A/N: So this story kind of came out of the blue. I was trying to find a good Fruits Basket fanfiction but I wasn't having much luck. I blame it on the fact that the manga ended so completely and perfectly that the universe is hard to add to and interpret. Anyway, I decided to write a future fic. It's my first one so be nice. It's a nice escape from school. That being said, updates may be slow starting in September, depending on my workload. I will try to publish frequently. Thanks for reading!
Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket or any of its characters. I do own these kids and this plot.
Tohru stood on the balcony of her small home, absentmindedly taking sheets and other articles of clothing off the clothes line and folding them neatly into the laundry basket that lay at her feet. She sighed happily, feeling the warm summer air caress her porcelain skin, heating her body as she hummed a namely tune to herself.
No, in the last twenty years, not much had changed. Tohru still loved doing laundry, cooking, and other household chores that had always come as second nature. Twenty years hadn't changed the sense of accomplishment that followed a hard day's work done, or the joy she could see on her family's faces while enjoying her home cooking. Tohru still completed a balancing act, working nights so that her family could come home to a clean home and a warm plate after a busy day at work or school. Although she often found herself exhausted, she adored the serenity of mindlessly accomplishing tasks, allowing herself to relax and enjoy another beautiful day.
'Aww Mom, today is beautiful isn't it? The way the sun is shining and just the right amount of wind! Perfect for laundry! Hopefully I can get it all done before the kids come home and add more clothes to the mix, we wouldn't want the laundry to get too ahead of us, would we Mom?'
Tohru quickened her pace slightly, noticing the clock on the wall as she passed into the laundry room. 'The kids should be home soon… We at least Katsuya-kun… I wonder if Reika-chan will even come home tonight…? She and Kyo-kun got into a pretty bad fight last night'.
Tohru's shoulders fell and she ran her fingers through her short hair with worry. Nobody could get into fights quite like her husband and Reika. These fights gave the ones of Kyo and Yuki's teen years a run for their money. Although it never led to a physical altercation, Reika's venomous works often dealt the harshest blows to Kyo, resulting in the two going weeks on end without speaking sometimes.
'She did promise to walk her brother home today though…Reika-chan is usually good for her word…I just hope she's not too angry to remember.' Tohru sighed heavily as the door opened abruptly, shacking the windows as it violently slammed.
"There kiddo, home safe and sound."
"Ouch, Reika-oneechan! That hurts!" The young boy moaned as the smirking teenager tousled his hair lovingly.
Tohru smiled at the scene in front of her. Although they were eight years apart, Reika and Katsuya never succumbed the gap that Yuki and Ayame faced while they were younger. Although Reika always complained, she always came back home at her happiest after picking up her younger brother from school. Letting out a light giggle at her children, Tohru made her presence known causing Katsuya to run up to his mother, wrapping his arms around her waist, burying his head into her flat abdomen.
"Mama!" Katsuya cried. Reika threw her school bag down, removing her shoes in the foyer. Tohru sunk down to her knees, securing her son in her arms, a wide smile cemented on her face. She met the gaze of her daughter whom abruptly glanced away, a scowl haunting her visage. Tohru regarded her daughter silently. She had cut her naturally reddish-brown hair into a pixie cut, dying it a light violet. The color seemed to change with her mood, recently shifting from deep auburn to lime green to bright blue over the course of three weeks. Her face was riddled with piercings, anything from the six or seven in her ears to the hoop through the right side of her nose to the stud under the left side of her mouth. Each time she came home with something new, her husband fought Reika less and less over it. 'Such a shame,' Tohru thought sadly "She has such a beautiful face…' Reika had recently taken to covering her porcelain skin with an assortment of cosmetics. Her reddish-brown gaze was intimating surrounded by dark eye shadow and mascara.
"Thank you so much for picking your brother up from school, Reika-chan!" Tohru attempted to bow to her daughter but was pinned down by her eight year old who was still attached to her at the hip. Reika simply waved her mother off nonchalantly muttering something that soundly like "Whatever". Tohru inwardly sighed watching her daughter walk up the stairs to her room. She hid up in that room all night, only coming down briefly at dinner. Reika seemed to be slipping, the happy little girl she used to know becoming a distant memory. With one final embrace Katsuya released his mother flashing an identical smile to the one she wore. "What do you say Katsuya-kun, shall we get dinner started?" He nodded furiously in agreement.
This was the part of the day Reika dreaded. Not for the mountains of homework she had to do – she probably wouldn't do it anyway- but for the utter solitude she felt. Sure she could mimic Katsuya and help her mother with household tasks –no, that was something a good daughter would do. A perfect daughter.
She was far from perfect.
Starting a few years ago, the close relationship between Reika and her parents began to break down. She and her father began to disagree on the smallest of things; he wanted her to continue her martial arts training – saying she had natural talent – Reika refused claiming she was disinterested by the idea of it all. She stopped visiting her father's dojo. Kyo took it as a betrayal. He looked at her with full eyes.
