CHAPTER 2

THE SOHMAS

"Did you notice most of the passengers on this train have the exact same name?" Ansa Uotani asked as her eyes scanned the passengers sitting in the dining car. "Sohma. I wonder what it means."

"Maybe they are on their way to a family reunion," Saki Hanajima suggested stirring her coffee with a straw.

"Maybe, but you know that weird guy who gave us the ice eyes at the train station?" the blond asked.

"What about him?" Saki asked.

"He had the same last name too."

"So?"

"So maybe..."

"What?"

"I dunno. I just think it's weird."

"I don't think it is."

While Ansa and Saki talked about the last names of the passangers Tohru was busy looking from one passenger to another. It struck her weird that most of the passangers had the same last name but it didn't bother her too much. Right now what bothered her most was the man with the dark purple hair that was glaring at her on the other side of the dining car.

Why's he looking at me like that for? she wondered until a loud voice broke into her thoughts.

"No I will not go with you back to our room to get your jacket, Kagura. You are not a baby you don't need me holding your hand all the time!"

"Eh?" Tohru looked toward the voice. Near the exit she saw a boy with bright orange hair and eyes glaring at a girl with brown hair.

"Kyo-kun how can you be so mean?" the girl demanded. "After all you were the one who invited me on this trip."

"I did not!" he shouted. "You invited yourself!"

"KYO-KUN!" she growled her voice getting dangerously high in pitch. She stood up. "You make me so mad sometimes..!"

"KAGURA! DON'T!" Kyo shouted.

Too late. CRASH! Down went Kagura's foot. Right smack in the middle of the table.

"KAGURA! LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE! YOU BROKE THE TABLE!" Kyo shouted.

"Well you broke my heart," she shot back, her eyes filling with exaggerated tears. "Say you're sorry, Kyo-kun."

"If I do will you stop trying to kill me?" he asked.

"YES!" she said grinning.

"Okay then I am sorry," he said.

"And I forgive you!" she said pulling him from the booth. "Now let's go get my jacket!"

Tohru shook her head. "I can see who rules that relationship," she muttered.

The girl's eyes moved on to the next table. There she spotted a man and woman who looked like they might be married. They seemed to be arguing about something.

"Look, Rin, I don't care what he says I will not end this marriage!" the husband, a man with strange white and black hair was saying to a dark haired very beautful woman.

"But you're not the one who is suffering!" the dark haired woman told him looking away and lighting a cigarrette. "I am. Everytime he sees us together he doesn't hurt you he hurts me."

"I'll protect you," he said.

She looked at him with mockery in her eyes. "Haru, you keep saying that but everytime it happens you never do," she told him point blank. "Why do you keep holding back?"

"Because, Rin, I..." his voice trailed off.

"Because you are afraid of him," Rin cut him off. "You always have been you're just to afraid to admit that you are a coward!"

"Rin.."

The woman stood. "I don't want to hear it anymore," she said. "I'll be in our room." the woman walked away making Haru drop his head to the table and sigh.

Hmm... someone doesn't want them together... I wonder why...

Suddenly a loud voice shouted. "YUKI!"

Tohru's head snapped in the direction of the door. She saw a white haired woman? run toward a boy about collage age with purple/gray hair and give him a big hug. "YUKI! MY BELOVED LITTLE BROTHER! YOU DID COME AFTER ALL!" the woman shouted all happy. "Now you can meet my girlfriend!"

Girlfriend?

"Let me go, Ayame," the boy ordered.

Ayame did so and said practically jumping up and down with happyness. "I've been waiting to show you to her since I heard you were coming home for Chirstmas. You've got to see Mine. She'll just eat you up!"

"I don't want to see your girlfriend, Ni-san," Yuki said in an annoyed voice.

"OH, BUT YOU MUST!" Ayame said grabbing Yuki around the waist and throwing him over his shoulder. "Now come along!"

"AYAME! PUT ME DOWN!" Yuki shouted.
"She's over here," Ayame was saying. "Hey Mine, I'd like you to meet my little brother."

Tohru saw a woman in glasses get out of the booth she'd been sitting in. "He's so cute," the girl said all smiles. "Just like his older brother."

"Yes, I know," Ayame said putting a hand on his chest in pride. "I am a fine figure of a man aren't I?"

Tohru grinned. "What strange people," she said.

"What are you smiling at, Tohru?" Ansa asked looking over at her grinning friend.

"Nothing," the girl said as a woman in a bright colored kimono came into the room looking very nervous. "I was just thinking that some of the people on this train are a bit weird."

"Tell me about it," Ansa said eyeing the woman in the kimono. "I don't think that counts as casual... what do you think?"

"About what?" Tohru asked.

Her friend pointed at the woman who walked up to a booth where two men were seated. "Get aload of that lady."

Tohru looked toward the booth. She saw the woman sit down next to a very serious looking man. "What about her?"

"Her dress."

"What? It looks nice."

"It lookes like something you wear at a garden tea party." Ansa pointed out.

