For the next few hours, Hajime and Kyo sat together and talked. As much as Kyo wished neither of them had needed to come and wished the circumstances were different, he could appreciate the tiny silver lining of more time with his son. Hajime and Mutsuki's apartment in Chiba was over two hours away from the dojo by train and nearly eight from Tohru and Kyo's house in Hibe, which meant visits had always been few and far between; while they talked regularly, for five years now they'd basically seen Hajime at New Year's and for a week in the summer.

Hajime left for the hospital at half-past two, and Kyo called to talk to Tohru. It had been wonderful hearing her voice, especially her happiness at the fact Kazuma had looked better that morning. She'd been understandably touched by Hajime's visit, glad to know Kunimitsu had gotten in to see Kazuma, and just...happy...to hear Kyo's voice, as well.

"Have you had a chance yet to discuss all what you'll be doing, while you're there at the dojo?" she asked him, once he'd finished telling her the rest. "Or is that something you still need to sort out?"

"You say that like I've been here longer than a day," Kyo said, chuckling. "Nah, we haven't talked about it yet. Like I said yesterday, Dad didn't wake up until later last night, and it wasn't like we were gonna talk about it first thing this morning. I'd guess we'll maybe figure it out tomorrow when all three of us can sit down together and talk, but I for sure'll be teaching Dad's classes and maybe handling some of the managerial stuff, too, if it's nothing too complicated. Dad's supposed to be taking it easy for a couple days 'cause of his concussion, but after that, if everything looks good he'd be able to sit with me and supervise while I do the actual legwork. Once we've got a better idea of what Dad'll need here at the dojo, we'll know if I need to pick up anything for Kunimitsu, too."

"Well, I'm glad you're able to be there and help, and I'm sure Master Kazuma and Kunimitsu are, as well."

"Yeah, me too," he said, smiling. But then he paused, before saying, "I miss you, though."

"I miss you, too," she said quietly. "It's hard, going to bed without you."

"Still probably easier than sleeping in a hospital chair, though," he teased, and she giggled.

"Ok, yes, that's probably true. But still..." she sighed. "I think that for sure Sachiko and I will come for the week after spring term ends-"

"-Yeah, I figured as much," Kyo said.

"-But I also hope to come down some other time in there, if I can make it work."

"I'd love to have you, Tohru, but I don't think you oughtta, not unless you can find someone who's willing to stay in the house while you're gone."

"I agree. I like Takashi, he's a very nice boy-"

"But they're seventeen," Kyo agreed. "Teenagers are gonna teenager, but let's not give 'em an open invitation, right?"

"Right," Tohru agreed, smiling. "I'll do some thinking and see if I can come up with anyone who might be willing, and if so, I'll plan on coming down to stay with you for a bit. Otherwise, like I said, Sachiko and I will be down the end of March."

"Sounds great," Kyo said, smiling, then sighed. "I wish you could be here with me now, Tohru," he admitted quietly. "I've got so much stuff bouncing around in my head right now, I don't even know how to begin thinking about it."

"About Master Kazuma?"

"Yeah. About Dad, about his injuries, about his recovery...about the dojo," he admitted, and her heard Tohru's quiet breath. "I really dunno, Tohru. They say Dad could make a full recovery, but I dunno what that means. And I'm not gonna say anything to Dad, obviously, but I'm wondering if...this might be it."

Tohru was silent for a moment, then she admitted, "I've been wondering that, too. You two have never actually properly discussed things yet, right?"

"Nope," Kyo admitted, a little shamefacedly. "I've been kicking it around for almost a decade, though, thinking about bringing it up and chickening out every time. I never knew a way to talk about it without sounding like I wanted him to go."

"You know he'd never think that, Kyo!"

"Yeah, I know, but that didn't change how I felt about it. And he never brought it up, either, so it was easy enough to just keep on ignoring it and not thinking about it, but now...no matter what happens with Dad, Tohru, I think we've gotta hash this out now. At least to make a plan, and get an idea of a timeline. Dad's always been in great shape, he's still been competing, once in a while...but he's sixty-nine, now. Yeah, he could keep going for a while, but...he might not, too. And after this...I don't know if he'll even be able to."

