Love Hurts 5 Ways (OUTDATED STORY) Chapter 9: Us Against the World, a Fushigi Yuugi + Ouran High School Host Club Crossover fanfic

ATTENTION READERS: This is the Beta version of LH5W, if you want to read the official, updated version of the story, you'll have to go over to DeviantArt. com and head on over to my page. My username is Aloubell. You can also get there by going to my fanfiction. net profile which provides a link over there.
In any case, this Beta version is basically the rough draft of LH5W, my first attempt at it. Much of the plot points from this version will be the same in the official version, but there are significant and consistent characterization changes, a few (but very important) plot differences, expansion of past ideas, and overall better quality in storytelling.

All of this will be done over on DeviantArt. I no longer will write the story in traditional prose nor submit/update it here to fanfiction. net. The Beta version will remain here, just know that it isn't the 100% official story.
The official version will be written in a lazy prose mixed with play-writing elements (you'll get what I mean when you see it).
This is the new format for the story from now on.
So please head on over there if you're interested in updates to the story! Thank you for stopping by =D

-Aloe

PLEASE NOTE: The official version is being written somewhat out of order. The official version will start on chapter 46, the place where the Beta version left off. The official version will go on to complete the last chapters of Season 2. Once those are done, I will redo the story over again from Chapter 1 which will be the official version.

Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!

While the boys got dressed, I decided to investigate the damage done to the school as discretely as possible. It was definitely a sight to see. Glass and gravel all over the grounds, craters on the P.E field, burnt bushes, destroyed cars all over the place—everything was pretty much a disaster. At least—upon releasing the sleeping spell and hearing a bunch of voices—I knew that, through some miracle, no one got hurt. No one in the school anyway...I hoped... This may have been because most of the damage to the school was either in parts without much people in it, or because the parts that did contain kids only got damaged on the outside. It was also a definite possibility that since people were asleep and not panicking like a bunch of chickens, they didn't, in all the confusion, put themselves in the line of fire. Knowing that everyone was probably okay made me feel very relieved—it took away some of the guilt of knowing that I was the reason for all of this. Now all I had to deal with was the millions of questions I'd have to answer if I stuck around any longer.

Terrific.

As expected, people were quickly exiting the buildings to see what happened. They were all so confused and riled up, asking questions amongst each other while avoiding the wreckage. And I'm gonna leave before things get worse.

Walking swiftly and quietly, I tried to get to the school gate without being noticed. I figured there was too much confusion for anyone to notice a girl they chose to ignore in the first place. What are the chances that someone would stop me now? Before I knew it, I ended up bumping into some big guy surrounded by what I figured were his friends.

Dammit. I jinxed myself. "Sorry." I told them while trying to get by.

The guy with sandy-blond hair looked down and smiled smugly. "Well, look here. We've got our little Miss Loner." Ignoring that statement, I tried to work my way through the stubborn group.

One of them stopped me by blocking my way. Attempting to maintain a growl, I looked up at him. "Just 'cause everything's a mess doesn't mean that someone will be desperate enough to be your friend. Why don't you come with us? We'll be your friends." They started to laugh menacingly.

I remembered seeing these guys around school every now and then. The only thing they really enjoyed doing was being jerks to people—by either being total pigs to the girls, or being bullies to guys. Boy did I want to teach those guys a lesson on multiple occasions. Back in my world, I was the intimidating one that no one wanted to mess with. I had this look I would give that would make any one cave then and there. I had just figured that my red eyes made the glare that much more scary. The only time "the look" didn't work, was with Saru and Kyoko, since they had gotten used to it, as well as a couple others...

Usually, I would have left guys like these alone, but after a while, it was made apparent that they had no intention of stopping. Unfortunately, whenever Kyo was around me, I couldn't do the tough thing, making it impossible for me to confront them. Not only that, these guys never had the guts to come up to me (to harass) while being surrounded by a bunch of Sohma's. Now I could tell that there was nothing stopping them from their true colors—not even a half-destroyed school.

"No thanks," I said quietly. They refused to let me through. "Excuse me, but I am trying to get by."

