Chapter 8: The Next Head

Tohru-

Tohru glanced over her shoulder as she and Yuki walked away from the crowd that had gathered in the halls and saw Uo-chan and Hana-chan watching her closely. Hana-chan then said something to Uo-chan, who looked slightly ill, then nodded. The two of them walked down the hall together - the opposite direction from where Yuki was leading Tohru - and the clutter of students cut a wide channel to allow them through.

"Yuki, I think something's wrong." Tohru started. "Uo-chan…"

"Something IS wrong." Yuki said, sharply. "And it's my fault." Yuki fell silent for a little while, just stared ahead with his lips pressed tightly together as he often did when he was deep in though. Though when he normally was thinking heavily about something, Yuki would stop walking and just stand or sit while he though, at that time he didn't seem able to still himself and walked quickly, towing Tohru along. He didn't walk so quickly as to force Tohru to run, but he did seem like he wanted to get away from something as quickly as possible. All at once, when they'd reached the school gates, Yuki turned on his heel at a dead stop to face Tohru. "I didn't know."

"Know?" Tohru repeated. "Know what?"

"That!" Yuki used his free hand to jab an accusing finger at the school behind them. "All that! Does that happen often? Those girls?" Yuki closed his mouth and looked to the left before taking a deep breath. "I didn't mean to yell. But…why didn't you tell me?"

Tohru blushed and managed to feel guilty, though she wasn't sure what she should be guilty about. Maybe because she'd made Yuki worry. "They're worried about you, that's all."

"That's NOT all!" Again, Yuki turned away from her to get control of himself. "It's not. They've got no reason to be bullying you. I'd have stopped it if you'd told me. I wouldn't have let them frighten you."

It would be a lie to say she hadn't been frightened. Conflicts of any kind terrified Tohru. They made her want to run and hide until it was all over. "They didn't mean any harm. Honestly, they're good people. I think they just get excited to see you and when you're not around they worry. And we have all been gone for two weeks. You should be pleased that…"

Yuki seized Tohru by the shoulders and glared at her. "I will never, for any reason, be pleased to see you backed in a corner, surrounded by a fanatic mob, trembling. That flock of clucking hens can worry themselves to death for all I care." He let Tohru go, but held out his hand. "I apologize. I sort of kidnapped you, just now. Will you let me walk you home?"

To leave school when the day had only just begun went against everything Tohru was striving for. But one more day can't make too much of a difference, She thought, glumly. I'll probably fail, anyway. I've missed two tests and so much homework. I'll have to repeat the year, I'm sure of it! It would have made her mom sad, but Tohru was certain she'd have understood. Even if I do have to repeat the year, I will graduate! She was determined and so took Yuki's hand. But, The realization made her happy, but also a bit sad. I don't want to join mom…not yet. There's too much living to do.

"If you're worried about those tests we missed, I'll help you study."

"I don't know that it'll help." The teachers would think so badly of her for just walking away from school. It might mean detention! "Maybe I should go back."

Even as she said it, Yuki's hand on hers tightened. "Please. Stay with me."

Torhu looked at him sharply, but Yuki was looking straight ahead, as if there were something intimidating ahead of them. There was nothing but people on the sidewalk ahead of them that Tohru could see. Perhaps that was what Yuki was afraid of. "Of course I'll stay."

They walked quietly for a while and it gave Tohru time to think. In the morning she would have to get back to school with all her might, she wasn't smart enough to slack off so much and the teacher really hadn't been happy that they'd missed so much school in the first place.

"The whole lot of Soumas and you, Honda-san!" The homeroom teacher had exclaimed when Tohru had walked into class alone. "I don't care what your guardian had to say about it, you have a lot of make-up work, miss!"

Kyou-

Still very much pleased with himself, Kyou had left the Hot Springs with the intention of finding Tohru and Yuki. Everything still seemed bright and new, but Kyou knew he was the only one who'd really changed. No more monster. No more burden of that damned bracelet. No more threat of being imprisoned. No more being the outsider.

That was how it was supposed to be.

At the estate, during Kyou's brief visit, he'd found that nothing with the family had really changed. They still refused to meet his eyes or willingly go more than a few feet close to him. Little children, frightened by their parent's stories, ran from him and the old women wrinkled their noses as if he smelled vile.

Kyou kept his head high and was surprised by the anger he felt.

"Kyou?" Kagura, sweet Kagura, rounded a corner and met him with that shy smile of hers. "I didn't expect you so early."

Boldly, and really not caring who watched, Kyou took Kagura's hand which caused her to blush red as a tomato. "I wanted to see you." It wasn't a lie. While his main purpose had been to see that Akito was still healthy - Kyou supposed that it was as much his responsibility as it was Hatori's, now - Kyou was very pleased to see Kagura. "I'm going to school to check up on Yuki and Tohru in a bit. Want to come?"

Kagura's smile faltered a bit and her eyes glinted with the steel Kyou knew so well. Truth be told, he was almost glad to see it. Kagura's volatile temper was a staple of his life. It meant that she cared, even if violence was the way she showed it. It was better than the silent disdain of the rest of the family. "Kyou, there's something I want to say." Her hand tightened around his in a grip that was painful, even to Kyou's new body. "You know I love you." She squeezed his hand a little tighter. "I'd do anything for you. I'd die for you."

The conversation was turning far too serious for Kyou's peace of mind. "Don't say…"

"I will say it. It's the truth. I'm not blind." Kagura's whole posture tensed as it always did when she was ready to attack. That was why she didn't do well in Kazuma's classes. She gave too much away. Kagura's fist lashed up and struck Kyou in the side of the face. It hurt, but Kyou didn't try to dodge it. "I know why you're going to see Yuki and Tohru."

Kyou didn't want to hurt Kagura. That was the last thing he wanted. He wanted Yuki and Tohru, they were precious, but he wouldn't lose Kagura for anything. "I won't do anything that you won't like." Even if it did mean going against his nature. Even if he did keep thinking about soft Yuki's skin was and Tohru's light, bubbly laughter at the same time he was thinking about Kagura's shining eyes.

"I don't want you to be unhappy." Kagura told him. She sniffed and punched his arm hard enough that he winced. "Ever since you moved in with them, I've seen the effect Tohru has on you. Before her, only Kazuma-dono could calm you down. She's sweet and kind. How could you not be attracted to her? As for Yuki, well…" Kagura shrugged. "I've known you both for a long time and let's just say I always thought if Yuki settled down with a boy, he'd chose you over Haru." When she finally looked up at him, Kagura's face was very serious. "I know things have changed for you, but I honestly can't say I understand. You do what you have to do, but I wanted you to know…nothing's changed for me.

Kyou didn't even consider lying for her happiness. "Everything's changed for me. Everything's different." When her face fell, Kyou quickly finished his thought. "Now, I can show you how I feel. I don't have to hide it for fear of Akito. I promise, on my word of honor, I'll never hurt you." She smiled and Kyou felt safe moving on to a less touchy subject. "How's Akito doing? Have you seen him today?"

