Winter Storm (v 5.1)
By Kelpy
Email: dragon@smadar.ca
Copyright December 2001-2002
Category: Drama/Humor
Rating: PG-13
A 'Fruits Basket' Fan Fiction
Original manga series by Takaya Natsuki
Published by Hana to Yume Comics (Japan)
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This piece of work is not to be sold in any form. Neither Takaya Natsuki nor Hana to Yume Comics has authorized this piece in any way. It may be downloaded for personal reading. Please contact me before presenting it for public use (posting to message boards/mailing lists, web sites, etc).
--------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks to all for the encouragement. I've been stuck between an extremely busy schedule this summer, and a huge writer's block. Anyway I have a little more spare time now, so I'm aiming to FINALLY finish this fanfic by Christmas of this year. *crosses fingers*
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Part 4: Blizzard Coming
"An autograph? But of course! I'd be honoured to!" Shigure smiled warmly, and leaned towards the blushing female publisher. Glancing back, he could see Mit-chan still seated, busy hammering out a schedule for his public appearances with the representatives of the latest bookstore chain. Briefly, their eyes met, his with gleeful laughter, hers with a warning to be on his best behaviour. He gave a quick wink before turning to the next person in line.
The last of the official business meetings had finished, and the next hour or so were left for mingling and making new contacts. Aside from the scheduling, his dutiful editor would be chatting up prospective buyers, and checking on competitors. He himself had gathered a small throng of admirers, all clamoring for a few personal words or an autograph. A few even wanted a picture with him! In his element, Shigure obligingly complied. He even came up with a few unexpected poses reminiscent of Ayame, making his loyal fans laugh. Carefully however, he stayed near the side of the room. He wanted to make sure he had an escape route - it wouldn't do to have a transformation here! In between the signings and small talk, he glanced over the crowds' heads and watched the snow as it fell unheeded by the others.
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"Yuki-chan! Here try this!"
"What is it?" He took hold of the proffered glass before it slipped from his senpai's rather unsteady fingers. He eyed the blue liquid suspiciously.
"Come on, just take a sip! You'll like it!" exclaimed another senpai, who dropped onto the seat beside him. It was the same girl he had been working with earlier on the food committee. Still giggling after singing to a couple of her favourite songs, she now seemed to be sitting dangerously close to Yuki. . . again.
Leaning as far back into the sofa as possible to put a little more distance between them, he glanced around the room. They had been in the small dimly lit room for a good three hours already. The remains of their lunch lay scattered on the low table in the middle of the room. The only bright things in the room were the television and the small disco ball that hung from the ceiling. Everybody was in the best of moods, just enjoying the party atmosphere, and probably on a sugar high as well.
Tohru had been right; the others did want him here with them. After the first hour of unease, he had gradually begun to relax and had even sung a song with a couple of the guys. He still wasn't comfortable enough to sing one on his own though, and of course, he still tensed up anytime one of the female students moved too close to him. All in all though, he was glad he had decided to come - it was a step in the right direction at the very least.
Suddenly he felt a touch on his hand. "Yuki-kun! You're not listening again! I said to take a sip!"
While his thoughts had been wandering, his senpai had apparently leaned even closer, and was now almost forcing the glass to his mouth. Practically breathing in the vapour rising from the glass, he could tell it definitely wasn't just some strange new soft drink. He pushed back a bit, and thankfully she relented somewhat and moved backwards, letting go of his hand.
"Uh, hey! Isn't this alcoholic?"
She smiled even wider at him, "Yup! My uncle co-owns this place, and he slipped us some to help us celebrate. Isn't that great? Only one glass each though."
"Oh. Thanks, but I'm not really interested in trying it. Someone else can have mine too." Yuki tried to put the glass on the table, but found himself pushed back into the sofa by a pair of determined hands.
"Oh come on Yuki-kun! I'll be graduating with the other third years soon, I'll probably won't get another chance to share a drink with you ever again!"
Share a drink? By the way she was acting, Yuki suspected she probably already downed hers, and maybe another as well. "Er, but senpai, as part of the student council, shouldn't we be trying to set an example for the other students?"
From somewhere across the room, somebody let out a big laugh at his remark. "Come on Sohma! Stop being so tight about things all the time! One sip's not gonna do anything. Look, even the president is drinking his glass!"
At that remark, the president raised his arm, swirling the drink above his head. "Indeed. On this festive occasion, for the harmony of the group, I, student council president, shall allow everyone here to have a drink with no repercussions! Anything that happens here in this room shall remain in here. Nobody speaks about this outside! So, Sohma Yuki, drink up before I have to force you to sing the 'yellow polka-dotted bikini' song all by yourself!"
"Fine. Just one sip though." Inside, he grimaced. Did all student council presidents have a streak of self-grandeur running in them? He couldn't help but think of his older brother, and the stories he told of his days as student president.
Glancing up, he found that his female senpai had let go of him, but was now kneeling on the sofa; her hands clutched together, avidly waiting for him to drink. He sighed, "Okay, here it goes." He took the barest amount that could count as a sip, and even so, he could feel the minty but bitter fluid burn a line down his throat. Eck! "Okay senpai, I took a sip just for you."
"Now I can say I had a drink with Yuki-kun!" With a squeal of delight, she jumped up and did a little dance before turning back to him. Yuki watched in semi horror as she threw her arms wide in preparation for a hug and tumbled towards him.
