Author's Note: Okay, if you ever have extra time and you're really bored, go to and look at Ina-chan's stories. Her stories are all good; actually, they're great!

I'm so sorry. To those of you, who took the time to read my profile, thank you and yes. I know it sucks and I finally got my computer back. To those of you who didn't take time out of your busy lives to read my profile, my computer broke down. It had all of my stories on there. Sorry.

So, I'll update every other week and I'll try to make sure that the chapters are about 5-7 sentences long, is that okay with everyone else?

Also, Yuki will be OOC in this story and Running from Love. He will be a lot colder to almost everybody except Tohru. Alright?

I was reading Things Not Seen and when I finished reading it, I was all like, OH MY GOD! It's AWESOME! It's seriously awesome! It's so sweet! You should really read it!

Anyways, here's the next chapter!

A Cinderella Twist

Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket or Cinderella otherwise, I would have changed Cinderella's name.

Chapter 4:

She woke. She woke up and realized that she was in her bed, not downstairs where she had fallen asleep. She also realized another thing. She realized that her sheets were pulled over her sleeping form. Oh yeah, and she realized that she had more chores to do. She got up, stretched and started to work quickly, still in deep thought.

It couldn't have been her cat-san who pulled her sheets over her. If cat-san did, then she would have been woken up. She wasn't a deep sleeper, a pretty light sleeper, mind you. But if she was a light sleeper, then how come she didn't wake when whoever put her in her bed, did that? She pondered over that some more and she shrugged.

"Tohru! Come here!" her stepsister's voice called from the mansion. Tohru hurriedly raced out the door and to the mansion…still…thinking about him. She didn't notice when she bumped into the man in front of her.

(--?--)

He did it. He had finally finished setting up his tent. God knows that he's horrible at this kind of stuff. He sighed and sat up, brushing his hair out of his eyes—again. His hair seemed to get in his way too often. Maybe he should get it cut? It didn't really matter now; he brushed it off and began trying to make a fire.

By the time he finally got a fire ready, it was nearly lunch; let's see…he escaped yesterday, around maybe noon? So, when he got his tent up…it was probably morning. So…that meant that he should get something to eat! Yeah, that's it!

He gathered some of his mouse friends and found some berries. After a short lunch—if you can call it that—he got up and started to explore his surroundings. He came across that cottage again, and this time, in his human form, he went up to the cottage and knocked on the door—only to be bumped into by a girl, no less, and transformed.

'Poof!' was the sound that Tohru Honda—age 16—heard.

(--?--)

He was free. Finally! After all these years! He savored the moment before taking off to a random direction near the castle. He ran and ran and ran until he was greeted by some voices.

"Did you hear?" a gossiping servant hissed, leaning closer towards the other servant. It appeared that they were gossiping facts to each other. This servant was an old woman and appeared to be in one of the lower divisions.

"What? Can't you see that I'm trying to work?" the other servant snapped. This one was much younger—at least 16 or 17—she had blonde hair. She also appeared to be in one of the lower divisions. He didn't care to look at their faces.

"The young heir of the throne has disappeared!" the older one said. The other gasped in surprise, guilt written all over her face. Well—at least that was what he thought.

"Prince Yuki?" the younger one asked, a bit too loud. A couple of servants, who were walking towards them, heard this and turned to stare at them, as if saying 'what the hell were you talking about?' and turned away.

Yuki? That damn rat? He thought, disappeared? Maybe he ran away, or he was kidnapped? He didn't care. He shrugged the situation off and kept running, but was later found by some more gossips.

"What? Really? So his brother and Prince Hatsuharu were really killed?" a young boy asked, nearly screamed. He looked at the boy's direction and saw that he was talking to another servant. This servant was on one of the higher levels—a female.

"No. I told you, they weren't exactly killed. Just gone. Poof! Like that. As if some magic engulfed them and left nothing but rumors. Why do you ask?" the female asked casually as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

Kyo didn't listen anymore. He ran out of the courtyard and headed towards the mountains. He knew whom he would talk to. He knew whom he needed right now…and right now…he needed his…father.

(--?--)

Eh? More smoke. Eh? No one. Eh? Tohru looked around frantically to see whom she had bumped into. No one? But I swore I saw someone here! It was a man! She thought and looked around some more. She didn't see that right in front of her were a pile of clothes and a small, sliver-gray mouse.

The mouse crawled out of his clothes and looked up to see the girl again. The mouse didn't know what to do. The girl squealed with delight, picked him up with both hands and placed him in one of her pockets of her apron. "I'm sorry, Yuki-san, but…I have to take you to step-mother's. Is…is that okay?" she asked, looking at the little mouse.

The mouse squeaked and crawled up to her shoulder, making her giggle. She looked at her left shoulder and saw the little mouse sneeze. She giggled at the noise. It was so cute! Tohru gently cupped the mouse in her hand and gave him a little kiss on the nose. The mouse's whiskers wiggled and she giggled some more. She gave an 'oh!' and she put the mouse back in her apron pocket—not before giving it a quick hug and grabbing the clothes (she didn't know what to do with them)—and she ran towards the mansion.

