Alright! First thing first, obviously I have a new penname! I hope that didn't confuse anyone when they got the update! Second, enjoy, I am soo sorry it took forever and a day to get this out! There's a longer note at the end. ~B.D.

"How old is your girlfriend?" Akito asked from the passenger seat of Momiji's car a few days later. The last few days, Momiji had been a bit of time visiting Alana and her family to get to know them better and working to get two of the rooms in his house ready for Alana to move in. They weren't in terrible shape, he kept a clean house, but they did need airing out. Alana had spent some time at Ayame's shop working on the painting but only a little, having packing and work of her own to do.

"Twenty-two. Just a bit older than I am." Momiji replied with a smile. "She didn't go to public school though." He glanced over at Akito who was slightly turned in her seat to look at him. "How have things been, Akito?" He asked quietly.

Akito smiled widely in joy. "Things have been really good. Kaiya is so sweet tempered and Shigure is a great father." She looked into the back seat where her one-year old daughter sat in her car seat. She was all black hair and big eyes. Shigure had been ordered to go out to his old house and make an inventory of what needed to be done for its new residents. While it needed to be done, Momiji knew that Akito had done it so Alana wasn't overwhelmed. Though she had met the most…energetic of the Sohma's, Shigure was just as bad as Ayame in some ways.

"She's beautiful you know?" Momiji smiled at the soft look Akito fixed on her daughter. If nothing else had healed Akito, the birth of her daughter had. She had been so scared when she was pregnant; she'd hurt all the Zodiac, what if she hurt her child; but as soon as Kaiya was born, Akito had been wrapped around her little finger. She was what Momiji wished his mother had been to him.

"I know. I thank all the stars in the sky that I have her. It means a lot to me, Momiji that you are such a big part of my life." Akito told him as they pulled into the parking lot.

Momiji smiled at Akito sadly, parking in the same spot he had the last time he'd come to the Gallery. "We all make mistakes Akito. You've tried very hard to make up for yours. I couldn't just abandon you when you needed someone most. I know Tohru and Shigure are there for you as well, but I couldn't leave you either."

Akito leaned over and kissed his cheek softly and hugged him with tears in her eyes. Then she wiped them away and climbed out of the car and reached in back to grab her daughter. "Now, show me this girl of yours." She demanded smiling.

~Art of Love~

Alana paused in her conversation with Jin as a smirk crossed over his features. "What…?" She turned to look behind her and blushed lightly as Momiji made his way to her. Following behind him was a beautiful woman and a baby. "Oh…" Jin chuckled and winked over her shoulder at the blond boy before disappearing to find a customer to talk to.

"Alana, this is my cousin, Akito, and her daughter, Kaiya." Momiji introduced, bringing Akito forward to the redhead. She smiled widely and held out her hand to shake. Momiji really did have a very large family…Alana thought happily. It was definitely different from her family with three cousins widely spread in age and location.

"It's wonderful to meet you both." Alana greeted her shaking her hand and touching the cheek of the sleeping infant. "She's adorable. How old is she?"

"Just over a year." Akito replied smiling down at her baby. "It's wonderful to meet you as well." She gestured towards the paintings hanging on the walls. "Do you mind giving me a tour while we talk?"

Alana smiled and shook her head. "Not at all. We'll start over here if that's alright." She led the way to the room filled with mostly landscapes and let Akito look in silence, ready to answer any questions she might have.

"Akito is the head of the Sohma family. I told her that you were moving in." Momiji told her quietly. "I hope you don't mind." He fidgeted slightly and Alana linked her fingers with his and smiled.

"Not at all. I told my family last night as well. They agreed but expect us to visit once a week at least." Alana replied, chuckling slightly. Her smile softened as Momiji's face lit up in joy. He bounced a few times and Akito, who had turned to talk to Alana, laughed at his exuberance.

"Momiji tells me you are an artist Takashi-san." Akito shifted her daughter higher on her shoulder as the baby sighed and shifted slightly in sleep.

"Please, call me Alana. And yes, a few of my pieces are on display in the Gallery. I have…" She paused and looked to the ceiling as she mentally counted, "three in this room, two in the portrait gallery, and four in the last room."

Akito turned back to the Oceanside painting before her and looked for the tag. "Can you show me which are yours?"

"Of course." Alana replied indicating they keep walking.

Akito turned to Momiji and handed him the baby. "Can you hold her while we girls talk?"

Momiji nodded tilting his head in curiosity. He didn't think Akito would do anything mean or violent if alone with Alana, she definitely wasn't the same person as she had been when he was a child. "Should I be afraid?" He asked teasingly.

