Quick Author's Note: For those of you who aren't familiar with the manga, Rin is the horse zodiac and Haru's star-crossed sort-of girlfriend (i.e. Akito keeps messing with their relationship).

Quick Vocabulary:

Wasabi: Japanese horseradish, quite hot, generally added in very small amounts for flavor

Miso: fermented bean paste
This chapter is referring to the soup made using miso, which is found all over Japan- different regions have different recipes.

Tatami: Japanese straw floor mat

Chapter Summary: Remember those other Sohmas?…Yeah, those Sohmas.

Disclaimer: Fruits Basket belongs to Natsuki Takaya/HAKUSENSHA - TV TOKYO - NAS - Fruba Project. Butterfly is mine.

Warning: Rated R for language, implied rape, torture, and adult situations.

Chapter 16: Opening the Wound

Memories consume
Like opening the wound
I'm picking me apart again

-Linkin Park, "Breaking the Habit"

Ultimately, the review was responsible for all of the problems.

Tohru's restaurant had started to make a name for itself through word of mouth and Akane's savvy publicity. By some odd luck, one of the summer tourists had known a restaurant reviewer for a large national paper.

The guy was a complete asshole.

'That's a little mean, although he certainly didn't try to be very nice to people.'

That's an understatement.

'I don't think I've ever heard Maki-chan that mad.'

Well, he had been grabbing her ass and patronizing her cooking just before she called you. It was probably the cooking that did it.

'He was a little strange when I showed up with Yuki.'

A little strange? The guy was throwing a temper tantrum when we walked in!

'But he did stop when we got there.'

Because he had a fetish for pregnant women.

'Poor Yuki.'

He did try to be good. Up until the third time the asshole tried to grope you.

'Yuki still shouldn't have growled at him.'

Oh come on. I even saw Akane smirking at that one.

'I guess he was just trying to protect me. Too bad he couldn't think of a better reason for the photographer not to take a photo of me than that I was pregnant.'

Oh, you mean the part where the reviewer asked, "Well whose fault is that?"

'Actually the problem was that he did take a picture that we didn't know about.'

Of your face, therefore technically avoiding the whole pregnancy issue.

'We didn't even know about it until nearly a month after it came out and only then because Maki-chan brought the paper to show me. Was it really too much to hope that nobody would notice it?'

YES!

'Okay, but I don't think that there was any way to predict our current situation.'

Hey, you did want a home birth, sweetheart.

-###-

That evening started out beautifully. Tohru was spread out on the porch swing with her head in Yuki's lap and her legs draped over Kyou.

"Please don't stop- that feels great."

Her ankles and feet had become so sore in the last month that it hurt to move around. Kyou's gentle foot massage was exactly what they seemed to need. She was just starting to doze off when she heard someone clearing their throat over by the porch steps. She knew, the instant that the boys froze underneath her, what sort of visitor they had. Sure enough, when she painfully lifted her head to look, Hatori was leaning against the post above the steps, a lit cigarette in his hand and a bag by his feet.

'Oh shit.'

'That sums it up pretty nicely.'

"Please, don't let me interrupt."

Kyou was almost immediately up and off the swing. "You asshole. If you even think about erasing Tohru's memories-"

"I'm not here for Tohru."

Kyou stopped in mid-stride, still standing protectively in front of the swing.

Yuki spoke next, his voice cold and clear. "I swear if you're lying, Hatori, if you do anything to hurt her, I will make Akito seem like a pleasant dream."

Hatori hadn't moved from the post. He took a long draw on the cigarette while watching the three of them. "So you really are all together. I thought that Honda-kun might have picked one of you, but I never expected that all three of you would be involved."

Tohru decided that it was time for her to speak up in this increasingly bizarre nightmare. "Hatori-san, please call me Tohru. Honda-kun hasn't applied to me for years. As for our relationship- we aren't all involved. I'm involved, separately, with both of them."

