Fumei no Musubi
Chapter Twelve 
by Ina-chan
First Posted Online: April 21, 2004
History: Sequel to Jyuunishi no Enkei Monogatari

    /"I should hate you......... Everyone says that I should hate you.......... You're the most infuriating person in the world, and you brought out the worst in me......... I should hate you......... Everyone says that we're destined to hate each other, after all... but still... I..."/

    BEEEEEEEEEEEEP!

    Crimson  eyes snapped open in surprise at the sudden insistent beeping of the electronic pump. Kyou let out a groan of protest as he dragged himself off his seat and tried to rub the sleep off his eyes. He let out another groan as he realized that the feeding pump was just about finished. He then turned off the machine and glared at it condescendingly, "Stupid demon pump."

    Of all the tubes and machines that Hatori taught them to manipulate, it was the feeding tube that he probably hated the most... next to the tracheal tube that is. It's just unnatural to puncture holes in places in the human body where there shouldn't be any... not to mention gross! He glared at his sleeping cousin as he donned a pair of gloves and dug through the blankets and Yuki's clothes to detach the tube from his cousin's body, "UGH! K'so nezumi. You better be grateful when you wake up. You owe me big for the number of times I had to do this for you."

    /Oh, stop squealing like a girl./

    "You shut up," Kyou shot back. He surveyed the damage and let out a sigh of relief upon realizing that there was no need to clean the surrounding areas of the artificial orifice. He then detached, sealed and reburied the disgusting thing under Yuki's clothes and blankets. Out of sight, out of mind. He chanted in his head silently, and silently wished for the umpteenth time that if this was to ever happen to him for someone to grab a gun and just put him out of his misery. With another moan of  disgust, dumped his gloves and the disposable tubing he removed on a nearby waste-bin. God, how he hated this, "I really hate you, you know." He announced half-heartedly with another glare at his cousin... then froze. 

    A puzzled frown lined the cat's forehead as something flickered at the back of his mind just as he said those words... 

    Fragments of a memory? Of a dream? Of a memory of a dream? A strange sense of urgency washed over him... as if he  was supposed to remember something important. Whatever it was, it seemed like only an arm length away... but for some reason, he still can't grasp the proverbial brass ring, despite doubling his efforts to dig into his brain. 

    Finally, he mentally shrugged and gave up. He picked up the evening newspaper as he passed by the side table on his way to his seat and scanned the headlines to distract himself from the memory of his recent task, "It seems like 200 employees from the Asada company will be laid off because of that bird flu scandal. Gah, how depressing," He scanned down the page to look for a more interesting story, "Ah... this is something you'll be interested in..." 

    The newspaper rustled as the young man holding it leafed to the page he was looking for.  He looked up and glanced at the prone figure across him before reading the opening paragraph of the news item, "Saga, Kyodo. Researchers at Saga University's Institute of Ocean Energy have begun extracting tiny amounts of lithium from seawater -- at a rate of 1 gram per day -- and hope to be the first in the world to commercialize the process... Heh. That's pretty amazing that you can still find use in sea water like that, considering all the crap that's dumped in it now." 

     He turned back to his companion, as if expecting an answer. The sound of beeping monitors amidst the silence of the room was his only reply. The young man frowned as he threw the newspaper on the floor and shifted on his seat. He then raked his fingers through his fiery orange hair in annoyance, "This is stupid. Frankly I don't know why I'm doing this."

    /Because Tooru will worry herself to death and Kagura will kick your ass/ came the automatic answer from the back of his mind, an angry vein throbbed on his forehead as he glared at his cousin's sleeping figure. 

    "Who asked you?" He muttered aloud as he crossed his arms over his chest, "Even when you're like this, you're still a big pain the the ass."

    /And I suppose you think that being like this is like some sort of vacation? My life must have sunk even lower when it means that I have to depend on you for company. Idiot./

    "You ungrateful little..." The young man growled, "You're crazy if you think people will continue to cater you for long with that attitude."

    /I'M crazy? I'm not the one who's imagining a conversation with a vegetable./

    "........." He frowned again before letting out an irritated growl, "Dammit! Am I this much of an idiot. I can't even win an argument with you that I'm making up myself." He stood up and pointed a condescending finger at his sleeping cousin, "Don't you dare say it!"

