Author's Note: Takes place after volume 6 of the manga (and episode 25 of the anime). Not that there are spoilers, but I wanted to establish where we're at in regards to Kyo and Yuki's relationship. That was something I really tried to focus on here; I wanted to learn how to write the two boys better. I rarely write Yuki into my stories so this was a challenge. I hope I did him justice (as well as our other beloved characters). Please enjoy!
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He had retired to his room right after eating. She noticed that he'd been doing that a lot lately. She first became aware of it one evening when it was still light out after dinner and instead of training in the yard, he was nowhere to be found. "Does anyone know where Kyo-kun is?" she had asked while clearing the table of the dishes and taking them into the kitchen.
The crinkling of Shigure's newspaper preceded his response. "I think he went upstairs," he said plainly, his eyes scanning the articles for something that intrigued him.
"Oh," she breathed. "That's strange. I hope he's feeling well." Her troubled gaze fell on the darkened stairwell that led to their rooms on the second floor, her fingers settling at the base of her mouth. Yuki brought the remainder of the dishes to her at the sink. The ceramic plates clinked together disharmoniously when he placed them on the counter.
"I wouldn't worry about him, Honda-san," Yuki reassured her. "He seemed as agitated and hot headed as usual." The comment was intended to lighten the mood Tohru could tell; she hummed softly, unable to disagree with him. Kyo hadn't seemed subdued or lethargic. On the contrary, he had participated in a 'spirited' discussion with Shigure about how Kyo should certainly (and certainly not) invite Kagura on another date soon. (They managed to agree however that inviting her over to the house was absolutely out of the question in order to preserve the house's foundation, Kyo's spine and Shigure's wallet).
She began washing the dirty dishes and handed each clean bowl and plate to Yuki for him to dry. This was their comfortable nightly routine and Tohru treasured that time with the prince. Though on this particular night, she kept looking to the stairs with her teeth gingerly biting her lower lip. She was brought her out of her reverie when Yuki spoke to her. Blinking at him to refocus, she responded to his inquiry about how her day was.
From then on, Kyo proceeded to disappear almost every night just after dinner. This began to worry Tohru more and more. About a week passed and she found herself outside his door in the dimly lit hallway with her fist suspended in midair, hesitant to knock. 'I really shouldn't be disturbing him,' she thought in the most Tohru self-deprecating fashion. 'If he wants to be alone, I should let him be. It's his business. I shouldn't be a bother to him.' But she remained paused there. She began sweating nervously. 'But what if something is troubling him? I did say he could always tell me his worries and I'd listen. What if he's not comfortable with that? Did I overstep my bounds by saying that before? Will he get upset by me even asking if he's alright?'
Her thoughts spun a very tangled web until she heard something creak beyond the wood in front of her. Kyo's bedroom door suddenly opened and amber eyes met deep brown ones. The two of them jumped in surprise at seeing one another; Tohru even let out a small "eep".
"Yo," Kyo said, slightly taken aback that Tohru was standing at the entrance to his room of all places. Not to mentioned she looked utterly flustered. "What's up, Tohru?"
"O-oh! Ah, sorry, Kyo-kun. I didn't mean to intrude!" She clasped her hands together nervously and gave him a small bow.
He chuckled, knocking her on the head with the back of his fist. "You're not intruding, dummy. What didja need?"
"Well, I just wanted to make sure you were alright. You haven't been around after dinner lately, so I was worried." Tohru fiddled with the hem of her shirt. Recognition of the issue came across Kyo's face; his eyes went downcast and he sighed as if he'd been caught.
"Ahh got it. You don't gotta worry. I'm fine," Kyo scratched the back of his head. "I've just been...doin' stuff."
"Oh. Well, that's good," Tohru breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm sorry about prying. But if there's anything I can help with, let me know."
