Author: cousin D
Disclaimer: Don't own, don't sue.
Rating: PG-13 for now
Warning: Shounen ai, some het-ish feelings. X-over with Petshop of Horrors

NOTE: 'Jyunikyu' or any other word that is similar is supposed to be *juunishi*.

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Four years later- 1986

Dog- Shigure 10 years old

Snake- Ayame 10 years old

Dragon- Hatori 10 years old

Boar- Kagura 2 years old

Horse- Rin 2 years old

Monkey- Ritsu 1 years old

Head of the family- Akito 4 yeas old

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CHAPTER 2

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Shigure-

It was raining the evening they buried Toma.

Shigure stood alone at the gravesite, before anyone else had arrived and stared at Toma's body. The ten-year-old Shigure didn't bother to wrap his coat tighter around himself, he just let the rain pour down on him and lay his black hair down flat. He didn't even care enough to brush the hair out of his eyes. Toma was dead.

Toma was to be buried in the place where all the cats were buried over the years, a simple field, spotted with small mounds of earth that were the only marker that there was a grave underneath. 'It's not fair.' Shigure scowled blackly. Toma's coffin was under a protective pavilion, to make sure the coffin didn't fill with water in the ran, the adults had all seemed very insistent that it must be an open coffin ceremony, though they wouldn't tell Shigure why. Just that it was tradition.

"'Gure?" Shigure was startled out of his dark thoughts when Ayame took his hand, a strangely surreal expression of seriousness on his face. "How are you feeling?" Ayame? Sneaking up on someone? Now there was a miracle. It was the first time in his memory that Shigure could remember Ayame being quite enough to sneak up on him. The normally outrageous snake was dressed in a somber black suit, holding a black umbrella to protect him from the early evening's down pouring rain. It looked so odd to see Ayame in a suit, let alone one of plain black. It just didn't suit him.

"Me?" Shigure plastered a bright smile on his face. "I'm just fine. Why do you ask? Isn't it a lovely rainy night? We'll have a rainbow in the morning. I suppose we'll all catch cold from the rain, too, though."

"Stop it." Hatori said flatly, coming to stand on Shigure's other side. "You don't have to do that. We know you're sad." Hatori was dressed almost identically to Ayame, including the umbrella, and it occurred to Shigure that Hatori had probably lent the suit and umbrella to Ayame. It was something that Hatori was likely to do, anyway.

But Shigure didn't let the smile off his face as he turned back to the open coffin under the pavilion. "If I don't smile, I'll cry and Toma hated to see me cry. Isn't it bad enough that it's raining? He hated the rain. Always said it made him depressed and he had to stay in bed instead of in his garden because he got so weak. I think I'll smile today. I want to smile for Toma."

Ayame's hand tightened around Shigure's and Shigure found his other hand taken by Hatori.

"Everyone's coming." Ayame announced softly just before the adults started to file around Toma's home to the small clearing that was used as a second graveyard. Shigure turned slightly to watch his family walk around the corner of Toma's house. He loved them all, he really did, but Shigure just couldn't understand them.

The older members of the family led in the three youngest members of the family, Rin, Kagura, and Ritsu. Ritsu, always eager to please, was the one year old monkey while Kagura, the overly emotional piglet, and Rin the horse with a bad disposition, were two years old. They were to young to understand what had happened, but it was tradition that all living members of the Zodiac were to attend funerals. After everyone had come and stood before the coffin, Shigure was still smiling, trying desperately to keep the tears back.

Yahiko the ox with white and black hair, was a young man, barely a few years older than Shigure. He gave Shigure a compassionate look. Yahiko rarely spoke, he often times didn't even come to the Main House, unless ordered to by the head of the family.

"Shigure." Yahiko said softly, keeping his eyes on Toma's coffin.

"Yahiko." Shigure answered, trying to keep his voice light. "It's been a long time, hasn't it? Where've you been all this time? Do you still go to high school?"

Yahiko just shrugged and Shigure knew the ox would say nothing else.

Euiko, the sharp-eyed sheep, came in next. She was older than most of the other Zodiac members, a lady who held herself as a proud, noble lady should. She was dressed elegantly and, unlike Yahiko, had no problems speaking her mind. "Shigure," Her voice was loud and clear, but there was little compassion from her. "I'm sorry for your pain, but I still think you wasted it on Toma." The look she gave the coffin was anything but kind. "He's been waiting to die for a long time. He should have died years ago. Now we'll just have to wait around for a new cat...a new waste of space." She moved away from Shigure and Shigure was grateful. He didn't want to say anything to upset his great-aunt Euiko, but he wanted so badly to hit her.

"Don't let it get to you." Sho, the gentle tempered tiger, said, moving up on Ayame's other side. "The pain will pass." Sho was perhaps the most even-tempered person Shigure had ever met. He drifted though life trying not to draw attention to himself, but also not really trying to do anything. He was middle aged and content with a minimum wage job and never even tried to make any intimate friends.

