A/N: Oooh! Here's chapter 1 :D Yay! I'm SOOOOOOOOOO sorry it took so long! ^^; Okay so me and my friend Eva had a sleepover just after I'd came up with the idea for this fic, so when we stayed up most of the night drawing, I though: what better to draw than the 'outcome' of Kyo's experiance! So, I did :D Haha, once we get to it, I'll start linking the pictures so you can have an idea of it all :) Hope you enjoy chapter 1 :) Read and review please ^^ Poppy :)

Chapter 1: Rat

It was a typical Saturday morning, Tohru was prepairing a beautiful breakfast of pancakes and toppings, Shigure was lingering in the kitchen, being a nusence when and where ever possible. And although I wasn't sure where Kyo was, it wasn't here. As for me, easy - still in bed.

Today was the first day of summer vacation and I had next to no plans for the next two and a half months of my life. So instead of gracing the rest of the household with my uncharecteristic groggy nature every morning for these upcoming weeks, I planned to lie in every morning until the sweet esence of sleep slipped away, leaving me feeling nothing but content and at peace with getting up. That's how every morning should be.

But Shigure seemed to have other plans as the door to my completly unlit room burst open in a hurried fury. Light from the rest of the house seezed me and shook me until I regained a harsh sence of reality. No wait, that was Shigure shaking me.

"C'mon Yuki! Tohru's made the most wonderful breakfast for us! Do come down an-!" I cut the old dog off with a harsh slap to the back of his head. He stopped shaking me and cowered next to my night-stand. "Yuki, that was mean."

"Shut up 'ya damn dog, or I swear to God the next thing you'll be tasting will be my fist." I knew I wasn't being the best cosin in the world, but when all you wanted to do was sleep for the next year and was woken up in such a way, it's understandable. I turned my nose up at him and rubbed my eyes with the back of my hands, no doubt I had bags now. Great. So much for keeping up my 'Princly' front.

But all bad thoughts raced from my mind as the enticing eroma of Tohru's breakfast filled my already foggy mind. Now all I wanted was food.

My stomach growled irritably and I did the same with my throat towards Shigure, telling him without words to leave and that I'd be down soon. He did just that and fled back downstairs to the safety that was our housemaid, Tohru Honda. Honestly, I don't know why she puts up with him. He acts more like a disobediant puppy than a best-selling author. Well, I guess you are what you are in his case.

I hunched over and rubbed my eyes once more, wishing with all the will in the world that my duvet would swallow me whole. But sadly, that didn't happen. So instead I kicked the thick covers off of my bare, sweaty body and hauled myself up. When I finally managed to get to my closet, I pulled on a pair of breifs, dark skinny jeans and before I slipped into a plain white button-up, I sprayed my entire body in men's deoderent.

Taking my seat at the table, I thanked Tohru as she put a plate of delicious looking pancakes infront of me. It smelt devine. But there was something missing.

I glanced around the table, Shigure was sitting across from me, Tohru by his side. I looked to my side and although his empty plate was there, Kyo was not.

"Where's the stupid Cat?" I directed my question at the dog, not taking my eyes off the plate of sticky food that sat waiting to be eaten. I cut off a piece of pancake and slid it inside my dry mouth, swallowing with a little difficulty. The brunette noticed and offered me a glass of water, which I accepted with much appreciation.

"Out," was Shigure's reply.

"'Out'? What do you mean? Is he at the Dojo?" I was getting confused.

Shigure ate another mouthful of his breakfast before shrugging. "No, I don't think so. Hatori came to pick him up this morning."

I immidatly stiffened. Hatori? That meant Kyo must have gone to the main house. Did Akito want to speak with him? Was he hurt? When was he coming back? What had Akito done to him? And why was I so freaking concerned about it?

"Hey there Kyo-kun!" The dog greeted said redhead with the same enthusiasm he would use to greet Ayame or Tohru. Kyo just nodded at each of us as he stepped into the room, shuffling a little on the spot. I noticed the deflated look in his deep pools of crimson and found myself intranced by them for what seemed like years but was only a matter of seconds. He broke the contact first and plodded uncertainly over to the fridge.