"He's making a point of strolling."

"Strolling?"

"He's very proud of himself. He's going out all by himself, now. I think he's near the outer wall of the estate." It was nearly unheard of for Akito, especially in the past few years, to go so close to the outside world alone. He'd done it once or twice, but it was enough to take Kyou by surprise. "You'd be proud of yourself in his shoes. He looks alright."

"You want to come with me to see Yuki and Tohru?"

Kagura agreed and they began to leave the estate together. While Kyou had originally gone there to check on Akito, he knew that Kagura would never lie to him, so he took her at her word about Akito's health. He was happy to be walking with Kagura without the fear that someone might see them and that Akito might catch word of their affection. In truth, Kyou had always rather enjoyed Kagura's attention, however painful it might have been. He knew, without a doubt, that he was the only person who could get that kind of a passionate reaction from her.

On their way off the estate, Kyou and Kagura watched Hatori's black car pull in through the front gates and were both shocked to see Ayame driving. "Has Hatori lost his mind?" Kyou asked. Giving Ayame the keys to any car was a hideously bad idea, let alone Hatori's flashy car.

They met up with Tohru and Yuki about half-way to Shigure's house, but it wasn't a pleasant meeting. Not only was it the first time Kyou had seen Yuki since he'd so easily knocked him down, but they ran into each other just a block from Ayame's shop. When they saw it, everything just stopped for a while.

Yuki and Tohru stood in front of the building which had yellow police tape tied around it to keep people out. Not that anyone would want to go near the deathtrap. The fire had gutted the building. The sidewalk was still wet from the firefighters efforts and the firefighters themselves were packing up their gear.

"Oh, no." Kagura put a hand to her mouth, the first time she'd let go of Kyou's hand since they'd met up at the estate. "Ayame…thank God he wasn't in there."

Yuki, was obviously thinking along the same lines as he - interestingly dressed in Hatsuharu's clothes - dashed away from Tohru to a firefighter and started to talk very fast. With Kyou's enhanced hearing, he clearly heard the panic in Yuki's voice as he demanded to know where Ayame was.

"Kid, I'm sorry. The only person we pulled out of there was a woman and she just didn't make it." The woman looked apologetic, but spread her hands helplessly. "I don't know anything about a guy. You should go to the police."

"My brother lives here. He should have been here, he's always here!"

"Did you live here with him? Do you need a place to go? The police can help you get in contact with another relative."

"You don't understand." Yuki asked, strained. "I have more relatives than I can count about a half a mile from here, but he's my brother! I have to know. Are you sure you searched everywhere? There's a backroom where he keeps supplies. He might have been back there. He might still be trapped. He has a pet snake, maybe you found it. It's an albino snake with yellow eyes and it's about three feet long."

The firefighter gave Yuki a puzzled look. "You think your brother might have been in there and you're worried about a snake? Kid, you've got some screwed up priorities."

Yuki yelled, with his fists balled up, "It's a very important snake!"

Kyou had never imagined to see Yuki looking so helpless and he didn't like it. What was no satisfaction in seeing ones rival unravel. Kagura was pulling at Kyou's hand. "Come on!" Kagura told him with another hard pull. "Come on, let's go. Yuki! Yun-chan!" They fairly ran to Yuki and Kagura threw her arms around him. "Don't worry, he's alright! We just saw him a little bit ago, at the estate. He looked alright."

When he heard that Ayame was alright, the tension left Yuki so quickly that his shoulders slumped. "He wasn't in there." Yuki lowered his face until his head nearly rested on top of Kagura's head and he let out a long, relieved breath. "He wasn't in there." Yuki put his arms loosely around Kagura for a moment, one of the most physical things he'd ever initiated, other than a fight. He quickly got hold of himself and stepped away from Kagura. "Sorry." He gave her a soft smile, embarrassed that he'd shown so much emotion. "I should see him. I really should. Kyou," He turned to Kyou with a bit of coolness drifting into his expression and voice. "I was walking Tohru home. I don't want her at school, today. I'll tell you about it later. Will you…?"

"Sure. Go on." Kyou never could turn Tohru down, even if it wasn't her asking directly. "Just so you're not surprised. There's plenty of rumors flying around the family. Kureno brought home a mess of children before the whole Count D thing, not all of them little. Some as young as about five, some as old as about seventeen. I met some of them. They're not bad, but grew up more twisted than either of us and that's saying something. They're not real talkative, but when I left, Hatori was at the Hot Springs giving out examinations and memory adjustments. That's something to do with me. I'll tell you about it later."

Yuki left with a nod of understanding.

Kyou knew Yuki couldn't understand everything, not until he'd met the strange kids. Kyou knew they were fighters from the way they held themselves and the way they reacted to certain situations, but he was pretty sure they were killers, too. Not all of them, but a good many of them had blood on their hands. Kyou would swear to it.

All through it, Tohru hadn't said a word. She looked ready to cry, but held it back and watched Yuki leave. "Ayame-san was so proud of his store." Tohru said, sadly. "Who…who didn't make it? Was it Mine-chan or Jill-san?"

"We don't know." Kagura told her.

Tohru stared at the bunt husk of a building, her eyes lingering on the upstairs windows which had been broken, probably by the firefighters. "I stayed there last night. If I'd slept in…I was so tired, I didn't want to wake up. How selfish! Someone d-died and I'm just thinking of myself and if I'd been here a few more hours…"

"Stop it." Kagura hugged Tohru and held her until Tohru stopped talking. "You didn't do anything wrong. Don't be feeling guilty."

"That's right." Kyou touched Tohru's hair, lightly. "Let's get you home and you can have some tea." Kazuma always poured out tea to make people feel better, so Kyou would take that example for Tohru. "It's not like you could have prevented it."

"But maybe I could have!" Tohru looked at Kyou over her shoulder. "I keep trying to remember if I left the stove on accidentally. I don't think I did, but what if I forgot? I just wanted a quick breakfast and I didn't think anyone would mind. What if it was me? What if I killed someone?" Her voice cracked and then she did start crying.

Shigure's house-
Tohru-

Tohru couldn't shake the fear that maybe she'd been responsible for the fire. She didn't normally forget to turn off the stove when she was finished with it, she was almost positive she'd cleaned up and turned everything off just before going to school, but…what if she hadn't? She forgot to turn the bathwater off at Shigure's house. She forgot to water the garden on occasion and sometimes she forgot to separate the darks and lights when she did the wash. Forgetting to turn off a stove was just the kind of irresponsible thing she'd do.

"Here." Kagura set the teacup in front of Tohru and sat by her at the family table. "I'm right, you know. You didn't do anything wrong."

"I hope you're right."

There was a door slamming and Kyou stomped downstairs, into the kitchen. There was the sound of running water. A minute later, Kyou came back out of the kitchen with a bucket of steaming hot, soapy water in one hand and a scrub brush in the other hand. "Don't come upstairs." He snapped before going back up to his room.

