TRUTH AND CONSEQUENCE
A Fruits Basket Fanfic

Written by Miyu, Vampire Princess

AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Ah, yes. A sequel! This story is the sequel to I.M. As much as I love promoting my own work, it is not necessary to read I.M. to understand this story (but read it anyway, come on you know you wanna). LEMON WARNING.

Part Four - WITHDRAWAL

Three days.

It's been three days since Haru's come to school and nearly five days since I've talked to him last. I hope he didn't get lost chasing a butterfly or something. There's really nothing to get nervous about since he gets lost all of the time.

Haru hasn't answered any of my instant messages either. We were supposed to get together online last night. I waited for nearly an hour and he didn't show. That is unusual.

And Momiji's been absent too. That's HIGHLY unusual.

Yuki and Kyo are just as worried as I am. They refuse to go to the main house, however. Yuki is still abjectly afraid of Akito and Kyo...well he's not welcome. Shigure said that if they don't show up for school today he will call Hatori and check on them. I wanted him to call last night but couldn't bring myself to ask. He doesn't appear as bothered as the rest of us, but the twitch in his smile is enough to indicate that even he knows something isn't right.

As the final school bell rings and everyone leaves class, I lag behind. Kyo has to rush off to his part-time job and Yuki has obligations for the school student government. Uo-chan and Hana-chan only linger a little while, then bid me farewell as they make their way home.

Closing my locker I find myself alone for the first time in a while. It feels...odd, to say the least. I don't want to be alone. Not tonight.

With a sigh I leave the school. As I'm walking down the stairs towards the gates I'm stopped by the appearance of a familiar figure. It takes my eyes a moment to focus. My heart leaps into my throat as I recognize him.

Haru!

But something just isn't right. It looks like him, stands like him, dresses like him. But the expression on his face, the emotion in his eyes and the bruise on his cheek definitely are not right.

"Tohru?" His voice is soft and questioning, tugging my further into my throat.

Immediately I'm by his side. My fingers, nervous and uncertain, brush over his lips to hush him as I inspect him closer. The bruise on his cheek is probably a few days old. His nose has been bandaged recently and is still a bit swollen. There's another bruise above his lip, opposite his bruised cheek. Did he get into a fight?

"Haru, what hap--?"

"It's not important."

I give him a look as if to say 'Yes, it is,' but he shakes his head, removing my fingers from his face. Kissing the palm of my hand, he offers me a crooked smile as he holds my hand over his heart.

"Are you alone?"

I don't trust my voice enough to answer, so I nod instead.

"Then let's take a walk."

I let him lead me away from the school, down a few blocks until we reach a small clearing of trees near a park. The very same park where we'd made love for the first time six months ago. I smile at the memory, but it fades slightly as Haru turns to me with a sad smile on his face.

"You haven't been to school in days. I was starting to worry--"

"Gomen, Tohru."

"How did you get all these bruises?"

Haru sighs heavily, the sad smile still on his face. It does nothing to calm my wary nerves. "He knows, Tohru."

Blinking, I try to take in what he's saying. Two words, yet they say so much. There's really only one 'he' in the Sohma family. Only one person who could be responsible for all the damage.

"Akito--?"

"Hai."

I reach a tentative hand to his face once again. "He...did this...to you?"

His eyes close as I lightly brush my fingers against his bruised cheek. He sighs, but doesn't back away. "Hai."

Tears are welling up in my eyes now. This is all my fault. "Because of me?"

"Iie."

Okay, now I know I'm slow on the take sometimes, but this...*sigh* I'm confused. "How is that possible?"

"Because he only knows about 'lilflower99'." His smile grows a little as he takes my raised hand in his and places it over his heart once more. I raise my other hand to stroke his other cheek, but he stops me, placing a light kiss to my palm before grasping my hand tightly. "He only knows your screen name. What we've done on the computer."

I can feel myself brighten, my tense muscles relaxing at his words. The smile on my face returns and I can feel a tear trail down my cheek. "Then...everything's all right now, ne Haru?"

The smile turns sad again and my heart stops for an instant. "Tohru, I want you to know how much you mean to me. I know...I haven't been able to say it before...those words I know you want to hear." He pauses, pulling me closer by placing my hands on his waist. Slowly his fingers caress up my arms and over my shoulders until his hands cup my face. "Words can't really express my feelings. All I can do...all I can do is show you."

"Haru...."

