Disclaimer: Guess what, I don't own Fruits Basket. Amaya is my character, but the rest belong to Natsuki Takaya.
Ok, I would like to say thank you to my reviewers (moonflower and Kitty Kyo Lover). Now, here is the 5th chapter. Go ahead, start reading!
Chapter 5
It was late afternoon, and everyone was eating lunch in silence. Everyone had done their share of talking for the day and had nothing more to say, except for Amaya.
"Hatori-ue, I think I'm ready to go back to the main house." She hung her head, knowing she had pushed Akito over the edge when she ran away. "Can we go, after dinner? I love Tohru-san's cooking."
Hatori nodded solemnly. He knew he should keep her away from Akito, but he wasn't in control, he couldn't do anything. He had to obey Akito. "Alright, you might as well get another decent meal."
"Hatori-san, is my cooking only decent? I'll try to do better next time, I promise!" Tohru went into a panic, thinking of how bad her cooking could be, and how she could possibly improve it.
"No, Tohru-san, your cooking is superb, but the meals Amaya gets aren't." 'She usually doesn't get a meal..." Hatori grimaced; he at least got adequate food…
The rest of the meal went uneventful, except for a few argumentative exchanges between Yuki and Kyo. After lunch was over, as Tohru went to clean the dishes, Amaya approached her.
"Tohru-san, may I help you?" Amaya looked up at Tohru, sorrow shining in her eyes. "I-I have to tell you something."
"Of course, if you don't mind helping her wash the dishes, we may talk. If not, you can talk to me afterwards." Tohru smiled at her kindly.
"I'll help you clean." Then Amaya gave a look to Rei that said, 'Keep watch, and don't listen, no one can hear this.' As she watched Rei leave the room, Amaya picked up some of the dishes and brought them to the sink.
"What do you want to talk about, Amaya-chan?" Tohru watched Amaya clean the dishes until they were spotless with curious eyes.
"First, I know you know Hanajima-sama. You are friends with her, correct?" Amaya didn't wait for Tohru's reply. "Please tell her that I am still living, get her to tell Megumi. I need to have a word with him. I will be at the main house, at the entrance, watching for him every day." Amaya's eyes still gleamed with sadness, but a simmer of hope could now be seen under her misery.
"He was the boy, wasn't he?" Tohru looked at her with widened eyes, thinking of what Rei had told of Amaya's past. Amaya nodded slowly, wondering if she should trust Tohru with this.
"And, Tohru-san, I have more to talk about. I decided, I cannot keep the secret of the cure to myself, so, I will tell you, you and Rei. No one else needs to find out, ok?" Tohru nodded, so Amaya stood on her toes and whispered the sure into Tohru's ear, who in turn nodded.
"I won't tell anybody, I promise." Tohru smiled to restore the confidence in Amaya, who looked like she had seen death reaching for her neck with its skeletal hands. If Akito found out about this, he would surely kill her, and harm Tohru, also.
The two girls finished washing the dishes in uneasy silence. Tohru could tell a lot was on Amaya's mind, and was worried for her. She didn't quite know Akito, but she had heard stories, had seen the fear he had brought out in Yuki's eyes. It was the same with Amaya. The mention of his name hurt her just as much as anything he did to her. It was depressing, really.
Soon after the plates were washed, Amaya left the room, muttering something about spending quality time with her family. But who knew how that went, cats are on rather thin ice when they are spending time with their natural enemies, dogs and rats.
Soon, it was time for dinner. As everyone sat down and ate, they felt the mood of the room worsen with every passing second. There were no words of thanks for the meal, and no compliment to Tohru's cooking either. In fact, there was no talking, only the occasional clicking of chopsticks and slurping of tea.
No matter how sluggish time seemed to go, eventually dinner was over, and it was time for Hatori and Amaya to leave. As they walked out the door, Amaya lagged behind.
"Remember what I told you, Tohru-san." Amaya walked out the sliding door and pulled it shut, walking to Hatori's car.
"What did she tell you, Honda-san?" Yuki looked over to a very sad Tohru.
"She, she said to take care of you all, you all seemed absent during her visit." Tohru looked at the others, trying to hide her lie. She knew lying was wrong, but telling them the truth, in this case, would cause trouble.
"Tohru-kun, we're fine. But you don't seem ok at all…" Kyo gazed at her solemnly. He hadn't seen her this way before, and really was worried about her.
"I'm fine, thank you, Kyo-kun." Tohru turned and walked up the staircase, then into her room. She plopped down on her bed and took out the picture of Kyoko.
"Mom, did I do the right thing?" Tohru then put the picture back on the side table next to her bed and laid her head down on the pillows of her bed.
"Tohru, are you alright? Let me in, ok?" Tohru just walked up to the door and opened it, letting Kyo come in. Then, she turned around and plopped back down on her bed.
"Tohru, what's wrong? You know you can tell me." Kyo walked in and closed the door, then rushed to her side.
"I'm sorry for lying, Kyo-kun. Amaya told me to have the boy Rei talked about come to the main house to visit her, and something else I cannot tell you. I'm sorry, Kyo-kun. I made you worry." Tohru placed her head in Kyo's lap gently and looked up at him.
"It's alright, Tohru. We don't have to know what she told you. And as for that boy, I'll help you with that. I promise to help you however I can, ok?" Kyo ran his hands through Tohru's hair gently. He sat there, with her head in his lap until she fell asleep. When she did, he gently put her head back on the pillows.
"Goodnight, Tohru." Kyo was about to leave her room when he decided to go back and kiss her on the forehead. "Love you."
Aww, how sweet! Also very sad... Thought you were gonna hear how to break the curse, didn't you? Truthfully,I would have told you, but I don't knowhow to...Well... thank you for reading, and I would appreciate it if you would review. I would also appreciate it if you pointed out any spelling or grammar errors. I don;t think there will be any in this chapter because I used microsoft word on this one. So... until next chapter, Sayonara! Neko Warrior, signing out! >. I'm weird, aren't I? Don't answer that, rhetorical question.