Shigure realized suddenly, that most of the people in his family were very old. 'The rest of them will die soon.' Shigure didn't like this cold thought, but it was also a very serious thought. 'What happens when the rest of them die?' He looked at Ayame and Hatori out of the corner of his eyes and then drifted to little Kagura and Rin and baby Ritsu. 'We'll be the oldest ones. We'll have to take care of everyone.'

Last of all came Junko, the rat, in her finest kimono, holding little Akito by the hand. Akito, the head of the family, was only four, but he'd been dressed up like he was the emperor or something. It was almost ridiculous to see frail little Akito weighted down by so many layers of clothes that he could barely walk. He was pale and tired looking just trying to get to the coffin to do his duty.

"He shouldn't be carrying so much weight." Hatori muttered half under his breath. "It's not good for him."

Lately, Shigure had noticed, Hatori had become increasingly interested about the health of his family members and how the curse affects their bodies. Shigure had even found Hatori trying to read an old medical book he'd found somewhere and teased Hatori about becoming a doctor one-day. It hadn't escaped Shigure's attention that Hatori still kept up his interest and he wondered if maybe Hatori really would choose to be a doctor.

Ayame had his arm around Shigure's shoulders and even Hatori was holding Shigure's hand. It didn't help.

This wasn't the first time Shigure had seen death, but this time he couldn't stop the pain he felt. The first death he'd seen had been that of Akira and Shigure hadn't been able to feel any grief at the passing of the previous head of the family.

The funeral was brief, everyone wanting to get away as quickly as possible. Shigure didn't like the way everyone treated this as something shameful and to be forgotten as quickly as possible.

Really, the funeral was a ceremony that always had to be taken care of, or so Shigure had been told. It was to show everyone the danger of the cat and Shigure wanted to see it. He never had understood why everyone hated the cat, so maybe this would make it more clearly. Why would anyone fear gentle Toma?

Akito led the ceremony after being told by Junko to stand in front of the coffin and say what he'd been taught. Junko held an umbrella over Akito's head to protect him from the rain. With his frail health, it would be all to easy for Akito to get sick again. It seemed strange to see the small grey haired child almost drowning in the bright colored formal robes.

"We are here to put the cat to rest." Akito said, reciting what he had been taught to say. Everything in the Souma family was tradition and ritual, even burials and Shigure knew that Akito probably didn't even know what he was saying. "His life was long and he lived it as well as a cat could hope to. We wish Toma a safe journey in whatever comes after this life, even as we wait for the spirit of the cat to return to us in another form." Akito turned to the coffin and stood on his tip-toes, reaching into the coffin.

It wasn't hard to see Akito's hand shaking with fright as he reached for the dead man and Shigure didn't blame the little boy. He'd be scared to touch a dead person, too. Stranger still, Shigure thought, was that all the adults around him tensed all of a sudden. Ayame and Hatori didn't seem to notice anything, but Shigure glanced around quickly and saw the odd sight of everyone holding their breaths. 'They smell like fear.' Shigure thought, sniffing the air.

Akito was still speaking and Shigure turned his attention back to the four-year-old. "I take the seal, the bracelet that keeps the monster from us..." Akito grabbed the black and white beaded bracelet and started to pull. "And the next cat to be born will be given..." Akito stopped speaking the moment he pulled the bracelet off Toma's stiff hand. "Ahhhhhhhh!!!" Akito screamed, terrified. He fell backwards, clutching the bracelet in his hand and would have fallen if Shigure hadn't sprung forward to catch him. Akito kept screaming, even when he held onto Shigure and buried his little face in Shigure's neck. "Get me away! I don't want to see it! Get me away!"

Toma turned into a monster.

Shigure held little Akito tightly as he struggled and fought to get away from what Toma had become. Shigure couldn't take his eyes away from Toma. With hissing and smoke rising from his skin, Toma transformed into...into something so hideous Shigure didn't even know what to call him. It certainly wasn't a cat. With dark green skin that shone like polished stone, Toma was hideous and no kindness could deny that fact.

'So,' Shigure thought, numbly as Junko tried to take Akito from Shigure. 'This is what everyone's been afraid of.'

Junko whispered comfortingly to Akito, gently stroking his hair. "Hush, little master. It's all right. He's dead, he can't hurt you. It's just Toma. You remember Toma, he gave you ribbon candy on your birthday. He wouldn't hurt you."

Akito, still sobbing hysterically into Shigure's chest, finally allowed himself to be comforted. He walked away, hand-in-hand with Junko after being told that he'd have to go right to bed or all the excitement would make him ill again.

After that, most of the family silently, and gratefully, left.

Shigure hadn't left the grave site with the rest of the family. He stayed in the pouring rain and just stared at the simple head stone.

SOUMA TOMA-CAT

That was all it said and there was so much more than just his form to him. He was a father and a grandfather and a great friend. He'd been a horse racer when he was younger and loved to ride in hot air balloons. It was just such a...pity.

Shigure wasn't crying, he refused to. Toma hated it when Shigure cried. It was just the rain running down his face, really. 'I won't cry. I won't.' But Shigure's will power, something he'd always been proud of, faltered in the rain. Not a single person had cried for Toma. Not a single tear had been shed at his funeral except for Akito's tears of fear.

