The Order
Disclaimer: Wouldn't you know? I conveniently left it in the First Chapter. Darn!
A/N: Well, I'm not dead, I promise. I've just had an extremely rough few weeks of school and now that I'm FINALLY on Spring Break, expect frequent updates! Possibly…maybe…okay a few swift kicks will help as well. Really now, I'm sure I will write if you leave me reviews…hinthint…
Anyway, I'm starting a new thing. I'm putting me thanks at the END of zee chapter instead of at the beginning, because I have a lot of 'em to do and I'm sure those of you who actually want to READ this story (poor, insane people that you are who have obviously lost your sense of telling the bad seeds from the good) don't want to have to scroll down a page or two of me thank yous to other reviewers. SO, on with zee chapter! Ah, and please…LEAVE A REVIEW, ME LIFE'S BLOOD, DON'T DEPRIVE ME OF ME LIFE'S BLOOD!
Lillia
P.S: There may be spelling/grammer errors in here. I'm so sorry if there are, I was in a real bind to get this chapter out before midnight...
Yuki felt the very air rush from his lungs as he stared down at Tohru, waiting for her grip to lessen on his cloak. Slowly, those sleepy blue eyes focused on him and then widened. The tug on his cloakdisappeared as she released the rich, purple fold and tucked her hand against her left shoulder as color blossomed upon her pale cheeks. With lowered lashes, she pushed herself into a sitting position, mumbling incoherently as a wince spread across her features.
Quickly he brushed her shoulders, urging her to lie back down. "Miss Honda, you must rest, you haven't fully recovered. Has Hatori seen to you?"
Tohru wouldn't look at him as she nodded slowly. "He changed my bandages…"
Nodding, he gently lowered her back to her bed, tugging the fur covers over her shoulders. "Sleep now Miss Honda, it's already late in the evening."
"I had a dream," she whispered, feeling slender fingers work through her hair.
A soft purplehue cast from Yuki's fingers as he weaved a spell of sleep into her exhausted body. "What did you see Miss Honda?"
Her voice grew soft, lashes flickering to stay open. "Stone walls…that were bleeding…"
Yuki's hand stilled as he glanced down at her. "Is that all, Miss Honda?"
Losing the battle to sleep, her eyes closed as her body relaxed. "And a…flicker…of red eyes…"
The Prince of Zodia watched as the fortune teller tapered off. A sneer crossed his features as he stood slowly, then turned and left the glass room for his own. A hand descended, catching on his shoulder. Tensing, his eyes flashed dark violet as he faced the person, calmly sweeping the arm away. Shigure raised a brow at him, a hand propped on his waist, the other now clutching his left shoulder.
"Well…something dampened your mood…" he said.
"She saw something that has to do with Him," Yuki said, voice growing quieter with every word.
Shigure glanced away, sensing the looming danger as the boy's voice softened. "Now, now Yuki…look, you're summoning your friends."
Rats of silver, black, and white scurried across the stones of the hall, gathering around Yuki's still form. A rodent of two-toned silver and black scuttled up the prince's cloak and nestled on his shoulder, whiskers brushing his pale cheek. Slowly, his hand reached up and he began to stroke the warm, furry body, calming slightly. Shigure leaned against the wall, watching with a small smile.
"There, better now?" Not waiting for a response, Shigure tilted his head slightly. "How do you know our fortune teller anyway?"
Yuki's eyes came back to rest on Shigure. "When we were having lessons with the Zodia Priestesshood they contracted her. We were learning about the Gift of Sight, and it seems a few of the Priestesses knew of Miss Honda. She told all of our fortunes, which Zodiac animal we were, and traced all of our paths to the elements. Afterwards, when we were allowed on break, I talked with her for a while about fortune-reading."
"Ah, she did that to Hatori and me as well," Shigure said.
"So, it isn't just a fluke like the other Gypsies. Miss Honda is the real thing?" Yuki's anger had cooled and the rats slowly drifted away except for the one on his shoulder.
