Here's the rewrite of the first chapter. Hope you enjoy.
I do not own anything about Fruits Basket only the characters I made to put into this fanfiction
Chapter ONE: Another Cursed Family?
Tohru made her usual walk from the grocery store, two bags in each hand. It had been a while since she last went to go buy some supplies. They had just run out of the last of the milk and were running low on some cooking stuff so she made the trip down. She usually had Kyo or Yuki accompany her but Kyo was dozing on the roof and Yuki was tending to the secret base. She didn't want to disturb either of them, so she went alone.
She smiled as she hummed Momiji's song to herself while walking back home holding the, luckily not too heavy, plastic bags. What could she make for dinner…? She could fry some fish. Maybe mix some soup too with some of the vegetables from the secret base. What was in season now… So wrapped up in her thoughts she wasn't paying attention as she rounded the corner.
Tohru hit something, or somebody actually.
"Oof!" 'POOF.' A cloud of brown smoke shrouded over where the person once stood hiding the figure he had transformed into. Tohru stepped back letting her bags go and dropping them on the ground.
"I'm SO sorry!" Tohru immediately looked around to see if anyone was near. Clear. She waited for the smoke to disappear. "Yuki? Kyo?" It was taking a bit longer than usual and no one was saying anything. Did one of them try to find her?
"AHH! OH NO! What will Kisarai think if she found out someone found out our secret!" A feminine voice sounded from the smoke. Tohru blinked in surprise.
…
Huh?
Tohru stared puzzled. The smoke finally dispersed leaving a little brown puppy surrounded by clothing. The small animal stared up at Tohru as Tohru stared down at her.
"EEK!" 'POOF' Once again smoke came as the person transformed back to reveal a girl. She stood, at least one and a half heads shorter than that of Tohru. She had brown hair that flowed down to touch her shoulders. She glanced at Tohru with fear filled eyes than quickly shut them as she covered herself. She looked no older than twelve years old.
Tohru, used to turning away in time when the 'POOF' came for the Sohma's, turned her back towards the girl letting her change into her clothes while also making sure no one was coming near the vicinity. The girl hurriedly put on her outfit then grabbed Tohru's shoulder and twisted her around. Tohru's bright, lively turquoise eyes met the girl's worried and scared blue ones.
"Please, oh, please don't tell anyone about this!" She begged bowing to Tohru repeatedly. Still a bit confused Tohru managed a kind and assuring smile.
"Don't worry. I won't, though I have a question." Tohru knew this wasn't going to be since there was already a 'dog' in the zodiac but she needed to make sure. "Are you a Sohma by any chance?"
The girl tilted her head to the right. It was her turn to be confused. "A Sohma? No, my name is Shorin Masada."
'Masada…" Tohru thought about her last name. This was strange. She knew that the Sohma family was cursed. Were there other families cursed too? Well, yes, I guess now she figured that out, but how many families were there? She was brought out of her thinking when the girl cleared her throat to catch her attention.
"Um… I'm sorry to ask you this but now that you found out about our family do you think tomorrow you can come to our home?" Tohru's smile slowly went away. She would probably have her memories erased or something. Well, it was something to protect a family from the public and it was important that if any outsiders were to learn of their secret it would be best if they forgot about it. Just like the Sohma's. Her smile came back as she nodded.
"Of course. I'll meet you here again at the same time?" Shorin's eyes widened and sparked with happiness.
"Thank you." She said as she bowed one last time to her. Tohru chuckled nervously. Turning around Shorin ran than turned around and waved. "See you later!" She ran off after that.
"Bye," Tohru said after her. She waited a while longer watching as Shorin disappeared around another corner before picking up her bags and resuming her walk herself. Wasn't this interesting?
-Next day -
"Wh-where is she? I can't find her." Kyo shouted through the house. He slid open the door leading to the living room where Yuki and Shigure were sitting around a kotatsu. Yuki sat lazily flipping through the channels while Shigure read the newspaper. Kyo stood there breathing a little hard from running all over the house and yelling for Tohru.
"I remember going through this before," Yuki recalled remembering when Tohru went to go to her 'friend's house' that one other time.
"Yes, I do too," Shigure agreed. Kyo huffed and crossed his arms. "To tell you again, over dinner last night she said she was going to a friend's house today. Didn't you hear her?"
It took him a while before the cat finally cleared his throat and looked away with a slight flush. "Yeah, well, she hardly leaves the house and all," Kyo replied back turning around and heading to the roof. Yuki sat there switching the channel bored.
"Yes, her absence is clear in this household," Shigure said taking his eyes off his paper for a moment.
"Shigure, don't start," Yuki told.
Tohru stood at the corner where she met Shorin. She had come a little early, but she was there none the less.
Her hands were held in front of her as she stood there wearing a nice light- blue skirt with a matching shirt and shoes to go with it. If she was going to meet the head of the family she was going to dress nice. She wanted the first impression of her on him or her to be good.