"Senpai! Wait! Watch out!" He threw out his arms as he watched her fall, almost as if in slow motion, towards him. SPLASH!
"Ahh!"
Every head turned towards Yuki as he sat drenched and somewhat bewildered on the sofa. At the last moment, he had been able to maneuver his senpai so that she fell to his side, instead of on him. Unfortunately, it had been at the expense of the drink that he had still held in his hand. Yuki sighed in relief.
"Ano, Yuki-kun. Sorry about that. I was just so hyper and happy that I forgot you still had the drink in your hand. If only you had drank it all down in one go!"
"Don't worry about it senpai. It was just an accident." Yuki sat up, and tried to find a tissue to start cleaning up.
"Is everything okay?" the president asked with concern. He stood up and started making his way towards them when he suddenly tripped over a table leg, "Ohh!"
Within seconds, Yuki found his hair covered by what remained of the president's drink. Everybody stared at the president laying on the floor, and then at Yuki, and burst out in laughter. Looking up from his new position, the president grinned weakly at Yuki, "Sorry about that. I guess I didn't help much. You okay?"
The situation was just so ridiculous that Yuki felt a small grin spread across his own features. "It was an accident, right? As long as nobody mentions a single word about this outside this room, I suppose I can live with it. Otherwise I might just have to take my revenge on you. A very painful revenge at that."
The others burst out into another round of laughter. Getting up off the floor, the president slapped Yuki on the shoulder, "What a guy! I didn't know you were such a joker!"
"Who said I was joking?" Yuki replied coolly.
"Eh?" The president turned around in surprised before noticing the impish look Yuki had on his face, and chuckled again.
Pushing his wet hair out of his eyes, Yuki quickly located his school bag and stood up. "I guess this is my sign to leave and get back home," he smiled and gestured to his soaked outfit. "Thanks for including me today, it was fun." A chorus of cheerful good-byes followed him out the door and into the hallway.
"Hey wait up! You better clean up a bit before heading home. I got some on me too, so I'll walk you to the front door after we visit the washroom." Yuki nodded at the president, and the two boys walked to the washroom as stately as uniforms drenched in alcohol would allow.
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"Yes! Wasn't that just a great afternoon?!" exclaimed Uotani, once again surprising several passersby.
"Un! I love going shopping with Uo-chan and Hana-chan! It's especially wonderful since I don't get to go with you that often nowadays." The girls were once again in front of the fountain where they had first met up in the morning.
"Hm. It was a good day wasn't it? I'm still reliving the waffles with ice cream we just finished," added Hanajima, one arm still looped around Tohru's shoulders.
"Jeez, I sometimes wonder if you think of anything besides food!" joked Uotani. She kicked absentmindedly at a small pile of snow by her foot. "What I can't believe is this snow! Look how heavily it's started to come down, and it's not just melting when it hits the ground either!"
Tohru looked worriedly at the snowfall, "Kyou-kun was right. Maybe we should call it a day then, and head home early?"
"That orange-headed loud-mouth right about something?!" She eyed the accumulating snow on the fountain, "Well, maybe this time."
"I think that's a good idea too, Tohru-kun. I also promised my brother to help him with his homework this evening." Hanajima hugged Tohru warmly, with Uotani following suit.
"Sugoi! Hana-chan's such a good sister!" smiled Tohru.
"Well, that depends how you look at things. Remember, Hanajima's the one that always takes a lot of re-tests at school, and also claims utter stupidity!" joked their blonde friend. Tohru blanched slightly at the mention of this.
"Well, at least my brother still looks up to me. Besides, I'm just helping him with the design of his presentation. I only have to help cut and glue things together," replied Hanajima unperturbed.
"It wouldn't by any chance be a science project on electricity would it? Then you could really help him shine." At this, Hanajima just glared at Uotani.
"I'm sure Hana-chan will do a terrific job. Bye! Give my regards to your family!"
"I will. Take care as you go home now."
"Good-bye Uo-chan!"
"Bye Tohru! See you tomorrow! Don't work too hard!" The two taller girls watched their dear friend make her way smilingly homeward until she was out of sight.
"After all this time, she still amazes me. Do you think the boys will like her gifts? Do you think Kyou will actually wear that orange hat?" asked Uotani as they turned around to head towards their own homes.
"She amazes me too. 'Yes' to the first question, and 'maybe' to the second." Hanajima looked up to her friend, and they shared a quiet chuckle as they remembered the ears on the woolen hat for Kyou.
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As he trudged through the snowy path towards home, Kyou kept up a constant muttering. After finally leaving Haru to find the last part of the way back to the honke, he had made one more quick stop before heading home himself. As the thick coil of rope banged alternatively against his side and then at his cheek, Kyou wondered what on earth possessed him to step into the local hardware shop and buy such thing. It must have been intuition gone wrong. The worst part was that it had gotten icy now, and every time it touched his skin, it sent a little shot of pain into his jaw.
Right now, his back and arms were aching. The snowflakes fell dancing from the sky, but he couldn't enjoy it at all, not with his tired feet trudging through the stuff that had started to pile up on the ground. All he wanted to do now was to get home, drop the load, and curl up somewhere warm and sleep the rest of the day away. Just like a cat.
