The Sohma Institute
By Lady of the InkDisclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket, but you knew that. I hope. I do own this story, and all the plot twists it contains.
Dedication: To everyone who has taken the time to review. Thank you!
Chapter Twenty-Two
Baiting BlackKyou was just coming to when Tohru reentered the activity room, a bag of ice chips from the lunchroom in her hand. Haru and Momiji remained absorbed in their book and game respectively and didn't even seem to notice her return. Kagura did, though, lifting her head and offering a small smile while maintaining her grip.
"I brought something for his eye," Tohru said as she knelt at the couple's side. She looked down just as Kyou's eyes fluttered open the whole way. He looked back at her, confusion written on his face for a couple of moments until what had happened apparently came flooding back. His chin dipped as he looked down at the arm encircling his upper chest.
Tohru had never seen anyone move as fast as Kyou did in that instant. His body twisted in a way that she wouldn't have thought possible as he pulled away from Kagura's grasp. In two seconds flat he was crouched several feet from them, one arm outstretched like a warning or a barrier.
"Stay away from me, you crazy woman!" he managed to gasp through a now-visible split lip. His eyes were locked unblinkingly on Kagura, as wary as a cornered animal.
"How can you say something so mean to me, Kyou?" the object of his attention wailed, her lower lip trembling as tears welled in her eyes. "Are you going to be so cruel even after we get married?"
Wariness was replaced instantly with irritation as he yelled, "I am not going to marry you!"
Tohru's head bounced back and forth between the two like a spectator at a tennis match. She wasn't sure exactly what was going on, but Momiji, who she had a clear view of over Kagura's shoulder, didn't seem upset. She found herself wondering if these kinds of arguments were as commonplace between the two as the physical kind that had happened before. Deciding that the answer to that was irrelevant, Tohru cleared her throat in an attempt to capture their attention.
"I think that the two of you need to calm down a little. Fighting is never the best answer to any problem."
Kyou scoffed at that, but dropped his angry glare and folded his arms across his chest. Kagura flushed a little, lowering her gaze to the hands she had folded in her lap. "I'm sorry, Miss Honda.It's just that I get to visit so rarely that I get a little . . .excited when I see him. I just want to hug him and kiss and never, ever let go!" She looked at the object of her affection, pure adoration shining on her face. She clasped her hands over her heart, the gesture exposing slightly red knuckles.
The sight reminded Tohru of the compress in her hand. Turning to Kyou, she blinked. Was it just her imagination or had he scooted back a few more inches? Shrugging it off, she held out the bag, adding a smile in an attempt to stave off any sarcastic comments. He'd been quite clear about what he'd thought of her efforts to help at their lat meeting. She didn't want a repeat of that, especially not when he'd already had a confrontation with someone else.
After only a moment's hesitation, he took the ice pack. He didn't say thank you, but she took it as a step in the right direction when he didn't yell at her either. Pressing the ice against his face, he got to his feet and crossed the room. He dropped into the chair that sat the farthest away, not bothering to retrieve its cushion from the floor. Turning to stare at the wall, he set about ignoring everyone around him.
Kagura sighed, drawing Tohru's attention back to her. There was an air of sadness surrounding her, and Tohru felt an answering twinge of unhappiness. Kagura had dropped her hands back into her lap and was twisting her fingers together dejectedly, wincing slightly when the action strained a tender spot. Tohru knew better than to get involved in the cause of the older girl's emotional pain, but her physical pain seemed safe enough.
"Why don't you let me get you some ice for your hand." Her offer accepted with a small nod, Tohru rose and started to the door. She paused when she reached it, turning back to be sure things were really under control. It was then that she noticed Haru's absence. She hadn't heard or noticed him leaving, but the TV was silent, the game returned to its place on the shelf. The chair where he'd been sitting was empty.
As she retrieved the promised ice from the lunchroom, Tohru recalled Kagura's words from before. The older girl had supplied her with both the idea and the means to get answers from Haru after speaking with her for just a few moments. At first she had wondered why, but she thought had her answer after seeing the way Kagura was around Kyou. If Kagura loved him as much as she seemed to, it stood to reason that she'd want to do everything for him that she could. If getting Tohru involved was something she thought would be useful, she obviously wasn't above influencing that outcome with some carefully chosen words.
Tohru knew she should keep her guard up and think things over a bit more thoroughly before taking action. After all, what Kagura thought was best for Kyou wasn't necessarily best for her or the other patients on the floor. Rushing in would only leave her open to doing something wrong. But that didn't keep her from seeking out the distinctive white and black head once she'd delivered the ice to Kagura.
She found him in his room, sitting on the bed as he paged through a photo album. He looked up when she knocked, his face giving nothing away. Taking a single step into his room, she paused. "Would it be all right if I joined you for awhile? We haven't really had a chance to talk."
"Come in," he answered without altering his expression. It was a little discomforting to Tohru how well he was able to hide what he was thinking and feeling. She had never been able to keep her emotions hidden; there was always a blush or stammer to give her away. Haru reminded her of Saki, who had mastered the same ability almost from birth it seemed.
Of course, the more she had gotten to know Saki, the better she had gotten at deciphering the small clues that revealed her feelings at that moment. The small flash in her eyes when she was angry, the slight tilt of her head when she was teasing, the faint quirk of her eyebrow when she was thoughtful were all things Tohru had learned to recognize over time. Maybe it would be the same way with Haru.
Feeling buoyed by that idea, she crossed to sit on the edge of his bed, careful to keep some distance between them. She tipped her head, indicating the album by his side. "May I see?" He immediately slid the small book towards her, allowing her to see its contents for the first time. She wasn't sure exactly what she had been expecting to find, but it certainly wasn't the family shots she now studied. "Did you take these?" she asked in as offhand a manner as she could manage. Haru seemed passive enough about her looking at the pictures and she didn't want to risk changing that attitude by expressing too much interest until she was sure of how he'd take it.