Kyou wouldn't let Tohru help clean his room, he'd refused her help the minute they'd walked into the house, before Tohru or Kagura could even offer to help. He'd told them to just stay downstairs and do whatever it was that girls did when they were alone. Strangely, Kagura didn't argue with Kyou. When Kyou had gone back upstairs, Kagura asked Tohru, "What happened up there? What doesn't he wantus to see?"

Tohru thought about the last time she'd been in Kyou's bedroom and stopped polishing the table. She sat back on her heels. She had been sitting with Yuki eating when they'd heard Kyou scream. What a terrible thing it was to hear Kyou scream. Yelling, Tohru was used to. Shouting was no big deal for Kyou who did it everyday. Screaming? Screaming wasn't something one did out of anger or temper. He'd been terrified and it had been so obvious that even Yuki, who'd always said he just couldn't stand anything about Kyou - whether that was true or not - had bolted upstairs ahead of Tohru to find out what had frighten Kyou so badly. It had been awful and, Tohru realized, no one had told Kagura.

Tohru told Kagura about Count D's father and how he'd attacked Kyou and the blood. Yuki had rushed to Kyou's defense only to thrown back like he was nothing more than a rag doll. It had been a nightmare that ended with Tohru waking up in Count D's Petshop and she still wasn't sure how she'd gotten there. She was just grateful Yuki had managed to find her.

Kagura looked to the stairs with a worried expression. "He's up there…cleaning his own blood?"

"I…I think so." Tohru forced herself to smile. "Come for a walk with me? I think we've cleaned everything that's possible to clean and Kyou won't want us offering to help up there."

Kagura had no hesitation and stood up. "Where are we going?"

"Yuki's garden. He's so protective of it, I thought I'd just see that it's alright for him."

Kagura laughed in an effort to ease some of the tension both girls were feeling and went with Tohru into the woods along the narrow path Yuki had shown Tohru. "I'm sure it's alright, it's just a garden." But she seemed more than happy to walk with Tohru. Just as they left the front yard she said, "I'm going to take Count D up on his offer. You know…the whole thing."

Tohru couldn't say that she was surprised. Considering all the stress and misery brought onto the family by the curse, it seemed to her that a good many of them would be asking Count D to change them. "You're sure? It sounded pretty permanent."

"It is." Kagura squeezed Tohru's hand. "But I have to do it. If I don't, I'm going to get old." She shook her head sadly. "I can't do that. I can't leave Kyou."

It was both sad and heartening to Tohru's mind. She knew how passionately Kagura loved Kyou, there was no way to hide it. Kagura would honestly do anything - without hesitation - for Kyou. She'd walk through fire for him. She'd eat nails for him. And she would, probably soon, give up her humanity for him. Perhaps the Zodiac Souma's wouldn't mind. If it was true that the family hadn't originally been human at all, perhaps they didn't feel that losing their humanity was any terrible lose.

It wasn't until they were a little ways into the forest that they noticed anything wrong. Tohru might not have noticed at all except for Kagura. She stopped walking all of a sudden, but didn't let go of Tohru's hand, causing Tohru to jerk back a step.

"Blood." Kagura frowned. "I can smell blood." She raised her chin a little, concentrating. "And smoke…ash. Something's been burnt."

"I didn't know your sense of smell was so strong." Tohru said, admiringly.

"Many of us have stronger senses. Mine's never been as good as Kyou's or Shigure's, but it's strong enough to smell blood." Her voice was darker than Tohru had ever heard it. "Blood's like a stain - it lingers. This is fresh, though. Yesterday, maybe. It's human, too. Tohru, go get Kyou." She took a step ahead, in the direction of Yuki's garden, obviously intending to go alone.

"But, Kyou's got enough blood to think about." Tohru fretted, thinking of Kyou trying to clean the dried blood out of his room. It seemed cruel to expose him to more and Tohru couldn't even think of letting Kagura go alone where there might be danger.

It made Kagura chuckle. "He won't thank us if there's danger out here and we tried to keep it from him." In fact, Kyou would probably yell at them. "At least stay here a minute. I promise I'll call if I need help."

Tohru did wait. At least, she did her best to wait as long as she could. Courage had never been one of her stronger points, however. Standing in the forest alone wouldn't have been so bad except that she had visions of someone hurt and dying or some killer - didn't Shigure say there were all kinds of criminals and perverts in the forest? - and Kagura being all alone out there. She waited for as long as she could stand it before her imagination took hold of her and Tohru couldn't stand it any longer.

As carefully as she could, Tohru walked down the path Kagura had just taken and was once again amazed. She admired Kagura a great deal, ever since the first day they'd met. Her strength and determination were magnificent, in Tohru's eyes. Still, she wouldn't want to be out there alone and couldn't think that Kagura would want it, either.

A short distance later and Tohru found someone she certainly hadn't been expecting. Michael, the man she'd met at Count D's petshop who had said that he knew Yuki, was trying to stand, but half-slumped against a tree. He looked tired, unbelievably tried. He was breathing hard and it looked as if it took great effort for him to just stand.

"Michael! Michael!" Tohru rushed to his side and slipped an arm around his back to help support him. "What happened? Are you alright?"

He looked almost surprised to see her. "Ah. Age. Just time catching me. Not much left. I've been too active. Used up too much energy. It's time I should sleep." He closed his eyes, then shook his head. "Your friend, the human back there, she's found it. Something bad is happening. Or will happen." He yawned shook his head, again. "Have to tell Count D. You have to." He went limp and slid to the ground, almost dragging Tohru with him, and closed his eyes. Tohru patted his face to wake him and while Michael didn't open his eyes, he did manage a weak smile. "It's alright. Everything's alright. I'm just tired. I need to sleep." He fell asleep then and nothing Tohru could do would wake him.

Tohru ran the rest of the way to Yuki's garden where she found Kagura kneeling next to a man. It took a moment for Tohru to realize the man was dead. There was a patch of skin that had been peeled off his chest and he wasn't breathing. It was too much for Tohru and she screamed. She kept screaming until Kagura rushed to her and put a hand over her mouth.

"Quiet!" Kagura told her, putting an arm over Tohru's shoulders. "It's alright. Come away, I told you to stay back. Don't look!" Kagura was quick to turn Tohru away from the scene and began guiding her back along the narrow path to Shigure's house. "Don't think about it. Deep breaths. It's alright."

"It's not alright!" Tohru cried when Kagura took her hand away from Tohru's mouth. "None of this is alright! This is just awful!"

"Come on, let's get back. We have to tell someone, but Shigure's not around. Hatori, I suppose." Just as she opened her mouth to say more, there was a terrible crash through the forest and Kyou appeared, looking as he had when he'd stepped out of the cocoon at Count D's petshop. He was taller and more muscular than his normal state and his hair had grown much longer. His mouth was open and showed off two rows of razor sharp teeth, the canines were almost a full inch long.

"What happened?" He demanded, looking at Tohru. "I heard you scream."

"That!" Tohru pointed behind them where the body still lay, undisturbed. "Who is it? Why? Why would someone cut off his skin?"

