Me: Hello again! Welcome to the second chapter of my wonderful novella! Looks over at the sulking Kyo and Yuki. Am I really that bad guys?

Kyo: Moron. Why do you keep us in here if we don't like it?

Me: Cause I love you guys! Whips out a Kyo key chain. See? I love you. Starts sobbing.

Kyo: Aw hell. Don't cry! Wait… that's a key chain? I don't look anything like that!

Yuki: It looks stupid so therefore, it's the perfect model of you.

Kyo: HEY!

Me: wags her finger at Yuki. That's not nice. See, that's why I didn't buy a Yuki key chain. Cause you're so mean. That and I don't want to be woken up in the middle of the night by some sissy slapping fight between your two key chains. THEN someone would pay.

Kyo: LIKE hell! I would never be in the middle of a sissy slapping fight. Men fight with their fists!

Yuki: rolls his eyes. That's stupid. You're stupid. This entire thing is stupid. Get to the story so it will end sooner.

Me: See! This is why I only have a Kyo and Shigure key chains!

Shigure: Did someone call?

Yuki and Kyo: NO!

"C'mon! Jeez! We're going to be late!"

Kyo pace the front hallway and Shigure sighed. Yuki was leaning calmly against the wall, watching Kyo work himself up.

"If you hurry her, then she won't be ready. Don't make her rush just because you can't hold your temper in check, baka."

Kyo stopped.

"Yeah? Well I think we should-"

"Kyo?"

Tohru wandered into the front hallway, absentmindingly putting a camera into her purse. She was unaware of the three men's looks standing in front of her. She glanced up and saw them staring.

"What?"

Kyo stepped forward, looking dashing in his black slacks and a black shirt that was open at the collar. He hated ties and still refused to wear them.

"You look… beautiful."

She blushed and shyly turned for him so they could see Ayame's work. The dress was a glittering black silk, form fitting with a layer of sheer black fabric around the waist. It was cut semi- low and the spaghetti strapped top left her shoulders bare. Her hair was pulled on top of her head in an elegant knot and her tiny feet were graced in black sandals that were barely visible because of the length of the dress.

" Machi helped me pick it out."

He reached over to the table and picked up a wrist corsage. It had white roses and black beads hanging off of it. He slipped it onto her wrist and smiled at her.

"Told you it was for a good reason."

Shigure opened the door and gestured outward with a sweeping hand.

"Shall we?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Their gym was decorated with steamers and balloons to the brim. Music pounded from every corner and Shigure couldn't help but utter a cry of glee at all of the high school girls. After shoving him next to Kazuma to ensure that he wouldn't do anything stupid, they were both chaperoning, they found their seats at their table. After a brief announcement by Yuki who could hardly get a word in over the oohing and awing over his blacks slacks and red shirt with a white tie, dinner started. Tohru found it difficult to restrain herself from helping the servants serve dinner. Kyo had to take her hand to keep her sitting down. Neither of them minded though. After dinner was finished, music and dancing started up. This started problems. The boys could fast dance but they couldn't slow dance for fear of changing into their zodiac forms. Yuki and Machi (a short red dress that head most of the guys looking at her) were content to sit and talk but Uo just HAD to push Kyo and Tohru onto the dance floor.

"Hey!" Kyo shouted.

"None of the excuses, orange- top. You two are going to dance. And no wandering hands!"

She left them in the middle of the dance floor and Tohru sighed.

"If you really don't want to dance, Kyo, we don't have to."

Kyo took her hand and puller her a little closer, swaying them to the beat. He twirled her and when he saw that she was giggling, did it again. They eventually got comfortable together and neither noticed the snickering duo.

"You'd think that they were being put on display!" Shigure laughed madly.

Kazuma simply pointed to a group of girls sitting at a nearby table that were glaring at Tohru. Shigure stopped laughing.

"Oh."

After an hour had passed, that small group of girls had located one of the guys that had previously asked Tohru to the dance in the first place. Kazuma watched as the guy nodded and head over to where the couple was dancing. It would be interesting to see what Kyo would do. He was still very unrestrained when it came to protecting Tohru.

"Are you having a good time, Kyo?"

He was just about to answer when he felt a firm tap on his shoulder. Turning around, he saw a short guy smiling up at him.

"Can I help you?" he asked tersely.

"I was wondering if Tohru would like to dance."

Tohru shook her head.

"That's nice, but Kyo and I –"

"Wonderful!" the guy cried as he swept Tohru away from Kyo.

Kyo growled under his breath.

"Look here-"

The guy interrupted him again. "She wanted to dance with me so now we're dancing. Hey, honey, why don't we go some where else to continue this dance?"

Tohru shook her head and tried to push away from him but his grip was too tight. Kyo had had enough. He brought his hand down onto the guy's wrist and squeezed until he let go of Tohru. He then moved in between the two, pushing Tohru behind him protectively.

"Don't touch my girlfriend, you got that? She said no and she means no. Now go away before I kick you ass!"

