Pet Shop Of Horrors Fan Fiction / Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ Neko no Yume - Cat of Dreams ❯ Chapter 4 ( Chapter 4 )

Disclaimer: I own neither Natsuki Takaya's `Fruits Basket' nor Matsuri Akino's `Petshop of Horrors'.

Enjoy!

Chapter 4

 

Yuki started when he suddenly felt a presence at his side. He turned to see a tall, slender man--or was it a woman? He found he couldn't be sure with this androgynous figure--with short black hair in a type of pageboy cut standing right beside him, smiling enigmatically. This stranger had one eye of liquid gold, and one of smoky amethyst; with the gold mostly hidden by hair. The person wore a robe of fine crimson silk with elaborate embroidery in the form of red and gold dragons dancing across the chest and down one arm, wrapping about to the back almost in an embrace of the wearer. The slits up both sides showed black silk pants underneath, gathered at the ankles above delicate black slippers with more gold and red embroidery. Those inscrutable, two-colored eyes bored into Yuki's with a wisdom far beyond the stranger's youthful appearance.

 

“Good evening. I was wondering if you could help me...I seem to have misplaced my cat. I believe she's somewhere around here, and I would like to find her before evening.”

 

Something in the soft, melodious voice with its exceedingly polite tone set Yuki's neck-hairs at attention; and caused a slithering unease to crawl about just beneath his skin. The Rat's spirit seemed to sit up within him to take rather intense notice of this stranger. Stifling an inexplicable urge to back away, considering this person seemed much too delicate to pose any sort of physical threat, Yuki drew breath and asked, “What kind of cat did you lose? If you'd like, I can ask if someone inside has found one recently...”

 

Thoughts of Yume belatedly tumbled through Yuki's mind. Where had she come from? This stranger...was he, or she, somehow connected to Kyo's human-shaped cat? The aura of mystery about this person matched Yume's rather well. A trickle of even greater unease drizzled through his veins, as he wondered if this stranger would try to take Yume away from Kyo. He squelched the feeling, uncomfortable still with the mere thought of feeling concern for the stu--er...for the cat. He could barely hold to his own recent decision to stop calling his cousin names, at least within his own thoughts!

 

The stranger smiled softly, a humorous twinkle coming into the two-colored eyes as he--she?--clasped hands beneath a smooth, beardless chin, all but projecting `cuteness' strong as sunlight. Yuki fought an urge to squint against the unexpected onslaught. “Oh, yes, that would be wonderful! She's a long-haired black cat; somewhat like a Persian, but without the shortened muzzle. She answers to the name Yume...”

 

Yuki's breath stopped in his throat as the world seemed to contract and freeze about him. He stared into those oddly intent and knowing two-colored eyes like a deer frozen by fast-approaching headlights. He desperately wanted to deny any knowledge of Yume--but the Rat's spirit within adamantly refused to let him lie; not to this one. This stranger drew a scrabbling, desperate reaching from the spirit within him that Yuki had never felt from it before.

 

It seemed to know this person. That thought scared Yuki nearly as much as Akito did.

 

“I--I...” Yuki swallowed, trying to gather his scattered wits. Seeing the struggle in his eyes, the stranger cocked his/her head to the side in curiosity.

 

“I take it you do know her. Has she asked you to take care of her, by any chance? Though...I wouldn't think you to be her type...”

 

All Yuki could see was gold and amethyst, his world shrunken to those two-colored eyes. There was a peculiar sort of pulling at his thoughts, making him picture Kyo and Yume together as they usually were to be found.

 

The stranger looked startled, drawing a quick breath and placing one hand flat on his/her chest in a graceful motion, expression going slightly chagrined. “Oh, my, how rude of me--I haven't even properly introduced myself yet!” Another enigmatic smile graced those beautiful features as Yuki almost fearfully watched the elegant bow of introduction. “I am Count D, proprietor of my grandfather's newest Pet Shop, downtown. I'm pleased to meet you, Yuki Sohma, bearer of the spirit of the Rat from the story of the Chinese Zodiac.”