Kyou's eyes narrowed and he let out a low, dangerous growl that sounded as if it came from the pit of his stomach. As Kagura had done just a few minutes earlier, Kyou sniffed at the air. He turned in a full circle before stopping and staring down the path that led to Shigure's house. "There was someone else here. I could smell it all the way from the house. He looked at the body, then down the path. "Come on. We're going to the estate." He took both girls by a hand each and pulled them so quickly that they nearly had to run to catch up with him. Kyou's hand, Tohru noticed, engulfed hers. It was huge.

"We have to call the police." Kagura told him. "He's not a Souma, I'm sure I've never seen him."

"It's not that. That place where the skin's been cut off - some of those kids I told you about have a tattoo there. Kureno used to have a scar, I remember when I was little, master told that Hatori remove it. I didn't take much notice of it before, but I'm sure it was a black spider or something on the chest. It might be important."

Souma Estate-
Akito-

Akito knew things around the family were starting to settle down and he was happy. They were all going to be safe and happy with what Count D would do for the family. Soon, Akito would invite Count D to the family to start his work. He would destroy the zodiac blood within the Souma's who weren't Zodiac and destroy the human blood in the Zodiac members. It could wait, though. There were other things that Akito had to deal with.

"Like Kureno's new lady-friend."

Akito frowned at his reflection. "Aren't you ever going to leave? I'm better now."

"What makes you think I'm anything to do with the Souma curse? We were pretty screwed up naturally. Ren made sure of that. Anyway, I'm just trying to help us. It's not just that predatory girl," He sneered the word. "Trying to get claws into our rooster. We've also got to think about Honda-san. She'd been around too long."

"Yuki likes her."

"We've had this conversation before. Speaking of which, look. There." The reflection pointed and Akito's eyes followed. He looked at the front gate of the estate. It wasn't often that he went so far from his house alone, but he had been feeling particularly adventurous that day.

At the front gate, he saw two of the guards Hatori had ordered posted confronting an old man. He looked like a turtle. A little man, slightly hunched over, he walked with a cane. It was such an odd sight to Akito, who so rarely so elderly people outside of his own family, that he went closer and forgot his reflection. It bothered him less since waking at Count D's petshop.

"I don't see why not." The old man said, serenely, both hands on his cane.

"Look, I've told you twice, already. No one sees the head of the family. Why won't you just leave?" The guard sounded as if he'd been trying to explain it very hard, but knew he was fighting a losing battle. "You can't see the head without an appointment, you can't get an appointment unless you speak with his doctor. You can't speak with his doctor, because he's not here right now. Maybe you can try back tomorrow."

"No. I think I'd rather talk to the head of your family today. Go fetch him, won't you. I don't have to come inside. It's a lovely day, I can wait out here in the sun."

The guard's eyes almost popped out of her head. "Fetch?" She asked, disbelieving. "No one 'fetches' Akito-sama!"

"There's a first time for everything. Be a good child and tell him Honda-san is here."

Honda? Akito spoke up, drawing attention to himself and a respectful bow from the security guard. "Honda-san? What do you want?" A relation? Akito was almost certain that Shigure had said the girl was an orphan. "Why are you at my estate?"

"Then you will be the head of the Souma family? Good." The old man stepped forward and smiled sweetly. "I've been wanting to have a word with you. I understand my granddaughter, Tohru, is well known to your family. It's her I'd like to speak to you about."

It went against his better judgment, but Akito walked with the elder Honda to his home. It was a first. He'd so rarely spoken to people outside his family without someone by his side whether it was Shigure, Hatori, or Kureno. But Honda-san had been plaguing him since she'd first met his family and he wanted to get things resolved and he thought that by speaking with her grandfather, perhaps he might be able to do it.

They exchanged pleasantries for a while. No. That wasn't true. The elder Honda was pleasant and made polite comments about the estate, the weather, and how nicely the gardens were blooming. Akito, completely new to such things, said very little and kept hoping that Shigure would magically appear to help him.

Once at the house, the old man slowly lowered himself to the floor with creaking joints and a strained expression. Neither of them said anything for a time until Akito could no longer stand the silence. "Why are you here?" He asked, bluntly. "I've met Tohru. She's stupid and ugly. Why won't she go away?"

The old man lost a bit of his smile, but remained polite. "Tohru-chan is tenacious, it's one of her finer qualities. Does she really cause your family so much trouble? It seems unlike her."

"No. They love her. Yuki, especially. I think Kyou might, too. They're always with her." Akito stood up abruptly and strode around the room, circling around the old man. If he succeeded in intimidating the old man, he didn't show it at all. "Why doesn't she live with you? Does she drive you mad, too?"

"Oh, no. Little Tohru-chan is the light of my life. I treasure her greatly. It's for her future that I've come here." He took a deep breath, as if the words would be difficult for him to say. "I had the honor of meeting two young men from your family. I didn't know it at the time, but they were worried for her when she came to see me. Since then, Tohru-chan has told me many good things of your family and it's not difficult to see that she is fond of you all."

Me? Is she fond of me? It seemed like an alien, impossible concept.

"I'll ask you to keep what I'm about to tell you confidential. I don't want Tohru-chan to worry. I'm dying. Not today or tomorrow, but soon, I think. My family has no desire to look after Tohru-chan after I've gone and her mother has no family that I know of." He smiled gently. "I know you're young. Little more than a child, aren't you? But I suppose it's your place as head of your family to consider my request. Please, let Tohru-chan stay with your family. She's a good girl."

Akito was stunned. How could he answer something like that? "Get out. I don't want you here." Akito stormed to the open door that led to his garden where he saw all his little birds flying around. The nightingales were singing so beautifully. At least he could find peace with them. "Get out of my house and off my estate. You ask too much!"

The elder Honda said nothing, but Akito heard him leave. For a long while, Akito stared out at his garden, scared by the simple idea the old man had put before him. Shigure would have known what to say. How could he just let some girl into the family? Wasn't he tolerating her well enough for Yuki's sake? No one could ask that he do more for her, could they?

Ayame arrived at the estate first. Hatori's black car pulled into the inner house fire, but it wasn't Hatori driving. Ayame got out of the driver's seat and opened the backseat doors for his passengers. There was a girl Akito had never seen before with brown curls and glasses who slowly got out of the car with a red, puffy face. Her eyes were bloodshot and she stared at the ground with a dead sort of expression. Whoever she was, Ayame showed her a good deal of consideration. He was quiet and solemn and kept a hand on her shoulder. They spoke for a moment when Ayame pointed to the right - the direction of the snake's house - and the girl slowly wandered off in that direction. The next out of the car Akito did remember.

It seemed strange to see him, again. Akito couldn't even remember the name of the man who'd saved his life when Ren had tried to shoot him. The blonde American had been crying, too. Unlike the girl, though, he nearly jumped out of the car and began pacing furiously. By the time Akito left the window he'd been watching at and stepped out onto the porch of his house, the American was nearly yelling.

