Disclaimer: Darn it, Santa didn't leave Kyo under the tree! Nor did he leave the ownership of Fruits Basket…so…. Yea, I don't own it. However, I did get the entire anime and manga 1 – 11

Authors Note: Sorry this update came late: My birthday was on Sunday. Yes, I'm officially 16!

IMPORTANT This chapter contains abuse/gore. If you're not comfortable reading that: please turn back now. IMPORTANT

Book of the Cat

Chapter 16

Akito's grip on Kyo's arm was hard and tight. Akito didn't say a word, he just marched Kyo down the hall. They stopped in front of Kyo's room and Akito fumbled with the lock. The door flew open and Akito threw Kyo inside. He followed him in and closed the door behind him. It was dark in the room except for the streak of light the window allowed to filter in. Akito sniffed disdainfully at Kyo's form on the ground.

"Such disrespect. I think I need to use the lesson I used on Yuki for you."

Kyo got up and Akito struck a match. A dim light was made as Akito pulled a candle from the folds of his kimono. He sat the candle near a closet door that Kyo had not seen in the dark. Akito pulled a key from his kimono and opened the door, shielding its contents from Kyo. He placed something out of sight, and then shut the door.

"Are you read to learn, Kyo?"

Kyo stared at Akito's dark shadowy form. Akito's hand shot out and pushed Kyo down onto his chest.

"Stay." He commanded. He walked around Kyo and positioned himself directly behind him. "I'll go easy on you today, because it is your first lesson." Kyo turned to look behind him just as Akito's hand pulled forward and a huge thick whip flew through the air and snapped on Kyo's back. Kyo jumped as the coil touched him.

"What the hell do you think you are doing!" Kyo screamed. His back stung. Akito didn't answer. Instead he pulled back and struck Kyo again. Kyo hissed in pain. Akito pulled the rope, and then lashed it at Kyo again. Kyo bit his lip.

After Akito brought the rope forward twice more, Kyo's teeth began to sink into his lip. After about 10 lashes, he heard his kimono ripping. Another 5 lashes and Kyo tasted blood in his mouth. Akito kept going. At 20, Kyo couldn't help it anymore, and he began to cry. Akito only grinned more and whipped him with more ferocity. At 25, blood started to spray from Kyo's back as the whip continued to pound it mercilessly. 30: Kyo started to scream. 35: Kyo's throat was raw. 40: Kyo was barely conscious.

Akito stopped at 50. He smiled gleefully and walked close to Kyo, who was lying in a puddle of blood. His eyes were glazed and his sweat mixed with his blood. His lip was swollen and blood seeped from it. Akito twisted his fingers into Kyo's hair and yanked Kyo's head up to him, so his ear was against Akito's mouth.

"Good kitty, although…Yuki used to be able to handle a lot more." He dropped Kyo like a rag doll on the floor and put the whip away. Kyo started to regain consciousness, but he fell back asleep as his energy severely drained. Akito picked up the candle and blew it out. He opened the door and stepped out, leaving Kyo by himself.

Moments later Hatori ran in. He stepped next to Kyo's limp form and kneeled down besides him. "Kyo, can you hear me?"

Kyo's heavy breathing filled his ears. Finally, "Yea..." It was barely a whisper.

"Kyo, can you walk to my office to get cleaned up?"

"…Yea…" Kyo whispered. He shakily rose himself to his feet, using Hatori as a support. Blood poured down from his mouth and his back. He stumbled and Hatori quickly caught him, causing Kyo to yell out in pain.

"Sorry, Kyo." Hatori whispered. He wrapped his suit jacket over Kyo's bare back because the kimono had simply torn apart. The skin was raw and exposed, and Hatori wanted to cover it until they got to his office. Kyo hissed as the stiff fabric of the jacket touched his back, but he gritted his teeth. Hatori pulled Kyo's arm around his shoulder and placed a hand around waist and slowly started to walk to his office.

Kyo's movements were extremely slow and jerky. He whimpered every so often but tried to hide it from Hatori. After an eternity, they were inside Hatori's quarters. He helped Kyo sit on a bed, and then he pulled off his jacket.

Dozens of thin little cuts slashed across his back. The skin was pink and swollen. Hatori grabbed some gauze, a washcloth, and antiseptic. He ran warm water on the cloth and placed it on the base of Kyo's neck.

"Kyo, this will hurt…" He warned, and then began to clean the blood. Kyo's hands gripped the bed sheets tightly as the towel ran over each cut. He felt like he was being beaten again. Finally, Hatori stopped and picked up a new towel.