 

All the blood drained from Yuki's face and the still-contracted world went brassy about him as the stranger--he guessed it was a man after all, by the name--spoke not only his name; but of his curse. Shivering with fear, ice-water running through his veins as the Rat's spirit scrabbled even more fiercely within his soul, Yuki moved in the only way his otherwise frozen body would allow--he backed a step away, completely unable to return the courteous greeting. Somehow, he knew it would do no good to run from this Count D--if he was even human. Yuki suddenly had doubts of that.

 

The Count's eyes flicked over towards the gate then back to Yuki. The soft, amicable expression on his face didn't put Yuki at ease in the slightest, any more than the quiet, soothing tone to his voice--the kind of voice you'd use with a skittish animal you were trying not to scare. “I would like to see the one Yume has chosen, if you would be so good as to show me where they are. I must be certain that she will be treated properly; she is a Princess, after all.” Head cocked once more, smiling cutely, Count D extended one graceful, effeminate hand towards the gate, indicating that Yuki should lead the way. His two-colored eyes twinkled with amusement, and something else that Yuki couldn't quite place.

 

The Rat's spirit would not allow Yuki to refuse. It eagerly prodded at him to take the Count wherever he should wish to go. Walking stiffly, terror thrumming through his veins as he discovered just how strong the Rat's spirit could be when it wished to compel him, Yuki led the Count towards the gate into the Sohma Main Estate.

 

The Count's words gave him a strand of hope to cling to; it sounded like Count D was willing to leave Yume with Kyo, so long as she was treated well. Yuki couldn't think how there could be anyone who would treat her better than his Cat-cursed cousin. His main worry was as it had been before Count D came up to him: what was Akito doing? And what would this--whatever Count D was, react to it? Especially if Akito had dared to even try to hurt Yume!

 

The guard at the gate offered no challenge to Akito's favorite among the Inner Circle, as the twelve Zodiac-cursed Sohmas were known to those of the Clan who had no knowledge of the curse. No one questioned them on their way to Akito's house, or when Yuki led the way inside. For all the attention they paid the stranger with him, Yuki might have been alone. His sense of unease grew with that realization...especially as it occurred to him to wonder if anyone even saw the Count as he tread so lightly after the rat. Yuki didn't dare call out for anyone's help, or even for someone to walk with them; he didn't wish to involve any more of his kin than he had to. Those that didn't know of the curse should be kept safely ignorant; those that did, shouldn't be burdened more than they already were.

 

Yuki's violet eyes hesitated on the door to Hatori's house as he led Count D by, but his steps didn't falter. The Dragon-cursed doctor might not even be there; and Yuki had no confidence Hatori could, or would, do anything helpful, anyway. If Akito was involved, all Hatori could be counted on for was to defend the Clan Head--and to follow any orders he was given by Akito, no matter how cruel or senseless.

 

Yuki's eyes narrowed in remembered anger as he thought of his childhood friends, whose memories of him had been taken at Akito's order. Not simply the memory of Yuki's inadvertent transformation; but all memories of their ever having known him in the first place. No; he hadn't forgiven Hatori, and had refused to trust the dragon since that time. Hatori wouldn't ever be of any help to Yuki, let alone to the outcast Kyo. Hatori hadn't even defied Akito enough to help himself, when he was ordered to take away the memories of his own fiancée...

 

A distinctly feline yowl of rage erupting from the direction of Akito's audience room startled Yuki from his thoughts, immediately drawing the Count's attention. Count D frowned slightly, unidentifiable dark thoughts swirling for a brief moment in his two-colored eyes before diving below the surface. He started walking swiftly, purposefully down the empty hall towards the source of the distinctly angry sound. Yuki belatedly realized it must have been Yume, as the feline cry had somehow seemed female. Cold sweat broke out across his brow and he hurried after of his own will, as worry for what might be happening to Kyo rose in him.

 

He never thought to worry for Akito; even when a familiar, quickly building pressure, just on the edge of pain, that had become almost noticeable the closer they came--suddenly...stopped.

