Aiya! I'm sorry for the delay…It seems that school was a fat pain and to top it off my mom grounded me during winter vacation. ::sigh:: I also have had so much vacation homework its been nearly impossible to finish this. And I had so hoped to have a least three other chapters up by the end of vacation. ::cries:: Ah well, as promised the long awaited first chapter!

::I don't own Fruits Basket!!:: ::tear tear::

Chapter 1: The Trouble with a New Year's Promise

Hey everyone! Tohru Honda here just in time for another New Year's! This year, even I was asked to go to the celebration. Call me crazy, but I think my last encounter with Akito had some sort of impact on him. Anyway, life here at the Sohma house has been so great! I'm so grateful that I could spend time here. Huh? You're oblivious as to what's going on here? That's okay, I'll fill you in!

A little over a year ago, my mom passed away. When she died, I moved in with my grandpa. He lived on pension at the time do I promised to pay for my own tuition and stuff. I figure, I'm going to have to work for myself sooner or later, so why not sooner? Grandpa remodeled the house so that his daughter's family could move in. Grandpa told me to live with some friends but I didn't want to burden my friends Uo-chan or Hana-chan so I got myself a tent and slept outdoors. One day, I stumbled upon the Sohma residence, home to my school's "Prince" Yuki. In return for shelter, I do all the housework. A pretty good bargain dontcha think? This lovely set-up was threatened to end one day when I accidentally hugged Kyo Sohma and he transformed into a cat! You see, the vengeful spirits of the Chinese zodiac possess the Sohmas. I only live with three of the possessed Sohmas. Yuki is the rat, Shigure is the dog, and Kyo is the cat (Although technically the cat isn't part of the zodiac)! There, I hope I've gotten you up to speed!

"Tohru-kuuun! Would you please make me some tea?" Shigure asked, sitting down at the table. "Sure!" Tohru replied cheerily, skipping into the kitchen. A large Thump! from upstairs made Shigure look up from his morning paper. Cries of "Damn nezumi!" and "Baka neko!" could be heard. "It's going to be a long New Year's…" Shigure said sighing.

A huge crash could be heard coming from upstairs followed by the appearance of Yuki, who walked into the room and took his seat. "Good morning, Sohma-kun!" Tohru said, walking into the room with a tray full of tea. "Morning, Tohru-kun." Yuki replied smiling. Tohru began serving tea when she asked, "Ano…Where's Kyo-kun?" Shigure looked up from his paper to stare at Yuki. "He had an accident. He should live though, unfortunately." Yuki told her. "Oh my! Are you sure he's okay? What happened to him? Was it that crash I heard from upstairs? Did you see what happened? I hope he's okay!" Tohru said, frantically pacing the room.

"I'd be fine," Kyo said walking into the room, "If that damn nezumi would just leave me alone." Tohru breathed a sigh of relief and set some tea down for Kyo. "Maybe if some baka neko would just admit he was wrong then he wouldn't get beat up everyday." Yuki muttered calmly. "What was that?! I didn't quite catch that ya damn nezumi!" Kyo yelled, getting angrier by the second. "I said, if some baka neko would just admit to being wrong, he wouldn't get hurt all the time." Yuki said a little more loudly. Kyo stood up and raised his fists saying, "You damn nezumi! I'll take you on right now and I'll win! I'm sure I'll win this time!" Shigure put his paper down and said, " Now Kyo, today is New Year's. Why don't you try to be nice to Yuki and maybe Yuki can try to be nice to you. For one day at least." Both Kyo and Yuki glared at Shigure and said, "You must be out of your mind." Yuki added, "I could never be nice to a baka neko like him."

Kyo slammed his fist against the table in anger causing his teacup to fall over and shatter. "Oh my! Oh no! Don't worry! I'll clean it up! It's okay!" Tohru said running over to the dropped teacup and starting to pick up the pieces. A hand stopped her. "Honda-san, There's really no need. It's Kyo's fault he dropped the cup and so it's Kyo's responsibility to pick it up." Yuki said. "Oh no! Really! It's alright! I don't mind!" Tohru replied, frantically waving her hands.