"Kyo, this is going to hurt…a lot." He poured some antiseptic on the towel and slowly applied the cloth to the Kyo's back. Kyo jumped a mile high and screamed bloody murder. He continued to scream; Hatori had to hold Kyo down while he wiped each cut. Finally the task was done.

Kyo's body shook and Hatori threw the towels and his coat in a pile under the sink. He'd wash them later. He walked back to Kyo and unwrapped the gauze.

"Lift your arms." He instructed. Kyo did as told, and Hatori wound the white material around Kyo's ribs, trying to cover each wound. He wound some gauze on Kyo's arms, where the whip had cut into him as well. When he was done, he helped Kyo dress into a new kimono.

"Kyo, you should stay here for the night, just so I can monitor you. I'm not sure how much blood you lost. Just stay in the back room for tonight, in the morning we'll see how you're feeling, okay?" Kyo nodded and tried to stand from the bed. His legs shook and he collapsed to the floor. Hatori bent down and pulled him up gently. "Kyo, don't be so hard on yourself…take it easy..." He assisted Kyo to the back and pulled a curtain around a tiny cot, shielding it from the rest of the room. He helped Kyo get into bed.

"Hatori…" Kyo said silently. Hatori helped Kyo lay on his stomach so his back would be up. "Hatori…why does everyone hate me? I didn't mean to do that to Yuki… Why won't anyone come to take me back to Shigure's?"

Hatori stood still. He never heard Kyo ever say something like this, and he was unsure of how to respond. He never really thought that Kyo would want to say something like this to him. He thought for a while. "If you didn't mean to do it… than why did you?"

All of a sudden, Kyo twisted himself out of bed and jumped up. "I have to go! He'll be mad! I almost forgot about him! He's going to kill me if I don't do it! Hatori, you need to let me go back! I need to! I have to find another way! I need the book!" Kyo struggled but in his weak state, Hatori could easily pull him back. He quickly pulled a needle from his pocked and applied it to Kyo's upper arm. Kyo tried to pull away, but Hatori held tight.

"Kyo, you are under stress. This will help you go to sleep. You're not making sense, just relax." He led Kyo back to bed, and Kyo felt his body growing even weaker. "Don't fight it Kyo, it will all be okay." He laid Kyo down and pulled the blankets up. "I don't know what you're talking about…but just sleep."

Kyo tried to fight it, but his eyelids lowered slowly. "Ha … to …ri… I….need. help …"

Hatori nodded as Kyo finally succumbed to the medication. He threw the empty needle in a trashcan, than pulled back the curtain and walked back into the main part of his office. He was startled to find someone else was already there.

"Hatsuharu? What are you doing here?" He ran his hand through his hair. He needed to do so much, why was Haru here?

"I wanted to stop by to ask about Kyo."

"Kyo? Why?" Hatori asked quickly. Haru looked at him suspiciously.

"He's my cousin, I'm concerned."

"Kyo's fine."

Haru nodded and looked around. "So…who were you with in the back room?"

"No one."

"Didn't sound like no one. It sounded like Kyo."

"Well, maybe you're hearing things. I can make an appointment with you for tomorrow to check that out."

Haru smiled. "Making jokes? Okay, I get it… you want me to stay out of it." He looked around. His eyes stopped on the bloody pile under the sink. "Hatori…what's that?"

Hatori followed Haru's gaze and froze.

Haru continued. "Is Kyo here? Is he hurt?" He started to walk towards the backroom. Hatori blocked his path.

"Haru, you can't go back there."

"Is it Kyo?" Haru was borderline black, and Hatori knew he did not need a black Haru destroying his office. He gave in.

"Yes…it's Kyo. He's sleeping. Just, leave him alone. Okay? He's had a rough day."

Haru stared. "Did Akito do this?"

"Yes."

Haru nodded. "Okay." He stared at Hatori for one minute, than turned on his heel to walk out. Just as he reached the door, he stopped and turned back. "You know…we need to do something soon. I'm worried about him."

Hatori nodded. "He'll be fine."

Haru nodded and walked out. He slowly made his way back to his room on the estate. As he walked, he thought about what Hatori said. The wind picked up and light flurries started to fall again. He began to talk out loud.

"You don't know Hatori. You don't know anything about Kyo."

Shigure's House:

Later that evening, Shigure was interrupted from "working" by the phone. He stumbled over to it, checked the caller ID, and picked up the phone.

