Author's Note: Finally…Finally, finally, finally! I have updated. I am very sorry it took so long to put it up. And for those who are waiting for the next chapter for "Idiot Blonde and the School Witch," I'm sorry, but it's still going to take more time. Anyway, here's the next chapter for "Animal Guardians". Just so you know, one part of this chapter is based off a scene from "Episode 26" of the Fruits Basket anime. Plus, warning: there is a spoiler from "Chapter 65" of the Fruits Basket manga, a hint of a spoiler from "Chapter 96" as well as a major spoiler from "Chapter 97". Please, review and tell me what you think! Flames are welcomed.
Disclaimer: I do NOT own The Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles. It is owned by CLAMP. I also do NOT own Fruits Basket. It is owned by Natsuki Takaya.
Out of the corner of his eye, Hatori saw Shigure face the backseat.
"You're doing all right, Fai-chan?" The novelist asked.
From behind, Hatori heard a soft, "Uh-huh." But even without looking back, the doctor knew that the young blonde was fidgeting very nervously. He has every reason to be scared, Hatori thought, as painful memories of Kana came up. Sighing, he glanced out the window to his side, recalling that morning's events…
Hatori had received the call early that morning. Very early. Although still not fully awake, the doctor had not been very surprised to learn that the call was from Shigure. This had soon changed when Shigure had made a very unexpected suggestion: "What if Fai-chan was somehow involved in the Sohma curse?"
Hatori had at first thought that his was another one of Shigure's foolish games. That was before he had made a visit to the latter's house, where everyone was seated at the table. Shigure he might doubt, but Yuki and Kyo were a different story. As soon as Shigure had once again stated his theory, and Yuki had told everyone that he and the novelist had heard Fai communicating with a dog and rats the other night, Kyo had shouted out at Fai with, "I knew it! There is something weird about you!"
"Like you're one to talk." Yuki had scowled, appearing exasperated as the young blonde in the question had fearfully shrunk back in his seat.
Growling "Damn rat", Kyo, after seeing everyone give him inquiring looks, had reported that he had heard Fai a few nights ago talking to a cat. After a moment's of contemplation, Hatori turned to the child and asked, "Is this true, Fai-san?"
The blonde had bit hid lip, before nodding hesitantly. Tohru, appearing excited, had clapped her hands together, exclaiming, "Oh, wow! That's so amazing, Fai-san!"
The young blonde had blushed, before murmuring, "I can only talk to some animals, though." He had shifted nervously in his seat.
Hatori had frowned. "Only some?"
Fai had given a small nod. "Dogs, cats, rats, snakes, rabbits, sheep…"
It was then that Kyo had stated, "Well, that's all great and all, but how does this mean that he has something to do with the curse?"
Shigure had tsked at his orange-haired cousin, saying, "Really, Kyo-kun! Are you truly that stupid? As everyone else may have seen," he had continued, completely ignoring Kyo's "Damn dog!", "the animals that Fai-chan can communicate with are all from the Zodiac legend."
Hatori, however, had not been as convinced as Shigure had appeared. "Those are only some of the animals from the Zodiac legend." He had pointed out. Sighing, he had turned to Fai, saying, "Can you not speak to cows and horses as well? Tigers?"
The young blonde had not seemed certain himself. "I-I have never met a tiger or a horse, before. And I-I have only seen a cow once, and I was too far away to talk to him."
The novelist had grinned triumphantly. "See?"
Hatori had not said anything to that. But when Shigure had suggested setting up an appointment with Akito right then and there, the doctor had pulled his cousin into the hallway where they could talk in private. "I don't think this is a good idea, Shigure." Hatori had told him. It was not that he wanted Fai to forget everything before being turned away. When he had been told of yesterday's incident, the doctor could not help but feel mournful of the fact that he would probably have to erase the young blonde's memories. Still, if Akito were to learn of Fai's abilities, there would be a good chance that that the head of the family would treat the child the same way as he treated the Zodiac members. And that was not a comforting thought.
But even as he had tried to urge the novelist to think more carefully about the situation, he had felt the Dragon's spirit within him grow agitated and impatient. Finally, having grown tired of Shigure's coaxing and the Dragon's irritation inside him, Hatori resigned himself to his cousin's plan.
Currently, as he was driving Shigure and Fai to the Sohma estate, Hatori could not help but sigh, unable to quell the uneasiness he felt. I can only hope that things don't get out of hand, he thought.
Fai gulped, as he was led to the front door. Shigure, glancing down, gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry," the adult said, "Everything's going to be all right."
