Author's Note: Hey everyone! First off, I want to thank you for the awesome responses you guys have given me. It really keeps me focused on finishing this story. I started it last March; I want to be finished by this March. I can do it, lol! Thanks to everyone who's been with me over this past year. I really apreciate it and I love hearing from you. Okay, so here's the funeral and the cremation. I hope you guys enjoy.

Chapter 13

"I never thought that I'd be left behind"—Backstreet Boys.

There was a knock on the door after midnight.

The furniture had been moved back into the living room, leaving space for the casket and Tohru's altar near the fireplace. Yuki shared the long couch with Kyo; Kyo was determined to sit vigil with Tohru all night and Yuki was determined to sit vigil with Kyo all night. Ayame had come in and shook a large blanket over the both of them and assured them over and over that he and Hatori were light sleepers. Both he and Hatori wanted to take turns doing the vigil, but Kyo had softly refused. He'd put on his sweats and planted himself on the couch.

Kyo's redhead rose from the arm of the couch and he gazed blearily at Yuki then the door. "Who's that?" he whispered and Yuki shrugged.

Yuki slid off the couch and padded across the carpet, rubbing the side of his face he'd been lying on. The knock came again and Yuki growled at it. "I'm coming." He looked through the peephole and smiled, before unlocking and opening the door.

"Yuki!" Master Kazuma was still larger than life, beefy and tall. He let his duffle bag fall from his shoulder and he hugged Yuki tight. "I'm sorry, Yuki. I'm sorry this happened, and sorry that I'm just getting here. Where's Kyo?"

"Right here." Yuki jumped. He really hated when Kyo snuck up on him. He moved like a ninja. Yuki got out of the way, so that Master Kazuma could enter and bring his bag inside.

"Oh Kyo." Master Kazuma hugged Kyo and ran his hands through his hair. He didn't seem to have anything else to say and neither did Kyo. Kyo waited for Master Kazuma to get out of his boots, before walking him into the house and bringing him to Tohru and the altar. Master Kazuma bowed to the altar and reached for the bundle of incense left beside the urn. Kyo stood back as his surrogate father paid his respects.

Yuki took his seat on the couch again, covering his legs and feet with the blanket. It had gotten colder outside, and the nighttime chill clung to Master Kazuma's clothing.

"I didn't know when you'd get here," Kyo said, his voice was scratchy. "Hatori and Mayu-sensei are sleeping in my room, and Ayame, Mine and Machi are in the guest rooms."

"I can sleep anywhere. Do you want me to stay out here with you? Are you two keeping vigil tonight?"

"Yeah," Kyo said. "You know, you can sleep in the office, if you want. There's a roll-out in the closet in there, and you know where the blankets and stuff are."

"Yes, yes I do. Is that where you want me to be tonight?" Master Kazuma asked, his eyes searched Kyo's.

Kyo shrugged. "I don't know. It's up to you what you want to do."

Master Kazuma looked at a loss. "Kyo, if you had called me when Tohru went out of remission for the third time, I would have been right here, the whole time. You know that, right?"

Kyo blinked, face registering surprise. "Yeah. I know. I… Do you think I'm mad at you?"

Master Kazuma nodded. "I wasn't around when you needed me."

"You were on a sabbatical," Kyo said. "You were in the woods fighting Jason."

Yuki snorted and Master Kazuma almost laughed. "Did you ever figure out that Jason isn't a bear?" Yuki asked.

Kyo rolled his eyes. "Yeah, Tohru and I rented the movies."

"And she watched them?" Yuki asked. That couldn't be right.

"She hid her face after the first 5 minutes or so, and then made triple fudge brownies," Kyo said. "I watched them… and ate the brownies. The brownies were better than the movies. I think she put peanut butter in one batch."

"Oh?" Yuki sat up. This was the most Kyo had said all day that didn't have something to do with preparations or the wake itself.

Kyo nodded. He took his spot on the couch again and covered himself with the blanket. "Yeah. Whenever I watched stuff she didn't like, she baked brownies or blondies or made popcorn with different toppings. I think she thought she could lure me away from the TV with food."

"Did it ever work?" Master Kazuma asked.

