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Chapter 16 - Kyo and I

"Do you remember me…?" I trembled, staring into Yuki's cold face without breathing. "Hon?" I was rewarded with the stillness of Yuki Sohma as his dark violet eyes gawked at me. His mouth was relaxed then twitched like he wanted to say something but couldn't. "Awh Yuki…" Why? Why did this have to happen like this? Why was Yuki into killing Kyo so much?

Well, if Yuki didn't start talking soon then I wouldn't be surprised. The doctors said he probably wouldn't be able to talk again. Oddly to their findings, they said Yuki already had a damaged throat long before the fight with Kyo. The bruising and eternal bleeding of his throat, much worse than any case of strep throat, should have severed his speech immediately. I wondered many times, how that could be true.

"It's time we end this…"

"Yuki… what are you talking about? Please calm down…"

"Shut your mouth Tohru! You don't know anything! You don't understand!"

Whatever happened that night, put Yuki in the hospital with a broken arm, a fractured leg, a cracked skull and four broken ribs. He was in a coma for the first week, and when he snapped out of it, he couldn't talk to any of us. I grabbed Yuki's hand and sighed, "I wish you would say something and prove these doctors wrong." I found myself squeezing his hand, and in return, he squeezed back. I gasped, "Do you understand what I'm saying, and can you hear me?" Err, what kind of signal could I tell him to do… then suddenly, the man blinked once. It seemed like his own way of saying 'yes.'

"…So you do understand me?"

Yuki blinked again.

My heart throbbed, "…and you do recognize me right?"

He blinked.

"…Who am I?

His mouth started to twitch again until his mouth was partially open, "T…T…"

"Tohru Honda?" came a voice from the crack of the door. I whipped around to find a tall doctor standing there. "Can you come here a minute? I would like for the whole family to get together."

"Sure." I shrugged, releasing Yuki's hand from my grip. Once I was out of the room, Shigure and Kyo were waiting for me. Kagura leaned on Kyo's broad shoulder, lightly sighing with a melted ice pouch on her temples. I was happy to know she was okay. Still, I wondered why after a few weeks why, she continued to carry the melted ice pouch. Kyo was fine as well, however, He was made to wear a cast on his arm for five days even though it wasn't broken. He took it off the second day and hadn't put it on since. Within these weeks of redeeming ourselves, Kyo's hand even grew back fully.

"Okay." the doctor cleared his throat. "Just a couple of things. First, Yuki is progressing slowly. He should be ready to go home in about a week or so." the doctor frowned at his file, opening it up to unveil some x-rays and pictures. "…But something is bothering me." he showed a picture of the back of Yuki's neck, a distinct print of someone's hand was embedded there. I automatically thought of Kyo and his monstrous hands.

The man continued. "This was taken last night by a nurse aide and her nurse. They found this while giving him a bath." he pulled out another picture and pointed, "And as you see, this mark curves out to the front of his neck, close to his wounded larynx. Now— you said he was in a fight, correct?"

"Yes." Shigure answered.

"How many involved?"

"Just two, Dr. Shiba." Shigure answered again, "I jumped in to stop it."

"Two males, correct?"

Kyo sat still as Shigure looked at him then nodded at the white coat. "…Yes."

Dr. Shiba shook his head disappointed. "I see… Ok then."

"Why?" Shigure raised a brow, "Is there something wrong?"

The doctor heaved a sigh, staring at the photo, "Well by examining the shape and the anatomy of this print, we know that it isn't masculine at all." he looked up with curious eyes, "This mark of a hand on his neck is undeniably… feminine."

"Do you think Akito did it?" Kyo finally questioned Shigure after thirty minutes of silence. "Maybe she tried to choke him out or something."

"I don't know." Shigure sighed, "Anything is possible now." he raked a hand through his hair, staring sternly at the road. "I could see her harming a member of the zodiac but actually trying to kill them? For what? What would be the reason behind such a thing?"

"Enjoyment? Duh." Kyo slumped further into the passenger seat. "That's the only reason I can think of, to be honest."

"…Well following the facts, the doctor said Yuki had already damaged his voice box before he got into a fight with you. We were made to believe that he was in the house when really, he was somewhere else. That night when we had dinner, he came in looking majorly stressed and distraught…" Shigure slit his eyes to Kyo, "You remember?"