But even as Fai gave a small nod back, he couldn't help but feel immensely afraid at meeting the Sohma head. He remembered when Shigure had mentioned Akito Sohma earlier that morning. Almost immediately after the name was brought up, it seemed as if everyone's spirit had dropped. Kyo's scowl had deepened and his fists had clenched themselves very tightly; Yuki's eyes had shadowed in what the child recognized all too well as pain and sorrow; even Tohru, who was bright and cheerful nearly all the time, had seemed to become very nervous.
When it was about time for them to leave, Tohru had given him a smile, saying, "Good luck, Fai-san!" However, her smile had soon faltered, and before the young blonde knew it, she had wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace—which Fai had returned, his lower lip trembling. As Hatori and Shigure had led him into the car, he had glanced back at the three teenagers, Tohru trying to put her smile back on and Yuki and Kyo looking at him as if they would never see him again.
At the moment, as Shigure knocked on the door, Fai fidgeted with the stiff hem of his jacket. At the sound of the door sliding open, the child glanced up and almost flinched to see the scowling face of an elderly woman glaring at them.
"Good morning, Taka-chan (1)." Shigure said, pleasantly. "We have an appointment with Akito-san…"
The woman's eyes turned towards Fai, before stiffly replying, "So I have been told."
The woman moved aside to let them in; she watched with narrowed eyes as Hatori and Shigure slid off the shoes and Fai struggled to get out of his. The blonde bit his lip, pulling at his black shoe with all his might, but it refused to get off. What made it worse was that the woman, Taka, was glaring at him all the while, as if he was nothing more than a pest. Finally, with a great big tug of his strength, the shoe flew off his socked foot—with the force of it knocking Fai down onto his side.
The blonde sniffled as he tried to fight back his frustrated tears. Hearing a sigh, he glanced over to see Hatori kneel down and gently slide off his other shoe. Blushing in embarrassment, he murmured, "I'm sorry."
As Fai pulled himself up, Shigure gave small chuckle and said, "Oh, don't worry. We all have, er, footwear malfunctions every now and then."
Taka let out an indignant hmph, before shuffling down the hallway. Hatori, Shigure, and Fai followed her, not saying anything. As they were led deeper into the house, Taka scoffed, "I do hope you two will make this appointment worthwhile. Akito-san should not be made to waste his time," she glanced disdainfully towards Fai, before adding, "especially for a gai-jin (2)."
Fai looked away, tightening his grip on Hatori's pant leg.
"You always have the nicest things to say, don't you?" Shigure remarked.
"Shigure…" The doctor growled, warningly.
Taka, however, gave no reply to the novelist's comment as they halted in front of door. Carefully sliding it open to reveal a dimly lit room, Taka bowed her head low before saying, "Akito-san? They're here."
Silence ensued for a few seconds, making Fai hold his breath in apprehension. Then, "Fine. Let them in."
Slowly, the trio entered the room, and through the shadows, the child could see a figure leaning against the opposite wall.
"Akito-san." Hatori spoke up as he and Shigure bowed their heads with Fai following suit.
The shades were abruptly pulled apart, making the blonde wince at the sudden intake of sunlight. Squinting, he could make out more details about the Sohma head. Akito, much to Fai's surprise, was very young, perhaps not much older than Yuki, Kyo, and Tohru (3); the child had thought the head would be an old, wrinkly man with a cane. Still, the real version did not stop Fai from looking away from the other's gaze. There was something about Akito Sohma's eyes as they scrutinized him in the sunlight, something that really, really scared him.
"So," Akito's voice remarked, "you must be Fai-chan."
Not daring to glance back up, Fai nodded.
"My beloved Dragon and Dog have told me some…interesting stories about you." Akito continued. The blonde said nothing, as he adjusted himself on his feet.
"Uncomfortable, are we?" Akito asked. Fai shuddered. Even without looking up, he could see the man's smirk.
"Well, I'm not a cruel host." The Sohma head said. "Please, do sit down."
Fai turned to his right where he saw three mats situated. Bowing his head in thanks, the young blonde followed the two adults as they kneeled down on the flat cushions. As soon as they sat down, Akito spoke up with, "So, what is this I hear about you being able to talk to the Zodiac animals?"
Fai squirmed a little under the man's gaze, but before he could say anything, Akito asked, "How long have you had such a gift, Fai-chan?"
Stuttering, the child replied, "A-all my life, Akito-san."
"I see." The Sohma head said. "But as I understand it, you can only talk to a few animals, is that right?"
Fai nodded nervously. "Y-yes, th-that's right." Hesitantly, he glanced up at Akito, and shuddered when he saw the man curl an oily smile.
"I have already been given a list of all the animals you can to (4)." Akito stated. "From I've heard, there seem to be a few Zodiac members missing in that list." Sneering at the child, he said, "So, you can't talk to cows, boars, or horses? What about tigers or monkeys? Or even birds? Can't you talk to them?"
