yuki.

Yuki looked up at the main entrance, and frowned. He hated this place. He hated it! But if it was to help a friend –he looked over at Uo's determined face, saw Tohru's and Kyo's scared, but willing, eyes, and he saw Hana's supportive gaze fall on him. She seemed to sense his doubts, and she just stared at him, mentally urging him on. He then nodded, and pushed open the main doors, and they headed towards the house.

Halfway there, though, Hatori came out, looking strangely stoic. "What are you all doing here? You know non-family members aren't allowed." He said, as if nothing had happened yesterday, and the same rules still applied.

"You know why we're here. Take me to Akito." Uo demanded, and his face turned grave.

"I can't do that. We can't have what happened yesterday to happen again. Akito's been severely exhausted. His body's suffering, and he's extremely agitated. If there's any more excitement, he'll probably die." He said, his voice almost faltering at the end.

"He's strong, I know it." Uo retorted.

"You don't know him, Miss Uotani, no matter how much you think you do. This family has more secrets and misery than you would ever want to know about. It's better if I just do what I have to do, and make you forget you ever knew us." He said, and raised his hand, reaching for her. She frowned as he placed a hand on her forehead. She tried to dodge, but his fast grip was firm and tight. Before any of the others could react and try to push him away, there was a flash. They all gasped.

Uo saw images. It was another flashback, though. She saw that man with dark hair, and that woman again. He was yelling something, chanting almost. She was grinding underneath his tight grip, trying to struggle free. He had her locked beneath him. After his chanting, and over her pleading voice, he said, "I'll make you forget, and then you'll leave me alone! I never want to see you again! Don't you see, this is for your own good! I'll grant myself this power, and I'll be able to make you forget! I'll make you forget about me!" He exclaimed, frantically.

"No, Aki, no, don't do this! I won't let you! I won't let you! Nothing you do will work on me, my love is too strong! You wouldn't dare! I'll make you regret this! I'll make your whole family regret this!" She screamed, and then she chanted something too. He pushed away, his hands burning against her skin. She squirmed away from him, and stood up on wobbly feet. "I'll curse you and your family!" She chanted some more, and pulled a dagger from her kimono's folds. "I'll forever haunt you and your family!"

There was another flash in Uo's eyes.

The other four had watched in horror as Hatori grabbed her head and there was a familiar flash, and her head lolled backwards. But then to their shock there was another flash, equally strong, that shone from her head against his hand. He pulled back, his shaking, the flesh on his hand burned. He looked over at her, stunned. She frowned, her eyes blazing with anger.

"That won't work on me." She said, in a voice not her own. It was low and menacing. "Kioku Spell doesn't affect me or my blood. It never has, and never will." She pushed past him, and into the main house.

The other four watched as she went on ahead, and then looked back at Hatori. He was watching her leave, his eyes never leaving her. He finally glanced over at the other four, who then ran past him and to the house, following Uo. No matter what, they weren't missing this. Hatori walked everyone run past him, and slowly followed.

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Uo didn't know what had happened, but suddenly she was running through Sohma house, as if she knew the place like the back of her hand. She came to a strangely familiar room, and burst in, to see Akito sitting on the ground of a large, plain, wooden room. He was hunched over, his hands resting on his knees. He slowly looked up at her.

She ran over to him, and kneeled next to him. His eyes seemed like they were in pain, his face pale. He looked like he was on heavy medication or something. She figured Hatori probably pumped him full of drugs to get him to calm down. His mouth moved as if to say something, but his throat couldn't produce the sounds. She leaned in closer.

"I'm here, Akito, is that you?" She asked, and he moved his mouth again, against her cheek. She heard him speak her name painfully low, and then—

"Help me, Arisa. I lo-" He barely got out before she heard him chuckle loudly against her ear, and she pulled away, and saw his fierce, dark eyes staring at her. "It's you again. Planning to try and save the day? Well, it won't work, my dear." He said in a wickedly smooth voice.