"Why the hell do you have to be so nice all the time. I'll pick the damn pieces up, just drink your tea." Kyo said annoyed, as he bent down to pick up the pieces. "Oh! Well! Thanks, Kyo-kun. Heheheh…" Tohru said cheerily, sitting back down to her tea. Shigure cleared his throat and said, "So Tohru-kun, you excited about going to the New Year's celebration?" Tohru blinked confusedly. "That's right! I'm going too!" she exclaimed happily. Shigure smiled saying, "Now our Kyo-kun won't have to be by himself while the banquet ensues."

Kyo twitched irritably as he stood up and went to throw the shards of the teacup away. "Not like I'm alone. There are loads of other people there anyways." Kyo muttered. "That is somewhat true, Kyo, but you do distance yourself from them quite a bit." Shigure replied. "Feh. Whatever." Kyo grumbled walking towards the door. "Wouldn't you like some breakfast before you go out somewhere, Kyo?" Tohru asked concerned. "Not hungry! I mean…No thanks, Tohru-kun…I'm not that hungry." Kyo said turning slightly pink. In the background Shigure smiled evilly.

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"Ohmigosh, Tohru-kun, you're going to have so much fun! You'll get to see the whole family and I'm sure Momiji will be so happy to see you again!" Shigure said happily to Tohru. Trailing behind Tohru and Shigure were Kyo and Yuki who were both glaring at each other while walking. "Don't cause problems today, Kyo." Yuki said vehemently. "Feh. Just as long as I don't have to see you're damn nezumi face for too long." Kyo grumbled back. "Another thing. Don't cause problems for Tohru-kun either. Or else you'll regret being born." Yuki growled. Shigure turned around to look at Yuki, smiling evilly. "Is wittle Yuki-kun getting jealous that he won't be alone with Tohru-kun?!" Shigure said mockingly. Yuki became flustered saying, "No! I am not! I just don't want Kyo annoying her!" Shigure kept smiling evilly as he turned around.

"We're here!!!" Shigure giggled gleefully as they walked through the main gate. "Wow! It's so pretty!" Tohru said. "I know you'll enjoy yourself!" Shigure said dragging Tohru into the main house by the hand.

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Tohru stayed close to Shigure, Kyo and Yuki because her nervousness made her cling to the only people she knew. They introduced her to people and treated her like a princess. 'Oh this is all too much, mom! I feel like a royal person at a ball or something. I'm so nervous too. There are so many people I don't know and I feel like I'm clinging too much to Kyo-kun, Yuki-kun and Shigure-san. Ehh…What to do, what to do…' Tohru thought, mentally punching herself for her lack of courage. She wracked her brain trying to think of things her mother would have said. She remembered her mother had said, 'Be yourself, Tohru. Work at your own pace.' Then another thought popped into her head, 'Just be yourself. You'll fit right in…' Remembering the way Yuki-kun had smiled at her while saying that made her blush crimson.

"Honda-san, are you alright? You look feverish." Yuki said said looking concerned. "Huh? Wha? Oh no! No! I'm fine, really! I just slipped into a daydream, heh heh heh…" Tohru replied blushing more. Yuki smiled and asked, "Are you sure you'll be alright with just Kyo? I'll skip the banquet if you want."

"Oh no! You shouldn't do that!! It's alright! Go to the banquet. Kyo and I will be just fine." Tohru said smiling sweetly. Yuki blushed and smiled back saying, "Okay. If that neko gets on you're nerves, just come and ask for me." Tohru nodded and smiled.

All of the happy chatter dissolved causing Tohru to look around surprised. The whole room's attention was focused on two people who had just walked in, a woman and what looked like her daughter. The younger girl had long deep brown hair that cascaded down her back and deep chocolate eyes that took in her surroundings. She was wearing a horizontally striped sweater that was falling off one of her shoulders, a short black skirt, a pair of grey knee-high socks and some sneakers. The older woman looked much like the younger one except that the older woman had some laugh lines and was dressed far fancier. The older woman distanced herself from the younger one, head drooping in shame. "Ah, Hojima-chan. So lovely to see you again." Shigure said walking over to the younger girl and vigorously shaking her hand. "And Hojima-san," Shigure said bowing to the older woman, "It is also a pleasure to see you. You are looking well." The older woman smiled warmly and replied, "Lovely to see you too Shigure-chan."