"Your girlfriend?" the guy asked while shooting a dirty look in the girls' direction.

Kyo nodded and the man grinned.

"Well why didn't you say so?"

The guy bowed to Tohru and pranced away. Kyo felt a small tug on his shirt and saw Tohru looking up at him, worried. He gave her a small smile and took her hand.

"You okay?"

She nodded and then her face broke out into a grin.

"What?"

She smiled wider. "You called me your girlfriend."

"Well that's what you are," he stated while turning beet red and leading her back to the table. He moved his chair over to hers so he could put his arm around the back of her chair. She settled against his arm and his side. It was the closest they could get and he was going to enjoy it. They watched the couples dancing and smiled when they saw Shigure and Kazuma being bombarded with dancing offers.

"What if you could break the curse?"

Kyo looked down at Tohru and frowned.

"I don't like talking about that. Can we talk about something else?"

She nodded but there was a slight stiffness to her posture that hadn't been there before. He sighed.

"If I didn't have this curse than we'd be out there slow dancing. I'd pull you so close that it would seem like we were one person."

Her posture relaxed and she tilted her head back to look at him. Following his instincts, he leaned forward and kissed her sweetly. She unconsciously moved closer and without realizing it, they were embracing. They pulled away and she smiled.

"You didn't transform."

He pulled away in alarm and it registered in him. He HAD felt a small weight being lifted from him as they had kissed. Tentatively, he hugged her. Yuki saw him and leaned over.

"Are you crazy?" he hissed in alarm. "You're going to reveal…"

He trailed off when he didn't see Kyo transform. Kyo pulled away, smiling. Tohru smiled up at him.

"You broke my curse!"

She shook her head.

"I couldn't do that! It was all you!"

Yuki sat back in disappointment.

Looks like you finally beat me at something, stupid cat."

Kyo's grin widened.

"Alright! Now I don't have to-"

He had almost revealed too much to Tohru. He looked down at her and saw the understanding in her face. Very interesting. He'd have to ask her about it later. He grabbed her hand and pulled her out onto the slow dancing dance floor, pulling her to him. Right now, he was content to hold her close.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Kyo stretched out on his bed, remembering the looks of shock on his father's and Shigure's faces. Kazuma had smiled gently at the couple while Shigure had gaped open mouthed fro ten minutes. A small knock on his door interrupted his thoughts.

"Come in!"

Tohru's head peeked around from the door. She was still in her dress.

"Why aren't you in your pajamas yet?"

She blushed and edged further in to the room.

"I haven't had time to do the laundry because it's been raining all week so I was wondering if I could borrow a nightshirt?"

He grinned at her flushed expression and handed her one of his bigger t-shirts.

"Is that all?"

She nodded and made to go back out the door but he stopped her.

"I need to talk to you."

"Oh," she said. "Okay! I'll come back once I'm done changing."

"Okay."

She went back to her room and put on the t-shirt with a pair of pajama shorts. After hanging her dress back up in the closet, she padded down the hallway to Kyo's door. She knocked on it lightly and when he opened it, his mouth dropped. In his t-shirt, she looked SO CUTE!

"You needed to talk, Kyo?"

He nodded and they sat down on the bed.

"You gave me a weird look today when I almost said something. Do you know what I was about to say?"

She shifted uncomfortably and he put his head down in her lap so he was looking straight up at her. It embarrassed her but it worked.

"Do you know something you're not telling me?"

She nodded and he felt a sinking sensation.

"About what happens after graduation?"

She nodded again and he closed his eyes to think. He opened them again when she unconsciously started running her hand through his hair.

"I didn't want you to know because I didn't want you to worry about me," she told him gently. "But now you don't have to go into that room."

He nodded while trying to rub his head into her hand. He wouldn't say so but he secretly enjoyed that she was scratching his head as she would a cat's.

"Because of you, I'm free."

He leaned up and kissed her, silently thanking her. Their kiss was interrupted by a small yawn on her behalf. He smiled and pulled away.

"You should go to bed."

She shook her head.

'I don't want to be alone right now."

Quickly making up his mind, he stretched.

"I guess you could stay here tonight," he said as innocently as possible. He was actually very excited at the possibility of holding her all night. It was all he wanted and his mind didn't even stray to the possibility of other thoughts. She hesitantly nodded and he grabbed an extra blanket from underneath his bed. His room was colder than hers. They slid under the now doubled covers and he put an arm under one of the pillow that was beneath her head. She buried her face in his chest and he felt her breathing slowly begin even out.

"Tohru?"

"Hmm?"

"Thank you."

She smiled and he watched her fall asleep. Not being able to hold out any longer, he felt his eyes grow heavy. Content for the first time in what felt like forever, he allowed himself peace.

Me: Next: Yuki finds that the fan cub girls are insane and Kyo sticks his foot in his mouth again! Like normal!

Kyo: Mph fuptib!

Me: Not literally! Geez!