When Yuki burst into Ayame's shop, He found his brother on his knees in tears. Mine was standing behind him, comforting him. "Is that all you can do, sit there and cry!? WHy don't you try and find her before she gets herself killed!!" Yuki shouted, enraged. Ayame didn't respond. Yuki just glared at him, then went outside. The woods surrounded the shop on 2 sides. This could take hours, before they even found her, much less got her home. "Kyo, get out and look for your sister, please?" Yuki asked. Kyo was shocked. A 'please' from Yuki was something he was not used to. But he nodded, and ran off. Shigure and Ayame soon joined the hunt, all 4 of them going in different directions. They looked for hours and hours, until it was dark out and they could barely see. Meanwhile, Shizuka was at the bottom of a cliff, having fallen off the edge that she didn't see in time. She couldn't move her leg without immense pain, but managed to drag herslef to a nearby cave. She threw a rock at a tree in anger. And frustration. Flashback- Shizuka was getting tired of hanging out in the shop, so she went in to see if there was anythig she could help Ayame and Mine with. She saw them making out, with his hand on her chest. SHe stood there for a minute, clsoed the door quietly, and left. So much for quality time with your best friend. So much for taking her somewhere to cheer her up. Maybe if she left he would come for her. Hopefully he would feel terrible. She ran and ran until her feet bled, having forgot her shoes at the shop. When she reached the cliff's edge, she didn't even see it. Then there wa a crack, and a wave of pain...-End of Flashback But none of those reasons could justify the most pain she felt. When she saw him with Mine, something died inside her. She wasn't going to be able to keep her secret for much longer. Shizuka couldn't sleep. She thought she heard Yuki's voice calling her name, but it was far away, and she was sure no one knew she was there anyway. The pain in her leg must be making her delusional.
Kyo tore through the woods, searching for any sign of his sister. Throns were tearing into his skin, and ripping his clothes to bits, but he kept running. He came to a cliff's edge, almost falling off. It was difficult to see anything in this light. He then heard the quiet sobs of a girl...was is Shizuka? He slid down the cliff adeptly, running toward the sound. It was her! "Sister, I'm here!" he said, sitting next to her. Her leg was bruised and purple, and twisted unnaturally. "Kyo? No! You're not real! Just a delusion...I'm having delusions..." She said weakly. "I'm not a delusion," he said, touching her arm. "Everyone is looking for you! I've been out here for hours, along with Yuki, Shigure, and Ayame." She smiled halfheartedly. "Good to know I'm not crazy," She said. "Yeah... Hey look, I'm sorry for the way i treated you. I don't mean any of it, I just can't talk to people..." He said, looking to the side. "It's all right, Kyo. I know. I just wanted to hear it form you before I could forgive you," she said, hugging him. "It feels so weird to be hugged by a girl...who isn't cursed," he said, ruffling her hair. She smiled. "I'm glad," she said. "Weird..." Kyo trailed off. "I just got this weird feeling, like something happened to someone in the search party," He said worriedly. "It's probably nothing. You're just worried because it's late and dangerous. But they all have their animal instincts. They'll be fine. He nodded. Noticing that she was cold, he gave up his jacket. "Thanks, little bro," she said. "Hey, who are you calling little?" He said, whacking her arm lightly. She stuck out her tongue. Kyo shook off the feeling of danger he had before, and tried to get some sleep.