Shigure inclined his head. "We're not exactly sure…it's been centuries since Zodia was gifted with one of the true Sight. Does she know about your…power?"
Yuki flexed his fingers slightly, shaking his head. "No, she left before they began teaching the lessons of dream weaving and sleeping spells."
The Royal Adviser arched his brows. "How far exactly have you excelled?"
"I'm not sure, but I know being one of the Zodiac has given me a great deal more psychic thread than the other boys," Yuki murmured, holding his hand to his shoulder.
The rat slowly walked onto his fingers and Yuki lowered his arm, beginning to stroke the tail that flicked around his wrist. Shigure nodded and rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Psychic thread is in abundance in the Zodiac…it's what Hatori taps into to erase memories. A single thread that intertwines deeply with that of soul and life energy, except in those that possess a true Gift. I'm sure Tohru's psychic thread is more like a complex knot of multiple tensions. That is, if she's acquired the true Gift of Sight."
"She said she dreamed about bleeding stone walls and a flash of red eyes," Yuki said absently, gaze lowered to the cerulean stones of pattern interlaid into the floor.
"Hm, I'm sure it's nothing more than a dream," Shigure waved his hand, as if to clear the thought away. "It's late, and you need your beauty rest, Prince Yuki."
Grinning, the Royal Advisor trotted away. Mumbling about a coil of rope and the nearest tree, Yuki gently released his rat onto the floor, before walking to his room. Combing fingers through his dark, silvery strands, he disheveled them even more and couldn't help the tangle of emotions pooling in his mind about the sleeping figure in the glass room.
"Thanks," Uotani said as she retrieved a bag of pastries from the gnarled hands of the baker.
He smiled at her, eyes crinkled in amusement. "My pleasure miss…" He then sighed and glanced around the Fresh Markets. "Business is dwindling again. I'd say it was because that fortune teller isn't here anymore."
Uotani felt a sharp tug on her heart and nodded in agreement. "You wouldn't have seen her by any chance?"
The baker shook his head. "No ma'am, might you know where's she's gone off to? Business was much more enjoyable when she was attracting flocks of people."
The thief smiled thinly. "I agree…thanks anyway."
"Sure, please come back anytime," he said.
Uotani drew her hood around her features, keeping her head low as a pair of Royal Guards walked past, talking and laughing. They bore the crest of Sohma sewn into their capes of royal blue. A small shield adorned with the twelve Zodiacs in silver thread. Swords hung from their waists, and the expert swordsmen they were, their fingers were curved and ready on the hilts. Carefully she picked her way back towards the center of the Fresh Markets, meeting with Hanajima.
"There's so many guards out today. I wonder why?" Uotani noted, seeing another pair checking over the cloth carts.
Hanajima hugged her elbows, eyes training on her friend. "I'm suspicious about it as well. I highly doubt that Lord Akito is becoming oversensitive enough to worry about the protection of his Kingdom."
"He's looking for someone," Uotani said, nudging Hanajima forward.
"Where are we going?"
"Sanctuary, it's too dangerous to be out here with so many eyes watching."
The two thieves traveled in silence, walking the stone streets to a large ivory temple gleaming adjacent to the Sohma Castle. It was built in an old fashion, with large, rounded columns encircling a flight of stairs leading up into the Sanctuary. Inside was cool and dimmed and the Priestesses of Zodia were circling around the great span of the Sanctuary, lighting fires and candles in preparation for evening. Stained glass windows depicted legends of the Zodiac and the floors were littered with pillows and cushions.
Uotani sank into a large black pillow, handing Hanajima the bag of pastries. The Sanctuary was opened to all and none could be forced out if they willed it so, not even Akito's guards themselves could bypass the stairs into the cavernous hall in search of criminals who called for sanctuary. Hanajima bit delicately into a strawberry tart, sighing in rapture.
"Delicious," she murmured.
Uotani tangled her fingers in her blonde locks. "I don't like this…we need to find Tohru. I keep…thinking I need to be somewhere. I have that jittery feeling, that I should be somewhere else and I'm late…you know?"
