✓ | WITHERED BONDS, shigure sohma [Fruits Basket]

Chapter Two

Kira dropped the take-out she had been handing Shigure and unfortunately, he had not been able to catch it on time. Though, while his dinner had mostly spilt all over the table—he was more amused with the expression on her face.

            "Repeat those words again, Shigure" Kira said slow and distant.

         "I said—" Shigure slyly reached over, thinking that with her staring at him intensely, she wouldn't notice him taking her own untouched dinner. She smacked his hand without needing to look down and he recoiled back with a pout," Yuki will be moving in with us, next week"

            Kira clenched her hand that held her chopsticks," You are aware of how he thinks of me, right? He likes me just as much as he likes Ayame"

          Shigure waved his hand," It is not that bad, trust me,"

           "We are not fit to house him, are you absolutely insane?! Neither of us can drop what we do to cook him a decent meal and with his health, we'll just put him in danger"

          "Take-out is not so bad; convenience stores these days have pretty healthy food. I mean we have been doing perfectly fine with it for years now"

            "The other risk is my gender; you realize that living under the same roof would only lead to him finding out about me? If he finds out, whose to say that Akito won't demand Hatori to erase his memories? That child had enough of memory tampering and being a victim of is not something we should even consider"

            "You are always cautious when the other kids come around. It's true that it can be risky, but you are not careless enough to make it happen"

            Kira leaned on her palm," I am so glad you have faith in me," She voiced monotonically," How on earth did anyone convince my sister to let this happen?"

            "Hatsuharu begged me and shouldn't you be happy? Just like your sister, Yuki ought to be the closest to you" The female dropped one of her hands heavily on the table and frowned at Shigure.

As the rat is the closest to 'God', just as what Shigure had stated—it was considered only what seemed right. However, her bond with Yuki was not the same as Akito's because the time she has ever spent with the male was hardly as much as her elder half.

Yuki's parents sold him to them, but Akito in fear like anyone else that gotten to close to her sister, hardly allowed them to create a bond.

Instead, since Kira had been granted the same power as Akito as the head, she took the responsibility in handling the affairs that would make her sister lose her patience.

For once, they had realized the importance of Kira being the other head and took the sake of image, the difference between the pair and made Kira who had the most patience handle what Akito couldn't.

            "I am no better than when Ayame had pushed him away" Kira started to explain as she brought a hand to her forehead," I never saved Yuki when Akito became violent. I could have saved him from the trauma that he faced"

            "We all could have,"

            Kira turned up and kept her frown," But I am different, I can control Akito's anger without effort. I have nothing restraining me like any of you."

            "You are right, that is true," Shigure said indifferently as he leaned back on his palms," But, with the interference of the servants, have you realized that saving him was never a thought? The timing and the outburst that Akito had was only when you were away. By now, you should know that she has patience when you are near"

Kira's nail dug into the wooden table, much to Shigure letting out a whine of complaint noticing. However, he kept his protest silent and reached over to salvage the food that did not spill everywhere.

As much as Kira wanted to deny his words, she knew that it was true. Her uneasiness and Akito's violent anger only happened when they were apart or when they were in a disagreement.

The pair were still strongly estranged, but it was impossible for them to ever hate each other because, in the end, they shared the same soul.