"No, but there were other things she did that got my attention," Kyo said with a light smirk. He swallowed and gazed at the casket. "She knew how to get it when she really wanted it."

Master Kazuma shrugged off his coat and sat on the floor near Kyo's feet. "I'd love to hear about that."

"Me too," Yuki said, and Kyo gave another weak smile.

"That's because you're both pervs, but okay."

Yuki got to his feet. "Let me put away your bags and coat Master. Kyo, go ahead and start. I'll be back."

Yuki gathered Master Kazuma's duffle bag and coat and journeyed the hall closet, listening to Kyo's soft voice as he started in on a story about Tohru.

The door creaked a bit when he opened it and he turned on the hall light so that he could find a hangar and neat space to set Master's duffle. He crept to the doors of the guest rooms and opened the one he shared with Machi. The light from the hall tossed some light on her curled form. He was very tempted to crawl under the covers beside her and just stay there.

But this was his last night with Tohru. Tomorrow, or rather, later that day, she would be cremated and nothing would be left but bones. He shuddered and closed the door on Machi. His return to the living room was slow, and he'd missed the first story by the time he reclaimed his seat.

"Yuki, can you get Master some rice balls. I hid some in the second drawer of the fridge," Kyo said. "And lemonade, too?"

"I can get it, Kyo," Master Kazuma said. He was studying Kyo with a paternal air that had always made Yuki jealous. When he was younger, he'd hated seeing Master Kazuma lavish Kyo with affection when Yuki's own parents could care less. People went on and on about how lucky Yuki was to be the Rat, and how terrible it was that Kyo was the Cat, but it had always seemed the Cat had more than the Rat ever had.

Master Kazuma reached out and ruffled Kyo's hair before getting to his feet. "Do you two want anything?"

Yuki shook his head as did Kyo and their burly martial arts instructor made his way to the kitchen. Kyo snuggled into the blanket. "Yuki?"

"Yeah?"

"If Master's gonna stay out here, you can go sleep with Machi," Kyo said.

"It's okay. I want to stay here, too," Yuki said. "But you know, with both me and Master Kazuma staying up, you could go to sleep for a little while. You didn't get any sleep last night."

"I'll sleep tomorrow," Kyo said. He stared straight ahead at the coffin. "She really does look like she's sleeping, huh? Like if I kiss her nose, she'll wrinkle it and roll over until I tickle her."

"Yeah," Yuki said. "Like Snow White."

"Do you think she's watching us now?" Kyo asked.

Yuki rubbed his arms, thinking about that. "I… don't know. I want to think she can see us and check in on us from time to time."

"She told me she wouldn't spy on me," Kyo said with a small chuckle. "She said she'd just peek in and make sure I turned the coffee pot off every morning."

"She would say something like that," Yuki said. "Will you leave it on just to see if she'll turn it off one day?"

Kyo snorted. "Hadn't thought about it." He coughed lightly. "I hope she liked the wake. I mean, I think it went okay. She would have been happy, right? Do you think?"

"She would have loved it," Yuki said. "From the rice balls to the kimono and the decorations; she would have applauded."

"Yeah?" Kyo asked. He pulled the blanket tighter around his shoulders. "How about Uotani, huh? I didn't think she'd ever come back in. She even burned incense."

Yuki shook his head. "I don't think she really believed that Tohru wouldn't get better."

"Can't hold that against her. Nothing wrong with not giving up on people," Kyo said. His voice faded in and out.

"You want another blanket?" Yuki asked and got up when Kyo nodded. He pulled the afghan off the back of the couch and draped it over Kyo's shoulders. "Are you okay?"

Kyo shook his head. "Ask me that later, 100 years later."

"I'll make note of that," Yuki said. He sat on the arm of the sofa by Kyo's head. "Hey."

"Hey."

"Do you… have you thought about maybe coming to Tokyo, with me—later, I mean. You've never come to visit me, and it could be great," Yuki said.

Kyo shrugged. "No, but… I don't know. Maybe." He scratched his head. "Would you want me to?"

"Yeah, of course," Yuki said.

"What about Machi? I don't want…."

