DISCLAIMER: Fruits Basket is the property of Natsuki Takaya. I put together something because her fanatical ideas have infected me and inspired me to write! I do own Izumi and the Aoe family, though. And the stilly metal bug things that crawl all over the place…..
Sorry for the late update my lovely reviewers! I got a total of 20 – yes, 20! – reviews and I have to say I am quite pleased!
Aria's star – Haha, Reiji is – notably, of course – a male! Hmm, I think long-time torture and punishment is a much more painful consequence than death. Death is an escape, so she'd have it easy if she just died. On the other hand, having her alive but her location being unknown is a far worse punishment for both parties, no? Oh, you'll find out how he knows about everything soon enough! Spying was part of it though, yes….Did chapter 5 upset you that much? – Curious –
B.C. Company – Haha, I am happy to know that you're eager to read my story! Thanks for all your support so far – it really means a lot to me!
CaliCallMePrincess – Sorry for not updating fast enough! Lol, your email address didn't show up!
Chiratsuku – Haha, yes, Reiji is evil – I planned for him to be evil! Lol. My goal is to always update soon!
Dolphin77 – Haha, yes, Mitsuo and Mikuni are definitely competing against each other and crushing on Tohru! Ahh, you're the only person thus far who supports any relationship at all – perhaps I might make it a Yukiru fic just for you! There are so many Yukiru fics out there that I hope I can make mine different and unique…Thank you, I will do my best at band camp! I will always try to update when I can
Evilalternateendingstorywriter – Haha, okay!
EvilMicella – Gahhh! It's like my sensei visiting my humble home! –Makes you sit in a chair – Wow, my own revered author visiting my story! Eeek! I'm so happy! Wow, you're interested in my story! I'm so deeply honored! I don't really know, I have four couplings to choose from, maybe I should do a poll. There is only one person who wants a coupling at all and they want this to be a Yukiru fic. However, the coupling has yet to be decided, so I leave it in the hands of the reviewers! I can play with everything and twist this story however much I need to, so I have the power to decide who the champion of Tohru's heart is! Thank you so very, very much for reviewing!
Inuyasha-kagome-forever99 – Thank you!
Kimster44 – Wow, thanks for both of your reviews! I see you are craving for many more chapters….lol.
Kyo-obsessedru2 – Wow! She referred me to you! –Cries tears of joy- Haha, floccinaucinihilipilification is a neat word. You must teach me how to pronounce it! I can't even say it…so I've got difficulty spelling it, and I don't like to have difficulty spelling words when I am a SPELLING CHAMPION! Lol. Well, you find out what everyone thinks in this chapter! –Stares at you wile you bang your head on the screen- Chapter 6 is there….now…so you can come back to life….! Goodness! You BOTH want to KILL ME! NOOO! Wow, I'm so touched to be your favorite author and the author of your favorite story! –Hugs you-
Pie Luving Hobo – I think what you had tried to say got cut off or something, but ah well. Yes, smoke and flags!
Sana Chichi – Thanks! It's okay if you don't like Mitsuo or Mikuni, they're both still really nice! Perhaps you will like them better later!
Seni Kiffu – Thank you so much! You flatter me! I hope this chapter continues to interest you in my story!
Some one – Thanks! Welcome to the little crowd of my reviewers! I hope that you enjoy reading my story and I hope to see you in another review! Thanks for your support!
Togetheritsumo – Haha, Reiji is now despised by all of the fans of my story! I don't quite know how Akito can be convinced, but I have a very vague idea on how that can be arranged for….lol, it is most definitely going to be extremely hard…..
v.d. mouse – Thanks! -Cheers-
xXChocaholicXx – Haha, mind powers! Nails? NOOOO! Anything but nails! Lol, I guess I've got it much better off than you do, Jay-san! Do you want me to call you Jay-san or xXChocaholicXx? Thanks for reading all 5 chapters!
Just to let you guys know, I really appreciate those of you who send me fun reviews or actually even email me your input – I do use your ideas, I promise! Nothing is useless, so for those of you who email me or would like to but are afraid to: you make me really happy and help me out a great deal with chapter ideas, so NEVER hesitate! Oh yes, I corrected a typo or two in chapter 5, so if you get an alert thing for that, I apologize in advance! Now, onto the story – I tried to write a lot in compensation for not having time to write or update! Sorry once again for the very late update!
RECAP:
Akito felt the stare, even though he had his back turned to Hatori. "Why are you shooting daggers at me, Hatori? Why do you have to stare at me? Just do your work, it's not like I bothered you or anything!" Akito got upset with Hatori and stormed outside to go sunbathe on the porch in front of his room.