"Of course. We are going to talk about you after all." Alana snickered and linked arms with Akito before striding away.

Akito smiled at the red-head. She already was making a good impression on her. She was kind, intelligent, artistic, and seemed to be a cheerful person. Everything Momiji needed after the life she had created for the Zodiac. "Though Momiji and I weren't always close, he's become like a little brother to me and I wanted to meet the girl who has captured his heart so completely."

Alana blushed as she led Akito to the set of landscapes she'd done. They were a trio of paintings that ideally would be sold together but were able to stand alone. The first painting was of a cherry tree in winter, no leaves on it; the second was a cherry tree with green leaves covering it; and the third was the tree in full bloom, its pink flowers bright in the sunlight of the painting.

Akito's jaw dropped in shock. "They are gorgeous! Amazing." She murmured leaning closer to study the brush strokes and then leaning back to appreciate the picture at a distance. "Are they for sale?"

Alana nodded, "Yes, but because a larger gallery is going to be scouting me soon, we are keeping them until after he comes. Then whoever buys them, if someone does, will get them." She turned to peer over at Momiji and he stuck his tongue out at her childishly as he talked with her grandfather who had appeared out of nowhere. "Momiji is a great man. I'm very lucky to have met him."

Akito hummed smiling with a hint of sadness. "I don't know if Momiji told you, but our family didn't get along a few years ago. I'm so happy to see the darkness that clouded his eyes has lifted." She turned and met Alana's eyes squarely. "It's to do with you." She smiled wider at the embarrassed blush on her face. "It is. Though Momiji doesn't need my permission for you to move into the compound, I am giving it to you two anyway. If you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to find me." She pursed her lips thoughtfully and studied the paintings again. "Though watch out for my husband, he's a bit of a lecher."

Alana laughed and smiled softly at the older woman. "Thank you Akito. I can tell we will be great friends."

Akito felt her eyes tear up slightly at the immediate acceptance this woman had given her. She was still unused to being wanted, to being liked. "And as a great friend, I shall buy these paintings." She nodded firmly and turned to look towards Momiji.

"What? You don't have to do that!" Alana protested tugging at Akito's sleeve as the woman strode away from her.

"I want to." She reached Momiji who introduced her to Alana's grandfather. "Oh good! I would like to buy Alana's trio of landscapes. I understand they cannot be removed until after the critic has come but I would like to buy them now."

"Why does your family insist on buying my paintings?" Alana hissed at Momiji but her annoyance died as Momiji handed her the tiny child.

"They have good taste?" Momiji asked, his eyes bright and laughing at her. "They aren't doing it because they think you need money, Alana. They honestly and truly like your art. I'd buy it all myself if I could. Well…I mean I could, I could afford it all but I don't think you would like me hogging your talent to myself." He teased, running a hand gently through her hair as Akito talked with her grandfather about pricing and the scout that was coming by. "We going back to Ayame's tomorrow?"

Alana nodded, "Yeah, I was going to see if you wanted to spend some time together tonight…"

Momiji's face bloomed into a wide smile and he stroked his hand down her cheek and kissed it gently. "I'd love to." He leaned back as Akito called his name and turned to join their conversation, leaving Alana breathless.

She gazed down at the quiet baby in her arms and smiled softly. The world was turning quickly around them and things were moving very fast but Alana wouldn't give up the changes for anything. She jumped slightly as the baby reached out and fisted a strand of her hair, tugging slightly and she raised the child to her face to kiss gently on the nose. She wouldn't change a thing…

~Art of Love~

Eventually, Alana's grandfather took Akito to see the other paintings that they had of Alana's as Akito had fallen into a rather complicated discussion about painting styles with him and left Momiji and Alana to 'wait for her' as she had imperiously told them with a grin. They found themselves in the music room and Momiji took Kaiya as Alana slid onto the piano bench.

"Anything specific you'd like to hear?" Alana asked pressing the keys gently.

"Something…soft, loving." Momiji whispered his finger held tightly by Kaiya's fist as she watched the red-head with a fixed expression. Kaiya was quiet for a one year old. Probably because daddy talks so much, Momiji thought with a laugh.

Alana nodded and pressed down on the keys again and after a few chords, began to sing. "Georgia, Georgia, the whole day through…just an old sweet song, keeps that Georgia on my mind…on my mind."