"Machi wants you to come, too." Yuki hadn't asked her, but he was sure she'd have no problem. "She wants to know my family. She's not too close with hers."

"Are they crazy? Because you guys have a lot in common when it comes to having crazy families," Kyo said. He turned his head, resting his cheek on the sofa arm. Yuki stroked red hair off his face, frowning at the dampness of it. Was he still sweating?

"That's how we bonded actually," Yuki said. "The first family member of ours she formally met was Ni-san, you know?"

"Oh gods, and she still went out with you?" Kyo grinned.

"Tohru went out with you after living with Shigure and knowing Akito would be an in-law," Yuki said, poking Kyo's back.

"Tohru was special. She liked everybody, I mean, everybody. Even the smelly old man that came to the bakery every Friday with no shoes and never ordered anything, she liked him."

Yuki chuckled. "Yeah, there's no denying Tohru was special."

"And she still wanted to be with me, and I had her… not for long, but I had her," Kyo said. He shut his eyes. "How do you move on from an angel Yuki?"

Yuki rubbed Kyo's back. "I don't know."

"I'm not going to move on, am I?"

Yuki didn't answer. He didn't know.

(~*~)

More people showed up for the funeral than the wake. Some of Tohru's estranged family came and had to introduce themselves because no one had a clue as to who they were. The temple was nice, something Tohru would have appreciated, and the altar built for her at the temple was large and elaborate. Kyo had spared no expense.

Yuki sat near Machi and stumbled as he went to that large, new altar and dropped a pinch of incense into the urn there. There were so many people that it seemed to take an eternity for everyone to get to altar to make their offering. The rosary beads around Yuki's wrist were starting to chafe his skin, but he didn't think it'd be appropriate to remove them yet, not while they were in the temple. The priest finished his sutra after the last person sat, and when he was done, everyone rose to bow as he left the room.

Yuki watched Kyo stand up and walk to the front of the room where the priest had stood, in front of Tohru's casket. "I'd like to thank everyone for coming today, and if you came to the house yesterday, thanks. Your gifts are generous and Tohru would have loved it. I'm not that great with words and making speeches, so you're not going to hear anything profound from me, but just know my family and I are grateful to all of you for supporting us, and for loving Tohru. The world lost a little bit of sunshine when she left it. Ah, if you want to see her one more time, come up now, before they close the casket. Family first, please."

Beneath the altar sat a large, wicker basket full of the cat-shaped rice balls. Kyo picked up the basket and sat it atop the altar. "Instead of flowers to put in the casket, we've got rice balls."

There were soft titters and Yuki took Machi's hand as they rose with the rest of the Sohma family members, and Hanajima and Arisa, to come to the front and place a rice ball in the casket with Tohru. Kyo remained at the front, staring at the depleting supply of rice balls in the basket. Machi and Yuki each took one, and Yuki let Machi set hers inside first. He watched her place the little cat on the pillow next to Tohru's head. Yuki clutched his cat-ball, leaving the imprints of his fingers in the rice. He set it next to Tohru's cheek and just stared at it. They'd be burned together, Tohru and her rice kittens. When they picked her bones out of the ash, there would be nothing left of them. A tear slid down his cheek and he moved on, but did not go back to his seat. He nodded for Machi to go sit back down, and he went to stand beside Kyo.

Ritsu was the last Sohma to place a rice ball in the casket. At the bottom of Kyo's fruit basket was one of Tohru's folded aprons. Kyo pulled the apron from the basket and shook it out. He walked to the casket and gently draped the apron over Tohru's chest and waist. "Silly Rice Ball," he said with a sad laugh, "you left me all alone."

He touched her face and her lips and her eyelids and swallowed hard. He took his place standing in front of the altar again and Yuki placed a hand on his back, willing his cousin strength. Kyo hadn't been able to eat that morning, despite anything Hatori had given him, and his entire body was shaking.

Other guests that wanted to see Tohru one last time got up, some depositing flowers in the casket, others, employees from the bakery or employees and students from Kyo's dojo, placed origami animals in the casket. When the last person placed a rose in the box; Kyo clapped a hand over his mouth, and stood still for a moment. Slowly, he removed his hand and steadied himself, looking at Yuki. "Help me close the coffin?"