    "Baka neko."

    Kyou blinked at the spoken reply. He stared at the other figure in the room but there was no indication of his companion of even stirring from his deep sleep. 

    Amused giggles tinkled like silver bells from behind him, "It's nice to see that you're having fun during your watch." 

    He slowly turned and saw his wife watching him in pure amusement. A deep embarrassed flush immediately made its way to his face, "H-how long have you been standing there?"

    "Just now. We came back from our walk. Tooru-kun was on her way with me, but Momi-chan commandeered her away because Hatori-niichan wanted to see her. She'll be a while, but I think Momi-chan will come to replace you in her stead as soon as he can. But I figured that Yuki-rin might as well visit Papa for a little bit before Mama gives Yuki-rin her bath," Kagura replied as stepped closer and with napping bundle inside the kangaroo carrier on her chest, "Isn't that right, sweetie. Yuki-rin wants to give her Papa a kiss."

    Kyou frowned at his wife, "I really wish that you'd stop calling her that."

    "Did you hear that Yuki-rin? Papa is regretting giving you your name. Papa is such a silly baka neko, isn't he?" Kagura shifted so that her husband could have a better view of her daughter

    The infant stretched in protest, her delicate face crumpling irritably in her sleep, as if imitating her father's expression. Kyou's face softened instantly as he bent down to kiss away the lines on his daughter's forehead. The baby immediately relaxed and let out a contented sigh before settling back on her mother's chest. 

    Kyou, then, gave his wife a light peck on the lips in greeting, "How was your walk?"

    "It was good," Kagura replied, her mischievous smile unwavering, "Though probably not as exciting as your argument with Yun-chan."

    "Shut up," The young man countered half-heartedly, "It's just so damned boring here. What else do you expect me to do?"

    "Do you want to switch?" the young woman offered, "I'll stay until Momi-chan comes, and you give Yukino a bath."

    "Nah, it's fine. I'll stay, you go," Kyou waved her away, as he took his seat once again, "It's almost time for her feeding anyway, so you might as well take her. I'll come as soon as Momiji arrives."

    "Okay, I'll see you in a little bit," Kagura said as she bent down to give him a quick peck on the cheek, she then took a few steps closer to the sleeping mouse and brushed her hand on the younger man's forehead affectionately, "I'll see you later as well, Yun-chan. Don't be too hard on Kyou, now. You know how annoying he can get when he sulks."

    "Will you please just get out of here?" Kyou growled at her in a huff

    The young woman simply let out another round of laughter before making her way out of the door, leaving her husband alone with his thoughts and their sleeping cousin once again. He idly watched his cousin's chest rise and fall in time with the monotonous beat of the respirator and wondered for the millionth time at how one can easily be suddenly suckered punch with life's mysterious inexplicable ironies. Never in a million years that he expected himself in this situation... being one of the caretakers of the person he used to hate the most. 

    Though he and Yuki had grudgingly put aside their differences and set an uncomfortable truce a long time ago, it wasn't really until the recent birth of his daughter that he finally realized that whatever ill feelings he harbored toward his cousin all these years...  they were all long dead and buried. Possibly even as far back as high school, when Tooru's influence on their lives became more and more apparent to the point of it becoming as much as their need for the air that they breathe. 

    He'd come to realize a great number of things. Haru even commented once that it seemed as if Kyou had matured an entire lifetime in a span of a few months. Back when he was younger, he lost count of the number of times in the past that he wished Yuki to suddenly keel over and die. So it was natural that when the moment that  wish almost became an apparent reality, he couldn't help but have that guilty feeling that it was somehow all his fault. Like his childhood prayers were were finally being answered and it was too late to take it back. That's why he couldn't get himself to face Yuki the first couple of weeks after his cousin collapsed despite Kagura's urgings... and threats. 

    When Shigure pointed out a possible consequence of Yuki's death, that guilt was replaced by confounding fear. The cat and the mouse was destined to hate each other... he couldn't bear the idea of his child bearing the curse of the Mouse Zodiac... not in so much as the curse itself... but the thought of the unfounded hate he invested on Yuki when he was young, was going to be reflected to him by his own child... It seemed like a well-deserved ironic punishment, didn't it?  