 

Bursting through the door to Akito's audience chamber right behind the Count, Yuki was astonished to see Yume, in her human form, long black hair billowing about her seemingly with a life of its own as she snarled and hissed furiously down at a figure sprawled on the floor at her feet. Her raised arms and slight crouch showed her readiness to strike again; her fingers were hooked, shockingly long claws protruding from the tips. A thick, red liquid covered her fingers and was splattered halfway up her arms, with droplets falling to splatter on the wooden floor; sending a coppery tang into the air to tickle at Yuki's nose and raise what few hairs weren't already standing straight out from his skin in his fright.

 

The Rat's spirit quailed, suddenly dragging back, away-away-away from that sprawled figure...the source of the coppery scent. The source of so much of Yuki's own pain--

 

Eyes wide in sudden, unnamed terror, shaking and breathing heavily with it, Yuki's eyes darted about the room until they settled on a second downed figure over near a wall, this one struggling to get to its knees. Even the shadows of the normally dark room couldn't entirely hide that bright orange hair. Casting one more terrified glance at the Count who was calmly approaching the enraged Yume, who appeared ready to rip Akito's heart out at any slightest provocation, Yuki directed his numb-feeling legs to take him to his cousin's side. It never occurred to him to wonder if Akito had been killed; deep inside, he instinctively knew that his `god's death would be unquestionable; something he would have felt, even as all the Zodiac-cursed Sohmas felt Akito's horrible tempers so clearly when they were near the Clan Head.

 

Blood trickled from the wobbly cat's temple, where the skin had split from the force of a blow--it was quite probable he had at least a mild concussion, judging from his awkward lack of balance. A thin dribble of red from Kyo's mouth came from an obviously split lip. Yuki guessed that Akito had probably first slapped the cat hard in the face; then belted him in the side of the head with that unexpected, inexplicable strength the thin and frail-seeming Clan Head could use on them.

 

The rat knelt by the wavering cat, quickly wrapping an arm about Kyo's shoulders to keep him upright as the cat wobbled more and nearly went sprawling. An almost electrical shock traveled up Yuki's arm to explode softly behind his eyes, nearly causing him to jerk away; except he'd been half expecting it. It would take more than a simple concussion to keep Kyo down like he was; he'd had worse in their fights, many times. Yuki could see him fighting the too-familiar effects of Akito's anger through the link the curse forced between the Zodiac-cursed and their `god'. The cat's mind was probably still `ringing' with it, even minutes after the force of it ended; and another Zodiac-cursed would naturally feel a kind of `echo'.

 

Akito must have been particularly furious with the cat, from the fireworks Yuki was vicariously seeing. He wondered if Kyo was even feeling anything from the physical blows, yet. It was a small miracle he was even conscious!

 

Yuki glanced once and away from Yume, understanding the exact cause of her current fury. Akito had--hurt--Kyo; so she hurt Akito. It would seem a perfectly sensible response, to her--who would not have to feel the repercussions directly through the curse. Fighting against Akito only mired one of the Zodiac-cursed more deeply in the curse's influence. If Yume had angered Akito enough, Kyo might be in danger of losing his very mind the next time he fought against the force of their `god's rage.

 

The rat wasn't fool enough to hope Kyo could possibly avoid angering Akito. It just wasn't in the cat's nature to submit, to anyone. It was one of the things Yuki admired most about him; that indomitable will. Yuki knew very well that he, himself would crumple like cheesecloth under an anvil at Akito's merest whisper of annoyance.

 

“Yume-hime...that's quite enough, please.”

 

Count D's calm voice carried a sense of power that jerked Yuki's attention fully to him. The Count was standing primly over Akito, folded arms tucked into the sleeves of his crimson robe, facing the angry cat-turned-girl; completely unruffled by her bloody appearance. He glanced down once at the injured Clan Head, two-colored eyes going artic-cold for the briefest of moments before he gazed back up at her with a once more serene expression.

 

Yume stared at him, her rage gradually dying down to mere disappointment. She slowly bowed her head; in agreement, and greeting--never submission. “Count. I was wondering when you would come for me.” Her eyes lingered ferally on the unconscious Akito.

 

He smiled that enigmatic smile, two-colored eyes giving nothing away of his true emotions. “Are you ready to come home yet, Yume-hime?”

