I love the Mabudachi Trio pairing; just sweet fluff and pointless rambles pulled into what I hope is an acceptable piece. We'll see at the end, huh?
Disclaimer: All Fruits Basket characters belong to Tayaka-sama. I take no ownership so no suing me!
Hatori x Ayame x Shigure Dedicated to my Gure and Aaya and all the Mabudachi Trios in the world!
Mabudachi Trio Special – My Snow Covered Dreams
It was snowing.
Hatori took a long drag from his cigarette before passing it off to Shigure. He took a drag, passed it back, and thus the cycle continued. The two were trying to get in as much smoking as they possibly could before Ayame arrived and the three of them took their vacation to the summer home. Why Ayame wanted to drag them to the summer home the day before Christmas the two had no idea—but when was it ever a good idea to question Ayame?
"Done all your Christmas shopping, Ha'ri?" Shigure exhaled a long plume of smoke and gave one of his wicked little smirks.
"I finished a while ago," Hatori eyed the dog suspiciously. "And you have put it off, haven't you?"
Shigure gave a low laugh and flashed a peace sign, "Of course!" Hatori sweatdropped. "Aha!"
"Mon chérie!" Ayame appeared out of nowhere, attacking Shigure with such force that the two went tumbling from the porch to the grass. "Are you ready? Let's go, let's go!"
Hatori stood and held out his hand in a limp sort of way to help them up. Ayame, in his beautiful black and white fur coat, eagerly accepted the help. His hair—braided but quickly coming undone—shone when the winter sun hit it at the right angle and his eyes were sparkling. His pale skin was flushed from a perfect sneak attack. He and Shigure exchanged their usual vows of love as Hatori gathered the luggage and dumped them into the trunk of the car.
"Yay! I'll drive!" Shigure made a wild dive for the door, only to have Hatori drag him back.
Two minutes later—with Shigure riding shotgun, crying—Hatori was driving smoothly down the road to their summer home. Ayame was stretched out in the back, unbraiding his long and beautiful hair. Hatori gave a sigh of contentment; he was always happy when they weren't in immediate danger, as when Shigure was driving. Him and his lead foot.
Ayame chatted to Shigure as they cruised down the highway, telling of his shop or about his latest plan to have Yuki submit to his undying love and devotion. Altogether too soon the two were plotting against the poor boy; he could only hope that the peril of living with Shigure had prepared the purple haired beauty for whatever was thrown at him.
Soon the highway was gone and the car was swallowed up by the plentiful trees that served as a fortress for their land. They rounded a corner and the glorious Sohma summer home came directly into view. The lake, partially hidden by more trees, was completely frozen. Hatori predicted a lot of cuts and bruises to be cured before the day ended. When the three entered, the house was completely spotless, as per usual. Nothing had changed since their last trip with Tohru. Speaking of which…
"Shigure, what did you do with Tohru and the boys?"
Shigure, on the couch, paused in the act of running his hand through Ayame's hair. "I left them at home, of course."
Ayame took Shigure's hand and led it the rest of the way through his silken hair. An evil glint was in his eyes and Hatori knew that the two had in some way plotted against the three helpless teenagers left alone in Shigure's home. Seeing as it was Christmas, he suspected mistletoe.
"I'll just hope that they can dodge whatever you've set up," Hatori sighed. "Meanwhile, what are we doing first?"
"Ice-skating!" Ayame promptly grabbed his coat and ran out the door, Shigure hot on his heels. Hatori rolled his eyes, tossed three pairs of skates over his shoulder, and followed.
The walk down to the lake was like a walk down memory lane as Hatori took the time to think about Kana. He knew it wasn't fair to Ayame and Shigure—he was supposed to be spending time with them—but it was hard not to think of her; not when the reminder was all around him. Snow. A small smile found its way onto his face as he was slowly, softly coated with small white flakes. So many memories he could cherish—even the bad ones. His mind was automatically sifting through them when a hand tugged at his sleeve.
"Ha'ri? Are you okay?"
Golden eyes, full of concern, locked with his own, drawing him back to reality.
"Hn. Yeah, I'm fine."
"But, Ha'ri…you were just about to fall down the hill!" Ayame's slender hand pointed and revealed to Hatori the truth. He had been pretty close to falling; his heart skipped a beat.
He took his hand and closed it around his own, leading Hatori to the lake. Shigure was twirling and swirling like his life depended on it, and Hatori had to admit that he was pretty good. He didn't fall once in his little routine, and he barely stumbled. Ayame obviously loved the act as he let go of Hatori's hand to clap enthusiastically. Hatori, however, frowned a bit at the loss of contact.
The three took a moment to admire the magnificence of the frozen over lake. Its surface was covered with a blanket of snow but from what Shigure had managed to kick away gave them a look at the beautiful, ice-blue color of the water. Shigure shivered,
"Thank god it's frozen, huh?"