But Kyo was right. Someone was in trouble. Yuki was running at top speed, avoiding plants as best he could. He had no idea where to look, but he figured if he covered a lot of ground, he'd find her faster. The air was getting cold though, and he was using more energy than usual. Suddenly, he had an attack. He fell to the ground, landing in a blackberry bush. The thorns penertrated his skin as he grabbed his throat, trying desperately to breathe. "He-help...me!" He choked out. Yuki felt the world spinning, and he knew he would pass out soon. This was not good. Ayame was nearby when Yuki cried out for help. "Brother?" he said to himself. He immediately ran off in the direction of Yuki's voice. When he reached his little brother, he was unconcious. Ayame did know some first aid,from hatori, and made sure he knew what to do in case Yuki had an attack. He managed to resuscitate him, and when yuki finally opened his eyes, he looked around in disbelief. "This feels a whole lot like being alive," he said. "That, dear brother, is because the great Ayame sensed your danger and saved your life!" Ayame explained. Yuki grimaced. "How'd you find me?" he asked, "You called for help. So i came! ANd my brotherly instinct managed to keep me within earshot," Ayame replied proudly. Yuki sighed. "Can you shut up? You're really loud. And annoying." Ayame's eyes lost some of their sparkle. Yuki was surprised. Usually his brother would not shut up until someone tried to kill him. "Are you ok now Yuki?" Ayame asked. "Yeah...should be. Attacks are never close together, especially ones this bad." Ayame nodded, and stood up. When he started walking away, Yuki said, "Wait...Ayame, could you stay a while?" Neither of them could belive what Yuki had just said. "Nevermind. Go look for her," Yuki said, waving him away. But Ayame didn't go. He just stood there, his back to Yuki. He wasn't moving. Then Yuki heard a sniffle. Was his brother...crying? He stared at him for a minute longer, and then stood up. He shakily walked over to Ayame. He was crying. Ayame saw his brother standing next to him and fell onto him. "Whoa! I'm still weak!" Yuki said, pushing him off. Ayame calmed down after a few minutes, and apologized for going to pieces on him. "I'm sorry, it's just that you never tell me you want me to be anywhere near you, and-" "You really are insane," Yuki said, cutting him off. Ayame again looked disheartened. "But I accept that. Thank you," Yuki said, bowing slightly. Ayame smiled huge and pulled him into a spine crushing hug. "Oh BROTHER! I knew you'd see my true beauty someday!" He cried. "...Ow...," was Yuki's reply. "I feel rejuvenated. We must continue the search for Shizu-chan!" Ayame said, running off. Yuki, although frazzled, began to run as well. He sighed. Ayame really was annoying.
Shigure, meanwhile, was completely lost. "This is not good," he said, sighing. "They probably already found her, and are looking for poor old me." He sat down, and pulled out a book he had been reading. After a while, he grew tired, and fell asleep, right in the middle of the woods. many hours passed, and eventually, Yuki and Ayame found each other again and made camp by a large rock. Ayame fell asleep before Yuki, who was unable to sleep until day began to break. He finally fell asleep sitting up, and slumped over onto Ayame.
Kyo and Shizuka were completely out when Shigure found them in the morning. He poked Kyo with a stick multiple times before holding his nose and mouth shut. Kyo awoke with a start, and smacked Shigure's hand. "Dammit, you, I could've died!" He ranted. This woke Shizuka, who rolled over only to remember her broken leg. She cried out in pain, and moved back to where she was. "She broke her leg falling down this cliff," Kyo explained. Shigure nodded. "It would be best if we could get Hatori to come here, but i don't know if he has the time, with Akito being so sick," he said worriedly. "Great idea, but how would we get a hold of him? It's not like we have cell phones," Kyo responded. "Aaya has one," Shigure said. "A fat lot of good that does us! Ayame's not here, moron!" Kyo yelled. "Calm down, Kyo-kun! You'll scare Shii-kun," Shigure said, pointing at her. "Can it Shigure, Kyo can't scare me," Shizuka said, not having enough energy to glare at him. "I kid, Shii-kun. You know that," He replied, giving her his famous puppy-dog eyes. "Yeah, yeah, you're adorable," Shizuka said, smiling a little. Kyo sighed, still pissed. "I'm going to look for Aaya and Yuki-kun," Shigure said, standing. "Fine, whatever, just come back for us," Kyo said. He turned to his sister, who was falling back asleep. 'Better asleep than awake' he thought. Shigure found Ayame and Yuki not too far from the cliff. Yuki was laying with his head on Ayame's chest, and Ayame had his arm around him. Shigure busted up laughing, but quietly enough so they didn't wake up. He carefully took Ayame's phone from his pocket and took 3 pictures and a video, in which nothing happened but Shigure giggling. He returned he phone to Ayame's pocket and tapped Yuki on the nose. he woke up, and noticing where he was laying, sat up and scooted about 5 feet away. "You will not tell anyone." Yuki said, with an eveil glare. "I won't i won't! Don't you trust me?" Shigure said, faking hurt. Ayame stirred, and awoke a few minutes later. "Gure-san! Hello," he said. "Morning Aaya," he replied. "I found Shizuka, but Kyo beat me to it. They're at the bottom of that cliff," Shigure said. "Cliff?!" Yuki exclaimed. "Are they ok?!" "Relax, Yuki-kun. Shizuka fell and broke her leg, but your dear Kyo-kun is fine. The sound Yuki's hand made against Shigure's face was quite satisfying, decided Yuki. "Can you take us to them?" Ayame asked. "Yes...Wahh, you hurt me, Yuki-kun, I'm sad," Shigure whined. He led them to the cliff, which they all climbed down with ease. Shizuka awoke to the sound of their voices drawing closer. "Shizu-chan, I'm so sorry!" Ayame said, taking her hand. His eyes held the saddest expression. "Don't touch me, Ayame."