"Yeah." the man heaved a sigh and looked out the window.

It became silent again.

"…Besides all that, I could tell Yuki was in pain and oddly, if you paid close attention, the motion of his mouth didn't match the consistency of his words. It was delayed each time he spoke. The powers he distributed were not his either. Someone gave him that power, or he went off to seek help willingly. I believe that's where he was." Shigure frowned, "I believe he was with Akito…"

Kyo frowned back at him. "Which brings us back to what I said. That bitch tried to kill him!" he bit his lip, crossing his arms. "…and it's not fair." he growled, "I was supposed to kill him…"

I dared not to put in my two cents. I already knew Yuki was changing into something dangerous when he lost control and gripped my hand violently. That Yuki, wasn't the real Yuki. But now that Shigure mentioned it, there was something eerie about Yuki's voice and the way his words slipped coldly out of his mouth. None of the actions of Yuki matched up at all. Then I came to realize that Shigure was right, maybe Yuki was certainly being manipulated that night. My interest in the curse had twisted, now I was more infatuated with finding the real reason in why Yuki wanted to kill Kyo. I wanted to know who this 'chosen one' was and would be the outcome if this 'chosen one' succeeded in killing the cat.

…I could only imagine.

"Let us not worry. No one will be killing anyone. I have a feeling it won't happen again. Plus, Yuki will be too weak to fight and much too weak to manipulate anymore." it was silent for a second before Shigure spoke again, "Gosh and I have to call Yuki's new job and update them on when he'll be getting out of the hospital." It was pleasant to know that Yuki still had that going for him. In fact, his new job offered to keep his position open for six months so he could recover without worry.

We got home from the hospital and I slumped out of the Shigure's van, slamming the door behind me. I hadn't expected to see fall so quickly this year, and I wasn't prepared for the cold front. I took the thin jacket I had and wrapped it desperately around me.

"Tohru." Kyo folded his arms across his chest looking at me causally against a tree. That's when I noticed we were alone. Kagura already went inside without us— Shigure, too.

"Yes?"

His eyes regarded me shrewdly. I could tell that he was thinking of what to say now that he had my attention. He stood upright and approached me with his hands on his hips. "Hm, what do you want to do today? Go out for Lunch?"

How could he ask that? There was a mystery that needed to be solved, Yuki was in the hospital and Kagura was still here. What would she think?

"Heh. I know. I'm a heartless bastard." Kyo blinked, effortlessly hiding his emotions behind his phony smile. "At least I waited to ask after we found out Yuki was okay." and that was true. As much as Kyo hated Yuki, he still gave him respect and held his tongue under his unconscious state. He gave me space and supported me by coming with me to see Yuki. Why was that I wondered?

"It's okay. I get it." he shrugged, "I have no business asking a soon to be married woman if she would like to go out for lunch. Eh oh well—"

"Huh?" Who, who said that to him. Who told him I was getting married? "Now, Kyo—"

"Don't worry about it." he cut me short. "Spare me the explaining, Tohru." he flared his ruby eyes at me as I flushed. "I guess… I guess I was too late." his voice sounded hurt as he placed his cold hands into the depths of his pockets and sauntered off.

I made rice ball snacks and left them out for everyone. Kagura packed her belongings and stopped at the front door. Her face turned, noticing me on the couch. "Well. Goodbye." she seemed sad but content as she waved a few fingers.

"Oh." I rushed to the door, opening it for her, "Did you grab some snacks for the trip home?"

"Nah. I'm fine." she answered.

"Oh, okay. Will have a safe—"

"Tohru." Kagura urgently said my name, her voice was quiet and secretive. "Do something for me? Please?"

I leaned in gripping the knob, "What?"

She dropped her bags and hugged me tightly, sobbing out her words, "Please. Don't let anyone kill Kyo. He's… he isn't a bad person. Killing him won't break the curse…" she cried, her face embedded in my chest, "I know all about him and what he is. All this time I just pretended like I didn't because, I didn't want to believe that he was such a monster."