Original form. Shigure was just beginning to understand what that meant. He'd heard it often in the family, but he'd never asked Toma.

'Original form of what? If he turns into an orange cat when he's hugged by a girl, then what is the monster? Original means it'll turn into something else. I wonder what? Why would the cat have a third form when the rest of us have only two? Why would a bracelet hide the original form? It just doesn't make any sense.' In the cool moonlight, Shigure stood pondering all these questions he still had no answers for. 'What was the original form? Why were they cursed? When did all this start? To many questions and I still don't have enough answers.'

It was still raining, but Shigure didn't care. He was angry. His friend's funeral didn't seem nearly long enough to be properly respectful, but Shigure really couldn't blame Akito for that. Akito was only four, he was practically still a baby. Everyone else though...Shigure felt a surge of bitterness. 'They all knew.' He remembered the reactions of the adults when Akito pulled off Toma's bracelet. 'They knew it was going to happen and they didn't warn Akito? Did they want him to have an anxiety attack? He could have died.'

"'Gure?" Ayame asked when Shigure showed no signs of moving from his spot next to Toma's grave.

"I thought you'd both left." Shigure said, not turning away from the grave. He didn't need to turn around to know that Hatori was with Ayame, they were usually together and, while Shigure was very close with both of them, he had to admit that those two had a special bond he didn't share. He loved them dearly, but somehow, Ayame and Hatori understood each other in a way no one else could. Besides that, Shigure could smell Hatori. Strange, lately it seemed that his sense of smell was getting better and better and Shigure wondered if the others had similar talents thanks to their Zodiac animal. He wondered if Hatori was a good swimmer or if Ayame could taste the smells in the air like Shigure smelled them.

"Not yet." Hatori answered, moving to hold his umbrella over Shigure's head. "We wanted to see if you were all right."

Shigure answered honestly. "I don't like this." He gestured around at Toma's so-called final resting-place. "He isn't even allowed to be buried in the main family plot. It isn't fair."

As always, Hatori was the voice of reason. "Nothing is fair and Toma knew that. He was the cat and they aren't allowed to be buried with the rest of the family. The decision isn't ours to make. You asked Akito to change the rules and he said no. We can't do anything else."

"Akito's only four," Shigure protested. "He doesn't understand what Toma went though all his life and it wasn't Akito's decision, anyway. The other adults told him not to change the rules. I want to change that."

Ayame looked shocked at Shigure's words. "Change? But, 'Gure, why? This is the way our family has always been and it always will be. The cat is always the outcast."

"Why?" Shigure demanded with sudden fervor. "Why should the cat be cast out? Toma was a good man, a very good man. He was smart and a good cook and he liked to paint and he told me stories of when he was little and he used to be a champion runner in his school. There's so much no one knows about him just because he was the cat and no one would talk to him. It...It's just a waste." Shigure let his voice drop when he realized he was very close to making Ayame cry. "Sorry. I didn't mean to yell."

"You shouldn't worry." Ayame said, putting his arm around Shigure. "They say," Ayame started softly, a sign that he was being strangely serious. "That the dog is the guardian of the family. I heard Junko say that once. She said the dog is always the guardian of the family and its your instincts make it want to protect everyone." He looked at Shigure with curious golden eyes. "Are you trying to protect the cat, 'Gure? He's dead, but there will be another one. Tomorrow we'll all hear the news about who's pregnant and we'll know who the mother of the next cat will be. Will you protect that cat?"

Shigure remembered his promise to Toma and was saddened he hadn't been able to keep it. "Yes. I want to make sure we're all together. We're all family, even the cat."

"It's your birthday tomorrow, 'Gure. Try to think happier thoughts. I don't like you sounding so sad." Hatori whispered and Shigure could see the pain in Hatori's eyes. There was a lot that had happened to Hatori in his life that he'd kept to himself, things his father had done to him that he never wanted anyone to know about. It seemed that Hatori had gotten it into his head long ago that if he wasn't allowed to be happy, then he should do his best to make sure everyone else was happy. When he couldn't fix what was wrong for people, Hatori felt guilty and that was the last thing Shigure wanted to do.

"I don't think I can help it." Shigure answered.

Ayame didn't like anyone being sad, either. "I know," He smiled brightly. "We're all soaking wet, let's go take a hot bath." He slipped his arm around Shigure's waist and gave him a pull. "Come on, I'll wash your back for you, 'Gure."

The bathhouse was one of the best places on the estate, in Shigure's opinion. Even this late at night, it was still open. For Akito, mainly, it was always open and the water was always hot. Shigure had been told that the hot baths were good for Akito's fragile health and he had to have access to it any time of the night or day. Shigure loved the hot water and was the first one out of his clothes, dropping them on the tiled floor before he dove jumped into the calming, steamy water. The grief threatening to overwhelm Shigure was still with him and he doubted it would ever leave, but the warmth and the water did lessen the sadness somewhat and Shigure was glad Ayame had suggested this.