Kyou's blush reached the neckline of his shirt. "Um...Tohru, I really don't think that that's helping the situation."

Hatori sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. As his bangs lifted, Tohru could see the stress lines and circles under his eyes. Obviously the last five years had not treated Hatori well. Strangely though, Tohru didn't think that he looked any older than when she had last seen him- just more tired.

"Would you please stop worrying? Even if I had been ordered to erase Tohru's memories, I would hardly leave a highly pregnant woman alone and memory-less. I am not a complete monster. In fact, why don't we leave how and why I'm here until a little bit later? I would like to see more of what you have been doing for the last five years than Tohru's restaurant."

You mean other than Tohru?

'Butterfly!'

Kyou and Yuki spoke at the same time. "That damn review!"

Yuki groaned. "I knew I should have punched that reviewer when I had the chance."

Suddenly his expression turned serious. "Just one question Hatori- does Akito know?"

"Not where you are, no. But please, let's leave this until later. I'm exhausted and I was hoping that I could stay the night."

Tohru struggled to right herself, feeling more than a little like an overturned blimp. "If Hatori-san will wait a little bit, I will prepare one of the guest rooms for him."

Kyou was almost immediately by her side, supporting her arm. "Easy does it. You don't need to do any work- Yuki and I will look after the guest room."

Tohru shifted on his arm so she could stick out her tongue at him. "I'm pregnant- not an invalid."

Kyou laughed and pressed a light kiss to her forehead. "I know, love, but I don't want you to get hurt." He placed his hand on her stomach. "You're both too important to damage over something silly."

Tohru smiled and snuggled into his embrace. When she looked over Kyou's shoulder she was surprised to see that Hatori's aura was a whirling mass of colors- blue, black and…green? Why would Hatori be jealous?

'Maybe he's a potential for a threesome!'

'Is that all you think about?'

'Nope. But I am hoping to wear you down eventually!'

"Tohru?" Hatori was standing in front of her, a slightly confused expression on his face.

Tohru blushed. "Pardon me- I occasionally space out."

Kyou coughed behind her. "Occasionally?"

"Oh stop it, you mean, mean man."

That time there was no mistaking the expression of naked envy that swept over Hatori's face.

"If you could just show me the guest room, I would be happy to make it up myself. I think that I am even more tired than I originally thought."

Tohru reached out and placed a hand on Hatori's arm. It was like she had suddenly frozen every muscle of his body in place. "Hatori... I am very happy to see you again, no matter the reason. I hope that you will at least take some tea or a light dinner with us after we have put your things in your room."

Hatori's aura swirled violently, before settling on a deep navy blue with hints of gold. "Thank you- that would be... very nice."

It didn't take long to get Hatori set up in his new room, even though Yuki and Kyou refused to let Tohru do any work. When she finally asked in exasperation if she could make supper, the boys came with her and insisted on doing all the work under her supervision.

'Actually, this is a lot more stressful than just letting me make the food-'

"NO YUKI! Don't put that handful of wasabi into the miso! In fact, why are you even adding wasabi to the miso?"

Yuki shrugged sheepishly. "I like wasabi?"

Tohru groaned. It was going to be a long evening.

By the time supper was finally prepared, Hatori had come back down and was watching the circus with a trace of amusement on his face. The amusement had faded by the time supper was served. When he was actually kneeling on the tatami mats he got right to the point.

"How far along are you?"

Tohru blinked as she set her teacup down. "Kyou figures that I am about eight and a half months along."

"Eight and a half months pregnant? Have you had any kind of pre-natal checkup?"

"Well Kyou has picked up some training-"

"So that would be 'No.'"

Surprisingly, Yuki spoke up. "That's not fair, Hatori. Neko is fully qualified to look after a pregnant woman and he has been more than capable in looking after our minor injuries. And what were we supposed to do? We could hardly take Tohru in for a checkup and specify that all the technicians needed to be women."

Hatori drained his miso before he spoke again. "I will give Tohru a thorough checkup while I am here. You are very, very lucky that there don't seem to have been any complications."

