Summery; Warning; Disclaimer: See First Chapter
All right, people - the saga is coming to a close! Not counting my LOTR story and sequel together, this is the LONGEST story I've ever written so far! There will be one more chapter - two at the most - and then it's over. I'm not doing a sequel. I want it to end and let people imagine what happens next. I have a few other FB stories in my head, but I'm not even going to start thinking about them until this is done, I promise.
Poor Mrs. Ward. I don't know why Hatori picked her to help us – she can't deal with life with the Sohmas, I don't think. And she doesn't even know about the curse.
"What's going on?" Ayame wondered sleepily, hearing a shriek echo through the house. Ritsu, in a similar position in his own room, blinked groggily, and contemplated going back to bed.
"I shouldn't," he sighed, and dragged himself to the door, now hearing a woman's lovely soprano voice going full-tilt.
"It's not what it looks like!" Haru yelled, dangerously close to going Black Haru on the panicked and enraged Mrs. Ward. Rayne was still in the bed, and futilely protesting that nothing had happened between Haru and herself.
"I know what I see with my own two eyes!" she said loudly, and then turned around as Ayame shuffled in, followed by a now-awake and curious Ritsu. "I found those two in bed together!" she announced. Ayame woke up at this, his eyes widening to a rather-large point. Ritsu choked, and Haru turned a dark red.
"We – were – not!" he yelled, and Rayne hid her face in her hands.
"I doubt it's the way you think it is, Mrs. Ward," Ayame said smoothly, attempting to pacify the woman and shoot Haru a death glare at the same time. Ritsu quietly went over to Rayne, and began to whisper to her.
Mrs. Ward narrowed her eyes at Haru, and then snapped back to Ayame.
"Mr. Sohma, I'm an old woman, but I know when hanky-panky happens," she said firmly, "If you're not going to do anything about this, I'm afraid I must leave."
"After my cousin paid you for at least a month?" Ayame asked pleasantly, "That would be a breach of contract, Mrs. Ward."
She froze in her rant, and Haru sighed in relief as she stalked out of the room. He gulped, however, when Ayame turned to him.
"And what do you think you were doing?" he demanded. Ritsu stood up quickly and pulled Ayame aside, and began to whisper in his ear. Rayne and Haru exchanged nervous glances, and she sighed when Ayame suddenly began to laugh.
"That's all?" he asked. When Ritsu nodded, he continued to laugh as he turned back to Haru. "I apologize – Haru…and Rayne – for not…for not believing you," he choked out, through his gasps of laughter.
Haru glared at him, and then shoved past them out the door. Rayne groaned, and looked sheepishly at Ayame.
"It's really my fault, Ayame," she began, "I'm the one who asked Haru to stay. I'm sorry."
"No, no, it's quite all right," he shook his head, "Just don't do it on the nights Mrs. Ward stays over, please. Ah…what a way to greet the day. I'll have to tell Shigure and Hari about this soon."
"What?" Haru demanded, still outside the door. Rayne squeaked as the teen shoved his face inches away from Ayame's. "Don't you dare, or I'll skin you alive in your Zodiac form, and then repeat the process when you're back to what you call normal," he said quietly, most definitely Black Haru. Ayame nodded weakly, and the stubborn boy stalked back out of the room.
"I think I'll go smooth things over with Mrs. Ward," Ritsu offered, but Ayame shook his head.
"No, that's my job, as chaperone," he sighed, and promptly left. Ritsu looked back at Rayne, who was still red.
"It's all over with, so don't worry about it," he reassured her, "I won't let Ayame tell anyone about this, all right? By the way…where did you leave the wheelchair?"
Rayne told him where they had ditched it, and he nodded as he stood up.
"I'll have Mrs. Ward bring you some breakfast, and then I'll go send Haru to get it," he decided, "He needs to blow off some steam."
"Don't you think that's a little dangerous?" Rayne asked, before he left. "I mean…he's still Black."
"True, but it's early. There shouldn't be too many innocent bystanders for him to pummel," Ritsu chuckled, fully convinced that Haru wouldn't dare go ballistic on random strangers.
"It's a letter," Shigure said in surprise, opening up a slim envelope. Hatori sat patiently as the novelist read it, and then glanced toward him.
"Well?"
"It's an order to return Rayne to the custody of her parents, courtesy of a lawyer," Shigure told him, handing the paper over grimly. Hatori quickly skimmed the notice, and then crumpled it in his fist.
"She's out of the country by now," he said calmly, "They have no jurisdiction."
"Are you positive?" Shigure asked worriedly, "I mean, they are her parents and legal guardians. What about the boy?""