One of them put their arms around my shoulders. If he doesn't get his filthy hands off of me, I swear he will NEVER have children. "Don't be shy. We can all escape in this confusion and have some fun." I'm not being shy, you dumbass, I'm restraining myself from committing a homicide. Maneuvering under his arms, I attempted once more—or for the last time—to peacefully escape. People around is were looking, but like many people in the world, decided not to involve themselves that something that wasn't their business. You know, how it's something around the "yell FIRE, whenever you're being attacked or raped so that people would actually give a damn" thing.

"What? You think you're too good for us? We may be all that you've got!" Strike one. I'd be damned if they were all I had. The morons sure were full of themselves.

"No one else bothers to even be with you—well, except for those weird Sohma's. Then again, they're only with you 'cause you're living with them. You little skank." Strike two. True or not, I sure as hell did not want to hear it from the likes of them.

He forcefully grabbed my wrist, bringing me to him as if I was his own "thing" to command. "You can't resist us. Whether you want to or not, you're too weak to get away. And no one will help you." Strike three. No one touches me like that.

"Funny, I was just about to say the exact same thing." Without hesitation, I brought my leg up and kneed him in the crotch, hard. My physical capabilities were really nothing to brag about. In fact, I was pretty much sad when it came to anything physical. So without my advantage of magic, I didn't stand a chance against a group of thugs who were all bigger than me. So what was my only option? To hit him in the one vulnerable spot that made me very much thankful to be a girl. And if I wasn't so pissed off at the moment, no doubt I would have smiled sadistically for my accomplishment.

He gasped for air and he dropped to the ground, grabbing between his legs to attend to the source of his pain. The rest of his group circled around him, helping him up. "Dude, you just got owned by a girl!"

"No I didn't! She just surprised me—that was a cheap hit!" He erupted. This made more people to be tempted to stop and look. At this point, I really didn't care anymore (okay, I did care on some level with my mild fear of crowds and all). But the fact was, I wanted them to hear what I was going to say.

My voice got low and lacked any and all softness to it. "Give it up. I didn't surprise you. I kicked your sorry, jerky ass and you know it. If I were you, I would just cut the crap now and stay there before I make you eat the disgusting hand you touched me with." I began to raise my voice for all to hear. "And as for the rest of you, I am not a shy person. It's just not me. I hate being shy and feeble. This person," I told them while pointing to myself, "is the real me. Okay, take away some of the violence, and you're a bit closer to the real me. Not only that, stupid rumors these chumps have informed me of is only a result from the stupid bits of gossip you people begin to assume about someone you don't even know! Have any of you even tried to talk to me? You know, without being dared or something?" Looking around, I saw guilt glances from people. That's what I thought. I'll admit though, I was being a bit unfair. From my experience in life, people had a good reason to stay away from me, and I wanted them to for their sakes. But those people had known me for years and thus could make judgments like that. In either case, yeah, it sucks for me, the loner, but for one thing, it was messed up for people to assume things of me for only knowing me for the little time I was in that world, and for the other thing, it was NOT OKAY for people to assume I was weak. Kyo or no Kyo, I needed to get back my reputation of being tough and independent before little incidents like this ever happened again.

Feeling a breeze pick up, I ignored the warning and continued at the bullies."You guys make me sick most of all. Where do you get off picking on people like that? I couldn't stand it at home, and I sure as hell can't stand it here!" The breeze increased into a gust that was very evident to the students. Skirts started to fly up, causing the girls to hold them down, while some of the guys found it hard to stand still with the wind blowing them around. "Then you get the nerve to mess with me! Big mistake."

"Aki!"

"Miss Tsubaki!" Yuki and Kyo were in the crowd in back of me, but I didn't allow that to stop me from what I was doing. The stunning lack of teachers in all this chaos was truly a mystery.

"Why you little bitch!" My victim called out. He started to run at me, planning who knows what, but I certainly wouldn't allow him to get there. Raising my power, an enormous force of wind shot out and blew the poor bastard into a wall, as well as blowing past other kids who were nearby, leaving him unconscious and them in shock.

Looking at the path the wind made in front of me, I just stared at the knocked-out bully. There was still a breeze acting up a bit, but it had calmed down slightly until someone decided to put a hand on my shoulder. Turning around quickly, all wind ceased when I saw that it was Kyo.