(--?--)

Where is she? Where the hell is she? Damn it! Appear already! She's late! The woman thought furiously as she paced across the hallway. She glanced at the grandfather clock again before starting to pace.

"I'M SORRY, I'M LATE! I'M SO SORRY!" a young girl ran in, almost flying in from the door. Her face was flushed, one of her hands in her pockets, and she was bowing and apologizing.

"ENOUGH!" the elder woman shouted, obviously angry. She pounded a fist down on a table and the other girl quieted and stopped bowing. "Okay…now…there has been an announcement. The king has declared that the young heir to the throne, Prince Yuki, has been missing. Whoever finds him, will be rewarded greatly,"

The other girl listened patiently. "And, if they are females—ages 15-20—they will be eligible to marry one of the Sohmas they choose. Now, as one of my daughters, I want you to know this, but…what kind of a prince would want to marry a plain orphan girl like you?" The elder started to laugh. (So mean!)

The other girl's head was now bowed; eyes suddenly interested in the floor and tears stained her cheeks. She sniffled and nodded timidly. "That's a good girl," the elder said, "now…I want you to wash the dishes, clean our dresses, wash the floors, and the windows…understand?"

The younger girl nodded again, still sniffling. "Good, get started," the elder said and walked outside, carrying a purse, and an umbrella. "I'm be on my way, now…"

The younger girl's head shot up. "W-where are you going?"

"I'm going out. It's none of your business to poke your nose into other people's lives—now didn't you hear me? Get started!" the elder said and she was out the door. The younger girl cried and cried. She did not get started on her work, instead stood there and cried. It was then that her two stepsisters came down from their rooms that got her started on her chores.

"Did you not hear mother?" the elder of the two stepsisters shrieked into Tohru's ears. Tohru covered her ears and shook her head. "I-I heard…" she mumbled. "Let's go, Minami, we're going to be late again," the younger one said and the elder gave a "Yes, let's go, Mia. Let's leave that stupid girl alone,"

They left the mansion and Tohru collapsed into tears. She bent down and sobbed. She couldn't help it! The tears just kept falling. The mouse crawled out of Tohru's apron pocket and gave a little squeak of sympathy. Tohru only tried to smile the best she could. The mouse crawled up to her shoulder, cheeks red, and squeaked. His whiskers wiggled when he squeaked and when Tohru saw this; she giggled and snapped out of it.

Then, it happened.

'Poof!' was the sound she heard next and she was covered in a gray cloud. She felt more weight on her shoulder, then less and less until it gradually lifted itself. As if it floated. "U-um…I can explain…" started a male's voice. Tohru lifted her head from her position. She was sitting with her knees up and her arms around her knees, head bent. She looked up, only to give an 'EEKKKK!' and turned around. She felt her heart pounding a mile a minute.

"…First…uh…I need some clothes…" the male kept talking. Tohru felt like she could trust this man, even though he was a stranger—naked, no less! Yet, she felt like she could trust him. Tohru hurriedly went through her bag she always kept with her and found the clothes that she had found on the ground earlier. She handed it to him, focusing her eyes on the floor—which it seems she finds so fascinating today—and breathed slowly.

What was going on? Why was he naked? Who is he? Where did all that smoke come from? Millions of questions ran through her mind and soon, she felt dizzy and collapsed. She fainted.

(--?--)

He was really thankful that the whole mansion was empty. He transformed back to find the girl fainted. He quickly slipped on his clothes and went to check on the girl. He noticed that she was the same girl who he ran into and the same girl who he had helped up to her bed at the cottage.

"U-ugh…" the girl murmured as she tried to get up with her eyes closed. She rubbed her eyes, and Yuki couldn't help but notice that she looked very cute when she did that. She yawned, opened her eyes, and jolted up.

Yuki expected her to scream, or cry or something. The first thing she did was ask questions. "H-how? How did you do that? Why did you turn into a mouse?" She asked, shaking her hands wildly.

The gray-haired boy held up a hand, stopping her from further questions. "I-I can explain. You see…my family has been under a curse for many generations. However, there are only thirteen of us who are cursed. Whenever we are hugged by someone of the opposite gender, or we are under stress or just get really weak, we transform. We transform into the twelve animals of the zodiac…and the cat."

The girl mouthed an 'o' and stopped talking. She stopped shaking her hands any further. She just sat there and stared off…thinking…in deep thoughts. The cursed mouse kept talking, "Whenever someone finds out about the curse, one of my cousins will erase their memories. Now…when I saw 'erase', it's...it's more of a hypnosis…C-can I trust you to keep the secret?"