"You're such an idiot for buying all this stuff. And you just had to walk that stupid cow home didn't you! ARGH! Ignore the pain, and forget you're tired! What kind of weakling are you?! What have all those years of training been for? Don't let the weather beat you!" He kept up the muttered speech, half berating, and half encouraging himself to continue on. Nobody answered him of course, not unless you counted the purring from the cats in his knapsack. His stomach growled loudly in reply, reminding him that he had skipped lunch so far.
Looking up briefly through the falling snow, he realized that he could finally see the house from where he was. It wouldn't be long now. The thought of a warm place though, helped quicken his pace - anything to get away from the cold and the dampness of the snow that had melted on his coat! His stomach however, didn't seem to care and kept rumbling.
Finally putting foot onto the raised entry area, he paused and looked down in wonder. Here, where the ground was partially protected from the snowfall, he could see a whole confusion of small footprints. He began to wonder just how many kittens that smoke gray cat had. He glanced back towards the path he had just walked along. The steady snowfall had erased any signs of where the footprints had come from. Her secret hiding place would be safe yet.
A yowl from his backpack awakened him from his reveries, and not so politely told him to hurry up and go on in. He nudged the door open wider with his right foot and walked into the welcoming warmth of the house. Kicking off his shoes, he dropped the grocery bags down with a sigh of relief. The coil of rope slid down as well, hitting the floor with a resounding thud. Moving a step or two further into the house, Kyou managed to work his knapsack off his back and swung it gingerly in front of him as he knelt down.
"Okay you all, we're here, time to get out now." He lifted the flap up, and before he knew it, the whole family of cats (minus the father) had leapt out and formed a line in front of him. There they sat calmly, licking and grooming themselves as if it were both a normal occurrence to ride in a bag, and that they were glad it was finally over with.
With the warmth of the house seeping into his body, Kyou shrugged out of his wet jacket, and watched the antics of the cats. An amused grin threatened to show itself as the kittens started to stretch their legs. He decided to give them a few ground rules first before they moved away from him. "Now, here are the rules. Stay on the ground floor. Don't knock anything over. If you've got some business to do, do it outside. If I can manage to find something suitable, I'll try to set up a litter box somewhere so when the storm's really here, you won't have to freeze your finicky little butts off. There's some other cats staying over too - so no fighting! Okay, you're free to go explore the place otherwise."
The kittens scampered away almost before his last word was said. The mother gazed at him a moment as if to agree to his terms before walking stately away after her youngsters. Kyou was just about to get up when from around the corner, the brave little marmalade kitten came running back and butted one of his hands. This time, Kyou couldn't stop his grin from showing. "So little guy, are you trying to thank me now?" The kitten swatted away his hand playfully before running away again.
With his stomach giving out a seemingly deafening roar, Kyou got back to his feet and grabbed his knapsack as well as the other two grocery bags. He left the wet coil of rope on the floor to dry out. Pausing by the front door, he decided to leave it open since he doubted the kittens' father had arrived yet. Walking into the kitchen, he could still smell the breakfast Tohru had cooked that day - it made his mouth water. Quickly shoving the perishables into the fridge, he left the rest of his purchases on the kitchen counter.
Now what was there to eat? Tohru had mentioned she had left something in the fridge for him to warm up. Rummaging through the fridge he found the neatly packaged lunch. It was a savoury curry chicken rice dish. He smiled as he carefully warmed it up on the stove, all the while his stomach clamouring for him to just eat it cold. Kyou could cook pretty well himself, but having someone else lovingly make something for you, made it taste that much better. Even when Tohru wasn't there in person, somehow her food still gave him a sense of comfort.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a couple of fleet footed bodies run past the doorway. That's right, he had almost forgotten the cats. He wondered if they were hungry too. His own stomach was protesting too much for him to put off eating much longer, but he supposed he had enough time to quickly set up a couple bowls of water for them. Quickly giving the curry another stir and turning down the heat somewhat, he turned to look for something to hold water with. Luckily he located two flat bowls without much trouble. They weren't meant to hold pet food, but they would do. He suspected they were actually old ikebana containers, but since they were just sitting in the bottom cupboard gathering dust, he figured it was fine to use them.
Giving them a quick wash, he filled both with water and carefully carried them over to Shigure's study. He very nearly tripped when a large black cat suddenly brushed against his legs. "Oh! What the. . .? Where did you come from?" The cat simply stared back at him before winding around his legs again. "Hey! Watch that! I don't want to spill anything! Jeez. Nevermind, you can stay too, just make sure you behave. This isn't really my house, so don't make any trouble for me. " The black cat almost seemed to grin back at the teenager.
Kyou looked at the sliding door to Shigure's study thoughtfully. He could easily open the door further with his foot and go in, but with the number of kittens in the house he wondered if it wouldn't be better to leave the water in the hallway. Things were getting touchy as it was with so many cats in the dwelling, he didn't want to chance getting into further trouble by having one of Shigure's manuscripts ruined by an overturned bowl of water. Two kittens running over his feet quickly made up his mind, and he left the bowls of water on the floor just beside the door.