With the skates they could have a decent time skating, and Shigure demanded a race. The lake was too large for them to have a race from one bank to the other so the three skated out a ways—with numerous trips and falls on the way—and marked out what they thought to be a fair distance. Then, after they skated back to the bank they laced up their skates and prepared to race.
"Ready…steady…," Shigure had declared himself the announcer. "GO!"
Ayame immediately took the lead, his gracefulness carrying him halfway to the turning point with ease. Hatori was not too far behind, as opposed to Shigure who was failing miserably. But the dog surprised them both as he put on an extra burst of speed and took first place, circling the turning point and shooting back towards the bank.
"Haha! Never trust a wri—"
He was cut off as the ice beneath him cracked and snapped under the weight.
Their race immediately took on a much darker outlook. Hatori immediately turned and skated to the broken ice—Shigure was trying to stay above the water—but was ultimately beaten by Ayame. He skated ahead and managed to grab Shigure's hand just before the dog went completely under. Down side? He too was yanked in.
Hatori's heart lurched as he dropped down near the pool. The ice burned as he slid as close towards the edge as the weak ice would allow him, scratching through his pants and cutting his skin. He plunged a hand in, and pulled it back up with a transformed Ayame clutched in his fist. He let Ayame wrap himself securely around his neck before reaching in both hands and pulling up a transformed Shigure.
Scooting backwards the Sohma spent a moment gasping for breath, surveying the scene beneath him. He was well qualified to work with emergencies such as these; he knew what needed to be done. Both of them needed the immediate warmth of a fire, especially Ayame. Kicking off his skates Hatori broke into a dead run the moment he reached the bank and headed back to the summer home.
-0-
A warm, majestic fire was soon cackling to life before the living room but it wasn't until 11 that night that the two regained consciousness. On the couch Shigure and Ayame—long since transformed back to normal—lay snuggled together, sharing each other's body heat. Of course, one could barely see them beneath all the covers they were buried under. Hatori entered the room with two more bundles of blankets in his arm, which he promptly tossed onto his cousins.
"Ha'ri…" Ayame let out a low moan, eyes flickering as they opened for a moment. Another low moan later, he was back asleep.
The dragon cocked his head and stared at his cousins. They were so close; he wouldn't be surprised if they ended up getting together. They were practically made for each other. A pang of guilt ran through him as he realized he had been ignoring them more than usual lately. It's the snow… The afore mentioned snow had ceased sometime between their race and Hatori dragging his cousins home.
Shigure had his arm wrapped around Ayame's waist, pulling him into a protective embrace. Ayame had responded by slinging his arms around Shigure's neck. I can't think of anything but her… The two looked so happy.
Kana…
There would never be room for him in that picture.
I don't deserve them. Ayame is so loving and Shigure… Well, I'm not sure how to describe Shigure but he's special too… A choked sob escaped him. Oh god, I'm so horrible to them. I'm pushing them away.
He desperately needed a smoke, but that would be a last resort. It wouldn't last too long anyways.
My wants, my dreams…they're so mangled. He buried his face in his hands. I've thought of her so much she's affecting my thoughts. My dreams. He gave a shaky laugh. My snow covered dreams.
He was shaking by the time he managed to pull himself from the emo thoughts that were attacking his brain. Shaking, he pulled out a cigarette from his breast pocket. Shaking, he lit it. He managed one long drag before a pale hand reached out and stole it from him, dousing it on the couch.
"Ha'ri, you know how I feel about that…" Ayame protested weakly.
The doctor was in. "How do you feel?"
"Like I was hit in the head with a truck," Shigure had been roused and sat up to answer the question. "Well, just my legs, actually. They're a bit sore."
Hatori nodded, "You cracked them against the ice when you fell. Same for you, Ayame."
The two moaned, hands grabbing for him and pulling him onto the couch with them. Legs and limbs intertwined, Hatori could only manage a muffled shout before the two smothered him. Shigure placed a soft kiss on his cheek while Ayame worked his way down his neck, planting kisses on his skin. He continued ever downward, unbuttoning his shirt as he did so. Hatori gasped as he was near slathered with affection, moaning as Ayame hit the sensitive parts of his skin; collarbone, neck, wrists…
"What do you want, Ha'ri?" Shigure whispered in his ear, lips brushing over the shell. "You can tell us."
Blood rushed to his cheeks as he heard himself blurt out the first answer that came to mind, "You. Both of you."
They smirked, as if they'd known it all along. As if he'd known it all along. The blush was slowly and steadily creeping its way across his face, painting it a dark shade of red.
"Vous nous aimez, Hatori?" Ayame questioned in perfect French. While Hatori knew not a stitch of the language, it didn't take an expert to figure out what he said.
"Yes." His voice was low.
Ayame's lips pulled into a breathtaking smile, "Parfait." He then busied himself again with Hatori's neck.
In the following minutes the cousins were undressed and enjoying each others company to the fullest. Ayame had—in the spirit of Christmas—gotten up and hung mistletoe above the three, giving them full rights to spend the next five minutes making out. Hatori smiled as Shigure broke away for breath and Ayame took his turn with him. He bit at Ayame's lower lip and the snake eagerly opened his mouth for Hatori, who wasted no time in slipping his tongue in to explore the cavern that was Ayame's mouth.