"It was them!" He shouted, not at Ayame, but at the world in general. "I know it! It must have been! Jill found something and they were going to get it from her. They killed her!" He swore and pounded his fists on the hood of Hatori's car, he was spitting out his words, he was in such a towering rage.

Through it, Ayame didn't smile or laugh or make any jokes as Akito thought he might. Instead, Ayame put his hands up to his face and leaned back against the car. His shoulders shook. "Everything. I had everything there…"

"Damned Black Scorpion's gonna pay!" The American thundered. He hit Hatori's car again then turned and started marching down the road that would eventually lead him out of the estate. "If it's the last thing I ever do, I'll take them all down!" He was gone in moments.

It seemed like a long time that Ayame leaned against Hatori's car. There came next a car Akito didn't recognize, but at least Hatori was driving. Hatori pulled up the other car next to where Ayame had parked and got out along with Ritsu and his mother. He frowned at his car, but it turned into a frown of confusion rather than anger as he took in what looked like Ayame crying. "What's going on?"

A short while earlier, the Souma Hot Springs-
Ritsu-

Hatori had ordered everyone away from the Hot Springs. "I can't do my work here if the police are swarming around."

"Then we don't call them." Kureno advised. The three of the Zodiac at the Hot Springs stood just a short distance from the corpse. "She is Black Scorpion, I have no doubt of it. We can bury the body and no one will inquire for her."

Hatori turned the thought over in his mind before deciding. "No. The police must become aware of this. The fewer secrets, the better. It's all linked to the children. So long as it doesn't involve the big secret, we should act as any normal family would."

The thought struck Ritsu that the Souma's would never be a normal family.

"The police already know about the children. This will be proof that our family rescued them and that the children need protection. With the police on our side, it would be easier to defend ourselves against them should they try to retrieve the children."

"They will try." Kureno told him with confidence. "Retrieve or kill. Those are the only two choices."

Hatori crossed his arms over his chest and looked at the children who were slowly moving closer to them. Likely, they could sense something was amiss. Either that or Omi had told someone what he was planning to do and they already knew about the murder. "We all go back to the estate."

"But," Ritsu spoke up, confused. "I thought the whole point was to get them away from the estate? So the family wouldn't be hurt?"

"I will not leave children here without protection or the medical attention they need. Some of them have parasites and I have three pregnant little girls to look after. One girl can't even walk properly. They can't be left here."

Kureno told Hatori, again, that the children were hardly helpless, but it didn't change Hatori's mind. "They must be taken care of. I'll take Akito's punishment if he doesn't like my judgment. That's another thing, you must return to the estate, Ritsu. I'm sorry, but if the Black Scorpions are loitering about, Akito won't want any of us away from the estate, not for long periods. I'll have to get Yuki and Kyou back to the estate, too. We can figure out what to do with the children after," He glanced at Omi. "After I've examined them all."

It was an excuse for Omi's sake. Hatori's main objective was to take the memories of any of the children who might have seen Kyou transform into the monster. As soon as that was done, Ritsu wasn't sure what would happen to the children. It was entirely believable that Akito would decide they were too dangerous to have around and that they would just be given back to the people who'd owned them. His thoughts lingering on that, Ritsu looked at the impassive Omi and he was sad. He didn't want Omi to just disappear.

"What if they were useful?" Ritsu asked Hatori.

"What do you mean?"

"What if we could find a way use them?" Ritsu bit his lip, looking at Omi. What if Omi didn't want to be used? It wasn't as if he were a just a tool. "Maybe they could have a job at the estate."

"I don't think they'd be qualified for…"

"Guards." Kureno broke in. "They can be used as guards. They are obedient. This will free the rest of the family to return to their jobs instead of guarding the estate. Accountants and store clerks are hardly suitable for guard duty, at any rate. The children would be more than capable."

Hatori didn't look pleased, but shrugged. "We'll discuss it at home. Ritsu, get your mother to pack a few things. She'll stay at the monkey's house with you. We'll need her car. Kuerno, please call for the bus to take the children. It'll be a tight squeeze, but I'd like to get this done all in one move. The children will have to stay at your house, Kureno. They can't mix with anyone until I've seen to them all."

The trip to the estate was uneventful, with Kureno riding on the bus with the children, while Hatori drove Ritsu and his mother. The only unusual thing that happened was that the bus stopped in the city and Kureno got off for a moment. Wanting to keep an eye on things, Hatori had chosen to follow the bus and so stopped to see what Kureno was doing. Kureno spoke to one of the girls for a moment, then both of them got on the bus and it started for the estate, again. It wasn't until later that Ritsu found out who the girls were.

Ayame's shop had burnt down and he was heartbroken. Hatori took time to console him and didn't get back to business until Kureno walked through the gate of the inner house with the parade of children following him. The older ones were carrying small children and Omi carried the girl with the twisted leg. She, Ritsu had found out, was one of the pregnant ones.

The bus didn't drive up into the estate, so Kureno, the two girls, and all the children, had to walk to the Inner House. When the children were settled in Kureno's house and everything seemed to be calming down, they noticed Akito watching them from his house. Kureno directed the children to return to the Rooster's house, the same place they'd been staying before they'd been taken away from the estate. Akito saw the two girls Kureno had picked up on the street and scowled at them. Akito opened his mouth to say something when, without warning, Kyou leapt off a rooftop and landed next to Hatori. Kyou, in his new shape of a cat-man was most impressive, even more so that he was carrying both Tohru and Kagura.

"Hatori! Trouble!" Kyou blurted out. "Big trouble! There's a…a…" He saw the two girls and a look of horror spread across his face. "Uh, oh."

Tohru looked up from where she, like Kagura, was being held under Kyou's arm like a sack of potatoes. Her face brightened. "Uo-chan! Hana-chan!"

"Tohru!" The blonde girl blinked at Tohru in shock, then looked up at the new Kyou. "Carrot-top?"

"Yeah."

"Well…damn." She walked a bit closer and looked up at him. "What the hell happened to you? Man, your teeth…!"

"It's a long story, yankee."

"Before you tell it," The dark haired girl, who was looking less and less pleased by the moment, spoke. "I advise you to put dear Tohru down." Her eyes seemed to spark when she said it, an unspoken warning of something Ritsu didn't understand.

Kyou, however, must have understood, because he hastily set both Kagura and Tohru on their feet. "It was the fastest way to get here." Kyou's eyes landed on Akito and swallowed hard. "Sorry."

Akito looked as if might have killed Kyou on the spot, if he'd been able to. "Just tell me what it is that brought you here in such a hurry that you couldn't consider discretion."

"There's a body in the woods near Shigure's house." Tohru blurted out, a wild look taking hold of her eyes. "Kagura and I found him, it was awful!"

"We also found a body at the Hot Springs, which is why we're all here, Akito." Hatori said. "In this case, we know how she died and who killed her. It seems she was a spy sent by the Black Scorpion organization to find the children. Omi, one of the children, killed her with a kitchen knife, but I think she may have already called to her superiors about the children's location. I've brought them all here to finish my work on them." He gave a significant look to the two outsider girls, to mean that he couldn't speak of what work in front of them. "After I've finished, something must be done about them. That can be decided later. Right now,"

"Right now," Akito interrupted, jabbing his finger at the two girls. "I want to know who these two are."