I wonder if he's really behind Tohru's kidnapping, Hatori wondered. It doesn't seem like he's trying to sneer at us and rub his victory in our face. He's not even acting unusually….oh well….
Missing Princess
Chapter 6: The Discussion Begins
Unfortunately, Shigure and Yuki and not had as good of a day as Tohru and Mikuni had. Yuki's heart was racing as he ran down the stairs. He was nervous and fearful – how would they get Akito, of all people, to put up a flag! "SHIGURE!"
Shigure was in the kitchen pouring himself a cup of coffee. "Ah, Yuki-kun! Ohaiyo!" He looked at the panicky expression on Yuki's face. Hmm, so the man did leave or take something, it seems. "Ne, Yuki, you look panicked. Sit down and talk to me." He sat down on a cushion and waited for Yuki to do the same.
Yuki sat down, and after a few moments of silence, he finally said, "Kyou needs to come down too. The whole family needs to be notified immediately! It's…..it's something about Honda-san!"
Kyou had just come down from the roof and he heard his name. "Are you talking about me!" he inquired angrily.
Shigure's eyes twinkled with a hidden laughter but he closed his eyes and pretended to look serious. "Kyou-kun, sit down; this is something serious. It has to deal with Tohru-kun."
Kyou was irritated as always, but it seemed important for him to hear news of Tohru, so he sat down at the table with Yuki and Shigure. Shigure looked at Yuki as a sign for him to inform them of what happened.
Yuki cleared his throat and took a deep breath. "I woke up this morning and saw this letter on my desk." Kyou snorted. Yuki ignored him and continued. "I noticed it and opened it. This envelope contains a letter from Tohru, 7 pictures of Tohru, and a letter from someone named…,"he checked the bottom of the letter, "Reiji Aoe." He showed the letter from Tohru to Shigure and Kyou first.
"We'll read her letter later, assuming she is safe and well," Shigure said quickly after scanning the first page of her letter. "Show us the pictures and the letter from this Reiji Aoe person." Yuki handed the pictures and the letter to Shigure. Our cute, delicate flower all dressed up!, he thought, smiling. He handed the pictures to Kyou and began reading Reiji's letter.
Kyou blushed when he saw the pictures. She looks beautiful….ARGH! WHAT AM I THINKING! He shook his head as if to rid his mind of the thought and handed the pictures back to Yuki, who carefully put them back in the envelope with Tohru's letter.
Shigure's eyes widened in shock as he continued to read the letter, and he nearly squashed the letter out of anger when he finished it but refrained from doing so. He mournfully handed the letter to Kyou and turned to Yuki. "So we need flags, yes? Well, we have at least 3 already, that's for sure." Kyou handed the letter to Yuki, his hand shaking.
"Why does the bad stuff always happen to her, damn it!" He slammed his fist on the table. He gave them both a look that said "you-have-my-flag" and stormed off to the roof to think about what he had just read.
Shigure shook his head. "We'll need to call Haa-san and tell him to bring everyone over. But more importantly, how does Reiji know where we live? How does he even know about the zodiac curse?"
Yuki could only wonder how Reiji knew. However, that was a matter for later. "We can ask him if he ever comes here. We might even find out in the next letter. But we only have one week, so right now, we need to worry about telling the rest of the family and figuring out how to convince Akito."
Shigure nodded and got up to call Hatori.
"Good morning, this is Dr. Hatori Sohma speaking," Hatori said, answering the phone in a monotone voice, as always.
"Haa-san!" Shigure yelped, a tone of urgency in his voice. "Gather the whole family and bring them over to my house! We need to have a discussion immediately! It's about Tohru-kun, we've got news about her! This is serious!"
Hatori would ask the questions when he got there. "Got it, see you soon." He hung up and quickly gathered the other 9 zodiac members, and they got into two cars and headed over to Shigure's house.
"Yay, we're going to Shii-chan's house!" Momiji squealed happily. Haru stared out of the window beside Momiji. He looked bored and was simply staring out into space.
Kagura, who was on Momiji's left, looked fairly pleased. "Kyouuuu-kun! Wait for me, my love! I'm coming!" She screamed it out even though Kyou was certainly not in the car or anywhere nearby, for that matter.
As if the members in the car already weren't troublesome enough, Ayame sat in the front seat next to Hatori, going on and on about his latest creation at his shop. Hatori let out an irritated sigh and wished Ayame would shut up and embrace the seriousness of the situation, though Ayame seemed to ignore Hatori and was seemingly oblivious to the fact that Tohru's life could be in danger.
