Author's Notes: First of all, I don't own Fruits Basket. This is the last time I'm going to put this up here, because I'm as tired of copying and pasting it as I'm sure you are of reading it. Four chapters and I know you get the hint.

Laurie Salyers © PyromaniacChesheyre (aka me). I will not refrain from reminding everyone of this, sorry.

Lastly, thank you to everyone who reviewed! –feels very loved- I would love to reply to each and every one of you, but time really doesn't allow it. –bows deeply- But trust me, I appreciate it so much!

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The morning air was cool, a gentle breeze ruffling the grass and trees. The sun had barely peeked out from behind the clouds, and there wasn't a soul in sight.

These are some of the best moments, Yuki thought to himself as he walked along. He'd had a good half an hour to kill before he had to be at school when he'd finished getting ready, so he had chosen to leave early for school and enjoy his walk. It wasn't something that he did often any more; his life had become so hectic lately that often times, he didn't notice his surroundings.

His eyes following the movement of a few stray leaves being blown across the sidewalk, Yuki let out a sigh of pleasure. Unfortunately, though, now that he'd spent his time meandering, he had to make his way to school. And it was turning out to be such a good morning, too, Yuki thought idly.

Yuki made it to school in only a few moments. The schoolyard around him was completely deserted, and the parking lot held only a few cars. Upstairs, Yuki could see that lights were still being flipped on, which meant that he was probably the only student that happened to be at school yet. Perfect.

"You're here early." a voice behind Yuki sounded, causing him to spin around in a movement that lacked his usual grace. Straightening, Yuki stared at the girl that he had met the day before, as though slightly confused by her presence. Seeming to understand Yuki's confusion, Laurie added, "I didn't sleep well."

"Oh." Yuki said after a moment, averting his eyes.

"Yeah." Laurie said in response, before falling silent. Yuki shifted.

"So…" Yuki started, though he wasn't sure what he could really say. His mind was still in a slight haze of sleep and cool, dewy morning walks. "Did you have any problems with last night's English homework?"

"Not at all," Laurie shrugged, adjusting her bag. She turned her head to look at the school, and then back at Yuki. "But English is my first language."

"That's true," Yuki agreed unnecessarily. Feeling slightly awkward, Yuki cleared his throat. "I didn't find it … very easy." he added, looking meaningfully at Laurie. He hoped that by some chance she would get what he was asking for.

Mentally, Yuki sighed. He couldn't believe he was too childish to even admit aloud that he had needed help. "Really?" Laurie asked unconcernedly. Yuki nodded once, swallowed, then opened his mouth to speak. "Well, I can show you if you want. I guess that's why you're at school so early? Get some tutoring?"

"H…hai." Yuki said after a long moment, looking closely at Laurie. Her eyes were cool to the point of vacancy, hidden partially by a few strands of chestnut coloured hair that hung in her face. Yuki wondered what had happened to her to cause her to have a look like that; it was so familiar, yet so strange to see on the face of another.

"Well," Laurie mused to herself, starting up the sidewalk, "I'm pretty sure the library is open by … it's almost seven, right?" she asked, looking in faint annoyance at her wristwatch. Yuki checked his own.

"Six forty-five." he confirmed, waiting for Laurie to fix her own, then following her inside the silent halls of Kaibara High.

"Y'know," Laurie started as they began to walk towards the library. Their shoes echoed softly of the polished tile floor, sounding eerie in the otherwise soundless corridor. Yuki turned his attention to her, making a soft sound to indicate that he was listening. "You don't hafta be embarrassed to ask for help. There are very little Americans who could diagram a sentence."

For a moment, Yuki mused over Laurie's slight accent, Kansai, he knew. He wondered how long she had been in Japan before she had moved to the area, or if she had learned Japanese in another country. Regardless of the fact that it had the odd twang, he found he rather liked the way she spoke. It was cute.

What the…? Yuki wondered to himself in surprise. Cute? Where did that come from?

"Is that so?"

"That's so."