 

Obsidian eyes snapped to the Count's face, anger and defiance strong in them. She looked over to Kyo, where Yuki was slowly, carefully trying to help him to his feet. So far he'd only managed to keep his cousin upright on his knees. Kyo seemed surprisingly heavy; Yuki didn't remember ever having this much trouble when throwing his cousin about in their fights... Then Yume stared in silence at the Count.

 

Count D slowly nodded, sadness touching his face. “I...see. So, you have chosen.”

 

She nodded, once and sharply; then waited expectantly, never blinking. Count D sighed in resignation, then brought his hands out of his sleeves and turned to Kyo and Yuki, ignoring the unconscious Akito to walk gracefully over to them. He bent down enough to be eye-to-eye with Kyo, hands braced on his knees.

 

Staring into the Cat-cursed boy's dilated, wandering eyes, the Count sighed again as Kyo tried to focus on him. Yuki, beginning to be a bit worried, did his best to stabilize the wobbly cat, reaching one hand over to almost gently brace his chin and aim his face at the Count. It seemed Kyo was having difficulty keeping his neck stiff enough to support his head. The way those annoying lights were still going off behind Yuki's own eyes, he once again thought it rather a wonder the cat was conscious at all--never mind the concussion!

 

When it seemed he had as much of Kyo's attention as the boy could focus, the Count's smile came back--this time, more gentle than mysterious. “Hello, Kyo Sohma; bearer of the spirit of the Cat from the story of the Chinese Zodiac. I am Count D.”

 

That registered with Kyo. Yuki felt the cat's shoulders stiffen under his arm as he started, dilated red eyes trying desperately to focus properly on this stranger who knew of his curse.

 

“It's--all right, I think,” Yuki whispered in Kyo's ear. “He's--a friend of Yume's.” Violet eyes stayed fixed on the Count as the rat tried to reassure his groggy cousin, even though he himself was in rather desperate need of assurance.

 

“Yume-hime tells me she has chosen you to be her Master. I can see that you are uniquely qualified to understand her needs...” The amethyst eye and the gold crinkled with amusement as the Count's smile deepened for a moment. “The contract that exists between you and Yume-hime is unwritten...as it always is with her.” He sighed softly once more in mixed fondness and vexation, glancing over at the now-calm human-shaped cat for a brief moment. “As you have been caring properly for her for some time now, I will not insist on a written contract. Not that she'd allow it, anyway...” That last was mumbled too softly for normal human ears, as Count D briefly rolled his eyes heavenwards; Kyo and Yuki both just barely made it out with their curse-enhanced hearing.

 

Shaking his head slightly, Count D gave Kyo a sober look, holding his unblinking gaze. “Kyo-kun. Certain things must change, if Yume-hime is to continue to stay with you. I do know quite a bit about your family's curse...” The two-colored eyes darkened, knowledge and something else coming to the fore. Kyo had frozen so still, he might be made of stone. He was helpless to break that two-colored gaze as Count D went on in a voice that resonated with a power that gripped their curse animals in thrall within their souls. “The foolishness of generations must end. I will not tolerate Yume-hime being hurt; not even indirectly, through you. That One--“ Both boys twitched at the sudden, venomous emphasis put on those two words, as all three glanced briefly towards Akito, “--shall have no control over you, from this day on. If he tries to harm you...I will allow Yume-hime to do as she wishes. If her efforts should fail to be enough, then I will deal with him.”

 

The cold expression that came over the Count's face froze Kyo and Yuki all the way to the marrow of their bones. The sense of Power that suddenly rolled off of him to bathe them in its strength calmed the restless animal spirits within them, even as it burned away any and all traces of their link to Akito. The odd, almost queasy emptiness where that link had been for all of their lives left Yuki and Kyo upright only because they were propped against each other. Yuki couldn't help but cling to his supposed nemesis as the world--wavered about him, for a moment. Kyo's hands had come up to rather weakly grip at his cousin's arm; clinging back with equal disorientation.

 

“...Are you...a god...?”

 

Kyo's hoarse, whisper-soft question made Yuki flinch, even as his wilting neck-hairs stood straight out once more. Both boys stared wide-eyed and frightened at Count D, hanging on his answer.