Ayame gave a muffled squeak and clutched Hatori's shoulders as he deepened the kiss, only to stop when Shigure bit down—hard—on Hatori's shoulder. The two looked at him questioningly.
"I felt left out," he elaborated with a shrug.
"You were breathing," Ayame pointed out, ruffling his hair. "But Ha'ri and I can both indulge you, can't we?"
His eyes gleamed, full of promise. But the chiming of the clock stopped them. One chime, four, eight, then twelve. Midnight it was, and officially Christmas. The chimes were soft, pleasant to hear even at so late a time. Hatori wrapped his arms around both his cousins and pulled them to his chest, muttering a soft 'Merry Christmas' to both of them.
"Tut, tut, Ha'ri, we haven't even given you your present yet!" Ayame scolded him as if he'd been caught raiding the cookie jars.
Shigure nodded, bounding over towards the tree that had been erected for them before their arrival. From beneath it he plucked a large silver package—had that been there before?—and clambered back under the warmth of the covers while thrusting the present to Hatori.
Hatori flipped his hair out of his eyes and began pulling back the paper, bit by bit. He always started by the tape—if not to annoy his cousins then out of habit—until the wrapping was undone and the present lay before him. At first he didn't know what to say; possibly because he was trying to figure out what the present was. It was a book. A large, leather-bound book which was rather thick and just as heavy.
"Do you like it?" the two pressed in on him with questioning eyes.
He lifted the cover to the front page, gasping at what he saw. An enlarged picture of himself, Ayame, and Shigure was staring up at him. He continued turning the pages, letting his fingers run over them and feel the creamy texture. A photo album of the three of them from their high school years…
"I love it," he said simply.
The two broke into instant chatter. Shigure told him, with a very happy face, that he had collected all the pictures from various places in the Sohma household and Ayame explained every little detail of every page for him. He had put the actual album together, with the help of his shop maid. By the time they were done, Hatori was about ready to cry.
"Nyah, Ha'ri, what's wrong?"
A solitary tear slid down his cheek. Shigure brushed it away gently, only to have it replaced with another. And another. And another. Hatori raised his hands to cover his face, somewhat ashamed at his tears. Soon his tears turned into laughter at the bewildered looks on Shigure's and Ayame's faces, and he gave a quick kiss to them both.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, nuzzling Shigure's neck and nipping at the flesh. "But you two looked so…"
He took a deep breath and turned serious, eyeing Shigure with a distrusting eye, "Now…what did you do to Tohru and the boys?"
"I didn't do anything—Ayame did it all. Aaya, what did you do?"
Ayame gave a secretive smile and patted Shigure on the head, "Non, if I told you that would completely ruin the surprise!"
"Ayame…" Hatori growled.
"Upon figuring out how to make our vacation so wonderful, I thought it would be cruel of me not to extend the same courtesy to my wonderful younger brother. I coaxed Shigure into taking the three out for ice-cream, at which point I snuck into the house and—for lack of better word—booby-trapped the place. I enlisted the help of Mine and some of her friends (aged 20 and 21)."
"Kyo was right. You do just answer the question for Hatori."
Ayame and Shigure argued on that point for a while longer, during which time Hatori shook himself free to change into some softer clothes and get ready for bed. When he returned they had fallen asleep, arms entwined and foreheads knocking together. He made himself comfortable on the floor.
"Ha'ri, what are you doing?" Shigure looked knowingly at him.
"There's no more room. We'll be squished."
In the end he ended up being dragged onto the couch with them again. Ayame poked him softly in the shoulder, "There's always room for you, Hatori. We love you."
And then they fell back asleep.
He stroked Ayame's fine hair, marveling at the likeness between his cousins that he knew existed but never really noticed. Shigure's author bluntness, Ayame's provoking presence. They were so different, yet so together at the same time. And they loved him. They loved him. The words sounded so weird as he thought of them; he tried saying them:
"They love me."
It brought about an emotion he rather liked, and he hoped it would stay there a while longer. A sudden wave of dizziness washed over him and he decided it would be no use thinking so much when he needed sleep. He snuggled deep down into the covers, pulled his cousins close, and concentrated on going to sleep. The closeness left him one coherent thought: snow melts into spring, always and forever. He sighed.
The snow on my dreams is melting.
Oh wow, that came out almost exactly the way I wanted it to. I might revise it later on but it really came out nice. –tugs your shirt– It came out nice! It came out nice! I was inspired to actually finish this by reading the latest manga. Has anyone else read it? It was really good! For those reading my other stories, expect updates really soon!
By the way—while Ayame may speak French, I do not. The translations of the above language are 'Do you love us' and 'perfect,' and I apologize for any mistakes. But for now…readers, you see that review button down at the bottom? Click, please, and leave me something to eat! The authoress is hungry!
- Calismo