Kyou bristled beside Tohru, and she laid a restraining hand on his arm. It seemed a good time to change the subject. "How did you get here, Hatori? Did you really walk the ten miles from town?"

Hatori shrugged. "I rented a car in town- it's currently parked at the end of your lane. It's pretty hard to drive through a locked gate."

There was a long silence while everyone picked away at their food. Tohru shuddered slightly. It looked like it would be up to her to ask the question that no one wanted to raise. "How is everyone doing?"

Hatori's face became carefully blank.

"Hiro is graduating this year and is trying to go to a local college so that he won't be far from Kisa. Rin and Haru are both working for one of the Sohma corporations. Ritsu has finished his medical training and is helping me in the clinic. Ayame's store is doing well and Kagura just got back from a trip to Europe with her family."

Tohru got a sick feeling in her stomach. The names that she most wanted to know about weren't being mentioned.

Yuki had a hard glint in his eyes when he turned to Hatori. "That all sounds lovely, Hatori... and very much like you aren't telling us anything. So how is our Head of family?"

"Akito? She's dying. She wants you and Kyou to come back to the compound so that she can see you before she goes."

The teacup spilled over the table as it fell from Tohru's nerveless grasp.

'NONONONONO!'

'NONONONONO!'

Tohru was breathing hard, black spots forming in front of her eyes. Yuki was trying to hold her up, but she was swaying drunkenly and she could feel the dizziness taking over.

Then her water broke.

-###-

Now, Tohru is preparing for a premature birth in Kyou's old bedroom, Hatori bent over her, calmly issuing instructions.

The entire process is slightly surreal and Tohru can't really remember much of what is happening other than the excruciating pain. She vaguely recalls some graphic threats about preventing Yuki and Kyou from ever getting her pregnant again, but decides that that she was hallucinating.

No hallucination. Let's castrate the bastards.

She can dimly hear Hatori telling her to 'Push!' and there is a searing pain and pressure that is suddenly relieved. She would really like to figure out what is going on, but she is so very, very tired....

When Tohru blinks her eyes again, she is in the master bedroom, dressed in a nightgown and wrapped in blankets. Yuki and Kyou are sitting beside her on the bed, each holding a hand.

"Hey." Yuki gently brushes her matted hair back from her face. "You know, you've got a grip like a vice, darling."

Tohru's voice is more than slightly raspy. "Baby?"

Hatori appears in her line of sight, a small bundle in his arms. "A healthy boy, probably about six pounds." The bundle moves and as Hatori angles him towards her, Tohru sees the red fuzz on his scalp and the sleepy violet eyes as he blinks at her.

Well you sure know how to confuse a paternity suit, sweetheart.

'He's beautiful.'

If you're into tomatoes.

Tohru smiles at the boys, remembering the name they had agreed on. "Shinta."

"Pure heart?"

Tohru nods weakly.

"I suppose that's fitting." Hatori glances down at the baby in his arms, who yawns back up at him. Tohru reaches her arms out towards him.

Hatori looks uncomfortable, "Tohru... You're cursed and your son can't possibly be one of the Jyuunishi. Not only that, but you're still weak from the birth. If you transform when you hold him, you could be seriously hurt."

Tohru gives Hatori the blackest look she's ever given another human being. "I don't think that my curse works like yours. He might have been able to inherit part of it. Now give me my son."

Obviously Hatori is not strong enough to fight a new mother. He carefully passes Shinta into Tohru's arms and… nothing happens.

Tohru lets out the breath she didn't even know she was holding.

Yuki's eyes are suspiciously shiny. "I don't know whether to thank or curse the gods."

Tohru holds Shinta up to her breast as he greedily starts suckling. Without whatever Shinta inherited she might not have been able to touch him. "Thank them."

As she looks up, she sees Hatori watching her and the baby. Tohru mentally revises her statement. 'Thank them for as long as we are able to enjoy this.'

