Blue Heaven, chapter 11
Chapter 10 was here.
Blue Heaven, chapter 11
Kyou watched, his stomach increasingly sick and sour, as Akito tormented Yuki and Uotani. His relief that for once he was not the brunt of Akito’s malevolence was somewhat blunted by Tohru’s distress, almost a tangible thing in the tense air of Shigure’s house. Her hand gripped his with surprising strength, her fingernails biting into his skin, and he focused on the pain of it to keep himself grounded and alert instead of losing himself in his thoughts.
He jerked back when Uotani made a break for it, pushing Tohru behind him so she wouldn’t get trampled in the rush as Uo bolted from the house, Akito fast on her heels.
“Stop her! Get him back! Don’t let her take my Yuki, get him back!” Akito screamed, waving his arms toward Hatori, Shigure, and Kureno. Obediently, Hatori and Kureno began to run after the fleeing girl, though not as speedily as they could have done. Shigure lagged behind, to no one’s surprise.
“I’m wearing geta,” he complained, sticking one leg before him to illustrate. The geta dangled from his bare toes, mocking Akito with each gentle swing. “How am I supposed to chase them through the woods in these?”
Akito gave a brief shriek of rage and frustration and struck him in the shoulder, shoving him bodily toward the front door. Shigure managed to slide a glance Kyou’s way just before he was thrust into the foyer, and Kyou snapped to life.
“Come on,” he told Tohru, scooping up her shoes and tossing them to her. “We have to get out of here while we can.”
“Oh, no,” Tohru moaned, hopping as she put the shoes on her feet. “I had a feeling this would happen! Poor Uo-chan, poor Yuki-kun! Did you see the looks on their faces?”
Kyou didn’t answer, just grabbed her hand and made for the susumi doors off the dining room.
“Kyou, wait!” Tohru protested, tugging at his hand at the same time she dug in her heels, refusing to go even a step further. “We almost forgot Raidon!”
He froze. She was wasting their precious getaway time worried about a sack of flour? Moreover, she wanted to take the sack of flour with them on their escape? “Tohru, you can’t be serious.“
“Kyou, it’s our baby,” she whispered, looking up at him pitifully.
He heaved a sigh and grabbed the sack of flour off the table, cursing his inability to refuse her anything. But she was so pretty when she beamed happily at him, like she was doing now… seeing it, knowing he’d been the one to bring that smile to her face, started a fine glow of pleasure and satisfaction in his chest that burned brightly even now when issues in the Sohma family had come to a head and they were fleeing for what might be the very existence of their love.
They slipped outside and quickly lost themselves in the thick woods around Shigure’s house. Kyou knew the forest like the back of his hand and for once was thankful beyond words for his cat’s ability to see so keenly in the dark as he picked his way unerringly through the trees and undergrowth. On either side of them, the bright eyes of their gathered feline escort watched them.
Tohru kept up with him quite well; her active life made her very fit and she was hardly out of breath in spite of their brisk pace as they tromped through the woods. Her hand gripped his firmly and though she stumbled a lot, she never once complained.
She’s good in a crisis, he thought, and was proud of her-lots of girls might have cried or freaked out but not his Tohru. He squeezed her hand, flashing a little smile at her, and her eyes glimmered up at him in the dim moonlight streaming through the overhead boughs of the trees.
“Where are we going?” she asked after a moment.
“To Shishou’s,” he replied. “Unless you can think of somewhere better?” He glanced toward her, but she shook her head.
“No, I think his place is the best bet for us.” She paused. “Do you think Yuki-kun and Uo-chan are all right?” she asked, pitching her voice low even though there was no one following them.
Kyou cast his mind about for possibilities; he was fairly certain they’d gone to Uotani’s apartment, and fervently hoped Tohru hadn’t left its address hanging about for Shigure or Akito to find if they decided to snoop around.
“Yes,” he answered after a moment. “They’re both smart, and tough. I think they’ll be okay.”
“What about us?” Tohru whispered haltingly. “Will we be okay, too?”
Kyou stopped and turned to face her. “Yes,” he declared, pouring every ounce of his determination into the word. “We will be. I promise you, I promise. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“I don’t care about me!” Tohru cried passionately, her hands clasping his upper arms. “I’m worried about you! What if Akito-san forbids you to see me again!”
“We’ll find a way around it,” he told her firmly. “I’m just worried about what he might make Hatori do to you.”