 

The coldness disappeared as if it had never been, replaced by a beaming smile and an oddly annoying, twittering laugh like birdsong. Count D appeared greatly amused by the question. “Oh, you silly boy! Such a thing to ask...!” One delicate, graceful hand rose to cover his mouth as the Count chortled softly. He stood straight and turned back to Yume, walking over to speak quietly with her for a moment.

 

Yuki noticed the Count had not answered Kyo's question. He paled even further, swallowing heavily as he interpreted that to mean yes, Count D was some sort of god. Much more of one than Akito, who was merely a human born under a curse. By the way Kyo was shivering, red eyes riveted to the Count, Yuki decided his cousin thought the same.

 

The rat's eyes were drawn unwillingly to Akito, sprawled so still there on the floor. Looking closely, Yuki could make out the long rents in the front of the Clan Head's half-open robe, and the bright red marring the skin of his chest as it slowly rose and fell with his shallow breaths. The bloodstain didn't seem to be growing; so he probably wasn't bleeding to death where he lay. Yuki swallowed a lump of pure fear and started trying to convince himself that he really should go over there, and check on Akito. He didn't succeed; his body wouldn't move any closer to Count D on just his own, weak will.

 

The cat was wavering more and more under his supporting arm, and a look at Kyo's face with its quickly glazing red eyes told him that his cousin was going to be unconscious soon. With a concussion, that wasn't a good thing; Yuki decided with relief that the cat needed him more than Akito did. He began talking, softly, pulling Kyo's face around by the chin to look into those glazing red eyes; trying to keep his annoying cousin talking and awake. Yuki wasn't even certain of what he was saying to the cat; the words flowed out how they willed. He just knew he had to keep Kyo conscious. It didn't seem like Kyo was all that able to understand him at the moment, anyway; the red of his eyes had been all but swallowed by black pupil, and he just couldn't seem to focus on anything around him.

 

Yume was suddenly at Yuki's shoulder, peering in concern at Kyo. The rat started from his efforts to keep Kyo awake, looking about for Count D; but the--god--had disappeared. Feeling like he'd never stop shivering, Yuki resolutely pushed his worries about the Count away.

 

“Yume--I need to go get Hatori, for Kyo; and...and for Akito.”

 

The girl nodded, serious obsidian eyes boring into the rat's for a moment. Then she settled herself to kneel on Kyo's other side, readily slipping her arm about his shoulders even as Yuki withdrew his. The rat rose unsteadily to his feet, unable to resist the urge to glance frequently about himself into the room's overwhelming shadows, and went off in search of the Dragon-cursed doctor. He wasn't certain just what he was going to tell Hatori; maybe he'd say nothing at all, other than that Akito and Kyo were in need of his services. Unfortunately, Hatori would likely assume that Kyo had injured Akito; but Yuki would deal with that when and if it happened. After all, Hatori knew first-hand just how difficult it was for one of them to merely talk back to Akito, much less physically hurt him.

 

He might assume Yume had done it, if she looked like a cat to his eyes. Which was the truth, after all...but there was no way Yuki would be a party to having Yume punished for defending Kyo! Especially as she seemed to have her own guardian deity. Yuki did not want Count D to become...annoyed...with him; or even Hatori, for all he wasn't all that fond of his older cousin and fellow Zodiac-cursed. It wasn't really Hatori's fault that the dragon wasn't able to stand up to Akito any better than any of the rest of them, after all. And...reluctant memories played before Yuki's eyes; Hatori had managed to hold Akito back at least a time or two, in Yuki's defense.

 

There was no telling what the Count could do to them; maybe he could make their curse even more horrible than it was--he might lock them in their animal forms permanently; or maybe give them the minds of those animals--! Who knew how powerful the Count really was?!

 

Yuki all but dragged a surprised and quickly worried Hatori back to Akito's audience room. The doctor had been reluctant at first, when all Yuki told him was that Kyo needed his skills; he'd assumed the boys had merely had another of their chronic fights, and Yuki had perhaps gone a bit farther in defeating his cousin than he'd meant. Adding that Akito was injured as well had gotten Hatori's sudden, complete attention. Yuki had refused to elaborate, simply insisting the doctor hurry. It was the muted terror in the boy's eyes had finally stifled his questions and hurried him along. Yuki wasn't one to panic, as a rule.