"Hey!" A familiar feminine voice called. Tohru turned to the right and saw Shorin running over, waving for more for her attention.
She stopped in front of Tohru bending over to catch her breath.
"Good morning," Tohru greeted. Shorin smiled up as she took in a deep breath and straightened up.
"Morning to you too," Shorin greeted back. "Shall we go?" Tohru nodded as Shorin led the way.
All the way there, it was an awkward kind of silent. Tohru was caught up in thinking of what was going to happen as Shorin was thinking of how her family would react and what her family would do. It wasn't until they came upon a wooden gate much like the Sohma's gate leading into the estate that Shorin broke the silence.
"We're here," she informed. Tohru looked up at the gate a little impressed. 'Just like the Sohma Estate.' she thought.
Shorin pushed open the door enough so Tohru and she could walk through. As Tohru walked in she also saw that the inside was also like the Sohma's Estate. Everything was old fashioned with many little rock gardens, regular gardens, ponds, and cherry blossom trees scattered around in an orderly way. It had a peaceful air around it, however, that made Tohru relax a bit.
"This way," Shorin said, again, leading the way. After many turns, they finally reached a house that was slightly larger than the others. Taking off their shoes they walked in and went down the halls. Some people peeked out of the doors staring after Shorin, or rather Tohru, as they passed by. The bit of relaxation and peace began to fade away as she felt all the questioning and knowing eyes on her.
Stopping at a door Shorin knocked.
"Excuse me for bothering you, but I brought her," she notified. It was silent inside for a second.
"Come in." Sliding open the door Shorin and Tohru walked into a large empty room. At the front sat a girl older than Shorin with messily cut black hair. She wore a red plain colored kimono with a white obi. Her brown chocolate eyes were narrowed at the couple that kneeled in front of her. Shorin and Tohru waited in the back.
"You wish to marry?" the woman asked. Tohru's eyes went big. Marry? This reminded her of the story with Hatori and Kanna. She bit her lower lip remembering how it had turned out.
"Yes," the man answered. She could see that the man was shaking very noticeably, so was the woman kneeling behind him. The head of the family stood up and walked over to the man. Tohru closed her eyes not wanting to see what was about to happen.
"Do you love her?" Tohru heard her ask. Her eyes parted enough for her to see a little. The man nodded. "Do you love him?" The woman asked the man's hopefully soon-to-be-fiance. She nodded as well. "Then why are you asking me for my permission to get married? If you two love each other than go ahead." The woman walked back and sat down on some cushions that were lain out for her. The man's mouth broke into a smile as he turned to his fiancé and stood up. He bowed to the head of the family. All the terror and fright was now gone as they both radiated with happiness and thanks. The woman smiled at them.
"Thank you so much!" The man escorted his fiancé out, both beaming with joy. Tohru smiled too at the happy ending they were able to receive.
Now it was her turn.
The woman turned to them. "Shorin, you may leave. You," she pointed to Tohru, "come here." Shorin and Tohru glanced at each other fearfully as they parted each other's company. Shorin left sliding the door closed as Tohru walked to sit where the man had previously occupied. The woman watched as Shorin closed the door. She sighed.
"What's your name?" Tohru gulped a bit.
"T-Tohru," she stammered. The feeling of when she first met Akito Sohma came back. Even though it was just a brief look, just that was enough to give her an uneasy feeling about the man. That, plus all the stories she had heard of what had happened to the Sohma's. Would this woman be the same?
"I'm Kisarai Masada, head of the Masada Family. Pleased to meet you," Kisarai nodded to Tohru.
"P-please to meet you t-too." Kisarai smiled kindly.
"You don't have to be afraid of anything." Her smile calmed Tohru down very much, but not all the way. "I just need you to promise not to tell anyone of our secret. If you promise that then we'll have no trouble. But, if you must, you may tell your family if you can't bear to keep it a secret. There have been people who couldn't keep it in that they exploded and told their family and friends. When that happened we had to bring them all here to tell them to keep it secret. Though, of course, when all of them began telling everyone we brought them all in and erased their memories. However, I doubt that'll happen with you." Tohru nodded furiously.
"Of course I'll keep your secret! I'll never tell a soul," she swore. Kisarai grinned.
"Thank you," Kisarai thanked. Kisarai stood stretching her arms over her head as she let out a long breath. "How about I show you around? I need to get a breath of fresh air anyway." Tohru stood up and followed Kisarai out. She was much different than what Tohru had first thought. She was like the complete opposite of Akito.
It was quiet again. Tohru had been walking in a lot of silences so far.
"Do you have any questions you need answered?" Kisarai asked finally breaking the quiet. She had a lot actually, but she didn't want to bombard her on the first day so she picked the most obvious.
"Only one: why did Shorin transform when I ran into her?" Tohru asked. It was different than what she was used to. With the Sohma's it's with the opposite sex.