Eyes full of disappointment. Reika couldn't stand to have her father look at her that way. She began to change her appearance. Shifting herself from that sweet and innocent looking child, to the unapproachable individual she is today. She could barely be in her father's proximity without a simple comment turning into a few blown battle.
Changing out of her school uniform, Reika lounged on her twin bed, noting the contrast between her side of the room and Keiko's. Keiko had long since stopped trying to get Reika to clean up her side, as such, the room now had piles of clothes and books scattered on the floor. Keiko was compulsive over tidiness – a trait she and her mother shared- even when she was swamped with work, she would take a couple minutes to make sure her side looked neat and tidy, always flashing Reika that disgusted look when she was done.
"How can you live amongst such filth?" Keiko once asked her after one of her obsessive cleans.
"Easy; I live with you don't I?" Reika had responded, inwardly complimenting herself on her wittiness. The look of hurt that passed over Keiko's appearance was so quick that if Reika had blinked she would have missed it. 'Not that Keiko would have said anything anyway, she's far too perfect for that…' Reika thought bitterly.
She pulled her loose skinny jeans on paired with a tight black v-neck and reclined, making shapes out of the popcorn on the ceiling. 'Maybe I can catch a nap,' she thought idly, "after all, I need all my strength for dinner tonight…"
Putting the finishing touches on the cod soup she was preparing, Tohru worked happily in the kitchen, humming a tune under her breath. Katsuya had departed from her side almost a half hour ago to finish his homework before dinner was prepared and Tohru enjoyed the calm and serenity of cooking. It allowed her to completely turn her brain off from the worries of day to day life and create something that brought her family so much happiness.
'Well the cod is just about finished browning, I guess I could combine the broth and the-' Tohru felt two strong hands wrap around her waist, waking her abruptly from her thoughts.
"Ah! Kyo! You scared me!" Her cheeks reddened as her husband rested his head on the top of her head. They probably looked awkward to an outsider, a muscular man, standing 6' 2" arched over his tiny, slender wife, but they didn't care. To them, this was comfortable.
"You would think after twenty years you would hear me walk in," He laughed deeply, shaking Tohru's body. He planted a quick peck on the top of her head before adding "That smells lovely…" in a small voice that Tohru had to strain her ears to hear.
"Papa!" Katsuya cried happily finally discovering his father's arrival. "Papa! I did my homework early tonight! Can we go train? Can you show me that high kick again? I think with little more practice I can finally get it!" Katsuya began to babble excitedly, his eyes wide as he began to raddled off countless details of his day; his thoughts on his martial arts training and various things his friends said.
"Katsuya if you keep talking that fast, you'll turn blue." All eyes were on the tall, slim girl leaning on the arch of the kitchen.
"Welcome home, Onee-chan!" Katsuya ran over to his older sister, enveloping the bottom half of her body. Keiko stood at a staggering 5' 9", towering over every other member of her family, other than her father. Her dark brown hair was neatly tied back in a high ponytail, allowing her piercing gaze to be unobstructed. She wore loose skinny jeans and a fashionable top, paired with sunglasses that rested atop her head.
"Hello Katsuya," She quickly returned his hug, her face never changing from its serious expression. "Hello Mother, Father." She regarded them both with quick bows. "Katsuya, as part of your training, why don't you run this up to my room?" She motioned to her western style school bag sitting in the foyer beside her shoes. "By the smell of it, I would say that dinner is almost finished as well…might as well go get Reika while you're up there."
"Sure!" Katsuya released his sister and bolted over to the school bag excitedly. He never backed down from a chance to get stronger, even by doing random household exercises. Lifting the bag with a burst of energy, the bag hit the floor with a sudden bang. "Keiko-onee! What do you have in this bag? Rocks?" Katsuya yelled lightheartedly.
"Two medical dictionaries, actually. Just leave it there if it's too heavy. I will take it up after dinner." She stated evenly, she walked into the dining room and taking her spot at the table, awaiting her mother's delicious meal.
"Sohma Katsuya never backs down from a challenge!" he chanted happily, thrusting the bag over his shoulders, teetering a little as he adjusted his weight, then bolting up the stairs.
"Don't throw your back out, honey!" Tohru yelled after him, returning her attention to the stove. She batted Kyo's hand away as he attempted to steal a piece of cod from the pan. Sighing, Kyo left the kitchen and took his place at the head of the table beside his daughter. Hearing a distinct thud from Keiko and Reika's room indicating the backpack had been thrown into place, Keiko let out a small sigh, lowering her head so it fit into her hand resting on the table.
"I hope he didn't break anything when he threw that. That probably wasn't my greatest idea." she muttered under her breath. Kyo flashed her a knowing look. As Tohru steadily placed the food onto the table, the sound of feet descending down the stairs flooded the house, revealing the two younger Sohma children. Katsuya bounded happily to his seat, leaving a space for Tohru on Kyo's left. Reika avoided eye contact with everyone at the table, dropping dramatically to her chair. Her father raised an eyebrow at her appearance, noticing her new hair color.
"Interesting choice of color there, Reika." Kyo muttered, avoiding eye contact.
"Shut up, old man."
Dinner had begun.