Ayame followed him, exhilarated by the heat after such a cold, dreary night, and he almost didn't have time to take off his clothes before he splashed into the water after Shigure. Last of all was Hatori. Hatori didn't like the bathhouse and the fact that he'd come at all proved how worried he was about Shigure. In fact, knowing how much Hatori disliked the bathhouse, it was odd that Ayame had suggested it at all.

After he'd taken his pants off, Hatori sat on the edge of the bath and just dangled his legs in, with his unbuttoned shirt still on.

"This is supposed to be fun!" Ayame yelled as he splashed water at Shigure, gleefully. He was determined to raise Shigure's feels and Shigure didn't want to disappoint Ayame, so he splashed back and soon, despite himself, was soon lost in the childish pleasure of play. In a moment of mischief, Shigure saw Hatori watching them with a patient look on his face, but still not joining in.

"Hari!" Shigure called, "Come play!" If he was going to have fun then so should Hatori.

"No, I think I'll just watch." Hatori said, not moving from where he was.

"Awwwwww!" Shigure whined, purposely trying to irritate Hatori into giving in. It worked so often, so why not now? "Please, Hari, please play." He cupped his hands in the water and splashed Hatori. Hatori raised an arm to block the water, but it did little good and he was soaked. Ayame got into the act and went to Hatori, who was wiping water out of his eyes, and grabbed Hatori by the led.

"You're all ready wet," Ayame said in a sing-son voice. "Come in, come in!"

"Aya!" Hatori snapped, fighting against Ayame. "Let go, I don't want to! Aya!"

Ayame was deaf to Hatori's shouts and, with Shigure grabbed Hatori's other leg, they pulled him into the water before dunking him under.

When Hatori came up for air, he looked very undignified and gasped for air like a fish out of water. "You idiots." He grumbled, though he didn't sound terribly angry and Ayame and Shigure laughed together. It was the bruise that stopped Shigure from laughing.

"Hari, where'd you get that?" Shigure went to Hatori and put his hand on Hatori's wrist. Because of Hatori's shirt, it hadn't been visible before, but the shirtsleeve had raised up Hatori's arm and the bruise was in plain sight.

Hatori looked down at the bruise, but didn't answer right away. It was a new bruise and couldn't have been more than a day or so old. The scars that ran up Hatori's arm were nothing new, the tangible evidence of a short period in Hatori's life when he'd tried to take his own life, but the bruise was new.

"I suppose it must have been an accident." Hatori said softly and he made his way to the edge of the bath and lifted himself out. Once again he sat where he'd been before he'd been pulled in and he sat there as if nothing had happened.

"An accident?" Ayame said in disbelief as he stared at Hatori. "You don't have accidents like that, Hari. Tell me." He went to Hatori and put himself directly in front of Hatori, his hands on both of Hatori's knees and looking imploringly into Hatori's eyes. "Please?"

At first reluctant, Hatori had never been able to deny Ayame and he'd never been a good liar. "Mother...she was angry a few nights ago. It's nothing."

There was very little Shigure or Ayame could say to that, they were speechless. "You...your mom?" Shigure asked, with wide eyes. He still lived with Hatori and his mom every other week and he'd never seen anything other than a kind, loving mother in her. "Why?"

Hatori shrugged. "She gets angry sometimes. So, Shigure," He said, quickly changing the subject. "Are you feeling better, now?"

"I suppose so." Shigure lied. Unlike Hatori and Ayame, Shigure was a very good liar. "I'll be all right, I just needed a distraction and this was a great one. Thanks, guys."

In a gesture that was more like something Ayame would do, Hatori surprised Shigure. He reached forward and hugged Shigure. "Don't lie to me, Shigure. Please, cry. Cry and let me know I don't have to worry about you tonight."

Shigure tried to push away from Hatori, but Hatori was stronger than he looked and held Shigure tightly. "No. I won't let you go, Shigure. I won't let you hurt all alone."

"I'm not hurt." Shigure insisted. He stopped trying to pull free when he realized how determined Hatori was about this. "Really. A friend died, so I'm sad. I'll live. It'll get better." Shigure wished that Hatori wasn't hugging him and that Ayame wasn't rubbing his back. They were to close and it was hard to be strong like this, hard to be cheerful when everyone thought he should be sad. When everyone thought he hurt. 'I don't need to cry, Toma would hate it if I cried. I can be strong, I can do this, I...I...'

"We love you, Shigure." Ayame whispered. "You don't have to pretend around us."

"I'm not pretending." Shigure stubbornly insisted. "I don't have to weep and moan, I'm fine." He couldn't add to Hatori's pain by crying in front of him. Shigure loved Hatori to much to do that to him, that would just be cruel. "I'll see you both later." Shigure pulled away suddenly, managing to get away from Hatori and smiling at them. "I need to go out for a bit."

"Where are you going?" Ayame asked.

"Just out for a run."