"Momiji was in the same class as him."
"Was?"
"The boy was sent to a relative yesterday," Hatori revealed, "For a long vacation apparently."
"So, they want him out of the way for this," Shigure mused, "Apparently, they want to play dirty."
"This isn't a joking matter," Hatori said sternly, rising to his feet. Shigure looked up indignantly.
"Who said I was joking?"
"If they manage a court order to bring her back, I'm afraid there won't be a thing we can do – as of now," Hatori added, "But let's try to think of something. There must be a reason they want her back so badly."
"I thought they were just possessive."
"Perhaps," Hatori nodded, "But I think there's something else…a repressed memory, perhaps? Something she knows, something she blocked out from her mind, that they need, or want, her to remember? It could be the cause for her nightmares."
"Her mother stopped giving her the medication to repress her nightmares when they arrived here," Shigure remembered, "Maybe you're right, Hari. What now?"
"We wait," he said firmly, turning away.
"Is he still Black?" Rayne asked Ayame cautiously, as Haru returned to the estate later that afternoon. The snake beamed down at her, ready with a quick reply, until he saw her expression.
"Even if he is, there's no reason for you to be frightened, Rayne," he said softly, "Haru would never hurt you, no matter how Black he is. Believe me."
Rayne looked away from the snake, trying to believe his words.
"But…seeing Hatsuharu like that…it scared me," she admitted to herself, "I've never seen him like that. I didn't know what to do…what to expect."
"I'm back!" Haru shouted, slamming the door behind him, "And I got the damn chair!"
"White," Ayame said firmly, and Rayne glanced at him curiously. "He doesn't sound the same, can you tell?" he asked her, looking down at her briefly, "And his face is different – his eyes are back to normal, see?"
Rayne examined Haru as he approached them, and realized that Ayame was correct. She breathed a sigh of relief, and suddenly rubbed her temple when her head began to pound.
"Are you okay?" Haru asked, kneeling beside her. Rayne shrugged, and looked up a few moments.
"Sorry – just a headache, I guess," she said weakly, and grinned up at them. "Really, I'm okay."
Haru stood up, exchanging a disbelieving look with Ayame, and then shrugged.
"I'll get us something to eat," Ayame said brightly, and disappeared. Haru muttered something after him, and then turned to Rayne.
"I'm sorry if I scared you earlier," he mumbled, and Rayne blinked in surprise. "I just…I can't help it, when I snap. I can't control it, even though I know what I'm doing. But I'd never hurt you, Rayne, no matter what."
Ayame's earlier words echoed in her mind, and Rayne suddenly smiled gently at Haru, squeezing his fingers between hers.
"I know," she said softly, "I'm sorry for doubting you."
Almost two weeks more passed, and Mrs. Ward became accustomed to the odd doings of her new patient and the three young men accompanying her. Within a few days, the older woman was assured that nothing was going on, and soon relaxed in her protectiveness of Rayne.
Haru, for his part, began to relieve his aggressions out in the gym, helping his recent moodiness greatly. Ritsu and Ayame merely enjoyed the break from their everyday lives, and awaited a letter from Hatori telling them of any news.
They got their answer soon enough, and Ayame groaned aloud.
"This isn't good," he said, dramatic but honestly. Ritsu couldn't help but agree. Along with Hatori's letter, the doctor had sent an order of extrication and release of custody for Rayne into her parents' custody.
"What are we going to do?" Ritsu wondered, as Ayame scanned Hatori's letter.
"He said to stall the flight as long as possible – he'll be here within a day," Ayame read, "He and Shigure think they found something out, but he didn't say here. Whatever it is, it's the reason Rayne's father suddenly returned, and why they want her back so badly."
"Doctor Sohma!" Mrs. Ward greeted him pleasantly, and he merely gazed at her. "Your cousins are in the sitting room," she stammered slightly, faltering under his expression.
"Thank you," he nodded, and quickly strode into the room she pointed to.
"Hari!" Ayame greeted him happily, but sat down when Hatori ignored him. Rayne was sitting on the couch, with Haru next to her, his arm around her protectively.
"I trust things have been going well?" Hatori began, sitting down. Ritsu nodded, and he leaned back. "I'm sure you have all seen the papers from Rayne's parent's lawyer," he continued, "There's nothing we can do to stop them. However, I was able to stall for some more time until we discover why they want you back so badly."
Rayne fidgeted nervously under Hatori's stern gaze, and Haru glared at his cousin. Hatori turned away after a moment, and looked back at Ritsu Ayame.