Tohru was quiet again, then she said, "You know I support you, Kyo, and I trust you to make the best decision for all of us, including Master Kazuma. I'd still...prefer...if we didn't consider moving until at after Sachiko graduates, though."

"I agree. I wouldn't wanna make her finish high school in a new place away from her friends, either, unless there's no way to avoid it. But even if I needed to be here sooner, we could maybe look into her living with a friend or something until graduation.

"Yes...I suppose that's a possibility, too."

They were both quiet after that, until Kyo finally said, "But it's all theoretical, anyway. Like I said yeah, Dad and I've gotta talk this out now and come up with an actual plan, but that doesn't mean we'll be moving any time soon. And it's not like I'll have to sign any contract committing to being here by such and such a date. Dad knows it'll be a process, us moving...and that's why it's time to at least start talking about it," he repeated.

"You're right," she agreed. "It's more than time for us...to have a plan."


Kyo stayed at the dojo until later that evening, when he went back to the hospital and joined Kazuma and Kunimitsu for the tail end of visiting hours. He was relieved to see Kazuma still looking well, or at least as well as he could be; Kazuma was still sitting up, still alert, and sounded like his usual cheerful self. Kyo felt encouraged, and as rough as it was to look at Kazuma's injuries, listening to him talk was more than enough to reassure Kyo that whatever else happened, it seemed safe to say that Kazuma's mind, at least, was untouched.

When visiting hours were over Kunimitsu left, and the staff once more tried to send Kyo with him. Once again Kyo refused, insisting he preferred to stay and would be completely comfortable sleeping in the chair again, a lie that the hospital staff clearly didn't believe but finally accepted. The whole thing made Kazuma chuckle, and listening to that laugh was enough to make Kyo think that even sleeping on the tile floor would be worth it, as long as Kazuma kept laughing.

The next day, all three of them were thrilled to learn that Kazuma would be cleared to leave that afternoon, provided there were no unexpected developments during the morning. And when there weren't, Kyo and Kunimitsu were possibly even happier than Kazuma to load him up and take him back to the dojo.

Kazuma was happy to be home, and accepted his new restrictions with good grace. For the time being, he'd be staying in his office on the ground floor, rather than his bedroom on the second; all of them agreed that while he was healing, it would be better for him to have minimal dealings with stairs. There were a few complications they'd still have to figure out, like the fact that the shower was upstairs, but overall, things...would be fine.

All of them would make it work.


With Kazuma home, they quickly sorted out a new division of labor. Kazuma's broken bones would likely take at least eight weeks to mend, and possibly longer; the doctor had warned them that the collarbone, in particular, could easily take twelve or more. And until he was fully signed off by a doctor, he wasn't allowed to do so much as wave his arm.

In vain, Kazuma tried to protest being banished from the dojo, arguing that he'd be perfectly fine simply watching without demonstrating, but Kyo and Kunimitsu had been united. Both of them trusted Kazuma to fully intend not to demonstrate, forget, and then hurt himself; in the end, Kazuma had grudgingly accepted that maybe, perhaps, they had a reason to worry.

Kyo would be taking over all of Kazuma's classes, as well as participating in those that he could himself. Kazuma had insisted that Kyo utilize his sabbatical as properly as he could; that meant training, as well as teaching. Kunimitsu would be working with Kyo one on one during the day in Kazuma's stead, and Kyo was confident that even if Kunimitsu was no Kazuma, he'd walk away all the stronger for the personal training.

Kazuma had fought for, and kept, the dojo accounts. He had a system, and a routine; there was nothing wrong with his right hand, and there was nothing wrong with his mind. But he did allow Kyo to step in with coordinating the dojo upkeep and rank testing, as well as handling all meetings with prospective students and families. He'd even agreed to let Kyo accompany him to his quarterly check-in with the Sohma family board, two weeks after getting home from the hospital.

Kyo had been surprised by that one, but he supposed he shouldn't have been. While Kazuma was the master and the dojo was his in turn to bestow, it carried the Sohma name, was on the Sohma estate, and operated under the benevolent interest of the Sohma family. This was standard, Kazuma had explained; all businesses connected to the Sohma family had to check in periodically to report on how they were doing. The dojo had always been a strong performer; it was more a matter of form than anything.

Management came with all sorts of responsibilities.


