Summary: Akemi Kamikara knew nothing of her family, and their ties to the Sohmas,along with the secret. As harsh feelings brew between the two families, what will happen when Akemi begins to befriend her enemies, and feel emotions forbidden from the start? A bit romeo/julietish, if you think about it. But hey, arn't all forbidden love stories?
Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket. I wish I did. But I own Akemi Kamikara, and most of the rest of their family. Paris Rose DOES own Amaya. Which is weird. But other than that, I own their parents, their grandfather, and all the other Kamikaras that come into the picture besides that.
My note: This is my first Fruits Basket fic. Please be nice to me, I'm no expert! The main characters don't appear much in this first chapter, but they will for a lot of it, I guarantee. Oh, and although most of the manga hasn't come out in the US, I'm including all the characters in it, even though they don't appear in the Anime. Like Rin. Oh, and if you're intrigued, good. You'll have to see for yourself which Sohma Akemi ends up liking...laughs Maniacally So, now that I've told you all that, I hope you enjoy it.
Key:
'Thoughts. Because my formatting sucks'
Between scenes or space in time
#####FLASHBACK#####
Ok, got it? Start Reading:
Chapter 1: The Kamikara Estate
"Goodbye Home," Akemi whispered softly. I was time to leave. She was still in denial, after all, this was the place she had grown up. Every precious memory she had took place in this very house. Now she had to leave it all behind, to go to an unfamiliar home. She held the last of her belongings in her backpack, which hung loosely on her shoulders. Sighing, she left her bedroom and went outside, where her family was waiting.
"Akemi!" A voice called. She turned to see her sister standing there, looking happy.
"What?" She replied dully. She was in no mood to make conversation. "Mom says put your stuff in the car," Amaya said, pointing. Akemi nodded nonchalantly and followed the directions. She sighed again, the umpteenth time that morning.
Akemi Kamikara was miserable. Since the previous summer, there had been talk of moving, quiet whispers between her parents past bedtime. But she had never thought her grandfathers ill health could change her life.
###FLASHBACK###
"Your grandfather is very sick, Akemi. We can't stay here and live our life's ignoring it when he needs our help. Would you be that cruel to him?" Her father asked her.
"But-"
"No. You can't get out of this the way you can other things. You need to be a compassionate person and rise above your own selfishness," Her father spoke lightly, afraid to hurt his daughter with his words.
"And besides, you'll get to go to a Co-ed School. Haven't you always wanted that?" Her mother had always known the way to bribe her. Akemi and her sister had gone to an all girls school since they were young. "I can't leave this home," She muttered, barely above a whisper. But her mother heard her. She squeezed her shoulders kindly. "Its for the best."
###End Flashback###
That had been a month ago. Since then, her things had all been packed and taken to her grandfather's house. Although they were moving, her father had assured her that they would still keep the house, to use for vacations and such. Only a few things remained in her room, which she would have when she visited a while later.
"Come on Akemi, we need to get their by late afternoon!" She put her things in the trunk of the car and shut the door. She looked at her parents eagerly and asked, "May I please go to the shine one last time before we go?" Her mother sighed, but her father smiled. "Yes, but hurry. We need to get going."
She quickly made her way into the backyard, where their shrine was located. It was basically a small pagoda, with a roof and a small space to kneel in prayer. The family name, Kamikara was engraved by the alter, a small stone of marble. Usually Akemi gave a small gift, a flower or poem, giving thanks to god, as well as her ancestors. But today there was no time. Yet, she felt compelled to give something. Taking off her silver ring, she placed it on the alter and kissed it. "I shall miss you," She said, bowing in silent prayer.
Though it was small, dark and slightly moldy, it was Akemi's favorite place in the world. A place where her thoughts could be pondered without interruption. It hurt her inside to know that soon, she would be praying someplace else, probably a bigger and less private place. "Goodbye." She said, standing up and walking away.
"Akemi, come on!" Amaya urged. Her bright green eyes shined with excitement. Akemi couldn't understand how her older sister could be so excited. "Coming," She answered monotonously. Amaya was 2 years older than her, and in her final year of high school. Yet, she didn't quite act like an 18 year old. She ruffled Akemi's mahogany colored hair and smiled.
"Don't worry, it's gonna be great. You'll get along at school just fine!" She smiled happily, bubbling with joy. "Easy for you to say," Akemi commented. Amaya blinked. "Meaning?" She asked, tilting her head slightly. Akemi shrugged. "I dunno. You're almost in college, that's all." Amaya poked her chest with her finger. "Not yet. We've still got another few months." Akemi rolled her eyes. "Same difference."
Amaya hastily changed the subject. "But hey, we got to go to school with boys this year!" She brightened at these words, if it was possible. Akemi knew that it had always been her sisters desire. Other than dating them, Amaya had always wanted to 'beat their Asses into the ground at track' as she had said. Akemi shrugged again. She could care less what her sister thought. Amaya nudged her and said grinning, "Maybe you can actually get a boyfriend, Akemi."
Akemi blushed slightly at her sister's words, but frowned at her, looking angry. Amaya cowered instantly. "I didn't mean it! Don't hurt me." Akemi simply regained her cool composure and walked passed her sister. "Grow up, Amaya." She said curtly. Amaya rolled her eyes and replied with, "Whatever."
Their parents had been right: It was indeed a long trip. Unfortunately, Akemi had a hard time staying awake, and did what she could to keep entertained. She played I-Spy, Mad Libs and other Car Games, but it was no use. Within an hour, she was fast asleep, head resting against Amaya's shoulder.
