After the Curse
By: Envy Lamperouge
Summary: it's been a year since the curse has been lifted, and a certain boar finds comfort from an unlikely source.
Disclaimer: this goes on out to all chapters of this story, I will not repeat it, ever again.
I do not own Fruits Basket, it is owned by Natsuki Takaya. I also do not own any brands, songs, or anything else in the story. I just own the plot. And my computer. So there.
-~*Je suis une ligne de démarcation*~-~*avoir peur de moi*~-
-July 30-
It was nearly one o' clock this night. The stars were shining brightly, and there was a pleasant warm breeze through the air.
It was on nights like these when Kagura Sohma sat alone in her apartment, her mind wandering towards her beloved Kyo, memories flooding into her mind; she would start crying at that point. Because he wasn't there. Her beloved Kyo was not within her reach. The male whom she had pined for, for so long was forever out of her reach now. She loved him with all her heart, and though she knew the feeling wasn't reciprocated, she kept trying.
When they were children, yes, it had been out of pity, her love for him, but it had grown so much more since then. There wasn't a day when Kyo wasn't in her thoughts… But he wasn't there anymore. She couldn't just go to his school or to Shigure's house and find him. No. Because he was far away now. He was with… with her.
Her beloved Kyo had been gone for nearly a year now, since he graduated from high school… with Tohru…
A bitter pang hit Kagura's heart.
Without a second thought Kagura bolted out of her apartment. She ran, and ran. Ran until her legs were sore, and her lungs were burning, and then ran some more. The pain in her legs and lungs were nothing compared to the pain she felt in her heart.
Her eyes blurred with tears, and her heart was hammering in her ears.
She then ran into a man, the force of which, threw her backwards, onto the cold pavement; the concrete scraped her palms, hurt her lower back, and scared the living day lights out of her. The tall man had also fallen backwards, nearly hitting his head of the edge of a park bench.
-~*Soy una línea divisoria*~-~*tener miedo de mí*~-
Momiji started walking back to his apartment, after leaving Haru and Rin's house, but it was such a lovely night, so he decided to take a detour through the park to enjoy it. The night reminded him of several others when he would leave his papa's building late at night after helping Tohru clean.
Tohru…
Oh, how his heart ached for his beloved Tohru… he had fallen so hopelessly in love with her after only a few months of knowing her. He wanted so much for her to be happy, to see her smile, and laugh. He wanted everyone he loved to be happy. He treasured his loved one's happiness more than his own, and would do anything to see them smile. You can tell cant you? He gave up his family to keep them happy, after all. Even if Momiji couldn't be the one to make Tohru happy, and even though he wouldn't see her as often as he would like, Momiji still bid Kyo no ill.
The tall blonde male tilted his head upwards, facing the bright twinkling stars, and let his mind wander.
He closed his eyes for only a moment, the sound of Tohru's laughter echoing in his mind.
Then…~
With the force of a ferocious bull- or was it one really depressed boar? - He was knocked backwards, landing flat on his back, his head nearly hitting the corner of the park bench.
The person who had run into him- literally- had fallen back as well and now said
"WHAT THE FU-"
"Oh my god Kagura! I'm so sorry!" Momiji exclaimed, getting to his feet in a second to help the brunette off the ground. He grabbed her hands and pulled her upwards, but as soon as he let go, the girl recoiled and hissed at the pain in her hands. Her palms were scraped and bleeding a bit in places.
Momiji's eyes widened at the sight of the crimson liquid
"Oh, kami-san, I'm so sorry Kagura!" Kagura looked away, trying to wipe away the tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes once more
"It's okay, Momiji, it just stings a bit" she said turning around once more with a smile.
Momiji noted that her eyes were red, wet, and bit puffy, as if she had been crying for a while.
"Daijobu desuka? What's wrong Kagura?" Momiji said, tilting her head upwards so that he could get a better look at her face. Kagura figured that he had already seen her red eyes, so she sighed and told him about how she was thinking of Kyo.
Momiji smiled a bittersweet smile.