Kyo had felt strangely tense, accompanying Kazuma into the Sohma estate. Though the Sohma Dojo technically sat on the estate, it was on the very edge; though Tohru and Kyo had been regular visitors over the years, Kyo had almost never set foot in the main estate proper. Discounting the family New Year's celebrations, he was actually sure he could count the number of times he'd been there post-move on one hand, and as they made their way through the narrow streets to the gate to the inner estate, he felt the same uncomfortable feeling of not belonging that he'd always felt, ever since he was a child.

Passing through the gate did nothing to squelch that feeling, and as they made their way to the site of the meeting Kyo felt the almost wild urge to bolt. Almost thirty years had passed, but the very air of the estate still felt oppressive; as though he was surrounded by hundreds of eyes, all staring at him with cold, undisguised loathing.

The feeling clung to him in the meeting as well, where aside of greeting the attendees he did nothing other than help Kazuma with his papers and observe. It was admittedly gratifying, hearing how kindly and politely everyone spoke to Kazuma, asking after his progress and wishing him well. Kyo wasn't particularly shocked; Kazuma had always been held in high esteem by the family, and everyone knew of his accident. Akito had been the one to send the car that brought Kazuma home from the hospital, and the first day after Kazuma came home Akito's son Shiki had personally stopped at the dojo to see if there was anything else the family could do for him. It had been nice, seeing that consideration.

But during the meeting, Kyo had also been aware of two of the older board members both studying him coldly, and he had to fight to keep his expression neutral in response. He long since accepted the curiosity and interest that came with his appearance...but it was much, much easier to accept that scrutiny when there was no chance they'd know who he was, or more specifically, who he had been.


"You seem thoughtful, Kyo," Kazuma said as the two of them made their way back to the dojo when they were done. "Did you find the meeting more interesting than you expected?"

Kyo snorted. "Hardly; it was every bit as exciting as I expected, sitting there and listening to you talk about stuff I already knew." He had been with Kazuma when he was preparing the reports to give to the board members, and Kazuma had given him a thorough explanation of everything the family wanted to know and why. "But I guess there were some things that were kinda interesting," he admitted after a moment. "It surprised me to see Shiki there, for one thing."

"Really?" Kazuma asked, looking at Kyo in surprise. "Why is that?"

"Probably 'cause I still see him in my head as a kid," Kyo said sheepishly, and Kazuma laughed.

"You recall he turns twenty this spring, don't you?" Kazuma asked. "I understand there is going to be a large party to celebrate the occasion."

"Bet he's gonna love that," Kyo remarked, shaking his head as he thought about the quiet, reserved Shiki. Katsuro had always been friends with him and Hajime had spent a fair bit of time with him his last year of high school, so although Kyo had never been close to Shiki, he knew him well enough to suspect that a big coming-of-age party was not his idea. "Sounds like a Shigure plan, is it?"

"I can't say I know, but I wouldn't be surprised," Kazuma said, smiling. "Though his age is actually beside the point; Shiki has been sitting in on these meetings for..." he considered for a moment. "Years, now."

"Years?" Kyo asked, looking at him in surprise. "Really?"

"Yes, that's correct. I believe he started when he was in middle school. I want to say it was around the time Hajime graduated, because Hajime's graduation was mentioned and someone asked Shiki if he planned to attend university like Hajime.

"Damn," Kyo said, shaking his head. "Crazy to think it's been that long, I wonder what he thought, sitting in on meetings like this when he was still just a kid."

"Well, he's always been a very responsible young man, and as you heard today he's always asked sensible questions."

"True," Kyo agreed.

"And he is to succeed Akito in the Sohma family one day, which is obviously not a position to be undertaken lightly."

"No, it's not," Kyo agreed once more. He wouldn't wish Akito's position on his worst enemy, to be honest. Though the two of them had never become friends, his antagonism to the former Zodiac God had long-since cooled to quasi-friendly neutrality. He could never forget the terrible things she'd done, but he could also give her credit for the good: even before the Curse had broken, she had decided he would be free. And since then, there had been a lot of additional good, good that even he could admit and acknowledge.

He might never like her, but he didn't hate her, either, and he could and did feel sorry for her, spending her life dealing with Sohma family politics. Now Shiki was preparing for that life as well; had started preparing, even as a middle schooler. It all made sense, he supposed; Shiki had always known what his future would be.

