Title: True Beauty

Author: AishiteSubete

Rating: K

Summary: Kisa is struggling with being rejected by the boy she likes, and Tohru steps in to offer some comforting words. Prompt: "true beauty." Post curse, future centric.

A/N: The story takes place about four years after the breaking of the curse, when Kisa is about sixteen years old, a sophomore in high school.

Tohru will most likely be OOC. I'm not a big Fruits Basket person, and this was written for a friend.

Kisa sat out in the Sohma family garden, far away from the hustle and bustle of the family reunion. Sure, it had been a good six months since she had seen her extended family (they never saw each other too terribly much after the curse was broken), but she didn't want to be involved in the commotion or the noise. Dipping her hand into the water of the koi pond, she traced languid circles in the water, thinking about the events of the last week. She had thought that, maybe, after the curse was broken, she would be accepted by her peers. She had thought that, perhaps, she would be able to live a little and be herself, despite her orange hair and orange eyes. But she still recieved strange looks from her classmates, and she wondered if it could ever stop. She had done everything she could think of-colored contacts, hair dye, you name it-but nothing would work to change her appearance.

The tiger knew that she wouldn't be able to change how she looked or who she was; it was set in stone, predetermined. But could she live with it? Could she still keep her head held high, even through the torment, the teasing, and and rejection?

Rejection.

Kisa felt her mood drop even lower at the mention of that word. She had never known how much rejection had hurt until it attacked her heart with all the ferocity of a rabid animal. She had never known how much one person could hurt her until she had been hurt by someone. She wished that she had never felt it, wished she wasn't still feeling it with every breath she took.

His name was Hidoi Nikumu. Hidoi was a third year high school student, and one of the most attractive in his class. His hair was as black as coal, shaggy and beautiful, and his natural eye color mirror that of his hair; oftentimes, he wore red colored contacts. He was tall and lithe, and extremely athletic. He played basketball and soccer like it was second nature to him. Hidoi was also very intelligent and very talented-he was a straight A student who played violin like a master. He would talk to Kisa on occasion, which made her heart leap in her chest.

Kisa's best friend, Megami, said it was a sign; she urged Kisa to go after him, to talk with him more, to ask him out on a date, or to be her boyfriend. The tiger turned six shades of pink each time Megami mentioned it, but eventually, she decided to go for it. After classes one day, Kisa found Hidoi sitting in the school courtyard, reading an American classic novel-in English! His intelligence made her heart thump, and she walked over and sat beside him on the bench. She had said hi, and he smiled and returned the greeting, before Kisa brought up a conversation about his book. They chatted about it and the complexities of the English language for a few minutes, then Kisa swallowed hard and asked Hidoi the big question-if he would go on a date with her. The look that the blackette gave her was nearly unbearable; it was a look of pure revulsion, and humor. Kisa's heart had fallen before he had said a single word, and in retrospect she wished that she had ran away before he even got the opportunity to speak. He had asked her why he would date someone like her-someone so abnormal, someone who couldn't fit in even if she tried. He had asked her why he would date someone who stood out in a crowd as strange or odd, just based on physical appearance. He had wanted her to explain why he would date a girl who would draw negative attention to himself.

So Kisa ran, ran as fast as she could away from Hidoi. She found herself on Megami's doorstep, and the brunette tried her hardest to comfort the tiger-but Kisa couldn't be comforted by Megami's words. It was futile, and both girls knew it. After a few hours of crying, Kisa left, carrying some of Megami's best comfort foods-homemade chocolate chip cookies and rice balls-with her. The brunette knew that Kisa would be needing them.

But now, a week later, the orangette sat in the Sohma family gardens, separated from the tumult of the family reunion, listening to the banter of her family in the main house. She didn't know why she was even here, or why she had even bothered coming. Perhaps it was because she was one of the original Zodiac, or perhaps it was because she felt obliged; she didn't like listening to the conversations of her family members. Akito and Shigure were talking to Rin and Hatsuharu about their wedding plans, and Yuki and Machi were asking Ayame and his girlfriend how long they had been together. Kureno and Uotani, who had gotten married recently, were asking Kagura and her boyfriend how their relationship was doing. It was enough to make Kisa sick, and enough to make her realize that she was the only member of the Sohma family who didn't have a significant other.

This just made the events of the last week even more despairing.