Slipping into the study, Kyou was just about to go through the house rules with the cats he hadn't had a chance to meet yet, when he stopped short in semi-shock. Aside from the cats he had carried back from town, and the smoke gray cat with her kittens (two of them it seemed), there were at least another ten in the room! Of various sizes, ages and colours, they all turned their heads to him when he came in. "Okay - where did you all come from?!" The cats only looked back mischievously.
Kyou was beginning to think he had made a mistake. He hadn't expected so many cats! Just how many were actually in the house? As he opened his mind to check, his face paled. Aside from those in Shigure's study, there were at least another 10 or 15 in the rest of the house. What was he going to do?! The cats didn't give him any answers, they were obviously determined to stay there and wait the storm out. He doubted that Shigure would like his house being overrun with cats, especially since he himself was a dog!
First things first, he had better close the front door before any more showed up. Rushing back through the hallway, he shut the door firmly, and then just stood there, trying to decide what to do next. Another growl from his empty stomach helped clear his mind. Food first! He would think of something afterwards. Shigure had mentioned that he would be late, and with any luck, he might even stay over at Akito's that night! Shigure might never have to know about the cats at all!
Quietly humming to himself, Kyou quickly spooned out a large helping for himself, grabbed a carton of milk from the fridge, and stepped into the main room. A slow smile grew as the first delicious bite made its way into his hungry stomach. The warmth of the house and Tohru's cooking soon helped calm him down and think things through. Even the 4 or 5 cats that wandered around the room, and even over his lap while he ate didn't bother him. He finally decided that even if Shigure did find out, it would only be a sort of fitting justice for all the times his older cousin had teased and provoked him. As long as there wasn't too much of a mess, everything would be fine. Kyou's cat-eyes gleamed as he swallowed another spoonful of curry rice.
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Hatori walked through the hallways of the great house; it was a surprisingly quiet day for once. There was only a short consultation in the morning, and Akito seemed to be in one of his calmer moods, sleeping and reading most of the day away. He stopped when he saw Hatsuharu shaking snow out of his hair in the entranceway. He had a strangely satisfied smirk on his face.
"Haru? You went out?" asked the doctor.
"Yeah, I called Yuki's place earlier but nobody was home, so I decided to go look for him." Taking off his damp coat, he let a passing servant take it to dry off. Turning towards the mirror that hung in the foyer, he tried to fix his hair.
"You knew where he was going?"
"No. I thought I'd just walk around and take a look since I had nothing else to do," was the calm reply.
Hatori looked at his younger cousin with a slight trace of consternation. In front of him was the boy who couldn't be trusted to go anywhere alone that much further than a few blocks away from home, without getting lost. And yet despite that, he just went wandering off looking for his favourite cousin, Yuki. Hatori sighed, giving a small shake of his head.
"Well, as long as you got home in a reasonable amount of time. Since you're grinning like that, I suppose you found him? What was he doing?"
"Nope. I didn't find him. I bumped into Kyou though." Haru looked over at his older cousin, his eyes suddenly filled with an impish look.
"Ahh." replied Hatori in a bland sort of tone. Doubtless the boys must have been roughing it up again. Strange that Haru was smiling like that though. Could it be that the Cow had finally won a fight over the Cat? "So, what was Kyou doing?"
Having fixed his hair as best as he could, Haru leaned back against the wall to continue the conversation. It had dawned on him, that the usually quiet Hatori must have been bored to have stayed and talked this much - unless he was sent to find out the whereabouts of the other Jyuunishi. Whatever the case, Haru knew he had some interesting things to tell.
"The Cat was out grocery shopping if you can believe it."
"Oh. It's not an impossibility - he use to do that when he was living at the doujo too."
"Yeah, he walked me part way home too." Haru decided to leave the incidents with the cats out for now. Hatori merely raised an eyebrow at this.
"What's more interesting is what he told me about the others. Shigure went to some convention - probably with his editor. Tohru was out shopping with friends. The big news however is that Yuki went to a Karaoke party with the other members of the student council!" This finally got a more lively reaction out of Hatori.
"Yuki did what? Of his own accord?"
"Went to a party, and yup, seems like he wanted to go too."
"Hm. Is that so?"
Seeing that Hatori had fallen into deep thought, Haru shrugged and started to walk off to look for his hyper-genki cousin, Momiji. "Oh yeah, I suppose you already know that Shigure's coming over for supper. Kyou mentioned that Yuki might be coming too."
"Huh? Yuki's coming here?!" This was definitely unexpected. It had been such a quiet day, and now with the possibility of Yuki coming over - he wondered what would happen if Akito found out before the meal actually occurred.
From far down the hallway, just before he turned the corner, Haru yelled out a few last words. "Yeah, Kyou seemed pretty adamant that there was some huge snowstorm coming our way. I think that's why he practically marched me back home. He even warned Yuki about it. Seems like those two are actually getting along these days, ne?"
Hatori stared after the disappearing figure of the Cow. So, Kyou did that? Hm, a warning about a snowstorm. The fact that his fiery younger cousin had even warned Yuki was surprising. Hatori tried to work things out in his mind, but this sort of thing was more along the lines of Shigure's specialty. Might that girl's presence have had something to do with it? Then again, Honda Tohru wasn't there when Kyou walked Haru back. Kyou and his weather-sense. Something clicked in Hatori's mind, and after taking a quick peek out at the falling snow, he decided he had better take a quick drive through town. He might have to pick up a few familiar animals on the way home.