Ritsu, Kisa, Hiro, Kureno, Rin were all cooperating nicely in the other car, except Ritsu kept apologizing for taking up car space and such. Hiro looked annoyed and Kisa was consoling Ritsu. Rin sat quietly in the front and Kureno was driving.
Within 15 minutes the whole family was gathered inside Shigure's living room, and they were sitting on the floor in a big circle. News that Tohru had given were explained to everyone. Her pictures were passed around, and many of the Sohmas tittered that Tohru looked pretty, though that was hardly important at the moment. Shigure handed the letter to Hatori while the pictures were being passed around. He and Kureno read it together. Hatori finished and shook his head in disgust while Kureno looked confused.
"Tohru Honda….does she have a friend named Arisa Uotani?" he asked. Arisa, his girlfriend, had mentioned some very nice girl who was her friend. If she's Arisa's friend, I'll vote to help her. She means a lot to me, and she's been sad since this girl was kidnapped, so anything to make her happy is fine by me.
Yuki nodded at his cousin, whom he had rarely seen. "Hai, Uotani-san is one of Tohru's two best friends. But how did you know?" Kureno blushed slightly and shook his head. Once Tohru's letter and the pictures were in the envelope, Hatori stood up.
He held Reiji's letter in his hand and read it aloud. When he finished, he said, "So, as you can see, Tohru's life is at stake. Should we forfeit the land he requests in exchange for her life? Or should we allow Tohru to helplessly be put into a date club where she will most certainly lose her chastity?"
"WE HAVE TO SAVE HER!" Momiji said energetically.
Kisa nodded. "We have to save Onee-san!" Everyone nodded in agreement.
"Alright then, everyone, we're going to vote unless anyone has any arguments they would like to state," Yuki said, stepping up next to Hatori.
Rin looked smug and raised her hand. Yuki raised an eyebrow at her. "What if I don't like her?"
"Then just think of it on a base of humane rights. Consider the act, not the life at stake," Hatori stated almost bitterly. Rin nodded.
"Any other objections?" Yuki asked quickly. Nobody had anything else to say. "Okay, if you agree to exchange the land for Tohru's life, raise your hand." Ayame, Haru, Hatori, Hiro, Kagura, Kisa, Momiji, Ritsu – and to much surprise, even Kureno and Rin –
raised their hands. Yuki gave Shigure a surprised look and nodded his head at everyone. "Okay then, that means that all 13 of us have voted to protect Tohru. We won't miss a bit of land, I'm sure."
"YAY! That means we can save Tohru now!" Momiji exclaimed.
"Not so fast, Momiji."
"Aww, Ha'ri, you stink! What is it now!"
"One of the flags that gets put up has to be Akito's."
"Yuki-kun and I can take care of ensuring that all the flags are made by tomorrow night," Shigure volunteered.
"I have plenty of cloth at the store, so I will make them!" Ayame offered. "Gure-san can help me make sure I get the colors and all right, ne, Gure-san?" Shigure nodded his head at Ayame.
"Well, the flags aren't a problem, then, but how to convince Akito?" Hatori pointed out. For a moment, the group sat in silence. "Unlike how we earlier suspected, it turns out Akito isn't behind this. Reiji Aoe is; it's a wonder Akito wasn't acting out of the ordinary."
Haru turned black from being so upset. He stood up angrily. "We'll just beat him up!"
"No way, they said they'd know if we forced Akito or just put up his flag!" Yuki countered.
Hiro made another suggestion. "Perhaps we should just lie to him."
Hatori sweat dropped. "Sorry Hiro, I don't think that will quite work, either."
"I can convince him!" Momiji said gleefully, hopping up and down excitedly.
"We may as well just present the problem to Akito first and see what he thinks. Then we can use our 7 days planning properly on how we can convince him," Shigure pointed out wittily.
Everyone nodded their heads in agreement. "Okay, I will explain the problem to Akito today and see what happens. You'll all know what he thinks tomorrow. Shigure and Yuki, I think you ought to accompany me."
Both Shigure and Yuki nodded their heads; as reluctant as he was to go see Akito, he realized that he would do anything to convince Akito to save Tohru. Even if it means I have to go see Akito, he thought confidently.
"The meeting is over. Everyone get back in the car." Hatori told Shigure he would pick both of them up around 5 PM, so they had an hour or so to get ready.
