The following days passed without any extraordinary incidents, and before the Soumas, Tohru and Yukina realised it, the month of December has almost ended and it was New Year's Eve again.
Although they did not show it, Hatori and Shigure were quite worried about the upcoming year. They knew that there was a possibility that Akito might come back to find them again, especially now that the animal curse had not been lifted completely.
On the last day of the year, Hatori, Yukina and Ayame all went to Shigure's house, planning to countdown to a new year together. The three grownups were chatting together, Kyou and Tohru were setting up the fireworks at the back garden while Yuki and Yukina were helping, with the latter extremely interested to see it as she had never saw fireworks before.
Suddenly, Yukina felt thirsty and went to the kitchen to get a drink. Then, she heard a knock at the door, impatient and forceful. Curiously, she walked out, wondering who it might be at this time of the day while calling to the others, "Don't mind it, I will open the door."
She rushed to the door, a glass of water in her hands, and pulled it open. The figure at the doorway was wearing a hooded cloak to protect himself from the slightly cold weather, and when he saw Yukina at the door, his lips twisted into an evil smile.
"This…this can't be happening," Yukina's mind screamed silently. She was petrified and was unable to move from the spot she was standing on. The glass she was holding dropped to the ground and shattered into a million pieces.
Immediately, Hatori ran over to check for any injuries, and seeing that there was none, he turned his attention on Yukina, who was trembling incessantly, which he had not seen for a long time.
The figure at the doorway then stepped inside the house and held Yukina's face in his long white fingers.
"Long time no see, Yukina. Do you think that you could run away from me that easily?" he sneered.
"Master…" Yukina whispered, knowing that her old nightmare has come back to haunt her now.
Hatori was filled with rage and pulled Yukina back into his arms. With his other free hand, he threw the hood of the figure back, determined to find out who he was.
By now, everyone had heard the commotion and came to the place, curious to know what had happened. It was the shock of their lives, which made their blood run cold as they found out that the person underneath the cloak was none other than…Akito Souma, the 'god' of the animals and leader of the Souma clan. Yukina's mysterious master and the person most feared by all the Soumas was actually the same person.
"My, my…seems like you have been planning to celebrate New Year without me. And, there is a new addition to the household after the annoying girl who is now Kyou's girlfriend?" his voice was barely above a whisper, but they could hear each and every one of his words clearly.
"Akito…what did you come here for?" Hatori asked, trying to control his emotions, which was a mixture of surprise, rage and fear.
"Oh…I just heard that you have not been entirely freed from the curse yet, which means that I am still your god. Besides, I'm also here to collect my slave who ran away from me a few months ago…" he smiled sinisterly, gesturing to Yukina.
"I will not let you take Yukina-chan!" and Yuki appeared from behind, moving forward and shielding Yukina from Akito. The others too were aware of how much pain and suffering Yukina had gone through when compared to them, and they moved in between Yukina and Akito.
"Ah…and here's my dear pet rat…Yuki. Do you want to follow me back to the main house too?" Akito cooed with a malicious glint in his eyes.
"Stop it Akito. We are not under your power anymore, and will not be," this was from Hatori, who was speaking in a cold voice.
All of a sudden, Akito sprinted forward and slapped Hatori hard in the face.
"DO YOU PATHETIC BEINGS THINK THAT YOU CAN JUST ABANDON ME? DON'T FORGET THAT I'M YOUR GOD, AND YOU WILL ALWAYS BE UNDER MY POWER!" Akito yelled in anger. "BESIDES, I WON'T LET ANOTHER GIRL TRY TO SEPARATE US! THE TWELVE ANIMALS AND I WILL ALWAYS BE TOGETHER!"
Then, Akito looked at the human barrier formed in front of him, and he smirked.
"I see that you regard Yukina as somebody you must protect more than me, although I don't know the stupid reason behind it. If I haven't made myself clear enough, I will repeat it for the last time. Yukina is my slave and I'm going to take her back. And all of you will come to the New Year banquet whether you like it or not." He spoke the last few words with a hiss.