Kyo inhaled as if he were about to say something but seemed to think better of it. After a short silence and an internal debate resolved, Kyo let out that breath in another sigh. Since when did he sigh so much? Was he a damn damsel in distress? "Actually..." He looked back down at his feet. "You know the test we have coming up? I've just been studying for it. And...shit." He hardened his grip on his bedroom door. "I'm having trouble with some of the concepts. They've been stumping me for over a week."
A small line appeared in between Tohru's eyebrows as she drew them together. The past week or so's events were making more sense to her now. "I'd love to help you, Kyo-kun, but Yuki-kun was actually the one who studied with me on that subject for the last exam so I don't know if I'd be much assistance," she said with dismay.
As she said this, Yuki came up the stairs behind them. Kyo instantly bristled when he saw him, like a cat with its hair standing on end as something foul approached. Yuki didn't seem physically affected but his voice was contemptuous when he said, "Ah, so the idiot emerges."
"Who are you callin' an idiot, ya damn rat?"
"The only idiot here, obviously. The one who's been worrying Honda-san and the one apparently too stupid to figure out his own subject."
Kyo's shoulders visibly trembled with anger. "I didn't worry her on purpose," he hissed through gritted teeth. "Hell'll freeze over before I ask you for help!"
Yuki nearly retaliated but he looked down at Tohru, who had taken a step back in preparation for the oncoming (usually one sided) shouting match. "Honda-san," he addressed her. The calm aura he emanated starkly contrasted that of the volatile young man on the other side of Tohru, who would ignite like a firecracker at the slightest additional mention of 'stupid' or 'cat'. "Is this for a subject you're also studying for?"
She nodded. "Yes, it's the same test."
Yuki didn't say anything for a few moments. He couldn't believe he was doing this. He said, "I have some time tonight if you'd like to sit down together. You can ask any questions you have."
"Oh, that would be wonderful!" Tohru exclaimed.
"Great. Then I'll meet you downstairs in twenty minutes." He then looked at Kyo but seemed to speak to the room rather than directly to him. "We'll set up on the table in the living room." He turned on his heel and went into his bedroom to collect his study materials. When the door clicked closed, Kyo let out an angry breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. He wrinkled his nose in disgust at the thought of what the rat was offering and even considered hauling himself up in his room alone for the rest of the night without a second glance. But after glancing at Tohru's utterly perplexed face, he said, "Go on, get your stuff." With another huff to dispel the heat that had rushed to his head moments ago, Kyo about-faced and disappeared into his room.
Tohru obeyed, not sure how to feel about what just happened but supposed it couldn't be all that bad. No fists were thrown (honestly they hadn't even shouted that much) and they were going to study together, which would hopefully solve Kyo's problems. She had assumed Yuki had proposed this session for all three of them, but it had been a little unclear. Tohru decided not to fret and take the situation as it came, the ever optimist, and gathered her things.
Twenty minutes later, she went down the stairs with her textbook and workbook held securely to her chest and a few pencils in her grip. She met Yuki sitting cross-legged at the table, his textbook already open and his chin nestled in his propped up hand. She settled down next to him, placing her books neatly on the wood and fixing her skirt snuggly under her knees.
It had seemed like an open invitation to all study together, stupid cat included, because that's what it was. Yuki just couldn't bring himself to directly ask if the cat wanted to join them. He had deliberately left the conversation open ended in case Kyo had truly been stupid enough to not take the indirect bait. Yuki didn't think that was the case though. As to why he had left it vague, he assured himself that it was mostly for selfish reasons. The selfish part involved the fact that Kyo would be in a sour mood if he did fail his test and Yuki didn't want to deal with an overactive cat who wanted to prove himself with more fights because of his damaged ego. The selfless part involved Tohru and how much she'd been worrying about the cat as of late. Not to mention she always appreciated studying together; it helped her focus and retain more information. So overall, he was getting his good karma. If the dumb cat happened to sit in on the study session and asked a question or two, Yuki could deal with that. He felt the pros outweighed the cons.
