Sorry, sorry for not updating swiftly! I'm editing the entire fic from chapter 5 onward and a lot's been going on. Thank you for the reviews as always, I'm touched! I hope that posting this chapter now will make up for my laziness.

Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket.

Chapter Three: Colored My Heart

The space drowning in sunrays was an enchanting place.

If one were averse to the color pink, they would most likely react to the inhabited space with distaste. But others who favored this bubble-gum hue would have to agree to one thing: it was cute. Lacy rose and yellow-striped curtains devoured the metal rods they flowed from, gossamer thin. The fabric framed a large window and lightly kissed the commodious window ledge, where millions of stuffed animals with clumsy stitches running along their appendages rested. The pillow and comforter were the same lemon yellow and sunrise pink shade of the interior.

The use of this room right now wasn't for trivial daydreams, at least for the little one sitting at her desk. No, her room was an office of sorts, a place in which to conduct and complete gargantuan tasks.

Her mission: to make Shii-chan a card.

Her progress: a heinous block of creative freedom, making her goal impossible to achieve

"Argh!" Kagura shrieked. Both of her hands rushed to her head as she glared at the ceiling. "What should I drawww?"

It was her cousin's birthday, and he was turning 17 today! In another he'd be 18, making him legally an adult! He'd be able to drive if he had the attention span to decide to get his license, among other things. Shigure would have the freedom to do as he wished.

...Or not.

A man so vital he could be considered the patriarch of their clan wasn't lenient with his kin. He was a maelstrom of terrible ideas and emotions, choosing to inflict his anguish on others.

The assortment of scattered crayons on her desk turned blurry, as if they were gummibears melting in the hot sun. Kagura shoved her fists into her liquefied eyes, unsuccessfully attempting to prevent her tears from being realized. But her ocular precipitation found ways to slip through the crevices of her tightly closed fingers.

Kagura heard a sound, faint as it was. Perhaps her ears had suddenly inherited, for the time being, Shigure's adroit sense of hearing. Or maybe she had been listening for it, as her family waited for happiness, hoping but the emotion rarely coming. Whatever it was, the sound piqued her curiosity, and the girl jumped from her wooden chair and traversed the carpet to her sliding door.

It was pushed slowly aside, her face peeking into the dark corridor with interest. She finally gained the courage to walk towards the sound's source.

The screen door was transparent, only revealing the silhouette of the occupant. Kagura pulled it aside to venture into Shigure's domain.

Shigure was completely engrossed in his work. He didn't acknowledge the visitor. She smiled at his weak defense. This would be the best time to sneak up on him and get in a few birthday punches while she was at it.

"SHIIIII-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!" As she catapulted herself into ambush mode, he pushed the object in his lap to the floor and caught Kagura.

"Got you, you little imp!" he laughed, holding her in the air with one hand and awkwardly trying to tickle her with another. Kagura levitated above him, all smiles as she began punching him.

"A-hahahahahahahaha--- Kagu-chan, you're hurting me," he said, laughing when she started and complaining when her assault was too rough for his tastes.

"Sorry." She jumped out of his arms and dove for the drawing pad under the bed.

"Ah... Kagu-chan, that's--"

She grinned mischievously up at him. "A dirty picture you were drawing, right? C'mon, you can admit it. I won't tell."

"Kagura..." He used a worried tone.

"Nope. Too late." She eluded his weak efforts of regaining what he didn't want to be seen. The clean white pages rustled beneath her fingers.

"You shouldn't--"

Surprise made her lips form an "O". She looked at Shigure with extreme interest. "What's this?"

She was greeted with a few penciled lines, and clumsy lines at that. Under the procession was the outline of a face, vague pencil circles for eyes, and a mass of long dark hair. It showed some skill, only two levels above primitive. With time and practice, his technique could aspire to an artist's, but for now, it was a work in progress.

The drawing wasn't terrible, so even she could recognize the subject. "That's me!"

Shigure snatched it from her hands, then, sensing the error of his actions, quickly apologized. "Sorry. I... It's just doodling. I was bored." He kept his eyes away from her face. "I know it isn't good. It sucks, I know. I..."