The Cat opened it lazily and grabbed a carton of milk, dowing at least half the contense before proceeding to pour the rest into a glass (like more of a civilized human being) and threw the then empty tub away.

I felt slightly on edge knowing that Akito had no doubt had a 'chat' with him. But about what? Normally he would return either pitifully aggrivated, in almost tears, or with dimmed eyes. This time it was none of the previous. Or all combined. And although his eyes seemed darker, it looked more like he was conflicted about something than upset or hurt. But one thing I was absolutely certain of, was that there was something bothering him.

I was stuck. I couldn't really sit down by him and pat his back, pull him into a brotherly embrace and tell him everything was going to be alright without seeming like I'd lost my mind. But I had to do something, right?

So, I attempted to make eye contact with the redhead once more. Normally, I wouldn't be so persistant in trying to cheer Kyo, of all people, up. But the blank look on his face and that unreadable expression he wore were both driving me to the brink of insanity! What could I do without it being seen as suspicious?

When Kyo finally turned to my gaze and held it, my mind was flitting ideas around, considering one before trashing it and thinking up another. I could practically see the cogs turning behind those scarlett orbs and I had no clue as of what to say and or do at that moment in time.

Then, without even thinking about it, a small yet reassuring smile crept onto my lips, settling down quite happily. And with no complaints from its recipiant, I recieved one in return. Just, a tad less reassuring. More conflicted and hopeful.

He mouthed an inaudiable 'thanks', before jugging down the rest of his pearly white liquid and wiping the resulting milk-stash away with his sleeve. I had to chuckle internally at that. Maybe Akito hadn't been so harsh on him after all.

I couldn't remember the last time I'd been able to sit in a confortable, almost friendly, silence with the Cat. But it was... nice.

I don't know if Kyo knew how hard I tried to befriend him in the past. As childeren, I would always ask the raven haired misstress (or 'master', as it were) if I could go and play with the lonely kitty. But I'd always get a no for an answer. Oh, how I longed to go and play with the other Sohma children as often as they were allowed. But Akito just wouldn't have it. I was hers. Souly hers. And in a way - I guess I still am.

But every time I would attempt to make any sort of small-talk with the fiery haired boy, I would soon discover time and time again that his temper was just as fiery as his hair. So I started acting the same way back. I'd considered that he only acted like that on impulse, as a sort of defence mechanisum. Like, he wanted to be able to have a casual conversation with me also, but the way he'd been treated by others all his life had made him a little too suspicious of people's intentions. But when the chance to have, allbeit, a rather frank and half-hearted argument with him, it didn't matter because at least we were talking, right? So what if that meant we were hurling insults at eachother? And that I would occasionally give him a rather rough beat-down? We we cosins, family. Family fought, right?

So it meant a lot to me when Kyo had mouthed those words. Because, if I can recall it correctly, he'd never so much as uttered them to me - ever.

I mean, of course I wanted to know what Akito had told Kyo to make him act like this, but who was I to let such a nice moment go by with a few seconds to let it sink in properly?

Shigure and Tohru had picked up a particularly cheery conversation and I felt a little excluded. Letting my eyes slip from my cosin's for a few moments to gesture towards the sweet little debate that was going on on the other side of the table, I watched Kyo sigh, that small smile never once leaving his lips and he turned to the others, quick to join in on the small-talk.

I noticed the worry had dissapated from his eyes as he distracted himself with some unimportant discussion about whether we should visit the summer house this summer or not. Not particularly caring either way (because I still wouldn't get every minute of sleep I wanted in whichever scenario they ended up picking anyway), I half listened to what they were saying while pollishing off my breakfast and sliding in a comment here and there.

But I couldn't let the thought of what Akito had said to Kyo slip my mind. I wanted- no, more like needed to know. And I was deffinatly going to find out...