They both seemed to understand and didn't protest when Shigure got out of the bath, pulling his pants on without even bothering to dry himself. He started walking out without a backwards glance, knowing if he did he might break down. He couldn't do that. Hatori needed a good cry himself and he'd be more likely to do that with just Ayame, he didn't need Shigure around.

The estate was silent, so late at night. Most all of the houses were dark, except for Akito's house, which had all the lights on and even from a distance, Shigure could see people moving around inside the house. It was always like that, always busy and noisy, as if the little house never slept. Shigure couldn't help but feel sorry for Akito and wondered how Junko would be able to get Akito to sleep with all the noise.

Outside the estate, after climbing over one of the high walls, Shigure found himself on the edge of a dark forest, seeming darker for the lack of moonlight. Shigure waited by the wall of the estate for a moment, but he knew they were close. 'I know you're out there.' Shigure thought. 'Come on. I'm waiting for you.' Slowly, as if unconsciously, Shigure began to slip into the other way of thinking. He wasn't sure if all the Zodiac members could feel similar things to what he felt, but Shigure loved canines, not only dogs. They had a different way of thinking.

They came then, appearing out of the forest like magic, simply appearing, and their eyes shone at him.

Wolves.

Shigure walked forward, towards them and greeted the alpha male by getting onto his hands and knees and nuzzling the elder wolf's muzzle. "It's been a long time." He said out loud. They were a pack of nearly twelve, a fair sized pack, and had long ago welcomed Shigure as one of them. "I want to hunt tonight."

They turned then, and ran. Shigure ran after them, leaving the Souma Estate behind as his mind slipped into the hunt thought of the wolf. These were the hunters, Shigure knew, and what they killed tonight would be food for the young and would let the pack live. Shigure was one of the pack.

The wolf thought was forgetting. The past didn't matter, the future didn't matter. Only the now, only running and feeding, only the safety of the pack. Shigure lost himself in the now, letting himself forget everything that had happened and forgetting the pain that was to much for him. He could feel the blood pounding in his ears, his sight blurring as he relied more on his nose than his eyes. Eyes were useless in this darkness. At one point, Shigure became so lost in the wolf way, that he dropped to all fours, running faster in the inhuman gait and ignored the tiny pain of acorns and stones under his hands and his bare feet. None of that mattered. He was one of them.

Shigure forgot all the sadness as he ran, keeping up with the wolves easily as they darted between the trees and caught the scent of prey on the wind. It was a deer, Shigure knew and he could practically taste the meat in his mouth. At a signal from the alpha male, the pack stopped and spread out around the area where the deer was grazing. Shigure obeyed the alpha male's orders as if he were just any other wolf, crouching down low next to a female he'd known since she was a small cub.

It was a good kill. All of the hunters attacked at once and killed the deer almost before it realized that it was in danger, which was just the way it should be. After it was over, Shigure sat amongst the wolves, absently chewing on his share of the kill. Though a good part of the kill would be taken back to the cubs, the hunters would feed first. Shigure leaned against the female he'd run with, letting her lick the blood from his fingers before he picked another small piece of meat from the leg he shared with her. For some reason, Shigure had always been closest to this one, she even seemed fond of him in return. A beautiful tawny creature, the wolf female always ran with him when he came to the pack. At one point, Shigure put his arm around her muscular neck and leaned over far enough that he could lap the blood from her muzzle.

Now that the hunt was over and Shigure was full of the meat he'd helped to bring down, he started to come back to the human way of thinking. He wondered if Toma had ever hunted with the big cats.

The grief back, Shigure knew he could freely release his pain, without fear of anyone seeing him. Amidst the pack, Shigure raised his face to the sky and let out a howl. It was a low, moaning sound, pitiful compared to the wolfsong, but it was as close as Shigure had ever been able to come. He didn't stop the tears now, but let them run freely down his face as he took a deep breath and let out another howl of pain, putting his heart and soul into the mournful sound.

The female lapped at Shigure's cheeks, tasting his tears, before she also raised her voice to join his. She felt none of his pain, but it was the wolf way. When one mourned, the whole pack grieved. Soon after the female joined her song to Shigure's, the rest of the pack followed. Soon, the forest was filled with the song of pain.

Shigure returned to the estate when his pain was satisfied and he no longer feared he would cry in front of Hatori or Ayame. It was late, though, and Shigure was sure they'd both left the bathhouse. After midnight, if Shigure was guessing right. Strangely, Hatori and Ayame were both waiting for him, now fully dressed and waiting outside the bathhouse.

"We just wanted to see that you made it back all right." Hatori looked at Shigure closely before he pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped at Shigure's mouth. "You have blood all over your mouth again. You'll upset everyone if they find out what you do at night."

Shigure laughed. "You always worry to much, Hari. You two should go home."

"Actually," Ayame said with uncommon determination as he shot a pointed look at Hatori. "Hari's going to sleep at my house tonight. Do you want to come and we'll make it a sleep over?" Ayame had apparently not forgotten the bruise on Hatori's wrist and didn't like it. He wasn't willing to let Hatori out of his sight, yet. "It's your birthday tomorrow, so we should do something fun. We'll stay up all night and make popcorn and then we'll paint each other's nails."