Yuki nodded. Together they closed the double panels of the casket, sealing Tohru's sleeping face away forever. Yuki's hands were as clumsy as Kyo's were steady on the latches and a funeral home representative handed Kyo a key. Kyo locked the casket and tucked the key in his pocket. He then placed both hands on the coffin, and pressed his forehead to the sanded wood.

Hatori, Shigure, Hatsuharu and Master Kazuma were waiting for Kyo to move before they performed their duties as pall bearers and carried Tohru to the hearse. Minutes passed. Yuki came to place both hands on Kyo's shoulders. He gave him a small pull and Kyo staggered back into his arms. Hugging him, Yuki led Kyo down the aisle that parted the guests. He ignored the pitying eyes as he got Kyo to temple door. They stepped out into the bright sunlight, the coolness of the day revitalizing Yuki a bit.

The black family car was parked behind the hearse, but they'd have to go down a small staircase and walk a little ways to get to it, and Kyo was wobbling. Yuki helped him sit down on the top step and sat beside him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. Kyo was hyperventilating by the time Yuki got him down.

Yuki pushed Kyo's head between his knees. "Take deep breaths, Kyo. Breathe in, and then breathe out. Come on." Yuki wished he had a bottle of water, anything to offer. He used the handkerchief from his pocket to mop the sweat off Kyo's neck.

Kyo choked and gasped, trying to get control of his breathing.

"That's good," Yuki murmured. The driver of the family car opened his door and rested his arms on the roof of the car, peering at them.

"You guys okay over there?" He called.

A surge of anger swept through him. How dare this stranger sit there and watch them like they were putting on a show? He smothered his rage and stroked Kyo's back. "No. Can I ask you a favor?"

"Yeah. You want me to call somebody?" The man held up what must have been a cell phone.

"No, but can you help me get him to the car?" Yuki asked, because he didn't think Kyo was going to be standing up on his own before the pall bearers came through with the coffin, and Yuki didn't want Kyo to see the coffin again.

"Yeah, yeah sure." The driver shut the car door and jogged across the grass and up the steps, taking them by two's. Yuki had only stared at the back of the man's head on the drive to the temple, so he hadn't been able to note his age, which wasn't very old, maybe mid to late twenties.

"He's the husband, right?" The driver asked and Yuki glared.

"Yes," Yuki said. "Get on the other side, and grab him under the arm." Yuki looped an arm under Kyo's shoulder and wrapped his other around his cousin's waist. The driver also hooked and arm under Kyo's shoulder, then cocked his head to one side.

"He's a skinny guy. I bet I can carry him."

"He'd hate that," Yuki said, then peered down the steep, stone steps and dreaded the idea of manhandling Kyo down them. "But if you're sure you can…."

The man hauled Kyo over one shoulder before Yuki finished his sentence. "I got him." He started down the stairs at a slower pace than he'd taken when he'd come up them. Yuki kept stride with him, ready to steady him or catch Kyo if the man slipped.

"My dad gave me this job a week ago. He owns the cars, you know. I been driving people from the airport to big houses and picking up guys in suits, but this is my first funeral. I didn't wanna, and when I picked you guys up I thought I was gonna see a lot of old people."

Yuki bit back his nasty comment about the joys of nepotism, not wanting to encourage the guy to talk more. Yuki found that the less he said to chatty people the sooner they shut up—usually.

"And man, when I found out this guy was the husband, geez. What are you guys, like, fresh out of high school? What are you doing married and, and dying and stuff. It's crazy, man."

They reached the bottom of the first staircase and started down the second, shorter, one.

"Go on and open the back door, I'll put him in."

Yuki nodded and crunched across the stone walkway to the curb where the car was parked. He popped open the backdoor of the car and waited for the driver to come closer with Kyo. The tall man shrugged Kyo off his shoulders, letting the redhead slide until his feet touched the ground, before gripping his waist and then pushing him back into the car, sitting him down. Kyo immediately leaned forward, putting his head on his knees. He was still breathing hard.

"Do you have water?" Yuki asked, hand on Kyo's shoulder.