“You… you mean, he might make Hatori-san erase my memories?” At his nod, instead of looking upset, she cocked her head to one side like an inquisitive bird and pursed her lips in thought. “I don’t think it would work. Kyou-kun is so important to me, I could never forget him!”
She wasn’t teasing; she honestly meant it. Kyou’s throat closed up as a fierce emotion welled up within him, and he slid his hand under the warm, silky fall of her hair to cup her neck and draw her close for a kiss.
“I love you,” he whispered against her lips. “You’re enough to almost make me believe in miracles.”
“Miracles can happen, Kyou-kun,” she told him earnestly when they pulled away. “I never thought I would be happy again after Mom died. Not like I was when she was still here. But then I met you, and Yuki-kun, and I know now that there’s always hope.”
She beamed up at him, her smile illuminating the shadows looming around them, and Kyou couldn’t resist kissing her again.
Then a twig cracked behind them and they both jumped, springing back, tense and wary as they scanned their surroundings for signs of Akito, Kureno, or Hatori. Then a cat meowed plaintively somewhere to the right, and Kyou relaxed.
“It was just a cat,” he said, a trifle disgustedly. “So much for being stealthy and graceful.”
“You’re graceful enough for both you and cat-san,” Tohru said. “But I think we should hurry, Kyou-kun.”
And she took his hand again, beginning to tug him in entirely the wrong direction.
He gently pulled her back on track toward Shishou’s house, and soon they’d found their way to the edge of the woods and beyond, jogging lightly up the streets until they spotted the familiar silhouette of the house against the dark night sky.
Kyou saw Tohru’s body language loosen up at the sight of it, and knew she was just as apprehensive as he about getting there safely. They sped up and nearly fell through the door when Kunimitsu opened it to their impassioned knocking.
“Kyou-kun?’ he asked, amazed. “Tohru-san? What are you doing here so late? And why are you carrying a sack of flour?”
Kyou pushed by him, pulling Tohru along in his wake. “Has anyone come by or called?” he asked. “And where’s Shishou?”
“I’m here,” Kazuma replied, emerging from his office at the end of the hall. “And no, no one’s called or come by. Why? What’s wrong?”
“The shit’s hit the fan,” Kyou replied succinctly. “Akito knows about Tohru and I, and Yuki and Uo-“
Kazuma raised his eyebrows. “Finally admitted it to each other, have you?” he said, smiling to soften the interruption. “I’m glad. Didn’t know about Yuki-kun and Uotani-san, however.” Both his foster son and Tohru blushed fiercely.
“They were keeping it a secret,” she explained.
“As were you,” Kazuma quipped, adding a little reproachfully, “You could have told your old father, Kyou.”
“You’re not old,” Kyou grumbled, kicking his toe at the wall in bashfulness. “And that’s all besides the point. Akito lost his mind once and for all, Uo and Yuki ran away, and we got away before anything could happen to us.”
“Do you think that there could be actual trouble?” Kazuma asked, all traces of humour vanished at the possibility of danger.
Kyou took a deep breath, contemplating. “Yeah,” he said at last. “The way Akito was acting, I wouldn’t put it past him to do something drastic in retaliation. Especially to Tohru, as she’s the reason Yuki knows Uotani in the first place.”
Kazuma shifted his stance subtly; he made no overt gesture of threat but somehow he was more alert, more tense, more watchful. “I’m glad you came here, then,” he said quietly. “Nothing will happen to Tohru here.”
A knock sounded at the door, and Kyou and Kunimitsu both assumed guarded expressions.
“That was fast,” Tohru breathed, and let Kyou stuff her behind all three of them as Kunimitsu went to answer the door.
“If it’s them, stay calm as long as possible,” Kazuma said. Kyou nodded, willing his fists to unclench. His head was a whirlwind of conflicted emotions and fear that Akito would somehow be able to compel him or Hatori to act against Tohru. What would he do if Tohru no longer remembered him? A bleak image of his life without her in it flashed in his mind’s eye, and he had to steel himself against crying out at the pain it brought him.
Then Kunimitsu opened the door to reveal Hanajima Saki standing there, black-gloved hand upraised to knock once more, and pain gave way to confusion at the sight of her.
“Hana-chan?” Tohru exclaimed, peering over Kyou’s shoulder.
“What are you doing here?” he demanded. A glance at Kazuma showed him that his father was dumbstruck at the sight of her. It was beyond creepy that his Shishou was as speechless as any schoolboy to see her, but in this instance, with everything else that was happening that night, Kyou couldn’t honestly blame him.