"Huh…"

"But he's like that because… because he doesn't know how to love… to accept people into his life. Please Tohru, teach him how to love. This world isn't as cold and bleak as he thinks." Kagura let go of me wiping the escaping tears. "That beast inside him is a reflection of his anger. I don't know how I can explain it better but, his curse can be reversed."

"Huh!" I blinked at the crazy woman, "It can be… reversed!?"

"Shhh…" Kagura looked around, her eyes swiftly locking with mine again, "Yes. Every curse has a prophecy. This one is legit. If Kyo learns how to love and accept others, he can regain his soul and become human again. Akito doesn't want that. She wants to…" she lowered her head, "She wants to kill Kyo to gain more power."

Now I was confused. I looked behind me to make sure no one was listening. My head shot back to her, leaning closer. "More power?"

"Yes, a few know but killing Kyo only continues the curse for one more generation until the next cat is born. Then the whole cycle repeats itself again. You see, each member of the zodiac has a type of wave length that connects with Akito. It's what keeps us close to Akito, preventing any members to be let astray. I guess you could say that we are the source of her powers and her authority. But if an outsider, like you for instance, were to make a strong impact on a Sohma, that length that member has with Akito, weakens." She explained.

"And, for many generations, our family has imprisoned the cat in a rock cement cell till death. Kyo is the only cat who never got imprisoned because he disappeared three years back. She plans on killing him because she cannot imprison him. He's much too strong now."

"So, she wants to kill Kyo to strengthen the bonds and keep the curse going for one more generation…" I understood now. However Yuki wanted to kill Kyo because, he thought he could end the curse. I was sure everyone was lead to believe that. Even Kyo himself. This was indeed a twisted curse.

"That's why you have to protect him, Tohru. If you don't," Kagura sobbed, "Akito will find a way to kill him. He's strong but against the whole family is a gamble. I don't truly know how to break the Sohma curse, but you're the key to breaking his."

I needed to find Kyo.

My heart yearned for it, but the man wasn't in the house. His car was in the driveway though. That gave me some reassurance that he was somewhere. Truth was, I wanted to say I was sorry. I had avoided the marriage topic until now. I didn't want to make Kyo mad by telling I was getting married to the cousin he hated. But it turned out, someone had told Kyo something, possibly Yuki or Shigure. I was mad at myself for not telling him sooner. I dashed into the forest without looking back. I had this feeling I would see the cat roaming about. If I didn't, then I needed to make sure I knew my way back in case of me getting in danger. I wouldn't stop till I found him.

He couldn't have gone very far, and if this was particularly true then why was it so hard to find him. I sauntered at a fast pace through the all the large oaks until I stopped at the sound of gentle humming. I glanced up as my eyes caught sight of something rather odd and ambitious. As I moved closer to it, I realized it was a giant boulder of some sort and on top, was the ever so calm Kyo with his eyes shut as if he was mediating. He sat crisscross, with his hands out on each side of him. All was quiet until my shoe crunched on a single leaf.

The cat's ears wiggled, and his nose twitched. Yet, his eyes remained shut. "What are you doing here Tohru…"

I expected as much from him. I was actually glad he didn't see my pathetic face once he spoke my name. I sighed sticking my hands in my coat pockets. Before I answered his question, I made sure he answered mine first. "How… how didn't you know it was me?"

His eyes shot open, "Seriously? You're asking me that?" When he saw how stern my expression was, he rolled his eyes. "I can smell you, Tohru. In fact, I could smell you a mile away…" and when I raised a brow, he explained further, "You have a certain scent. Very unmistakable… almost like…" he pauses, shaking his head, "Nah forget it."

"No tell me… I would like to know." I was curious to how I smelled. Fruity is what stained my mind. However, Kyo shook his head again.

"I said forget It." he elongated his long legs on the boulder and sighed, "So what are you doing here, hm?"

"I came to find you." I shivered annoyingly as the breeze left my bones aching. How could Kyo just sit out here with no jacket? Then as that thought floated around in my mind, I saw him pull a jacket from under him. He must have been using it to sit on. The cat jumped off the rock and landed on his feet effortlessly.

"Why?" he scowled.

I bit my lip. Now that he was in front of me, I couldn't get out what I actually wanted to say. His ruby eyes regarded me somberly as he crossed his arms. I came here to confess, to confess thoughts, feelings, truths… I covered my face with my hands, massaging my aching temples then took a couple swift breaths. I know it's been about five minutes now and that makes me nervous. Finally, I force my hands from my face and swallow. "I'm sorry." I say extremely fast.