Words are lost to me as he closes those last few inches between us. His lips are soft and soothing against mine, lightly pecking until I open my mouth to make it a real kiss. He doesn't hesitate so much as slowly kiss me back. Lightly teasing. Lightly tasting. His tongue strokes the inside of my mouth in a leisurely caress. I moan in response.

It's not enough. Not NEARLY enough. I want him to press his lips to mine hastily, forcefully. I want to eat him. Pull him inside of me and swallow his essence whole. I've missed him that much!

"Tohru, we need to go somewhere else."

My mind briefly registers his words as he pulls away from me. While Akito knew, the others did not. I grasp his hand tightly as he leads me away from the park. I'm only slightly disappointed that we're not going to stay, but I'll follow him wherever he leads me. My head is so dazed from our kiss that I'm not even sure how far we're walking. All I know is that I want more of him.

And if I let him go, I'll never see him again.

Shigure's house registers in my brain. As we walk through the front door I pause, just enough to take my shoes off, then allow Haru to lead me inside. He takes me up the stairs and into my room. I close the door behind me, not even aware if Shigure is home or not. Then it dawns on me that Haru would not have brought me here if his cousin was home.

Then it happens. The kiss I had so wanted before. Lips pressed forcefully together, tongues dueling for possession, it's the most passionate kiss we've ever shared. My hands reach up to cup his face, to pull him closer. I would've swooned if not for his hands on my shoulders, supporting me.

Only the need for air draws up apart. Chests heaving, he rests his forehead against mine, a smile forming on his lips. His hands travel downward, cupping the weight of my breasts through my uniform. My nipples immediately grow hard in response, a moan of delight escaping my lips. My eyes close and my head tips backward, giving him access to newly exposed flesh.

He accepts my invitation, his lips scorching a hot trail from my chin, across my jawline to my earlobe. His tongue flicks lightly along my skin before he finds that one spot on my neck and begins to suckle. My hands, clutch on to his shoulders, helping him to maintain a safe distance while my nails dig into his coat sleeves. His breath is warm on my ear as he pulls away from me slightly.

"I love you, Tohru."

He said it. He REALLY said it. FINALLY! I can feel a smile forming on my lips as my heart skips a beat in response. My hands, as if fed by some invisible need, start to peel his jacket from his shoulders and arms.

"I love you, too, Haru."

He shrugs out of his jacket, then lifts his shirt over his head. The muscles of his chest and stomach are revealed, as well as the bruises he'd endured. I can't help but gasp when I see the damage that Akito has inflicted upon Haru. I had always thought the stories the other Juunishi told me were a bit overdone, but deep down I knew it to be true.

Tears form in my eyes, clouding my vision before dropping onto my cheeks. My eyes take in the damage as my heart weeps. His name escapes my lips in a worried whisper.

"It's all right," he tells me calmly, a warm smile on his face. Taking my hands in his, he leads me over to the bed. He lays down slowly, pulling me down beside him. "Would you do me a favor?"

"Of course! Nani?"

He kisses my hands before placing them on his chest. With a child-like smile he asks, "Would you kiss them and make them better?"

I return the smile, rising up onto my elbow to get a better look at his chest. I can't believe he took such a beating. I don't think I've ever seen him this badly injured after a fight with Kyo. Then again, Kyo wasn't usually trying to beat Haru, literally. It was only self-defense.

This is truly horrible. And it's all my fault.

Fingers lightly caressing first one bruise than another, I lean over and place a light kiss to the nearest mark; a small black and blue splotch marring a perfectly white expanse of flesh over his ribs. His muscles jump under my touch, uncertain whether or not they will feel pain again. Then I kiss another bruise, and another, and another. He gasps each time, moaning when I pause to lick at his taut nipples and the tiny dip of his bellybutton.

"Mmm...Tohru. Arigato. That feels much better."

Rising up onto one elbow, he pulls me into a fiery kiss. Carefully tucking me beside him, then beneath him, he kneels above me, his hands beginning their own quest. One cups my right breast over my uniform blouse while the other seeks the warmth of my skin, sliding under my uniform blouse and my bra to cup my other breast. I can't help but moan and push myself further into his touch.

For a moment I lose track of Haru as he pulls my blouse over my head. Then I see him again, his gaze scorching at my exposed bra. Licking his lips, he cups my left breast in his hand. Then his lips find my hardened nipple through my bra and he suckles me through the fabric. The sensation is too much and I cry out, my hands digging into his hair in an attempt to pull him ever closer.