Hatori's phone rang. Finally, something to do. "Hello?-----Ayame?-----------I can't understand a word you're saying, calm down.------------Who hates you?----No, she doesn't...--------------Ayame listen--------Listen to me-----Ok. What are you actually calling me for? Is someone hurt?--------------What happened?-------------A cliff? Can you tell me how to get there?-------------------Are you serious? You're all lost?!------------No, it's ok. It's ok. Just stop crying.----------Yes, that would be good.-----------------------------------Hello Yuki------------------Yeah. I got that, you're lost. --------------As weird as it sounds, we could send Hatsuharu,--------------------I know he has no sense of direction, thats why he can probably find you--------------Yes, and I'll have him leave a trail of some sort.-------------yeah, rope should work.----------Goodbye." Hatori put down the phone and sighed. Ayame had done it again. He picked up the phone again and dialed Haru's number. "Hello, Hatsuharu?-----------We have some lost idiots that I need you to find----------I have no idea where they are except the bottom of a cliff in the woods around Ayame's shop---------------you'll take some rope and leave a trail.-----------Yeah, you'll have someone to hug, just be caueful, she has a broken leg.------All right. I'll pick you up.--------Bye. Hatori hung up again and went out to his car. The drive to Haru's part of the house was short. On the way to the woods, Neither of them talked much, and the ride went by extremely quickly. Haru tied one end of the rope to a tree on the edge of the woods and started running. Sure enough, his lack of direction sent him zigzagging all over the woods, finding the lost search party within an hour. He slid down the cliff to see Shigure reading, Kyo and Yuki bickering, and the girl he supposed was Shizuka laying on the ground. Ayame was nowhere in sight. "Hello, Haa-kun," Shigure said cheerily. Everyone turned to face him. He went up to Yuki and tugged on his shirt. "I worried about you so," He said. "Thank...you," Yuki said. "Where's Ayame?" Hatsuharu asked. "He's off sulking somewhere because he can't handle consequences," Kyo said irritably. Haru sighed. "You must be Shizuka. I'm going to need you to take of your pendant for a second so i can turn into a cow," he said. "O...k?" SHe said, obeying. He hugged her quickly, transforming into a cow. Yuki helped place her onto Haru's back. They had previously found a route that would be easy for a cow to follow up the cliff, so he started going immediately. Only Shigure tried to convince Ayame to come with them. He finally got him to agree, after a lot of coaxing and persuasion, but he didn't seem like his usal self at all. He wasn't talking unless he was asked a question, and he didn't make eye contact with anyone. After they got out of the woods, Hatori treated and set Shizuka's leg. They all let her rest for a while, and after she fell asleep, Ayame sat next to her and stroked her hair. He felt stupid. He had messed up yet another relationship, first Yuki and now her. "I'm so sorry," he said.
After 7 or 8 hours, she woke up, and Ayame was no longer there. Instead, Hatsuharu was leaning over her. She sat up. "Hey," he said. "Hi." "I've heard a lot about you from the rest of the family that knows you," he said, casually. She nodded. "and I was wondering...would you like to go out with me?" If it was any other time, Shizuka would have most certainly said no. She didn't even know this guy! Also, he was younger, and she already liked someone else. Who knew if she could trust him, or if this was going to ruin her chances with him...or if she even cared if it did. Of course she cared though, and that's what confused her the most when she gave Haru his reply. "Of course I'll go out with you."