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By Kelpy
Email: dragon@smadar.ca
Copyright December 2001-2002
Category: Drama/Humor
Rating: PG-13
A 'Fruits Basket' Fan Fiction
Original manga series by Takaya Natsuki
Published by Hana to Yume Comics (Japan)
--------------------------------------------------------------
This piece of work is not to be sold in any form. Neither Takaya Natsuki nor Hana to Yume Comics has authorized this piece in any way. It may be downloaded for personal reading. Please contact me before presenting it for public use (posting to message boards/mailing lists, web sites, etc).
--------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks to all for the encouragement. I've been stuck between an extremely busy schedule this summer, and a huge writer's block. Anyway I have a little more spare time now, so I'm aiming to FINALLY finish this fanfic by Christmas of this year. *crosses fingers*
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Part 4: Blizzard Coming
"An autograph? But of course! I'd be honoured to!" Shigure smiled warmly, and leaned towards the blushing female publisher. Glancing back, he could see Mit-chan still seated, busy hammering out a schedule for his public appearances with the representatives of the latest bookstore chain. Briefly, their eyes met, his with gleeful laughter, hers with a warning to be on his best behaviour. He gave a quick wink before turning to the next person in line.
The last of the official business meetings had finished, and the next hour or so were left for mingling and making new contacts. Aside from the scheduling, his dutiful editor would be chatting up prospective buyers, and checking on competitors. He himself had gathered a small throng of admirers, all clamoring for a few personal words or an autograph. A few even wanted a picture with him! In his element, Shigure obligingly complied. He even came up with a few unexpected poses reminiscent of Ayame, making his loyal fans laugh. Carefully however, he stayed near the side of the room. He wanted to make sure he had an escape route - it wouldn't do to have a transformation here! In between the signings and small talk, he glanced over the crowds' heads and watched the snow as it fell unheeded by the others.
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"Yuki-chan! Here try this!"
"What is it?" He took hold of the proffered glass before it slipped from his senpai's rather unsteady fingers. He eyed the blue liquid suspiciously.
"Come on, just take a sip! You'll like it!" exclaimed another senpai, who dropped onto the seat beside him. It was the same girl he had been working with earlier on the food committee. Still giggling after singing to a couple of her favourite songs, she now seemed to be sitting dangerously close to Yuki. . . again.
Leaning as far back into the sofa as possible to put a little more distance between them, he glanced around the room. They had been in the small dimly lit room for a good three hours already. The remains of their lunch lay scattered on the low table in the middle of the room. The only bright things in the room were the television and the small disco ball that hung from the ceiling. Everybody was in the best of moods, just enjoying the party atmosphere, and probably on a sugar high as well.
Tohru had been right; the others did want him here with them. After the first hour of unease, he had gradually begun to relax and had even sung a song with a couple of the guys. He still wasn't comfortable enough to sing one on his own though, and of course, he still tensed up anytime one of the female students moved too close to him. All in all though, he was glad he had decided to come - it was a step in the right direction at the very least.
Suddenly he felt a touch on his hand. "Yuki-kun! You're not listening again! I said to take a sip!"
While his thoughts had been wandering, his senpai had apparently leaned even closer, and was now almost forcing the glass to his mouth. Practically breathing in the vapour rising from the glass, he could tell it definitely wasn't just some strange new soft drink. He pushed back a bit, and thankfully she relented somewhat and moved backwards, letting go of his hand.
"Uh, hey! Isn't this alcoholic?"
She smiled even wider at him, "Yup! My uncle co-owns this place, and he slipped us some to help us celebrate. Isn't that great? Only one glass each though."
"Oh. Thanks, but I'm not really interested in trying it. Someone else can have mine too." Yuki tried to put the glass on the table, but found himself pushed back into the sofa by a pair of determined hands.
"Oh come on Yuki-kun! I'll be graduating with the other third years soon, I'll probably won't get another chance to share a drink with you ever again!"
Share a drink? By the way she was acting, Yuki suspected she probably already downed hers, and maybe another as well. "Er, but senpai, as part of the student council, shouldn't we be trying to set an example for the other students?"
From somewhere across the room, somebody let out a big laugh at his remark. "Come on Sohma! Stop being so tight about things all the time! One sip's not gonna do anything. Look, even the president is drinking his glass!"
At that remark, the president raised his arm, swirling the drink above his head. "Indeed. On this festive occasion, for the harmony of the group, I, student council president, shall allow everyone here to have a drink with no repercussions! Anything that happens here in this room shall remain in here. Nobody speaks about this outside! So, Sohma Yuki, drink up before I have to force you to sing the 'yellow polka-dotted bikini' song all by yourself!"
"Fine. Just one sip though." Inside, he grimaced. Did all student council presidents have a streak of self-grandeur running in them? He couldn't help but think of his older brother, and the stories he told of his days as student president.
Glancing up, he found that his female senpai had let go of him, but was now kneeling on the sofa; her hands clutched together, avidly waiting for him to drink. He sighed, "Okay, here it goes." He took the barest amount that could count as a sip, and even so, he could feel the minty but bitter fluid burn a line down his throat. Eck! "Okay senpai, I took a sip just for you."
"Now I can say I had a drink with Yuki-kun!" With a squeal of delight, she jumped up and did a little dance before turning back to him. Yuki watched in semi horror as she threw her arms wide in preparation for a hug and tumbled towards him.