    Then that day came... the time of his daughter's birth. With Kagura going into labour two months pre-mature in synch with Yuki sudden physical deterioration,  his fear grew to immense proportions that it almost drove him insane. When Hatori approached him to tell him about more impending complications than the possibility of the curse... that is, curse or no curse, there was a possibility that he was in the verge of loosing both his wife and child... He never felt anything like it. Even if he were to receive all the beatings and punishment Yuki had given him when they were younger all at once, nothing could compare to what he felt when Hatori told him that.

   A painful numbness.

    It was a worse feeling than hate or rage or fear. To sit there, unable to do anything but watch and wait helplessly. He remembered, with a great measure of self-disgust, when he passively made a mental list of the different options available on how to kill himself if his family died.

    It was only then that he came to realize, that despite everything that was said and done... it was that same hatred for Yuki that saved him back then. It was an unhealthy defense mechanism, but somehow... clinging desperately to his hate for Yuki was the only thing that kept him from drowning into that numbing cold sea of despair. He also realized that couldn't imagine continuing to live his life without Yuki, either.  

    "I'm such a sucker for punishment," Kyou closed his eyes, leaned back on his seat and sighed tiredly, "I'm probably some kind of emotional masochist, aren't I?" 

    "Iie, just a baka neko. I really don't understand you at all."

    "And what exactly do you mean by that?" Kyou let out another tired sigh before opening his eyes to face his cousin, only for his eyes to widen in shock as the sight in front of him registered in his mind. Instead of seeing his Yuki asleep in bed, he found himself face-to-face with a young man staring at him with a look of utter exasperation on his face, "What the...!?!"

    "Why you always think that you're the sad little victim of an entire world plotting against you is just beyond me," the young man continued as he rested his chin on his knuckles, while giving the other occupant of the room with a sardonic smile, "when you have so many people around you who supports you whole heartedly." 

     Kyou gaped at the figure, speechless. The person sitting in front of him had some of his cousin's familiar features. He shared Yuki's aura, but at the same time, he knew that it wasn't Yuki. The identical arrogant gray eyes didn't seem to hold the same coldness, his gray hair was cut differently... shorter, and his profile seemed to have reverted back to his cousin's younger... softer... effeminate features... making him look like some kind of alternate version of Yuki's 16-year-old self. Random thoughts quickly ran through his mind. Was he dreaming? Was he going crazy?  Who the hell is this guy? Where the hell is Yuki? 

     Then Yuki who was not Yuki stood up and made his way towards Kyou. Kyou started to rise in alarm, only to realize that he lost his ability to move. His throat felt painfully dry and found that he couldn't even manage to call out for help. He could only watch in frozen silence as Yuki who was not Yuki stopped in front of him and leaned over, and trapped him into his seat and continued to lean closer to invade his personal space. It was as if he was being held in place by some kind of invisible force or magic spell.

     But for some odd reason, he didn't feel angry or frightened. Just the strange, almost excited hammering of his heart. The other young man was so close that Kyou could feel their breaths mingle. He held his breath as he watched the other young slowly raise a hand, as if to brush the strands of hair covering his eyes, and...

    ...flick him painfully on the forehead.

    "ITTAI!!! What the hell did you do that for!?!?" Kyou yelled angrily, the spell instantly broken

    "Well, that snapped you out of it. If you don't start acting seriously we'll never get this finished," Yuki who was not Yuki replied with a satisfied look as he settled a respectable distance away and waved at the sketchbook in his hand

    Kyou suddenly felt himself boil at his companion's arrogance, "I don't know what games you're playing. But if you pull a stunt like that try to kiss me again, I'm going to rip your head off."

    "Kiss you!?!" The other boy sputtered in surprise before breaking into a peal of amused chuckles as he made some final strokes on his sketch pad, "Don't be gross baka neko. Besides, I don't kiss immature little girls like you."

    "Who the hell are you calling a little girl, k'so nezumi!" Kyou bristled angrily, "I'm twice the man you are!"