"Uh… I got kiwi juice. I kinda drank some already, though."

Yuki stared at the man, and noted his blue contacts and bleached blond hair, dark roots sprouted at the top giving his mop a veined look. "That's okay."

"Ah… sorry, man," the driver scratched his head. "Hey, uh, you want the radio on? I can turn on some music or something."

"No," Yuki said. "It's fine. Thank you for your help."

"No problem, no problem. Geez…" He looked at his wristwatch and at the temple door. "Ah…."

Yuki loosened Kyo's tie and unbuttoned the first few buttons of his shirt. "Yes?"

"Er… uh… Nothing." He looked at his watch again.

"Are we running late?" Yuki asked. He looked at his watch for the first time that day and saw that it was 11:12 am. They were supposed to be done by 11:15. "Do you have more clients for today?"

The man's fake blue eyes widened and his shook his head. "Oh, nah… but uh…since you asked, I have an audition in Tokyo at 2:00."

And he'd come to work partially in costume? Yuki sighed. Once again: the joys of nepotism. "Kyo, how are you feeling?"

His cousin's breathing was back to normal, but he was sweating and his hands were cold and clammy. Yuki pressed his fingers against the artery in Kyo's wrist, feeling his pulse. It was rapid. "Kyo?"

"I'm fine. I'm great." Kyo said. He raised his head and sat up straight. His skin was gray. Yuki's stomach churned with worry.

The doors to the temple opened and the procession began. Yuki and Kyo watched as Hatori, Shigure Hatsuharu and Master Kazuma bore the weight of the casket on their shoulders. They carried Tohru's box down the stairs. The ornamented hearse parked in front of the family car was opened. A large space in back was the perfect fit for Tohru.

Guests trooped down the temple stairs, talking about what was for lunch or gas prices, or giving directions or commenting on the weather. Who knew what people who got to be normal after a funeral talked about?

"We're gonna burn her up," Kyo said in a light voice. His eyes were on the back of the hearse, watching the mortuary assistants secure Tohru's coffin. Hatori, Shigure, Hatsuharu and Master Kazuma stood off to the side, rubbing their shoulders and talking amongst themselves. Master Kazuma looked toward the car, and in a moment, he'd probably come their way.

"She won't feel anything." Yuki said gently. "She's not in there, anymore." Yuki spoke even as he shuddered. He couldn't stand the thought of Tohru being pushed into a furnace and burned until the skin melted off her bones and he did not want to be in the room it was going to happen in.

Master Kazuma was coming their way and Yuki sighed in relief.

"Is he all right?" Master Kazuma asked, touching Yuki's shoulder, then kneeling in front of Kyo. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Kyo said.

"Your hands are like ice," Master Kazuma said, "and you're shaking like a leaf. Do you want to go home?"

Kyo shook his head. "We're not done yet. The crematorium, the urn, the grave site; then it's over. The crematorium, the urn, the grave site."

Master Kazuma peered into Kyo's face. "Don't push yourself so hard. Tohru would not want you to. I think I should take you home."

"No!" Kyo shouted. "I said I'm fine, and I'm doing this. If you wanna go home, go." Kyo pulled his legs inside the car and scooted over to the window seat, away from Master Kazuma.

Master Kazuma held up his hands and stepped back, hurt flashing in his eyes. "Okay fine, Kyo, whatever you want."

Master Kazuma looked to Yuki, eyes pleading for something. What? Did he think Yuki knew what do or something crazy like that? Yuki shook his head at the man and tossed up his arms. Why did you come over here if you don't know what to do? Yuki wanted to yell. He didn't need people looking to him for guidance. He wanted guidance.

Hatori and Shigure were headed to the car. Yuki looked to see Ayame, Mine, Hanajima and Gavin and Kisa and Hiro headed over as well. The car only fit ten comfortably, and no one denied that Tohru had been closest to Hanajima, Arisa, Kisa, Momiji, Hatori, Shigure, and Ayame, and Kyo and Yuki were givens. Arisa gave up her seat in the car to Gavin and Momiji had given his seat to Hiro, opting to ride with Hatsuharu and Rin. He'd given up shadowing Kyo after the wake.