"Oh," Tohru sounded embarrassed. "Forgive me, Akito-san. I hadn't thought to introduce you. Hanajima Saki and Uotoni Arisa, my two best friends."

Kureno stepped forward. "You did say you wanted to speak with Uotoni-san, Sir."

To everyone's surprise, Akito nodded. "Yes, I did. That's first then." He stepped a little closer to Uotoni-san, then stopped. He looked confused, then frightened. "You're pregnant."

The reaction was immediate. Kureno started and showed more emotion at that pronouncement than Ritsu had ever seen him show. He looked quite astonished. Tohru stared at her friend in open-mouthed shock, then rushed to her and hugged her happily, babbling about how pleased she was and how lovely she was sure Uo-chan's baby would be. Uotoni-san looked at Kureno sharply and looked frightened, but swore that she had been going to tell him.

Hatori looked as if his headache had just doubled, but he asked, "How do you know?"

"I just do." To the growing tension of everyone, Akito made his way closer and closer to Uotoni-san. When he stood just inches from her, she tried backing away only to bump into Kureno. "I won't hurt you." Akito told her, though he was staring at her stomach. "I'm a good person, now." Cautiously, as if he were afraid it would hurt, Akito reached out and touched his fingertips against Uotoni-san's stomach. "I won't hurt you." It seemed, to Ritsu, that Akito wasn't talking to Uotoni-san.

A long moment passed like that, in utter silence. Akito stared transfixed at where his fingers lay. Uotoni looked as if she didn't know how to react. She had an extremely uncomfortable expression on her face and Ritsu guessed that she might have hit Akito if Kureno hadn't been holding her arms. Hanajima-san looked suspicious, but said nothing.

"True!" Very suddenly, Akito jerked his hand away from Uotoni-san's stomach with a cry. "It's true! Time's nearly up!" He looked up at Uotoni sharply and then down at his hand. He had the look of someone who'd just been bitten. "Have a house prepared for Uotoni-san. One of the houses within the Inner House. I will call for you shortly, Uotoni-san." Then he turned and, still staring at his hand, drifted back into his house, his mind a million miles away.

Uotoni-

Everyone was staring at her.

Arisa was pregnant. She and Hanajima hadn't yet gone to the clinic when Kureno had picked them up on the bus with all the bizarrely quite children. Victims of abuse, Kureno had explained. The Souma's were trying to provide some care for them and were headed back to the estate. He'd told her that the head of the family wanted to speak with her about their relationship and Arisa had nearly told him then. She should have. The fact that Kureno had spoken to the head of his family about her made her nervous. What had he told the head of his family? Why would the head want to see her? Maybe to decide if she was worthy? If she wasn't, then what?

Arisa was shaking and hated herself for it. Hated herself for the overwhelming terror of having all those people staring at her. What had she done wrong? She hadn't had time to do anything. Now Kureno knew and it wasn't the way she'd wanted him to find out - blurted out by that freaky who touched her. If Kureno hadn't been holding her, Arisa would have decked the scrawny pervert. He couldn't have known that she was pregnant. It had only been a day! She might not be an expert on the subject, but she knew she couldn't possibly be showing. How on Earth did everyone seem to know?

There were so many things to worry about. The old man, for one. What was he going to say? Worse...what would he do? Arisa remembered her own childhood and the beatings she'd gotten until she'd grown strong enough to defend herself. There was no way her baby would go through that. She couldn't keep living with her dad, no way was she going to make a baby grow up like she had.

She couldn't deal with a baby. Nasty, squalling little things. All they did was eat and mess themselves. She'd have to drop out of school and get a job. She could give it up. Let someone else adopt it. Or abort. It was soon enough. It had to be soon enough to get an abortion. It was certainly early enough. She'd have to discuss it with Kureno. It was his baby, too. There was no doubt about it as Uotoni had been a virgin before him.

What have I done? I'm so stupid! Her eyes began to burn, but Uotoni squeezed her eyes tightly shut and took a couple of deep breaths to calm herself. I can deal with this. Somehow. First, find out what's up with the touchy-feely freak-boy. "What's going on?" She demanded. Tohru trusted the Souma's, so Arisa supposed that she should too, but it wasn't easy. Of course, Tohru trusted everyone. That didn't mean she should. Tohru was a bit dim like that. That was why she needed Arisa and Hanajima to protect her. "What's the hell was that all about? Who was that freak?"

Hatori - Arisa remembered when he'd shown up at the school during the cultural festival - went quickly after the gray haired freak, as did carrot-top Kyou. Kyou, more than anything, made Arisa think that this might all be a terrible dream. No one could change so drastically as Kyou had, not in just a couple of weeks. But it was Kyou. She was sure of it. The one to answer Arisa was a girl she'd seen a few times before, but she couldn't quite remember the girl's name. The girl was very cute, as cute as Tohru, but with shorter hair. She had big eyes, though they weren't innocent, like Tohru's. In fact, the girl's eyes seemed very sad.

"Please, we'd all like you to do as Akito asks." She turned to face Uotoni and, much to Uotoni's shock, bowed. She'd never been bowed to before, least of all by someone from an obviously wealthy, powerful family. "I'm sure Akito has his reasons, but he thinks highly of you. No one is invited to stay in the Inner House. No outsider. You really can't understand the weight of what's just happened. If you'd like to call your family and let them know where you'll be tonight, I'll show you to a phone."

Uotoni thought of her dad. He wouldn't be waiting up for her. He'd be out with his buddies, drunk at some bar. "I've got no one to call."

It didn't seem to surprise the cute girl. "I see. Will you walk with me? The servants will be get your house ready for the night. It won't be much, but it will be comfortable. You can eat with my family tonight, if you like. Tohru-kun will come over and your other friend is welcomed, though I can't offer you a bed tonight, Hanajima-san. That can only be done by orders of Akito. So will Rin-kun and Kisa-chan will also be there. It'll be an all girl night. I must ask that you don't try to leave the Inner House, though. If you aren't here when Akito sends for you, then...well...I'm not sure how he'll react."

Everyone, even Tohru, was watching Uotoni with an uncomfortable intensity. Uotoni didn't like the sound of it at all. They didn't want her to 'try' to leave? Did that mean she was a prisoner or something? "Kureno," She looked up at him once he'd released her arms. "What's going on?"

"I…I don't know. Akito never invites outsides into the Inner House."

Yuki-

Long before Kyou had arrived at the estate, but after Ayame had, Yuki carefully made his way through the estate. He knew how to get around without being seen. Maybe it was the rat in him, but Yuki strongly suspected it came from a childhood of wanting to be invisible. He managed to get to Hatori's house without anyone seeing him.