As it turned out (and Yuki truly hadn't expected it), the whole ordeal wasn't that bad. Of course, Kyo made a big scene of clumping loudly down the stairs five minutes late and dropping his books and himself down heavily at the table. He followed this graceful entrance by folding his arms across his chest without a word and instead sporting a sourpuss expression on his face that clearly spoke his feelings. Yuki's first thought had been, 'here we go...' but he saw a slow deflation of Kyo's demeanor when 1. Tohru welcomed him warmly as if he had joined them like a normal person and 2. Yuki began to go over the chapters they expected the test to cover. To Yuki's further astonishment, Kyo actually studied fairly well. He stayed mostly quiet, but was attentive; he followed along through the review and paused his page turning when Tohru stopped to ask a question. Yuki even noticed him taking notes during certain explanations. Perhaps he just needed a guide through this particular subject like Tohru did.
Shigure came into the room a few times to annoy the two boys and mostly to amuse himself. Yuki and Kyo both stewed as Shigure flew around the room like an irritating parrot, squawking about how impressed he was at how studious they were being and how it warmed his old, humble heart that they were putting aside their differences for the greater good, that being Tohru. He also mentioned that if they were good study buddies, Tohru was sure to reward them for their good grades.
At this, Kyo shoved Shigure out of the room. Once properly shoved out, Yuki slammed the door shut on Shigure's face, all while retaining his composure. The boys returned to their seats and their books as if they hadn't been interrupted. Tohru made a quick glance over her shoulder at the door from which Shigure started moaning like a child, but Yuki and Kyo told her to "just ignore him."
Tohru did get up at some point to make some tea and when she disappeared into the kitchen, the two boys sat at the table in complete silence. Kyo tapped his pencil steadily against the paper, his cheek resting in his open palm. Yuki looked about the room, not searching for anything in particular.
"Does this subject always bring you trouble?" He heard himself say.
The question hung in the air as both boys sat dumbfounded, each just as surprised as the other that Yuki had spoken up. Yuki inwardly winced. Had he really just attempted to make small talk? Oh Kami, would he get an earful now. While he expected a typical outburst, that's not what he received.
"I'm not great at a lot of things," Kyo said. His voice was low with a bitter edge to it, but that seemed to be because of the situation rather than simply Yuki. "But school has never really given me trouble. That's why this whole thing is pissing me off." He leaned back and rested his weight on straightened arms, his fingers splayed across the tatami underneath him. His head rolled on his neck and rested on one shoulder. "I bet the great Prince Yuki has never gotten a bad grade in his life," he scoffed.
"Don't call me that." Yuki sighed in exasperation. He leaned forward and crossed his arms, his hands wrapping around his elbows. "And of course I have. It's just not like I go around advertising it. Everyone…" he paused, wondering if he should continue to Kyo of all people. He cleared his throat, dropping his gaze from Kyo's. "Everyone sees me how they want to see me. Not how I really am."
They were being surprisingly revealing today, weren't they? Kyo didn't say anything, mostly because that statement rang so true to his own life experience and the fact that it had just come out of the damn rat's mouth. Saying anything related to 'I get it, man. I've felt that way my whole life,' just didn't seem like a sentence Kyo would ever say to anyone, let alone the person he had utterly loathed all his life. Kyo was already jealous of Yuki for being so great at everything. He had even been one of those people Yuki spoke of; Kyo always thought he wasn't needed if Yuki was around to make everyone feel better. But Yuki was different than the mask everyone else forced on him, an experience so familiar to Kyo. Something surreal was inhabiting the living room, auras of understanding and empathy swirling in the air and affecting their better judgement. It was against every action, every feeling they had ever felt towards one another. What was with all this camaraderie?
The tea kettle squealed from the kitchen. Yuki and Kyo turned their heads to the sound in sync, the sound breaking them from the spell. Tohru soon emerged with a tray of three stacked teacups and a now quieted teapot, its steam billowing from its spout. She placed the tray in the middle of the table and served them. They muttered "thank you's" and blew on their cups to cool their steaming drinks.
"Shall we continue?" Tohru asked.