Hatori winced. "Must we?"

"Yes!" Ayame said firmly as he hooked his arm in Hatori's. "Shigure, are you coming?"

A new voice joined the conversation. "You come with me, Shigure."

Shigure, Ayame, and Hatori all looked at the voice at the same time and saw Akito looking at them. He was ghost-like, really. Far to fragile looking to be real, as if he were some ethereal spirit come to Earth.

Akito was very cute for a child, and Shigure found himself liking Akito very much. He wasn't anything like Shigure remembered Akira, though he did have mood swings. Shigure was, in fact, very fond of Akito.

Because he was so sick, Akito was rarely outside and it seemed odd to see him here, especially in the still drizzling rain. "What can I do for you, Akito?" Shigure asked pleasantly. Akito deserved all the respect Shigure could give him, just as Toma had taught Shigure long ago. After all, it was Akito who bore the real curse. Akito was the one who would die...

"I want you to walk me home." Akito walked to Shigure and held out his hand as if there was no question that he would get what he wanted. He sneered at Ayame and Hatori, though. "You two, go home. We don't need you. I wanna talk with Shigure."

Shigure obediently took Akito's cold little hand and told his friends. "I'll see you tomorrow, then? Will you come to see my new house? I'll have a cake and everything."

"Of course!" Ayame practically sang, suddenly over his serious mood. "I'll be there with bells! Wouldn't miss your birthday for the world, 'Gure, darling!"

"Oh, Aya!" Shigure sang back, in a lighthearted voice. "I knew you loved me!" He was glad he'd gone out with the wolves. It was so much easier to happy, now that he'd howled away the sadness. The pain of Toma's death would never go away, Shigure knew, but at least now it wasn't suffocating him.

Hatori merely nodded coolly and gave Shigure a tiny smile before he started walking away with Ayame. Then Hatori seemed to think of something and he came back, handing Shigure his umbrella. "Akito might get sick in this rain." Then he went back to Ayame and they shared Ayame's umbrella as they continued. It wasn't an unusual scene, the two friends were rarely parted.

"Do you love me, Shigure?" Akito asked as soon as Hatori and Ayame were out of hearing range. "Do you love me as much as you love Ayame and Hatori?"

"Yes." The answer was easy and Shigure didn't even have to think about it. They started walking away, back to Akito's house.

"Why? Is it because you have to?" Akito demanded, pulling on Shigure's hand as hard as he could to make sure he had Shigure's attention. "Do you love me because I'm the head of the family and you have to be good to me? Is it because I'm dying for you?"

"I think I love you because I do." It was the best answer Shigure could give, but even he wasn't sure it made any sense. He was more than a little surprised to hear that Akito knew he was dying. Why would anyone tell that to a little kid like Akito?

"You all belong to me, you know." Akito said suddenly changing the subject. "You and Ayame and Hatori and everyone else. All the Souma's belong to me." His little hand tightened around Shigure's possessively. "I don't want you do like the cat. I want you to only like me. The cat's ugly."

"You can't stop me from liking who I want to." Shigure smiled down at Akito, also tightening is hand. "That's just silly. Besides, Toma couldn't help what he looked like."

"I can!" Akito protested, raising his voice, petulantly. "Everyone says I'm the head of the family and the head of the family can do anything!"

"How?" Shigure asked, unable to stop his grin. "Will you beat me? If you do, I'll just run away and I won't come back. I'll go to Australia and live with kangaroos." He giggled at the thought. "Perhaps I'll go live in Antarctica with the penguins."

"You're making fun of me." Akito scowled darkly at Shigure and stopped walking. "I hate you."

"Yes. I suppose you might. Look, there's your house." Shigure swung Akito up onto his back, carrying him the rest of the way, making sure that the umbrella stayed over Akito. "You shouldn't be out alone at night. You might get hurt or sick again. Did you even tell Junko where you were going?"

"I don't have to tell anyone anything." Akito said. "It's my estate, I can go anywhere I like." Then he leaned his head on Shigure's cheek and Shigure felt the warmth of Akito's skin and knew he was getting a fever again. He'd have to get him home fast.

After that, they walked in silence until Shigure began to hear the voices from inside Akito's house. The loud voices of the servants and all the other people who wanted to speak with Akito for one reason or another, most of them wanting something from Akito.

Akito tightened his arms around Shigure's neck. "I don't want to go back. I hate the noise." Akito whispered. "It's always so loud in there. I can't even hear the birds singing in the garden."

"Do you want me to make them go away?"

"Will you?" The hopeful note in Akito's voice was almost pitiful, sounding more like a child than he had since he'd started walking with Shigure.

"Sure. I love you, remember?" And so he did. When Shigure slammed open the door of the house and was confronted by the many people who, for one reason or another, had been looking for Akito and wanted to speak to him, he smiled broadly. "You'll all have to leave now, terribly sorry."