Shigure suddenly had an idea. If Yukina could cure Haru and Hatori from the effects of the curse, then maybe…just maybe…he then turned to look at Yukina. The girl was limp in Hatori's arms, but she was still conscious.
Trying to be undetected, he moved nearer to Yukina and tugged at her sleeves.
"Yukina-chan, Akito behaves like this because she was also cursed as the god of the animals. Please, is it possible for you to cure her like you did last time too?" he whispered urgently into her ear.
At that time, Yukina was filled with a great fear, remembering the pain when she was whipped, beaten, and tortured in every possible way by Akito. However, when she heard Shigure's words, she turned to look at Hatori. His lips were bleeding as the result of the slap he received. He noticed her glance and smiled at her.
"It's okay, Yukina-chan. I won't let him get to you, even if it costs me my life, I will still protect you," he said gently.
Then, she looked around her. All of them stood in front of her, trying to protect her from Akito. Each one of them had a determined expression, but Yukina could see that their hands were shaking and their eyes contained great fear. She was so moved that tears flowed down her face uncontrollably, wetting her face and clothes.
"You are able to help them, Althena. Just concentrate hard and you will remember how to do it. They are trying so hard for you, and you should also do the same for them…" she heard a familiar, enticing male voice she could not distinguish inside her mind.
"They are scared too, but they still try to protect me…I… I… I MUST do something to repay them," Yukina thought fiercely to herself. She clenched her fists tightly, trying to eliminate the fear and concentrate on performing the 'magic'.
Before everyone knew what Yukina was doing, she broke free from Hatori's grasp and lurched forward through the human shield to hug Akito tightly. The latter was so shocked that he did not try to inflict pain on Yukina again, but he just stood still, gaping at Yukina's sudden bravery.
"You are filled with hatred, but actually it is just fear of being alone…Akito. But, look around you; all of them are willing to be with you, if you could treat them better…And, the curse placed on you as the god of the zodiac will be removed shortly…my instincts tell me that…" she whispered.
"Please let me help to eliminate the hatred inside your heart from you…you are going to enjoy a happy life, and I promise that the curse will not affect you by making you die young…you have fulfilled your promise and duty as the leader of the Souma clan…"
Akito too was startled and just stared at Yukina, who seemed like a completely different person as she murmured those words to him. Her body then emitted a strong light, and her eyes glowed jade green, forcing everyone to shield their eyes from the fierce glare.
"Please free Akito from his hatred, and make him see that everyone would love him, if he would treat them with love too…"
Before Yukina collapsed to the floor, she looked at Akito with eyes of wonder and astonishment, and everyone heard her say something which sounded distinctly like, "You are…a woman…"
There was a loud gasp from Tohru, Haru, Yuki and Kyou. One of the reasons was seeing that Yukina was able to cure Akito too; another being the statement she made before turning unconscious. Only Shigure, Ayame and Hatori were not surprised as they had known the fact for a long time.
Hatori dashed forward, just in time to catch Yukina before she hit the floor. Then, everything went by in a blur. Some of them was helping Hatori carry Yukina to a place she can rest, while the others gazed at Akito apprehensively, wondering if he, or she would still persist in forcing them to go back to the main house.
Akito's expression was one of wonder and utmost shock as she stared after Yukina.
"Why…why do I feel no hatred towards being forced to be the leader of the Souma clan? And, why am I feeling satisfied with my present life and situation? Why can't I hate all of you like I did before…" Akito murmured with a hand over her heart. Shigure then walked to Akito's side and held her gently.
"You were not born to hate, Akito. Yukina did not change anything in you, she just helped you to realise that actually, you were never alone," Shigure smiled.
"I…I am not alone?" Akito tasted the words on her lips, thinking that they sounded so good. Then, she hugged Shigure tightly, "Thanks, Shigure, for staying by my side for such a long time, although I treated you so badly…"
Akito looked at the people around her. "I'm sorry for treating you in such a bad way in the past, but I would try to change my behaviour, everyone," and she bowed.