Hatori and the other four came into the room, but stayed back at the doorway, scared and frightened to move in closer. They instead watched from the doorway as the scene progessed into a terrifying climax.

"Bring back Akito." She demanded angrily.

"Never. I will forever curse this family with the spirits of the zodiac, and my spirit will forever live in the reincarnation of Aki. He'll never break the curse, I know this family too well." He said, laughing softly to himself.

His features turned stricken suddenly, and he reached out and grabbed her by the neck, choking her. She panicked for just a second, but then chopped her hands against his arm, and she broke free. Akito then tried to grab at her, and like before, she held both his arms, pinning him. He growled.

"You stupid bitch! Why are you so persistant! You can't have him! Don't you realize that he's mine! All of them are mine!" He screamed, and she frowned, and suddenly her eyes softened, even though her grip was still tight.

Her voice became that of another; the other who shared her body. "You're vision has become so clouded, that you don't even see the reality in front of you."

"What?!" Akito exclaimed.

"Do you not even recognize me? It's is me, Asa, yourself. We are the same spirit, Asa, except that I am the good Asa, and you are the evil spirit that spawned from me when my hatred for the Sohma's first began. My spirit has been reincarnated into this body and soul."

"No! You can't be Asa! I'm the only one!"

"And you're so blind, that you didn't even realize, that the curse was beginning to disintegrate. The curse you placed on this family is going to break, if Akito can say what he really feels like saying. If he's strong enough to fight you and speak the words."

"No! What are you talking about?!"

Uo slowly came back, and the spirit of the reincarnation of the good Asa told her about everything. She now understood, and now it was very important that she got out the true Akito to confess something to him. "Akito, it's me Arisa! Remember what I told you! I know you're strong! Talk to me! Tell me your thoughts!"

"No! I-Arisa-I . . . Get away! Stay back! Shut up –Arisa, I- You lying bitch! Asa! I'll make you regret –Arisa, please, I need to- Get out! Get me out!" His voice was a range of different tones and emotions. She could hear Akito, but also Aki's deep voice, and the spirit-Asa's frantic and angry voice. It was like three people were trying to talk at the same time.

"Dammit, fight her Akito! Can't you see that I love you!" Uo exclaimed, and felt a tear roll down her cheek. She saw his eyes go wide in shock. She flung her arms from his grip, and wrapped them tightly around his neck. the hiss of smoke. His body was turning into flames. She held on tighter, her own body on fire. She heard him scream, that horrible screech of the phoenix, but she only held tighter.

Then she felt hands wrap around her as well, and in the flames, Uo held onto Akito, his head against hers. She felt his mouth against her ear, and heard his real voice, Akito's voice, say, "I love you too."

Then there was a final flash as the three spirits faced eachother on a field of fire.

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The evil-spirit Asa stood alone, looking around frantically at the empty, smoldering plain. She then saw two figures. One was the good Asa, and the other was her beloved Aki. Good Asa held Aki's hand, and then spoke, "Asa, you placed this curse on this family many years ago, and now it has been broken. Your desire has been so blinding that you didn't even notice the curse beginning to break."

Aki spoke, "The eclipse made it possible for us to come out and try and break the curse as well. And it worked too. Our reincarnations fell in love, and broke your curse. Don't you even remember anymore what your curse was?"

"I said the curse would be that I would forever haunt the reincarnation of Aki, and that parts of the Sohma family would be cursed with the animals of the zodiac, preventing them from ever knowing the feeling of closeness to the opposite sex."

Aki nodded. "Yes, you didn't want any of them to be happy. So you've haunted the reincarnations of me, causing their bodies to be weak, so you could control them easier. You've always hated the women of the Sohmas, because that reminded you too much of when I was to marry Kima, my cousin. You've also tormented the spirit of the rat because of this. When we used to play animals of the zodiac when we were, we'd all be the animal of our sign. Kima was the rat, and that is why you have always hated and tormented the one who held the spirit of the rat. I was the dragon, so you especially felt reminiscent and angry, whenever the dragon tried to marry someone, especially if it was with a distant relative. The dragon spirit also holds the power of the Memory Spell, as I had granted myself that power to rid you of your memories, even though I failed. And the rooster, who you were –you've always kept that spirit and its holder close to you."