    "Well considering how much of a tomboy you are, I suppose you're probably right," The boy countered without missing a beat as he handed the sketchbook to Kyou, "That's the best I can do with that sour expression you have on. If you ever want to have a beautiful portrait to give to your precious Asano-sama, the least thing you can do is learn to smile at least."

    Kyou instinctively  grabbed the piece or paper in front of him with a huff, only to once again freeze in surprise at the sight of the image that was supposedly to be his. He hands started to tremble in shock as he stared back at the unfinished portrait of a pouting, angry looking teenaged girl glaring back at him.

   "Hey... are you okay?"

   Kyou looked up to see Yuki who wasn't Yuki watching him in concern. What the hell is going on here? This girl can't be me... who the hell is this guy?

   "Kyoko? Hey, what's wrong with you?"

    Then... something from the back of his mind flickered, as if a light switch was turned on to reveal a long forgotten memory. Before everything around him was engulfed in darkness, "...Yuuta..."   

 *******

   "THEY WERE WHAT!?!!?"

   Shigure flinched at his cousin's surprised outburst before breaking into an amused smirk, "I don't know the whole story, but according to Iwaku-san's notes that Noriko-san collected, Iwaku-san suspected that Souma Yuuta and Souma Kyoko were lovers... or at least on the verge of becoming one."

   "Maa, maa... Kyonkichi and Yuki would have a fit, if they ever found out that one of our ancestral cat and mouse incarnations actually had a relationship like that," Ayame laughed gaily as he dangled his feet childishly at the edge of Hatori's open engawa

    "To be fair," The novelist interjected, "Just because we share the same curse with some of our ancestral jyuunishi, it doesn't mean that they're the same as us. Apparently, the Meiji Era's snake was a notorious bridal training teacher." 

    "Eh? How utterly boring!" The snake scoffed, feeling slightly offended

    "Well, she did strike fear in the hearts of many innocent young maidens," Shigure offered helpfully

    "But still, it would have been nice to know more about how the past jyuunishi lived, ne?"

   "Yes, but our family is a poor historian when it comes to the earlier jyuunishi's personal lives," Shigure commented cryptically as he nursed the cup of tea in his hands, "We're particularly lucky with this generation because Iwaku-san made written accounts that survived all these years."

     "I don't understand why you and Tori-san were keeping all this to yourselves all this time," Ayame said quietly with a hint of injury in his voice

   The dog looked away and focused on staring ahead of him, "You'll find out everything after this. Though, I'm not sure if you'll thank me or hate me for getting you and Tooru-kun involved."

    A furrow marred the snake's delicate features, but bit his tongue to keep the retort trying to make its way from his lips at bay. At least until after Shigure tells the whole story. To be quite honest, he didn't know how to feel at the moment. Beneath his calm and light-hearted exterior, a storm of emotions has been brewing and struggling set free... from his frustration with Yuki's illness to being left out from whatever secrets Shigure and Hatori were keeping... he didn't know what to feel first. And he was getting tired of all of this...

    "So... what's the story that led to Yuuta-kun and Kyoko-chan's illicit love affair," Ayame blurted out lightly, attempting to push the dark feelings away once again

    "Hnnn... I don't know exactly how illicit it was. Even Iwaku-san didn't know exactly what happened. Yuuta-san, like all the mouse zodiac, was blessed with an abundance of god-given talents and caught the attention of the current Souma Clan head. Since the Clan head had no male heirs, the family made great efforts to groom him as the next Clan leader. He was put under strict instruction ever since he was two years old."

    "It would seem that regardless of what generation... the Mouse always has it tough."

    "Eventually, he surpassed all his teachers and by the time he was fourteen, Yuuta-san was given the responsibility of tutoring the Souma Master's younger daughters... specifically the youngest, Akiko-san, who was around ten-years-old at the time. Though there was never any official announcements, mainly because Yuuta-san was jyuunishi and would never be able to sire heirs with a woman outside the jyuunishi circle. Nonetheless, everyone already assumed that it would be a matter of time before the Clan Head would announce Yuuta's adoption to the main family branch, and his betrothal to Souma Akiko."