 

Hatori certainly didn't expect to find an unconscious Clan Head, with what looked like scratches from the largest claws Hatori could never have imagined on his chest--and a thoroughly concussed Kyo, with two loose teeth, a split lip, and some minor friction burns on his shoulder...and he certainly didn't expect to see a strange girl in the room with his cursed patients. A girl Yuki seemed to know and easily accept, as he thanked her politely for waiting. A girl who was managing to hold the Cat-cursed boy upright by both her arms wrapped firmly about him--

 

--without triggering his curse.

 

Naturally, Hatori spent a couple moments staring dumbfounded at this tableau. Yuki's snapping his name with anger in his tone finally broke the dragon out of the spell he seemed to be under, causing him to shake his head and jerk his attention to the work at hand.

 

The doctor had attended to his foremost duty first, heading straight for Akito. Yuki had glared at him when he looked up from those long, barely scabbed-over wounds to Kyo; the rat had stepped firmly between the doctor's shocked gaze and the cat, face thunderous--and clearly ready to defend his so-hated cousin, as he told the doctor flat out that Kyo didn't do it. Hatori had blinked, shock clear on his normally frozen expression for a moment before he turned back to finish cleaning and bandaging Akito's chest. He wasn't certain he really wanted to know what had happened...especially as it wasn't raining out, so removing Kyo's bracelet wouldn't have transformed the boy into--that other form. The one with the huge claws; that could so easily do what had been done to Akito's chest.

 

But--it wasn't raining.

 

Yuki didn't let the dragon pick Akito up to carry him off to his futon when he was done treating the Clan Head; the rat insisted the doctor check on Kyo first, physically getting in his way--actually grabbing Hatori's wrist while glaring into the doctor's good gray-green eye. Seeing the unusual determination in the rat's expression, the dragon sighed and relented, knowing Akito would be all right for at least the few minutes Kyo would need.

 

Hatori approached the strange girl and Kyo with more than a bit of trepidation, Yuki impatiently urging him on. The rat finally let out an exasperated, half-growl of a breath, and introduced Yume to him.

 

Hatori stared at Yuki, one eyebrow raised. “...Yume.” His eye twitched, slightly, just once. He'd been to Shigure's house once recently, and seen the long-haired black cat now seeming to be permanently living there. “Kyo's...new...cat.”

 

Yuki nodded solemnly, never breaking eye contact. “Yes.”

 

Hatori blinked, feeling like his mind was being wrapped in numbing cotton. It would certainly explain why Kyo wasn't transforming... He decided after a couple moments of thought that the circumstances could be sorted out later--he had a patient to attend to, and then Akito to get settled into bed. He pushed his confusion from his mind and concentrated on finding the extent of Kyo's injuries.

 

The loosened teeth would stay or fall out on their own; there was nothing to be done about them just yet, other than Kyo's avoiding eating food that was too hard, or tough to chew. The friction burns were cleaned and dressed with proper ointment and bandaging, and another strip of bandage was wrapped about the boy's head to hold a medicated pad over the still sluggishly bleeding contusion to his temple. Hatori didn't think the cat's skull was cracked, but made a note to himself to get an X-ray of the area first thing in the morning in case of a hairline fracture. The split lip required two stitches; Yuki held the pen-light for him to see by. All in all, Kyo had gotten off quite lightly, considering some of the injuries Hatori had treated him for through the years. Several of his past fights with Yuki had left him worse off. The concussion was really the only worrisome thing.

 

Kyo did his best to stay conscious through it all, though the effort it took was obvious. He'd suffered at least some memory loss, that might or might not return; he couldn't quite seem to remember just how he'd gotten injured...or even how he'd come to be at the Main House. He remembered that he was scheduled to come--which was news to Hatori; the boy just couldn't remember the trip, or what had happened once he got there. The boy also seemed rather--unstable, emotionally; actual tears ran from his tightly closed eyes at one point, as the girl Yuki claimed was Kyo's cat hugged him tightly to her. His eyes were quite dilated, but he otherwise seemed able to see all right, if still in multiples; and his balance was off, but not greatly so. His breathing seemed fine.

