Hello hello! It's been almost a year since I've last updated. I'm so sorry! But, I have not forgotten about this fanfic, I'm just super busy. Thank you for your patience, and please enjoy the following chapter.

"Are you ready to see him?"

"I..." The brunette bit her lip and played with her thumbs. She took a deep breath and let her body relax. "Yes. I'm ready now."

The dragon zodiac nodded. His solemn expression made the rice ball even more uncomfortable. He led the way into the main house with the Shigure household following closely behind him.

They arrived at a room closed off by sliding paper doors. Hatori knocked twice and slid the doors open, revealing the sickly god in the middle of the room.

Akito, lying down on a mattress, managed to turn her head towards her guest with the little strength she still had. Shigure stiffened like a statue upon seeing her gaunt face, which seemed worse than before.

Tohru turned ghostly pale at the sight before her. That's... Akito? What happened to him? He looks so frail.

Yuki tensed up, memories of the abuse he endured throughout childhood invading his thoughts. He tried his best to convince himself that Akito did not deserve this, but he barely felt any pity.

Kyo turned away, uncomfortable from the unnatural skinniness of the zodiac god.

"Come. I am too weak to speak from afar," croaked Akito. Tohru nodded and hesitantly walked over, kneeling near the bedside. She looked back at her friends, hoping they would follow. Kyo took a step but Hatori held his arm out in front of the impulsive cat, stopping him in his tracks.

"It's a matter between them. Don't intrude," said Hatori. Kyo frowned and went no further.

Tears rolled down Tohru's colorless cheeks and fell to the ground. Tohru had never seen such a frail-looking person before. She was afraid that even the slightest touch would break the person before her.

"Don't cry for me, you stupid girl," whispered Akito, her lifeless black eyes staring into Tohru's bright blue ones. Her words seemed to stem more from habit than from her hatred for Tohru. "You have much greater misfortunes to cry about."

Tohru wiped away her tears. "What do you mean?"

Akito let out a quiet sigh, her eyes shifting towards the window. "Perhaps you are being punished just as I am."

The rice ball's eyes widened with fear. "P-punished? What is that punishment?"

"That parasite of yours that you cherish—it is killing me. It will surely cause you a lot of sadness as you watch it grow up with so much power to hurt everyone you love."

"My baby is not a parasite," asserted the rice ball. She started to feel slightly panicked. "Please, explain so that I understand!"

The zodiac god's piercing eyes locked on to Tohru's. The girl shuddered and quickly looked away.

Akito smirked, relishing her small victory. "You are the carrier of the next zodiac god."

Tohru felt like blood drain from her face as it went numb. "Wh-wha..."

Her eyesight began to fade and her body went limp.

"Tohru!" Kyo and Yuki bolted in. Yuki caught her head before she hit the ground.

"Cut the bullshit, Akito!" spat Kyo, kneeling beside Tohru. "There can't be two gods."

Akito rolled her eyes. "You always were good for nothing, you cretin. There will only be one god since that parasite is sucking the life out of me. I'm destined to die at the hands of that wench's child."

Yuki gently cradled the rice ball's head, wiping away the beads of sweat on her forehead. "This can't be..."

Akito smirked again, sending chills down everyone's spine. "Even you know that it is true. You all had the dream, did you not? You can't deny this truth."

Yuki and Kyo remained silent. She was right. They had known, or at least had been suspicious.

Akito continued, "How can a father bow down to his own child? Whichever one of you is the father will truly suffer."

Kyo clenched his fist, violently shaking from the anger. "Shut up! As if we'll let the baby end up like you."

However, a part of him felt doubtful. Our own kid is going to have ultimate control over us. How could I ever love this baby?

"The dreams could be wrong," said Shigure, recovering from his initial shock.

"Didn't you already sense it? Are you that desperate to pretend that nothing's wrong?" asked Akito in her hoarse voice

They had hoped so desperately that the dreams meant nothing.

"The dreams... just like when Ren was pregnant with you," whispered Shigure, beginning to accept reality.

Akito's expression turned to that of disgust, as if she had a bitter taste in her mouth. "Don't mention that name. Leave. I can't stand seeing that tacky girl here for long."

Shigure sighed and ran his fingers through his black locks. "Hatori, take those three out with you. I'll only be a minute."

Hatori nodded and helped Tohru get back to her senses. She maintained a blank stare as she was led out of the room by the cat and rat.

The dog waited until the door was closed to pull Akito into a tight embrace.

"Let go of me, you idiot, that hurts."

"I don't care," breathed Shigure, burrowing his face into her neck. "I want to make my last moments with you count."

He heard a muffled sob.

"I'm scared of dying, Shigure."

"I know," he said as he stroked her thin hair. She trembled in his embrace as she silently wept.

The Shigure household had arrived at home. Tohru had been silent since the meeting.

"I'm worried about her," admitted the cat as he and the rat watched the girl from afar. She sat on the couch, staring out the window.

"Me, too. But I'm also worried about us. The baby has authority over us. How are we supposed to raise a child that can control us?"