"Senpai! Wait! Watch out!" He threw out his arms as he watched her fall, almost as if in slow motion, towards him. SPLASH!
"Ahh!"
Every head turned towards Yuki as he sat drenched and somewhat bewildered on the sofa. At the last moment, he had been able to maneuver his senpai so that she fell to his side, instead of on him. Unfortunately, it had been at the expense of the drink that he had still held in his hand. Yuki sighed in relief.
"Ano, Yuki-kun. Sorry about that. I was just so hyper and happy that I forgot you still had the drink in your hand. If only you had drank it all down in one go!"
"Don't worry about it senpai. It was just an accident." Yuki sat up, and tried to find a tissue to start cleaning up.
"Is everything okay?" the president asked with concern. He stood up and started making his way towards them when he suddenly tripped over a table leg, "Ohh!"
Within seconds, Yuki found his hair covered by what remained of the president's drink. Everybody stared at the president laying on the floor, and then at Yuki, and burst out in laughter. Looking up from his new position, the president grinned weakly at Yuki, "Sorry about that. I guess I didn't help much. You okay?"
The situation was just so ridiculous that Yuki felt a small grin spread across his own features. "It was an accident, right? As long as nobody mentions a single word about this outside this room, I suppose I can live with it. Otherwise I might just have to take my revenge on you. A very painful revenge at that."
The others burst out into another round of laughter. Getting up off the floor, the president slapped Yuki on the shoulder, "What a guy! I didn't know you were such a joker!"
"Who said I was joking?" Yuki replied coolly.
"Eh?" The president turned around in surprised before noticing the impish look Yuki had on his face, and chuckled again.
Pushing his wet hair out of his eyes, Yuki quickly located his school bag and stood up. "I guess this is my sign to leave and get back home," he smiled and gestured to his soaked outfit. "Thanks for including me today, it was fun." A chorus of cheerful good-byes followed him out the door and into the hallway.
"Hey wait up! You better clean up a bit before heading home. I got some on me too, so I'll walk you to the front door after we visit the washroom." Yuki nodded at the president, and the two boys walked to the washroom as stately as uniforms drenched in alcohol would allow.
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"Yes! Wasn't that just a great afternoon?!" exclaimed Uotani, once again surprising several passersby.
"Un! I love going shopping with Uo-chan and Hana-chan! It's especially wonderful since I don't get to go with you that often nowadays." The girls were once again in front of the fountain where they had first met up in the morning.
"Hm. It was a good day wasn't it? I'm still reliving the waffles with ice cream we just finished," added Hanajima, one arm still looped around Tohru's shoulders.
"Jeez, I sometimes wonder if you think of anything besides food!" joked Uotani. She kicked absentmindedly at a small pile of snow by her foot. "What I can't believe is this snow! Look how heavily it's started to come down, and it's not just melting when it hits the ground either!"
Tohru looked worriedly at the snowfall, "Kyou-kun was right. Maybe we should call it a day then, and head home early?"
"That orange-headed loud-mouth right about something?!" She eyed the accumulating snow on the fountain, "Well, maybe this time."
"I think that's a good idea too, Tohru-kun. I also promised my brother to help him with his homework this evening." Hanajima hugged Tohru warmly, with Uotani following suit.
"Sugoi! Hana-chan's such a good sister!" smiled Tohru.
"Well, that depends how you look at things. Remember, Hanajima's the one that always takes a lot of re-tests at school, and also claims utter stupidity!" joked their blonde friend. Tohru blanched slightly at the mention of this.
"Well, at least my brother still looks up to me. Besides, I'm just helping him with the design of his presentation. I only have to help cut and glue things together," replied Hanajima unperturbed.
"It wouldn't by any chance be a science project on electricity would it? Then you could really help him shine." At this, Hanajima just glared at Uotani.
"I'm sure Hana-chan will do a terrific job. Bye! Give my regards to your family!"
"I will. Take care as you go home now."
"Good-bye Uo-chan!"
"Bye Tohru! See you tomorrow! Don't work too hard!" The two taller girls watched their dear friend make her way smilingly homeward until she was out of sight.
"After all this time, she still amazes me. Do you think the boys will like her gifts? Do you think Kyou will actually wear that orange hat?" asked Uotani as they turned around to head towards their own homes.
"She amazes me too. 'Yes' to the first question, and 'maybe' to the second." Hanajima looked up to her friend, and they shared a quiet chuckle as they remembered the ears on the woolen hat for Kyou.
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As he trudged through the snowy path towards home, Kyou kept up a constant muttering. After finally leaving Haru to find the last part of the way back to the honke, he had made one more quick stop before heading home himself. As the thick coil of rope banged alternatively against his side and then at his cheek, Kyou wondered what on earth possessed him to step into the local hardware shop and buy such thing. It must have been intuition gone wrong. The worst part was that it had gotten icy now, and every time it touched his skin, it sent a little shot of pain into his jaw.
Right now, his back and arms were aching. The snowflakes fell dancing from the sky, but he couldn't enjoy it at all, not with his tired feet trudging through the stuff that had started to pile up on the ground. All he wanted to do now was to get home, drop the load, and curl up somewhere warm and sleep the rest of the day away. Just like a cat.