*******

    "Huaaaa!!! Hurry! Hurry! Yuuta-sama's walking down the pathway with Iwaku-sensei!"

    "He's so good-looking! Not to mention smart!"

    "I heard Asano-sensei say that its just a matter of time before he teaches everything he knows to Yuuta-sama."

    "Heeh... no wonder the Master favours him so much. Akiko-sama will grow up to be a very beautiful girl as well. The two of them would be a perfect match."

    "If it's Akiko-sama, I don't mind loosing to her at all. Yuuta-sama only deserves to be with the very best! He's special!"

    "Of course! He is the rat after all. My mother said that children born under the sign of the rat are very special."

    Suddenly, the thunderous sound of a piece of heavy metal slamming against wood rang through the four corners of the room. The three girls crowding against the window spun around to see a very angry looking young girl with fiery orange braids glaring at the kanzan she threw against the table in front of her. "You're wrong. There's nothing special about him at all. The rat is a cunning and deceitful liar. He's nothing more but a spoiled brat that everyone caters to."

    "AAAAAH! How dare you say something like that about Yuuta-sama!"

    "The one who's bad is a crass cat-child like you!"

    One of the girls stepped away from the group and crossed her arms to face the younger girl, "You're just jealous because while everyone knows while children born under the sign of the rat are special, children born under the sign of the cat will never amount to anything. You can't even make a simple flower arrangement."

    The girl's crimson eyes flashed angrily as her fingers wrapped around a pair of shears... 

*******

    "Hnnn... the situation sounds different, but the circumstances somehow feels the same," Ayame muttered under his breath

    "Assumptions don't necessarily mean that it was the truth," Shigure reminded his cousin before continuing with his story, "Around that time, the Meiji government started encouraging to send intelligent young minds to study abroad. It was the trend to send sons of rich families to England or Germany to study western culture and technology. Yuuta-san was accepted to a medical school in Germany when he was sixteen years old. It was a great honour, thus, the Clan Head allowed it with his full blessing."

     "If that was the case, how did Kyoko-chan come into the picture?"

    "Kyoko is the niece of Souma Takako, who also happens to be the Ox zodiac. Iwaku-san was Yuuta-san's official guardian, but he spent most of his adult life traveling so Takako-san was actually the one who raised Yuuta-san from childhood. Meanwhile, Kyoko-san's parents died when she was ten, and was put under Takako-san's care when Yuuta-san was around twelve or thirteen." 

*******

    She reached out for the last mochi on the plate, only to have her small fingers graze against a slightly hand already claiming the last piece. Her hand shrank back automatically, as if scalded. Every strand of hair in her body bristled as she glared at the older boy across her, who was watching her reaction in complete beguilement, "What's so funny?"

    "You really are like a cat," The boy laughed, "You jump around skittishly on the slightest things."

    "Only because I don't like your face, I don't like you hanging around me..." The gir hissed angrily, "I just don't like you!" 

    "Maa, I guess that will be a problem, since you will be living with me and Taka until you're married off," The boy replied tactlessly with a thoughtful look on his face

    "NA?!? Why does it have to be me!?! Why aren't YOU the one who gets to leave!?!?" The girl growled angrily as she pointed an accusing finger at her rival, "Taka's my aunt! Not yours!"

    "I was with Taka since I was a baby," The boy replied tactlessly, refusing to back down, "so Taka will always love me more than she'll ever love you!"

    The girl froze before silently bowing her head, not knowing how to answer to that. So her automatic reply to everything that flustered her simply whispered through her lips, "I hate you."

    The boy blinked, obviously not expecting the girl's reaction. He chewed his lip thoughtfully before breaking the last mochi in half and putting one piece back on the plate and nudging it toward her, "Truce?"

    The girl stared at the sweets in surprise before frowning and shooting him another spiteful glare, "I don't want it. I don't want your pity. I don't want anything you touched!"

    The boy sighed in defeat and stood up, brushing invisible dirt from his yukata, "Suit yourself."  he paused and shot her a mischievous grin, "But if you keep on being like this, you might as well give up on leaving here. No man in his right mind would want to marry an immature little girl like you anyway."