Momiji smiled and began to sing quietly along with her. He was aware of patrons stopping to watch and people wandering in to hear the music. "Other arms reach out to me…other eyes smile tenderly, still in peaceful dreams I see, the road leads back to you…oooohhh Georgia…"

When the song trailed off, those who'd come to listen clapped quietly in respect of the toddler. An older man came over and asked if she knew 'Lullaby for a Stormy Night' and with a soft smile towards the man she began to play, her eyes drifting to Momiji and Kaiya, one who had suffered as a child and one who she hoped never would. "Little child, be not afraid, the rain pounds harsh against the glass, like an unwanted stranger, there is no danger; I'm here tonight…"

Akito wandered into the room with Alana's grandfather at her side and paused to listen to the soft song Alana played and sang. She felt her eyes burn with tears at the wonderful song. It was a 'mother' song; the kind of song, mothers sang to their children during storms and after nightmares; the kind of song she had wished once, long ago for her own mother to sing to her. She knew next to nothing about this woman, but where she had felt threatened by Tohru, feared that Tohru would take from her all that she had, she didn't now. Where Tohru had been a hammer and chisel at first to Akito, breaking apart the carefully constructed world that Akito had lived in to protect herself, Alana was a warm blanket on a cold day. She didn't make Akito fear that she would shatter Akito's world or tear away the things she loved most, instead she made Akito feel like she would help keep everything together…and that was what she was doing, Akito realized as Momiji directed her to another song once the Lullaby had ended, a more cheerful song. She was keeping Momiji together, the only one left of the Zodiac without a lover, a companion, and the one Akito feared had been one of the most damaged, simply because he had no one with him. She was saving the Rabbit and making him smile once again.

At that moment she came to the conclusion that the God from the curse had answered her prayers for healing to come to all of her family and now it had come to the one she had thought forgotten. She looked down at Alana's grandfather and the proud look on his face and nodded firmly once again. "If the scout turns her down, I'll sponsor her myself." She walked away before the man could respond and so missed the gentle smile on his lips.

Alana and Momiji turned to smile at Akito when she approached. "You play very well, Alana." She told her smiling.

"Thank you." Alana smiled back at her. "Your daughter is so well behaved."

"Yes…I'm not quite sure where she gets it from." Akito replied accepting Kaiya from Momiji.

"Definitely not her father." Momiji joked. He reached down to assist Alana to her feet.

"Definitely not." Akito laughed. "Well it was great meeting you, Alana. I'll see you this weekend."

"Oh?" Alana asked escorting the three of them to the exit.

"A small welcome dinner party. I'll introduce you to my husband then." Akito waved Kaiya's hand at her before stepping outside to let Momiji say goodbye.

"I'll come get you later?" Momiji leaned in and kissed her gently.

"Alright." Alana murmured accepting the kiss happily.

Momiji threaded his hand into her hair at the nape of her neck and studied the soft curves of her face as she smiled lovingly at him. After a moment he sighed and kissed her cheek. "I'll see you later."

"Bye, Momiji." Alana smiled and headed back to see her grandfather.

Momiji and Akito were silent as they made their way back to the car. When Kaiya was strapped in and they were heading back to the compound, Momiji looked at Akito. "Well?"

Akito smiled at him softly; an expression that was fortunately becoming much more common to her. "I like her very much. I think…she is exactly what you need."

~Art of Love~

The rest of the morning and afternoon went by quickly and when Alana was finished for the evening, Momiji was just arriving to pick her up. "So what did you have planned for us to do this evening?"

"I thought we'd have dinner at my parents' house and we could all watch some movies or something." Alana murmured linking fingers with him as she waved goodbye to her co-workers on their way out. She remembered that he had talked of having no family as he grew up and she wanted to show that he was welcome in her life, in her family.

He smiled widely down at her, showing the cheerful, bubbly personality that he sometimes swung into. "That sounds like a lot of fun!" He agreed laughing. "Should we call them and offer to buy food on our way to your home?" He swung their hands a little childishly and Alana simply laughed.

"Their home." She whispered quietly, hoping that the words she was going to say would give him the comfort she hoped they would. "I'm moving in with you, Momiji. That means your home is mine now." She blushed lightly when he stopped walking to stare at her.

A softer, deeper smile crossed his lips and he tangled his free hand into her hair and tilted her face up to his. He didn't say anything, but the soft kiss he placed against her lips expressed how touching her words were to him. He loved that she was going into this looking at where he lived as their home. It erased any insecurity he had that she was moving in with him out of pity instead of desire.

