Disclaimer: I don't own, you don't sue.
Title: Hysteria
Pairing: Yuki/Kyo
Summary: People with cold fingers are said to bring death. With icy fingers gripping at his neck, Yuki will find himself fighting against his horror-filled fate that looms over the horizon, and, at the same time, will find himself drawn into the warmth of a heart so unlike his own.
Chapter 1
Yuki walked past the entrance to his classroom for the third time, his eyes falling on the door every now and then. He knew that he should be in there with the rest of his classmates, but at that moment, it was taking all he had to keep from simply crawling away and hiding inside himself. The urge to cry kept creeping up his throat, and his eyes stung in warning of tears to come. It was time to escape. He would set another icy façade in place and walk around as if nothing had happened. Steadying his pace, he walked past the door for the last time and let his feet just lead him away.
When he stopped, he snorted as he recognized where he was. It seemed almost too convenient. He pushed open the undistinguished door and stepped out onto what seemed to be an empty platform. It was a place where a distraction would be easily found, no doubt. He found it ironic that he ended up on the roof of the school; he never would have imagined that he would someday resort to skipping class in the exact same spot as the stupid cat. "It seems that some bad habits are easily picked up," he thought lightly.
Yuki grabbed a rung of the ladder to the right of his entrance and cautiously began to climb. Eventually, he reached the very top of the building and stepped carefully onto the main roof. He stood up as if he was in any normal place and straightened out the wrinkles his uniform gathered from the trip. Glancing around, his eyes narrowed slightly as he began staring at the person who already occupied the roof. It was the only person he would expect to be there.
It was obvious that Kyo had been there for a while. There were various packages littered around him and a lunchbox with the lid half off. Books were scattered around him, some open, some not, and he appeared to be off in his own little world at the moment. But it was just a front, Yuki knew. Kyo was always able to detect when someone had joined him or not. Especially if that person happened to be their preordained enemy.
"Well, if it isn't Prince Yuki. What would your fan club think if they knew you were skipping class?" The orange-haired boy was sitting cross-legged with his arms folded across his chest. He smirked at his pale cousin and leaned back against the wall behind him.
"Shut up, you stupid cat. I could really care less what they think…I could care less what anyone thinks." Suddenly deciding that maybe sitting would help calm his shattered nerves, he sat down cautiously, markings and sores from last night's horror aching with almost every move, across from his orange-haired cousin. His fingers drifted over his uniform mechanically smoothing imaginary wrinkles.
"He came by yesterday, didn't he?" Kyo asked quietly.
"Who?"
"Akito." Yuki shuddered as the name slipped from Kyo's mouth. It wasn't a meeting that he wanted to remember or talk about. It was simply too much to handle at the moment. The things that the sickly boy said to him and made him do left him feeling hollow. His free will was stripped from him that night, along with other things he valued.
"Well? Answer me, you damn rat!" Kyo was glaring at him, angrily, though for which reason, Yuki wasn't sure. It wasn't as if Kyo had ever cared about what happened to him when Akito came over before. It was odd, but the Prince left it alone because his questions would lead to more questions on his cousin's part.
"It's none of your business. It's not something that a stupid cat would understand." He needed to distract the vermillion-eyed teen. He narrowed his eyes at the boy and raised his head in a way that he knew would upset him. The only way Kyo would leave it alone would be if he rose to the bait and initiated a fight with Yuki. So far, all was going well.
"What kind of an answer is that?!"
"It's the only answer you will get." The cat was already very close to losing his temper, his legs unbending and his hands pushing at the ground as if he were about to pounce on Yuki. It would only take a bit more to push him over the edge, and with years of rivalry already behind them, Yuki knew exactly which words would cut the most. "Besides…why would I tell a useless, vengeful cat about my business? The cat's not really part of the zodiac, so you don't deserve to know anyway."
"You. Damn. Rat. That's it! I'm going to beat you once and for all!"
"Hook, line, and sinker," Yuki thought wryly, "I'll just get this over with quickly before a teacher shows up. A few well-aimed punches here or there and it'll all be over."
Kyo jumped to his feet quickly, as Yuki knew he would. He stood as well, albeit a bit more carefully due to the night before, and clenched his fists in preparation. "Quick and clean," he repeated over and over again in his head, "just enough to get this over with." He knew that Kyo had a nasty habit of shouting at him during their frequent sparring matches, and even though Yuki was loathed to admit it, most of those things actually touched a nerve or two. If the other teen ever knew exactly how much he got under the Prince's skin, it would be the end of their little game; Kyo would have too much ammunition.
"Let's hurry and get this over with. I don't want to get expelled from school for beating up my worthless cousin," Yuki jeered sarcastically.
Once again, his words had the desired effect, and Kyo lunged forward immediately with a punch aimed for Yuki's head. But, as always, the rat was more than prepared and easily dodged as the cat slammed into the fencing behind him. When the boy finally turned back around to face Yuki, and perhaps try to deliver one or two more punches, the first thing he saw was Yuki's foot before it collided with the side of his head.
The blow caused the boy to fall backwards, hands automatically reaching to cradle his head in pain. He was struggling to stay on his feet, but the world was spinning in a mass of hazy colors as he clutched at the frantically at the fence for support. Losing his balance and quickly toppling over, Kyo fell to one knee, eyes screwed tightly shut in pain. His head was still throbbing and for a few moments, he thought he might retch. The prospect seemed dire, but just as he began to feel the familiar heave, his body lurched forward and the boy fell face first onto the roof, out cold.
Yuki walked over, a bit more hurriedly than he would've liked to admit, and began looking his cousin over. A nicely sized bruise was quickly forming at the boy's temple, and the rat immediately knew that this was why his kick had inflicted much more damage than what was intended. It was a rare occurrence when Yuki simply lost his control and ended up being careless with his blows. And seeing that it had just happened, he regretted even starting the match at all. "Maybe I should've just told him," he said quietly to himself. "Then I wouldn't be in this mess. What am I supposed to do with him now?" It would be much easier to explain what had happened to Shigure than to a school official. Shigure would actually understand why the fight had taken place.
Finally deciding that maybe home would be the best place to take him, he hoisted the boy onto his back. The task ahead of him flashed before his mind and he took a weary look down the ladder. It would be difficult considering the shape that Yuki was in at the moment, but he knew that if he dropped Kyo, despite how tempting the prospect seemed to be, there would be no explaining it. It was a fall that was likely to kill him, and even if he was the cat, Yuki did not want to stand judgment before Akito or any other judge for murder. He quickly maneuvered Kyo until he was more securely held on his back and left Yuki with one free hand to begin climbing down.
It was a slow journey and Yuki wasn't sure how long it had taken, but when he finally reached the platform where the exit awaited them, his eyes were glued to the door. A teacher was standing in the doorway watching him, and her eyebrows were furrowed in thought. "Mr. Sohma, where have you and your cousin been all day? You both disappeared after first period, and different people have been searching for you since it became obvious." Her eyes drifted over to Kyo's still form and she frowned slightly. "Why is your cousin asleep? Is he alright?"
Yuki quickly plastered a smile on his face and ran through a hundred different scenarios in his head. He tried to pick the answers that would be the vaguest, but at the very least, allow him to go home without further questioning. "Kyo is fine, professor. He's just been very tired lately and not feeling too well. I came to check on him, and as I approached, he passed out and toppled over. He seemed to warrant a bump on the head from it, so I decided to take him home to see our family doctor. Could you please tell Miss Honda for me? She'll be worried sick, if she doesn't find out soon." With another flash of his fawned over smile, the teacher quickly nodded her approval before holding the door open for him to begin his trip home.