Even he had to admit that she was looking… well, as she peeled off her dramatic cloak and revealed a long, slim dress with clinging sleeves and a scooped neckline that revealed quite a lot of smooth, creamy skin. The cool night hair had ruffled her waist-length curls and brought a becoming flush to her cheeks, and she looked excessively pretty.
“I sensed a lot of distress and apprehension in Tohru’s waves,” Hana replied serenely. “I followed them here.” Her eyes glimmered with what looked to be centuries worth of mysteries as she gazed up at Kazuma as if he were the only person in the room, or even in the entire world. “Imagine my pleasure to feel your waves as well, Sohma-san.”
“Um,” Kazuma said, not too intelligently.
She smiled at him, then, before turning to Tohru and taking her friend’s hands in her own. “What has happened?” she asked. “Why are you so upset tonight?”
Kyou exchanged a glance with Tohru, hoping she understood the caution he wanted her to take. She gave a minute nod in return.
“The head of the Sohma family learned that Yuki-kun and Uo-chan are dating,” she told Hana. “And… and about Kyou-kun and I.” She coloured faintly at the last, averting her eyes but smiling a tiny, secret smile.
“I’m glad you are finally able to reveal your feelings to each other,” Hana said. “What did the Sohma head do?”
“He pushed Yuki-kun into Uo-chan and said some hurtful things… Uo-chan grabbed Yuki-kun and ran out of the house! We think she went home.”
Hana nodded; if she thought there was something odd about Tohru’s phrasing, she didn’t mention it. “And you two?”
“We were worried they’d try to… try something with us,” Kyou replied carefully. “So we left while they were distracted in trying to catch Uotani and Yuki.”
“And brought little Raidon with you, I see,” Hana commented, glancing toward where the sack of flour squatted on a side table.
“He’s our son!” Tohru declared tearfully. “We couldn’t just leave him behind! We’d fail our class!”
Kazuma narrowed his eyes at Kyou, who just shook his head wearily; really, it wasn’t worth the explanation.
“And now what?” Hana asked. Her eyes left his to travel placidly over Kunimitsu, who also blushed to be caught in her gaze, until they rested on Kazuma.
“Now,” he replied, holding her eyes steadily, “we wait.”
“I don’t expect it will be long, especially if they can’t find Yuki and Uotani,” said Kyou.
“I should try calling them at Uo-chan’s,” Tohru fretted, wringing her hands in anxiety. “To make sure they got to her apartment safely.” She had only managed to dial half the number before there was another knock on the door, this one impatient.
Tohru jumped at the sound, and the phone slipped from her grasp. Kyou snatched it before it fell to the floor and replaced it in the cradle.
“It’s them,” Hana announced. “Sohma Shigure-san’s waves are on the other side of the door, along with those of three others, all distressed. I wish now I had allowed Megumi to accompany me here; his skill with a curse would have come in handy…”
“All of you, go into the practice room,” Kazuma interrupted, ushering them forward. “I’ll try to get rid of them.”
Kyou, Tohru, and Kunimitsu all vanished into the room, and Kazuma turned to the door only to find Hanajima still there.
He frowned. “You should-“
“I will remain here with you,” she said.
“But it might not be safe,” he protested, placing one hand on her shoulder in an attempt to steer her toward the practice room.
She covered his hand with her own and stared up at him. “I will remain here with you,” she repeated. “My place is by your side, always.”
Kazuma blinked, assimilating her words. This was ridiculous; the girl was only sixteen years old, fully half his age. And yet, it was flattering to have someone so lovely be attracted to him, and there was something insidiously satisfying about having someone beside him when the time came to confront a problem. The last ten years of raising Kyou had been long, hard, lonely ones, with no one to share the burden. A broken little part of him was reaching for her, for the affection she offered, even as the rest of him was objecting loudly.
Another knock, louder and more insistent than the first, interrupted his reverie. Still she stood there, watching him, waiting patiently, and he let the weak part of him, hungry for companionship, win just for once.
“Stay out of sight,” he heard himself saying. “If Akito is angry with Tohru for all of this happening, I don’t want him to be reminded of her when he sees you.”
Hanajima nodded and slipped into the kitchen, silently closing the shoji behind her. Somehow, Kazuma could feel her presence just on the other side of the thin paper screen and felt comforted by it. He wiped his hands on his yukata, and opened the door.
“Akito-san,” he said to the furious face before him, calmly faking surprise, “I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”
Chapter 12 is here.