"So what! That is how it's always been!"

Asa frowned at her demented counterpart. "But what did you say would break it?"

The other Asa frowned and thought to herself. "I loved Aki so much. He just wouldn't love me back, because he had to marry Kima, and I was already married to Koutani, with a son. I didn't care about them though. I only saw Aki, even though he was years older than me. I thought we loved eachother. I became so desperate, that I kept tormenting him, following him everywhere, trying to get him to see my love for him would never die! Even after he was married and was expecting a child with Kima, I still persued him. He just wouldn't love me again! So when he tried to erase my memories, I created my own curse. I killed myself in front of him with a sacred dagger of the phoenix, and I was reborn as a spirit, separating myself from the good and pure Asa, and traveled into the unborn son of Aki and Kima to begin the never-ending curse upon the Sohmas. When I was born, I was sure I killed Kima as I came out. As I have with all the Sohma women who bear me into the world. All of this for the love of Aki." She paused, and frowned. "I said that the curse would only be broken if Aki would just love me." She said, a trace of sudden, but reluctant, realization settling in.

"And it finally happened." The good Asa spoke.

"What?!"

"Akito, the reincarnation of Aki, admitted his shared love with Arisa, the reincarnation of me. When I died, and my hatred turned into an evil spirit from the phoenix dagger, even I doubted it would ever be broken. But in the midst of it all, it did happen, and you didn't even notice. And now you will disappear forever." The good and real Asa bowed her head, along with Aki, and the phoenix spirit cried out, but then burst into a halo of flames, and disappeared.

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Arisa cried into Akito's shoulder, even as the flames began to cease. He held onto her, his head in against hers, feeling her body shake beneath his hands. He noticed too that he was shaking as well. His mind was quiet, like it had been before during the eclipse. She was gone again. The evil spirit was gone.

Then he remembered. He had seen the confrontation. He was an unwilling audience, along with Arisa. But it made sense, and the real Aki whispered to him of the past they had all shared. He knew about Arisa and her past too, with Asa. Even her last name Uotani was descended from the married name Asa shared as Koutani. Somewhere along the generations, the Koutani's changed their name to Uotani.

But all of those small details were fading from his mind, as he held onto Arisa in a loving embrace. The phoenix spirit was gone, and the curse was finally broken, for good now, and he was in the arms of a woman who actually loved him, and who actually was willing to fight for him. He began to cry as well.

She held him tight, as if he was going to slip away. He smiled weakly against her cheek. She made a small noise, almost angry, "You stupid asshole, what took you so long?" She said softly, but angrily.

"I'm sorry, my love." He replied, and kissed her cheek. "Eternity blocked my way."

She laughed softly. "Anytime eternity blocks your way, I'll be there with my lead pipe to beat it to a pulp." She relaxed her tight hold around his neck, and pulled back, and kissed his lips gently......... and for once they shared a kiss that was truly, and forever, their own.

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A/N: AWWW!!! I was crying when I wrote the last part, still drying my tears with a tissue as we speak. Okay, it was a little 'cheesy' and a teeny bit cliché, but oh well! I'm so sad this is over. I hope you all understood what was going on the whole time now. I tried my best to explain it thoroughly to you all! If you still have any confusion, let me know, and I'll explain some more. But I hope you all got it. Anyway, still an epilogue-type of chapter to write, and then you guys get to decide! Do I make a sequel, or just continue writing on this one? I mean, it'll be the same sort of stuff, but do you want it on this particular story, or a brand new one? That, and also should I change this back to pg-13? Some reviewers were just saying that some of the scenes seemed pretty R. but what do you think? Should I change it back to pg-13, so more can read, or just leave it? Anyway, everyone let me know!!! I hoped you liked the 'ending' to this one. Okay, gotta go.