"Alright everyone, I'll see you all tomorrow," Haru said as she walked into her bedroom in the hotel suite. Once the door was closed, her smile dropped and she breathed a sigh as she pulled the blonde wig off of her thin brown hair, her chocolate eyes turning weary and tired. But it wasn't physical exhaustion that haunted her.
She dropped her purse on the bed and walked over to the window. It was large with a seat, which she took advantage of as she opened the window. The hotel was ornate and old, much like the room she was in, so the windows weren't sealed shut like most of the others she'd stayed in before, even in the penthouse.
She sighed again, looking over the fantastic skyscape. Paris was beautiful at night, having rightfully earned it's name of City of Lights. And as she recalled it's other name of City of Love, she saddened. To the world, she was in a happy relationship, but it was a sham. She liked Machida, they'd become good friends after he dumped his jealous girlfriend, but her heart belonged to another.
She thought about the one she loved, Baron Humbert Von Gikkingen, Baron to his friends. Not that he was a real nobleman, or even a human, but a magical living statue whose form was a foot-tall half-man half-cat. But under that he was a kinder man than almost everyone. He has saved her life on an adventure that gave her courage to follow her heart, and she had given it to him.
She had often visited the Refuge after their trip to the Cat Kingdom, and with each visit she grew fonder and fonder of the magic square in the hidden corner of the city and it's occupants. With it's magic, she was able to shrink down upon entering, a measure Baron said was to make repeat visitors more comfortable. Through tea chats and lazy days, Toto and Muta grew to become brothers, and the place in her heart that Baron held grew bigger and bigger.
It was him she first told about her secret passion, that she loved to sing. It was him who encouraged her to join Machida's band after their singer had surgery that ruined her voice. It was him who helped teach her how to dance so she wouldn't fall off the stage as she sang. It was him she was smiling at when she performed for the first time and he, Toto and Muta hid in the rafters of the barn. It was him who supported her when she decided she wanted to wear a wig on stage to help her walk around anonymously after they became an overnight sensation. It was him she sang to when they performed their romantic songs. It was him she wished would sing the duets with on stage, after he helped her practice one. It was him who always wrote to her when she'd gone on the national tour after winning the Battle of the Bands contest. And it was her who left to go on the world tour after that.
She remembered the last time she saw Baron, face to face. It was just a few days before she was to leave for the tour. She had come to the Refuge after dinner with the band and their managers. They'd served sake with the dinner, and she had a little more than she should have. As she tripped her way into the Bureau, after giving the door three sharp knocks, her own personal signal, Baron helped her to a chair and just gave her tea to help sober her and to settle her stomach so she wouldn't get sick. He explained Muta and Toto were elsewhere and waited patiently while she called her mom to tell her she'd be staying at a friend's house overnight, and that she'd be back in the morning.
She remembered he'd kept the light low so she wouldn't get a headache once she sobered up, using candles as opposed to the gas lights. She had sat slumped against the arm of the sofa and watched him. She always had thought he was handsome, but in that light he was even more so. The alcohol had also lowered her inhibitions, so when he'd bent over her to take the cup of tea from her hands for a refill, she leaned up and kissed him.
She could tell he was surprised by the action, the way he tensed when she made contact showed it. However, when she noticed he hadn't even moved, she pulled back. "What's wrong Baron?" she'd asked him, tilting her head slightly.
He was blushing hard enough it could just be seen through his fur. He quickly stood up straight and turned to the tea pot, busying himself with pouring new cups for them. "I believe you might need another cup of tea, Miss Haru," he said.
"You know your tea is more of an aphrodisiac than any alcohol, right?" she'd jokingly said, sitting up and watching him. "And what's with the 'Miss' stuff. I thought I told you to call me Haru years ago."
"I think things might be a bit different now," was his answer, still not turning from his position. "You are, after all, inebriated, it's never certain how it affects people."
"I've wanted to kiss you since I first met you Baron. The alcohol just took away any reservations I had about doing so." She stood, swaying only slightly. Already the tea was sobering her up, she knew she'd have to say what she wanted fast.
"And why ever would you want to kiss me, Miss Haru?" Baron turned as he asked this, seeing her walking up to him.
"Because I love you Baron, and that's not the sake talking." And with that, she flung her arms around his neck and kissed him. This time, he responded, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer. The kiss was chaste and passionate at the same time, Haru's drunken ferocity countered by his calm control, never letting her push to far. When they finally pulled apart, they were reeling from the feelings they felt.