"You're such an idiot for buying all this stuff. And you just had to walk that stupid cow home didn't you! ARGH! Ignore the pain, and forget you're tired! What kind of weakling are you?! What have all those years of training been for? Don't let the weather beat you!" He kept up the muttered speech, half berating, and half encouraging himself to continue on. Nobody answered him of course, not unless you counted the purring from the cats in his knapsack. His stomach growled loudly in reply, reminding him that he had skipped lunch so far.
Looking up briefly through the falling snow, he realized that he could finally see the house from where he was. It wouldn't be long now. The thought of a warm place though, helped quicken his pace - anything to get away from the cold and the dampness of the snow that had melted on his coat! His stomach however, didn't seem to care and kept rumbling.
Finally putting foot onto the raised entry area, he paused and looked down in wonder. Here, where the ground was partially protected from the snowfall, he could see a whole confusion of small footprints. He began to wonder just how many kittens that smoke gray cat had. He glanced back towards the path he had just walked along. The steady snowfall had erased any signs of where the footprints had come from. Her secret hiding place would be safe yet.
A yowl from his backpack awakened him from his reveries, and not so politely told him to hurry up and go on in. He nudged the door open wider with his right foot and walked into the welcoming warmth of the house. Kicking off his shoes, he dropped the grocery bags down with a sigh of relief. The coil of rope slid down as well, hitting the floor with a resounding thud. Moving a step or two further into the house, Kyou managed to work his knapsack off his back and swung it gingerly in front of him as he knelt down.
"Okay you all, we're here, time to get out now." He lifted the flap up, and before he knew it, the whole family of cats (minus the father) had leapt out and formed a line in front of him. There they sat calmly, licking and grooming themselves as if it were both a normal occurrence to ride in a bag, and that they were glad it was finally over with.
With the warmth of the house seeping into his body, Kyou shrugged out of his wet jacket, and watched the antics of the cats. An amused grin threatened to show itself as the kittens started to stretch their legs. He decided to give them a few ground rules first before they moved away from him. "Now, here are the rules. Stay on the ground floor. Don't knock anything over. If you've got some business to do, do it outside. If I can manage to find something suitable, I'll try to set up a litter box somewhere so when the storm's really here, you won't have to freeze your finicky little butts off. There's some other cats staying over too - so no fighting! Okay, you're free to go explore the place otherwise."
The kittens scampered away almost before his last word was said. The mother gazed at him a moment as if to agree to his terms before walking stately away after her youngsters. Kyou was just about to get up when from around the corner, the brave little marmalade kitten came running back and butted one of his hands. This time, Kyou couldn't stop his grin from showing. "So little guy, are you trying to thank me now?" The kitten swatted away his hand playfully before running away again.
With his stomach giving out a seemingly deafening roar, Kyou got back to his feet and grabbed his knapsack as well as the other two grocery bags. He left the wet coil of rope on the floor to dry out. Pausing by the front door, he decided to leave it open since he doubted the kittens' father had arrived yet. Walking into the kitchen, he could still smell the breakfast Tohru had cooked that day - it made his mouth water. Quickly shoving the perishables into the fridge, he left the rest of his purchases on the kitchen counter.
Now what was there to eat? Tohru had mentioned she had left something in the fridge for him to warm up. Rummaging through the fridge he found the neatly packaged lunch. It was a savoury curry chicken rice dish. He smiled as he carefully warmed it up on the stove, all the while his stomach clamouring for him to just eat it cold. Kyou could cook pretty well himself, but having someone else lovingly make something for you, made it taste that much better. Even when Tohru wasn't there in person, somehow her food still gave him a sense of comfort.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a couple of fleet footed bodies run past the doorway. That's right, he had almost forgotten the cats. He wondered if they were hungry too. His own stomach was protesting too much for him to put off eating much longer, but he supposed he had enough time to quickly set up a couple bowls of water for them. Quickly giving the curry another stir and turning down the heat somewhat, he turned to look for something to hold water with. Luckily he located two flat bowls without much trouble. They weren't meant to hold pet food, but they would do. He suspected they were actually old ikebana containers, but since they were just sitting in the bottom cupboard gathering dust, he figured it was fine to use them.
Giving them a quick wash, he filled both with water and carefully carried them over to Shigure's study. He very nearly tripped when a large black cat suddenly brushed against his legs. "Oh! What the. . .? Where did you come from?" The cat simply stared back at him before winding around his legs again. "Hey! Watch that! I don't want to spill anything! Jeez. Nevermind, you can stay too, just make sure you behave. This isn't really my house, so don't make any trouble for me. " The black cat almost seemed to grin back at the teenager.
Kyou looked at the sliding door to Shigure's study thoughtfully. He could easily open the door further with his foot and go in, but with the number of kittens in the house he wondered if it wouldn't be better to leave the water in the hallway. Things were getting touchy as it was with so many cats in the dwelling, he didn't want to chance getting into further trouble by having one of Shigure's manuscripts ruined by an overturned bowl of water. Two kittens running over his feet quickly made up his mind, and he left the bowls of water on the floor just beside the door.