Fai bit his lip. Then plucking up his courage, he whispered, "I can't talk to birds."
"What?"
"I-I can't talk to birds." He repeated, a little louder. Stammering, Fai continued, "I-I don't know about those other animals. I-I've never met them before. B-but I can't talk to birds."
"Really?" Akito smirked. Turning his back towards the child and the two other adults, he remarked, "Well, if that's the case, you may not be related to our family curse, after all."
Fear bubbled in Fai as the Sohma head said those words. To his side, he heard Shigure breath in sharply and Hatori shift in his seat. He's going to erase my memories (5)! The child thought. He's going to make me forget! His heart beating frantically, Fai squeaked out, "I can't talk to birds, but my daddy could!"
Akito stopped. Slowly turning towards the blonde, the Sohma head said, "What?"
Fai gulped. "M-my daddy…he said he could talk to birds, a long time ago…but then, he said that before I was born, he couldn't talk to them anymore, somehow…" At the mention of his father, tears started to flood his eyes. He squeezed his eyes closed, as he tried to shut out the all-too-familiar images of blood and a lifeless body.
Amidst his own pain, Fai did not notice that the Sohma head had become very, very quiet. Then,
"So you can talk to some animals!! So what?!" Akito screamed. Startled, Fai barely had time to look up before the man backhanded him. The child cried out in pain as he fell to his side.
"Akito!" He heard Shigure shout. "Stop!"
But the novelist's plea went unheard, for the next thing Fai knew was a spidery hand grabbing his hair and shaking him about (6).
"What makes you so special?! You have nothing to do with this family! You hear?! Nothing!!!"
"Stop! Please!" Fai sobbed out, his scalp throbbing from the abuse.
And, to his surprise, it did stop. Through teary eyes, the child glanced up at Akito. The man's face seemed to have gone pale, his eyes rolling to the back of his skull. Then, the Sohma head was collapsed onto the floor.
She was sitting in a meadow. A beautiful meadow filled with brightly colored flowers. Akito might have enjoyed such peaceful scenery—had there not been a man glaring down at her. No, not a man. Even as she quailed under his stern gaze, she could see his eyes full of power and authority and demanding respect. This being, she realized, was none other than the God of the Zodiac legend.
The God continued to glare at Akito, before saying, "Do not hurt him, Akito Sohma."
The Sohma head shook a little, as the God's voice reverberated around her. "Wh-what…?"
"Do not hurt him…and do not turn him away." The God spoke.
Akito stiffened as she finally understood who the God was talking about. "B-but," She protested, "he's not one of us! He doesn't belong here! What does that brat have to do with our family?!"
The God gave her such an intense look that Akito almost immediately regretted her words. Finally, the God replied, "Everything."
No sooner had the God said that word that everything around Akito started to melt into a foggy blackness. Just as the ground under her gave way, she heard the God's voice call out, "Protect him, Akito Sohma."
"Kureno!" Hatori's voice rang out. "Did you get my medic's kit?"
"Right here, Hatori-san."
"Fai-chan," Akito heard Shigure say in a hushed tone, "are you all right?"
A sniffle was sounded, before a small broken voice answered, "Uh-huh."
"What happened?" Kureno's voice asked. "I heard shouting and ran down here to see what was going on, only to see Akito-san faint."
"You sure you want to know?"
"Shigure, be quiet." Hatori's voice snapped.
Slowly, Akito opened her eyes to see both Kureno and Hatori hover over her, concern etched upon their faces.
"Akito-san…?" Hatori whispered, uncertainly.
Abruptly, she stood up, startling both men.
"Akito-san, you shouldn't get up so quickly." Hatori said.
The Sohma head ignored him, and instead, turned towards the blonde child, whom, she noted with a scowl, was being held gently by Shigure. The said man met her gaze, evenly, as if daring her to attack Fai, once more.
"Akito…" She heard Kureno say her name.
Hands clenching into fists, she continued to glare at both the novelist and the child. Then, turning her back towards them, she growled, "…He can stay…"
Author's Note: Personally, I don't think I did so well on this chapter. Again, please, review and tell me what you think!
(1) I did not know the name of the head maid in the Sohma Estate, so I decided to call her Taka. Also, the suffix '-chan' is usually used for playfulness. However, this is being very familiar with the other person (at least, more familiar than '-san'). I tried to make it so that Shigure, by calling a woman several years his elder 'Taka-chan', would appear disrespectful. I probably didn't succeed though :P
(2) Gai-jin means "foreigner".
(3) Actually, Tohru had thought the same in Volume Four of Fruits Basket.
(4) He got the list from Shigure when the latter set up the appointment over the phone.
(5) Fai does not know at the moment that Hatori is the one who erases memories.
(6) This part is based off of a scene from "Episode 26" of the Fruits Basket anime.