"Will you regret it tomorrow, Haru, if I said I loved you too, and kissed you again" Baron asked her, the nervousness in his voice evident.
Haru shot him a look. "Never, Baron. I don't want to push too far so soon. What I do want is for you to keep kissing me." And with that, she pulled his lips back to hers as she walked backwards and when she hit the couch, she let him fall on top of her.
The rest of the night they spent curled up together, talking and kissing, until Haru finally drifted to sleep in his arms and he held her until morning came. When Muta and Toto returned, he motioned for them to be quiet so to not disturb her. When she woke up, they told the cat and crow what had happened and, while they felt a little embarrassed about it, neither of them wished that it hadn't happened. When she had to leave, he walked her to the arched entrance to the refuge and kissed her goodbye just at the point where she returned to her normal size. And for that moment, as she grew so did he and the hint of a future might have been there. Then the kiss ended and when she opened her eyes, Haru was looking down at Baron. With tears in both their eyes, they turned around at the same moment, she walking to a future they couldn't share, and he to a world they couldn't stay in.
That had been almost a year ago, and the tour had taken them everywhere, from Seoul to Mumbai in Asia, Los Angles to New York in North America, Rio de Janeiro to Johannesburg in South America and Africa, and finally the European leg of the tour. Their first stop was Rome, and Paris was their second. It would be another month before they would finish in England, after which they'd return to America to do a TV show. It all seemed to be a good idea at the time, but now Haru was wondering about her choice.
She closed the window again and rested her head against the cool glass. From an outsider's perspective, the day she'd just had was perfect. They arrived in Paris early in the morning, attended a CD signing and took photos with the fans before the band was able to spend the day however they wanted. She ended up spending most of it with Machida, wandering around Paris as paparazzi took pictures and prepared them for the buzzed about question: When will there be a proposal?
It was Candy, their publicity manager who came up with the idea. The media had already gotten the story of Haru's crush on him when they were in high school, and what better way to ride that hype but with an actual relationship. Within a few weeks, media around the world knew about Haru and Machida's whirlwind romance and their sales and income increased significantly. The only people who knew the relationship was fake were the other band members, Haru and Machida's families and the Cat Bureau. She'd made sure to write them about that, even if she didn't do so very often anymore.
When the tour kicked off, Haru and Baron exchanged letters as often as they could. She'd send them to the Cat Kingdom, where Lune and Yuki would make sure the letters got to the Bureau. However, after a while, she just kept writing the same message, "I'm fine, how are you?" with some token description of whatever city they were in, or what happened on the tour bus, plane or train that day. Eventually, she started writing them, but wouldn't send them; she didn't want that sent to him. Still, his letters came, and they were the happiest times for her.
She sighed again and pushed herself off of the window seat. It just wasn't worth it to her. She might have had fame, fortune, and the opportunity to do something she loved. But without the man she loved, she hated it, and she'd had enough.
She pulled a carry-on suitcase out of the closet and started throwing clothes in it. If what she took was a mix of casual and fancy styles, or large amount of shirts compared to pants and shoes, she didn't care. Into a small duffle, also from the closet, she packed the few books she had, a couple changes of clothes, her necessities and her wallet. Her phone she left, she wouldn't need it where she went, and she could easily get another one later on, and the same for her music, except for one CD, which held a song she'd spent months trying to find and had finally gotten a copy of a few months before; her and Baron's song, Katzen Blaut.
Quiet as a mouse, she slipped out of her room, grateful that the other band members had turned in to their own rooms and she was the only one still awake or not busy. She left four envelopes behind her, one each in front of Machida, Candy and Hideiko, their stage manager's, rooms. The last was on her bed and contained the same information the first three did, just put there in case someone went into her room before they found their own. She'd written them almost a week before, and she was now putting them to their purpose.
The letters all said the same thing.
I'm sorry everyone, but I can't do this anymore.I used to enjoy this work, and I love all of you like family, but I can't do this anymore. If I tried to keep going, I'd probably go catatonic over time, and the only way to fix it only on person can do, and you would never be able to contact him.