Yuki had gone straight to Hatori's house, only to find it completely empty. Strange. He'd thought that if anywhere, Ayame would have been at Hatori's house. Yuki prowled around the house for a short while and found evidence that Ayame had been there. He found one of Ayame's robes, the one he'd worn to Count D's petshop, and a hairbrush in Hatori's bedroom with long silver hairs. That alone hinted at a relationship Yuki didn't want to think about.

Still…if Ayame was alright, Yuki would keep his opinions to himself. The fact that Hatori had given in after so many years was a feat in itself. Ayame must have worn him down.

"Are you supposed to be here?" Yuki started at the voice when he turned to leave Hatori's bedroom and found a child sitting on Hatori's bed. She was a pretty little girl, but exotic looking. Not a Souma, Yuki was almost certain of that. Her eyes were strangely deep, but it was her ears that told him she was no human. Long and tapered, they couldn't possibly belong to a human.

Stupid. Try to be logical. Yuki scolded himself. It's a birth defect and nothing more. Don't stare or you'll embarrass her.

"You won't embarrass me." The little girl smiled. "My ears are supposed to look like this. I must repeat my question. Are rats supposed to be in the home of the dragon?"

Yuki frowned. "What are you talking about, miss?"

She giggled and pointed at him. "I'm talking about you, rat."

Well, that was definitive enough. "May I presume you're a Souma? I don't think we've met before." He thought that she must have been about Kisa'a age.

"I'm no Souma. You may call me Hon Ron. I promised to visit dear Kaio Lung. He is much concerned with other matters and I fear for him. He has no time to rest and grows weak for lack of sleep."

If she was not a Souma, then she certainly shouldn't have known about Yuki being the rat or Hatori being the dragon. "It's nice to meet you Hon Ron, but you shouldn't be here. Only family is allowed in this part of the estate." Not to mention that if Akito found out a little girl was hanging about the place, he might do something awful to her. "Where's your family?"

"My father is resting, preparing for a task that will take much energy. My mama is angry and wishes to be alone. That is of no concern. Are you permitted to be here? Surely, dragons eat rats."

"How do you know I'm a rat?" Surely, that wasn't the same as admitting the truth.

"Do you not understand my name? Hon Ron - Red Dragon. Of course I can guess your true nature. Kaio Lung and myself are the same in many ways, though he is still an infant. I would guard him. I promised once that I would inspect his home to see that it was suitable, else I would remove him to a safer place. It is the responsibility of all to look after the young, isn't it?"

"It should be." If it was, then why had Yuki been abandoned by the people who should have protected him? Ayame should have been there…But he was afraid. I would have been, too. "I'm looking for my brother. Have you seen anyone with long silver hair? He's got yellow eyes."

"Ah, the snake. I saw him in a gathering at a house at the center of this estate. He was most sad."

"But not hurt? He was well?"

"He seemed to be."

That was good. If only he could seated Yuki, he was still Yuki's brother. He might want to punch his brother in the mouth, but Yuki couldn't forget that it was Ayame who'd bought him the vegetable seeds when he'd first moved in with Shigure. It was Ayame who'd given Yuki's foster father a beating after he'd tried to force Yuki to return home. Ayame was an arrogant, self-centered hemorrhoid, but as he grew up, Yuki found himself growing more and more accustomed to his brother's strange brand of love. He was also growing more certain that he didn't want to lose Ayame. The sudden terror he'd felt when he'd seen the gutted store had proven that to Yuki.

A little hand touched Yuki's and he pulled away instinctively. No matter what the little girl thought she was, Yuki knew perfectly well that she was no dragon. Hatori was the only dragon. She was just a little girl with funny ears and if she got too close, then he'd have to impose upon Hatori to perform another memory theft.

"You don't have to be afraid of me." Hon Ron told Yuki. "I won't change you. I'm not more human than your friend, Honda Tohru. Now, why should you look so sad? Such a pretty face should smile, surely?" That last comment made Yuki frown. The tone had changed entirely and she smiled with a child-like charm. "You look so much like your brother. You're both very pretty."

"Being pretty is no advantage in life." How his life would have been different if he'd been born ugly, or even plain. But all Zodiac were beautiful and Yuki had not been an exception. Yuki remembered, long ago…

Flashback-

When Yuki was seven, things had started to get bad at home so he began spending more and more time just wandering the estate. It wasn't as if he had anywhere to go or anything to do. He liked sitting on the bridge over the small river than ran through the estate. It was a good place to watch the other houses and Yuki liked watching people.

What he didn't like was people watching him.

"Make them go away." Yuki told his companion. They weren't exactly friends, but Yuki knew Akito liked having him around. Akito tried to make Yuki happy, but lately Akito had been getting odd. He had angry mood swings and would start crying for no reason at all. Still, Akito would find ways to be around Yuki.

"Why?"

"They're staring." Yuki didn't have to turn around to look at who he was talking about. He could feel their eyes on the back of his neck. They were outsiders and outsiders always stared. "Have Shigure make them go away." Where Akito went, Shigure was sure to follow. Wasn't there a poem like that?

"He's reading." Sure enough, when Yuki turned he saw Shigure at one end of the bridge with a book in his hand and apparently unaware of what was going on around him. It must have been a funny book because Shigure would giggle and blush every now and again. Maybe it was a teenager thing.

The visitor was a square looking man and his wife - or whoever she was - was quite the opposite. She was tall and narrow, with her hair done up on her head in a fancy fashion. Though she was older than any of the Zodiac, perhaps thirty or so, she was a great deal younger than the man who'd come to the estate. The two of them walked side-by-side through the estate towards the house where they would, no doubt, wait to meet with Akito.

"She wants you." Akito's skeletal hand gripped Yuki's upper arm tightly. "He's here on business. Wants to merge his business with mine or some other nonsense." Akito stepped closer until his chest was pressed against Yuki's back and he whispered softly, "She's dangerous. She keeps looking at you."

"Who are they?"

"Just outsiders. They don't matter. Keep away from them."

End Flashback-

It hadn't been the most terrible memory of his childhood, but it had been unnerving. To know that an adult could look at him like 'that' made Yuki feel ill, even to this day. At the time, he'd suffered nightmares and the nightmares only grew worse when Yuki overheard his foster parents talking about having the guests stay in their home. He'd stayed for nearly three happy weeks at Hatori's house because of nightly asthma attacks resulting from the nightmares.

"Unpleasant memories?" Hon Ron asked.

"No. Just thinking." It wasn't any of her business, anyway. "If you want to wait for Hatori, that's your business, but let's wait downstairs. He's a private sort of person."

They were halfway down the stairs when Hon Ron casually asked, "Will you accept Count D's offer?"

Yuki felt the beginnings of a headache coming on. She couldn't know everything, could she? Before Yuki could answer her question, he was stopped by the sound of a gong he hadn't heard in a very long time. The deep sound made Yuki run to the door and look out. The summoning gong was to call all the Zodiac together, but Yuki had never heard it except at New Years when it was rung to sound the beginning of the New Year's Banquet. "Forgive me." He told Hon Ron. "I think I have to go now."