A little later, Kyo paused mid-page turn, and Yuki stopped speaking when his hesitation stretched for almost a minute. Kyo's fingers trembled but his eyes remained glued to his book. Yuki closed his eyes, waited a beat and asked, "Do you have a question?"
"Don't ask me like you're a friggin' teacher." Kyo growled. Another pause. Yuki blinked through half lidded eyes. Kyo sighed loudly, exasperated once again, and slapped his hand down on the page, pointing at a line like it gravely offended him. "Fine," he ground out through gritted teeth. "What the hell is this supposed to mean?"
All three of them bent over Kyo's book and stared at the question. Yuki mentally cursed and hoped it didn't show on his face; unfortunately this was a concept he tended to struggle with. He was trying to think of the best way to get around explaining this without Kyo calling him a hack who didn't know anything (despite the fact that he had been answering Tohru's questions for over an hour and a half now) when Tohru delicately placed her finger next to Kyo's.
"This one is a trick question, I think. You have to face it from a different angle that you normally would with these types of questions. If you begin like this-," she wrote in neat writing in her lines notebook. The two boys peered over, watching her work. "-and then you realize that it's saying this-," she circled a portion of her writing, "-then this is the final answer."
Tohru smiled up at them, a bit giddy that she had figured it out. Yuki nodded, "That looks about right." Because it truly did. He was impressed.
Kyo looked at him suspiciously, as if to say, "yea, the hell you knew that. She just saved your ass." But he didn't voice it. Instead he just said, "Makes sense."
Yuki shook his head; Kyo could have given her more praise that that. Did he know nothing about positive affirmation? On second thought, given the cat's history, he probably didn't. "That was a great explanation." Yuki smiled at her, encouragingly. "Thank you, Honda-san."
Tohru beamed at him so brightly he was reminded that the sun had some competition. Kyo knocked her in the back of the head softly. Yuki supposed that was his own way of thanking her and she knew it, because she directed that glowing smile towards Kyo. In response, Kyo's eyes softened and he almost smiled. "Alright, let's keep going," he said.
Yuki took a sip of his tea and found his place in the chapter where they had left off.
••••••••••••••
"Kyo-kun!" Tohru strode over to his desk in the back corner of the classroom. "How did it go?" He had been leaning back in his chair, looking out the window. When she'd called his name, he turned to see her standing in front of him, practically bouncing on her toes. They had just handed in their tests and Kyo was relieved, reveling in its completion. Tohru smiling down at him in anticipation might have also contributed to his good mood, but he wouldn't admit it. One side of his mouth quirked up to a half smile.
"Not terrible. I think I might have passed," he said casually. He then laughed when she increased her bouncing to full on jumping up and down in excitement. Man, he was feeling so much more relaxed. He stood and stretched his arms above his head as she showered him with 'congratulations' and 'I knew you could do it's. "Yea, yea..." was all he said, but he felt his cheeks warm a little. Tohru gave him a smile of pure joy in response.
"Anyway," he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "How do you think you did?"
How did she managed to get that smile of hers even wider? "It went okay for me too! Hopefully I passed with flying colors!" One of her small fists pumped into the air above her head in triumph.
"Flying colors, huh?" He ruffled her hair. "That I'd like to see." She turned a little pink and giggled.
"I did want to thank Yuki-kun for studying with us. It really was very helpful." The mentioned of Yuki instinctively made Kyo twitch and he pressed his lips together. He became immediately annoyed because he knew he couldn't argue with her. So much for feeling relaxed.
Though that didn't stop him from saying, "Why the hell does he need to be thanked? Shouldn't he feel he's done his civic duty already for answerin' just a couple questions for us?" And there, he just admitted he had been helped by Yuki, damnit.
Before Tohru could respond to his spiteful griping, she heard a door slide open and turned to see Yuki walking into the classroom. They made eye contact; Tohru waved and Yuki made his way over to the pair, he and his long strides gliding across the space. Kyo shoved his hands deep into his pockets, his signature scowl emerging.