"If someone of the same sex hugs us or if we have strong feelings over something they transform." Kisarai explained. Tohru nodded. It was the same basic concept, just with a few differences.
"Oh, okay." They continued their walk with a few comments from Kisarai about where they were at and everything when a boy ran from a door in front of them. He hugged around Kisarai as he looked up at her. He had unruly short black hair that looked spikey and dark brown eyes. He was about the age of Rina, perhaps a little younger. He wore a karate uniform with a green belt around his waist. Kisarai knelt down and stroked his hair. Now that Tohru had gotten a good look at him, he was the spitting image of Kisarai.
"Hey Shirezu," Kisarai greeted. The boy smiled.
"Hey mom," Shirezu replied. Some people from another building were calling his name. Kisarai looked past him to the doors that were open that looked like were leading into a dojo.
"You better go back to training. I'll see you at home?" Shirezu nodded.
"Yep!" He waved to them and ran off back to the dojo. Something around his right wrist caught Tohru's eyes. It wasn't too hard to notice.
"Is he…" Tohru knew exactly what animal cursed him. Kisarai nodded.
"Yes, he's the cat." Tohru looked up at Kisarai as she stood. She saw a smile on her face. Tohru didn't have to ask the question that hung so clear in the air.
"My grandfather was the head of the family before me. He was strict and harsh and followed the book a little too closely. He led the way his uncle did so it wasn't odd to see him act the same way towards the zodiac members, especially the cat, as him. Everyone feared him. They were scared to ask him questions, ask for permission to do something, to even talk to him. Nobody feared him more, though, then the cat.
"I remember seeing the cat walking alone through the estate. My grandfather told lies about the cat to all the family about how bad he was. He would bring bad luck to anyone around him. He'll turn into his other form if you even make him the tiniest bit mad. Some didn't believe him but a majority did. When those some still helped the cat, all my grandfather did was bring them into his office and after that they stayed clear away. So, either way, everyone avoided even being near him." She smiled sadly.
"So, when I was born, I decided that it wouldn't be that way. The cat would be accepted if I was to lead my family. Some of the older members still were wary with the cat and me being in charge but they couldn't really say anything. I began to tell the cursed kids that the cat was no longer to be cast away. When I first began, it was mostly because I believed it wasn't the cat's fault that he wasn't able to attend the banquet. I don't believe it was anyone's fault if that makes any sense," Kisarai shrugged. "But, when I had Shirezu, it meant a lot more to me because I didn't want him to be sad and so filled with rage towards the rat. I didn't want my son to feel that way." Sighing, Kisarai began to walk again. Tohru jumped at the sudden movement being so caught up in her story. "The others began to loosen up and finally accept him. The other zodiac members also opened their arms to Shirezu. In fact Rina, the rat, and my son are really good friends now. I can hardly separate the two!" She laughed a light laugh that Tohru couldn't help but smile at.
Throughout the entire story, Tohru watched Kisarai's expressions. She seemed very honest of everything. After it another question popped in her head, but she didn't really want to ask it. As if sensing her question Kisarai crossed her arms over her chest.
"It's okay. You can ask." Tohru, surprised at Kisarai, looked away trying to find a way to ask the question.
"Since you're the head of the family…" Tohru tried to ask but lost the words. "I'm sorry, just forget it." Kisarai, ignoring what Tohru last said, seemed to understand where her question was leading.
"Yes, I have a short life to live. In fact I'm the oldest to keep living. Twenty-five years of age and still going. But, I accept the fact that I'm going to die young. That's why I live each moment of my life to the fullest, for I never know when I'm going to die. It could be in five minutes or fifty years, but I accept that I'll die. Besides we all have to die some time. Death is a path that we all must take." Kisarai told. Tohru nodded in understanding. It was true, she couldn't deny that, but is it really that easy?
The sun slowly made its way down as it began to set. Tohru had been so caught up in talking and meeting people she had forgotten the time.
"I have to go now. I would love to come back." Tohru stepped away and bowed to Kisarai. Kisarai bowed back.
"It'd be a pleasure to see you again. Please come back any time." Tohru nodded and waved to her as she left. She would certainly have to come back. Maybe with Yuki and Kyo. It would be nice if the Sohma's and Masada's met. They had something in common but for now she'd keep her promise to both families. No one would know about the curses at all.
END. Well, there's the first chapter. I'm not that good a writer. I haven't been writing in a while. Hopefully once I get back into writing it'll get better. This may not be too good but it's something. Please read and review. No flames please. It's like what I said in the beginning. If you don't like it don't read it. Hopefully I'll have chapter two in a little while. Well, till the next chapter. I'll leave a little summary of what'll happen next.
Chapter TWO Summary
Tohru, Kyo, and Yuki decide to go shopping the next day for some new clothes. While shopping Tohru sees some familiar people. At first what seems to be a nice meeting soon changes when something bad occurs.