"Huh" Kyo blinks.

"I'm sorry for not being honest with you." I breathe, "I should have told you that I was getting married to Yuki. I… I didn't want to make you mad. I knew that you hated Yuki and…"

"Stop." he scowled again. "I don't care anymore. I told you to spare me the explanation."

"But—"

"Nope." his ruby irises widened with anger. "I wish for nothing more than to let you go. You don't get it… I want you to get married. Yuki is the better one for you."

"Why do you still say that… I thought—"

"Because!" Kyo's voice got deep. Almost like his inner beast was taking over him. "You know what I am Tohru… I am a wilder beast!" My hands locked together as his eyes became a blood red. I kept telling myself that I wasn't afraid. "I feed on living things… animals… humans. Hell, I could kill you right now and eat every organ inside of you…" I prayed his eyes wouldn't go black. I was in the middle of the forest with a man that could kill me without remorse. Or would he…

"I told you… I know you wouldn't do that. No matter how dangerous you are, I know that you have a heart."

"Heh…" he sneered, "Bull shit, I haven't had a heart beat in two years." he proceeded to chuckle with his hands on his hips.

"That may be true Kyo, but I wasn't talking about that kind of heart. I was talking about your subconscious… You wouldn't kill me because your inner voice wouldn't let you…"

"Hm." his head knocked back in disbelief, "You think I got one of those too…" He gave me no time to respond; instead, he swifts to the oak I'm standing by. My face is just an inch away as he punches it. The instant motion induces my hair to blow in my face as the giant oak behind me falls with a huge kaboom. I didn't budge one bit. I wasn't afraid of him. Flinching in fear would prove his point, so I stood there with a blank face. Knocking down the forty foot tree with his bare hand, told me much about his extreme power. "Well… you still think I have a heart?"

I managed to look down at the oak, its bark was almost split in half from Kyo's punch. A print of his fist was even embedded in the tough bark. I cleared my throat, staring back at him blankly, "I don't think… I know."

"How so?" he raised a brow.

I stuffed my hands inside my coat pockets again, shrugging, "Well, if you didn't have a heart, you wouldn't have missed my face…"

Kyo paused, deadpan and looked down at the tree then back at me. Finally, he grunted walking off. "Ah forget it… what do you know…"

"Wait for me!" I followed after him.

"Go away Tohru…"

"Please… I just wanna talk." my lip curled.

The cat stopped to scowl at me again, "About what? Your plans for your wedding… how Yuki makes you soooooo happy…" he rolled his eyes, "Don't make me puke…"

"Kyo if you just let me explain…"

"Nah, I'm good thanks." he cut me short again as he began walking a little faster now. I couldn't believe how jealous and frustrated he was. It was almost cute, yet, annoying at the same time.

"Fine." I sighed, "We can talk about something else…"

"Ok… then what?" he folded his arms across his chest, his face never looking down at me as I struggled to keep up. "Well?"

"Okay tell me how I smell… you started to tell me, but never finished…" I wasn't watching where I was going and tripped on a piece of branch. I fell forward on top of the now flustered Kyo. He wiggled under me, shouting profanities and pushing me off.

"Get off me! Before I turn into…" it was much too late to explain. The man suddenly disappeared within the orange abyss that appeared. As it came, it left, leaving an intensely angry cat. "Before I turn into… a cat…" he finished, hissing.

"I'm soo sorry!" I reached for the pile of clothes. I relieved that he could still turn into a cat. It was just like old times when I used to fall on him all the time. "Forgive me! Forgive me! Forgive me!"

"GRR! SHUT UP!"

We sat by the lake as he purred to me scratching behind his ears. I guess he was used to me touching him by now… that or he assumed I owed him for inducing him to change. Whatever the deal, I had no problem with petting him. It would be awhile before he changed back anyway.

"…Like strawberries mixed with daisies…" Kyo answered randomly.

"Huh…" I blinked.

"That's what you smell like…" he began to purr again, and my touches made him twitched.