"Aki, let's go." He told me calmly. Without arguing, I agreed. Taking my hand, rather forcefully and without much resistance from me, we to the exit, Yuki close behind. As we ran, I knew that I could feel the rejecting eyes of the teens I left behind.

Now it was starting to feel like home.

I shifted uncomfortably in my spot as the three guys I lived with, stared at me without any words. Finally, I found the right words to say. "I'm so sorry you guys. I can't believe I just lost it like that. It's never happened before."

Yuki gave me a sympathetic look. "That's quite alright Miss Tsubaki. We don't blame you for anything that happened."

"But I do!" I slammed my fists down onto the table. Slowly relaxing them, I further explained myself. "I haven't been completely honest with you guys—about my powers, or my personality. Keeping the latter bottled up kind of made me mentally explode from all the pressure, as you saw with those bullies back there. I wanted to be myself," I looked over at Kyo, "but I couldn't because of you—I-I mean you…you…re—you're school! Yeah, going to a new school with new people and stuff," I smoothly added. "Getting shy like that kind of made everything malfunction. And those things that showed up—"

"Yeah! What was the deal with those things?" Kyo interrupted. He had an obvious tone of concern in his voice, but I wasn't completely sure about who the concern was towards.

I looked down guiltily. "They were probably there because of me. In the last place I was at, they were there, but they didn't do anything. This time when they show up, they attack everything but me. The next time, I think I will be their target for sure. I just wish I knew what they were." And because of them, with the help of my mental time bomb going off, I'm probably banned from the school. I couldn't possibly ask Hatori to erase all of their memories. Well whatever...I didn't like it there much anyway. And I'm sure the last thing that will be waiting for me is a welcome wagon.

"We promise to help you as much as we can Miss Tsubaki. At least I do. I'm not so sure about the cat here." Yuki eyed Kyo as he said that.

"Shut up! You da—"

Shigure coughed. "So, Aki, about those powers…" He had an interested tone in his voice, unlike the concerned tone I would have appreciated that only Yuki and Kyo seemed to be giving. Alas, Shigure is Shigure, couldn't really hate him for that. And being Shigure, this was probably like Christmas to him—finally finding out my secrets after all this time.

"Oh, yeah. Well, a while ago, I uh, acquired these powers. So now, I am a…." Huh. What would be the right word for what I am? "A sorceress? Yeah, that sounds about right. I'm a sorceress. Or at least a sorceress in training."

"Well, now everything makes sense!" Shigure exclaimed triumphantly. I'm sure he doesn't really get it, not all of it anyway. It'd take more than just the revealing of my powers to get anyone to really understand.

Sighing, I chuckled a little. "Yeah…Well I am sorry for keeping that from you. I thought something bad would happen." Something bad might still happen. That was a pretty safe bet.

"Okay, so you have magical powers. I understand hiding that, but why hide who you are from us?" Kyo asked while leaning his head on his palm. "At school, okay you're new. But here with us, you should have been comfortable enough to be yourself."

My eyes went wide at hearing that. I got what he was saying. Ha...comfortable enough to be myself, he says. That's a laugh. Even the Akimoto Tsubaki that I had revealed to those bullies and the school wasn't necessarily the real me. It was only the me that I wanted people to see in order to avoid from looking weak, or sad, or vulnerable. With the effect I had on people, I'd be in danger to show anyone my true self. As my friends and people I was staying with, if anything, it should have been them who I trusted the most with who I was. Instead I hid more than just my powers from them. As it stood, no one really knew the real Akimoto Tsubaki. They only knew whoever that person was that I had been masquerading as. I can't honestly say that I felt good about the way I was, I've always hated that quality about myself. I mostly hated the fact that I've never been able to open up to anyone except the one person who I cared for who really accepted me. But they were long gone from my life.

These guys have every reason to not like me and to not trust me. I was still a stranger to them, while they have nicely allowed me to live with them. Look who's the jerk now.

