𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙁𝙤𝙤𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝 -𝘼 𝙃𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙞 𝙁𝙖𝙣𝙛𝙞𝙘-

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟓

In all of my days, nothing has quite bothered me as Shigure Sohma does. His words, which he insists are with good intentions, seem like lies. He's a schemer.

"Well, I was quite surprised to find you at my doorstep, Yuihiso. I thought for sure you were my editor. Oops!" He lightly says as we enter into the living room. "So, what is the meaning of this unexpected visit. Surely, you didn't just want to come and say hi to me."

While I'll admit that he's handsome in looks, his personality reminds me of a can of worms. "You're right. I need your help with Hatori."

"Had a falling out, did you? I thought as much from the other day. The tension in the air was as thick as honey. And not in a good way." He comments, with that stupid cheery look on his face. I want to lean across the table and smack him, but I shall refrain, for now.

"Yes, we argued. About Kana." God, I feel like a small child telling him this. I press down on my neck and try to breathe. The last thing I want to do is cry from humiliation. "And then, when I went to apologize about it, we got in another argument. About Kana."

"Wow, exes are the worst. Even once they're gone, they still cause issues." I should have just listened to Ayame and pitied Kana. That would be better than hanging around this fool.

"Shigure Sohma, if you don't stop acting like a teenager, I am going to set your house on fire and trap you in it." With teeth grit, nails digging into the table, I tell him.

"What do you want me to do? I wasn't the one who came crawling in for advice." And just like that, the room has turned icy. That sinister look in his eyes has come back. "If you want to make up with Hatori, you should put all your childish issues behind and apologize. Would it hurt you to admit that Kana isn't an awful human? Are you going to die if you lose to her?"

"No! I'm not going to die. I don't want to do it. That's it."

"Well, if you care so much about Hatori, apologize. Surely you can find a way to do that without mentioning Kana. Or, is there something else you want from me?" A small voice tells me to ask him about the curse, but I feel like if I did, I'd look stupid.

"If that's all, I'm going to get back to work." He stands up and turns to his bedroom.

"Wait!" I hold my hands up. "What exactly is the curse, and why does it hold such a strong bondage over Hatori and others?"

He shuts his bedroom door and turns only enough for me to see his dark eyes. "The curse? And why do you care about it."

"Because it's an issue I should be concerned about, I mean, Momoji did say it kept the Zodiac members from going against their "God." And if the isn't concerning, then I don't know what is."

"The Zodiac curse is a concerning one, that's correct. For some time, different members of the Sohma family have ended up cursed. They're existence to live in this seemingly, never-ending cycle. A cycle of God and pet. 13 Sohma members are cursed with a zodiac member. And then there's God." He pauses. "Those who are the animals cannot go against God's will. Even if every sense of ours tells us not to, the Zodiac spirit is too strong to fight. That is the curse. We must spend the rest of our lives in an eternal banquet."

Is this what Kureno meant when he said there were things outside of my understanding? Why there has always been such a large divide between those of the Inside Family and those who aren't? Why it's such a miracle that I managed to keep my memories?

From all that Shigure has told me, the words "dangerous" and "evil" flash at me in bright red letters. This curse is unnatural, wrong even. To be forced to live in bondage to a false god? It's plain diabolical.

"So that's why Hatori couldn't blame Akito when his and Kana's relationship turned to dust. It wasn't because he didn't want to. It's because he couldn't." That still doesn't justify why Kana blamed herself instead of Akito. It's not like she's cursed.

"Is Akito, God then?" That's the only logical answer.

"Yes, he is." Shigure purses his lips before asking me another question. "Why did you want to know about this? It doesn't concern you."

"It concerns Hatori, and I've become very close to him. I want to be able to help him if I can." I anxiously admit.

"If you can? Are you suggesting finding a way to break the curse?" He read my mind like a magazine. Even though this seems like something way out of my league, I think if it broke, that would be better.