 

Hatori decided it wasn't the worst concussion his tempestuous young cousin had ever suffered; which absently muttered comment drew a startled look from Yuki, and a soft, decidedly feline hiss from Yume. He prescribed bed-rest for a week, figuring Kyo might be kept down for at least the first day, with Yuki--and Yume, apparently--trying their best to restrain him. He knew Shigure would be no help whatsoever; the dog would likely incite Kyo to be on his feet in mere hours, with his irritating behavior.

 

The dragon never did get a satisfactory explanation of Yume; none of the family did. No one not of the family was ever privileged to even suspect Kyo's pet was anything but an ordinary--well, extraordinary--cat. Neither Kyo nor Yuki would ever explain the black-haired young woman who sometimes showed up in place of the long-haired black cat; they were left to form their own conclusions. Not many of the family saw her; and never off Sohma property. Kyo, and sometimes Yuki, were the only ones ever to see Yume as human anywhere but on Sohma property.

 

Shigure was only allowed to see her as human when Yume felt he needed chastising--which was at least once a day, much to the disgust of her and the boys. The dog quickly learned a great deal of respect her too-sharp claws and blinding speed in using them. The boys weren't certain which was worse--Shigure's enjoyment of teasing Yume just to the point of ruined clothing, or Yume's satisfaction at indecently shredding the perverted writer's robe. Yuki and Kyo quickly and wordlessly agreed on a standard routine--whichever was closest would whip a hand up over Tohru's innocent eyes, while the other quickly booted the pervert from the room.

 

Hatori saw a human Yume a few times, when he came to check on Kyo or Yuki--who were getting along remarkably well. The first time occurred as he was leaving after treating Yuki for a chill. The strange girl from Akito's audience room was standing partly in the shadows off to his side as he was getting ready to leave, her black-as-night hair and clothing seeming part of the dark. His eye had been caught by her too-pale face that seemed to float disembodied in the blackness.

 

She'd held his eyes for a moment, unblinking; then given him a nod of acknowledgement. After that she'd seemed to disappear, swallowed by the shadows, leaving a startled and confused dragon to stare after her. He'd not noticed the long-haired black cat as she sauntered casually out from behind the couch and off into the depths of the house.

 

Amazingly enough, Ayame was never told by Hatori or Shigure about Kyo's human-seeming cat; but the attention he showered on her, overwhelming as it could be, managed to somehow appeal to her. On a limited basis, of course. He was gifted with seeing a human Yume exactly once; she smiled and draped both arms about his neck, touching noses with him in a feline `kiss'. She then grabbed his hands and spun the stunned snake through a couple of energetic dance twirls before seemingly disappearing with a low, throaty laugh. The snake never thought to look downwards, or he'd have seen the black cat strutting haughtily away. Ayame never mentioned the episode, though he did walk around in something of a daze for weeks afterwards. He never connected the strange girl with the black-haired cat with the too-knowing eyes, though.

 

When a smirking Kyo offered to Yume that he could let Ayame `cat-sit' while he went on a class trip, he only narrowly escaped multiple perforations by twenty extremely sharp feline claws. And not just because he'd implied he would try to leave her behind. Too much Ayame is just--too much!!

 

A distinctly Black Hatsuharu found himself, in his anger at a self-perceived insult of Kyo's towards `his precious' Yuki, nose-to-nose with a snarlingly furious young woman with quite respectably long and undeniably sharp claws gracing her fingertips. The sudden, unmistakable threat of being thoroughly shredded into bovine confetti instantly quelled his raging emotions, dumping his psyche unceremoniously into White mode. Thus a much calmer Hatsuharu found himself inexplicably staring into the angriest, most bloodthirsty seeming pair of obsidian eyes his mind's eye had never imagined in his whole, too-short life.

 

Black Haru never did come out to `play' at Shigure's house, after that.

