Chapter Two

It took some haggling to find an hour agreeable to both their loaded schedules, but finally they managed to settle on a fixed date and time, and then another and another until their meetings– late lunches or early dinners in the cafeteria or study sessions spent quizzing each other on their disparate subjects– became regular occurrences. She had an enviable ease with languages and he marvelled at how she could retain the tidbits if German that he fed her even with four other languages bouncing around in her brain. He mused on this as he watched her over the top of one of his schoolbooks. It was getting late and the study hall had begun to empty out but she was studying quite diligently while he made an effort to look like he was.

"Wo hab' ich das Buch gestellt?" He started at her words. She smiled and looked up at him. "You were muttering that the other day. Something about a misplaced book?"

"Yes. 'Where did I put that book?' How do you do that?"

She shrugged. "My gift, I guess."

"It's incredible."

"Well so is the way you play the violin."

He smiled and tried not to outright beam as he remembered the time just last week when he had played for her. There had been tears in her eyes by the time he had finished. "My only gift," he replied.

Tsuki snorted. "Oh come on. You're intelligent and athletic and handsome. I'll bet the girls in high school were falling all over themselves around you."

"No!" he protested, feeling a blush creeping up into his cheeks. "I was short when I started. I couldn't even find a uniform that fit me so I wore a girls' uniform instead."

"Don't tease, Momiji."

"I'm serious. Look, I have a photo." He reached for his wallet and pulled out an old photograph. In the centre of it stood Tohru with Yuki and Kyo on either side of her, Hatsuharu to one side with little Kisa held close against him, and then himself clutching Tohru's arm and smiling up at her.

Tsuki's eyes widened as he handed her the picture and she looked upon his fifteen-year-old self. "Is that really you?"

"It is."

"You're adorable." He ran his hand through his hair and tried not to flush once more.

"Who's this?" she asked pointing to Tohru.

"Tohru– Tohru Honda. A very important family friend."

"You seem very fond of her," she said, one eyebrow raised, though her eyes remained fixed on the photograph.

"I was– I mean I am. I–" He stopped and took a breath, not quite certain why he felt so flustered. "She did a lot for all of us. When I was younger I even fancied her for a time."

"You never told her?"

"No. I... I think I knew better even then. But she'll always be a dear friend." He cocked his head. Tsuki was still regarding the photograph– in fact she seemed almost to be studying it, her forehead creased in concentration.

"Who's the little girl?"

"That's Kisa Sohma."

"Kisa?"

"That's right. Tsuki?" She looked pale all of a sudden. "Tsuki, are you all right?"

"It's a lovely photograph," she said, handing it back to him.

"Tsuki."

"Hmm?"

"Bist du trauig?"

"No, I'm not sad. I'm fine." She offered a smile which didn't quite reach her eyes. "It's getting late. We should probably head back."

"All right. I'll walk you home."

They had just gotten into the corridor when he saw a troop of girls approaching and stepped behind Tsuki. University girls didn't fling themselves the way some of their high-school counterparts did, but there was no point in taking chances.

"Hey Tsuki," called out one of the girls. "Hi, Momiji," she then greeted him. "We thought we might find you here."

"What's up?" asked Tsuki?

"Professor Nazuka cancelled tomorrow's class so we're going to use our free period to quiz each other for the test next week. Did you want to join us?"

"Unless of course," chimed in one of the others, "you two lovebirds already made plans."

He watched the colour creep up Tsuki's neck and into her cheeks and hoped the same wasn't happening to him.

"Amara," hissed Tsuki.

Amara shrugged, grinning mischievously. "So will we see you tomorrow?"

"I'll be there."

"Okay, see you later."

Tsuki was already turning to face him when one of the girls' book bags caught her in the side and threw her off balance. Momiji reached out to steady her and immediately he regretted it as, for an instant, he felt the warmth of her body pressed against his chest and then the "pop" of his transformation. He was on the floor already in a panic. However, he didn't have so much as an instant to move before Tsuki's book bag was pushing him back against the wall and his clothes were being tossed over him.