"Ever since I could remember, I had never been able to be honest with anyone, and I still sort of can't. Someone had told me a long time ago never to trust anybody, that people would always hurt me. I took that to heart and kept people away. It's kind of a double-edged thing, ya know? It's a bitter reality. I'm damned if I open up, and I'm damned if I don't." Aside from my lack of interest of people, they stayed away on their own free will. Most of them never even tried to get close. When they did, it usually ended up in a broken friendship—they became unhappy, and lost interest altogether. And that was the nice side of things. The not so nice part was my negative energy on people.

I couldn't help but look away from them. "There's a dark aura around me." Feeling like they were giving me peculiar looks, I continued. For not knowing me that long, these people who had showed me kindness deserved to know at least this about myself since it affected their well-being. "I know it sounds weird, but it's true. Some kind of negative aura has always been around me...like, a physical, more or less , legitimate one. When I was younger, I used to be able to see it. I was in the center of a dark ring that pretty much effected anyone who got close. Causing anyone that it agitated to feel misery or anger beyond all belief... Perhaps other people couldn't see it, but it kept them away. I'm pretty sure it's still there, but…dimmed, I guess. It's really hard to explain. But because of all that, it's been hard to really be me to anyone. No matter how much I wanted to be. Things have been…" I paused to think about a word to describe my years if isolation. "…difficult."

The three of them still started at me even after I finished. That was the first time that I had opened up like that. Saru and Kyoko were my "friends" once upon a time, but we only really talked about trivial stuff such as school, shopping, and stuff like that. Whenever I tried to talk about how I felt, they would talk to me about how I was using self-pity to get sympathy. And when I didn't talk, I didn't "trust" them. Honestly, those two were living contradictions. I hope these guys don't think that I'm giving them the self-pity thing, because I hate it when people feel sorry for me. I hate it even more when people think that I want them to feel sorry for me.

"Miss Tsubaki, I—"

"Rat, Shigure, you two have to leave." Kyo commanded. What the heck?

"Why you stupid cat, who are you to order me—"

"Yuki!" That was the first time I had ever heard Kyo call Yuki by his first name. This must be serious. Is he gonna scold me? I hope not. But if he does, I think I've gotten over my "fear" of hot guys. So, now I can argue back!

Yuki was taken aback at Kyo's abrupt demand. He seemed to be at a loss of words, so Shigure stepped in. "C'mon Yuki, Kyo wants us out. Best to not upset him." I kind of expected him to tug on Yuki's collar to get him out, but both he and I knew that he was much too mature for that. So, Yuki walked out slowly after eyeing Kyo a few extra seconds.

The moment they were gone, I looked at Kyo not knowing what to say. What should I have said?

"According to legend," He began. "the rat tricked the cat by telling him that the grand banquet for the animals of the zodiac was on a different day than what it was supposed to be on. Since the cat missed out on the banquet, it has never been allowed to attend one." He started to grit his teeth. "Because of that, I've been treated like some kind of outcast to a family full of outcasts. The cat has never truly been a part of the Zodiac, that's why no one really knows about it. Most of the family doesn't even want to acknowledge me. My father hates me and my mother…" On an uncharacteristic impulse, I really wanted to reach out for his hand. But out of fear of what his reaction would be, I restrained myself. "probably killed herself because of the freak I am." I knew that those with the curse had it bad, but…I didn't know that Kyo was in this much pain. He knows what it's like to be alone. He also knows…what it's like to lose someone because of who you are.

My hand twitched a little, and then my arm moved on it's own to gently place my palm over the back of his hand. The notion made us both blush a little, but it was understandable. I was just relieved that he didn't pull back. We're kindred spirits, he and I. It was hard to tell on what level his pain and suffering was to mine, but, for the most part, he actually seemed to get where I was coming from. And he knew that I wasn't looking for sympathy, just like I knew he wasn't. "Kyo," Was all I could say.

Before there was any progression to what seemed like the beginning of something, a rather loud voice came rushing in. "AKIIII!" A blond hurricane came dashing in and knocked me down to the ground. A poof of smoke later, and low and behold, a bunny was there.

Dammit Momiji. You're sweet and all, but you have the worst timing EVER.

"What's up Momiji?"

"Aki, I saw what happened to the school, can't believe I fell asleep and missed what happened, but when I saw it, I thought you were hurt! I'm so glad you're okay!" I blinked at him as I sat up. He really was worried, wasn't he? Without saying anything, I brought the bunny close and hugged him, feeling the nice, warm fur up against my body. Momiji was like a small, furry ball of happiness—something that I really needed.