Immediately, Kagura ran over to Kyou. "Kyou-kun! I missed you!" Kagura said possessively to a half-choked Kyou. She had her arms around his neck and was unknowingly suffocating him.
"Get away from me you idiot!" Kyou gasped, struggling to pry himself free of her vicelike grip.
"Kyou-kun, I love you!"
"WELL I DON'T!" Kyou retorted angrily, prying her off of him. Kagura's eyes filled with tears.
"No way! You're going to marry me no matter what! YOU PROMISED!"
Kyou remembered how she had forced him into making that promise when they were younger. He said nothing and ran up to the roof, leaving everyone behind. Stupid dolt, kidnapping Tohru for land. I'm going to beat him in a battle so he'll regret kidnapping her, the stupid idiot! And stupid Kagura, coming after me like always! I don't like her! I can't believe she can't get that through her head! Kyou was relieved to know that there were already more than the 11 regular votes needed, but he knew that there was certainly no way that Akito would give his vote to save Tohru from Reiji. It would remain 13 against 1, regardless of any coercion.
Kagura filed into one of the cars sadly with everyone else. They drove home and Hatori went back to work, pretending that he had just been out for something for work. Luckily, it seemed that Akito hadn't noticed that they had even been gone.
Yuki and Shigure hurriedly changed into better clothes and tried to eat a little something before they left. They sat in silence for half an hour, waiting for Hatori to come pick them up.
All while the meeting had been going on, the small object that Izumi had hidden beneath Yuki's bed whirred to life. Izumi began controlling it from the Aoe mansion. The small thing looked like a metal bug. It slowly made its way into every room in the house, and in each room it paused underneath something – a table, a bed, a cabinet – anything. The bug even planted things on all of the shirts and pants it could find. Of course, this palm-Spy Bug had a camera on it, so Izumi could see what should have the strange smaller objects implanted on it. What the unsuspecting Sohmas didn't know is that a small video camera and a highly-sensitive microphone were being placed in every room of their house. They were water-proof and very difficult to break, so if clothes were washed or if the bugs were stepped on, they would not be broken and fail to serve their purpose. They looked like mini-bugs and were clear, so they were highly unnoticeable. Moreover, they were smaller than a dime when put together, so they were almost impossible to notice.
Of course, Akito was at the Sohma estate, so the Sohmas could talk in peace there, at least, right? Wrong. An identical palm-sized bug had been planted in the Sohma estate and it, too, took the chance to plant the cameras and microphones around the house while Akito was asleep. The house was vacant, and none of the servants took notice of the small thing creeping all around the house. Not only were there cameras everywhere, but now the Sohmas had no way of keeping ANYTHING private, let alone their discussions with Akito. Naturally, these bugs would prove very useful to Reiji and Izumi for spying and gathering more information on all of the Sohmas.
Reiji came into Izumi's room for a mere moment. "Have the mini-Spy Bugs been planted?"
"I just finished doing that. Neither place will hold any more secrets whatsoever."
"Excellent." Reiji flashed a smile at Izumi and casually left the room.
Now, the real battle began. The battle to coerce Akito and to somehow keep their actions a secret would have to be done skillfully and somewhere in private. Of course, the Sohmas would only guess that their homes were being watched – they'd never guess that even their clothes were a threat to their need for privacy. This is a battle between unsuspecting Sohmas and intelligent, unsuspecting greedy blackmailers. Who shall triumph?
Missing Princess – Chapter 6: The Discussion Begins / END
Wow, I have been SO obsessed with Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince lately! Goodness…anyways, I thought of making this chapter longer but I figured the dialogue was enough. Crummy chapter? Somewhat boring? Perhaps. But it's essential…The next chapter will feature Mitsuo's date with Tohru, and I promise, it'll be as funny as I can make it! There might be a bit of convincing Akii in it if it fits….maybe I should write a bunch of chapters at once….oh, but I'm too lazy….why can't it just be on the computer as I think it? XD Just so you know, I made up that cheesy Mini-Spy Bug thing. It's crappy, but what should I have called it? SpyBot 2000? Lol. Also, I don't know the name of the city that the Sohmas live in, so if anyone knows, PLEASE tell me! Well, this is the "dialogue" people wanted, so I hope this satisfies the need to know what happens until the next chapter…..THE DATE! Lol.
Oh yes, a poll! What pairing should I have for the overall story?
1. Yuki x Tohru
2. Kyou x Tohru
3. Mitsuo x Tohru
4. Mikuni x Tohru
Please vote!
Ja ne!
- ( Tohru-tan ) -