By Neon.Polka-Dot. (formerly known as AngelsWithSnipers)
Plot: It's Christmas & Hiro is at a loss. He forgot to get Kisa a present and now doesn't know what to do. But Kisa is far from worried. She knows exactly what to get Hiro. Cute, harmless fluff!
A/N
Hello there! It's been a while nay? I'm sorry that it has taken so long to post this. I'm sure I promised MagicallyYours and Kountry101 that I would have the next chapter up about a week after the prologue. I'm sorry!! ;
I also want to thank those I asked for the present ideas for Kisa! They came in very handy! See if you can spot them over the next couple of chapters.
Also, in case you haven't noticed, I've changed my username from 'AngelsWithSnipers' to 'Neon.Polka-Dot.'. Just so you know, and the new name's a lot less morbid XD.
I hope you enjoy this chapter and please review because I love feedback! It means a lot!
And this time, I really will see you at the end! P
Disclaimer: Fruits Basket belongs to Natsuki Takaya, Hakusensha Inc., Tokyopop and all the other dollies who bring it to us.
Chapter 1
Sunday: Ribbons
It may have been a day in mid-December, the coldest and darkest point in ny winter, but that did not stop the sun from shining. As Hiro soon noticed, when a streak of sunlight streamed through the minimal gap in his blinds, waking him up at half past eight in the morning.
Cursing both his blinds and the sun, Hiro turned over, tugging the covers up over his head. It was too early in the morning to get up, it was the weekend after all. He snuggled under the duvet, drawing it close around himself. If he was lucky, he would get back to sleep soon.
Hiro had his whole ideal Sunday planned. A nice long lie in, get up for dinner, maybe watch TV, bide his time. Perfect. And there was only six more days to go till the Mogeta Christmas Special.
Christmas Special.
Christmas.
Presents.
Kisa…
Hiro jolted forward, hair tousled and panting heavily.
Christmas…Kisa…Kisa…Christmas…
He shot out of bed like a bullet, the duvet being dragged so it lay in a heap on the floor in the process. Charging out of his bedroom and into the family bathroom down the hallway, he twisted the sink taps on full blast, grabbed his toothbrush and toothpaste, and then continued to the lavatory to relieve himself.
How could I be such an idiot? Hiro thought furiously to himself as he spread the toothpaste onto his toothbrush and proceeding to brush his teeth. And who said multitasking was just for women? Such a brain-dead, moronic, dumb ass idiot.
Suddenly, the bathroom door opened and his mother walked in, still obviously asleep and oblivious to his presence. Brushing her hair from her eyes, she stopped in her tracks. Her eyes widened precariously as she noticed Hiro standing there using the toilet whilst brushing his teeth and running water into the wash basin.
'Ah! Hiro-chan!' She cried, dashing out of the bathroom. 'I'm so sorry Hiro-chan!'
Hiro spat the toothpaste into the nearest available thing, which just to happened to be the bath.
'Mom! Why didn't you knock? You should always knock!'
'I'm sorry Hiro-chan!' he could hear Satsuki pacing on the other side of the door. She slowed down, sighing. 'Anyway, it's Sunday Hiro-chan. Why are you up so early?'
'I'm up late, not early – stupid woman…' Hiro said the last part under his breath.
'Ah! Kisa-chan's present, right Hiro-chan?'
'Yeah, that's right…look, Mom, you're a woman, so do you have any idea what I could get – '
'Ah! I think I can hear Hina-chan crying, I'll be back in a minute Hiro-chan!' said Satsuki, trotting off to her baby daughter's wails.
Hiro sighed to himself and flushed the toilet. It was around about then that he felt the water lapping at the heels of his feet.
Hiro could not remember ever having a worse morning. First he got up late, then he had let the wash basin overflow, and after he had cleaned up that mess, he had then gone out in is pyjamas, not realising until his bare foot had touched the fresh snow on his doorstep. Cussing, he had gone back up to his bedroom and got dressed, only noticing as he pulled on his socks that it was now half past nine in the morning.
It was fair to say that it was not Hiro's day. He was currently trudging through the pure white virgin snow (which just so happened to be seeping into his boots somehow) whilst the cold and sharp December wind was whipping him in the face. He was pretty sure it would begin to snow again soon.
Scowling, he dug his hands as deep as he could into his pockets. He had forgotten to bring his gloves, but at least he had his scar, which he was in the process of burying his mouth and chin into.
The agitated teen strode on as quick as he could through the snow. It being a Sunday, and especially with the season being winter, there was not many people traversing the grounds of the main house. Since he had left his own house he had only seen a single maid and then, a couple of minutes later, three young boys having a snowball fight. He was berating them under his breath when a large clump of snow just so happened to whiz past his ear.