As the tiger watched the koi fish swim around in their pond, she was entirely unaware of the figure approaching behind her until she saw it reflected in the water. Tohru tapped Kisa on the shoulder, and the latter turned around. "Konnichiwa, Kisa-chan," Tohru addressed witha smile. She was wearing a white furisode, as was the custom of all newly-married women for the Sohma family; Kisa duly noted that Uotani was wearing something similar. "O-genki desu ka?"

Kisa sighed, turning back to her own reflection in the water-she saw nothing beautiful there. "I'm alright, I suppose," she answered in a quiet, reserved voice.

"Your voice doesn't project that," Tohru responded in a motherly fashion, sitting beside Kisa on the smooth stones. Kisa noted the slight change in Tohru's behavior, and wondered if it was because she had gotten married. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, really," Kisa said, tracing circles on the water's surface again. "Nothing to be worried about."

Tohru shrugged her shoulders, then noticed the disdainful look Kisa was giving the reflections in the water. Every time the tiger's reflection materialized, Kisa was sure to give it a hard look and ruin it by running more circles in it. "You look beautiful today, Kisa," Tohru grinned. "I'm sure you're the envy of all the ladies at school, and the desire of every man's heart."

Kisa laughed; it was bitter and resentful. "I am not. I'm not even pretty."

"Beauty is always in the eye of the beholder, Kisa-chan," Tohru's smile widened as she scooted closer to Kisa. The younger girl's reflection became evident in the water again, and before she could destroy it, Tohru gently guided her hand away from the pond. "There is something I've learned in my lifetime, Kisa-chan; until you yourself believe it's true, nobody will ever see the beauty that lies within you." Kisa looked up at her, bright orange eyes glowing with hurt and hope.

"Nani ka?" Kisa let out the words of question before she could restrain herself. She was looking at Tohru with hope-the hope that the older woman could help her. "I have to think I'm beautiful to be beautiful? But there are so many other girls out there who think they're beautiful, but they really...aren't."

"The best thing about beauty is knowing that you are beautiful inside but not flaunting the fact that you're beautiful on the outside," Tohru explained. "It's not what's on the outside that really matters; when people make fun of your appearance, they do it because they've never seen how beautiful you are inside. They can't appreciate the beauty on the outside without appreciating the beauty on the inside first. It's people like your dear friend Megami who you should truly worry about."

Kisa had never thought about it like that; maybe the ones whose opinions she should care about are really those who actually know her. It was something the tiger hadn't considered. "Yeah...you're right, Tohru-san."

Tohru giggled. "I'm glad that I was able to help you, Kisa-chan." She stood, smoothing out the creases in her furisode with her thin hands. "If you ever need anything else, you know that Kyo and I live only a few blocks away from you and your family. Our doors will always be open for you, Kisa-chan." With that, Tohru hugged the little tiger goodbye, and bounced back off to the main house, leaving Kisa with a new set of thoughts.

Six months passed since Kisa's conversation with Tohru in the Sohma family garden. Today, it was a new day, and Kisa was ready to meet her new family with pride...and somebody else by her side. When Kisa walked in the doors of the main house (granted, she was a little later than everybody else), she was latched onto the arm of a tall, muscular boy with red streaks in his black hair, and blue contacts. Kisa herself was sporting a brown tiger-ear headband the mysterious boy had bought her.

"Hello, Kisa-chan," Tohru approached Kisa and the mysterious boy with a gentle smile. "It's nice to see you once more. Who is this striking young man?"

"This is my boyfriend, Junsui Jinsei," Kisa said with a smile-it was the biggest smile that Tohru had ever seen on the orangette's face. "We've been dating for three months."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Jinsei-san," Tohru said, shaking his hand. "Please, come in. Kisa, I'm sure the rest of the family would love to meet him." Kisa nodded, and as she walked towards the family sitting room, she turned around to Tohru and mouthed, thank you-for everything.

Tohru smiled.

A/N: For those of you who weren't sure about the meanings of the Japanese words, here is a quick reference for you:

-Konnichiwa - Good afternoon

- O-genki desu ka? - How are you?

- Nani ka? - What?

- -chan - an affectionate honorific used in girl-to-girl conversations, or that a boy uses for a girl he feels strongly about

- -san - a respectful honorific that can be used in any case, but is sometimes used to express respect or unfamiliarity