"I wonder if I could have a few moments alone with these two?" he asked, his tone quiet but allowing no arguments. The two adults stood up and quickly left the room, and Hatori turned back to the to teenagers.
"What?" Haru demanded, and Hatori silenced with a glance.
"Rayne, I examined the medication that your mother had been giving you to suppress your nightmares," Hatori told her, "They were not merely sleep aids, but a narcotic was found in them."
"Meaning what?" she asked.
"It was also suppressing certain target memories," he said, and she blinked in surprise, "There's a reason that you stopped receiving the pills once in Japan. For some reason, your parents wanted to you remember something in particular in Japan – perhaps in that same area."
"I've never been to Japan," Rayne began to object, and then paused.
"What?" Haru asked, curious. She remained silent for a moment, and then shook her head.
"I'm almost positive I've never been to Japan," she repeated, and looked at Hatori.
"I checked your passport records," he said, "You went when you were four, about the time your father began his experiments."
Rayne blinked, and Hatori continued.
"I believe your father, after doing some background checks on him as well, was involved with the Japanese mafia, who loaned him the money to fund his experiments," Hatori revealed, and peered at Rayne, "It seems likely that you saw something – a transaction, perhaps – and your parents owe money now. With your memory, they could land the people involved in prison, and free themselves."
"Seems kinda complicated," Haru commented, unconsciously echoing Rayne's sentiments.
"These are not stupid people," Hatori told them firmly, and Rayne rubbed her head.
"I don't get it," she retained, "How could they block specific memories?"
"I don't think they did," he thought, "Instead, they simply blocked out your early childhood memories. Much more thorough, and a lot less expensive drug."
"So that's why they want her back?" Haru asked, "And why her dad came back? He owes them the money, and needs to put them away before they call to collect."
Hatori nodded, and Rayne groaned.
"I have an idea, Rayne," Hatori said finally, after a few moments, and turned to look at her more plainly. "If we stall long enough, your memories may resurface fairly soon. Once that happens, we can use your testimony to put your parents in jail for quite a long time."
"What about Leo?"
"You're almost an adult – and he could be fostered, after all," Hatori reasoned, "But you wouldn't be separated, Rayne. I promise that."
After a few minutes of silence, Rayne nodded, and gripped Haru's hand.
"I'll try."
"Here is your daughter, as we promised," Shigure said cheerfully, meeting the group at the airport. Rayne's parents glared at the writer, and he ignored them as Haru wheeled Rayne towards them.
"We'll take her from here," Carla said sharply, but Hatori thrust a piece of paper towards them and the lawyer that accompanied them.
"What's this?" Aaron demanded, fixing his gaze on Rayne. Shigure smoothly stepped in front of him, effectively blocking his view. Haru squeezed her shoulder, and Ayame and Ritsu had disappeared to retrieve their luggage.
"You have no authority to keep her in your custody, Dr. Sohma," the lawyer said in disbelief, but Hatori smiled grimly.
"I'm afraid we do. You see, Rayne has several important things to the family court judge, as well as the federal authorities in both Japan and America," he told them, and Carla visibly paled. Aaron made a rush toward Rayne, but Haru and Shigure stopped him. Haru laid the larger man out on the floor with one hit, and Shigure looked rather pleased at his own punch.
"Hari! We're ready!" Ayame called from further away, causing the group to turn and look. Hatori sighed, partly in relief, and looked back at the lawyer, who appeared shocked.
"We have a hearing before the judge tomorrow morning, I believe," he said pleasantly, as Haru began to wheel Rayne to follow Shigure towards Ayame and Ritsu. "I trust you'll appear, or it will only damage your reputation. Until tomorrow."
Leaving the three adults stunned, Hatori followed after the others, a satisfied smirk on his lips.
Boy, Hatori's pretty devious, isn't he? I don't even want to know how he got so much information…well, I kinda do, but I have a feeling I shouldn't. Anyway, the court hearing's tomorrow – and I'm petrified. I wonder how Hatori still kept custody of me…I better not know that, either.
KinokeGurl; Christy; Fan 101; lovergal1227; chocolateriku; Saskueblade: I updated as soon as I could! Glad you liked the fluff, and yeah, Haru's a sweetie!
Aki-Shi-Kitsune's: Yes, fluff! And I'm evil! No, no, Mrs. Ward isn't evil! She's just protective of a teenage girl with a house full of young men. But she's nice, I promise.
Sorry I condensed most of you, but I don't want to have a huge list of replies, or I might get in trouble. Like I said, next chapter will most likely be the last, and no sequel! I have something in mind that'll keep you from wanting one, trust me...it's not evil! Don'thurt me! (runs away) Review!