Stubborn Hearts
Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket and all that legal stuff. I'm just a person writing a story about the characters in the show/manga Fruits Basket. Though the character I made up, Sia, is fully and totally mine.:) So no touchy!
It all Started...
My name is Sia Wild, and I was the first person to start the ending of the Sohma family curse. This is my story.
I lived in the wilderness area of Montana in the United States. I was going to be a sophomore in high school this year. I had lived in the state of Montana for all my life, and when I had the opportunity to become a foreign exchange student in Japan...I couldn't say no.
Sure, I wanted to see the sights and find a little adventure, but there were other reasons. Reasons that my parents will never find out about. It was a burden that only I would carry, no one needed to know the truth about what had happened to me that summer...
Like any teenage girl, I had a fluttery heart that always pictures love as a beautiful and fantasy type of thing. That all ended one night when I went out on my own...
You see, there's something I ought to tell you all, I'm not an ordinary girl. My family is a group of were-lions. It's not like we're lion's that reside in Africa, no way! We don't get that big when we change. We're only mountain lions, also known as cougars. The biggest member of our family is only 200 pounds, and that's my father. So we're quite different from the type of lions you see at circuses.
With that explained, lets continue with the story. You see, there are more than just us who are shape shifters. There are other groups as well in this state. The most unique, that I had come across, were the Tigers. I know what you're thinking, "What the hell is a group of Tiger's doing in a state like Montana?" Well, Montana is not as populated as most states and has a great mass of forest. Making any carnivore able to survive in it's great abundance of wildlife.
So with this fact in mind, I continue. I was old enough now that I could go hunting on my own. When out in the forest, in my animal form, I happened upon a familiar scent. It was my friend I had acquired over the summer, Zack. I had come to know this boy very well. He could change his form too. His was a tiger. As I followed his trail, I came upon him waiting for me.
"Sia, I was expecting you here..." He smiled a toothy grin.
That was weird. I never told him that I was going out tonight. How did he know? So I asked him just that.
"I followed you..." He said, walking over to me with that same odd grin. I felt my body tensing, something was wrong here.
"Well, get lost, this is my hunt and I won't let you spoil it." I told him, wanting him to get that weird expression off his face. He was acting so strange.
He appeared to be circling me, which I really didn't like. He was twice the size as me and acting really out of character. As a human, he had been sweet and nice, always agreeable. Now he was acting so dominant and proud. I was about to tell him to knock it off, when he pounced.
I tried dodging out of the way, but he caught me in the side with his paw. Swiping me to him, he dug his teeth deep into my neck. I let out a roar of pain and thrashed about, trying to get him off me. He took his massive paws and began to claw my back, moving his body over mine.
"You are mine, Sia." He had purred, taking his grip off my neck long enough to say just that, then dug into the other side of it.
And that's how my friend Zack, become my rapist. After that night, when he left me there, I had changed back into my human form and cleaned myself up in a nearby stream. I couldn't walk into my home with them seeing the mess I was. I looked at my reflection and touched the gashes on my neck. They seemed to be healing already, but my back...It seemed that Zack had done more damage there than anywhere else, excluding my pride. The back would be easy enough to hide, but I would wait until my super healing powers did their job on my neck...
After a few more hours, I found my neck wounds healed, yet it seemed the claw marks on my back were just as red and gashed. Why were they not healing? God only knew why...with unshed tears, I got up and went home. Telling everyone things had went great and I had brought down a deer. I would not tell them what had happened to me. Never. So when I was given the opportunity to leave my past behind and travel to a new land, I was ready to leave in a heartbeat.
After going through a line of shape shifting phone calls, (Since everyone who does this has relatives and friends all over the world), I got a family who would take me in for my year in Japan. The Sohma family. With bags pack, and passport in hand, I headed off to the airport and was ready to visit this new foreign land called Japan...
-------------------Airport in Japan-----------------
"Why did you say we would put up a foreign exchange kid anyway?" Asked the annoyed Kyou.
Yuki rolled his eyes at his cousin, "Will you quit whining? Do you want her first impression of you to be that you're a complete ass?"
"Shut up mouse!" Cried the enraged Kyou, "You're in for a mountain of pain if you keep that mouth of yours flapping like it is!"
"I would shutter in my boots, but I'm wearing my sneakers." Came the cool reply of Yuki.
"That's it!" Kyou was about to hit Yuki when they heard a small cough. They looked down and saw a girl with auburn hair and sea green eyes, "Are you two in the Sohma family?" She asked, trying to smile.
"Why yes. And by chance do you happen to be Sia?" Yuki asked, taking her hand and kissing it like a gentleman.
Kyou glared at Yuki as he listened to the girl's response, "Yeah, that's me."
"So, lets get your bags and get the hell outta hear." Kyou said, picking up the girl's bags and heading for the exit.
Sia watched with silent surprise as the tall orange headed boy took her things for her.
"Come on, we're burning daylight!" Yelled Kyou over his shoulder. Yuki and Sia followed him out into the parking lot and to the bus stop.
"By the way, my name is Yuki, and this is my cousin, Kyou." The purple haired boy said to Sia.