    "WHY YOU---" The girl immediately rose to her feet in fury. 

    Her hands curled into angry fists and sprang forward. But the boy being  older, bigger, and faster, effortlessly immobilized her attacks. He suddenly leaned closer as if to take a better look at her face, "That's such a pity too. If you smiled a little more, you could actually be pretty." 

    The girl gaped at him in bewilderment, completely taken off guard by his comment as a deep flush quickly made its way to her cheeks. The boy let her go, laughing at her reaction, quickly moving out of reach and toward the direction of the doorway. The girl, recovering from her shock, raised a fist and shook it angrily at the air, "K'so nezumi!"

    "Baka neko!" The boy countered, as he made a face and stuck out his tongue, before disappearing to the hallway  

*******

    "Ah, such a turbulent age..." Ayame pondered, knowingly, "If they were anything like Yuki and Kyonkichi, I don't want to imagine the headaches they must have caused. But then again, the purest of romance would sometimes root from initial adversity. Saa, it must have been difficult for them to face their impending separation."

    "It never happened," The writer took a sip from his konomi, pausing dramatically, before continuing with his story, "He never left. A scandal happened that the family was barely able to gloss over because of what happened afterwards. The public didn't know what the real reason why it happened, but the incident was recorded in the local newspapers. Mi-chan was able to confirm it with her supplementary research from the local library archives."

    "HEEEH!?!" The silver-haired man gaped at his cousin in surprise, "You're not pulling my leg, are you? What was the scandal? What caused it?"

    Shigure nodded his head solemnly, before taking another sip from his tea, "Souma Yuuta was accused of attempted rape."

    "Rape?" Ayame frowned once again, upon hearing the revelation, before letting out a snort of disbelief, "Somehow I find that utterly preposterous."

    "So it seems," The dog agreed, "But it was his word against the daughter of the Head of the Family... So he never had a chance."  

    The snake mulled at his cousin's words in thoughtful silence for a few moments,  before daring to ask what his next question, "And then what happened?"

*******

    The silence of the room was almost deafening to her sensitive ears. And if not for the cat-like qualities of her eyes, the dimness of the surroundings would  have half-blinded her as well. She hated this room. There was a certain dark eeriness in it that she can't quite place. On top of that, there was this a strange smell invading her senses, that's making her skin prickle. 

    Then again, she was well versed in the family lore behind this room. It was, after all, the unofficial designated room where sick and dying family members are brought in to die. She found him sitting in the middle of the room, staring at the fading light of the evening sky streaming through one of the windows. She couldn't fathom why he chose to sit in this particular room.

    "Yuuta?" She called out hesitatingly. He slowly turned to face her and gave her a sad tired smile. She returned his smile before slowly making her way in the room to sit beside him. They sat there in relative silence, not knowing what to say. She wrung her hands uncharacteristically, that ominous unsettling feeling she was having seemed to be growing stronger by the moment.

    "Do you really hate me?" The boy finally broke the silence

    The girl turned to him in surprise, speechless. A million thoughts ran through her mind all at once. Her head started to hurt in conjunction to the painful throbbing lodged in her throat. Fleeting images of her suffering because of the curse, because of him... fleeting images of happiness because of the curse, because of him. It was all getting muddled. She didn't really know what to feel anymore. Did she really hate him. She closed her eyes and turned off what her mind and memories were telling her, and instead listened to her heart, before saying her honest answer, "I used to. But... not anymore."

    He smiled again at her answer, a sad but grateful smile, "I should hate you."

    "What?" She looked up at him in surprise. 

    But he was staring at the window again with a distant expression on his face,  "Before you started staying with Taka, I only saw you during New Year's, and whenever I get a glance of you, someone around me always says that I should hate you. Everyone says that I should hate you. They said that the cat is a vile and dangerous monster who can't be trusted. I remember wondering to myself how can someone with beautiful orange hair be a monster. Orange is such a cheerful color, after all."

    She blinked before bursting out giggling at his childish reasoning, "That's the silliest thing I ever heard!"