Surprise.

He wasn't acting in his usual bombardment of confidence. Was there something wrong? His apologetic manner reminded her of a tranquil version of... Ritsu!

She giggled. "I like it. It's...lovely! It looks just like me! In fact, I wanna...color it in!" She clapped once with pleasure, happiness outlining her mouth.

"But it isn't fin--"

But the child already was gone. When she returned, she provided herself with a box of crayons.

"Hm, how should I color this? Red! I've always red hair! When I get older, I'll color it red, like... fire!" The slight wrinkles in the paper trembled under the velocity of her feverishly coloring hand. Fire-engine red messily filled in the space indicating her hair. "And green. Green eyes." Kagura chuckled when she colored in the penciled circles. "I look like a witch! Oh, I don't have a mouth." A pink crayoned semi-circle was selected to represent her mouth. "Perfect!"

Within this exchange between her and the air, Shigure slowly approached her and sat down. He seized her hand, which was involved in coloring in her face.

Kagura looked up, contemplating whether to slap him for interrupting.

"I'm feeling left out!" he complained with a slightly protruding lip. "Draw me."

Well, it was his birthday. She'd let this one go. And anyway, it was a relief to see him act in his usual role.

Kagura nodded and set off on her task. A large oval comprised of shoulder length black hair made up his head. A brown crayon filled in large dots for eyes and a pink curved line made his mouth exist.

"Hey, hey! My head isn't that big!"

"Hey, hey! I'm the artist" She threw a crayon at his head. "Don't complain!"

"Okay, okay! Sorry, sorry!"

With an impish grin, Kagura selected a blue crayon. In large messy kanji, she wrote, "Shigure Big Head."

"Hey, hey! Don't be so cruel!" A twinkle ignited in his eyes.

"Pervert Shigure Big Head," existed in yellow under the former.

"Not a pervert. Just extra attentive."

"Especially to high school girls. It's fine now, but when you get older, you'd better be careful." In green: "Stop going for the young ones."

Their laughter echoed in the room.

Nighttime settled over the Sohma household like a blanket over a baby already in dreamland. Cake time and the festivities came and went. Another year that he was alive passed.

Kagura was glad he was alive. Seeing the change he had undergone when she saw the picture made her appreciate him. If he weren't the same person he was now... It might be harder to love him. But how could he be anyone else? He was Shii-chan! A funny person... A hentai person... An overall good person...

He had to know that.

All throughout the party, she had chastised herself for not having enough courage to ask her mom for money to buy him a decent gift. Her mother saw him as nothing but a trouble-making pervert and wasn't shy about expressing her disapproval of him.

But he was so much more than that!

He had to know that.

She had to let him know that.

"A letter doesn't count as a gift," she said, entering his bedroom. "But it's better than nothing."

Dear Shigure-kun,

Happy Birthday! You're another year older, another year wiser... Or not. Wise I mean.

Kidding! I'm always kidding! But I have to be serious for a minute. I hope you don't mind, and you'd better not mind, because here I go!

First of all, your picture of me was good, so shut up. You're really talented. Maybe you should be an artist!

Or a writer. Don't act like you don't write hentai stories about the girls you see on a daily basis.

Well, I know people see you as a carefree pervert and that only, but I...know you're so much more than that.

You're kind. Remember when you got me an ice cream cone when I was sick? Mom didn't want me to eat it and told me to throw it out, but I didn't and snuck in bites when she wasn't looking because you got it for me.

You know what you remind me of? A yellow crayon. My heart was blank, just endless white until you came along and colored it in. You colored my heart in…

With your smiles...

With your laughter...

With your helpful and not so helpful advice...

What I'm trying to say is...that I love you. Of course I do! You're so easy to love!

Don't ever change (like you were planning to..)! I love you just the way you are. You wouldn't be you if you changed! Like if you acted like Ha'ri! That's a scary thought...

Just kidding.

But don't tell him I said that...

Again, happy birthday. I love you. Thank you so much for supporting me and for being...

Shii-chan!

Love,

Kagu-chan