"Nice to meet you." She said, watching Kyou as he tapped his foot impatiently while waiting for the bus to arrive.
"I'm sure you'll like our home, it's in the middle of the forest and has plenty of elbow room for your needs." Yuki said, trying to be sociable since Kyou wouldn't.
Sia nodded as she watched the bus roll up to the station. The door opened and Kyou picked up her things and jumped inside. The other two followed, taking a seat next to Kyou in the very back. With excited eyes, Sia watched the scenery as the bus drove along, taking in as much as she could. It was just like the pictures she had seen in books, only better because she was finally there.
As the bus stopped, the group got out and started heading down the road leading towards the Sohma family home. Sia couldn't believe the beauty of the place, it was so different from her home in Montana. This place looked so desolate, yet town was only a short drive away. As they came to the house, Sia smiled to herself.
"It's like a house from a movie...it's perfect." She said to herself, amazed at the detail of it.
"I'm glad you like it, miss Sia." Yuki said, smiling at her happy face.
"Come on, lets go inside already!" whined Kyou as he led the way into the home.
"Don't mind him, he just had no manners and is anti-social." Yuki whispered to Sia as they followed Kyou.
"Here's your room." Said Kyou, putting her bags down on her bed and looking her straight in the face.
"Thank you." She said, smiling up at him, making him blush.
"Yeah, whatever..." He said, turning away from her and heading for the stairs.
"Come on and I'll show you where everything is." Came Kyou's voice. Yuki was taken aback at this as he and Sia went down the stairs and followed Kyou around the house.
"This is the kitchen." Kyou said, showing her where plates and everything she might need.
"This is the dining room." He said, taking her into that room and then quickly moving on, "This is the laundry room." Kyou showed her where they kept detergent and all the accessories involved with that.
"And this is the bathroom." He stated, done with the little tour.
"So where do you guys sleep?" She asked.
"Why do you wanna know?" Came the crude remark of Kyou. Yuki glared at him as he told Sia, "Mine is down stair's, over to the right. Kyou's is upstairs', right across from yours."
"So who is your guardian? I mean it can't just be you two living her by yourself." Sia asked.
"Well, our guardian is out at the moment, he'll be back sometime tonight. As for other members of our family, we have a lot that just pop in from time to time." Yuki told her.
"What about our maid? Not going to tell her about that?" Kyou asked sarcastically.
"She's not really a maid, she just likes to clean...her name is miss Tohru and she goes to school with all of us. You'll meet her sometime tonight also." Yuki said, heading for the kitchen. "Are you hungry? I'm sure we have something to eat..."
"Oh I'm fine, really." Sia said, not wanting them to fuss over her.
"You know it's rude to not accept someone's good hospitality." Came the voice of Kyou from behind her. She jumped at not expecting him so close to her and looked up at him with empty eyes. He looked back at her, wondering why she was looking at him like that when he finally had had enough.
"WILL YOU QUITE STARING?!" He demanded, bringing Sia back to reality.
"Kyou, YOU BE NICE TO OUR GUEST!" Yelled the outraged Yuki.
The two began to bicker and babble as Sia watched with amusement. 'Boy, these guys sure don't get along...' She thought, watching as they began to smack at each other.
"Hey! Lets not start a fight!" She said, trying to break them up.
Lucky for Sia, a tall man had come into the kitchen and broken the two boys apart.
"Now is this how you want to portray yourself towards our new friend?" He asked, shaking his head as if shamed by their behavior.
"Excuse me, sir, but who are you?" Sia looked up at the tall man.
He smiled down at her, "My name is Shigure, and I'll be your host for this school year." He said, doing just like Yuki and kissing her hand like a gentleman.
"You're such a ladies man…" Said Kyou, rolling his eyes.
"I see they were arguing again…" Came an unknown female voice. A girl with long dark brown hair walked into the kitchen and smiled at Sia. "Hello, my names Tohru Honda, it's nice to finally have another girl under this roof."
Sia smiled back at her, "Nice to meet you." Sia's gaze shifted to what Tohru had in her arms, "What's that?" She asked.
"Oh! Well, these are your clothes for school. You see, we wear uniforms at our school." Tohru said, taking the clothes and handing it to her. "I'm sure you'll like them."
Sia took her clothes and thanked Tohru again as she looked around at all the staring eyes upon her. "Well, I think I'll go up to my room and get settled in…" She said, feeling weird at being the center of attention. She glided off up the stairs and headed to her room.
With Sia gone and up in her room, the group all gathered around and talked about her.
"She seems nice." Tohru stated.
"Very beautiful…" drooled Shigure, who abruptly got hit by all three teenagers.
"I hope she likes it here." worried Yuki.
"If she doesn't, she can just go back home." spoke Kyou who in turn got hit by the other three in the group.
"You be nice, Kyou! She's right next door to your room so you'll probably be the one she comes to when she has any question's." Tohru snapped.
"I want to know who's the filthy dog who gave her that room in the first place?" Kyou snarled. Shigure gave Kyou a hurt look at the 'filthy dog' comment but told him it wasn't planned out just to spite him.
"I tell you, it always seems the world's against me!" Complained Kyou.