"Most of them, yes."
"They're very good."
She wasn't lying; the shots were wonderfully done. The page she was looking at featured two shots of a pair of young children sitting beneath a tree. Sunlight filtered through the branches, making interesting patterns on the ground and the children. The little girl had tawny colored hair pulled back from her face with bows that exactly matched her outfit. A boy, his light brown hair falling over his forehead, sat at her side, a long-suffering expression on his face as he held a dainty pink teacup in his hand like it was a live grenade.
Tohru smiled to herself, knowing instantly that he had been roped into the game against his will. She wondered why he hadn't simply run away, as she remembered all the boys from her youth doing when they were approached with the idea of a tea party. Shifting her attention to the shot affixed directly below the first, she got her answer. The girl's head was tilted downward as she poured something from the teapot into one of the cups. While her attention was diverted, the boy was looking at her, an easily identifiable expression on his face.
'He likes her. How cute!' Tohru sighed softly, admiring the skill it must have taken to get so much emotion into the shot. It wasn't just a picture; it was a moment of time caught and held forever on the page. While she certainly wasn't an expert on the subject, she had a feeling that not just anyone could manage such a feat.
Returning her attention to Haru, she found him watching her. She shifted slightly, a bit embarrassed to realize he had seen her reaction. It only made matters worse that she couldn't tell anything from his expression. Struggling to maintain an air of nonchalance, she asked, "Are they people you know, or did you just come across them somewhere?"
"The girl is Kisa and the boy is Hiro. I've known them for a long time."
Tohru nodded while thinking to herself, 'More names from that article. Cousins, maybe?' She flipped through several pages, admiring them all until one shot in particular caught her eye. It was different from the others in several ways. Slightly off center, a large part of the shot was blocked by what looked like a blurred arm. That, coupled with the angle, made it clear that one of the people in the picture was holding the camera at the time that it had been taken.
Haru stood with one arm raised, marking him as the photographer. His other arm was around a girl at his side, her long dark hair falling over her shoulders. They were both dressed in dark clothing, the contrast of Haru's hair and the girl' pale skin startlingly dramatic. While neither of the two were smiling, there was a feeling of closeness that had little to do with proximity. Tohru could feel a flush creep into her cheeks, as though she were intruding on the moment itself instead of just looking at a picture of it.
"That's Rin." Haru told her before she even asked. Reaching over, he flipped the page, removing the picture from sight. Studying him from the corner of her vision, Tohru noticed something in his eyes that made her think that pushing the subject wouldn't be a good idea. She returned her attention to the album, forcing all her questions to the back of her mind.
Distracting herself was easier than she had thought it would be when she realized the next group of pictures featured a younger Haru in various places and outfits. She smiled at one of him on a fence surrounding what looked like a pasture. There was a cow looking over one of his shoulders, and the resemblance between the two as they stared blandly at the taker of the shot was strong enough to force her to stifle a giggle.
As she looked through the photos, she soon realized something. While there were numerous pictures of groups of people, all the ones with Haru in them were of him by himself. The single, out-of-focus shot with Rin was the one exception. There weren't even any pictures of his parents with him, although she supposed they could be included in some of the other group photos.
Her brow furrowed a bit as she wondered if it was another action taken to keep his relationship to the other Sohmas - both the patients and the owners of the Institute - a secret. It seemed a little extreme to her, given the circumstances of his confinement.
Realizing the path she was about to take, Tohru forced herself to abandon that line of thinking. She didn't need to get her mind wrapped up in another "mystery" that had no real proof to support it. Look what had happened with Momiji when she pried further than she should have. She now knew something that she wasn't sure what to do with, and had to watch what she said for fear of bringing up an uncomfortable topic. She didn't want the same thing to happen with Haru.
Taking a deep breath as silently as she could, she took a moment to think rationally. For all she knew, Haru had had a falling out with his parents and taken all the pictures of them together out of the album. As to him always being alone, maybe he was the loner type, or had the photos of him together with his friends in another book.
'See,' she mentally told herself, 'There are plenty of simple, logical explanations for this. I have to stop jumping to conclusions or I'm going to drive my self crazy!' Resolutely returning to the album, she struggled to get back to her original purpose. She wanted to know more about Haru in order to help him better. So far all she had learned was that he was a wonderful photographer and that he didn't want to talk about the girl named Rin. While interesting, none of those facts were really useful.
She jumped a bit when he pulled the book from her lap as she finished looking at the last page. He turned to put it away, bringing her attention to the bandage on his arm for the second time that day. Without thinking, she caught hold of his hand to keep it still while her fingertips brushed over the dressing lightly.
"Did you have an accident?" she asked with real concern. Touching them as she was, Tohru could feel the thickness of the wrappings. Whatever they covered seemed to be more than the simple injury she had first suspected.
Haru pulled away, turning his head to look out the window. "It's nothing," he told her flatly in a tone that held just enough severity to mark it as a dismissal.
Tohru blinked, caught off guard. She stood, ready to give him the space he seemed to want. But she found herself unable to leave without letting him know she'd be there if he needed anything. "I'll be around if you want anything, so don't hesitate to come find me. Like Ms. Almont told me on my first day, I'm here to help you."
The next thing Tohru knew, her back was pressed flat against the wall behind her and Haru was staring down at her. Only he didn't look like the Haru she'd been speaking with just moments before. His eyes were narrowed, giving his face a harder, more intimidating look. She swallowed hard, wondering if this was what everyone meant when they said he had another side.
When his head lowered towards her, her mind seemed to stutter to a stop. Only one thought remained, so completely inane that she would have laughed if she had the breath to.
'I didn't even have to mention his hair.'
