Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket, I never have owned Fruits Basket, and I probably never will own Fruits Basket, though that remains to be seen. I am merely a dedicated fan, in love with the world, story, characters coughYUKIcough and possibilities therein, so anything you recognize from the anime doesn't belong to me. So don't sue me. I'm a poor college student, so I have no money, anyway.

Enjoy, and please leave a review when you're done! Arigato!

A/N: Several people have now left reviews relating my character Kikyo to the character Kikyo in Inuyasha. All I can say is, "Are you reading my story or not?" Yes they have the same name and yes they are both priestesses, but the similarities end there. They don't look alike, they don't act alike, THEY ARE NOTHING ALIKE! My Kikyo is NOT the Kikyo from Inuyasha! THAT Kikyo is an undead clay pot that eats women's souls to maintain her pathetic excuse of a 'life' and won't leave Inuyasha alone! I hate that Kikyo and my Kikyo is NOTHING like her!

growls Now I'm all worked up! I must calm myself. Yuki, where are you? I wanna cuddle!

Yuki – Oh, God. Hide me.

Rae – Nonsense. You like it, I can tell.

Yuki – It's a lie! A bitter falsehood!

Rae – Just remember, I'm the author. That means I am your God, and you are my mortals; bow down to my divine power! (cackles malevolently)

All – Help us…

(Rant ends here…)

Chapter Five: When it Rains…
Kikyo made her way to the front door and slid it open. She blinked at the small group of people that stood before her. Rain was lashing the pavement and the people outside of Shigure's house were rapidly becoming soaked. It was an all out downpour!

"Quick, come inside!" Kikyo slid the door open all the way and stepped back quickly, allowing them space to fit through the door. The three of them came in and stood on the stone floor dripping rain water everywhere.

"Hi, Kikyo! Do you remember me?" It was the little blonde girl with the liquid chocolate eyes. Her hair was plastered to her face and stuck up strangely in the back and her wet shirt clung to her chest and her socks were half falling down. Despite all that there was a huge smile on her face and her eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. "Do you? Do you?"

Kikyo couldn't help but smile. "Of course I remember you! You're Momiji Sohma."

"You're right! And who's this?" Momiji yanked on the hand of the silent man next to her.

"Hatori-san." Kikyo smiled and bowed politely. "It's good to see you again."

"Indeed." He replied monotonously while concentrating on kicking his shoes off without slipping in all the rain water.

"And you don't know him yet, but that's Hatsuharu Sohma. Haru, this is Kikyo Honda, she's Tohru's cousin." Momiji proclaimed.

Hatsuharu was a gorgeous young man and Kikyo guessed he was around 16 or 17 years old. His hair was strange; white on top and black underneath, it was styled into a spiky mess of organized chaos. His eyes were clear and colorlessly grey and his skin was almost gothicly pale, and he had several piercings in each ear and a collection of black and silver jewelry adorned his neck and wrists. In short, Kikyo thought he was rather a hunk.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Kikyo said as she bowed to him. She focused her gaze on the floor in a pathetic attempt to hide her sudden blush.

"Ah, the pleasure's all mine." Haru bowed back and smiled slightly, a mere up-turn at the corners of his lips. His voice was mellow and had a rough under tone.

'Why are they all so hot!' Kikyo wondered.

Her gaze, which was still aimed at the floor, focused on one of the puddles growing underfoot and suddenly she felt like a fool. "Oh, no! You're soaked! Give me a moment to find some towels and blankets." As she said this she realized that she had no idea where they were. Regardless, she moved back down the hall to the dining room and opened her mouth to ask where she could find the needed items, but froze at the bizarre scene that awaited her.

Yuki had Kyou pinned against the wall to her right with a hand to the red headed boy's throat. Kyou was clawing at Yuki's wrist and whispering something in a harsh undertone. At the same time Yuki also had Shigure pinned to the floor with one foot planted firmly in the center of the older man's back. Shigure was trying to squirm free but not having much success.

The expression on Yuki's face was intense and focused. His eyes were darkened almost to a plum color and he was grimacing as though he had fangs to flash threateningly. Kikyo almost swallowed her tongue. 'Sexy! Yuki is… oh, my lord, I'm a puddle… Wait… I wonder…' She frowned suddenly and her thoughts turned inward as the miko part of her brain spun into rotation.

"Honda-san?" Yuki's smooth voice snapped her out of her musings and she found herself confronted with his startlingly violet eyes in close range. His face was about a foot away from hers; he'd been bending over, trying to catch her eye.

"Oh, I- uh- n-need to find… towels… and blankets." Kikyo could have slapped herself for her lack of smoothness. "Your guests are soaked! It's really coming down out there."