"You're looking well Shigure-san!" the younger Hojima said patting Shigure on the back. "Ow, Yumi-chan that hurts," Shigure said rubbing his back, "It seems you haven't lost any of your energy." Yumi smiled an it's-a-pity-I-have-to-be-here smile. "Indeed I haven't. Now where's my Kyo-neko?" she asked looking around.

"Shigure! Grab her!" Hatori said, separating himself from the crowd. "Wha? What's wrong Hatori?" Shigure asked looking confused. The whole crowd watched in silence as Hatori replied, "Akito wants her collared! Now!" There were a few scattered murmurs and some gasps. "Collared? What does Hatori mean, Kyo-kun?" Tohru asked Kyo. "Just watch." Kyo said.

Hatori took a silver bracelet out of his pocket and walked towards Yumi. "Make this easy on yourself and put the bracelet on." Hatori said softly. "Over my dead damned body!" Yumi said angrily, backing away from Hatori. "Please, Yumi-chan, make his easy for us. You know Akito's word is law." Shigure said pleadingly. "Not again!" Yumi yelled turning around and running. "Please Yumi, it's really for the best…" Yumi's mom said blocking the doorway. Yumi didn't reply, instead she pushed her mother aside and ran down the hall.

"Kyo! Go and get her back!" Shigure said. Kyo sat down and glared saying, "Get her yourself, you lazy ass. She ain't my problem and I sure as hell ain't responsible for her." The room went silent once again, but soon it was filled with the muttering and whispering of the Sohmas. Tohru looked all around the room. 'Why are these people so intent on "collaring" Hojima-san? What is this collaring anyway?' she thought frantically searching her mind for some answers. Her brain soon revealed images of a girl with a dog collar on and the leash in the hands of the owner. She sighed at her own stupidity. "Shigure-san," Tohru said as she walked over to him, "What is this collaring you've been talking about?"

Shigure looked at her sympathetically and smiled. "'Collaring' has nothing to do with putting a collar around someone's neck and attaching them to leash, if that's what you've been thinking. It's actually a form of restraint. You see, Hatori's power over mind can affect inanimate objects as well. By putting the bracelet on Yumi-chan, Hatori can control the bracelet and turn it into something that limits her ability to fight. It's like putting a 20-pound weight on her wrist. Except in Yumi's case you need more than a 20-pound weight to slow her down…" Shigure said snickering at his own joke. "But that's so terrible!" Tohru exclaimed, pity mixed with worry in her voice. "No worries, Tohru-kun. The bracelet doesn't hurt Yumi-chan and besides, she is a martial artist. The girl practices with weights every day." Shigure said. "Why do they collar Yumi-san?" Tohru asked. "Because quite frankly, Akito is afraid that Yumi-chan will hurt him. You know how it is with Kyo-kun and Yuki-kun-they fight all the time. Well it seems the same for Yumi-chan and Akito. It's the cat and rat all over again. Except this time, Yumi-chan is the one who's stronger." He replied smirking.

Hatori was the one to break the silence that followed. "What the hell are we all doing standing here? Anyone who's man enough to try to catch Hojima-chan can come with me." He said walking towards the door. "Oh! Pick me, Ha'ri-chan! Pick me!" Momiji squealed, happily skipping along after Hatori. Some of the other Sohmas went after Hatori as silence filled the room again. "Eh…Isn't it about time for the banquet?" Shigure said trying desperately to change the subject. "What about Hatori and the others? You saw how Yuki, Hatsuharu, and Momiji went after Hatori." Kyo said looking annoyed.

Someone in the background spoke up saying, "If we didn't have the Cat, none of this would have happened." Another added, "And such a pitiful girl too. I mean she is only half Sohma. What a disgrace." Tohru looked at Yumi's mother who had her head bent in shame. Tohru was about to cry. She really hated it when people were mean, when they teased other people about their family and friends. It reminded her of when she was young and the children in her class used to call her names and push her around. Tohru fought back a sob and did the only thing she thought would help. So, she went over and hugged Yumi's mom.

