DISCLAIMER: I don't own the boys. :sigh: I wish I did. :shifty eyes: For the money! That's it, the money... Nothing else!
A/N: I am very happy to see that so many of you like Yasuko. I'm glad I've written a character you all dig. She's even been compared to Shigure, and I guess it's true. I can't help it. Shigure is my man... ermm... yeah... awkward...
Yasuko approached the secluded dwelling with a smile, reflecting on how different she felt this time. Only a few weeks before she had approached the house as a stranger, an outsider. Now it was different. The Sohma's and Tohru had accepted her, taken her in as one of their own. At the door, Shigure greeted Yasuko with his crooked smile and led her into the kitchen.
"Thank you for coming. Tohru is quite ill, but we've become so used to being cared for and looked after. Oh!"
Shigure and Yasuko froze at the doorway. Kyou was on the floor surrounded by a half dozen cookbooks, growling about leeks. Momiji sat next to him, whining about being picked on.
"I swear," Kyou seethed, subjecting Momiji to the mother of all noogies. "Every time you open your mouth it pisses me off!"
Yasuko laughed and stepped into the kitchen, kneeling before Momiji.
"Yasuko! Make Kyou be nice!"
Yasuko leaned toward Kyou, stopping when her nose only inches away from touching Kyou's. She reached up, staring into his panicked eyes and tapped the tip of his nose with her finger. Smiling, she bent toward Momiji and wiped his tears away, kissing the tip of his nose. Momiji grinned and whooped a hooray jumping forward to hug Yasuko.
POOF!
"You idiot!" Kyou growled.
The random yellow smoke that suddenly surrounded Yasuko dissipated to reveal a rather large rabbit in her arms.
"Ooops," the rabbit blushed.
A piercing scream ripped from Yasuko's throat and she fell backward. The men all froze at the sound and the noisy footsteps of someone running toward the kitchen could be heard. Hatori and Yuki burst into the kitchen, knocking Shigure off his feet and onto the paralyzed Yasuko.
POOF!
Yasuko backed out of the blue cloud against the counter beside Kyou and her jaw dropped at the large black dog that lay prostrate where Shigure had been a moment before.
"Umm… woof?" Shigure's voice laughed from the dog.
Yuki pressed the heel of his palm into an eye, fighting off the sudden headache as Hatori stepped forward into the kitchen.
"What's going on?" Yasuko demanded.
"Don't be afraid," Hatori said gently. "Everything will be okay."
"No!" Kyou shouted and pulled Yasuko behind his body. Yasuko looked up at Kyou's profile, surprised at the fear in his voice.
"Do you think Akito will allow another? You could lose Tohru because of this."
Yuki gasped and Kyou's eyes shot wide in horror.
POOF! POOF!
Yasuko looked down at the very naked Momiji and Shigure sitting on the floor. She quirked her brow at Shigure with a smirk before turning back to Hatori.
"What is Kyou afraid of?"
"You should not have seen this. I can't let you leave knowing this secret."
Yasuko nervously gasped a handful of Kyou's shirt and moved closer to him. Kyou's heart raced at the feel of her hand shaking, and when he glanced down into her face his gut clenched at the fear he saw there.
"He's going to erase your memories," Shigure said gently. "He won't hurt you."
"It's the only way," Hatori sighed.
"All my memories? How?"
"Not all. Only your memories of meeting us." Hatori frowned as Yasuko closed her eyes and pressed her forehead against Kyou's shoulder. "You won't remember the Sohma family."
"No!"
Yasuko's eyes flew open at the anger in Kyou's voice. It took her a moment to register that Shigure and Momiji had shouted as well. Tears welled as she became aware for the first time, they didn't want her to forget. Yasuko didn't want to forget. However, Yuki's face erased all thoughts of defiance. He looked torn, bereft. Yuki stared at her the way Anyu had when she lay bleeding on the beach, as though his very life was slipping away.
Yasuko's heart broke at the thought of having to forget the Sohmas. She didn't want to lose them- but she couldn't let them lose Tohru. They needed her, and she needed them. With a heavy heart, Yasuko's eyes dropped to the floor and she stepped away from Kyou.
"Do what you must. Don't let them lose Tohru."
"What did she say?" Kyou demanded.
Hatori ignored his cousin and held out his hand to Yasuko. She stepped forward and allowed him to lead her from the room, pausing only to give Yuki a reassuring smile.
"I am sorry, Miss Hiro," he said sadly, dropping his gaze. Yasuko cupped his cheek and shook her head, still smiling. Yuki looked up at the contact and realized she didn't blame anyone, and that made him feel even worse.
Kyou watched Yasuko leave. He felt frozen and dead inside, and being dead hurt a lot more than he'd ever thought it would.
Yasuko found herself in Shigure's office once again with the stoic young doctor. Silence reigned as Hatori closed the door and Yasuko shivered at the sensation of deja-vu as he crossed the room to gaze out the porch at the garden.
"You would willingly forget the Sohmas?"
Yasuko sucked in a breath but calmly walked to Hatori's side. She regarded him for a moment as he turned to face her.
"Ì don't want to forget them. I don't want to forget any of you. But I have somewhere to return to, a house, and a bed. Tohru does not." Yasuko looked away from Hatori to gaze out over the sunset. "Tohru was the first person to reach out to me. But the Sohmas, and I include Tohru in this, have to protect themselves. I understand the need to put family first."
The sitting room was cold and dark. Not one man had anything to say. Haru shivered at the atmosphere as he entered, shocked to see even the bubbly Momiji looking somber.
"Tohru's resting now. It's just a cold, you know."
Shigure clasped his hands on the table and leaned forward with a sigh.
"There was a… mishap in the kitchen. Yasuko's memory has to be erased."
Haru's legs gave out and he fell to the floor in shock. Yasuko had fit right in as one of them and the last few weeks had been a lot of fun. Yasuko lacked Tohru's unceasing optimism, but her wit and sharp sense of humor more than made up for it. She was like night to Tohru's day. Losing Yasuko was surprisingly painful- almost as painful as losing Tohru would be. Momiji was utterly depressed.
"This is all my fault," he muttered.
"You got that right," Kyou bit out without much energy.
"I just forgot. We all hang out so much at school, and then she was here, I just forgot. She feels like Tohru. Like she's been here forever. Like she belongs here."
Kyou sighed. His own thoughts were distressingly similar, but he would take that to the grave.
"It will be difficult to adjust," Shigure sighed again. Without his usual frivolity, Shigure was almost as somber as Hatori. As much as he loved sweet Tohru, Shigure actually preferred Yasuko's quick wit. She would play along with gags and engage in verbal battle like a seasoned veteran. Shigure was not ashamed to admit that had Yasuko been two years older, he might have pursued her. Now though, Shigure feared she would be off limits even to poor Kyou.
Yuki stared at the tabletop, feeling like a villain. Yasuko had seen his grief at the thought of losing Tohru, his fear, and she had agreed without a thought to having her memory wiped. Yasuko had sacrificed her new friends and happiness because of him. Yuki couldn't help wondering what he would have done had the situation been reversed. Tohru would have done the same as Yasuko, no doubt about it. But he would not. Yuki knew he would be too scared, too selfish to submit.
"Who's going to tell Tohru?" Haru finally broke the silence.
Kyou snarled and ran from the room. He was - no, they were losing Yasuko so they could keep Tohru, but telling Tohru would hurt her. Kyou felt torn between the two girls. He couldn't bear the thought of wither one of them being hurt because of this stupid curse. He couldn't stand having to lose Yasuko.