"I know how you feel" he murmured. Kagura looked down to the ground remembering she wasn't the only one who had given up their love. She tried to tighten her hands into fists, but winced when she put pressure on her hands.
"You should get those cuts cleaned out soon, if not your hands might get infected" the tall German said tugging on the short girls' elbow
"I live close by; do you want to go clean up there?" Kagura looked up at him in slight disbelief. Whenever Kagura got hurt most of her friends shook her off, they figured 'she's strong, something that small won't bother her' but here was her younger cousin offering to have something as minor as a scrape helped.
The genuine worried look on his face was what convinced Kagura he wasn't just being polite. From Kagura's point of sight the light from the light post behind Momiji looked sort of like a makeshift halo.
A slow smile spread on the brunette's lips, and she nodded.
"Hai"
-~*Ich bin eine Trennlinie*~-~*Angst vor mir sein*~-
Momiji's apartment was a bit big, but it was comfortably furnished with large couches in the living room and photos hung up everywhere. The photos were of various friends, family, and so forth. There was some of Haru and Rin; others of his school friends. There was even one of Momiji, Haru, and Kagura from when they were children, propped up next to one of the arm chairs. Momiji led his cousin to a bathroom, with a medicine cabinet hidden behind the mirror. Kagura sat on top of the sink counter.
The blonde took out a first aid kit, and proceeded to clean Kagura's palms with disinfecting wipes. The older girl winced a bit, but otherwise stayed still. After Momiji started putting disinfecting cream on her hands Kagura asked
"How do you know so much about first aid?" Momiji smiled and said
"After years of living near Hatori-san, and getting sent to him for scraped knees or elbows almost every other day, you tend to learn a few things" he chuckled, remembering that when he was little he would have so much energy he would just run around until either it was time for lunch of he tripped and scraped his knees or hands and was sent to Hatori to get them better.
Kagura smiled as she watched the ex-rabbit laugh. The past few years had aged him wonderfully. No longer was he the short kid who ran around eating candy all day, here was a young adult, whose looks and charm could probably get him any girl he wanted.
Kagura's silver grey eyes darted to Momiji's warm chocolate brown ones, which were focused on her hands at the moment, applying white squared bandages to keep them cleaned.
"So how have you been Kagi?" The male asked, using a nickname he had for her from when they were kids. Kagura smiled. She didn't think he would have remembered something like that.
"It's been… good" Kagura said wistfully trying to come up with a word to describe all the lonely nights she had spent over the past year, and ultimately failing.
"It doesn't sound like it's been good" Momiji said while putting the first aid kit away.
"Can you always tell when I'm depressed or something?" the ex boar said playfully. Her cousin smiled, and laughed a bit. Momiji's eyes wandered to the clock, which said it was nearly two in the morning.
"It's really late…" Momiji muttered more to himself than Kagura. As if to agree with him Kagura let out a big yawn.
"Kagi, do you want me to take you back to your apartment? It's really dark outside, and I don't want anyone stealing you" the younger male said with a laugh. He was joking about the being stolen part, but with a depressed and sleepy Kagura alone in the streets, a lot of things could happen.
Kagura smiled wearily
"Alright… but can I ask you something?" Momiji raised an eyebrow but agreed
"Why did you help me?" Momiji laughed at the question
"Why wouldn't I help you? You're my friend and I'm the one who made you fall backwards, and I know from personal experience how annoying scrapes and bruises can be, when they're unattended to" he smiled brightly at her.
Remembering that she hadn't been the only one to fall from the crash, Kagura exclaimed
"Momiji, are you okay? I totally forgot that you fell onto your back when I ran into you!" Momiji smiled. He had been ignoring the mild throbbing of his back, because he thought it wasn't that serious
"I'm fine" he told her. But being stubborn as only Kagura is
"Let me check!"
"Huh?" the blonde said in complete confusion. Check what?
"Let me see your back and make sure you're not hurt!"
Again
"Huh?!" Kagura jumped off the counter and forced the frightened young male to turn around. She pulled his shirt up, and Momiji yelped from his back being exposed to the cold air.