"You're always so dramatic…" Sighed Yuki.
"Am not!" Cried Kyou.
"I rest my case." Was all Yuki had to say towards the flaming Kyou.
"Hey, she's coming back, lets all get diner started and show this girl how real Japanese food is made." Shigure said.
"What you really mean is 'Tohru will you make us diner so we don't look like complete slops' don't you?" Tohru said, sighing amusedly.
"Please sweet and gentle Tohru?" Shigure begged, becoming dramatic and getting on his knees.
"Oh! Get up and quit acting like that and I will!" Tohru said, feeling embarrassed.
Sia entered the kitchen to see Tohru busy away at the stove and Yuki and Shigure setting the table. "Can I help?" She asked.
"Oh no! It's your first night here and we want you to feel special. Please, sit down next to Kyou and wait for the meal to be done." Shigure asked of her.
With a reluctant nod, she sat down next to the red headed boy and watched as the others were busy preparing their meal.
"So, can you tell me about your school?" She asked, trying to be sociable with Kyou.
"What's to tell about it? Don't you have school's in America?" He asked sarcastically.
"Kyou…" Came the warning tones of Tohru.
"It's big, lots of students, plenty of classes to choose from." Kyou said, giving in to Tohru's warning voice.
Sia nodded as she listened to his answer. "So, do you have a favorite class?" She asked of him.
Kyou gave an annoyed sigh, 'Why do you even want to know? Just leave me alone…' He thought to himself as he made his voice be heard, "I don't really have one. School isn't that interesting to me. What I really like is being alone."
"Diner's ready!" Came the voice of Shigure as Tohru came towards the table with grilled fish, rice, and dumplings.
"It looks delicious Tohru!" Said the hungry Sia. "Maybe some day you could teach me how to cook like this?" She asked, as Yuki handed her a plate with a bit of everything on it.
"I'd love to." Answered Tohru.
So they all ate, with small talk from everyone except the now silent Kyou. As the night became later, Shigure told the kids that they should probably head off to bed, for tomorrow was the first day of school. Sia bid Yuki and Tohru good night and walked with the quiet Kyou up the stairs towards their rooms.
"Well good night, Kyou." Sia said, trying to be friendly towards him.
"Yeah, whatever." He said watching as she turned her back and shut the door behind her. 'Damn…why can't I stop thinking about her?' He thought, feeling moody as ever.
Entering his room, he stripped down to his boxers and slid into bed. He would close his eyes, yet he wasn't tired. He couldn't just fall asleep because of her… 'I can't get her face out of my mind…What's wrong with me?!' He thought, getting frustrated with himself. Having enough of trying to fall asleep here, he got up, slipped on a jacket, and opened his window. Kyou climbed out and onto the roof. He always came here if he was having a hard time, be it falling asleep or dealing with his raging emotions. He laid down and looked up at the stars. Resting his eyes, he let out a sigh, "Damn, this hasn't happened to me before…" He said to himself.
"What's never happened to you before?" Came a voice which scared the shit out of Kyou, who almost fell off the roof if it wasn't for the unknown hand who grabbed him.
"Careful! You almost fell." Sia said, looking at the shocked eyes of Kyou.
"Wh..What are you doing up here?!" He demanded, straightening up and glaring at her.
"I heard a noise so I came up here to investigate." She said, cocking her head to one side while looking at him thoughtfully. "When I saw you laying there, I was about to just go back, until you said something. I assumed you had seen me and were talking to me. So when I replied, and you fell…"
"Yeah, I know what happened, don't have to tell me your life's story." He said, giving his typical annoyed sigh.
Slightly hurt, but never the type to show it, Sia said to him, "Well, answer my question then."
"What question?" He asked, pretending not to remember.
"What's never happened to you before?" Sia said.
Kyou got quiet and said nothing for a while, feeling uncertain. "Just…nothing. Ok? Just forget about it." He said, leaning back against the roof and looking up at the stars again. Sia sat next to him and looked up too, which for some reason made Kyou nervous.
"So, do you come up here to get away from it all?" She asked him.
"Like what?" Asked Kyou.
"Like life's unending stress. You know, just to be at peace."
"I suppose…" Kyou said, looking over at her. "So why don't you get back to bed and give me my peace?"
"Fine, I can take a hint." Sia said, getting up and heading towards her window. Kyou got up and followed her close behind. "What are you doing?" She asked, turning around to see him.
"Just making sure you don't fall. It could be slippery." He said.
"I don't think you need to worry about me, I'm pretty 'light on my feet' if you get what I mean." She said, surprised that he had even bothered with her.
"Who said I was worried? Just being polite. What, a man can't be polite anymore with out being accused of worrying?" He said, being defensive.
"Well, thanks…I guess." She said, sliding into her window.
"Now don't come out here again, like I said, it could be dangerous." Kyou told her.
Sia rolled her eyes and nodded her head. Kyou watched as she moved over to her bed and jumped in. Turning around to face her window, she looked at him like he was a perverted stalker of something, so he walked away. Back to where he originally was, before being interrupted by Sia, he gazed again at the night sky.
"Goodnight Sia…" Were his last words as he closed his eyes and fell sound asleep.