"Haru?"

"Um, hey Shigure…"

"Is something wrong Haru?"

"I'm not sure…"

Shigure smiled. "Are you lost again?"

"No…I'm at the main house."

"Well… you live there, so…how did you get lost?"

"I'm not lost!"

"Than…. What's the problem?"

"What's going on with Kyo?"

Shigure paused. He honestly had no idea. "Haru…what's happening over there?"

"Shigure, I found bloody towels in Hatori's office. Do you mean to tell me you have no idea what is going on?"

"Haru, I don't have the faintest clue…"

Haru nodded, not like Shigure could see him. "Ok…well, if you hear anything, keep me posted."

"Of course… and vice versa."

"Yea…bye."

"Bye." Shigure hung up and walked into the kitchen. He found Yuki there by himself, doing homework at the table.

"Yuki," Shigure called. Yuki turned around.

"Yes?"

"Hatori called me last night."

"Oh…"

"He said that Kyo's staying in your room."

Yuki froze up and dropped his pen. "What?"

Shigure nodded. "I have no idea what's going on though."

Yuki shook his head as he regained composure. "It's probably nothing."

"Yea…you're probably right."

Sohma House, the next morning:

Kyo woke up to Hatori calling his name. He tried to turn around to see him, but shooting pains through his back stopped him.

"Kyo, are you feeling better."

Kyo pushed himself through the pain and sat up. His back protested, but Kyo ignored it. "I'm fine!"

"Ok, I'm going to perform a check up to make sure."

"Whatever."

Hatori took out some tools and began to test various things. He asked Kyo questions occasionally. When he was done, he said that Kyo was doing much better and could go back to his rooms.

"Kyo, breakfast is being served."

Kyo nodded, but remembered again what Akito had said. He shook his head. "I'm really not hungry."

"But you haven't eaten in about two days."

"I'm not hungry." Kyo said angrily.

Hatori shook his head. "Kyo, you have to eat."

"I will. Just not right now. Go away." Kyo's eyes narrowed. Just as Hatori was about to respond, another voice entered the room.

"Hatori, if he's not hungry, then we shouldn't waste our food on that monster." Akito stepped into view. He stopped in front of Kyo. "Hello, my little monster. Sleep well?"

Kyo stared at him and stood up, ready to punch him in the face. However, the searing pain in his back halted any types of rebellious movements. He nearly fell over, much to Akito's enjoyment.

"Hatori, go get something to eat, I would like to spend time with … my cousin."

Hatori looked hesitant, but he walked out after helping Kyo sit back down on the bed. It was just Akito and Kyo now. Akito smiled and walked over to one of Hatori's medical cabinets. He searched around in it for a few minutes. Kyo, meanwhile, tried to think of possible ways to escape. Finally, Akito spoke.

"Isn't it funny that no one cares about you?" He turned around and closed the cabinet behind himself.

"People care about me." Kyo said defiantly.

Akito raised an eyebrow. "Like who?" He laughed. "That Honda girl? If I recall correctly from what Hatori told me…you asked for help and she closed her door in your face. Yes, I can see that she definitely cares about you…"

Kyo stared at him his fists tightened on the bed sheets. If only he could get up and kick Akito, he would.

"Let's see…who else… Momiji? No, even he's not that stupid… Shigure… no… Hatsuharu? Nope. Hiro, Kisa, Ayame? No, no, no. Hatori? No, he's the one that brought you here."

"So?" Kyo tried to act tough.

"I'm not done… Yuki? Definitely not. I'm surprised he didn't kill you already."

Kyo said nothing, so Akito continued.

"Kagura? Yes, that is a good argument. But, if she loved you, why hasn't she come to visit you already. I heard that she visited Yuki yesterday. Funny… I thought she liked you more that she liked Yuki…but has she come to help you out once? Has she even asked to see you? No. She hasn't. I wonder why that is?"

Kyo stayed very still as he thought of his plan. Sure it would hurt, but if he got enough strength gathered up, he could kick Akito down and run out of here.

"How about… Kazuma?"

Kyo paused in his thoughts as Akito mentioned his master's name.

"Yes, Kazuma… You can say he loves you, but we all know he only took you in to make himself feel better for shunning his grandfather. That is the only real reason he invited you to live with him. He felt bad for himself. You may think he has come to love you after all the time you spent together… but even he hasn't stopped by to ask me to release you."