-###-

Quick Author's Note: It was brought to my attention by my wonderful betas that just because I dream about all those colors that Tohru sees, not everyone else has the damn chart memorized. Er…sorry. Here's the chart as a peace offering :) Remember though- the base 'color' of a person doesn't follow the chart and most of the chart colors have more than one meaning….;)

Anaphalis' Guide to the Colors that Tohru Sees

Red- passion (either anger or lust), consuming need or desire (not necessarily lust)

Black- hatred, blind rage, suspicion, extreme fear, extreme jealousy, extreme shame/self-loathing/guilt, extreme sorrow, extreme lust (basically any dark emotional extreme)

White- calmness, reflection, emotional null

Gold- love, hope, some types of happiness

Green- jealousy, cynicism

Purple- shame, guilt, self-doubt, embarrassment, discomfort

Blue- sorrow, regret

Grey- exhaustion, hopelessness

Canary Yellow- joy, innocent happiness

Pink- nervousness

I'll add more as I think of them. If I've forgotten any please let me know!

Reviewer Responses

GirlWaterShaman: As far as I know, it's not possible to have two fathers for a single fetus unless you're doing some fairly whacked out genetic engineering :) That being said, one of my other reviewers was kind enough to tell me about a situation where a woman bore two children from two different fathers…. Boggles the mind, it does…. Great to hear from you again and I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

A Panda from CTY: I love covering all the emotional bases- one of the major advantages of having a split writing personality ('Angst!' 'Humor!' 'Angst!' 'Humor!' 'BOTH!' 'At the same time!') And that sounded a lot more dirty written down than it did in my head…. Always lovely to hear from you- I hope you like the plot kick this chapter :)

fruitbasketrocks: Never fear- there will be more sex. I'm just trying to keep the sex down to what's necessary to the plot or at least that's what I keep telling myself ;) In all seriousness though, I'm a little concerned that the story's going to get pulled if I'm not careful. Thanks for reviewing again and I hope that you continue to enjoy the story!

for sale: Yay for RepressedSarcasm!Tohru! I'm glad that you think the gradual changes work well- I had a bit of a shock when I re-read the prologue and Chapter 1 and then skipped to Chapter 18. I don't think I realized how much things had changed until then :) As for "tying things up", well –kicks stupid plot bunnies- I've had to break two of the later chapters in half, the climax chapter is currently 10 000 words and there are at least thirteen chapters left (the story will never end BWA HA HA!). Um…Yeah…. Good to hear from you again!

DarkLuna: I'm glad that you think that the story is improving- I think it's thanks to my fantastic editors :) Thank you for taking the time to review and I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

AmuberuMukku: Okay please let me see the pretty Butterfly? Plee-eeze? I'm glad that you enjoyed the scene with Yuki and Tohru- I had this very clear image of a breast-obsessed Yuki struck dumb by Tohru's revealing dress. And I love having Tohru tease the boys :) Always good to hear from you and I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

Ember Silverly: Thank your sister for me! I'm glad that you enjoyed reading it as well- it has a bit of a split personality and changes quite a lot from the beginning through the plot development :) Thank you for taking the time to review!

bookworm0492: Actually the cannibalism was another reviewer- they threatened to eat me if I didn't post faster :) Don't worry though- I'm still very fond of your chainsaw :) Ah the Butterfly love- it's getting a bit of a swollen head. Good to hear from you again and this story will get finished, so put down the power tools….

Kyolover91: Well I'm glad I'm forgiven. As I wrote to for sale, this story is nowhere near done (at least another 13 chapters), so you don't have to worry about it ending anytime soon :) Thanks for reviewing again- I hope that you enjoy the chapter without any nasty cliffies :)

shadowcat15: I love the threesome myself, but I must admit I'm curious. You sound like you know more about this than me- how many stories are there out there where all three of them are involved or the two boys are both involved with Tohru? I can only think of one or two others off the top of my head where she didn't eventually choose one or the other and one of those two was suggested rather than realized. Sorry- I'd just love to read more of them ;) Thanks for reviewing and glad you're enjoying the story!