Hanajima paused, and then nodded. "I wouldn't worry, Arisa. Where ever our little Tohru is, I'm sure she is well and in safe hands. The Bhatar will think twice before going after her once more."
"I hope she got the hell away from this place…far away. It would be the best thing for her," Uotani mumbled, though she felt a deep darkness at the missing light of the fortune teller. "Do you think we'll ever see her again?"
Hanajima licked her fingers once finished with her pastry and nodded. "I'm sure of it, Arisa."
Morning dawned dark and grey, an overcast of gloom that would add rain to the day. Tohru was awake, sitting up, staring down at the twelve crystalline figures scattered across her lap. Sleep had only come to her for a few hours before Yuki's sleeping spell wore off and she woke from nightmares that had been held at bay in a dream weave. At first her wounds throbbed in protest at her jerking movements, but now the pain had faded to a dull ache she was unaware of.
Quiet footsteps came from down the hall and a rat scurried in as Yuki walked through the high archway, pausing. "Miss Honda?"
She glanced at him, startled. "Yuki…"
"Didn't you sleep, Miss Honda?" he asked, kneeling at her bedside.
Tohru shook her head slowly. "No, I'm sorry…I uhm…had a nightmare."
Yuki blinked at her suddenly blushing face, and then nodded slowly. "It's all right Miss Honda, nightmares are nothing to be ashamed of. I'll be out for the better part of the afternoon I'm afraid. I wanted to ask if you would need anything from market."
Tohru looked up quickly, the red faded from her pale cheeks. "Uhm, yes! If…if you don't mind…"
He studied her troubled features. "Really Miss Honda, what is it?"
She bowed her head, biting her lip. "My friends…they're…probably worried about me."
"What are their names?"
"Arisa Uotani and Saki Hanajima."
Yuki's brows shot into his hairline. "Those names sound familiar."
Tohru bobbed her head in agreement, accompanied by a very large grin. "Uh-huh, they're commonly known as The Red Butterfly Duo."
The Prince gazed at her for a handful of moments. "…Miss Honda…your friends with two of the most wanted thieves in all of Zodia Kingdom…"
She blinked, tilting her head. "I know, but really they're very nice!"
He smiled faintly at the puzzlement in her eyes. "What do you wish me to tell them, Miss Honda?"
"Not to worry…" again the fortune teller looked away, refusing to meet his gaze. "Tell them I'm okay, and not to worry."
Before Yuki could reply to her sudden twist in moods, Shigure strolled into the room carrying a porcelain tray laden with fresh, warm bread and a steaming bowl of porridge. With a cheerful good morning, he plopped the tray in front of Tohru.
"We have to keep your strength up! Or else Hatori will say I'm not feeding you properly," he announced with what seemed a serious enough face. "A young, rare beauty such as you should know to keep her figure a decent shape."
Yuki passed a glare to the Royal Adviser. "Idiot…"
Tohru stared at the large ivory bowl. "I…can't eat all of this…"
"Oh but you must!" His expression was one of intense sadness. "This is one of the last few meals Cook is making for us. She's been promoted to the castle to work. She'll be extremely sad if you don't eat…"
Yuki stood and nodded to Shigure, already feeling as if the air in the room was stifling. "I'll be out for a little bit." He smiled at Tohru. "I'll deliver your message as well, Miss Honda."
"Ah, thank you!" she called after him as he left, pulling up the hood of his purple cloak.
She turned back to Shigure, who was grinning. "Eat, eat!"
Tohru smiled weakly at him, before picking up a hunk of bread and nibbling on it.
"Hey, lay off!" Uotani snarled, shaking a grimy hand from her forearm.
The drunken man shrank back into the alleyway he crawled out of. "Me pardons, miss. I mistook you for somewhat…else…"
Uotani wrinkled her nose at his sudden toothless grin, revealing the rotted gaps of gum and cheek flesh. Hanajima was waiting patiently for her on the corner of the stone streets, arms crossed over her stomach. As the thief caught up to her, she turned and continued, leading her deeper among the stone structures that were more down-trodden than the homes in the inner cities.