"What was that?" he heard of one of the girls say.

"What was what?" asked Tsuki.

"That sound just now. And where's Momiji?"

"He just ran off," replied Tsuki. "Rest room I think."

"I didn't even see him."

"Oh you know Momiji," said Tsuki casually. "Fast as a jackrabbit when he wants to be."

"So he really hasn't asked you out?"

"Amare, stop it," groaned Tsuki.

"Come on, Tsuki. If you're just friends then I'd be glad to go out with him."

Tsuki sighed. "It's complicated."

"Complicated how?"

"Leave her be, Amare. We'll see you tomorrow, Tsuki?

"Yeah. Goodnight." And then the sound of retreating footsteps and Tsuki's sigh of relief.

"Momiji?"

He didn't reply. He could feel his tiny heart hammering against his ribs. This was just what he'd tried to avoid all this time. Akito was certain to insist that she have her memory erased and then he would lose her for good. Maybe if he could slip away... He could make up an excuse, explain this all somehow.

"Momiji?" she said, alarm evident in her voice. "Momiji are you all right? I didn't hurt you, did I?" She was puling back the heap of clothing and he tried to scamper away from her reaching hands but she caught him. "Momiji, stop squirming. Are you all right? Answer me."

He froze. She held him up before her in the empty corridor, worry etched on her features. "You... know?" he whispered.

"Of course I know. Didn't you know that I– but maybe you were too young to remember." She paused, holding him against her chest so that he could hear the thump of her heartbeat. "We should talk."

But neither of them moved. He was enveloped by her warmth, inhaling the scent of her hair, of her skin, lulled by the steady rise and fall of her chest. "Tsuki..." He felt her whole body tremble.

"We should go. Before someone see us."

"My place is two blocks from the main campus. We can talk there undisturbed."

She nodded and set him down in order to gather his clothes. "Did you want to wait until you turn back? We could find a men's room and I could leave you there with your things."

"It... might be a while." He knew he was far too rattled to change back immediately. He needed to calm down and... he had to admit to himself that he would take any excuse to be close to her if only for a little while.

"All right," she said quietly and gathered him up in her arms.

He whispered directions to his apartment building but otherwise they walked in silence. Night had fallen and the bright lights of the city drowned out the stars. "In the front pocket of my pants," he supplied as they stood before the locked door to his apartment. She set him down as she rifled through his clothes for the key, looking quite abashed. Finally she got the door open and stepped into his apartment. It was small but comfortable and well furnished. She groped for a light switch but, finding none, settled for removing his clothes from her book bag before sinking down against the wall and beginning to cry. Still clutched against her chest Momiji found himself whispering to her, whispering he was not quite sure what in German, and cuddling close to her as he felt hot ears in his fur.

"I'm all right. I'm all right," she said after a couple of minutes, wiping her eyes and taking a deep breath.

"I'm sorry, Tsuki. I didn't mean to–"

"No!" She held him up before her as she spoke and looked into his eyes. "No, it was nothing you did." She set him down then against her shoulder and spoke very quietly. "I was thinking about my brother."

"Your brother?"

"I guess you were too young to remember. You were only four or so when he died. Has anyone ever mentioned to you Katsuro Sohma?"

"Katsuro?" He flicked one of his ears. "He was the tiger before Kisa, wasn't he? He... died suddenly I think. I don't know any more than that."

"Katsuro was my brother. My older brother. That's why I know about the zodiac curse. He and my father were killed in an accident when I was six. It was suggested to my mother that we could have our memories erased so we'd forget about the curse... but my mother refused. No mater how much it hurt she didn't want to forget about her son." He felt her choke down a sob. He trembled. A mother who refused to forget her son, no matter the pain... "And neither did I." She buried her face in his fur and he felt the tears streaming down her face. She composed herself quickly, however, and set him down in her lap so she could rummage through her bag in search of a tissue. The room was lit only by the city lights that shone through his living room window and made the tears on her cheeks glitter.