Kagura's eyes widened a bit. His back had been scraped, more in the shoulder blade area than anywhere else, but the majority of his back was red, like it had been slapped. Which technically it was… by the pavement…
"I'm so sorry Momiji!"
"It's okay Kagura!"
"No it's not!" Kagura said, tears starting to form in her eyes again.
"Kagura~ there's a bigger problem that that!" Momiji said whimpering a bit.
"What!?"
"It's really cold, and I don't have a shirt on" the male said sheepishly.
Kagura paused for a moment.
In her moment of guilt, she had ripped Momiji's shirt completely off.
And awkward silence passed over the room.
Momiji's arms were wrapped around him trying to cover part of his chest.
A dark red blush settled over her face.
"…….. I'm gonna go get another shirt…" the tall male said awkwardly leaving the bathroom, leaving an embarrassed Kagura clutching his torn shirt in her fists.
Doing as only Kagura does, she started picking up all the small pieces of her cousins shirt, quietly, and filled with guilt.
"Err… Kagi?" Kagura's head snapped up to face her handsome cousin, who had changed into baby blue silk pajamas.
"Uh…" she said stupidly. He really was beautiful…
"It's pretty late, and it's already really dark outside, so I was wondering if you wanted to spend the night… I mean… if that's alright with you"
Kagura looked down at the floor.
"Okay…"
"Kagi?" the brunettes' head snapped p to look at Momiji again
"Eh?"
"You don't have to have my shirt in a death grip y'know" he said laughing. Kagura's face turned bright red again, and she immediately dropped the torn remnants of his pinstriped burgundy button up shirt.
"c'mon Kagi-Chan, I'll show you to the bedroom you can stay in" as he led her down a small corridor, Kagura noted that the apartment was large enough to maybe only fit one large bedroom, the living room, a kitchen, and the bathroom.
Momiji led his older cousin to said large bedroom that had a large bed with a soft yellow comforter, and several pillows, and even a stuffed bunny or two
"You can stay in here, if you want" Kagura burst out saying
"But isn't this your room?"
"Don't worry, Kagi-Chan, I'll be on the couch on the living room"
"But, I don't want to impose-"
"It's no problem Kagi-Chan, I don't have over stuffed couches for nothing" Momiji said ruffling Kagura's hair. Said girl pouted, and was about to rebut, but Momiji had left the room already.
'How the hell does he do that…?' Kagura thought to herself. She sat down on the side of the bed, and on the bedside table next to it was a picture of Momiji and another girl, with blonde hair (black roots showing) with the ends of her curly fringe died hot pink, and a one piece hot pink tutu over a white tee-shirt and skinny jeans, with her arms around Momiji and trying to give him a kiss on the cheek, but Momiji was leaning his head away from her, with a playful smile on his lips.
'Is that his girlfriend…?' Kagura didn't know why, but that thought upset her.
But then all of a sudden… she did know why it bothered her.
'I think… I might be starting to like Momiji…'the small acts of kindness, and the obvious sincerity he showed her were enough for it. The small girl's brow furrowed. Because of this she was starting to get jealous of the girl in the picture…
'this is completely illogical… I love Kyo kun!' Kagura's eyes darted to the picture once more, and took in the kind loving look in Momiji's eyes. She found herself wondering what it would be like to have him give that warm look to her. '…I like him…'
-Caring for someone… isn't based on logic. You can't really rationalize emotions. Once I think "I like him" … it's all over.—Kagura Sohma, Fruits Basket Volume 12 Chapter 69
Happy (five days late) Birthday Tyler! I hope you liked it~! Q_Q I really hope you do~ oh and did you see that you're mentioned as the girl in the picture?! ;D you lucky duck~
This is my first time making a story in third person point of view so please don't judge harshly.
I love the kaguraXmomiji pairing to death. I really do. They deserve someone special. (And they're my favorite characters of the entire manga!)
If you have any questions or think it's weird, please tell me in a review~
Please~?
Atsuko Sohma: review!
Envy: you still owe me atsuko!
Atsuko: … shut up… and readers! REVIEW!
Original finish date: 5/09/10