"Where are we going, exactly?" she questioned.
Hanajima continued down the sloping streets, her steps quiet. "You will see…I think it is something you need to see."
"What kinda cult would be centered in the middle of Outer City dumps?" Uotani shook off another groping hand, itching to procure her curved blade.
"What kind of cult indeed," Hanajima echoed, pausing near a molded archway.
She glanced around, to make sure no one was following, and then passed through the archway, sweeping aside the hanging vines as they descended the slippery steps into a cool, dank dead end.
"Uh…Hanajima…"
"It's here," she said, and pressed her fingers against a small outcropping of stone barely seen in the morning light.
A chunk of wall scraped the ground as it moved back and then swept aside, revealing a spacious chamber laden with hundreds of melted candles held in jeweled and crystal cups. Paintings of the Prince of the Zodia Kingdom littered the walls, overlaid with silken fabrics of richest purple hues. The floor was carpeted in silver rugs and silk embroidered chairs were strewn across the large expanse of richly styled room. Marbled busts of Prince Yuki wore silver crowns and at the very back of the chamber erected a high-backed chair decked out in lavish furs and coverings. A very detailed statue of Yuki leaned back in it, legs crossed and his chin propped on his slender fingers.
"What the hell!" Uotani exclaimed, feeling her heart skip a few beats.
"It seems this is the meeting place of Prince Yuki's Cult…" Hanajima said quietly.
"How the hell did you find this?" the thief demanded.
"I stumbled upon it one day while I was scouting the streets like you told me to, Arisa," the psychic replied in a flat voice.
Uotani smacked a hand to her forehead. "Why do I need to see this? Not only is it the most disturbing thing I've ever witnessed, it's enough to make me sick!"
"Because," and here Hanajima began to lead Uotani back up the stairs, "this Cult is beginning to move into the Inner City and will most likely disrupt business for us."
The wall slammed closed behind them, causing the rickety buildings on either side of it to shudder in agony.
"How do you figure that?"
"These girls are not all virtuous, Arisa. And they do need money to supply their Cult with more and more things of Prince Yuki, if not kidnapping him themselves. If they begin to thieve, we will have problems."
The grin on Uotani's face could have frozen water. "I think not, those girls step one foot on our grounds and they'll be meeting the last of the Weapon Mages in full battle guard."
Hanajima nodded. "That's the spirit, Arisa."
As the two walked back towards the Inner City they drew the hoods of their cloaks up, shadowing their features. It wouldn't do for the Red Butterfly Duo to be caught by the meager guards of the Royal Family.
That afternoon, Hatori came by for another visit, carrying an armload of robes and dresses. He spilled them onto Shigure's desk, scattering the pieces of parchment and ink quills marring the wood's surface.
"From Ayame. He wants her to try them on and if they need to be readjusted send them back," Hatori said.
Shigure nodded, looking through the pieces of cloth. "She's sleeping again. The poor thing had about enough strength to endure eating a piece of bread."
The Royal Healer took a seat across from Shigure. "Yuki is not back yet?"
"No, you know our prince. He enjoys his new found freedom," Shigure murmured.
"If you can call it freedom, mind him, he's still within Akito's grasp."
Shigure paused and looked up, hearing the shift of Hatori's voice. "Has something happened?"
"Nothing's changed, yet. Akito is restless, but he won't say why. On other matters, you cannot keep her here Shigure. She is female and a danger to your household. If she knew…"
"I know caution, my friend," Shigure said, resting his chin on his laced fingers. "She's without a home, Hatori. I talked to Kenji a few days ago when I visited him. He told me she sleeps beneath her cart usually in the niche between two stables. And apparently from the rumors running about, there was a vendor who was attacked on the main road by a three-manned squadron of Bhatar. Three bodies were found alongside the shattered remains of a gypsy cart."
