Title: Once You Go Black...
Written by: jolieXD
Summary: Sohma Yuki has been dealing with Sohma Hatsuharu's split personalities for most of their lives. He knows how to tame a Black Haru and he knows how to make a Black Haru. But it's no secret that Hatsuharu has feelings for the Rat. Could a couple wrong words create a Black Haru that even he can't control?

Disclaimer: I don't want to say it, because everyone knows I don't own Fruits Basket. d;
Warnings: Slash—boy&boy—but nothing explicit, I promise, because I don't want to have to have a high rating on this story—like, at all. They annoy me. So, there will just be a hint here and there. Yep—for those who don't like the graphic content. However, for those who do... ;D Look closely, lovelies, and you may see—or not. It depends on if I feel like writing it. Soooorry.
Rating: T, for themes of homosexuality, as mentioned above, and—possibly—vile language.

Author's Notes #1: Wow! I'm so glad you guys like this—seriously. That's so cool, because I really like this, too, but, alas, I'm experiencing the woes of an ending summer. I got my school schedule in the mail today. It reminds me of just how much I don't want to start my junior year in two weeks. Sad, huh? Rising upperclassman, and I don't want it to happen... Maybe there's something wrong.

But, anyway, that's not what this A/N is about. This A/N is about confessing to probably drastically slowing down my writing during the school year. So you know.

And now that's done. So you guys can start reading now. 'Kay? -waits for cheers- ...

XOXOXO
jolieXD

Once You Go Black...
Begin—Two: Yuki-kun blushes.

Hiding from loud, howling editors was exciting in Sohma Shigure's book. He couldn't explain why. It just was; it reminded him of his good, old High School days when he and Aya expertly escaped the wrath of Ha-san many, many times and laughed about it later—and, of course, in the process of doing so.

It was practically a fact of life for Sohma Shigure to hide from a crazed editor on the verge of a deadline—especially when the editor happened to be Mii-chan.

Shigure slipped through the cracked-open rice-paper door of the kitchen after Mii-chan suddenly erupted from his office and stormed up the stairs, where she probably assumed Shigure was relaxing in bed or something of the sort while she slaved away over his manuscript, and stole down the front hall. He had to get back to his office before—

"We're home!"

The Dog's finger went to his lips urgently as he swiveled around to face the three High School students who were staring at him strangely as he crept on hands-and-knees across the hall towards the closest door, his office.

"Welcome home," He whispered to the startled teens and grinned triumphantly when he slid the rice-paper door closed in silence behind him and watched around his office for traps the woman might have set to keep him there permanently. He gracefully replaced his reading glasses on the bridge of his nose and took his pen in hand when he saw none.

And just in time, too.

Man, he was good—because he could already hear Mii-chan scrambling across the upstairs hall at the sound of Tohru-kun's cheerful voice. And then she came clambering down the stairs and practically pummeled into the three—he could see the silhouettes through the door quite nicely when he aimed the work lamp just right—and began wailing.

"Where is he? Have you seen him?" Shigure suspected by Tohru's rigid frame that she'd just barely intercepted the manic editor from accidentally embracing Kyou-kun or Yuki-kun in her unstable state of mind and silently praised the girl for it.

"Oh, I just wish he would listen and do some work for a change!" She cried, and Shigure almost admired the strength in which the woman was invoking to cling so tightly to the front of Tohru-kun's school uniform, "You don't think he's left, do you?—abandoned me here to suffer the consequences of his overdue manuscript again? He's done it before, you know! I almost got fired, did you know?"

There was an awkward silence, in which poor, crazed Mii-chan took the chance to slip to the newly-polished wood floor and sob into her hands. "Where is he?" She wailed, "Shigure-sensei!"

And Shigure finally felt something akin to pity for the woman. He still had to fight to keep the amused smile off his face, however, as he cracked open the rice-paper door to waggle his fingers at the loopy woman. "In here, Mii-chan!" He chirped, "I'm just finishing up."

The Dog was surprised that Mii didn't suffer severe whiplash from the snapping twist of her neck at Shigure's tenor. Her eyes were large like dinner plates and her fists balled at her cheeks. Her face was reddening rapidly—but, whether with embarrassment or anger, Shigure was sure he could handle it.

"But—but I—you were..."

He ushered the brown-haired woman into his office again, sat her down across from him, and looked to Tohru-kun, who started at his gaze and then offered to make some much-needed therapeutic tea. Shigure imagined they would need a lot to calm the woman down.

He tried to look repentant and patted her back sympathetically as she moaned, with her head in her hands, about how unfair her job was and about how horrible Shigure-sensei—Shigure rather liked the title—was to her at times like these.

He did, however, get a well-enough look at the boys as Tohru-kun scurried off for the kitchen to see the scathing eye-roll of the redhead and what Shigure would swear as the aftermath of a terrible blush on the dark-haired boy's cheeks.

His apologetic frown took to the new mischievous grin that threatened to spread across his mouth.

After nearly three pots of warm tea, two sleeping pills, and about fifty pages of the best work—though he thought this same thing about most of his work—Shigure could claim he'd ever written, the Dog was able to stretch his arms high about his head in contentment.

Mii-chan had finally dozed off over the half-complete manuscript with her tea still in hand when the sleeping pills Shigure had snuck into her drink had finally kicked in and Shigure was really able to work. She was sleeping contentedly, and she was silent. Bliss, Sohma Shigure called it; pure bliss.

There was a glorious scent wafting from the kitchen that told him Tohru-kun had prepared dinner and that she'd probably included Mii-chan when she set the table—because that what Tohru-kun does.

He removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, ignoring the migraine forming from predicting the lecture he knew he'd have to endure if he woke Mii and she discovered the pills he'd most helpfully drugged her with. But Shigure took the risk, knowing that if he didn't, then someone else would (probably Tohru-kun)—and then the lecture would be ten-times worse—and he gently shook the now-peaceful editor awake.