He does the same to my other breast before finally ridding me of my bra. With his tongue, he licks a path between my breasts and proceeds downward. His hands scorch my skin as they make their way to my hips, then lower until I feel them on my thighs. They work their way upward, under my skirt until they reach the cloth of my underwear.

"We don't need these, now do we?" he asks, his fingers moving under the material of my underwear to find my center. With one finger he pushes inside of me, his palm cupping me. I groan in response, my hips pushing upward into his hand.

His other hand grabs the lacy material and begins to slide it downward. I can feel his breath on my stomach, hear the deep intake of breath as he catches the scent of my arousal. He growls low in his throat as his tongue once again lashes out grazing a tiny nubbin of flesh within my curls. I cry out this time, my hips still wanting more. He slips a second finger inside of me, then a third, all the while his tongue plays with my clit, making me scream his name over and over.

I don't know how many times I find release. Two? Maybe twenty?! Reason and logic are lost on the waves of pleasure he's causing. My body is blissfully warm and content when I feel his fingers slip out of my center, feel the light kiss on my stomach before he stretches above me and places a lingering kiss on my lips.

My hands graze across his chest, his ribs and stomach, until they settle on the button of his jeans. I tug his hips closer to mine, trying to grind them together. I want him inside me.

"You're wearing too much clothing," I tell him, fighting with the button to come undone.

"Am I now," he asks with a devilish smile. But he doesn't argue as he raises his hips to help me with the button. With the button undone, I pull down the zipper, my knuckles grazing his erection and eliciting a moan from him.

He pulls away only to slide his pants down from his knees and onto the floor. Then he crawls back to me, his hands on my hips as he turns me over onto my stomach. I mutter a small protest, but he only responds by placing a light kiss on the nape of my neck.

"Haru?"

"I love you."

Joy rushes through me as he lifts my hips, spreading my legs and entering me with a single thrust. This is a position we've only done once before. The sensorial onslaught is intense and all I can concentrate on is the sliding motion of his manhood in and out of my core. With a twist of his hips he hits this one spot. Over and over he slams into me. I can feel my release coming quickly. Too quickly. But then the tide washes over me and there's nothing I can do about it.

He slips from me easily, easing me down and helping me to turn so that I can face him. Slowly he slips inside me again, starting a whole new burning sensation in my middle. He rides me slowly, his pace unhurried by growing need. I can feel my center tighten and push my hips in hopes that he'll move faster. He does so, but not as fast as I'd like. I groan in disapproval just before he slams into me, my clit grinding into his pelvic bone and I come instantly.

He lays beside me, pulling me on top of him until I straddle his thighs. He's still rock hard inside of me, probably attempting to prolong his release in favor of pleasing me. He does that sometimes. And while I'm grateful -- and satisfied -- it also allows me to have a little fun as well.

I try to force my vaginal muscles to clench him, earning me a moan of delight in response. I do this several times until his hips start to push upward into mine. I can't help but moan too. The feeling of him stretching me, lodged deeply inside of me, is causing my own warmth to build again. He whispers my name as I begin to ride him.

The pace is slow at first. I don't want to rush the growing pleasure building in my stomach again. But after a few minutes it's almost too much to take and I have to move faster. Haru's hips begin moving with mine, thrusting upward as I fall upon his hardened length.

I rotate between my fast pace and a more languorous one. Building, then letting the warmth recede, only to build it back up again. Once Haru grasps my hips, urging me to ride even faster, I know that he's close to his own orgasm.

Again release seems to come too quickly. But this time, Haru is with me. Muscles clenching him tightly within me, I cry out his name as my orgasm slams into me: a wave of intense heat and bright light that I have to close my eyes and throw my head back to shield myself from it. I can feel him pulse inside of me, feel his seed wash along my core as he comes over and over again until he's totally spent. His body shivers involuntarily from the last of his release, then he pulls my head downward for a kiss.

This kiss should've been light, brief and filled with satisfaction. And while all those are present, there's also a hint of longing...and a hint of loss. I wonder to myself, thinking that perhaps I'd done something wrong during our lovemaking. I am still learning after all.

When we part I open my lips to speak, but he silences me with another light kiss. My eyes begin to fall closed, and my body begins to feel heavy with sleep. Pushing my hair out of my eyes, he tucks me as close to him as possible. Holding our hands between us, he smiles at me, lightly brushing his lips across my knuckles.

"No matter what happens. I love you, Tohru."

'No matter what happens.'

Then, blissfully, I give into sleep.

~TO BE CONTINUED~