Car doors opened and closed as people filed into the car. Yuki climbed into the backseat to sit beside Kyo before anyone else got in and took his spot. Kyo sat by the window, but stared at the back of the seat in front of him instead of out at the sea of cars in the temple parking lot. He glanced at Yuki briefly when their legs and elbows touched.

Hatori slid in beside Yuki and Shigure came in beside him. Ayame, Mine, Kisa, Hiro and Hanajima sat in the seat in front of them, and Gavin sat in the passenger seat next to the driver. The car was started and cool air circulated throughout the car. So many bodies crammed into one unit made the space a bit too warm, but it was fine once the car started rolling.

Hatori reached over Yuki and placed a bottle of water in Kyo's lap. "Drink that down and try to eat these." He extracted a packet of rice cakes from his pocket. "Give me your wrist."

Yuki felt like a counter top as Hatori splayed Kyo's extended arm over his legs and produced a stethoscope from his pocket. Just how deep were those things anyway?

Hatori placed the metal disk of the stethoscope on the inside of Kyo's wrist, listening with a speculative look on his face. He pulled it away after a moment and pinched Kyo's skin. Yuki watched the pale skin pucker and remain in place as if Hatori were still pinching it. Hatori hummed and nodded his head in his little way that said he'd just confirmed something he already knew.

Plastic crackled as Kyo fumbled with the plastic wrapping covering the snack food. He managed to make a tiny tear along the seam of the package. Yuki watched Kyo pick at one of the pale rice cakes, swallow as if it was toxic. He took a sip of water after every small pinch of food.

The hearse began to move as the driveway cleared, and as soon as it pulled away from the curb, the family car was put in drive. The ride to the crematorium was silent aside from the sound of Kyo's rippling food wrappers. Yuki kept his eyes in his lap. He didn't want to meet anyone's eyes. They were all probably wanting to ask him how Kyo was doing, as if Kyo wasn't sitting right there in the car with them.

Yuki placed his hand on Kyo's thigh and let it rest there, knowing that if he felt the family's attention, so did Kyo.

"Rice cake?" Kyo asked him, holding out the second rice cake in the package. Yuki accepted it, breaking the stiff snack in half. He and Kyo crunched together and shared the bottle of water, the distraction making the trip go by faster.

(~*~)

The crematorium was like a haunted house to Yuki. The building doubled as a funeral parlor and there were other viewing going on that day; more sad families, more bodies, more death. He kept feeling blasts of cold air and hearing creaking noises under his feet.

"Do you believe in ghosts, Hatori?" Yuki asked. His older cousin walked beside him. Kyo had been taken away by one of the funeral parlor attendants for the moment. Yuki had moved to go with them, but Kyo waved him off.

"Sometimes I think I do," Hatori said. "Why do ask?" Hatori focused on Yuki.

Yuki shrugged. 'This place feels inhabited. With all the death this place sees, I wouldn't be surprised if something or someone held on."

They entered a cozy parlor full of couches and arm chairs and large potted plants. There were no mirrors or reflective surfaces; nothing for ghosts and bad spirits to enter, according to superstition. The crematorium was beyond the parlor. In that room, Tohru's casket waited on a table to be slid into a furnace. More people entered the room after Yuki and Hatori, there was Ayame and Mine, and Haru and Rin, and Momiji and Ritsu and Hiro and Kisa, and Shigure and Akito, and Hanajima and Gavin, and Arisa and Kureno. Where was Machi? Yuki scanned the familiar crowd for her and saw her by a plant, fingers running over its fat leaves.

He made his way over to her, and cleared his throat to get her attention. She started; then reached out to take his hand. "Hey, who did you ride with on the way over?" Yuki asked her.

"Your cousin Ritsu and his mother. Yuki, do you think I can ride in the family car if I sit in your lap? Ritsu and his mother are a bit strange, and that's saying a lot compared to other people I've met," Machi said.

Yuki chuckled and kissed her cheek. "We can just ask someone to let you ride in their place. You could have ridden with us in the first place, honey."

"I didn't want to take that right away from anyone, Yuki," Machi said. "I just never got the chance to know Tohru well. I didn't belong in the family car."