"Honda-san. Kyo." Yuki greeted. It was amazing how his tone and demeanor could change on a dime between two words. Kyo glared irritably at him, but Yuki directed his attention to Tohru. "How was the test?" he asked in a softer tone.
"It went well!" She responded gleefully, giving him a thumbs up. "There were a couple of questions I think I missed, but more questions on material that we covered during our study group! Speaking of-," she bowed, her hair falling past her shoulder, "-thank you so much for taking the time out of your night for that. I really appreciate it!" She didn't include Kyo because she didn't want to make him feel uncomfortable. She waited for Yuki to acknowledge her thanks, staying in her polite bow.
She was completely unaware of the tense staring contest the two boys were participating in; Yuki's stern annoyance meeting Kyo's fiery frustration. Yuki opened his mouth to say something but Kyo shut him up quickly by bending at the waist with his arms pinned to his sides. A proper bow his Shishou would have been proud of.
Tohru noticed the movement and peered through her hair at Kyo in surprise. Yuki's jaw didn't quite hit the floor but it unlatched as far as he'd ever let it before.
"Thank you for the help."
Kyo spoke crystal clearly, but came up from his bow a split second after he'd finished speaking, his bangs flying out of his now scarlet face. Yuki continued to stare at him as Kyo huffed, waiting for his response. Apparently, Kyo's resolve could only last so long. Kyo spat out, "Hope you heard that, pretty boy. 'Cuz I won't ever need your help again. A real man gets by with his fists anyway, not stupid books." It was a lame ending to his tirade and they all knew it (well, maybe not Tohru; she was still in shock). Kyo folded his arms tightly across his chest, his gratitude grudgingly given and his pride freshly bruised. Although, the admiration swimming in Tohru's eyes soothed his mortification a little.
Yuki still looked a bit unhinged but he composed himself and said, "Honda-san, it was no problem at all. I'm happy to help anytime you need. Please don't hesitate to ask again for my time." He smiled warmly at her. His smile disappeared when his eyes met Kyo's. "While I hope you know this gives me sufficient fodder to call you an utterly stupid cat-" Kyo grimaced and was nearly about to spit fire when Yuki held up a hand, "-I'll at least give you a day reprieve for that display."
A look of reluctant understanding passed through them, but their moment was short lived. Kyo suddenly flew forward as Uo appeared behind him, having karate chopped him square between the shoulder blades. "What the hell is going on here, Kyon? What's with the bow to the prince?"
"None of your damn business, Yankee." Kyo barked, slumped over as he rubbed the back of his neck from the whiplash.
"Oh, Uo-chan! Kyo-kun and I were just thanking Yuki-kun for helping us study for this test." Tohru piped up.
"That's enough outta you!" Kyo swiveled to her, his anger deepening the color in his face. He lurched forward again and cursed as he went; this time Uo had hit him in the back of the head.
Hanajima appeared at Tohru's side, wrapping her arms around her and pulling her protectively close. "Don't take your pathetic shame out on Tohru."
Yuki sighed as they all began to bicker in front of him (again, with the exception of Tohru, who looked helplessly between them). More classmates came over to investigate what exactly had gone on and they began torturing Kyo with names and questions, which, of course, set Kyo off like an erupting volcano. Yuki caught Tohru's gaze amidst the budding drama and she smiled at him. He returned that smile; while Kyo had had his own encouragement, this look was solely for him. Something warmed in his chest and they both turned back to their squabbling peers with a more peaceful demeanor.
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Kyo crossed the street, looking over his shoulder briefly. Tohru, as suspected, was close behind him. He just had to make sure as they both made it to the sidewalk. It was the end of a very long school day; Yuki had a student council meeting so he hadn't joined them on their walk home. Tohru was blissfully humming a sweet tune to herself, something light and pretty. Kyo had never mentioned that he thought Tohru could carry a tune well. Not out loud, anyway. And today, he had other things on his mind.
"Hey," he said gruffly.