The chatter that had started again from the crowd stopped. Tohru smiled warmly at Yumi's mother. "I feel so bad. You're feelings must really be hurt. Please don't let it upset you…" Tohru said. Yumi's mother returned the smile, saying, "Thank you dear. I don't think we've ever met though. I'm Miharu Hojima." Miharu stuck out her hand. "You're right, we've never met because I'm technically not a Sohma. I'm Tohru Honda! It's really nice to meet you too!" Tohru said, taking Mrs. Hojima's hand and shaking it.

A loud crash caused everyone to look at the door again. Yumi emerged in the door, bleeding at the lip and panting slightly. "Yumi-chan! You're bleeding!" her mother exclaimed. "Damn straight, mom! I tripped! Curse that uneven floorboard!" Yumi said a comic look on her face. 'She really doesn't seem too upset about this collaring business. In fact she looks sorta happy.' Tohru thought to herself.

CRASH! Yumi hit the floor as Hatori, Hatsuharu, Yuki, Shigure, and (now magically appearing!) Ayame tried to hold her down. "Aw dammit! Why the hell do you listen to Akito anyways! Get off me ya bastards!" Yumi cried struggling. Yuki and Ayame each held an arm while Shigure and Hatsuharu sat on her legs. Momiji skipped gleefully in the room and joined Hatori on Yumi's back. "Isn't she going to get hurt??!!" Tohru cried frantically. "No, dear, don't worry. Yumi's fine. She's probably just really annoyed. But it truly is for the best…" Miharu said sadly. "DONE!" Hatori yelled as he jumped off of Yumi. Hatsuharu, Shigure, Momiji, Ayame, and Yuki all got off Yumi and backed away slowly.

"DAMMIT! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE???!!!!" Yumi exclaimed jumping up and brushing herself off. She shook her wrist experimentally, looking for a clasp to get the bracelet off. When she found it, she tugged at it but to no avail. "Dammit, Hatori!! How in hell did you get this on me in the first place??!!" she yelled. Hatori ignored her and followed the rest of the zodiac out to the delayed banquet.

Once they were gone, Tohru looked at the girl strangely. When Yumi had yelled, she didn't look angry; in fact, she looked almost happy. "Excuse me, Hojima-san, but shouldn't you be a little more angry that this bracelet is going to restrict you?" Tohru asked timidly. Yumi blinked and looked at Tohru saying, "Have we met?" Tohru's cheeks heated from embarrassment before she replied, "No, I'm afraid we haven't. But that's okay! I'm Tohru Honda and I'm a friend of the Sohmas!" Yumi quirked an eyebrow and smiled at Tohru. "Nice to meetcha. I'm Yumi Hojima, but I assume you already know that. As for your question, it really doesn't bother me. Hatori-chan is kind enough to make sure the collar isn't a problem for me. He usually only annoys me with the bracelet when he makes it heavier-and then it's usually only because Akito told him to." Yumi said smiling.

"He can make it heavier??" Tohru said. "Yep. He uses those mind powers of his and the object gets heavier. If you see my wrist on the floor and me struggling to get up, that's when it's heavy." Yumi said, adding, "It's really just Akito that ticks me off. I mean, I think he's just jealous that I'm healthy and happy and he's not. But that's his damn fault. Maybe if he acted happier he'd feel better."

"Anyway, which Sohmas do you know, Honda-san?" Yumi asked. "I know all of them but I live with Kyo, Shigure and Yuki. They're so nice to me!" Tohru replied happily. "Really! And you know about the curse to, huh? That's good. I'm Kyo-neko's core. You live with Shii-chan and Nezumi-kun, too? That's so cute! I hope they don't try anything. I mean Nezumi-kun and Kyo-neko I'm not worried about. It's just that pervert Shigure. I do love him so, but he can be such a lech at times." Yumi said. Tohru sweat dropped and said, "Don't worry, they haven't tried anything. Ano…Yumi-chan why do you call Kyo-kun 'Kyo-neko'. And who is 'Nezumi-kun'?" Yumi laughed nonchalantly and replied, "I'm sorry, you've never met me before so I suppose you're not used to my nicknames. I call Kyo 'Kyo-neko' because it's just a nickname he picked up when we were kids. I guess I thought because he was the Cat that he was actually a cat. Nezumi-kun is Yuki. When we were little, I wasn't allowed near the zodiac members until the New Year's. So naturally, I didn't know Yuki's name and just referred to him as Nezumi-kun. I guess it just stuck! Nezumi-kun doesn't mind much. Speaking of my Kyo-neko, where might he be??!" With that Yumi started searching around the room.