Kupo: I guess I don't get my cookie (puts on pouty face). But think of it this way- if it had been a girl neither Kyou nor Yuki could have held her. Do I get my cookie now :)? Great to hear from you again (and I really want that cookie)!

MaNgA-bOy-LoVeR: I agree that Butterfly and Tohru seem to be reaching a lot more agreements now than they did before :) Poor Tohru has definitely been "toughened up".

prettyStupidGirl: I'm glad that you enjoyed the story- it seems a lot of people have friends like Butterfly ;) I guess I can't find it that shocking since Butterfly is partially based on someone I know, although certain aspects of the personality are er… highly exaggerated :) The opening to your story does sound very intriguing- I always like stories that deal with Cat. Thanks for taking the time to review and I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

deathdreamerofneverlove: Well, cliffie's all gone now. But as an evil cliffie child there's always the chance for more. BWA HA HA! Er… I'm very happy that you like Butterfly. Thank-you for reviewing!

Evil Bunny 1: Mmmm…. Irish Breakfast Tea…. As someone who absolutely can't drink coffee (makes my hands shake), I'm all about the Breakfast Tea :) I was surprised by how many people agreed with me when I made the pairing obvious- although I've always thought of it as the best solution, I know that a lot of people prefer one of the boys over the other. I'm glad that you don't think that it's that strange of an idea- you should have seen my original beta's face when I told him I was going to write a threesome fic involving a voyeuristic butterfly stuck in the main character's head. Yeah- that's the reaction. I very much enjoyed your review and I hope that the story continues to hold you!

kitsunechan-90: Oh dear. I really have to apologize- your review was absolutely lovely and I wasn't offended at all. I was actually making a really bad joke at my expense but my bad sense of humor sometimes doesn't translate well to writing :) Please don't worry about offending me- I grew up with a fairly large immediate family and have become the insult equivalent of Teflon ("You think that's insulting? I've been called twice as bad! And it involved a goat!"). I'm very happy to hear from you again and I hope that you continue to enjoy the story anyways despite my poor joke :)

Panthera: Wow. The threats are getting more creative:) I don't know that anyone's threatened me with socks before…. I'm glad that you're enjoying the story so much- I know that I'm having a great time writing it and I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

MissTeya: Thank you for reviewing again- I'm very glad that you are continuing to enjoy the story :)

Kae Noel: Yes- Butterfly's infamous mind control techniques work better under repeated exposure :) Glad you're enjoying the story you poor brain-washed minion er… "avid reader" and I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

saiyuki-cat: I'm really happy that you decided to give the story a chance despite it's mystery/drama overtones. If I'm going to be perfectly honest, I don't normally read that many mystery/dramas myself so I'm not entirely sure why I decided to write one :) You will get to find out what happened to Akito and as for chapters, I've had to split two of the later chapters up so I think there are thirteen more chapters altogether.

truffletruffle01: Okay. Out of all of my reviewers, you are the only one who has found something that truly scares me :) –Whimpers and hides from evil MacDonald's theme song- Glad that you're enjoying the story though and I hope that you continue to enjoy it :)

anah midale: Turning inside out? That sounds painful :). Your poor manager… I can just see the explanation, "Well you see there's this sex-crazed butterfly, only it's not really a butterfly because it's inside her head and it wants her to sleep with these two guys and she's already sleeping with them only not at the same time." Yeah. That would be fun :) Thanks for making me laugh- I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

NekoInuyasha13: I think you're the first person to comment on the alternating focus thing- cookies for you ;) I try not to put too much angst in a row- and you're right, I do consider this chapter one of the funnier chapters. I think both Kyou and Yuki are growing up and therefore are both learning to express themselves more than they have in the past. At least that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it ;) Thank you for taking the time again to write a thoughtful and detailed review. I hope you like the new plot points!