"And what if the other comes back? You believe she has the Gift, and that is also a dangerous tool. You play a risky game Shigure."
Shigure smiled. "A man will do just about anything to gain his freedom."
"What we bear is a curse and none have attempted to lift it. The Order was just a whisper of a rumor centuries ago. Why do you seek it now?" Hatori asked.
"Because things are slowly falling into place, the pieces are being arranged…and The Order is no longer a rumor but a legend recorded on paper," Shigure said, standing and gliding over to his book shelves, plucking a single scroll from its contents and handing it to Hatori.
The Healer took the brittle paper, carefully unrolling it, eyes scanning the spidery cursive sprawling across the surface. His eyes widened slightly, but he gave no other indication of surprise. Shigure settled back into his chair and looked at Hatori over the pile of clothes.
"You see…there is a way to break this curse. All that I need now is time and to find out whom exactly is taunting Akito. At least the former is currently on my side."
Hatori shook his head, rolling the scroll up and handing it back to Shigure. "Do not tempt Fate, Shigure. She is a fickle woman and likes even less when people begin to mess with her husband, Time. She will intervene; she will throw your plans into disarray. And then what will you do, what will you be left with?"
Laughing quietly, Shigure turned in his chair to glance outside at the wide expanse of green countryside and the jagged slopes of the Rosen Mountains in the distance, the borders between Zodia and Rosewood. "I do what we should have done a long time ago, Hatori…if Fate is angered, let her be so. I have to try…I have to try to change the course of this family's future."
Hatori remained silent.
Yuki jerked back the reigns of the horse, steeling the mare to a stop near the edge of a cliff face. Sighing quietly he settled back into the saddle, admiring the view of the Zodia Kingdom from afar, as he rarely could do as a child. No…his childhood was centered around a room of glowing windows and blood-soaked wood planks. Quickly shaking his head to dispel the creeping memories, he took a deep breath of the crisp autumn air and released it slowly.
Beneath him, the mare snorted and kicked at the ground, her hooves digging impatiently into the dirt. Yuki stroked her sweating neck, murmuring in a low voice to her. "Patience, I'm almost done here."
His gaze turned back to the kingdom that lay below, a kingdom of immense secrets and even darker mysteries. It was a city of stone, beautiful in that it gleamed silver with blue undertones when the rays of the sunshowered it in warmth. A towering castle loomed from the center, spreading in the width of a large circle, and its defense centered around a wall of obsidian gem that repelled even the toughest enemies. Ranging around the castle were the Twelve Temples of Zodia, awash in ivory paleness. Six belonged to the Priesthood and six belonged to the Priestesshood.
Circling about the Temples were a maze of jade paths and gardens, complete with a winding of tiny rivers and small silvery ponds. Iron gates separated the Temples from the rest of the Inner City and from there it spread further on. The Inner City was much more luxuriated, where the houses were spacious and spread apart and only the high privileged and peers of the realm were allowed to court and remain. Separating the Inner City from the Outer City was the splay of the markets and the Town Square, complete with working cerulean stone fountains and parks, and then further back among the winding roads of stone that suddenly turned dirt-strewn and cobbled was a stables shared by the Lords and Ladies of Zodia, and the meager commoners.
From there, the Outer City was a crowded mess of snagging stone buildings and wires of clothing lines. Here the Inns were kept and the Taverns were in abundance. The whore houses and seedy lodges commingled with the gambling pubs to produce an air of gaiety, usually when the sun was nigh gone and night roved as freely as a boy's hands over the rump of a serving girl. But the Red Moon District was very secretive of what it had seen, and of matters it had taken into back bedrooms and settled with a quick tryst among clean linens.
And then the Outer City was encircled by a high wall of silver stone inlaid with deep intricate carvings, though none remembered their origins and could scarce read their worn surfaces. From the Four Gates situated at the origins of North, South, East, and West, the guard sentinels could see the stretch of land and trees and modestly crowded homes outside the city, and even further in the distance the looming northern borders of Rosewood or the Rosen Peaks, which separated a far amount of Zodia from its neighboring kingdom. On thesouth side of Zodia stretched a border of rocks and trees, and once passed that, one will have crossed into Briar Violet.