    "Though I wondered about it after you started staying with me and Taka," He continued,  "Before I met you, I never questioned anything. I never fought with anyone. I was never inclined to disobey the Master, or even Akiko... But  when you started living with us, I started to change. You're the most infuriating person in the world, and you brought out the worst in me. I became the worst possible person that everyone didn't want me to be. That's why I should hate you. Everyone says that we're destined to hate each other, after all... but still..." 

    "I..." His voice trailed as he slowly turned to finally face her. 

    She stared into his eyes and saw the turbulence of his emotions in their gray depths. Pain... and a deep sadness. She wanted to weep. She knew what he was trying to tell her, but at the same time,  not quite completely understanding what it was. That unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach reverberated insistently throughout her entire being now. And that strange smell was getting stronger and more pungent. But she pushed everything all at once to the back of her mind, as she felt him reach out to caress her cheek. She closed her eyes and lifted her chin instinctively, allowing him to lean forward to claim her lips.

    And time stopped for one sweet moment. There was no longer any pain, or uncertainty, or sadness... just him, and the strange sensation of utter exhilaration brought by the soft touch of their first kiss that she wanted to last forever... and the disappointment that followed when he inevitably pulled apart, leaving a salty metallic aftertaste on her lips. 

    "I'm sorry," he whispered apologetically, "I shouldn't have done that."

     She shook her head in protest, "I don't regret it."

    He gave her another sad smile, this time as if he's desperately trying to hold back his tears. He raised his other hand and started rubbing the spot where he touched her cheek with his sleeve. She frowned, puzzled at his actions. Then her eyes widened as she noticed the crimson stain on his sleeve when he pulled away. He looked away from her again, as if unable to meet her gaze. "Yuuta... w-what...?" 

    "Look,"  He said, his voice filled with over-enthusiasm, as he stood up slowly and limped towards the window, ""The sun is setting." 

    It was only then that she noticed the deep red stains on his clothes, that already created a small pool from where he sat. She watched in horror at the scarlet footprints on the floor, left behind by his tainted feet, as more rivulets of crimson seemed to run down his legs from his action. And suddenly... it all made sense.

    "Yuuta... what did you do?"

    The room. The strange smell. The ominous feeling. The metallic taste in her mouth.

    "Come on Kyoko. Let's watch the sunset together just like when we were kids," There was a distant quality in his cheerful voice, as if he wasn't really standing there facing the window. The evening light bathed him  in an eerie glow. Like one of those western paintings of angels that he used to describe to her. Without a second thought, the girl sprang to her feet and sprinted out of the room.

    "TAKA! IWA-OJICHAN! ANYONE! HELP! HELP!"

*******

    "Eh? Shigure-san and Ayame-san are also here?" Tooru's pleasant exclamation broke the unsettling silence between the two men.

    "Ya! How is my beloved Otoyume?" Ayame automatically sprang to his feet to greet his sister-in-law and ushered her to a nearby seat, before turning his attention to the coffee table and poured her a cup of tea. 

    "A little tired. Kagura-san and I just came back from a short walk... I can't believe how easily I loose my energy now! But both the baby and I are fine," Tooru replied as took the yunomi from Ayame appreciatively, "Thank you, Ayame-san. I'm glad you're feeling better to be out of bed already, Shigure-san."

    "Yare, yare!" Shigure waved at her dismissively, "I told you I was fine. Ha-san was just overreacting. Where is he, anyway?"

    "He's just talking to Momiji-kun outside. He said he'll be following shortly," Tooru explained, "What is this about anyway."

    Ayame turned to Shigure in silent agreement.

    A serious expression shadowed over the writer's face, "Because of various things that happened, Ha-san and I decided that it was time that there are some things that we recently found out that everyone should finally know. But before we tell everyone, we thought it would be best to tell you two first... since whatever happens after... it's going to affect Yuki the most."

    Ayame frowned once again, and Tooru stared at the writer, her eyes widening in alarm, but both remained silent, waiting for him to continue. Shigure took a deep breath, before starting...