Alana's eyes were bright with happiness when he pulled away from her and smiled. "Let me call them and ask what their dinner plans are." She murmured softly. She pulled out her cellphone and Momiji let go of her hand to wrap his arm around her waist as they continued on their way to his car. "Hi Mom. Do you guys have plans for dinner? Well, Momiji offered for us to pick up something on our way to the house. Yeah, that should be fine. No, Emiko is not allowed to pick the movie. She wanted to watch something gross last time. Dad or Momiji can pick. No, Emiko cannot talk to Momiji for a moment." Alana laughed and Momiji smiled, listening to her half of the conversation was immensely amusing. "Alright. We'll be there soon." She hung up and wrapped her arm down around Momiji's waist as well. "They would 'deeply appreciate it if we would be so kind to pick up something, preferably from the Hunan place that I pass on my way home'. Do you mind?"

Momiji laughed as Alana repeated the words back to him and shook his head. "That sounds perfect. What movie did Emiko want to convince me to pick?"

"I'm not 100% sure to be honest. But her last choice was '28 Days Later' and my mother couldn't look at raw beef for a week." Alana smiled as Momiji laughed.

"Well, that type of movie isn't really my thing either so no worries." Momiji hugged her tighter to his side and pressed a kiss to her temple. He loved being able to touch Alana whenever he wished and she seemed to love his affectionate nature as well. He worried occasionally about it because it was his first relationship and he didn't know how he was supposed to act. But he followed his instincts and if the happy sigh Alana gave at his kiss was any indication, his instincts were right on the ball.

~Art of Love~

It didn't take too long to arrive back at her parent's house and Alana laughed as the two of them walked to the door. Emiko threw it open as they stepped onto the porch and pulled the bag of food from Alana's hands.

"Finally! I'm starving!" She exclaimed, taking the food into the kitchen and setting out the boxes as her mother pulled down dishes.

"You're always starving." Alana laughed nudging her sister as she handed Momiji tableware. Together the four of them set the table. Mizu entered the kitchen hanging up the phone in his hand.

"That was your grandfather, Alana." He gave her a one-armed hug and shook Momiji's hand in greeting. "The Gallery representative is going to be by tomorrow. Instead of in a few weeks. The original representative, had a family emergency and the one who is replacing him is only able to come tomorrow. He is aware you are playing and your grandfather will give him the initial tour of your pieces." He gave her an encouraging smile and kissed her forehead at the immense shock coming over her.

Alana was close to panicking but took a few deep breaths to calm down. She knew a representative was coming. The painting of Kisa might not be ready to be seen, but she had plenty of other pieces to show off. She would need to remember to bring the drawings she had around the house in. She took another deep breath and nodded looking up at her parents, sister, and Momiji who all looked so happy for her. I can do this.

Mizu and Chizue gave Alana such proud looks that Momiji felt his heart clench in both jealousy and happiness. His mother would never look at him like that though his father frequently had. But he was happy that Alana was getting the attention she was due. Chizue smiled and hugged Momiji, startling him with the suddenness. "I expect to see you frequently, Momiji."

Momiji felt his throat tighten up and he squeezed her back. "Of course. I was hoping that Sunday, we could finish moving her in and you guys could stay for dinner."

Chizue laughed and nodded. "We'd love to." She led him to the table and the next hour was full of laughing chatter and good food. When they finally started a movie, it was Hero with Jet Li, chosen by Chizue who was a Jet Li fan.

At the end of the night, Alana walked with him down to the car and he wrapped his arms around her. "Tomorrow will be perfect. You'll do great. And after, we can pick up some of your stuff and begin to move things to the house." He told her pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"I want you to play with me tomorrow." Alana whispered in his ear, snuggling deeper into his arms.

Momiji leaned back to cup her face. "But this is your chance."

"I love to play the piano, yes, but my true love is art, Momiji. I'll play because it will help me to be better-rounded but I don't love it the same way." She pushed a hand into the hair at the back of his neck and leaned forward to kiss him gently. "I don't love it the way you do."

Momiji turned a light pink and ducked his head further into her hands. He should have known she would see how much he loved playing the violin. "When we were in school…we were asked about our dreams. Mine was to play a concert, where my father, my mother, and Momo would be able to see." He confessed lowly.

"Play with me tomorrow. I'll do anything I can to make that dream come true." Alana promised, leaning up and pressing her lips to his. The world faded away as they kissed. All that they knew was the warmth and love and depth of feeling they had as they held each other close and kissed.

I've never seen 28 Days Later so I don't know if it is gross but I have always assumed that it was a gore-ish movie. As always, none of the songs are mine and I try to keep both a classical and contemporary mix when music is referenced. I know there are times where there is a lot of music, but since it was the thing that brought them together it has to be part of the developing and continual relationship.