Where Yuki stood was a piece of the Rosen Mountain Chain, though these towering rock faces were clearly in Zodia territory and served as a calming place for him to think about troubling things. With a shudder, he felt a cold, phantom hand cup his cheek, a chilled voice murmuring in his ear.
All this will be yours…and more…
A clap of thunder sounded above him and his mare whickered softly from nerves, her flanks shaking slightly. He stroked her mane, studying his home, a kingdom promised to be his some day. The heir apparent to the throne of Zodia. But only when Akito died…and then he was to assume responsibility of the Zodiac and Zodia until another Chosen was born.
Turning his mare back down the cliff face, he tilted his face towards the sky as rain began to spill forth from the blackened clouds. The Order…I've heard Shigure refer to it many times…and yet… Yuki opened his eyes, urging his mount forward into a dangerous canter down the rocky path. …I still have no idea what it is…
Tohru ducked her head as she admired herself in the mirrors surrounding her form. As soon as she had woken from her slumber, Shigure had nigh attacked her and dragged her into his room to try on the new clothes Ayame had created for her. Hatori stayed as well, wanting to change her bandages and overall be sure Shigure's hands stayed well put in the sleeves of his tan robes. As it was, the surprising modest garments (they WERE created by Ayame) took form in gypsy clothing.
Tops with tumbling sleeves and plunging necklines came complete with corset laces that comfortably tied in the front. Long skirts brushed the floor and flowed about her legs and hips, coming in a variety of colors. Silken sashes knotted about her waist and Ayame even sent a package of soft brown boots for her outfits. Smiling shyly at her reflection, she turned to face Shigure and Hatori for their approval. Fashioned in a peach-cream shift of long sleeves and corset lacings across her stomach and a skirt of quiet blue that fanned across her legs as she swirled about, she was in every bit her nature, a fortune teller.
Shigure clapped his hands in approval. "Ah Aaya, his excellence is unmatched!"
Hatori inclined his head, but refused comment at her dress. "Is that all Shigure? I'm sure her wounds are beginning to twitch."
Shigure waved a hand airily, and then grinned slightly. "There was something else Aaya sent over, I'm just dying to see her put it on." He winked at Hatori. "Then she's all yours."
"Make it quick, then, Shigure."
Shigure motioned Tohru over to the changing screen, gently nudging her behind it and handing the flimsy material of the garment over the top to her. Hatori glanced towards the outer hall suddenly, hearing soft footsteps against the stones. Yuki appeared in the doorway and blinked owlishly at them.
"What's going on?"
Shigure grinned and flounced over to him. "Yuki, you're just in time!"
"Where's Miss Honda? She wasn't in her room."
Hatori tilted his head towards the changing screen. "Shigure wanted her to try on the clothes Ayame sent over for her."
Yuki went very still, and then steeled a very dark and questioning gaze upon Shigure. "Is that so?"
"Oh don't worry Yuki!" Shigure patted his shoulder. "They were modest enough designs; she was the perfect little flower!"
"I'm sure…is she trying something else on?"
Shigure sniffed and nodded. "Are you almost done, Tohru?"
Her voice was soft and meek. "I…Is it supposed to be like this?"
Hatori blinked along with Yuki as Shigure stepped forward. "Why don't you come out and show us."
"O-okay…"
Her fingertips appeared on the screen's edge, before she slowly rounded it, head bowed as she revealed what indeed the gown Ayame sent was. The soft yellow material was flimsy, stretching over the swell of her breasts and clinging closely to the curves of her torso and stretch of hips. From her hips, the material changed and became a silken caress of fabric as it trailed down her legs, gathering in back to whisper across the floor. The sleeves slid down her shoulders and flared slightly around her elbow.
Shigure was nodding vigorously in approval, laughter dancing in his eyes at Ayame's obvious design. "Beautiful, simply beautiful!"