"Tsuki."

"I'm sorry," she murmured. "I don't often cry like that anymore– it's been so long– but holding you I remembered just what it was like to hug my brother. My mother didn't like it– she was alway afraid we'd be seen– so we'd wait until she wasn't around and I'd hug him and he'd turn int a big tiger cub and we used to play like that."

"I never knew," breathed Momiji. "I thought– I thought you'd gone away because you'd hugged me and learned our secret and had your memory erased. I thought it was because of me."

"Momiji." She swept him into her arms again and pressed her lips to his head and all at once he desperately wished to be in his human form. "It was after my father and brother died that we moved away," she whispered. "Far away from the rest of the Sohma family and the curse." They remained in silence for a minute. "Oh!" Tsuki exclaimed suddenly. "Oh I'm sorry. You'll never go back to being human if I keep doing this, will you?"

He made a sniffing sound which was how a laugh came out in his rabbit form as she set him down on the floor. "It's all right. So why did you transfer here all of sudden?"

"I... needed to get away from my mother." He went rigid. For years he'd watched his mother from a distance, hoping just to catch a glimpse of her. The thought of wanting to get away from her when he so yearned to be near her... "I realize that sounds horrible," continued Tsuki, "but I need to prove to her that I won't shatter like glass if I'm on my own. She was always so protective of Katsuro and then of me as well. I just need her to understand that I'll be all right." She sighed. "You think I'm a terrible daughter, don't you?" she added when he said nothing.

"Of course not. I just... wish I had that problem. My mother... she chose to forget about me. To this day she doesn't know I'm her son."

"Momiji... I'm so sorry."

"It saved her life, you know, made her better," he said quietly. His mind leaped to that night years ago when he had told Tohru his story. He felt calmer this time, though his heart still ached at the memories. "And I remember her and even though it hurts I want to keep remembering. My memories are precious to me. Even the ones that hurt."

"Like my memories of Katsuro," whispered Tsuki.

The room was still then for several moments as they each mused in silence. Momiji was startled when the pop of his transformation shattered that silence.

"Sorry," he mumbled as he reached for his clothes and pulled them over his waist, flushing furiously. He was about to rise to get back into his clothing but instead froze as her fingers snagged his arm. Startled he turned to look at her just as she leaned in and kissed him.

He thought he might melt.

Her lips were so warm. One of her hands lay against his jaw while the other was pressed against he bare skin of his chest. As he reached out to her he felt the pang of knowing he could never hold her against him. Instead, he ran his fingers through her hair and then let one of his hands trace down her cheek, down her neck and side until it met with an exposed patch of skin where her shirt was slightly hitched up. He immediately realized he'd made a tactical error as she yelped and leaped forward so that their bodies made contact and he found himself once again, in his rabbit form.

"You're ticklish," he said, mirth bubbling through him at the thought.

"Sorry," she said, ducking her head and giving a half bow.

"No harm done. We just need to practice."

"Practice?" she repeated with a raised eyebrow.

"Practice," he affirmed. "Doesn't that sound like fun?"

"And what would that entail?" she asked, her eyes sparkling.

He flicked an ear. "More of the same, I expect, only with less of me transforming into a rabbit. Now come on, Tsuki, you know you can't resist my princely charms."

She laughed. "You're right I've always been attracted to men with fur and long ears."

"Will you stay a for while?" he asked quietly.

"Yes of course. I can make us some tea while you..." She gestured vaguely at his furry form.

"The light switch is on the wall to your left and the tea's in the second cabinet on the right."

"Do you think while I'm here you might play something for me on your violin?"

"I'd be glad to."

He was equally glad that this time at least she had her back turned when he found himself scampering for his clothes.