Just like Kyo.


Life at the dojo soon settled into a comfortable routine. For the most part, Kazuma was a good patient; he accepted his assignment to rest, recuperate, and heal with a minimal amount of fuss. There were a couple incidents, like the time Kazuma decided to try and start dinner on his own, or the time Kazuma needed to retrieve a box of files from a high shelf and thought he could manage it fine with one arm. But in general, he was content to relax, spending his time doing a thorough audit and review of the dojo's past ten years, reviewing recent tournament footage, and reading risqué novels.

Kyo tried not to think about that last one too much.

Kunimitsu was busy with his own classes and the bulk of the dojo management, albeit with Kyo's willing support. Kunimitsu had pointed out he was more familiar with most of what needed to be done, so it made sense for him to handle most of that work while Kyo was figuring out his initial responsibilities and routine. Kyo and Kazuma had agreed, though as the weeks passed, more and more of those tasks became shared as Kyo gained knowledge and familiarity with everything that went into keeping the dojo running.


In some ways, stepping in had been easy. Kyo had grown up here, after all, and he'd taken classes here exclusively from the time he was five until he moved away at eighteen. Even after that, he'd participated in classes every time he could, during every visit home.

But attending classes on vacations wasn't the same as running them during the course of a regular week, and things had changed in the years since Kyo had lived at the dojo. It was only to be expected; nothing was immune to the passage of time, and that included the dojo.

It was also a pronouncedly different model than what Kyo was used to these days, coming from the Matsuda Dojo. Both were large, busy, and successful, but there was no comparison when it came to the overall number of students and classes, or even the size of the dojo; compared to the Matsuda Dojo, the Sohma Dojo was much smaller. Unlike the Matsuda Dojo, which had many live-in students and an almost constant rotation of visiting training groups or single karatekas, the Sohma Dojo's focus was primarily day students, along with less-frequent training groups. Aside of Kazuma and Kunimitsu no one lived full-time on the grounds of the Sohma Dojo, while the Matsuda Dojo had enough residents to require and justify an entire domestic staff.

Classes were also set up differently. Kazuma preferred to integrate students of different ages and belt levels, while the Matsuda Dojo preferred and offered classes dedicated to individual belt levels and age groups. Kyo had been hesitant when he first started at the Matsuda Dojo and learned he was mostly expected to teach only one specific rank or age group at any given time, but he'd quickly seen the logic behind the model, especially with how very busy the Matsuda Dojo was. Mixed belt classes were still a thing, there simply weren't as many of them.

The Sohma dojo also had no other paid full-time employees. With most of their students being day students, the bulk of the dojo's classes happened in the afternoon/evening hours and on weekends, so the other dans on the payroll were all part-time. With the exception of three married women who were otherwise stay-at-home wives, they all either worked a full-time job or went to school in addition to teaching; there were no other dedicated instructors. And while there were classes offered during the mornings and early afternoons, there weren't many; those classes had always been and still were taught by either Kazuma or Kunimitsu themselves.

Still, even with all the differences it didn't take Kyo too long to settle in. It had made him happy, hearing how concerned the students were about Kazuma, and relieved to see how quickly they adjusted to Kyo's own teaching style. The nerves he'd had starting a new class back when he was a teenager were long gone, but it was still intimidating to be taking over for Kazuma, especially with people who'd been training under him for years.

And it was interesting, working with totally new students. Some of the students Kyo actually knew himself, from either the classes he took on vacation or, in a few cases, his own time back in the dojo when he was still a teenager. It was surreal, but in a fun way, to be working with people he'd known as a teenager, and he had been surprised but pleased to have some of those people stay late after classes, wanting to talk to him and catch up on his life.

Yes...it was nice. He was helping Kazuma and Kunimitsu, learning about the dojo, and enjoying himself. It was good. It was fun. It was long overdue. And yet...


What was it that had changed the most, in almost thirty years? Things were done differently at the dojo now than when he'd been a kid, but not by a significant margin or in any substantial way. The dojo itself was same as ever, with its reputation still strong and the business still thriving. The Sohma family board had been overwhelmingly pleased with the dojo's performance at the quarterly meeting; classes were full, students were performing well at tournaments, training groups still passed through regularly, and everything was...good. So yes, there had been change, but overall that change all seemed to be positive. He couldn't point at anything in particular and say he was worried, or unhappy.

