Snail's Pace

Thus by chance should I stumble upon a way to find you

Chapter Six

Tohru should have seen it coming. It was as obvious as the nose on her face; yet she still couldn't understand how it had kept itself hidden for so long. It was something that would change the way she looked at both Kyou and Yuki Sohma; and it would change the way she reacted to the various situations she was being thrown into. She glanced at Kyou as he panicked and fumed in the backseat of the cab; whining and cursing over the slow traffic while muttering something about snails. His hair was a chaotic mess after being awoken that morning. They had been late once again.

Tohru had developed feelings for Kyou.

How did it happen? She thought to herself. Perhaps previous events, and the awkward kindness he had given her, contributed to this somehow. They were only small feelings; nothing too threatening; but she felt guilty because she had been so dedicated and in love with Yuki Sohma. What would Yuki say if she told him she had found Kyou a lovely and wonderful person? Tohru shook her head; that's all Kyou was – a wonderful person. She was obviously confusing her feelings with the friendship she was beginning to feel. Yes, that has to be it. She thought.

She remembered back to that morning when she'd awoken in the warm, creamy bed sheets of the suite and had slid back the doors to see Kyou curled up like a kitten on the sofa. He looked so peaceful and adorable sleeping there; someone like an angel. She'd felt a small stab of electricity shoot through her system when he groggily opened his eyes to find her staring at him. It had been the most curious feeling.

'Oh come on already! We're running late!' Kyou screeched, throwing his head out the cab window and screaming down the highway.

They both collapsed into their seats after a heavy run through the airport. Kyou, with his cat-like agility, had almost left Tohru in his own trail of dust. He'd eventually grabbed her arm to pull her the rest of the way. It had proven a worthy idea; since they had made the final boarding call; and the last flight to New York for two days. He almost looked as though he'd been suffering the entire time.

'Finally,' he said out loud, 'I made it to Australia and back again without receiving a message from Kagura!' He surreptitiously made sure his mobile was turned off; then leaned back into his comfortable chair. Tohru smiled at him and did the same. They would be in New York in no time.

'You know, Kyou,' Tohru began, 'I really enjoyed my time with you. It was a lot of fun and I hope that we can stay friends long after I've met up with Yuki Sohma. Is that all right with you?'

Kyou ruffled her hair playfully and put a slender finger on the tip of her nose, which felt familiar to Tohru 'you know that I would have it no other way.'

He paused. Then blushed.

'And I don't mean that in a bad way! It's just – you're a really nice person, you know… I had a lot of fun as well, but… ehe…' his voice trailed away and he crossed his arms. Tohru grinned at him as he diverted his attention to the clouds outside the window. He seemed impatient; as was Tohru. She didn't realize that the flight would take so long. She'd expected it to go by quickly just as the last one had. A movie was played, and they watched it in silence, but after that they were sent back into their boredom. Tohru's head began to tilt to one side, the lack of entertainment was making her tired and she could hardly keep her eyes open.

Kyou, becoming annoyed with her constant swaying, took his hand and placed it on her forehead, then directed her head to his shoulder and resumed looking out the window.

Tohru accepted the offer and closed her eyes. 'Kyou, tell me about the zodiac in your family.'

Kyou was silent for a moment; but then she felt the tension in his shoulders release and he began to talk smoothly, unlike his usual bantering and screaming. He talked about Sohma house in Japan; where the Head of House Akito lived, with a doctor Hatori who transformed into a sea horse. Kyou himself lived in New York with a novelist called Shigure who was a Dog zodiac; a cheeky one at that, and Yuki Sohma was the rat.

Tohru found herself listening intently and wishing she wasn't so tired as Kyou talked further about himself and his own martial arts training in the mountains. Slowly her limbs became numb and she felt herself slip into an unconscious sleep; thoroughly content with her surroundings. She dreamed of the zodiac; and the banquet of the animals.

'Tohru… Tohru wake up,' Kyou was saying; but it was the loud screech and shudder of the plane as it landed that truly knocked her senses. She sat to full attention, alarmed by the noise; but rested back in her chair when she remembered where she was; sighing and yawning at the disturbance. Kyou was looking out the window once more and one of his hands was massaging the shoulder where Tohru had been resting.

'I'm sorry,' Tohru said dully since she was still half asleep, 'you should have woken me up if your shoulder was beginning to ache.' Kyou didn't respond to her comment; and Tohru thought nothing of it. It was all right for Kyou to be silent – it was simply his personality.

'KYOU!'

'What? Kagura! She's here!'

'Kyou, my darling! I've been waiting for you! Yuki said you'd gone to Australia so I stayed at Shigure's until you came back! Aren't you glad I came to pick you up from the airport?'

'Kagura!'

'I'm so happy you've finally returned, my love! Let's go home!' Kagura squeezed Kyou tight to her body; enjoying his new presence and ignoring the company he now had. She seemed ignorant to the fretful and panicked cries erupting from her beloved and continued to shower him with love and praise even though it was causing them a distressing scene.

Tohru found herself standing negatively to the side; forgotten in this brief moment, and wondering why she felt so jealous of the fact that Kagura was able to embrace Kyou and she could not. The orange haired boy eventually broke free from the grip and charged towards Tohru, looking for someone to hide behind. Tohru suddenly found herself in Kagura's way; whose main objective was to get closer to Kyou; and frankly, she was very intimidating.

'Oh hello,' she said softly, as though suddenly withdrawn and unaccustomed to greeting people comfortably. 'Who are you?'

'She's Tohru Honda, Yuki's girlfriend!' Kyou snapped at her, leaning wide around Tohru but retreating as Kagura outstretched an arm to catch him. Kagura's face was beaming with joy.

'Yuki's girlfriend? I didn't know that Yuki had a girlfriend! This is wonderful. Are you two going to get married, me and Kyou are going to get married one day!'

'No we are not!' Kyou shrieked, 'Now let's get out of here before you say and do stuff we'll all regret!' Kyou started pacing towards the luggage collection racks while Kagura and Tohru struggled to keep up with him. Tohru couldn't keep her eyes off Kagura; she was such a sweet girl and yet oppressively violent at the same time. She understood that Kagura was in love with Kyou though; and promised to herself and Kagura silently, that she would do nothing to upset the zodiac boar.

Broken hearts were the worst kind of pain.

I'm so sorry. It's been ages since I updated. I'm terrible. I'm so cruel. It's because I'm in Yr 12 and ever since starting, all i've had is English Essay, English Individual Study, English Critical Reading, English Comparative, English, English, English... so I'm just constantly writing. It's terrible! Curses for being in the bright class. Darn!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the upcoming chapters. I'm about to go have a shower, then I'll come back and start the next chappy feeling all alive and what not again. Big Kisses to you readers! I always enjoy opening up my mail to see 'Review Alert' staring back at me. Plus it makes me remember to update! Lol.