Just as that happened, another storm came in and knocked Kyo over. "Kyo, my love! Momiji told me what happened at your school! Are you hurt?" The girl handling Kyo was Kagura Sohma. She was cursed by the spirit of the boar. Even though she was a girl, she could hug Kyo freely because they were part of the same curse. Made me sort of jealous to tell you the truth. Kagura was a year older than me, with short, dark-brown hair and grey eyes. Other than her extreme emotions, the most evident and slightly infuriating thing about her was that she loved Kyo. So whenever she was around, Kyo was pretty much off-limits. She's a nice girl and all (most of the time), but she has some issues when it comes to sharing. Good thing college keeps her occupied most of the time.

Here comes the fun part, she's normally a sweet, shy girl. But around her beloved Kyo…

"KYO I WAS SO WORRIED!" She started to punch him endlessly followed by throwing him around the room like a rag doll. "YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I LOVE YOU! PROMISE ME YOU'LL NEVER GET HURT!" Poor guy. But a person had to admit, watching this was way better than cable.

I couldn't help but laugh.

"Remind me again, why are we out here?"

"Jeez, I already told you."

"Humor me." A mocking smile played on my lips.

Kyo sighed. The four of us were staying at a Sohma-owned log cabin in the mountains for a few days during out vacation. And by vacation, I mean time away from school as they fix the damages. There still wasn't any word as to if I was expelled or not. When thoughts like that drifted into my head, it made me feel better to just remember Kagura "handling" Kyo and laugh it off.

"You need better control of those powers of yours. Otherwise, it might actually be you destroying the school instead of those creatures." He stood in front of me with his arms crossed. Standing in an opening in the forest relaxed me a bit from all that hectic stuff that went on in the city. The lame part in this whole thing was that Kyo and I weren't even going out. After that whole sentimental thing, we're still at friend status.

"You are going to teach me control? Well, isn't that the gnome calling the munchkin short." That witty remark earned me a blush from him. Triumphant, I smiled even wider. I guess it's okay that we're just friends. At least I know that with Kyo, it's true friendship. It's not one of those phony ones. The best part about this friendship? I had lost the getting-stiff-around-a-hot-guy thing. It's totally gone. I was finally cured. That meant that I was free to be as sarcastic and harsh as I pleased. No being shy around here.

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, I don't know. Seeing you with your temper doesn't really put all that much confidence in me that you can teach me about self-control." Chuckling a little, I added, "No offense."

"No need for the 'no offense' comment, Miss Tsubaki. You're absolutely right." Yuki sat next to me on a large rock, reading a book. He's studying and we're out of school. What a guy.

Kyo growled. "No one asked ya, you damned rat!"

Yuki ignored him. "Are you sure that you don't want me helping you out? I mean, I don't mind helping you out at all."

"That's really nice of you, Yuki. But I figured that this would be too entertaining to pass up." Facing Kyo, I bowed sarcastically. "Teach on, oh wise, self-controlled one."

Punching me playfully in the shoulder, he spoke. "I'm serious. Think about it like this. If I were to hit this tree," demonstrated by hitting the closest tree, "nothing happens. But if I were to really try…" Punching the tree again, with way more force, leaving a crater that tempted the tree to topple over. "…well, you get the point."

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah."

He groaned. "If you learn to control your powers better, then you can get stronger. Try concentrating the elements into a single…uh…themed attack."

Raising an eyebrow, I asked, "Themed attack?"

"Like a fireball, er, something like that." Realizing the way his sentence sounded to me, he blushed and trailed off his words.

"I think I get'cha. You mean, make a more concentrated spell to handle the power better." It was like my Saisu spell. Normally when I use wind, it's all over the place. But will that spell, I know exactly what it's doing. Maybe Kyo was right. To cause less casualty damage, it would be smart to develop some more orchestrated spells. I groaned from thinking of all the work I'd have to invest into this.