ChibiMomo: I am really happy that you think that the characters seem real. They certainly seem very real in my head when I'm writing them and that was probably the best thing you could have said to make me smile :) I'm very glad that you are enjoying this and I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

makalaseri: Strangely enough, I think that a lot of the recent manga chapters do boil down to "Akito's just pissy because the boys like Tohru/Rin etc. better". Which I find disturbing on many levels….As for Ayame X Akito –snorts, starts giggling uncontrollably- I wonder which of them would survive that relationship…. And yes, Fukubashi is very creepy. Fun to write, but very creepy. Always a delight to hear from you, even if you stuff my head full of scary pairings :)

Trai Maxwell: I'm glad that you've enjoyed the last two chapters- the hard core plottiness is coming back full force :) Yes- I'm happy that Tohru's having a baby too, although I suspect my reasons are far more sinister than yours…. Um… pretend I didn't say that :) Great to hear from you again- I hope you enjoy the new chapter!

Kitsuyei: Yes- Yuki's employer Fukubashi is all kinds of strange. I'm not entirely sure that I'd want to go to one of his parties, but I'm sure that it would definitely be interesting :) Baby? Who's your daddy? (Sorry- couldn't resist :) Always a pleasure to hear from you and I hope you enjoy the new chapters.

Niesia: I'm actually a big fan of both the boys (in case it isn't blindingly obvious :) and I think this is one of the only "rare pairings" in fanfiction that has a lot of manga support- or maybe that's just my wishful thinking :) I think that Butterfly is a big influence on Tohru yes, and I really do love it, but… I think that Tohru is also a fairly strong person in her own right and a lot of what Butterfly is doing is just bringing that out. Frankly though as much as I love confronting Tohru with her evil, inner, "sweetie"-calling Butterfly, I think I'd be terrified if my "animal instincts" sounded like Butterfly :) I'm very glad that you're enjoying the story and I really appreciated the thoughtful review :)

gadez: Hey! You're not supposed to guess plot points like that :)! Good job on predicting the Sohma reunion- I did stretch it out quite a bit didn't I? And yes, at the end of Chapter 15, they had been living together for four years and at the end of Chapter 16, roughly five years… I'm glad that you think that the characters are maturing well- I've been trying to show them growing up although I don't think they'll ever get over some of their childhood traits :) And I agree, Kyou has done a lot of maturing…. Thank you for yet another involved and thoughtful review- I hope you enjoy your chosen plot point this chapter :)

Luffy V'shile: There are an awful lot of sex jokes in this story, but yes, I think both Kyou and Yuki have made their opinions very, very clear :) –Blinks innocently- Do you have something in your eye :)? There are surprising number of people who think like Butterfly- for that reason the Cult of Pervy Butterfly Minions was created. We're still working out the complementary t-shirt ;) Thank-you for your very enjoyable reviews- I hope that you continue to enjoy the story!

inuyasha-girly-2007: I agree- poor Tohru really has a lot of stuff to work through. But I think that she's pretty tough :) As for the threesome- there sure a lot of people who agree with Butterfly :) Thank you for taking the time to review again- I hope you enjoy this chapter!

ohimesama: Wow…. That's an absolutely bizarre story. The poor woman…. I'm afraid that Tohru isn't kitten-like this time around, although now I have this strange image of her nursing a litter…. Good to hear from you again- I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

xoxKiSS: I'm very glad that you are enjoying the story and I hope that you're not dead yet :) Thank you for taking the time to review!

baka-onna2003: Well, I guess this chapter answers the Sohma question ;) Not answering about the threesome, but I'm also very fond of Butterfly :) Thank you for reviewing again- I hope you continue to enjoy the story!

Inulover: Not the Kagura-threat! Actually I really like Kagura- I just think that Kyou brings out a really er… strange side of her. But I guess you'll have to see if Tohru is the curse solution or not ;) Thank you for reviewing and I hope you like the new story twist!

Updated 01-22-05