Chapter 4:
Tohru strolled along the dirt path in the cool shade of the trees, humming to herself. She took the small path that reared to the left. Undergrowth clawed at the sides of the track. It was only ever used by her and Yuki. Tohru always felt special when she walked along this path, privileged to know the secret of the base's whereabouts.
Birds chirped somewhere in the distance and Tohru whistled to their tune. The trees sighed in the wind, their great boughs stretching out before her and crossing the path. It was a slow way to cross a path though.
Tohru remembered her mother's words to her when she was a little girl, "The trees know all sorts of secrets," She had said, "Trees are very wise, you need to be careful not to get on the wrong side of them." "Tell me your secret." Thoru whispered softly to the trees. Before they could answer, her words were whisked away by the wind and lost forever.
After a few minutes, Tohru could see that the foliage was beginning to thin. She sighted the base; a rectangular plot of meticulously kept soil, it looked as though it was straight out of a gardener's manual. The herbs and vegetables grew in perfect rows, not a leaf out of line. It often creeped Tohru out how flawless Yuki's garden was.
Here was another contrast between Yuki and Kyo. Tohru was sure that if Kyo kept a vegetable garden it would look nothing at all like Yuki's. Tohru laughed to herself and scanned the sunlit clearing for a sign of Yuki.
"urrr, hello Yuki Kun."
Yuki looked up from the packet of fertiliser he was attempting to open, startled to see someone at his secret base. He smiled, "Oh, hello miss Honda, I thought that perhaps you were…never mind."
"The base is looking great!" Said Tohru excitedly, "I bet it took you ages to grow these tomatoes. They look so good!"
"Why yes, it has taken quite some time." Smiled Yuki, "But my real prize is this eggplant. We don't have the best conditions here but look; it's growing just fine!"
"Wow! I do not think I have ever seen a real eggplant plant before."
"Really? Well, I've only grown it once before and that time it never flowered."
"Congratulations then! We shall have to have a celebratory dinner and we can cook and eat it; if you could bear to let go of it I suppose."
The two laughed together for a little. "Yuki Kun," said Tohru delicately, "are you okay?"
Yuki sighed. "You see, my brother…he is…he is, the type of personality I would normally stay away from. As much as I envy his confidence and his ability to attract people I still find him sort of…suffocating. I know that he is trying to get closer to me but…but maybe the gap between us is just, just unbridgeable. He never really stops to think that maybe I don't want to get close to him, that maybe I find him annoying, that maybe I could never really forgive him for what he did. As much as he wants to be close to me, he never really thinks about me.
"It's like that with a lot of people I think. Lots of people think that I am a nice person but they never really stop to think how I feel about things. That I am a person too with needs and wants. I'm so afraid that they won't accept me that I just go along with what it is they want; but somehow, that still isn't enough.
"And yet, that stupid cat has so many friends and he doesn't even try! What's so much better about him then me. Surely I am a better person than him. But he still goes on about how he wishes he was condemned to what I have to put up with. It is so much harder for me than for him, it's not fair! He doesn't understand-" Yuki broke off.
"Yuki Kun, It's okay! There is no need to get so worried." Tohru patted Yuki on the back, "It will be alright.
"As much as I would like to say that this is just pressure building up; you have exams, your brother is here, you are finalising arrangements for being school captain; your problems won't go away as soon as your brother leaves. But one thing you don't have to worry about is being lonely; I am your friend, I think that you are a very interesting person who also happens to be very kind. There are so many people at school who really like you and I am sure that among all of them there must be at the very least, one that would be a good friend to you. Eventually, you will have forgotten about these worries, but, if that time is still a little while away you always have me!" Thoru smiled at Yuki, who seemed to relax.
"You really mean that?"
"Yeah, of course! But I don't think that it is right to take it out on Kyo Kun, you and him are very different, but if you could leave him alone it would make me very happy. I am not sure that he will do the same but you can always try."
"Of course miss Honda! Consider it done!"
"Thank you Yuki Kun!" They both beamed at each other. Tohru really wished that she could hug Yuki; it was at times like these that one was in need of a hug. Instead Tohru took the packet of fertiliser out of Yuki's hand and opened it for him.
"There you go!" She said. Yuki frowned slightly before he started to laugh.
"Come on miss Honda, you can help me fertilise the base if you want."
Tohru beamed, "Okay!"
. . .
"Tohru, Tohru, Tohru, You're home, you're home, you're home! Yay!"
"Onee-chan, your back!"
Tohru swept Kisa up into her arms as Momiji jumped around them, unable to control his excitement.
"It is so good to see you all!" Said Tohru, "It has been such a long time!"
"Yeeeaaahhh." Said Momiji, nodding in agreement, "And then when we finally show up, we find out that Yuki was keeping you all to himself!"
"Look what I made you Onee-chan!" Kisa pushed something into Tohru's outstretched palm. It was a delicate origami flower, pink in colour. "Wow Kisa! Did you make this yourself!"
"Hiro helped me." Kisa said, turning towards the house, where Hiro was leaning in the door frame.
"Tohru." Hiro nodded in Tohru's direction.
"Hi Hiro!" Tohru smiled and waved. "It is good to see you."
Hiro looked pained as he glanced towards Kisa, who was glaring at him, "umm, yeah; goodtoseeyoutoo." Hiro said softy, wincing and not meeting Tohru's eyes. However, Kisa seemed satisfied with this and turned back to Tohru.
"How has your school been Kisa?"
"Yeah, it's alright – it's much better now. And Hiro is looking after me really well." Tohru beamed at Hiro, who looked away.
"Tohru, Tohru, Tohru! Are you forgetting someone?"
"Why, how could I ever forget you Momiji?" Momiji laughed and the two linked arms and walked inside with Kisa close behind.
Shigure and Ayame were sitting together, deep in discussion. Judging by their excited faces and mischievous smirks, they were reminiscing about their high school years. Kyo was sitting in a corner, attempting to study but throwing dirty looks at Momiji who was grinning from ear to ear and talking loudly to Tohru and telling her about all the exciting things that had happened to him in the short space of time that spanned from lunch that day (when he has last seen Tohru) to his arrival at Shigure's house.
"What's for dinner Tohru?" Asked Momiji, who was almost yelling with excitement. Tohru blushed a bit at this question and threw a glance at Kyo who appeared to be deeply engaged with his math textbook, which was upside down, "Miso soup." Said Tohru, quietly.
"Oooooo. I LOVE miso soup!" Exclaimed Momiji. "Oh, hello Ayame, I didn't know you would be here. How are you?"
"Well now that you ask "
"Onee-chan, how did your exams go today?"
"Kisa, I don't think Tohru wants to talk about school right now."
"Tohru, I think the kettle is boiling."
"Wow! This looks really good. Have you changed it up?"
"Tohru, Tohru, listen to this."
"Ayame, would you please leave me alone, I don't want to talk right now."
"Tohru look over here."
"And I mean, the thing with Miso soup is "
"Tohru, can I talk to you for a minute?"
It seemed that all of the bustle and mingled, arguing voices and Momiji rabbiting on about miso soup (pun intended); was too much for Kyo to handle; he slammed closed his textbook and stormed up the stairs without anyone appearing to notice. Tohru stared after him, wondering how different angry and sad were from one another.
. . .
