Wow, something other than Beyblade. Will wonders never cease?
I hope not, they make my life interesting.
ANYWAY…
I'm going to try and blend a lot of different genres into this one – romance, humor, drama, angst, that sort of thing – and we'll see if I succeed or not. I like to think I will, but my thoughts never coincide with my achievements, which is quite annoying, actually.
Disclaimer: Fruits Basket and all related characters and themes are copyright to Natsuki Takaya-sensei. The story and any unrecognized characters belong to me.
Rating subject to change because of uncooperative characters and the fact that I seem to attract foul language.
Enjoy! And please, please, please review!
Wake Me Up Inside
1. Western Ordinances
Keys and cell in my pocket
Stepped into the sun
Never knowing what lay ahead
Not caring, 'cause
It had never mattered before
But then something different
Something out of the blue
Will change my life
But I won't know it
Until it has already
Knocked me off my feet
Wind in her face
Sand in her hair
Eyes behind her
Smoke another one
Blue girl, blue girl
Eyes behind her
Smoke another one
Blue girl, blue girl
Checked my mail
Nothin' but junk
No messages on the machine
It's always the same
Variation, variation
But then something different
Something different today
I won't know it
Won't notice it
Not 'til it's happened
Knocked me off my feet
And left me out to dry
Wind in her face
Sand in her hair
Eyes behind her
Smoke another one
Blue girl, blue girl
Eyes behind her
Smoke another one
Blue girl, blue girl
Shigure Sohma sighed heavily, resting his chin on his hand as he gazed out at the bustle of people that walked the streets. His cup of tea was left nearly forgotten before him, spoon balanced on the edge of the saucer. A cigarette dangled loosely from his fingers, occasionally moving to his mouth for a long drag and then was promptly forgotten again. The slight upturn of his mouth and amused light in his eyes kept one from believing him to be bored, despite the fact that he was alone at the café table and had been for at least ten minutes.
He was uncharacteristically dressed in black slacks, a white dress shirt, and tie, suit jacket thrown uncaringly over the back of his chair. The tie had been loosened the moment he had left the office, the cigarette lit soon after.
A mother and daughter paused at the gate, the little girl pointing excitedly at a piece of pink ribbon that had snagged there. The mother smiled, tugging her daughter's hand to pull her away. The girl, although upset, was placated a moment later with a bright red balloon bought from a nearby vendor.
While most would smile at the loving bond between mother and daughter, Shigure was more concerned with the sway of the curvy woman's hips.
A novelist must be a people-watcher as well to make all fictitious characters as real as possible, right?
"Yo, got a light?" an accented voice asked.
Shigure turned his head to see a young woman leaning against the gate that separated the café customers from the street. She was dressed in a pair of loose jeans that hung off her hips, a beige T-shirt with a dark brown Chinese dragon weaving across her chest, and black fingerless gloves. One pierced brow was lifted in question, light brown bangs falling to shadow golden-brown eyes.
When he didn't answer, she lifted her hand, flicking the butt of her cigarette with her fingers as if to rid it of excess ash.
"I apologize, miss, you surprised me," he said, smiling apologetically. He reached into his pocket and ran his thumb over the catch, holding the flame up as she lit the cigarette, immediately taking a drag.
"Thanks." She let out a ring of smoke, watching it thoughtfully as it dissipated into the breeze.
Mildly intrigued, Shigure motioned with his hand to the empty seat across from him. "Care to have a seat?"
"Mm?" She tilted her head, regarding him for a moment. Her lips turned up into a slight smile, causing the silver ring in her lower lip to catch the light and flash brilliantly. "And keep you from your friend?"
"SHIGURE!"
The Zodiac Dog cringed, immediately recognizing the voice of his editor.
The young woman's smile turned into a grin and she tapped the ashes of her cigarette into the tray on the table. "Thanks again for the light." With that, she lifted her hand to give him a casual salute, turning to walk down the sidewalk and vanish into the crowd.
Interesting girl, Shigure thought as he was suddenly bombarded by his sobbing editor and, moments later, forgot all about her.
"-but while Leif Ericson was the real first person to discover America, it was Christopher Columbus who was given the credit."
Tohru Honda scribbled down the notes as they were written on the board, trying her best to absorb all of the information as best she could. She didn't want to burden Yuki with her lack of scholarly memory again. She was more determined than ever to do her best. Most her notes for the day consisted of natives being mistaken for Indians, the search for spices, silks, and medicines, as well as the shortest route possible to the riches in India. That and a few side notes of the Vikings that had discovered the Americas first.
There was a sort of cloud of indolence that permeated throughout the room, chiefly on the side where the windows sat. No one wanted to be inside on a day like today. The sun was shining and a cool breeze carried in from the east complemented the warm air. Because of this, most of the students weren't even bothering to take notes. Instead, they gazed longingly out one of the windows or exchanged meaningful glances across the aisles between desks. A particular gaggle of girls toward the back caught Tohru's attention and she tilted her head to see what all the fuss was about. When she saw what it was, she couldn't help but smile.
In the very back corner of the room sat Kyo Sohma, head resting on his arms with his face turned toward the warm sun that streamed out over his desk, resting just like the cat he was. The occasional flutter of his orange hair and the gentle rise and fall of his chest the only evidence that he was breathing at all. As was his nature, he was oddly quiet, even in sleep.
Unless aggravated, of course, which was another part of his nature.
He really did look adorable curled up in the sun like that.
Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Yuki Sohma giving the Zodiac Cat a rather disgusted look.
Tohru suppressed a giggle, turning her head away to return her attention to the lesson.
– Tsudzuku –
Next chapter will be longer, hopefully. Short chapters tend to bug me. Ugh.
Oh! Just so you know, this takes place at about the eighth volume of the manga. Or somewhere around there. I don't know. My muses are never very specific and their time sense is just as accurate as Haru's direction sense -i.e. not very.
Let me know what you think, and feel free to give suggestions, so review!