 

Hiro never saw a human Yume. In his opinion, he was entirely too well-acquainted with Kyo's hairy little Cuisinart, who took every opportunity to soundly chastise the Ram-cursed boy's habitual sardonic commentary with those sharp little claws of hers. The ram usually left Shigure's house with a minimum of four brand-new Band-Aids somewhere on his person--the placement depending on just how annoying he'd been. The first time, the poor ram couldn't sit comfortably for a week. Hiro eventually learned to watch his mouth--at least around Kyo, as Yume could be reliably counted on to turn up if Kyo was anywhere in the vicinity.

 

Kisa, sweet as Tohru and rather feline in nature herself thanks to the curse of the Tiger's spirit, saw a human Yume nearly every time she visited. The two never seemed to need words to communicate; body language and eye contact seemed to convey everything they needed to say to each other. It was rather disconcerting to everyone else but Kyo, who, as the Cat-cursed, had no trouble understanding the two girls. The quiet little tiger rarely saw the black-haired cat, but still was easily able to make the connection as to who Kyo's mysterious new protector was. She did try to tell Hiro to watch what he said...she sighed and shook her head with mild exasperation every time he found himself scratched, trying to stifle her giggles.

 

Momiji only knew that Kyo's new pet did not seem to like him...and her unblinking feline gaze drove the Rabbit's spirit within him to distraction with the conviction that she was going to eat him. He usually tried to keep Tohru between him and Yume; or when Tohru wasn't available, he'd use Yuki as his `shield'. He tried keeping Kyo between him and the intimidating little predator only once. Having his Cat-cursed cousin literally fall over laughing at him proved to his rattled nerves that Kyo was no protection whatsoever. Poor Momiji had no other way of knowing Yume merely thought him amusing, not edible. He did try to explain her game to the boy, but the Rabbit's spirit was having none of it. So whenever Kyo felt the urge to tease with his younger cousin in a big-brotherly manner as he always did with Momiji, he had to make certain Yume stayed out of the room so she didn't give the rabbit a heart attack.

 

Ritsu, Rin, and Kureno didn't ever come to Shigure's house, at least not while Kyo and Yume were also there. These three didn't even hear stories about the human-cat; those that knew about her refused to talk about Yume to anyone they didn't know for a fact had seen her as human, fearing they'd be declared insane, even by their fellow Zodiac-cursed kin.

 

Kagura received some nasty scratches from the `vicious little monster' every single time she man-handled Kyo. If the Boar-cursed girl gave Kyo a black eye, her cheek would sport a red-tinged bandage for a couple of weeks. A serious sprain to the Cat-cursed boy garnered a minimum of ten stitches for the Boar-cursed girl. Every time Kagura swung Kyo around like a rag doll, she was forced to replace pretty much the entire outfit she wore that day--it would be guaranteed irreparable.

 

Even the too-stubborn Kagura eventually got the message, and after a while Kyo no longer flew into an immediate panic at the mere thought of her visiting. Before long, the two were actually able to hold an entire conversation without either's temper blowing up. Yume being planted firmly in Kyo's lap during discussions helped immensely. In due time, their communication resulted in a true friendship between them...and Kagura's finally realizing that her chosen fiancé maybe, just maybe, wasn't the one for her after all. He didn't like the same things she did; didn't think the same way...and didn't feel the same way for her as she'd tried so hard to feel about him. With her ferocious over-reactions forcibly controlled by Yume's necessarily rough `training', Kagura was able to consciously see what everyone else already knew--it wasn't her that Kyo had finally fallen for...and Kagura didn't really love Kyo, not in that way. She'd been forcing herself as much as him.

 

Kyo's regular new-moon visits to the Main House stopped. He went one time, the first new moon after `the incident', only to be turned away at the front gate; Akito “didn't wish to sully himself with the cat's presence.” His brand-new terror of the black-haired `demoness' who now guarded Kyo from harm went tactfully unmentioned by anyone. Akito only saw Yume, in any form, one more time...on the same day that Yuki received the greatest shock of his life.

 

-.-.-.-

 

<g> One more chapter for wrap up! I missed being under 10,000 words, but at least it'll be under 25,000... ::sigh:: If I could just get rid of this un-men-tion-a-bl e sinus infection that popped up in the middle of the cold the kids on the my bus gave me last week, I'd be a happier camper. Bleaahh!