"You belong where I do," Yuki said. He hugged her, eyes scanning the room. Momiji sat near Hatsuharu nodding at whatever the former ox said. His eyes were closed and his fists were clenched. Rin stood a few feet away with Kagura, holding a tissue out to the sobbing girl. Kisa and Hiro stood by the fireplace; Hiro had his arm around Kisa. Ayame sat with Shigure, and Mine, their heads close together in serious discussion. Akito was off to one side, staring out of the window. Akito came to all of the family gatherings, but she always seemed to stand apart from them all unless Shigure pulled her into the mix. If Yuki had been in her place, he was sure he would be as uncomfortable around the family as they were around him. Yuki didn't know why Akito bothered; he wouldn't.

But the fact remained that Akito had been crazy about Tohru. She wouldn't miss her funeral; not even if it meant suffering a room of people she'd tormented who still held grudges.

As if she sensed Yuki's gaze, Akito looked his way and Yuki quickly averted his gaze. Today was hard enough without Akito thinking Yuki was inviting her over to exchange condolences. A door opened and Kyo and a funeral attendant stepped into the room.

"Family, please follow me," the attendant said.

Yuki looked at the crowd of his relatives with a groan. There was no way he could push through all of them to get to Kyo's side right now. He and Machi had to file into the line with everyone else. He held his breath as they stepped over the threshold of the crematorium. The floor was marble and the walls were cake frosting white. The space was clean, neat and plainly decorated. In the center of the room were the furnaces with flat tables in front of them. On one table sat Tohru's sealed casket. Kyo stood beside it, his hand on the smooth wood.

Yuki felt Machi's hand on the small of his back, pushing him forward. "Go to Kyo."

Yuki nodded, excusing himself as he swiveled through family. They pretty much parted like the Red Sea when they saw that it was him. Nearest to Kyo was Master Kazuma and not too far from him were Hatori, Hanajima and Gavin. Yuki reached Kyo's side, nudging his shoulder to let him know he was there. Kyo's head was down, eyes studying his shoes. He glanced up at Yuki through tear-spiked lashes. "This is it," he murmured.

Yuki nodded, swallowing a lump in his throat.

Hatori said something. The funeral parlor attendants standing around the table and the furnace said something. There were nods, and the door to the furnace was opened. Yuki waited for tongues of flame to leap through, popping and sizzling, like the pits of Hell incarnate, but there was nothing. He felt a shimmer of heat and smelled the tang of hot metal and earth.

The table tilted and the coffin slid toward the hot furnace. Yuki found Kyo's sweaty hand and clutched it. Tohru was really and truly dead after this. She wasn't coming back. They'd never see her again.

The coffin slid, rumbling as it made its way to the furnace's awaiting jaws. It happened slowly, the end disappearing, then the middle, and then the head, until it was gone and the furnace doors were closed. The table tilted downward until it was level again, and empty as if nothing had ever been on it. As if Tohru had never existed.

She was gone.

Kyo's hand went slack in Yuki's grip and Yuki cried out in surprise when Kyo's weight fell back into him, nearly knocking him to the ground. He wrapped his arms around Kyo's waist, sliding to the floor with him, holding on tight as Kyo's boneless form slumped against him.

Yuki heard other shouts and heard Hatori barking orders at someone. He couldn't make sense of the cacophony. He stared at Kyo's pale face, watching his dark lashes flutter over his cheeks and chose to concentrate on that instead of thinking of Tohru inside a metal oven being roasted into oblivion.

He stroked Kyo's cheek, rubbing away a tear that had fallen from his own face onto Kyo's. He sensed rather than saw Hatori beside him, telling him to lay Kyo flat; Yuki was frozen in time. He saw white lights and heard white noise.

Was he dreaming?

Could he possibly be asleep and having a nightmare?

"Yuki? Yuki, can you hear me? Yuki?"

Somebody wake me up.

Backstreet Boys. "Don't Wanna Lose You Now." Millennium. Jive, 1999. CD.

Author's Note: Well, what's the verdict? Like it? Hate it? Don't care either way? Any way you like it, let me know. Please review. :)