"I didn't know that," Yuki said, biting his lower lip in thought. Although this piece of information did make him feel slightly better, he hoped that no one would ask him for help in the one subject he couldn't seem to grasp. "What year do American students learn to do this?"

"I learned in seventh grade," Laurie answered, pushing open the door to the library, then stepping back to allow Yuki to pass. Inside was even more eerily silent, and the rising sun was casting odd shapes around the vast room. "But I was one of the few that did. It's tough to learn."

"I would imagine so." Yuki agreed softly, sauntering over to one of the many library desks and taking a seat. He shrugged his bag off of his shoulders, then lied it on the table, his eyes following Laurie as she walked around the table to sit across from him. She was silent as she pulled her pencil and paper from her bag, then raised her eyes to Yuki.

"So," she said, her eyebrows rose questioningly. "What exactly are you having problems with?"

"All of it," Yuki admitted with a awkward half-smile. Laurie frowned, then tilted her head. "I know, but it's really confusing."

"You're not going to be able to finish your homework in time for class, even if you do understand it by then." Laurie pointed out, her lips tilting down in a frown. Yuki frowned as well.

"Ah…" he said, reaching up to scratch his head. She was right. "Damn." he muttered then, more to himself than anything.

"Look," Laurie said, raking a hand through her bangs. "If you understand this by the time class starts, I'll let you copy this once, and only this once."

"Copy?" Yuki asked, startled. His amethyst coloured eyes rose from where he was staring at the list of twenty sentences to diagram, to Laurie's face. "I can't copy."

"Of course you can," Laurie shrugged, tapping the table with her pencil. Yuki made to open his mouth, but Laurie kept talking. "Once won't kill you, Sohma-kun. However, a zero out of fifty can kill your grade."

Immediately, Yuki shut his mouth. She was right, of course. His grade, while definitely satisfactory, couldn't afford a zero on such a large assignment. No one's could.

The sun slowly rose as Laurie began to break down the diagramming of sentences to Yuki, having to put it three different ways before he could truly understand. Sometime during the morning, Laurie had migrated to sit next to him instead of across, saying that she was getting tired of leaning over the table. Yuki hoped, even though he denied it to himself, that it was just an excuse.

"So since this is a prepositional phrase, the preposition goes here…" Laurie was saying, her eyes heavy-lidded as she used her pencil to point to what she was explaining. Yuki's eyes moved to her face; her voice was tired sounding and a little bit higher than usual, and it looked as though she could barely keep her eyes open. Couldn't sleep, indeed, Yuki thought as he watched her lips move as they formed words. Without thinking, he reached out to brush back a few stray tendrils of hair that were falling over her shoulder. Laurie didn't acknowledge it, which relieved Yuki. "…Do you understand?"

"Yes." Yuki responded, picking up his pencil and moving to the eighth sentence. As Laurie had said, there was no way he was going to be able to finish the next twelve before second period.

"Tired…" Laurie muttered, setting down her pencil, then lying her head down on the desk. Yuki stifled a chuckle, setting down his own pencil.

"Are you feeling well?" he asked curiously, wondering if she were perhaps sick.

"Fantastic." Laurie responded. Yuki didn't miss the sarcastic note to her voice.

The doors to the library opened, and Yuki distinctly heard what was apparently the tail end of Kyou's grumbling. Not wanting to turn around – not wanting to face Tohru, who would inevitably be with Kyou – Yuki kept his eyes on Laurie, who didn't seem to notice that anyone had entered the library. "I'm just not used to the time," Laurie murmured, opening one cerulean eye to peer at Yuki. "I'll be okay after a few nights."

"I hope so," Yuki told her earnestly, before bracing himself for Tohru's cheerful greeting. When it didn't come, Yuki looked around, surprised. Kyou was sitting in the far corner of the library, scribbling madly on his paper. I suppose he didn't finish his homework, either, Yuki mused with lazy disinterest. Baka neko.

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That's the end of chapter four (apparently)! Sorry it took so long, life has been hectic with all the college preparation I'm doing. Please review, I really appreciate it! Suggestions are, of course, welcome – most of the time, I find a way to incorporate them into my story, so long as they're serious. n.n