Hatori combed a hand through his bangs, before hiding his eyes from the sight. Yuki clenched his fists, turning sharply and marching out of the room.
"Uhm, Yuki!" Tohru wobbled past the two Royals, doing her best not to trip in the dress.
Yuki stopped near the end of the hall, head bowed. "I'm sorry Miss Honda…"
Tohru blinked, coming behind him. "Sorry?"
"My brother is truly an idiot…"
The words were spoken true, for unbeknownst to Tohru the design of the dress and specific cuts were a daring fashion style in the Red Moon District, and usually accompanied by peepholes and slits in the cloth to bare tempting flesh. Yet, unknown to Tohru, the pale yellow of the dress softened her features, made the white bandages decorating her skin not seem as harsh. She was the true picture of innocence in a dress that usually provoked provocative responses.
"Uhm…" Tohru tilted her head slightly. "Why is that? I…"
He turned to face her at the soft pause of her voice. She was glancing away, a blush deepening across her cheeks. "I liked it…"
Yuki frowned slightly, and then shook his head quickly. "No, no Miss Honda, you look very lovely. It's my brother…I'm sorry you have to endure his stupidity and perverse designs."
She was quiet for a few moments before her eyes closed and a smile tilted the corners of her lips. "It was kind of him, to provide a complete stranger with clothes though. I owe him, Shigure, and Hatori a lot."
"Don't tell them that…" Yuki pressed his fingers to his forehead. "Hatori won't do anything…it's Shigure and Ayame and their 'methods' of payment that would worry me."
Tohru looked up at him with a growing sense of horror. "But I have to do something! My…my cart is gone, so I can't really sell fortunes anymore." A deep sadness penetrated her gaze, a sadness that cut through Yuki deeper than any sense of pain or agony had in his past. "So, I'll have to earn money someway! I'll probably ask Mr. Kenji if I can have a room in his inn and I'll work extra hard."
"Miss Honda…"
"And then once I have enough, I can pay off my debts for my mom's funeral! With what's left over, I can repay Shigure and Hatori for their kindness and Ayame for my new clothing!"
"Miss Honda…!"
She was shaking her head frantically, counting on her fingers. "And then, maybe I can go back and rejoin the gypsies once I tell them I'm Kyoko's…"
Yuki firmly took hold of her wrists, halting her tirade in a hitching gasp. "Miss Honda, please listen to me." At her shaky nod, he continued. "You remember what Shigure said, that our cook is retiring?" Again she nodded. "We will need a cook, and if I remember correctly, Priestess Jina said your culinary skills are unmatched."
Tohru was blushing darkly again, looking at his fingers clasped about her own. "She's a very kind person…"
"Miss Honda," again his voice was patiently chiding and soft. "You can work as our cook to earn your room and board, if you're so worried about repaying us. We'll give you the glass room, hardly anyone uses it anyway."
She was quiet for a few minutes, mulling his offer over in her mind several times, before she nodded quickly. "Okay, but I need to know the rules of the house, and you can't help me, I need to do it on my own."
"You don't need to work yourself so hard here Miss Honda." Yuki smiled slightly. "Just take things at your own pace and be yourself."
Tohru you must always be yourself…and do things at your own pace. You'll catch up someday…
Yuki watched as emotions tumbled across her features, before she finally smiled at him. Shigure uncrossed his arms from inside the doorway to his room, glancing at Hatori.
"It seems Fate has intervened, Hatori…"
Hatori shook his head slowly. "You can't keep her here. What if she finds out? Do you truly think her mind won't break from seeing what you both could become by her mere touch?"
Shigure shrugged slightly. "Either way…" A gleam entered his mischievous gaze. "She's a lot cuter than Cook…maybe I should commission Ayame to create a maid uniform for her."
Hatori sighed and lit a cigarette, releasing a thick stream of smoke. "I'm sure Yuki would delight in burying you once and for all beneath his garden."