"Don't be like that. You already have the powers, you just have to concentrate." Kyo was starting to sound a bit impatient. Even though it was a bit funny, I decided that he was trying to help me out there, so I should do my best at this

Taking a deep breath, I focused. Thinking about what Taiitsukun told me about me controlling my powers and not getting controlled, was a significant reason as to why I had to do this. Several times now had my Wind element taken control whenever I got upset. If that continued, it would be virtually impossible to hide my powers when I absolutely needed to. With Kyo's help, I can do this! Probably.

Extending my arm out, and closing my eyes, I allowed the wind to come to me.

"That's right. Nice and easy." He calmly said. The Wind is my element. It belongs to me. I cannot submit to it! Just like that, a mini tornado lie in my hand, bringing a slight breeze between the both of us. I smiled with success. But before, I could start leaping for joy, as if I'd do that anyway, something weird happened. The tornado disappeared just as four circular lights appeared on the ground surrounding me. One was red, another was light blue, the next one was a yellow-green, and the last was light grey. In a way, they were like mini searchlights, each one giving off their own unique beam of light.

"Aki!" Kyo dashed towards me.

"Wait!" I commanded him. Stopping dead in his tracks, he looked at me with confusion. "Yuki, you hold on too." Even though he was behind me, his feet scraping across the ground is what gave off his movements. "I don't think these lights are here to hurt me." Just looking at them made me feel very calm and centered. A warm updraft emitting from them lifted my body off the ground a little as the lights got closer and closer to merging under me. The moment they all came together, they fused to become a large circle of bright white light, with me hovering in the center. This feels so familiar… That's when the light flashed and extended its blinding beam to the heavens, parting the clouds in its circular shape. My whole body felt tingly as it slowly absorbed the light. An odd energy lowered me back to the ground as the light diminished. When both my feet lightly touched down, everything seemed back to normal—lights gone and all. But I felt different…

"Aki…"

Looking over my body the best I could, I realized that I was still the same person—I still looked the same—on the outside, but I definitely felt different on the inside.

"It was like the day I got my wand…a-and my powers. That's what it felt like: A sudden burst of energy that I never knew I had. It was so warm and real. I feel so…" Quickly extending my arm, allowing my wand to appear, I used my power to create a baseball-sized fireball—only to immediately extinguish it. "In control."

With a baffled look drawn on his face, Kyo regained his composure. "Huh. I'm a better teacher than I thought."

"Please. You had nothing to do with it, stupid cat." Yuki remarked. He didn't sound confused at all. I suppose that the whole "magic" thing doesn't strike him as a surprise anymore. As expected of the great Yuki.

"Oh, I don't think so. Kyo was the one who helped me tap into this power." Looking over at my "sensei", I gave a tiny smile. He cutely blushed, followed by scratching the back of his head and looking away, just as I expected. There are some similarities between him and Inuyasha, I thought, but their differences are as clear as day. But the thing that is the same…is that I'm glad I got to know both of them.

"Now let's take this new control for a test drive!"

Panting continuously, I bent over to rest my hands on my knees. "Perhaps we should stop now."

I looked up at Kyo and Yuki who were also breathing deeply. They had been training with me, testing my new spells. I told them before that I didn't need moving targets, but they insisted and added that some extra training would be good for them too.

"Why? I could keep at it for hours." Kyo said between breaths.

Giving a skeptical look, I told him, "Maybe so, but it looks like it's gonna rain soon. And I know how much you hate the rain." It was true, Kyo had never been a huge fan of the rain. He got into this depressed, lazy state whenever it started to pour outside. A while ago, I just decided to rule it out as a cat thing. Nonetheless, the sky was looking pretty mean so if we wanted to avoid getting wet, magic practice had to end.

Shaking his head, he straightened up. "Rain or not, I'm kind of curious as to what else you can do." Rain or not my foot. If we do this in the rain, he's gonna flake on me.

Before I could speak, another unfamiliar, chilling voice interrupted me. "So this is where you all have been hiding from me." I turned my head to face a skinny guy with a long-sleeved black shirt and jeans on. He had dark-purple hair styles a similar way to Yuki's and dark teal eyes—eyes that didn't have the softness that Yuki's did. At. All. Who's this chump?

"A…A…" Looking over at Yuki, I realized that he was shaking feverishly.