Those words. Akito saying those words were enough to make Kyo's blood boil. This was the moment. He jumped up and lashed out at Akito. A split second before his foot was to connect with Akito; Akito dodged his leg, and swung Kyo around in a headlock. He plunged his hand into his pocket and extracted a syringe he had taken from Hatori's cabinet. Digging his knee into Kyo's back was enough to distract Kyo as he lifted the needle up and stuck it into Kyo's neck. Kyo felt the prick a second to late, just as Akito finished pumping the fluid into Kyo's body. He released Kyo and smiled, throwing the syringe into a wastepaper basket. Kyo stood up on his own, feeling nothing at all at first.

"How about your real parents Kyo?" Akito smiled at Kyo. All of a sudden, Kyo felt whatever was in him begin to take effect. His legs started to shake, so he backed up until he fell onto the bed. "Yes… now there are two people whom we know hate you." Kyo felt his legs and arms start to go numb. "Let's see. Mom first. How did it go again? Oh yes, she wouldn't let you out of her sight. She was so ashamed that she gave birth to a monster. She wouldn't even let you leave the house in fear that you'd lose your beads." Kyo's body froze up…it wouldn't move. He tried to call out but he couldn't even more his mouth. His ears and eyes were the only thing that were able to function right now and even his eyes were starting to get blurry. "She killed herself because of you; because she had this disgusting child. I'm doing her a favor by trying to tame you. She didn't want you. No one does. Not your father either. He wants me to confine you. He wants Shishou to help, too."

Kyo's eyes closed. He could only hear Akito's loud, menacing voice echoing in his ears.

"So, as you can see Kyo, no one wants you. Not your friends… not your family… not even the girl who has "loved" you all her life. Not even the people who raised you. You're worthless and disgusting and as long as you live, you will be like that."

Kyo felt himself start to drift off into another sleep.

"But don't worry my little monster. I'll keep you."

Authors Note: Okay, that was a bit longer than usual to make up for the late update. I'll try to have the next one up by Sunday night or Monday… than it should be back to the routine of Saturday updates. The vacation/birthday/holidays/ are throwing me off. By the way, you all should be yelling at me for the hundreds of mistakes in the past few chapters (including this one). I yelled at myself for them, too. Ok, well, I'm off, time to order Manga 12! Enjoy! And Happy Holidays!

Before I spend money, let me thank my reviewers:

Crazy dark gal: So the people in your mind are telling you things too? The ones in mine won't shut up! "Must keep reading Fruits Basket Manga!" "No! Must Update" "No, Must Watch ANIME"… yea, they don't really agree inside my head…

Sapphermine: It's okay! You don't need to give me constructive criticism; I love all reviews. I'm glad you like Kyo angst, there will be loads more!

Shadow7272: Yea, convincing teachers is pretty darn difficult… I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Amethystcrystal231: Make it 10 pages longer…I'll try. You want my story? That is the sweetest thing I've ever heard. Just for that, I'm dedicating this chapter to you.

Fullma8712: Oy, good question. The Book of the Cat is written in a language that can only truly be read by those possessed by the cat. However, the person that is possessed can teach it to others, for example, Kyo taught Uo. However, there is a bit more to this that will be explained later.

Dark-wolf-soulx: You created the most adorable word ever: "updations." Little Kyo would be such an adorable boy… I wouldn't stop hugging him. And yes, Kyo in the bathroom is extremely adorable…well, yummy actually… wow, I've written adorable in this paragraph more than is allowed. Did you say, Leopard go-go boots? No way! I think those are mine! I must've left them in your house…wherever that is…haha….

The Cheshire Katt: Hey, I forgive you for not reviewing chapter 14! Don't be sorry! Is your cold gone by now? I hope it is…my colds take like… 2 weeks to go away…

ShadoWalker: Yea, my sisters just finished their finals, so they're home now too! Errrr… If you thought the last chapter was depressing…well, I hate to think what kind of a mood this one put you in.

Narutofreak22: Yea, I hope everyone figures everything out soon…oh wait, what am I saying? That would make the story end faster! No! Never end! Ha, actually, with the way I've planned this story, I'll be writing it for another few months….maybe for another year….yeesh…Actually, I get two study halls in the spring, so that means extra writing time, which means either: longer chapters or faster updates…fun fun fun… I don't know why I'm blabbing so much to you in this comment…. I just can't stop typing.

And to all my silent reviewers: I hope you're having a nice, relaxing week! I am! I'm 16! Not like you all really care, but I do, so that's all the matters…. Anyway, review and I'll say nice things about you!