Tohru stopped humming and said, "Yes, Kyo-kun?" He was glad he was walking in front of her, so he didn't have to look her in the eye and she couldn't see his entire face getting pink.
"I'm..." he started, adjusting his school bag that hung over his shoulder. He tried again, "I'm sorry for snapping at you... you know, before... in the classroom."
Tohru assumed he was referring to what Hanajima had called him out on. She noticed the pinker tips of his ears and the tautness of his shoulders through his uniform. She quickened her steps and joined him at his side. It was a nice pace for both of them. "It's alright, Kyo-kun. There was a lot going on."
"No excuse," he mumbled. He looked at her from the corner of his eye apologetically.
She smiled, truly not minding to simply brush off the matter, "Thank you, but don't worry about it."
He grunted.
Tohru looked back down at her schoolbag, both hands grasping the handle. "…I thought Kyo-kun was very cool back there, thanking Yuki-kun and all."
Kyo tripped but caught himself.
"Are you alright?!"
He didn't answer but kept walking with his chin up. After a few steps, he said, "Sure as hell didn't feel cool."
"Oh no, Kyo-kun. I thought it was cool. Very, very cool!"
Kyo really didn't know how to respond to this. He so rarely got compliments; he didn't know how to receive them in general, let alone how to do so graciously. Instinctively, he deflected the subject, "Isn't that usually what that stupid fan club calls the damn rat? The prince who's so friggin' cool?"
"I suppose so. Yuki-kun really does seem like a prince." Tohru became enthusiastic again, "But if that's the case, then Kyo-kun must be a knight! A very cool knight!"
Kyo blinked at her in surprise. "What makes you say knight?" He kicked a pebble in front of him, trying to display a facade of indifference no matter how she answered.
"Well, knights are protectors. And Kyo-kun has always done that well! At least around me. But they are also kind and loyal. They always try their best, training for any obstacle that may come their way. And when it comes down to it, they show respect to those that have shown them respect."
He pondered that for a moment. Showing respect to those that have shown them respect, huh? His mind immediately went to his embarrassing actions in the classroom; actions he thought he would regret despite the fact he knew they were the proper ones to make. He thought for sure the rat would never let Kyo live it down, but he hadn't given him a hard a time. With their history, he couldn't easily accept that Yuki respected him. Or that he remotely respected the rat in any way. But the nagging fact of the matter was he had only passed that test because of Yuki's nonchalant invitation to an unlikely study group. And because of that, he had felt inclined to thank Yuki. He supposed that was the respect Tohru was talking about.
With the past couple days' events between the three of them, he was definitely hesitant to say anything with certainty. Yuki hadn't asked him to study with them in order to watch him flounder and fail as usual. And the fact that Tohru has just called him a friggin' knight was also a lot to take in. He had a flashback of something she said to him ages ago, when she presented her genius 'pickled plum on the back' analogy.
"Yuki-kun is great in his own way, and you're great in yours!"
Maybe there was something more to all of this, but other memories crashed into his subconscious, drowning any inkling of hope that he might not be so useless and unneeded after all. He struggled but pushed the negative thoughts from his mind.
"Guess I'll have to take your word for it." That seemed to be enough of an affirmation for Tohru because after a moment of silent understanding between them, she continued to hum again. What was that all about, anyway? A knight, he scoffed. What a dumb idea. Despite his disparaging thoughts, Kyo couldn't hold back the smile that graced his lips, even if it was for a brief moment. Or the rest of the short walk home.
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Author's Note:
I've never particularly liked Yuki (oh yes, that's a good way to start), although I have grown begrudgingly fond of him with this new 2019 anime adaptation. I do appreciate a well written and developed character. I think Yuki feels the way a lot of us feel; that we're putting on a mask in front of others and we're afraid to let certain people see the real us. And, over the course of Furuba, he slowly learns how to come into his own. After all he's been through, his major underlying personality trait is that he is just kind. While Kyo says Yuki is selfish, I think he is remarkably not selfish in many ways. So that's what I wanted to play on.
Thank you so, so much for reading!