It wasn't the dojo. It couldn't be the dojo. Everything about the dojo...was the same. Everything that mattered, anyway.

So when was it, that he himself had started to want something different?


For so many years, Kyo had put off asking about the dojo handover, or even thinking about it. There had been flashes, when someone else would ask him about it or something would bring it to his attention, and for a few minutes, he would wonder. But there had always been a reason to dismiss it, or not think about it; he didn't need to think about something so patently obvious, and so completely inevitable. It was what he'd wanted, after all; what he'd always wanted, and what Kazuma had wanted for him. To be the master in Kazuma's stead, to lead the dojo and continue it and Kazuma's legacy of excellence.

How many years had it been, that he'd been deluding himself that he hadn't changed?


The first two weeks of Kyo's sabbatical rolled by quickly, then the third. A month. Then he was smiling at his entire family during a group video chat on Valentine's Day, which was also Hajime's twenty-fourth birthday, and as he looked around the screen he couldn't help but reflect on how lucky he was. One quadrant of the screen had Hajime, smiling sheepishly at all the birthday wishes and jokes, a grinning Mutsuki sitting beside him. The second quadrant had Katsuro, on a break from his busy Valentine's Day gig serenade daters at a local restaurant. The third held Tohru, beaming and a little teary eyed as she always was whenever anyone had a birthday or the whole family was together, along with Sachiko, sitting at her mother's side and teasing Hajime about becoming an old man. And in the fourth, Kyo could see himself, sitting there, smiling at all the rest of them.

There had been a time when all of this would have been the most impossible of dreams. So many things had been out of his reach, once; his freedom, for starters; a life, of any kind. A home. People who cared about him.

A family.

He'd started dreaming of the dojo, knowing it was hopeless; he'd never be allowed it, not as the Cat. It didn't matter what he wanted; it didn't matter what Kazuma wanted. All that mattered was what the Sohmas wanted, and what they had wanted...what they had always wanted...was for the Cat to be locked away. But Kyo had still dreamed.

Was it because the dojo, as impossible a dream as it was, still felt attainable? Because it still felt like something real? He had walked its halls and touched its walls, circled its courtyard and climbed its stairs. He knew its familiar, comfortable rhythms; it had always been there for him, almost as surely as Kazuma. It was still there, comforting him, as the days passed by and graduation drew closer; dreaming of the dojo was like cuddling a security blanket.

Dreaming of the dojo could never hurt anyone else.

Everything else had been far out of reach, almost painfully so. He was the Cat; he knew his future. He'd never be allowed to be free, so he'd likewise never be allowed to have love. He didn't want love, under such terms as it would be allowed to him, living in the Cat's House. Whatever Kazuma's grandfather had done, whatever Kazuma's grandmother had been willing to do...Kyo himself could never accept that kind of sacrifice, not from anyone. He would be locked up; he would be alone. And eventually, one day...he would die.

But he would still dream, when the world felt less dark. Dream of a future where he could freely walk the dojo halls, where he would hear himself referred to as 'Master Kyo.' A warm, happy future...that existed, safely, in his dreams.

How very, very differently his life had turned out. Never confined, never alone; for almost thirty years now, he'd been free, and happy, with Tohru at his side, holding his hand. Tohru, who had always supported him, always encouraged him, always fought for him; who had faithfully trusted that he would always take care of her, and taken care of him in turn. Together, they'd built a life.

This life.

A life they loved, in a place they loved, with people they loved. A life that belonged to them, and them alone, where Kyo had been able to live far away from the specter of the Curse or the reach of the Sohmas. A life that had begun with the two of them as strangers, unknown to literally anyone else around them, where they'd had to reach out and meet people, make friends and prove themselves, all on their own.

It didn't matter that Kyo had been the Cat. No one knew that, in Hibe, and no one ever would. People regarded his looks as a curiosity, yes, but that was all; there was no coldness there, no hostile stares or cruel judgement. No one to assume the worst of him because of the way he'd been born, no one to threaten him, no one to blame him for everything that ever went wrong, no one...to hurt him.

And no one to ever hurt his family.