Everybody was glad to hear her words and accepted her apology graciously. Akito touched her head, suddenly remembering something important.
"Actually, I have something that I wanted to admit for a long time. The first time I saw Yukina-chan…" she said.
"You felt that you somehow saw her before, or maybe you know her?" Ayame chipped in helpfully. "Don't worry, all of us Soumas had that feeling too, but until now we could not find out the reason behind it."
"Is it so…" Akito mused and abruptly looked around her. "Where is Yukina-chan now? And, how is she?"
Everyone suddenly remembered that Yukina had fainted, and crowded over the couch to look at her. At that moment, Hatori and Yuki were kneeling beside her with extremely concerned expressions.
"Yukina-chan is weaker than the previous two times she did this. Besides, she seems to have no desire to wake up," Yuki frowned worriedly. "How can we try to summon her back?"
Unexpectedly, Yukina started to murmur something despite being unconscious.
"His voice…so familiar… I can't remember…but he must be someone very important in my life…I must pursue his voice until I find out who he is…"
Everyone drew a sharp breath at this, wondering whose voice it was that she heard. Yuki turned his gaze on Hatori and shook his head dejectedly.
"If she doesn't want to wake up, it's nearly impossible to force her," he sighed.
Akito then opened her mouth, startling all of them. "Is it possible to call Kazuma-san over here? He is the oldest of us Soumas, and he might know a little about the reason we feel that we know Yukina-chan. Besides, he is a martial arts master, and maybe he can try to heal Yukina-chan…"
Kyou started at this. "You mean…Master? I will go and phone him right away," and off he went to call Kazuma Souma.
A few minutes later, he came back looking doleful. Everyone crowded around him, eager to know the result.
"His assistant said that he went travelling, and is not sure when he would come back. But, I told him to inform master that we need his help when he returns," he explained to the crestfallen faces around him.
"He is our only hope, right? Then, we have no choice but to wait…" Hatori was very depressed, and hated himself for not being able to cure Yukina despite being a doctor.
Shigure, noticing the gloomy atmosphere, decided to cheer up all of them a bit. He went over and smacked Hatori on the shoulder.
"Don't worry, Hatori-kun. I'm sure Yukina-chan would be fine after Kazuma-san comes back. Anyway, her destiny with us is not finished yet, and we still need to solve the mystery behind her past. I think that it's time for all of us to sleep," and he let off a big yawn to emphasize his point.
Hatori nodded, knowing that there was nothing more he could do except to pray that Yukina will recover sooner. He went over and tenderly carried her up to their bedroom. Before going up, he glanced at Shigure.
"Is it okay if I stay here for a few days, for I don't want to move Yukina-chan around too much?"
"Certainly, Hatori-kun, you are welcome to stay as long as you like," Shigure grinned, and said provocatively to Akito, "I'm afraid that there are no spare rooms ready at this moment, Akito. So, I think you have to share a room with me tonight."
Then, to the astonishment to all, both of them walked upstairs hand in hand, smiling at each other. Haru, Yuki, Kyou and Tohru shook their heads, feeling that there were too many odd happenings for a single night, and went to bed themselves.
"Yuki, my dear little brother, can I share a room with you tonight, pretty please?" Ayame clasped his hands together and gazed hopefully at Yuki.
Yuki was too worried about Yukina to argue with anyone else. He sighed and replied, "I guess I have no reason to refuse."
After that, everybody adjourned to their own rooms, and slept through the night peacefully. Hatori was the only one who had difficulty sleeping, unused to not having Yukina cuddling up to him at night. He kept staring at Yukina, wondering when she was going to regain consciousness, and jumped at every small sound, thinking that it was her.
"I want to know, whose voice is it that is capable of making you leave your life behind to chase after…is it somebody from your past?" he whispered to the motionless girl beside him, touching her face gently.