The only Zodiac who had not responded to the summons was Shigure and it seemed wrong to have him absent. Still, Akito sat in his slightly raised dais like an emperor and looked at his people. They were all there. Ayame and Hatori, the oldest, sat directly in front of Akito while the younger ones, Kisa and Hiro, sat at the back of the room. Everyone respectfully sat on their knees and bowed low to Akito. There was an uncomfortably formal feel to the whole situation.

"All Zodiac are confined to the estate until further notice." Akito announced without preamble. "Three murders have happened near Zodiac homes outside the estate. You will all remain here. Your schools have been notified." He said that to the children who exchanged frightened looks. "There have been changed made and more changes will come - as you all know. I have decided that we will keep the children Kureno rescued, for the time being. We are being targeted by some organization that wants the children back. Kureno tells me that they won't stop if we simply send the children away. There will be too much suspicion that the children might have told us something. They will attack." He looked around at each of them. "I will not risk my family. You will all stay here where you have some protection. Ayame's shop has been attacked and a woman murdered."

Yuki swallowed hard. It sounded very much like they were under siege. War. We'd be safer separating. If we all left the estate… Yuki's idea crumbled at that. If they left the estate, the rest of the family would still be there and would still be attacked. The least the Zodiac could do was fight for the people who'd supported them for so many years instead of just abandoning them. The best fighters in the family were Zodiac, trained for their own protection.

Akito continued, "The police have been notified and, as such, will likely be paying us visits. You are to refer them all to Hatori or Kazuma who will be giving out limited, edited information. You will answer no questions. We must still protect our secret." It surprised no one to find Kazuma standing discretely in a corner of the room. "The rescued children will be trained as security guards so don't be alarmed if you see them. Kureno tells me they will follow his orders precisely, they aren't a threat to us. Three deaths. This is an order :You WILL stay on the estate." Akito paused then stood. Curiously, he walked passed them to the door at the back of the room and opened it. "Uotoni-san, will you please enter?"

Through the door, Yuki could see Tohru and Hanajima-san standing with the tall yankee. What Akito wanted with the blonde girl, Yuki couldn't guess. Looking more than a little nervous, Uotoni-san stepped into the room and Akito closed the door behind her, not wanting to let anyone else in.

Yuki ducked his head a little when he saw Uotoni-san look at him. How did it look to her to see him kneeling to a boy only a few years older than himself? It wasn't likely that other families behaved like the Souma's. Still, Yuki stayed where he was and just hoped she wouldn't go talking at school and start new rumors. That was the last thing he needed.

Akito took Uotoni-san's elbow and guided her to the front of the room where he had her sit on the floor just next to next to the raised dais. "This is Uotoni Arisa." Akito announced. "And she carries within her the next head of the Souma family."

Yuki was certain his heart stopped.

He looked over at Kyou and saw the cat was pale and had his hands clenched tightly.

"This young woman is to be treated with all respect and every right due to a member of this family. She is to be welcomed as part of this family for her child is a Souma, Kureno's child. She will be given a house in the Inner House. Her child will be your god!"

If anything, Uotoni-san was just as shocked by Akito's words as any of them. She looked at Kureno, then at Akito with an expression somewhere between furious and frightened. She unconsciously put a hand on her stomach. "Now wait just a minute!" Uotoni-san started to get to her feet and looked around at all of them. "What the hell's going on! Why won't anyone tell me anything? Carrot-top? Prince? Someone, talk to me!"

Akito called for Kureno to stand. "You've managed to hide the secret well, but she must know. Embrace the mother of your child."

Dutifully, Kureno did as he was told. In front of everyone, he wrapped his arms around Uotoni-san and held her tight. There was the expected explosion of mist and the soft 'poof' of noise. Uotoni-san let out a gasp and when the mist cleared, she was holding Kureno - the rooster. He was a fine specimen of a rooster - nothing less for a Souma - with bright red and yellow feathers and a handsome comb on the top of his head. "Forgive me." Kureno said to Uotoni-san. "I didn't mean to deceive you. It's only because of the hug."

"But…" Her eyes didn't look quite right. Her hands were shaking. "Hug? Hey, we were very close that night. We were…how?"

"I was very careful not to embrace you that night. I didn't want to frighten you."

"Frighten?" Uotoni-san let out a slightly hysterical laugh. "Frighten me? Why would I be frightened? I'm only pregnant and now…and now all this…" She swayed and fell, dropping Kureno. Luckily, she fell close enough to him that Ayame was able to catch her before she hit the floor. It was probably the first time in her life she'd ever fainted.

"This session is over." Akito announced. "Leave."

Several days later-
Shigure-

Life as a bum, Shigure soon discovered, was not an enviable one. Three days of being hungry had taught him that much. He hadn't contacted the family in those three days and was starting to feel the affects. He hadn't realized that it would be so hard. Not just the emotional guilt of laying all kinds of trouble at the feet of poor Hatori, who would probably be the one called upon to deal with things he'd rather not think about, but real, physical pain, as well.

"Serves me right, but my own pampered stomach would rather go back to sweet Tohru's home cooking right now." He spoke out loud and didn't really care. A look in a store's window showed Shigure that he was well on his way to becoming a stereotypical tramp. His hair was disheveled and he was filthy. It was pretty bad when he could smell himself. "No less than I deserve."

Shigure reached into an inner pocket and felt a few yen and some coins. There was a bar up ahead. As a writer, Shigure had written many death scenes. No story was complete without a decent death. He'd never written about death by alcohol poisoning. It would be an interesting thing to try. At the very least, he'd get good and drunk.

Count D's Petshop-
Tet-chan-

The Count had left him, thinking that Tet-chan needed sleep. He didn't need or want sleep. Sleep brought dreams. He could hear the voice calling to him from within the depths of the Petshop. He could feel the razor-like fingernails brushing through his fur and he could smell the sugary sweetness that clung to all Kami's.

"Come to me, my sweet. I'm waiting for you. My favorite. My treasure, you must come to me."

Tet-chan stayed in his den and put his hands over his ears in an effort to block out the voice. It didn't work. If he tore off his ears, he knew he'd still hear the terrible voice. It echoed inside his head. "Go away." He grumbled, not for the first time. "Leave me alone. I don't belong to you! I gave my self to my master!"

"I am your master."

"You're nothing! You aren't real!" He clawed at the earth of his den and kicked his feet on the back wall. "Leave me in peace! My master will defend me!"

The voice laughed. "My son…my only child…is weak. His body and his spirit are weak. He can't protect you. Only I can keep you safe. Come to me, my sweet. I'm waiting for you. My favorite. My treasure, you must come to me."

Tet-chan sobbed and fought against the impulse that commanded him to obey. He'd freely given himself up to his master. He didn't want to obey the older Kami. He didn't want to go back to that life. But a Kami's will was great, even against a stubborn Tou-Tetsu. Alone and frightened, Tet-chan cowered in his den and fought for control of himself as the insidious voice whispered to him.

To be continued…