Mii-chan looked, bleary-eyed, at Shigure for the longest time—so long that Shigure found himself sweating from anticipation—and then she blinked away, her gaze moving to the clock. She sat up in a flash to look at the wrinkled manuscript clutched to her chest and to the pen that was no longer in her fingertips. "Shigure-sensei, what did you put in my drink! I have no time to rest; there's still so much to do! There's half of this—" She gestured viciously with the hand she held the manuscript in, "—to edit and I need to—"

"Mii-chan," Shigure broke through her rant, placing a gentle hand on her hair as he did to Tohru-kun when she fretted too much, "Forget about the manuscript—" Mii blinked as if she could not comprehend those words put together in one sentence, "—and come join us for supper."

"But I—"

"Come enjoy!" He took a merry whiff from the air, pulling Mii-chan to her feet with a grin, and gestured with his hands that she do the same, "It smells like leek soup—yum!"

As if on cue, there was an outraged exclamation from outside of his office. Shigure suspected it to be from the dining area, where Tohru-kun would be, without a doubt, setting up the meal. Shigure imagined that Kyou-kun had just walked in. And probably froze. And probably then exclaimed in indignation, as everyone on their side of the planet heard.

A cry all-too-familiar in Sohma Shigure's household.

The Dog's suspicions were confirmed when he dragged Mii into the dining area after him, singing, "Suppertime!" gaily, and only Yuki-kun looked at him as if he were odd.

Tohru-kun was absorbed in trying to convince Kyou-kun, who still sat rigidly beside her, to let her make him something else, something he would enjoy. The Cat muttered and grumbled, but he still refused, ardently glaring across the table at where Yuki-kun knelt, as if saying, "If you can eat this crap, then so can I!"

A look all-too-familiar in Sohma Shigure's household.

It was uneventful throughout most of the meal. There was a tension unheard of, a tension that certainly was not the leek soup, hanging in the air, low over the heads of the three High School students.

Shigure couldn't understand what he was missing. Not only were the teenagers quiet, but Mii-chan... Mii-chan was silently nibbling her way through the soup, surprisingly more gracious and a tad less work-oriented than Shigure had even imagined he would see her—probably also due to the unnamed tension Shigure felt.

He chattered on and on, however, about anything and everything that came to his mind, that might clue him in, but mostly just received mildly noncommittal gestures. He had been assaulted with only two hostile looks that night, so far—both for crude words.

Shigure didn't know what to do. So he sighed, "So, how was school, Tohru-kun, Kyou-kun, Yuki-kun?"

Three backs went stiff, eliciting a sly smirk from Sohma Shigure. Oh, ho, and what was this?

"Tohru-kun?" He tried again, his tone obviously prying. Tohru looked guilty, but she spoke as she set her chopsticks aside, her eyes boring holes in her plate and her hands fidgeting in her lap. She was biting her lip in concern.

"Hatsuharu-san had an episode—" Her eyes flickered to Mii-chan, who showed interest at the word, as she spoke, "—this morning before school began." Her voice was soft, and Shigure noted that Yuki-kun's eyes dropped—not out of guilt, but what seemed to be embarrassment—as well. Only Kyou-kun continued to eat, a twisted look on his face, as if he were caught between grimacing in disgust and smirking in a way similar to Shigure. "But Yuki-kun calmed him down. And, then, after school, Hatsuharu-san apologized to Yuki-kun, in front of the entire Student Council, and hugged him." She peeked at Yuki, whose eyes were hooded and his fingers laced under his chin. "I think Yuki-kun was a little embarrassed."

"A little?" Kyou-kun snorted, but, at Yuki-kun's death glare, said no more.

"Ahh, young love," Shigure pretended as if he missed Yuki's piercing gaze, "How nice it could be, Yuki-kun; don't you agree?" He faked a swoon, pressing the back of his hand to his forehead. His eyes were dancing with mirth when Yuki raised his angry, violet gaze to meet the Dog's dark one. "And, to think," Shigure teased, "You wouldn't even have to change your name!"

The Dog was surprised to hear both Mii-chan and Kyou-kun sputter and choke. "They're family, Shigure-sensei?" Mii asked, her eyes large with curiosity.

"Cousins," Shigure nodded. His voice was light.

But Yuki-kun's was not, when he corrected the older man, "Distant, distant cousins." It was icy.

"But Haru still loves him." Shigure sounded all-knowing, all-mighty this time.

"It's a crush; he'll get over it." Yuki-kun's words were venomous.

"Don't insult Haru like that, Yuki-chan!" The Dog chided, feigning shock. Yuki scoffed and rolled his eyes, but Shigure blatantly ignored the Rat, instead beaming in the general direction of Mii-chan, who still looked a tad surprised, though his eyes were still on Yuki. "He's in denial." It was matter-of-fact.

"I am not." Indignation.

"Yuki-kun, you're blushing." Triumph.

And... silence.

End—Two: Yuki-kun blushes.

for my own purpose, really, but if anyone's interested:
Date Chapter Was Started: August 17th, 2006
Date Chapter Was Finished:August 23rd, 2006
Date Chapter Was Posted:August 23rd, 2006

Ending Notes: I had so much fun writing this chapter, even though I really wanted to get it out here a half a week earlier, even though it had to be rewritten two times. I love writing Sohma Shigure's POV. d; And, I know I told you all that, if I continued this story, I'd make an outline, but that hasn't happened yet. So, bear with me, please. I'll make one... soon.

Thanks to: QueenNarca, Obob, liz, greywings2, and mistic fox for reviewing. (: Because I do love reviews.

XOXOXO
jolieXD