Kyo sighed and crossed his arms. "I don't know. This is all a bunch of bull. What did we do to deserve all this?"

The prince stared at the rice ball with pitiful eyes. "There's no need to pity ourselves. Think about Honda-san. What did she do to deserve this?"

He continued, "The only good that came out of this news is that the baby is definitely a Sohma. Chiba-san can't play anymore games with us."

"That jerk... I'll kill him the next time I see him," declared the infuriated feline.

Meanwhile, Tohru was deep in her own thoughts. Mom... I'm afraid of this baby. Seeing the person Akito became... I'm afraid my baby will grow up to hurt others. What if I can't stop it? What if all the zodiac members hate it? I can try to give all the love I have but what does that matter if more people give the baby hatred and resentment? I wish you were here to teach me.

The dog zodiac walked into the room and seated himself next to Tohru, who was too lost in thought to even notice.

"Can I have a moment alone with my flower, please?" said Shigure, looking at the two Sohma boys. They nodded and reluctantly left. "Tohru, how are you feeling?"

The brunette jumped at the mention of her name. She turned to face him, tears welling in her dark blue pools. "I'm f-fine," she managed to whisper, stifling a sob with her hand.

Shigure's heart ached as he watched her. "You're scared... you're scared because you think this baby will become another Akito."

She nodded. "This baby will have a hard time being loved."

"That's not true, my flower. Akito was once very loved. He... he wasn't always like this. His mother, Ren, raised him to be this way. She is the one who made him so unstable." Shigure looked away as he felt himself getting choked up over Akito. "You have the power, Tohru, to change this child's path. Zodiac gods are not all like Akito. I promise that we will all love this child so that it grows up just as kind and loving as you."

Tohru smiled through her tears and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Thank you, Shigure-san."

Once the smoke cleared up, a black dog appeared in the brunette's arms.

Tohru gave him an apologetic smile. "What you said was so wonderful, I couldn't help but give you a hug."

There was another puff of smoke, revealing a naked Shigure. Tohru's cheeks became tomato red as she turned to face the other direction. His warm hand turned her face back to him. His black locks framed his face as he looked at her tenderly.

Her eyes widened. "E-eh? Shigur-" He silenced her with a sudden kiss. Her eyes remained wide with shock, locked onto the face so close to her own. His dark lashes fluttered against his pale white skin as his soft lips pressed against hers. He finally pulled away and grabbed his clothes. The rice ball was left speechless.

"Sorry. That was selfish of me." He quickly dressed himself. "Don't take it the wrong way, Tohru. That was just a stupid impulse."

"It's o-okay, Shigure-san," said the rice ball, averting her gaze. She was sure he could hear her heart beating. "W-Why did you kiss me?"

He sighed. "To distract myself from the pain. I used you. I'm sorry, my flower. This is the kind of person I am."

She managed to turn towards him, despite her embarrassment. She placed her shaky hand on his, giving him a small squeeze. "Is it because of Akito? You guys must be very close... I know how it feels to lose someone important. Please express your pain instead of trying to cover it up."

Shigure looked at her again and smiled. "This is why I love you."

"Eh?"

"Just kid-ding~" he sang as he ran away. He locked himself in his room where he hit his forehead against the wall. How could I be so stupid? Revealing my feelings will only jeopardize my relationship with her and those two idiots. It's not worth possibly losing those three just for my own selfishness...

Meanwhile, Tohru brushed her fingertips against her lips. Shigure had assured that it meant nothing, but she just couldn't ignore it.

"What are you doing?" interrupted Kyo. The rice ball jumped, her hand quickly moving away from her lips.

"N-Nothing. Just thinking," she said, giving the cat a gentle smile.

"Huh. You seem pretty shaken up from whatever Shigure said."

A deep red tinge appeared in her cheeks at the mention of the dog zodiac.

Kyo eyed her suspiciously. "Why're you blushing?"

His observation only made her blush even more.

Kyo suddenly stood up, his hand balling into fists. "He did something perverted again, didn't he? Wow, the nerve of that dog! Especially at a time like this! I'll kill him for you, just say the word!"

The wide-eyed brunette stared at Kyo—and suddenly started laughing. The cat relaxed from his fighting stance and blinked a few times.

"Uh... what's so funny?"

Tohru managed to suppress her laughter as she wiped a few laughing tears from her eyes. "I'm just so happy around you, Kyo-kun. Your reactions and unwavering loyalty to someone like me. I don't deserve a friend like you."

The word 'friend' echoed in the cat's mind. His heart sank a little. "R-Right. That's what friends do, huh."

She took the cat's hand in hers. "Thank you, Kyo-kun, for always comforting me. You may seem rough on the outside, but inside you have such a selfless heart."

The cat averted her gaze. "Well, it's not entirely selfless..."

The rice ball smiled. "What do you mean?"

Just tell her like a man, you coward! Tell her you love her! C'mon!

"I..." He hesitated. "It's nothing. Never mind."

Goddammit, I'm so annoying. I swear, one of these days, I'll tell her...

Hopefully, not too late.