    "It all started a long time ago. There were two families, torn apart by many generations of feudal war and was both in the brink of destruction. So, in an action that seemed like an attempt on a truce, the Master of the Souma  House extended an invitation to a banquet to the last Master of the Mizugawa House. But out of irrational love, the sister of the Master of the Mizugawa House betrayed her brother.  She then took the journey to the banquet in his place, accompanied by the Mizugawa House's faithful eleven... "

    "Shigure-san..." There was a slight tremor on  Tooru's voice when she interrupted, "... the Mizugawa Master and his sister... their names... do you know their names?"

    Shigure nodded solemnly, "The Master of the Mizugawa Household was named Kaji. And his younger sister was his twin... Yukino... Mizugawa Yukino."

******

    /I'm... sorry... Oniichan... I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry Oniichan.../

    His eyes snapped open and he sat bolt upright with a loud gasp. He quickly scanned his surroundings and found himself back in Yuki's room, with his cousin sleeping peacefully in bed across from him. He raised a hand to wipe the beads of sweat forming on his brow, and found a blanket draped over him. In the near distance, just outside the room, he could hear his wife's  tuneless humming trying to soothe the fussy cries of an irritated infant. Without a second thought, he rose to his feet and made his way out of the room.

    "Hey, look who's finally up!" Kagura smiled as he emerged, "Yuki-rin finished her bath and you still haven't come, so we came back to check on you. It seems like Momi-chan is late as well, ne? You were sleeping so soundly, we didn't want to wake yo---" Her voice trailed in surprise as Kyou suddenly clung to her from behind and held her tight. Her eyes widened when she felt warm stream of liquid against her bare shoulder and saw droplets of the clear fluid continue down generously on her arm, "K-kyou... what's wrong?"

    "Nothing," He whispered softly in his ear, "It was just a bad dream. Only a bad dream..."

    With her free hand, she reached across and caressed his cheek, "Do you want to talk about it?"

    "Let's just stay like this for a little while."

    "Okay."

End of Chapter Twelve
Return to Chapter Eleven  
Continued on Chapter Thirteen 

AUTHOR’S SQUAWK:

    OH GOD! I can't believe how long this chapter turned out to be! Anywayz, this chapter is dedicated to Mona. It was actually after our AIM conversation about Yuuta's storyline that inspired me to finish this chapter. Though... I didn't expect it to end up so long! ^_^. 

    I know people have been wondering why I'm only focusing on two earlier generations of the jyuunishi, when there must have been countless of jyuunishi incarnations, ne? Well... simply put, just as Shigure stated in the fic in this chapter... the Souma Family hasn't been good with documenting the personal accounts of the historical jyuunishi. I suppose since it was a family curse, they kept it in the dark as much as possible. The Meiji jyuunishi is special in this fic, in a way, because for the first time, there were actual surviving written accounts about the jyuunishi through Souma Iwaku. As for the other generation... the one with Yumeko-chan... the only reason why it's remembered clearly was because it was the generation of jyuunishi just before the current one, so there are still family members who are still alive who remember them... and yes, there were also written accounts by Souma Noriko (Kana's grandmother in this fic). Eventhough she's not jyuunishi herself, she was close to the Inner Soumas being the one who was assigned to be Yumeko-chan's care giver.

    Haa... how did what originally was a personal exercise to write a fic that's not about Yuki turned out so complicated? When I started this fic, I didn't really know which direction to go... I even titled it "Fumei no Musubi" (which loosely means "Conclusion is Unknown") appropriately as a joke. Of course, 12 chapters later... I'm happy to announce that the ending is finally in sight. ^_^. Maybe in 3 to 4 more chapters (hopefully). Of course, just because this fic is near the end, doesn't mean that the story will not go on. I personally think Yuuta-kun and Kyoko-chan's tragic love story is another interesting avenue to explore. And of course, there's still the adorable Yumeko-chan and her beloved Onnichan (the still nameless Kazuma's grandfather ^_^.). Though... that really won't be FURUBA anymore, would it? ^_^.

    YOSH! I'll do my best to finally finish this monster and put it to rest. I hope everyone is enjoying this fic so far. Thank you for continuing to read this and for  all your comments and criticisms. And RJunkie... please don't kill me. ^_^. I know this chapter is very... preposterous. ^_^. 

Ja!
Ina-chan