There was a general mutter of surprised complaint from all the adults, but Shigure kept on smiling. He knew where the power in the family lay and it wasn't with any of these people. Not a single one of them was cursed, except for a very old woman who sat peacefully in a corner of the living room, working on some delicate piece of needlepoint.

"Shigure, what are you doing up so late?" One of the adults asked, complaint in his voice that showed he didn't like Shigure putting his nose where it didn't belong.

Shigure met the man's eyes, recognizing him as an uncle on his father's side. "I've brought the head of my family home and now he needs to go to bed, he's got a fever. All of you leave. Good-bye. So long. Nice to see you. Ciao. Adios. Don't let the door hit you on butt on the way out!" He waved cheerfully with one hand while supporting Akito's slight weight with the other hand.

"No, see here, young man..." One of the visitors began.

Akito flared to live and he stiffed, gripping Shigure's shoulders tightly. "GET OUT! ALL OF YOU OUT! YOU LISTEN WHEN SHIGURE TALKS TO YOU! I LOVE HIM MORE THAN YOU! OUT! OUT! OUT!"

They couldn't disobey the head of the family, so, one-by-one, they all filed out of the house until all that was left was the little old woman, working on her sewing.

"See," Shigure smiled over his shoulder at Akito. "That wasn't so hard, now was it? Just assert yourself a little and they'll listen. I don't think you really have to yell, though."

Akito sleepily yawned at Shigure and Shigure laughed. "I think that means it's bed time, Akito-chan. Down you go." He went to the little old woman who, smiling, set aside her needlepoint work and held her arms out for Akito.

"Come here, my little one." The little old woman whispered. "I've been worried about you, Akito-chan. You shouldn't stay out on rainy nights, you know it's not good for you."

Akito willingly went to her and, when securely in her lap, he nuzzled in close to her and let the old woman kiss his forehead. "Sorry, Junko-san. I wanted to see Shigure." Akito loved Junko as if she were his mother, he simply adored her and would do anything she asked, despite what he said about being able to do anything he pleased.

Akito's nanny was the rat of the family. Her grey hair had always been grey, just as everyone cursed by the rat has grey hair from the moment they're born, and Shigure had been told that the violet eyed old woman had been a rare beauty in her youth. Even now, at her advanced age, there were still the traces of her beauty left.

"Will you put him to bed, Shigure, dear?" Junko asked. "It takes so long for me to get up once I sit down, he'll be asleep long before I can tuck him in."

"Sure, Junko-san." Shigure replied. He and Akito went to Akito's elaborate bedroom. It was really more suited for royalty than a child, Shigure thought as he helped Akito to get undressed and into dry pajamas before covering him up with thick, warm blankets.

"Shigure?"

"Yes?"

"Will you stay with me always?" Akito's eyes were starting to close and one of his little hands pulled the blanket up to his chin.

Shigure laughed. "You're being silly again. I have to go to college someday, so I have to go away for a while. I'll come back, though."

"Don't leave me." Akito yawned, yet again, and his eyes began to drift closed. "You're better than anyone else here. You don't treat me different, like I'm going to break if I fall down."

"We're all different, Akito-chan." Shigure told him.

"But I'm more different. You and Junko, I don't want to lose you. I love you two best."

"I don't want to leave my family, Akito." Shigure told the sleepy child honestly. He sat down and started to rub Akito's hair with soft, soothing motions. "Even if I do go away, I'll always come back if you need me."

Akito said nothing for a long time and Shigure was beginning to think that the child had fallen asleep. Akito spoke again, though. "I feel so weak, Shigure."

"Maybe if you went out to play more, you'd feel better." Shigure suggested. "A little sunshine wouldn't hurt you, you know. You're far to pale and little boys shouldn't stay inside so much."

"Will you take me to the park on your birthday?"

"Sure."

"Promise?"

"Yes."

Shigure was leaving, after being certain that Akito was fast asleep, when he saw Junko waiting for him at the front door of Akito's house. She was now the oldest of the cursed since Toma had died. "I'm dying, Shigure." She told him, bluntly.

"Yes." Shigure answered. "I know." Even if he didn't like it. He'd known the moment he'd walked into Akito's house when he'd caught the scent of death. It was the same scent he'd smelled on Akira and on Toma, just days before the old cat had died. Toma had been the only member of the family who knew how good Shigure's sense of smell was, only he knew that Shigure could smell things like death and fear and hate.

"When Toma died, I knew my time would be coming soon." Junko continued, staring out at her garden. It was really Akito's garden, but since she was raising him, she spent all her time there and worked hard to make her garden the most beautiful on the entire estate. "I can feel the years pressing down on me, but I don't want to leave my Akito-chan. I remember what his predecessor had to go through."

Shigure didn't like the idea of Akito becoming like Akira. "Are you sure? Akira was so...evil. Akito's nothing like him."

"You didn't know Akira in his youth, Shigure-chan. He was a sweet child and as kind as any mother would wish her child to be. As he aged, his mind began to slip and it will happen to Akito, too. Akito-chan will start to go mad, if it hasn't all ready started. I've noticed his short temper lately and his he spends hours staring at the birds." She sighed tiredly. "Promise me, Shigure, promise me you'll always look out for him." She looked at Shigure with eyes that were suddenly becoming distant and watery. "I...I know it'll be hard, but I don't want him to be alone."