"Here, follow me." Yuki cast one final glare over his shoulder at Kyou, who was rubbing his neck and cursing under his breath, then stepped past her and into the hallway she'd come out of. He took another turn shortly down a hall that led past the bathroom on the first floor and stopped at a shoji door that concealed the entrance to a walk-in linens closet. "It's a little cramped in here. I'll hand some towels out to you."

"Okay." Kikyo nodded once. She watched for a moment as he rummaged through stacks of towels trying to find relatively old ones to mop the floor with as well as nicer ones for the visitors to dry off with. She frowned slightly as she watched him, taking in the strange color of his hair and the fairness of his skin. Her cheeks colored slightly when he reached for a shelf over his head and his shirt pulled up high enough to reveal a few inches of his flat stomach. His abs were plainly visible, more so when he contracted them for leverage against the weight of the towels he was shifting through above his head. There was a narrow trail of downy grey fuzz that ran from his navel downward and disappeared beneath the waistband of his trousers.

Kikyo felt slightly dizzy. She shook her head slightly and blinked a few times, frowning slightly harder. 'I know this feeling. There's some kind of enchantment at work here. Is this part of the Sohma Family curse? They're all unbelievably gorgeous, but also untouchable…'

Yuki caught sight of her frown and looked at her questioningly. "Are you alright, Honda-san?"

Kikyo shrugged uncomfortably and smiled. "I'm fine. Are those towels acceptable?"

Yuki glanced down at the towels he held in his hands. "Yes. Use these on the floor." He passed them to Kikyo then turned and grabbed another stack. "These will be for them to dry off with."

"Okay." Kikyo thrust her arms out to accept the stack of towels but Yuki waved her off.

"I'll carry them for you." He said. "Go ahead. I'll follow you." He gestured vaguely with his arms towards the open hallway.

Kikyo backed up and moved down the hall then paused to wait for Yuki to slide the closet door closed and catch up with her. Once he had she led the way back to the entry way and smiled at the soaked occupants apologetically. "Sorry that took me so long." She dropped her stack of towels and turned to Yuki to grab one of the nice ones and open it before passing it off to Momiji.

"Hi, Yuki!" Momiji chirped. "Are we in time for dinner?"

"Momiji!" Hatori said reprovingly. "That's not why we're here."

"Awwww, but I'm hungry! I want something to eat!" Momiji whined as she scrubbed the towel roughly over her hair before throwing over her shoulders like a cape and trying to make a break for the kitchen calling, "Tohru! Tohru, where are you? I want a hug!"

Kikyo blinked and suddenly Kyou was there looming over Momiji who was now squatting on the floor holding her head and wailing pitifully. "Wah! Tohru, Kyou's hitting me!"

"Shut up, you little brat!" Kyou growled. "Why are you here?" He rudely asked of Hatori.

Hatori ignored him. It was Hatsuharu who responded. "We were in the neighborhood." His voice was so mild that he sounded half asleep. Kikyo passed him a towel which he accepted with a tiny smile and a hooded look that made Kikyo blush.

"What were you doing all the way out here?" Yuki ground out. He had seen the look 'Haru passed Kikyo and it made his blood boil. His throat felt tight and he had an almost overwhelming urge to break something, probably 'Haru's face.

"That's not your concern." Hatori said. He accepted a towel from Kikyo almost negligently and draped it about his shoulders. "The weather turned bad and we decided to stop rather than pressing on. The rain isn't going to stop any time soon. Shigure shouldn't mind us spending the night."

"Of course not, Ha'ri!" Shigure called from the dining room where he'd apparently been listening in on the whole conversation. "You can stay as long as you like!"

Kikyo frowned. "Oh, I guess I should call home and ask them what to do."

"What do you mean, Honda-san?" Yuki asked. He cast concerned violet eyes down on her and she felt her blush rising again.

"Well, if the weather is so bad I don't think my father will want to come and get me. I guess I'll just have to walk to the train station." She looked out the still open door into the driving rain and felt a shiver crawl up her spine.

"Of course not!" Yuki exclaimed. "You can't go out in that! Stay here tonight."

"Oh, no, I wouldn't want to impose upon you when you've already been so kind." Kikyo started, but Kyou cut her off.

"Quit being stubborn, Red. Just spend the night." He almost sounded reasonable. "You can share Tohru's room. She won't mind."

"But I wanted to sleep with Tohru!" Momiji whined.

"Momiji, you know that wouldn't be appropriate." Hatori scolded.

"Yeah, keep your damn filthy hands away from Tohru, you little pervert!" Kyou yelled.