"Yuki? Are you okay?"

"A-Akito…" He stuttered. Holy crap! That's Akito? The great and powerful head of the Sohma family? He's just a string bean! He looks like he's just a couple of years older than me, if that. People are afraid of that shrimp? I can snap him like a twig with my pinky! Okay, that was probably an overstatement giving my lack of physical ability and all. But it was worth saying that I thought I could take him in hand-to-hand combat better than someone else. He better have some macho powers to back that look up.

"You all came to this cabin without informing me." His words had a certain hiss to them, even if he was trying to mask it. "Do you know what it was like trying to track you down? What if I needed you?" It's called a cell phone, bitch. He faced Yuki, making him stiff up. I've never seen Yuki so nerved about anything before. Is this Akito guy really all that? "Yuki, I would have expected you to come and see me before running off. Were you afraid of what my answer would have been?"

"N-no," Yuki tried to say. I looked at Kyo, and all he was doing was looking away with a somber look on his face. So, he affects Kyo too. Well, that sort of makes sense, since technically, he is the primary one shunning Kyo from the family. The main source for Kyo's troubles.

Akito began to raise his voice. "Yes you were! You went around me to escape with this wench!" He pointed to me and I blinked. Wench?

Offended, and I was rightfully so, I began to come up with some colorful words to say to him. "Who the hell do you think you're—" An arm blocked me from getting any closer to Akito and knocking his cocky block off. It was Shigure.

"Now what's going on here?" He asked with that now-suddenly-annoyingly-pleasant tone in his voice. "Akito. What is the occasion for this pleasant visit?"

"Shigure! Not only did you take in an outsider, but you allowed her to take you three away from me!" He yelled. Keep talking dude, just keeeep talking. "Not only that, but she's a witch who's mind rejected Hatori's memory erasing!"

That's it! "Look, you manipulative little—" Shigure slapped his hand in front of my mouth. He leaned down to whisper in my ear.

"Calm down, little sorceress."

"Don't you dare talk back to me. You will never be accepted into the Sohma family. You will never understand us. You will never know our pain! Then you come out of nowhere and think you can just be with us?"

"Akito, she's—" Kyo attempted a word in. Akito shot him a glare.

"Did I ask you to speak, Kyo? I can see why you would want to be with someone different. Especially when no one else would accept you." I muffled loudly behind Shigure's hand, trying to defend Kyo. Akito slowly walked towards him, putting his hand on his cheek. "But she will never understand you—not like I can. She doesn't even know your secret, my little freak." Secret? He reached down for Kyo's bracelet.

"A-Akito," Shigure started with a smile, "don't you think that that would be a bit extreme?"

The creepy guy himself shot Shigure a look. "Not at all, dear Shigure. It's best Akimoto here gets a full taste of the Sohma secret!" With that pleasant statement, he ripped Kyo's bracelet apart, causing all of the dark red and white beads to drop to the ground.

"NO!" Kyo yelled. His body began to morph into an odd shape—skin becoming rough and dark, head enlarging, growing long, skinny ears. His arms and hands expanded, growing claws at the tips. Long, sharp teeth filled his now huge jaw, while his eyes grew several sizes and turned a non-human, piercing purple. He grew at least four or five more feet. By time the transformation was complete, he kind of looked like the combination of a demon rabbit and a carnivorous dinosaur, with only his cargo pants on after ripping his shirt completely up.

I stood there stunned. What the… "Kyo…" Even as I tried to talk to him, he turned and ran further into the woods at top speed. "Kyo!" Trying to chase after him, Akito grabbed my wrist roughly.

Laughing insanely, he told me, "That is Kyo's true form. Isn't it hideous?"

"As far as I can see, you're the only hideous one." I growled.

He dug his nails into my skin, causing my wrist to bleed. "Do you honestly think you can love something like that?"

Forcing my arm away, I started off towards Kyo. Looking back at Akito, I said, "Well, I think I can do a much better job than you can." In the meantime, why don't you go de-bitchify yourself. Without hearing his retort, I was off.

It wasn't hard finding him. All I had to do was follow the path of broken trees into a clearing. By time I reached it, the rain had started to pour, completely drenching my sweater, and my hair, and…yeah. In the middle of the field was Kyo, back facing me. Walking slowly up to him, I reached out my hand.