"Maybe that's where she came from."

"In December?"

Tohru shrugged. "Maybe." she started to get out of her seat. "I think I'll say hello to some of the passangers."

"Okay," Saki said.

Tohru had more than one reason to get up. The other reason was to get away from the man glaring at her. She walked over to a yellow haired boy talking to a girl with orange hair and a boy with pale hair. "Hello," she said.

The three looked up. "Hello," said the boy with yellow hair. "Is this your first time on a train? It's mine. I'm on my way home to see my parents."

"Why are you telling her that, Momiji?" the boy with an overly serious face demanded. "You don't even know her. You shouldn't give out infoe to people you don't know."

"Why not, Hiro?" Momiji asked. "That's how you get to know people."

"It's still not a good thing to do," Hiro said glaring at Tohru. "Besides she looks like someone who doesn't remember things very long."

"Eh?" Tohru said taken aback by that insult.

"Well fine you must know about is," Hiro said. "I'm going home as well but I'm traveling alone."

Tohru looked down at him. "How old are you?"

"Why do you want to know?" he demanded.

"No reason," Tohru said. "You just look so young..."

"So?" the kid looked angry.

"Uh..." Tohru took a step back. "Nevermind."

"Why are you always so mean to people?" the girl with orange hair asked. "She was just curious."

"It's none of her business what my age is, Kisa," he growled. "She's just nosy. Stupid and nosy, just like all woman."

"Hiro..." Kisa said hugging a stuffed tiger toy. "You shouldn't say things like that."

"But it's true, Kisa," he protested. 'I-"

"I'M SORRY! I DIDN'T MEAN TO SPILL MY DRINK IN YOUR LAP!" a loud voice screamed cutting off the kid's words.

"Eh?" Tohru looked over her shoulder. She saw woman in the colorful kimino bowing to the serious looking man. "I'M SORRY! I'M SORRY!"

The other man at the booth leaned over and poked the woman in the side. The woman seemed to deflate and fell into the booth next to the grouchy dark haired man.
"Calm down, Ritsu," the happy looking man said. "It was an accident. There is no need to get bent out of shape about it."

"Bent out of shape?" Ritsu asked. "I'M NOT GETTING BENT OUT OF SHAPE! I SPILLED MY COFFEE IN HIS LAP! IT'S GOING TO LEAVE A STAIN! HE'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO WASH OUT!"

"Ritsu..." the man began.

Ritsu jumped to her feet, a look of determination on her face. "I've got it! I'll wash it right now!" She made a grab for the man's pants. "Here let me do the honor of washing your pants."

The dark haired man glared at the woman and said. "No thank you."

"BUT I MUST!" Ritsu shouted throwing herself at him. "IF I DON'T YOU'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO EAR THOSE PANTS AGAIN!"

"RITSU CUT IT OUT!" the man screamed trying to posh her off. "SHIGURE, GET HIM OFF ME!"

Tohru's eyes grew wide. "HIM!" she gasped, gaping at the person in the dress. "THAT'S A MAN!"

The happy smiling man looked up and spotted Tohru staring at them. He got up and grabbed Ritsu, pulling him off the other man. "Ristu, get off Hatori," he said yanking on the man's flower covered waist. "You're scaring that girl over there."

"I am?" Ritsu looked up and spotted Tohru. He instantly let go of Hatori who went back to mopping coffee off his pants. "Finally," the man said.

"Uh...," Tohru said staring at them. "Uh..."

The smiling man named Shigure let Ritsu got, who sank bank into his seat, and walked over to her. "Hello," he said. "Sorry about that. Ritsu is a bit spastic."

"Is she really a guy?" she asked.

"Yes," he said.

"Why does he wear woman's clothes then?" she asked.

"Because it helps him stay calm," Shigure said smiling.

"Oh..."

The smiling man put out his hand. "By the way, I'm Shigure Sohma," he said. "I am a writer of adult books. You may have heard of me."

Tohru nodded. "I might have. Did you write Tear in the Rain?" she asked.

Shigure chuckled and shook his head. "No, but I wrote other stuff," he told her. "By the way. What's your name?"

"Tohru Sohma," Tohru replied. "I'm a private investigator."

"Oh a P.I.," he said. "Maybe I'll hire you sometime to do some investigating of my own."

"Hey, Shirgure, stop hitting on her!" Hatori shouted from the booth. "And stop undressing her with your eyes."

"EH?" Tohru exclaimed taking a step back.

"So are you going to introduce us to her or not?" he went on.

"Oh sure umm.. This is Ritsu Sohma and Hatori Sohma," Shigure said waving to the two men who nodded at her. "Would you like to have a seat."

Tohru stared at them all then nodded. "Okay."

They sat down.

A/N

Everyone is a bit OOC in this chapter but this is the best I could do. This chapter also introduces most of the characters in some way so things are a bit rushed. I hate rushing chapters but sometimes I can't help it... Things will get interesting later when the murder happens.