'Pervert! She's just a little girl, what are they all going on about?' Kikyo wondered. Aloud she said. "Then would you mind if I used your phone quickly? I should let my family know what's going on."

"Of course you may." Yuki told her. "Follow me." He led her away from the loud argument that ensued in the hallway between Momiji wanting to sleep with Tohru and Kyou spouting expletives. "I apologize for your having to listen to that garbage."

"No, that's alright." Kikyo assured him. "I guess Kyou's temper hasn't gotten any better since I knew him in Hokkaido."

"I don't know about that." Yuki told her. "He's actually a lot mellower than he used to be."

"That I can tell." Kikyo said with a laugh. "I only meant that when he really gets mad he still explodes."

"Well yes, I suppose that is true." Yuki smiled at her over his shoulder. "Here's the phone. Take as long as you need."

"Thank you." Kikyo watched as he moved down the hall to a distance from which he would not be able to hear her conversation but would still be able to answer if she had any questions. She picked up the phone and dialed home. Her mother answered.

"Moshi Moshi."

"Hi, mom." Kikyo said. She leaned back against the wall and crossed her arms over her chest, pinning the phone against her shoulder and getting comfortable for the long haul.

"Kikyo! Where are you? I haven't heard from you all day! Did your thing at Sohma House go well? Were you able to help that man at all? Grandpa told me all about it! Grandpa, come here! Kikyo's on the phone!"

Kikyo heard her grandfather's voice in the background. "Oh, good I wanted to ask her a question. Don't let her hang up before I talk to her, Akane!"

"Okay, Dad. Hey, Jamesu, Kikyo is on the phone. How's the weather doing?"

She heard her father respond but couldn't decipher the words.

"Oh, dear. I don't think your father will be able to come and get you, Kikyo. It's just raining too hard. Where are you? Is it raining hard there? Maybe you could get to the train."

Finally a break in the flood! "I'm with Tohru like I have been all day, Mom. I told Grandpa earlier. I ran into her at Sohma House and we spent the day together. It's raining really hard here too, so I can't walk to the train station, but that's okay. I've been invited to spend the night here."

"Oh, good! Good! That just works out wonderfully then. We should be able to pick you up in the morning. We'll have to see about the weather then so you just give us a call in the morning when you're ready to come home, okay?"

"Sure, Mom, sounds good."

"Wait, Akane, give me the phone!" Her grandpa exclaimed.

"Okay. Kikyo, your grandpa wants to talk to you. Here he is…"

"Kikyo, how did Sohma House go? Were you able to do anything for Akito-san?"

"I made a potion to ease some of his symptoms. I know it's a curse that's causing them, but I need to do more research before I'll be able to lift it, if I can at all. It's very old and gets stronger with each generation, which is odd."

"That is odd. Hmmm. Well, there's nothing to be done for it right now. You get a good night's rest and we'll see you again in the morning."

"Okay. Say good night to everyone for me."

"I will. Bai bai, Kikyo."

"Bai bai."

Kikyo hung up the phone and let out a long slow sigh. Talking to her family on the phone was always an ordeal. Everyone always seemed to have something to say and it didn't help that her mother was very long winded and liked to ask a lot of questions.

"Is everything alright?" Yuki asked. He came back down the hall and leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, focusing his amazing violet eyes on her.

Kikyo felt her heart flutter. "Yes, everything's fine. I'll just give them a call in the morning and hopefully by then it will have stopped raining."

There was a break in the conversation when there was total silence. The argument in the entryway had ended and the only sound to be heard was the steady drum of rain lashing against the roof.

"I really hope I'm not being any trouble." Kikyo said. She concentrated her gaze on her hands because she thought that if she looked into Yuki's eyes any longer her blush would set her face on fire. "I appreciate being allowed to stay, though. Thank you."

"You're welcome. Any time." Yuki answered. His voice was so smooth and mellow that it sent a shiver down Kikyo's spine. He cleared his throat and stood up straight. "Well, why don't we head back into the dining room and eat dinner. I would hate for all the lovely food you and Miss Honda made to go to waste."

Kikyo nodded silently and followed him down the hall and back into the dining room.

(A/N): Please keep the reviews coming in and let me know what you think! I'm curious to see if anyone has any ideas of where I'm taking this story and if any one has any suggestions for me! Sorry about the rant at the top, but I finally got sick of having the two Kikyo's compared. I hate the undead clay bitch as much as most other Inuyasha fans, and the only thing they have in common is their name and their profession. Enough of that. Thanks for reading, everyone. I'll try to write the next chapter soon.