"Miss Tsubaki, you mustn't!" Yuki grabbed my hand. I knew I heard someone following me,

"It's fine, Yuki. I can handle this." Smiling at him, I gradually took my hand away from his.

"But…"

"Just have faith in me. Have faith in Kyo as well."

I tried for Kyo again, seeing his body shaking. I can tell this won't be easy. He's fragile now. While advancing gently, I spoke softly, "Kyo? Kyo, please look at me." He continued to shake, not acknowledging my words. "Kyo, I'm not afraid of you, y'know." Chuckling nervously, I continued. "You should've seen the things I was around in the last place I was at. There were demons trying to kill me everywhere! Because of that, I've kind of gotten used to seeing stuff." Still nothing from him. "Kyo?" Touching his shoulder just for a second earned me a huge backhand from him, causing me to fly across the field, skidding against the ground.

"Miss Tsubaki!"

"Stay back Yuki!" I struggled to sit up. Looking at his worried face, I winked. "I'm tougher than I look, Yuki. You should know that about me by now."

While trying to stand up, I made my way towards Kyo again. "Hit me all you want, but like my old friend Sango's Hiraikotsu, I'll always find my way back!" When he wasn't moved by my witty banter, I decided that I had to get serious if I wanted to get through to him.

"Please, Kyo. Please, just look at me. I want to see you." Reluctantly, and finally, I got some results. His head started to turn in my direction, large eyes staring me down. "Now that I have your attention, just listen to me. You are not a monster. Akito and some mean others have been telling you that your whole life to control you and your emotions. I don't see a monster when I look at you. I see someone who's been hurt and needs a friend." I got closer. "It's really not that bad. We can work through this. All of us. Yuki, Shigure, Momiji, Kagura, as well as the others who care. You're really not as alone as you thought." With my advances, he started to completely turn. "My family isn't all that great to me either. In fact I can't stand them. They never really gave a damn about me. So I decided to do something about it. You can too. You don't have to live this life. Let people help you, Kyo."

I heard his faint voice inside my head. "I don't know…I'm not sure if I can live like this."

Smiling, I moved in closer. "You can and you will. Don't give that jerk Akito the satisfaction of thinking he won. He wants you to be miserable. Well, I want you to be happy—or, just learn to like yourself. That would be a good first step towards recovery." As if I'm one to talk...Who was I to really give a lecture to someone about liking themselves? Well, regardless of my own occasional self-hatred, it didn't mean that my advice wasn't any less valid. Reaching for extra strength with my magic, I surrounded my body with a peculiar golden light. Then, I wrapped my arms around him, not caring the state he was in at the moment. He tried to struggle, but I just wouldn't allow him. He eventually calmed down, still shivering as the rain poured on the both of us. That's when something amazing happened. His body was changing back into its normal form while in my arms. Before I knew it, we were finally embracing without him turning into a cat. Feeling his bare skin, still using my power to prevent the transformation, I brought him closer. It must be this light around me. It's stopping the curse from happening. Tearing up with joy, I made sure to not lose the light. Thank-you universe for being on my side for once.

That's when everything went black.

I saw a cute girl with long brown hair and light blue eyes walking around Shigure's house. She was cooking and cleaning with a smile on her face. Yuki looked happy around her, helping with her homework and walking around school. Shigure…was Shigure. But Kyo…he seemed to take a real interest in her. He was always protecting her and having fun. I noticed a twinkle in his eye that I didn't think I was ever able to put in him. She was such a positive person even though she had a tough past too. Everyone seemed to love her—except Akito who still seemed to be a hateful bastard—and she was really dedicated to helping the Sohma's out. Defeating the curse, saving Kyo from a future of suffering. She may have done it too…

Closing my eyes, I opened them to see the girl, Tohru, in an open field drenched with rain, motherly holding Kyo in his cat form, in her arms. Not again.

"No!" I reached out for them only to find that my hand went through their bodies. I couldn't touch them—they couldn't hear me. Staring at my shaking hand, I stared at the two.

"No…no…" Throwing my head back, I yelled, "NO!"

-Aloe

Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!