Slipping into the study, Kyou was just about to go through the house rules with the cats he hadn't had a chance to meet yet, when he stopped short in semi-shock. Aside from the cats he had carried back from town, and the smoke gray cat with her kittens (two of them it seemed), there were at least another ten in the room! Of various sizes, ages and colours, they all turned their heads to him when he came in. "Okay - where did you all come from?!" The cats only looked back mischievously.
Kyou was beginning to think he had made a mistake. He hadn't expected so many cats! Just how many were actually in the house? As he opened his mind to check, his face paled. Aside from those in Shigure's study, there were at least another 10 or 15 in the rest of the house. What was he going to do?! The cats didn't give him any answers, they were obviously determined to stay there and wait the storm out. He doubted that Shigure would like his house being overrun with cats, especially since he himself was a dog!
First things first, he had better close the front door before any more showed up. Rushing back through the hallway, he shut the door firmly, and then just stood there, trying to decide what to do next. Another growl from his empty stomach helped clear his mind. Food first! He would think of something afterwards. Shigure had mentioned that he would be late, and with any luck, he might even stay over at Akito's that night! Shigure might never have to know about the cats at all!
Quietly humming to himself, Kyou quickly spooned out a large helping for himself, grabbed a carton of milk from the fridge, and stepped into the main room. A slow smile grew as the first delicious bite made its way into his hungry stomach. The warmth of the house and Tohru's cooking soon helped calm him down and think things through. Even the 4 or 5 cats that wandered around the room, and even over his lap while he ate didn't bother him. He finally decided that even if Shigure did find out, it would only be a sort of fitting justice for all the times his older cousin had teased and provoked him. As long as there wasn't too much of a mess, everything would be fine. Kyou's cat-eyes gleamed as he swallowed another spoonful of curry rice.
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Hatori walked through the hallways of the great house; it was a surprisingly quiet day for once. There was only a short consultation in the morning, and Akito seemed to be in one of his calmer moods, sleeping and reading most of the day away. He stopped when he saw Hatsuharu shaking snow out of his hair in the entranceway. He had a strangely satisfied smirk on his face.
"Haru? You went out?" asked the doctor.
"Yeah, I called Yuki's place earlier but nobody was home, so I decided to go look for him." Taking off his damp coat, he let a passing servant take it to dry off. Turning towards the mirror that hung in the foyer, he tried to fix his hair.
"You knew where he was going?"
"No. I thought I'd just walk around and take a look since I had nothing else to do," was the calm reply.
Hatori looked at his younger cousin with a slight trace of consternation. In front of him was the boy who couldn't be trusted to go anywhere alone that much further than a few blocks away from home, without getting lost. And yet despite that, he just went wandering off looking for his favourite cousin, Yuki. Hatori sighed, giving a small shake of his head.
"Well, as long as you got home in a reasonable amount of time. Since you're grinning like that, I suppose you found him? What was he doing?"
"Nope. I didn't find him. I bumped into Kyou though." Haru looked over at his older cousin, his eyes suddenly filled with an impish look.
"Ahh." replied Hatori in a bland sort of tone. Doubtless the boys must have been roughing it up again. Strange that Haru was smiling like that though. Could it be that the Cow had finally won a fight over the Cat? "So, what was Kyou doing?"
Having fixed his hair as best as he could, Haru leaned back against the wall to continue the conversation. It had dawned on him, that the usually quiet Hatori must have been bored to have stayed and talked this much - unless he was sent to find out the whereabouts of the other Jyuunishi. Whatever the case, Haru knew he had some interesting things to tell.
"The Cat was out grocery shopping if you can believe it."
"Oh. It's not an impossibility - he use to do that when he was living at the doujo too."
"Yeah, he walked me part way home too." Haru decided to leave the incidents with the cats out for now. Hatori merely raised an eyebrow at this.
"What's more interesting is what he told me about the others. Shigure went to some convention - probably with his editor. Tohru was out shopping with friends. The big news however is that Yuki went to a Karaoke party with the other members of the student council!" This finally got a more lively reaction out of Hatori.
"Yuki did what? Of his own accord?"
"Went to a party, and yup, seems like he wanted to go too."
"Hm. Is that so?"
Seeing that Hatori had fallen into deep thought, Haru shrugged and started to walk off to look for his hyper-genki cousin, Momiji. "Oh yeah, I suppose you already know that Shigure's coming over for supper. Kyou mentioned that Yuki might be coming too."
"Huh? Yuki's coming here?!" This was definitely unexpected. It had been such a quiet day, and now with the possibility of Yuki coming over - he wondered what would happen if Akito found out before the meal actually occurred.
From far down the hallway, just before he turned the corner, Haru yelled out a few last words. "Yeah, Kyou seemed pretty adamant that there was some huge snowstorm coming our way. I think that's why he practically marched me back home. He even warned Yuki about it. Seems like those two are actually getting along these days, ne?"
Hatori stared after the disappearing figure of the Cow. So, Kyou did that? Hm, a warning about a snowstorm. The fact that his fiery younger cousin had even warned Yuki was surprising. Hatori tried to work things out in his mind, but this sort of thing was more along the lines of Shigure's specialty. Might that girl's presence have had something to do with it? Then again, Honda Tohru wasn't there when Kyou walked Haru back. Kyou and his weather-sense. Something clicked in Hatori's mind, and after taking a quick peek out at the falling snow, he decided he had better take a quick drive through town. He might have to pick up a few familiar animals on the way home.
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