"Found ya!" she exclaimed as she pulled Kyo out from under a table. "Dammit!!! Why can't you just leave me alone??" Kyo yelled frantically trying to get away from Yumi, who held onto his shirt. "Now, now, Kyo-neko. It's been a whole year since I've seen you! I thought maybe you'd be happy or something." Yumi said wagging her finger in his face. "Who the hell would want to see you, you psycho!! And don't call me Kyo-neko! It's stupid!" Kyo yelled, embarrassed that Tohru had heard the name he so hated to be called by. "No worries, Kyo-NEKO! I'll try not to say your nickname too loud, Kyo-NEKO! Haha! So how's your training going, Kyo-NEKO? Have you beat Nezumi-kun yet, Kyo-NEKO?" Yumi said laughing. "YUMI-CHAN!!! Stop it!! Leave me the hell alone! Go bother Akito!!" Kyo screamed turning redder by the second. Yumi let go of Kyo to ponder his last statement. "Hmm…That's right, I haven't seen Akito all day…Well if you don't count this morning…" she said to herself. Yumi's face turned into one of pure cute evilness as she marched out of the room, most likely to find Akito and bother him.

"……Don't listen to her, Tohru-kun. I hate being called Kyo-neko. It sounds really childish. Don't tell anyone okay? I had to bribe Yuki not to…" Kyo said, completely crimson. Tohru smiled sweetly saying, "Don't worry Kyo-kun. I won't tell anyone." Kyo looked up at her smiling face and blushed even more (as if he weren't red enough!). "Whatever. It's not like I care about being made fun of. It's just it's a stupid name and stuff so don't get the wrong idea or anything." Kyo grumbled. "Don't worry Kyo-kun. I understand." Tohru said.

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Yumi strolled down the halls casually making her way towards Akito's room. Someone had told her that he wasn't at the banquet because he wasn't feeling well. Yumi's reaction to that-Wasn't he always not feeling well? Yumi rolled her eyes. 'I bet he just doesn't want to deal with me.' she thought. She walked to Akito's room and slowly opened the door, to make sure he wasn't sleeping. To her dismay, he was in fact sleeping with his back facing the door. "I wanted to annoy him!" she whispered.

"It seems you've succeeded in doing so. Why do you have to be so loud, Yumi?" Akito said sitting up. "So you were awake! Hey lookie! Seems your little Operation Collar Yumi-chan was successful." Yumi said shaking her bracelet in his face. "Good I'm glad. When the banquet's over, I'm going to call Hatori and have him make that bracelet weight a ton." Akito said vehemently. "Feh. I'll be gone by then. And I'll probably have it off." Yumi replied smiling. "Leave me alone, Yumi. I don't feel well." Akito said, the anger evident in his voice. "Aw calm down. I mean this really is nothing new. You always feel sick." She said the evil innocence emerging again. "Well as long as you're wearing that bracelet, I'll make you feel just as bad as me." Akito said, turning his back to her so that he didn't have to see her face. "I will get this bracelet off and then I will beat you. I will avenge my father's death. That's my New Year's promise." Yumi said softly. "Don't make promises you know you can't keep." Akito retorted back at her. "I will keep these promises." She said turning to walk away. "You can keep them. But I'm not so sure they're going to come true." Akito said, as Yumi slammed the door shut.

And there you have it! Chapter One! Again I apologize greatly for not updating soon enough…::beats self up:: Well I hope you enjoyed it! Thanks to Shadow In Darkness, black hearted kid, and Galasriniel for reviewing! ::hands out chibi Tohru cookies::

Notes regarding:

Nezumi: It's Japanese for "Rat"…I think. If not…tell me.

Baka: It mean's "stupid", "idiot", "moron"…you get it.

Neko: It means "Cat".

Ano: Means "Um…"

Kyo-neko: I wanted it translated as 'Kyo-kitty' But I don't know the Japanese word for 'kitty' so I just used cat. Kyo-cat is fine too, just not as cute…;;

Nezumi-kun: Just how Yumi-chan refers to Yuki-kun. ;; I thought it sounded cute!

Until next time!

-Yumi Hojima