"In regards to the band and the tour, have Jessica replace me as the lead singer, that's what she wants and she's been practicing. I should know, I've been helping her. Ami, Neji, keep going strong; I'll be expecting an invite to the wedding. Jon, try and settle down, or at least don't break so many hearts, we want you to give us nieces and nephews the proper way. And Machida, follow your heart. Consider this my Dear John and ask out Go, I know you two like each other.
"Candy, Hideiko, I know you're probably disappointed and angry at me, but I have to do this or I will slowly go mad. I'll start ranting about cats and crows and talking statues and you'll have to institutionalize me. This way is better for everyone involved.
"I'll miss you guys, and I hope you write. If you want to contact me, write to the included PO box number and write the following word on the envelope: Refuge. Again, I love you and I wish you all the best, but for me, I'm going home.
With the letters delivered, Haru put her shoes on and walked out of the hotel, down the street to a bus terminal. Paying her fare, she settled in, dozing in her seat until she reached the airport. Before too long, she'd left the country and was on her way to Tokyo.
Making her way out of the airport, Haru waited a moment to look at the metropolis around her. It was beautiful, as it always was, but Haru didn't linger too long. By now, people would know about her disappearance and she would have paparazzi and possibly police looking for her. Changing in the airport bathroom, like she had before she got on the plane in France, she hopped on a bus out to the suburbs, to the small town where she had grown up.
After getting off the bus, she walked around the town for a little bit. First she visited her old house. Her mom still lived there, but Haru didn't, having moved into an apartment with Hiromi and Ami after the formation of the band. Now, Naoko rented rooms to college students, and was never lacking for company with her quilting friends around. Haru didn't go up and knock on the door; she'd written her mother just before they arrived in Paris, she knew Haru's feelings and what she'd been planning to do.
Haru then walked down the street, passing the traffic light where she'd been talking with Hiromi and ended up saving a gray, odd eyed cat and triggering the adventure that would make her who she was today.
She kept walking down to her school. The day had just ended and she watched as students poured out of the building, either mingling on the grounds or walking through the gates to the shops or home. Here, she had been Haru, the-girl-who-was-late-everyday-and-a-total-klutz, then later Haru, the-confident-girl-who-wasn't-afraid-to-be-herself. There, her best friend was Hiromi, her other friends were Chicka and Machida and she was happy. This was also the place where she ended her adventure and started to change her life.
Finally, slowly, she walked to the Crossroads, taking in all the sights. The florist where she and Hiromi worked at, and the cafe who first sponsored the band were still open and going strong, There were a few new families walking around, but otherwise, much was the same.
She made it to the chair where Muta usually sat. He was not there, but Haru didn't worry. She just walked to the old familiar alley, noting the man who stood and started following her. Luckily, she managed to be quick enough to lose him before long. Around that bend, through that alley, over the tin rooftops, down the stairs, around the corner and finally she saw the white marble archway of the Refuge, and through it, the lighted windows of the Cat Bureau. She paused for a moment before walking on, only one thought running through her head.
As she passed under the arch, she felt the magic wash over her. Willing it to make her change slow so she'd get across the square quicker, she noticed Toto was not on his pillar. 'They must be inside,' quickly interrupted her one thought, then she shook it off as she made it to the Bureau doors. Through them, and the open window above her head, she heard Muta and Toto insulting each other and Baron's soft admonitions. Setting her bags down, she raised her hand and knocked on the door sharply three times.
The voices stopped. Haru waited with baited breath, nibbling her lower lip. After seemingly an eternity, the door opened, revealing Baron. His suit coat and hat were off and his sleeves rolled up to the elbows. He had a stunned look, like he couldn't believe what he saw. "Haru?" he asked softly, as he slowly stretched out his hand, reaching for hers.
Haru smiled and took his hand in hers. "Hello Baron," she said, tears of joy welling in her eyes.
Before another word could be said, Baron had her in an embrace and his lips were on her's. After a year's separation, the two lovers were together, and in that moment, nothing else mattered.
When they finally separated for air, Baron rested his forehead on Haru's. "You came back," was all he could say.
Haru smiled, pulling him closer to her and saying, her lips hovering over his, the thought that'd been running through her head since she saw the Refuge. "I came home."
Based on the songs "Home" by Chris Daughtry, Blake Shelton/Michael Buble and Phillip Phillips. I own neither them nor The Cat Returns, this was just a plot bunny that gave me a chance to preview another, longer fic of mine with the same pretense, Haru as a pop star who runs away to the Cat Bureau and her true love Baron.