Disclaimer: Iown neither Fruits Basket nor the Fruits Basket characters. They are and always have been the property of Natsuki Takaya.
However, I do own this plot and any original characters...so there!
Wow guys, I can't believe so many of you came back to read my second chapter. Thank you so much Black Winged Angel Sami, Dark Inu Fan, Slow Motion Runner, and Kyo-obsessedru2 and even more, thank you for reviewing once again.
Hi Na-chan, nice to know you are still out there.
And to my new reviewers, Squish, Lily J. Potter, and Sayuri, thank you ever so much.
Lily, hope you like this chapter, I am only obeying your command /giggles/.
Hey kyo, hope you haven't suffered another one of those attacks. Question...do you laugh melodically or maniacally?
Slow Mo...the thought of Tohru being strangled to death by a delirious bunny...not quite sure if it would be kind to end my story that way /rofl/
Dark have no fear, everyone will know where Tohru is soon enough. I will hit everybody over the head with a big hint stick in the next chapter.
So much for the niceties, now on to my new chapter.Please read, enjoy, and review if the spirit moves you to do so. Thanks.
Chapter Two Home Again
Momiji sat in the room of his old quarters packing his bags for the journey to America. He was scheduled to leave the next day. He slowly removed his clothes from his chests and packed them in the bag. As he reached the bottom drawer where he kept mementos of special times he paused to gaze at a set of blue ribbons. His mind flashed back seven years to the time that Tohru was yanked from their lives.
Yuki, Kyo and Momiji were in Tohru's room packing up the many things she had left behind. It seemed so impossible that she was gone and never coming back. So many of the things Shigure and the boys had bought for her remained. It was as if she had just stepped out for a while and would soon be home again. The three of them knew this was not going to happen and it was very hard to let go.
Kyo stared at a book on the martial arts. It had been a gift to Tohru during their junior year of high school. She had expressed an interest in learning about martial arts because that was what Kyo loved and she wanted to understand him better. "I'll keep this to remind me of her when I feel like I want to give up on life."
Yuki held a pair of yellow ribbons in his hands. He had given these to Tohru for White Day on that first trip to the Hot Springs that Momiji had arranged. His eyes blurred a bit and he clutched the ribbons to his heart. "I wish we had at least been able to say good bye." The ribbons were slipped into the sleeve of his shirt as he continued to pack Tohru's stuff.
Momiji watched the two boys, his heartbreak hidden behind the compassion in his brown eyes. He noticed the few items that were no longer there. Tohru had not forgotten the photo of her mother that had always rested on her desk. The simple dresses and other clothing she had bought for herself were no longer there. She had left only the fancier dresses Shigure and Ayame had given her. It appeared that she had taken no reminders of her time with the Sohmas. Momiji wondered about this. He found a set of blue ribbons. Tohru had almost always worn blue with her school uniform. There had just been a few times when she had worn the yellow ribbons. He decided that no one would miss one of several pair of blue ribbons and put them in his pocket.
He snapped back to reality when Haru pounded on his door. "Momiji, your dad wants to know how much longer you'll be. He wants you and I to go with him for a meal to celebrate your new job with his company."
"I'll just be a little longer, about an hour. Please let him know."
Momiji finished his packing and went downstairs to join his dad and Haru. It felt quite strange to realize that this time tomorrow he would be on an airliner bound for San Diego, California, USA.
He looked into his father's warm brown eyes as they climbed into his limo. The look there reminded him of their conversation two years ago when they first started planning his appointment to the San Diego office.
"Momiji, Papa loves you very much. You've grown into a fine young man and I am very proud of you. I have a job for you Momiji and I think it may also help you locate Tohru Honda again."
Momiji looked at his father in surprise. "Papa, what do you mean?"
"Momiji, you are always such a happy person and so full of energy. No one really sees the sadness in you because you hide it so well. I can see it though, because I am your father and I do love you. That sadness wasn't there after Miss Honda joined Shigure's household. She brought joy and laughter to all of you, to Kyo, to Yuki, to Shigure and to you Momiji. I know you cared about her greatly but the others did too. Momiji, you've always been a kind boy and you never told her how you felt did you?"
"I'm not sure what you are saying Papa."
"You were in love with Miss Honda, just like Kyo and Yuki, but none of you boys ever told her how you felt. Kyo and Yuki never told her because they were afraid of forcing her to choose between the two of them. You never told her because you felt that Kyo and Yuki needed her more. Do you understand now, Momiji? I have discovered that Miss Honda's flight took her to America, to Los Angeles International Airport. After that Tohru Honda disappeared from all records. I don't know what happened then, but this is the closest I've come to finding her."
"Why are you telling me this now?"
"Yuki and Kyo have moved on with their lives. They are doing their best to live happy because that was her request. Momiji, you haven't really moved on with your life. You still haven't found anyone that comes close to your memory of her. I am proposing that you take charge of my office in San Diego, California. You will have to serve an internship first, but afterwards, if you have proven yourself, I am going to put you in charge. This will take place after you graduate."
"While you are there Momiji, there is a chance that you will find Miss Honda or some clue to her location. I want you to find Miss Honda and discover if she is still the same person as the one you fell in love with. That is the only way you are going to move on with your life. She may be the same, or she may have changed beyond recognition. I don't know what you are going to find, but I feel this is a task you must complete."
"But papa, that is so far away. I won't be able to see you or Momma or Momo or my other dear friends. Are you sure this is the best thing for me?"
"I will watch over Momma and Momo. The others will still be here when you come home again. What do you say Momiji? Are you willing to take on this task?"
Momiji had given that conversation a lot of thought and he was ready for this new challenge. Finding Tohru would be a dream come true for him, even if she wasn't the same wide-eyed innocent girl he remembered. He had a feeling she had turned into a very good person. Of course she might be married or engaged or... But Papa was right. He needed to know before he could seriously get on with the rest of his life.