Shigure rubbed the back of his neck. "Aheh…probably…"
TBC………I HOPE THIS MAKES UP FOR MY LONG TIME IN REVIEWING! LEAVE REVIEWS PLEASE, WILL WRITE FOR REVIEWS, I PROMISE!
George: Hah, right…Aaya's personally stylized clothing line for Tohru! 'Twas much fun to do indeed, I especially like the yellow outfit. Hm, not sure other people will…Oh well! I wuv you (thanks for mentioning your favorite part, warmed me soul).
SelenityPotter: Awww, thanks so much! I'm not really sure what's going through me head when I'm writing these stories, but for some reason I keep thinking the characters are way out of their normal personalities. I enjoy reassurance that I'm not making complete morons of them or my writing style. You get a cookie, compliments of the Evil Lemur.
twilightnight: Glad you're enjoying it, hope this chapter meets up to standards.
hannah5o: Hm, hopefully your questions were answered with this chapter. In case they weren't, ask more and I'll see if I can't clear them up for the next sequence.
RhysDarkness: I changed it, just for you. Cool review name by the way, is there a specific place you got it from? I wonder because it reminds me of a character in a fairy series I'm reading by Laurell K. Hamilton. Just curious…yes, I know…I'm weird, and I'm perfectly okay with that.
Crystal: Ah…I already put the coupling, or the major part of it, in the summary…but yes, she's going to somehow end up with both cat and rat…don't ask me how. I haven't progressed that far yet…wish I could put a winking smiley face in here…thanks though for your review! You get a chocolate muffin, compliments of the Evil Lemur.
Liliath: Hah, you're so evil; it amuses me to no end! I know, poor Tohru, hopefully I make up for that in this chapter. But you know, you can't really write a good story unless you torture the characters, it's so much more fun that way! Yes, I have many things in store for her in meeting the Zodiac, the biggest coming with Kyo…must hurry and progress to that, because I can't really introduce anyone else until I get Kyo in there…
Nessa: You're insane! But then, I can't really complain, because so am I. You nut, also I just realized, after probably seeing that damnable fake e-mail address a hundred times, what it means! And yes, thanks SO much for tainting my reviews you doting Phantom lover. Shall I keep me hand at the level of me eyes? I wuv you.
elena: Hah, liked it so much, words seemed to fail you when coming to reviewing the story right? Your cryptic review rather intrigued me; I'd like another one like it please.
Avestia: Ah, thanks so much! I hope this chapter abounds to your liking, please tell me how it is! I need encouragement.
Taran-Wanderer: I wish I could express how much your review means to me…really, but I can't think of any words that will tell you how happy I am to know that you like my storyline and it's refreshing. I cried, how about that? I cried when I read your review. Thank you so much…
amber: Ah, wow! Well, I made this chapter longer with your review in mind actually, and because I knew I would have to make up for my lack of updating. I hope this suits, and I hope it IS one of your favorites soon enough!
Beginning'n'End: Hopefully this clears up a few things. I'm trying very desperately to move Kyo into the plot, but I can't rush it, seeing as how my ideas for entering him run very thick and very large. This plot I'm dealing with involves many trigger events, and I need each one to go off at a precise moment in order for the other things to happen. If I just confused you even more, I'll just say thank you so much for your review, pray for another one, and bid you a good…day…!
lita: Yes, I agree, Kyo needs to get into the picture, but my plot for him, I'm learning, can't be rushed because it involves a meeting between Shigure/Akito, or possibly Tohru's first meeting with Akito himself. We'll see…yes, lot's of Yuki, I think this chapter will satisfy Yuki cravings…maybe…hehe…Cults…
BigWillStyle: You finally found it! After days of asking over and over for my pen name, you finally found it! Yay! Know I am extremely proud that you have figured out a way to access your computer successfully! I just kidding, just kidding! Anyway, if you're not familiar with Fruits Basket dodo, then go review my Yu-Gi-Oh story! I KNOW you're familiar with that series! Thanks, though, for finally giving me a review!