"Oh I see…" I imagined him saying I smelled like store bought meat or something, but strawberries and daisies were good enough for me. "You smell like ginger." I answered back with a small smile.

"I do?" the cat blinked up at me, "That's not creepy at all."

"Heh, speak for yourself… I'm not the one who can detect people from miles away by their scent."

"Hey. I didn't ask for this." he moved away from me and stood on all fours. "If I could turn back time, I would. Unfortunately, you can't replace a soul that has been lost."

"Ah…" I nodded, "That's how you became like this, right? You lost your soul and advanced to the other stages of your curse right?"

He looked down and sighed. "Yeah…"

"I knew it!" my sudden outburst startled him, "You would never gain powers to seek revenge on the Sohma family! I just knew it!" Kyo wasn't that kind of man. He would never kill his family.

"But I do want to kill them…"

"Huh?" I pouted, "You do?" So Yuki was right?

"They want to kill me… I just can't sit around and let them do that…" he protested, "The time when they ambush me, I have to be ready."

"…But…"

Kyo chuckled, "No worries, while I still have cat form, they can't do squat to me. For the fact I can still change into a cat, tells me that I'm still legally part of the family. No matter how much Akito wants to cast me out."

"And after you lose your cat form?" I was frightened to what he would say next.

"Then I would be one step closer to my fifth stage. That's when the real trouble starts." He must have seen something deep within my face because he paused to assure me. His paw rested on my lap and a ghost of a smile appeared on the cat's face. "Which is why I'm glad you're getting married. You won't be in danger… if you're with Yuki."

"But Kyo!"

Suddenly the orange cloud was back and a naked Kyo appeared out of thin air. I gasped tossing his clothes at him. I quickly run behind the tree, closing my eyes. "ACK!" but the man continued, untouched by my panicking.

"Yuki is just more… nicer and calmer." he buttoned his shirt. "He likes gardening and shit…" he slipped on his boxers and buttoned his pants.

Finally I grew tired of him thinking that I and Yuki were still together. I bit my lip, rolling my eyes good-naturedly, "Kyo…"

"But I only ask one thing…"

"Kyo… please… can I …" Kyo interrupted me and walked to the tree I was behind. I shuddered under his penetrating gaze.

"I just want to do something…" he steps were light on the forest soil as he ambled even closer to me. His pale, cold touch froze my trembling cheek as he light caressed it. These actions were so unlike Kyo. In a way, I was a bit afraid.

"You want to what?" I blinked as his other hand forced me back into the tree. Kyo was in my face now. His blood ruby irises penetrated my soul once again. To keep myself from looking nervous and weak, I stood still and raised a brow. "What are you—?"

He starts very slow, full lips, approaching my own. Next thing I knew, my mouth was overwhelmed by his cold lips. I wondered why he… why he was doing this… I then realized that Yuki's kisses weren't like this… Kyo's kiss was dazzling to me, sweet and unique— a perfect contrast to his evil demeanor. Why was he kissing me…? However I don't care; instead my hands reach up to his icy cold face. At that split second, my face flushes, we begin to press more steadily with our lips, and our kisses come much more hastily.

The soft feeling of moving his lips gave me then sense he wanted to French kiss. His breath starts to quicken as if he was hungry for me and in the heat of it all, he stopped and pulled back. The blood rushing to my head snapped me out of my daze, and I felt as if the world had been spinning all around us. What just happened?

"Kyo… what… on earth…"

"Thanks. That's all I wanted." he proceeded to walk off, leaving my knees weak. I want to say something but the lump in my throat won't allow me. Finally, he's a few feet away and I push myself away from the tree.

"Kyo!" The man turns around, raising a brow. "I've been trying to tell you that I don't like Yuki like that anymore… we aren't even getting married!"

Kyo stared at me blankly, his mouth open in immense shock. "You …aren't?"

"No! I told him two weeks ago…" and I had the visible scars on my wrist to show it. I breathed in deeply as I was finally relieved that I was able to get that off my chest. "I don't like him like that… not anymore…"

"…I don't truly know how to break the Sohma curse, but you're the key to breaking his."

"What the hell…" Kyo was just as uncomfortable as I was but I didn't care.

"I know this might sound weird, but I like you Kyo… I think…" I stared down on my shaking hands, "I always had…"