The girl looked up, eyes fearful and nodded. "I-I will! I will keep the secret to my grave! I promise I won't let anyone else find out about it!" The boy was taken back. He expected her to maybe say 'no', send a messenger to everyone she knows and his family in danger, or maybe have to call Hatori…

"W-wait…y-your that boy I ran into the at the palace!" she said with realization. The boy looked up in horror, hoping that she wouldn't recognize him as the prince, heir to the throne. "Are you a peasant?" she asked and Yuki sweat dropped.

"N-not exactly…I'll tell you later…" he said, and looked out the window, "I overheard your conversation with your elders. Would you like any help on cleaning? I admit I'm not good, but I'd gladly help you," he offered. The girl refused.

"N-no! No, I couldn't possibly let you help me! I wouldn't want to be a burden! It's okay! I can do it myself…I think…" her exclamation became a whisper. For the first time since…well…a very long time, Yuki smiled and laughed. The girl looked up, amazed to hear his laugh.

It was a beautiful sound to her ears. She gazed at him with awe, watching him laugh. Yuki didn't notice until he realized that he had laughed! He hadn't laughed in a while…he inwardly smiled sorrowfully.

"Don't worry. I'll help you. Your mother and sisters might be home soon, anyways. Let's get started!" he said and she smiled.

(--?--)

He raced on. He raced on and on and on. Bumping into some random people on the way, he finally reached his destination—the dojo. With a burning sensation, he felt as though he was ready to defeat that damn rat once and for all!

He slid the door opened and cried, "SHISHOU!" The man in the other room turned his head, alarmed by the sound of his son's voice. He had a long ponytail, tied, and was wearing a steel gray kimono.

"Kyo?" he asked, dumbfounded. Kyo was the last person he'd expect to see, especially when he was supposedly imprisoned. Actually, scratch that, Akito was the last person he'd expect to see. Then it would be Kyo…and then Yuki…

"Shishou, you have to help me! C-could you just hide me…for a bit?" the red head asked, almost pleadingly. His red crimson eyes were just begging for some attention—other than Akito's.

"Of course, I will make sure that you are not found by Akito or his henchmen, alright?" the elder replied and the red head seemed satisfied because he started to ask another question.

"…Shishou…I've heard about the rumors…are they true? Is that damn rat kidnapped? Or did he run away. Personally, I'd take my bet on the latter," he mumbled the last part to himself, but as the dojo master, he heard and laughed.

"I—for one—am not really sure. But I do think that he might have run away. I also know that Yuki's brother and Hatsuharu were involved somehow, but that's all I know," the dojo master gave a shrug before sipping his tea, "now, come here," the elder patted a hand on the seat next to him. "I'm sure that you'd want something warm?"

The teen sat down and nodded. He gratefully accepted a warm cup of tea that his foster father had handed him. The elder smiled at his son's attitude and continued to drink his tea.

(--?--)

"Here are the buckets and the rags," she said as she dropped two buckets of soapy water and four cleaning rags to the ground. The water inside the two bucket came splashing out when it hit the ground. "I'm hope it isn't too much trouble…" she said with an afterthought.

"Of course not," the gray-haired young man said with a grin. Both teens kneeled down and started to scrub. "To tell you the truth, I've never really done anything like this…" he said with an embarrassed smile.

"Eh? Really?" the young woman asked, surprised. "Yeah…well…my family is…complicated…I guess…" the young man started, but stopped shortly, "never mind" he said and got back to scrubbing.

The girl stared at him with wonder and curiosity. She nodded and went back to scrubbing. "You know…" she began, the other teen stopped scrubbing and turned to watch her. "My mother always said that whenever you have something on your mind, you should talk…talk to someone," she said with a smile. "So, maybe you should talk to someone if you're feeling down or upset or you just wanted to…maybe let it out…It feels good to…just let out some steam," she finished and Yuki looked at her with amazement.

"Where…is your mother now?" he asked, still amazed. The girl smiled sorrowfully and answered, "She died. She died in a fire, she saved my father and me, but…she's gone now." He was amazed that she could still smile after she lost her mother. He was afraid to ask her about her father, but he did. "W-what about your father?" he asked.

"My father…he remarried after she died, and then it happened so sudden. He died during a rampage against the king." Tohru stopped scrubbing the floors and just stared down at her hands. Her eyes were filled with sorrow. "I-I'm sorry. I shouldn't have brought that up," he said quickly and turned away. He had cringed when she said 'king'.

"What about you, Yuki-san?" she asked, breaking the silence. Yuki looked away at the window and changed the subject. "Come on. We have to hurry. Your stepmother and stepsisters might be here soon," he said icily, changing the subject and avoided her worried glance.

"Alright…" she answered and she got back to scrubbing, glancing at him once a while. Okay, Yuki-san, she thought, worried.

Author's Note: I tried my best to make this chapter as long as I can. Is five pages long enough? I'll try to make each chapter longer and longer. Anyways, please review! Or just email me, alright?