"Junko," Shigure said softly. "I...I'm not strong enough to do this. I'm just a kid."

"No, you're the dog."

Why did that seem so important to everyone? Even Toma commented on it, but had never explained. Shigure wished he'd been able to know what the previous dog had been like.

"You are stronger than you can imagine and you'll find that strength when your family needs you the most." Junko sighed again and suddenly looked a lot older.

"But what if I fail them?" The thought of doing something wrong and hurting anyone in his family, especially Hatori, Ayame, or Akito, frightened Shigure.

"You must not. Our family is sick, Shigure. It isn't just Akito, it's all of us. Look around, when you see your family next. Ayame is vain and self-centered, pampered and spoiled. He'll loose something dear to him and he won't realize it until it's to late. Hatori can barely stand talking to people, his shyness verges on a phobia. He never smiles and will obey almost any order given to him because of what his father did to him and what his mother does to him. Yes, I know she isn't treating him well. The others will follow, Kagura and Rin and all the others who will come after us old folks die. Our family is injured, a cycle of pain that never ends. We need to be protected from ourselves." She reached out and fondly touched his face. "Whatever happens, don't abandon Akito."

Shigure couldn't refuse. How could anyone? "I'll do my best." Shigure promised.

The next morning-

Shigure woke up on the morning of his tenth birthday to the sun shining. He was sleeping in his own house, the house of the dog. After leaving Junko the previous night, Shigure had gone to what was his birthright and slept on the floor of the bare, dusty house. It didn't feel lonely, though. Shigure knew that, with time, he could have a beautiful house and he could have Ayame and Hatori stay with him, if he wanted to.

With a yawn, Shigure sat up and ran a hand through his hair after stretching, his muscles aching after sleeping on the floor.

"Happy birthday to me! Happy birthday to me..." Shigure smiled, remembering that this would be the night where he, Ayame, and Hatori all got together for a party. Of course, there would be the customary family party, but after that had ended, Shigure and his two best friends would get to stay up all night and do almost anything they liked. They did the same thing for everyone's birthday, though Hatori didn't really like to party all that much. He didn't even like ice cream, for goodness sakes! "Happy birthday, dear Shigure! Happy birthday to me!"

On the last note, Shigure jumped up and remembered a promise Toma had made him long ago. He must have slept only a few hours, it had been so late when he'd gotten back from the hunt and the sun was only just rising now. Shigure knew he'd pay for no sleep later and he vaguely knew he should take a midday nap if he wanted to stay up late for his own birthday party.

'A present!' Shigure thought, running out of his house and jumping down off the porch before bolting for Toma's house. He felt a stab of sadness when he remembered Toma, but it wasn't nearly so bad as the night before. 'Toma said I could have the present on my tenth birthday.'

He found the box tied with string just where Toma had said it would be, in the closet in the corner of Toma's living room. The empty house would be closed up soon, Shigure knew, for the next cat to be born. Right there on the floor, Shigure couldn't help his impatience and untied the string as quickly as he could. What he found inside wasn't to surprising, considering Toma's love of books. It was a dusty old book that looked like it had a real leather cover. On top of the book was a letter.

~ Dear Shigure-chan. If I'm dead, I wanted you to know that the dog before you were born gave this to me and asked me to give it to you. I haven't read it, nor has anyone else seen it. In fact, no one but you knows this book even exists. This is a family treasure, but I was told that no one but the dog should know what's inside. If others were to know certain information about us, especially the head of the family, we would all be in great danger. It is your decision whether or not to reveal this information, but think carefully on it first. Please, read this book as quickly and thoroughly as possible.

Be happy, my little friend. You showed me kindness no one else would. I wish you all the happiness you deserve.

Love, Toma.~

Now confused and a little awed by the solemn letter, Shigure took the book out of the box. It was harder than he'd thought and Shigure actually had to strain to get the huge book out of the box. It fell on the floor with a thud that sent dust from its ancient pages flying up in the air.

Shigure opened book and was surprised to find that the first page wasn't words, but a drawing of a very beautiful person. The ink had faded over the years, but it was still a very visible picture. The person had perfect features and a face so stunning that Shigure paused a moment to admire it. It couldn't possibly be a real person, no human could be that beautiful. Under the picture, though, destroying the mood of the picture, were large, bold words: BEWARE THIS MAN!

Shigure turned the page and started to read, struggling with the fading ink.

~My descendent, we are cursed.~

Shigure frowned at the first line. Of course they were cursed, the Souma family had always been cursed.

~I am Inu and I speak for our family, the Souma family. This is the record of our family and how we became what you are. When you have finished reading this record, write your story. Write the story of what your family is like, then hide this book. Do not allow anyone to find it. Should this book be found, you and your loved ones would be in great danger from the one who doomed our family.

Read, and discover the truth. We were happy once, before the cat was taken from us...~

To be continued...