Disclaimer: ... I like pies n.n! (I also don't own Furuba.)

Hey-o! Sorry for the slightly slower update than usual... I've been trying out Kenjutsu... and I'm going back tomorrow! Yay! So yeah... I'm all sore and stuff. But it's a lot of fun, and it's not as easy as it looks... and the sword is heavy... but it's fun! So, yeah, anyways, Kyo swears a lot in this chapter... yay! Oh, and I don't plan to continue this story for very many chapters, so be ready for a dramatic ending, and a possible sequel. (Either that, or I'll try another bizarre Furuba pairing o.o)

So, for now, enjoy and don't forget to review n.n!

Part Twenty-Three: Dress

Shigure flung the garment over the other side of the room, his eyes wide with shock, staring at the maids dress crumpled in the corner. If he wasn't mistaken, that was his own handwriting on the tag; which meant that he had ordered that from Ayame for Kyo.

"That... is not right." Shigure muttered to himself, scratching the back of his head, searching his brain for the right emotions. Unfortunately – they weren't there. No matter how hard he tried to feel disgusted at himself, he couldn't. "..."

Giving one last glare at the maids outfit, Shigure stormed out of his room.

"PRICK! YOU FUCKING PRICK!" Kyo screamed, pointing an accusing finger at Koda. "YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT!"

Koda simply scratched the back of his head, deciding that it wasn't a very good idea to interrupt Kyo in his tantrum – after all, he was having one for a good reason, and if Koda interrupted he could end up with more than a hurt pride.

Kyo took a deep breath in and said finally; "God... I can't even stand to look at you!"

"..." Koda clasped his hands together. He couldn't say anything, he wouldn't say anything. So, he observed his surroundings instead. Kyo had practically dragged Koda to a rather secluded part of a local park – probably so he didn't get arrested after he beat the crap out of Koda.

"So, what do you have to say for yourself?" Kyo turned around and glared at Koda. "Huh!"

"... Nothing." Koda replied, looking briefly at the ground, than at Kyo. Truth be told – Koda felt awful. Most of him couldn't believe that he'd even done something so horrible, while a very small portion was glad that Shigure had gotten what he'd got. Needless to say, the horrible feeling side out weighed the glad side.

"Well that's... eh?" Kyo blinked. He hadn't expected that. He'd expected Koda to go into a gigantic lecture on how Shigure had deserved what he got, and how Kyo didn't deserve happiness. But this... just sucked all the great feeling out of mentally kicking the shit out of Koda.

"I have nothing to say for myself, Kyo." Koda muttered, "I know what I did was wrong, I know it ruined your life, and I now know that revenge wasn't the answer."

"Well that's..." Kyo blinked. "Good? I... guess. ... HEY WAIT A GOD DAMN SECOND! You're saying this NOW?"

"... Well... I said everything you wanted to hear, didn't I?"

"That's besides the point!"

"In any case," Koda continued, his voice sounding pretty low, "I'm leaving to go to the US."

"Eh?" Kyo blinked. What in the hell was Koda going on about...? "Why?"

"Don't pretend like you want me to stay." Koda snapped, "And I'm going because I know that nobody can stand between you and Shigure, and I'd better get my ass out of Akito's reach before he locks me up again. If you have any sense, you'll do the same."

"I'm not going anywhere." Kyo replied simply. "And I will make him remember."

"Which," Koda said, waving his hand for maximum effect, "would explain me moving the States. Say goodbye to Shigure for me."

As Kyo watched Koda walk away for the last time, he was speechless. Koda had pretty much just apologised and Kyo hadn't... hit him. He'd been meaning to snap the wolf in two, but he hadn't. There was just something... different about him, something that made Kyo think that he was truly sorry for what he'd done. But, more than that, Kyo was surprised that he'd been able to with strain his fists.

The damn mutt was rubbing off on him.

"Aya... this is really confusing." Shigure said into the phone, flipping through the many layers of the maids outfit to try and find the name tag again. "I swear, in my handwriting, this outfit that you clearly designed is address to Kyo."

"Well why wouldn't it be, Gure?" Aya's voice replied, sounding rather confused, "You were the one who custom ordered it from me."

"I... what?" Shigure asked, completely dumbfounded.

"You don't remember? Gee... Kyo will be disappointed."

"Eh? What would Kyo be disappointed about?"

"You deviant, you!" Aya's voice rung out, louder than usual, "You wanted to see what Kyo..."

Shigure slammed the phone on the receiver, his fist almost ripping the material of the outfit. "There is no way." He muttered to himself, "No way in hell that I'd..."

"What's no way in hell?"

Shigure blinked, looking up at a stoic Kyo, who was standing with his hands in his pockets. Shigure panicked, hiding the outfit behind his back. "No-Nothing!"

Kyo didn't say anything, but his eyes trailed to the maid dress that Shigure had half hidden behind his back. He'd seen it when he'd walked in, and unfortunately, he was willing to bet exactly what it would have been for. Needless to say, he wouldn't be missing that part of their relationship – not that there would have been any way that Shigure would have been able to dress him up in that in the first place.

"Yeah, what ever." He said softly, walking past the novelist, he paused momentarily. "Oh... right... before I forget... Koda said to say goodbye... the filthy little fucking mutt that he is..."

Shigure bristled. He felt... angry? Why did he feel... angry? Pausing to ponder for a moment – it hit him. He was angry at Kyo for black-mouthing Koda! He didn't know why – he had betrayed Koda after all, but he was sure that was what seriously pissed him off. Too bad he was completely wrong.

"Kyo..."

"What?" The cat turned around, only to be smacked up against the wall under Shigure's weight, Shigure's arm pinning Kyo's neck up to the wall.

"Don't you dare ever say that about Koda again."

Kyo opened his mouth to speak, but shut it. Shigure looked... scary. Kyo had never seen him in such a light, and it suddenly occurred to him why he was Akito's loyal mutt for so long. Shigure wasn't always the happy-go-lucky novelist that he portrayed to everybody – he had his dark side too.

It was then that Kyo realised that he couldn't breathe.

Reaching his hand up to combat Shigure's arm, he attempted to breathe without much success. Not only was he scary, he was strong too. Gripping the arm with two hands, Kyo forced Shigure off.

Shigure stumbled back a few steps, glaring at Kyo, who was leaning with one hand against the wall, his other hand gripping his throat as he coughed and regained his breathing pattern. "Fucking..." cough "stray..." cough "mutt!" Kyo spluttered, glaring at Shigure who glared back just as strongly.

"..." Kyo straightened his posture, coughed a few times more, gave Shigure a cold and upset look, then stalked off in the direction of the stairs.

Shigure was dumbfounded. Kyo had given him a... sad look? How in the hell did that work? Also, he hadn't lashed out at the dog. Had Kyo not wanted to hurt him? Huh... yeah right! Considering the feeling in his gut as satisfaction, Shigure grabbed the maid's outfit from the ground, stared at it for a moment, before walking into the kitchen and disposing it in the proper fashion.