Chapter 4 – The Second Secret

"Tohru! Are you hurt at all- what the…?"

Hana stopped in her tracks as she saw Tohru getting up from the bush holding a small monkey in her arms, said bush draped with a kimono. Hiro and Kisa got up with them, both of them gasping as they saw the zodiac animal.

'The clothes… their Ritsu's… and the monkey… has Ritsu's signals… could it be that…?' Hana deduced.

Tohru's mind raced as she attempted to find an excuse for the sudden appearance of the monkey and Ritsu's apparent but nonexistent discarding of clothes. She gently placed the monkey on the ground and then ran over to her friend, acting terrified.

"I'm all right, Hana. That monkey just dropped out of nowhere and surprised me and Ritsu…" Tohru was interrupted yet again by the psychic. "That monkey… was Ritsu… how did this happen… Tohru…" Hana's mind was also going a little too fast; not even her powers could comprehend the supernatural curse of the Sohma family. Tohru's heart sank as she heard Hana's words then; she now knew of the secret that she had been trying for over a year to keep to herself. Tohru collapsed into her friend's arms as she began to cry, her mission to the Sohma's now utterly ruined.

"I'm so sorry, Hana… I didn't mean for any of this to happen…" she said through her tears. Hana watched as Hiro and Kisa picked up the unconscious Ritsu and his human clothes. Hiro looked back before they left. "I won't tell Akito… but I don't know how long we can keep this secret, all right? So don't blow it." He declared before they went in the direction of the main house. Hana looked back down at her friend, still sobbing into her chest. She began to stroke her long brown hair in an attempt to calm her down.

"It's all right, Tohru, everything's going to be fine. You can tell me what's going on soon enough; Let's just sit down…" Hana said with evident concern in her voice. Tohru nodded slightly from her position and began to walk, or rather stumble, with Hana back to the bench, where after another minute or two, she was able to calm down. She wiped away her own tears once again as she prepared her explanation that she dreaded to pass though her lips for the past year. "Hana… when I started… living with the Sohmas… I had discovered… that they live with… a curse."

Hana was not new on the subject of curses, what with her brother being adept at casting them, but she still found it hard to believe what she was hearing. "They're… possessed by the twelve animals of the Chinese Zodiac… and the cat." Tohru paused, thinking, almost daring for Hana to comment on this news. "…Go on." Was all that left Hana's mouth; she seemed a little too confused for her normal personality.

"Anyway… whenever they're hugged by someone of the opposite sex… or their bodies get weak, they transform into their respective animal… I fell on Ritsu, so he transformed into the monkey… the reason why I couldn't tell you was that… now we might get… our memories erased."

'Erased…'

"So that's why… you were living there not only because you had to, but to protect us as well… you didn't want yourself or anyone else to forget our time together." Hana said, running the information back. "But how would our memories be…" Hana trailed off again, letting Tohru finish her explanation. "Hatori, the Dragon… he has to power to erase people's memories when the order is given by… the head of the family…" Tohru's fear jumped at the thought of Akito. Hana looked away from her friend for the time being, although her focus was still on her friend. "So… that's what happened with him… he told you to leave, but the family was able to convince him otherwise… I see. You're part of their family now." Hana smiled as the cloud from within her heart began to lift. Tohru held Hana's hand and looked up to her with a pleading look in her eyes.

"Please, we can't tell Uo, if we do I don't know what will happen. I don't want to forget our time with the Sohma's… I want to keep them; If I don't, I…" her thoughts pictured a distressed Yuki, who had just told her he loved her hours earlier. "I don't know what I'd do!" she exclaimed. Hana was, for the first time, unsure of what exactly to say to ensure her trust with this new development. However, looking into Tohru's eyes then, she was able to find her answer. Leaning in and hugging her friend once again, she whispered into her ear "I won't tell her… I want… I want to keep our memories, too."

Tohru smiled the awkward way she did after they broke their embrace. "Thank you so much, Hana. I'm so glad you understand." She got up from the bench. "Let's go back to the house… the others will want to know what happened." Hana stood up as well and they began to walk back to the house, no other words spoken.

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Fast-Forward to 5:00 PM – Sohma Shigure Residence Interior

"……WHAT!" Kyo yelled, cat ears sprouting from his head.

"So she knows about the curse now! Damn Ritsu!" He bellowed, but was then silenced by Yuki, who shoved a handful of leeks down his throat. Kyo began to choke, and ran for the bathroom with his face looking quite green. "There, that'll shut him up. In any case, Tohru… I'm glad that you told us what happened. We'll keep this secret as long as we can… won't we, Shigure?" Yuki's voice became much sterner as he looked at Shigure, who was sitting across the table, with severely distrusting eyes. "Now, what's that look for, Yuki? You know that I can keep a secret as well as anyone else!" Shigure said almost smugly.

"I know that… but you tell almost everything to Hatori… in turn to Akito." Yuki declared. The enthusiasm ran away from Shigure's face at that last remark. Folding his arms, he began to explain his reasoning. "Listen, this is no big deal, it's just one of Tohru's girlfriends, Hatori will be able to understand that. I'm sure of it." He explained.

Yuki got up from the table, slightly satisfied. "That may be true… but when you say 'Tohru's girlfriend,' it sounds like something from one of your 'novels'…" he said in his usual annoyed voice that he tends to get with Shigure around. "I'm going to go pick some things for dinner, but Tohru…" Yuki began.

'He said her first name…' Hana thought to herself.

"Maybe you should stay here this time, in case someone else arrives here." Yuki offered. "OK," she responded, nodding. Yuki walked out, again waving at her before closing it behind him, leaving the two girls alone, since Shigure left through the door on the other side of the room. (Looking greatly embarrassed from Yuki's last comment.)

'Has something happened between them? They seem to be much… closer now…' Hana thought to herself. 'I'll ask her later, this evening…'

'Yuki isn't being the most subtle right now about hiding the fact that he likes me… I think Hana might be on to something. I know I promised Yuki I'd keep it secret, but Hana… he'll understand if Hana knows later. I know he will.' Tohru debated in her mind.

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Sohma Estate Exterior: 5:30 PM

From his window, a man watched as he saw two children walking down a path inside the estate. One of them was holding a monkey, the other a folded kimono. Suddenly, the monkey seemed to explode in a brownish haze, a man somewhere in his twenties replacing him. The man gripped his curtains as he watched in anger, thinking that the two of them might have divulged their secret. Just then, from inside, another man, rather tall, stepped in, holding a thermometer.

"All right, Akito, time to take your temperature, you know the drill…" Hatori said, but Akito didn't turn around. "Akito…?" Hatori tried to get his attention once again.

"Tomorrow… fetch me Tohru Honda… no more mistakes…" Akito declared sternly.