Hiro had to admit, it was fairly lovely traipsing through the estate with only the whispering of the wind and gnarled, bare trees for company. He wound his way through the maze of paths until he came to the main gate at the front entrance, which he slipped through.
It took Hiro about thirty minutes to leave the Sohma Estate and get anywhere that was remotely near town. He had had to walk. It was only when the bus rounded the corner that Hiro thought to check his pockets for change, but they were empty, and the bus rode past him.
He was near to the centre of town when the snow started to drift down lightly once again, dusting everything with a coat of pure white. Hiro shivered as he attempted to wrap his coat tighter around him, tucking his hands under his armpits for warmth.
Compared to the desolate main house at the Sohma Estate, the square at the centre of town was busy with people packing in last minute Christmas shopping. People were darting out of one shop and straight into the next, desperately searching for presents for their loved ones. Hiro was less than tempted, but felt obligated to join them. So he did, and ducked away from the snow and into the nearest shop to him.
The first shop he went into was a games shop, full of childrens toys. Toy cars, train sets, baby dolls and Barbie dolls. Young children were rushing past, dragging their parents to the thing they wanted most for Christmas. That 'thing' changed ten times over when they discovered the other goodies that the store had to offer.
Hiro moved further into the shop. He was standing under the air conditioning, which was certainly not helping to keep him warm. Moving to the right side of the shop, Hiro wound through the isles of the girls section, looking to see if there was anything for Kisa. Truth be told, Hiro knew that Kisa was too old for Barbie dolls and the such. He was much more likely to find something for Hinata in here. With that in mind, Hiro paused at some shelves filled with stuffed animals. There were large, colourful teddy bears, dogs, cats, ducks, rag dolls and every other thing imaginable that could ever be made into a plush toy. There was even one in the form of a tiger. Hiro halted in front of it. It was exceptionally cute, almost like Kisa when she transformed, but a niggling feeling in the back of his mind told him one again that Kisa was too old for that sort of thing.
If I can't find anything else. He thought, whilst picking up a white teddy bear with a pink bow around its neck.
Five minutes later, Hiro was back out in the cold, the white bear with the pink bow in the carrier bag he was holding. He had bought it for Hinata. She liked teddy bear and was gathering quite a collection, his mother was seeing to that. Satsuki seemed more than happy to do so. He reasoned that baby girls were more likely to want stuffed toys and dolls and frilly clothes. Boys definitely did not want that sort of thing and he was no exception. Not that she had not tried.
Thinking it would be best to go through every shop in the vicinity in the hopes of finding something, Hiro paused at a shop next door to the one he had just exited. It seemed quite a girly shop, one where a mother might drag a small child into, and Hiro inwardly cringed at the sight of it. Drawing himself together, he pushed through the door and entered the shop.
Hiro's first impressions were proved correct as soon as he was on the threshold. It was a girly shop and, funnily enough, there was a mother with a small child in there, happily placing woolly hats on the little girls' head as she grumpily tugged them off one after another.
After one sweeping glance around the shop (which was painted baby pink), Hiro ducked into the nearest isle. This was definitely one of these shops that he never wanted to be seen in. he worked his way through the isles, pausing infrequently when something caught his eye, such as a decorative jewellery box or a pretty ornament.
He arrived at the back of the shop to find the mother now wrapping up her little girl in a fleecy coat and matching woollen ear muffs, long scarf and oversize mittens, which the toddler was now in the process of trying to remove. Hiro found the same mittens lying on a nearby shelf. They were woollen, and seemed extremely fleecy on the inside. He looked around him, and when he was sure nobody was looking, slipped it on. The interior was very fluffy, and it would certainly keep your hands warm in winter. Hiro grunted to himself as he removed the glove. Impractical, he thought. What if they got wet, they would soak up the water.
Placing them back on the stand, he was turning away when he noticed a tiny wicker basket filled to the brim with white and pink ribbon. Hiro dipped his hand into the silken mass, and removed one. It was fine to the touch, smooth and sleek, gentle on his hands. He absentmindedly ran it between his fingers, glancing the basket. Diving his hand into the basket once more, he removed another white ribbon and two of the pale pink ones and ran for the till. He had to get out of this overly feminine shop as soon as possible.
It was not until he was lying in his bed, after a comfortable bus ride home and a pleasant dinner, a content smile playing his lips, that he suddenly sat bolt upright, staring at the wall opposite. He had only just realised that Kisa's hair was too short for ribbons to be of any use.
A/N
Well there you go, Chapter 1 done! Feedback would be appreciated as per usual!! I read and reply to all comments. I really need not to be as long when it comes to putting up the next chapter. I think I finished this sometime in June or July and I even started the next chapter then. Ah well, seems I'm quite lazy as of late. ; Thank you for reading and write back!