"Mom, can I move Akemi's head off of my shoulder?" She asked annoyed. Her mother turned around from the front passenger seat. "Oh, Amaya honey, don't wake her up." "But mom," Amaya complained, "She's DROOLING on my shirt!!!" Her mother gave her a pained look and handed her a pillow. Amaya placed it between her shoulder and her sister's head, preventing her from drooling on her any further. But this unfortunately couldn't drown out her constant babble. "Pirates," Akemi mumbled, "They're eating grilled cheese sandwiches with peanut butter." Amaya sighed: This really was going to be a long trip.
The mid-afternoon sun shown down brightly on Yuki's head. He jerked it upward, looking at the large moving van that passed them by.
"Looks like we're getting new neighbors," He said softly. Tohru looked at the moving van, then to him. A quizzical look spread across her face.
"You mean Shigure sold some of your land?"
Yuki shook his head. "No, not hour neighbors in particular. Somebody's neighbors. I was just speaking generally." Tohru's eyes lit up. "How exciting! I hope whoever it is has kids our age! Then they could go to our school and we could be friends! Oh, but it would be great if they were younger, too! Then I could baby-sit them! I've never had a sibling, and I've always liked kids, so babysitting would be just great-" She rambled excitingly until she was interrupted.
"Boy you talk a lot! You've gotta learn to shut that mouth once in a while," Kyo said, in his usual grumpy voice. Yuki narrowed his eyes and replied coldly, "Do not speak to Miss Honda in such a manner." Kyo looked back at him, annoyed. "Oh shut up you damn rat! Tohru knows I didn't mean anything by it, didn't you Tohru?"
They both looked at her, wanting her to choose sides. What did she do to deserve this?! "Guys, we should probably get home. Shigure will get worried if we stall to much," She said, uneasily. But neither listened. They were fighting again. "I'll beat you this time Rat Boy!" Kyo spat, getting into a fighting stance. "Hmm...it's as if I've heard this before, but where, and when? Could I be experiencing Déjà vu?" Yuki said, sarcasm etched in his voice.
"Can it. It's time for me to kick your ass!" Kyo launched at him, sending out a series of powerful blows. Yuki gracefully dodged each one as if it were child's play (A/N: But hey, then again, it pretty much is to Yuki) Tohru bit her lip as she watched. Would they ever tire of it? Spotting an opening, Yuki kicked Kyo hard in the stomach, sending him doubling backwards. He landed on the ground with a fairly loud thud.
"Well, looks like you did no such kicking," Yuki said, straightening himself. He turned to Tohru and smiled. "Shall we go?" She looked at him, then at Kyo. "We should wait for Kyo to get up," She said, jerking her head towards him. "Yes, perhaps we should," He answered dryly.
Akemi rubbed her eyes and looked out the window. The car had come to a definite stop, right inside the gates of god knows where. The scenery was quite different than what she was used to back home: The town was quite cute, with many houses, all identical in shape, but not in size. She didn't notice shops at all, but she assumed it was because of the fairly large city that loomed nearby. "What's this town called again?" She asked yawning. The rest of her family sighed. "Akemi," her father said, "This is grandfathers house. This is the one and only Kamikara estate."
"Holy Shit!" She said, not believing it. She was so amazed that she had let herself slip an uncommon word into her vocabulary. In other words, she swore.
"Amaya watch you language," Her mother said sharply.
"It wasn't me, it was Akemi!" Amaya protested.
The car was silent for a minute. Then- "Oh. Akemi then."
Amaya scowled and stuck her tongue out at her younger sister. Why did she always have to get blamed?
"Well, come on girls, don't just stand there! Lets get going inside. As you can see, the main house is right in front of us. That's where we'll be staying. Grandfather stays there as well, so you'll need to be on your best behavior when he's around. Speaking of which, he's probably excited to see you. Come, let us go." Their father said, motioning for them to come inside.
Akemi yawned and turned to Amaya. "When did I fall asleep?" She asked. Amaya stared at her, unblinking.
"Within an hour."
"Figures. I can't stay asleep the whole car ride to save my life."
"Come on girls!" Their father called again. They turned to their father, who looked eager for them to come in.
"Coming!" Amaya called back. "Come on," She said, dragging Akemi by the arm. "But, our stuff-" She began, but Amaya waved her hand and replied, "Nah, we'll get it later. Relax. We've gotta see grandfather now."
They walked slowly up the pathway to the main house, which looked like a mansion in its own. It had to have at least two stories, besides the fact of being about 4 times the size of their house.
Akemi couldn't help but gasp as she looked around inside. Many paintings, sculptures and other pieces of art hung on the wall or sat on tables. The house was well furnished to say the least. Many of the rooms seemed to be bedrooms or guestrooms, the rest seemed to be mainly used for entertainment. Yet, despise its size, it seemed quite empty and small on the inside. It seemed especially so without anyone in sight.
The hallways seemed to continue forever, until her father stopped, which caused Akemi to bump into Amaya. "Watch it," Amaya said, jokingly. Akemi scrunched up her face and stuck out her tongue in reply. Amaya did the same. "Girls," Their father warned. "Be on your best behavior." The two immediately straightened up and followed these orders. He did the same, then knocked on the door in front of him. A faint 'come in' emitted from the other side. He opened the door and motioned for his daughters to follow.
The room was quite small compared to the others. It seemed drab compared to the many furnished places throughout the rest of the house. Sitting in a large chair sat a fragile old man. He gripped the arms tightly, as if he would float away if he didn't. His shriveled mouth seemed to frown. But instead, he crinkled the ends of it, smiling.
"Welcome Amaya and Akemi, my granddaughters. I apologize for not visiting in all these long years. But My, how you've both grown." His smile, though kind, looked awkward planted on his face, as if it didn't belong. It was almost fake. Akemi couldn't remember ever seeing her grandfather, but she was sure he probably was their when she was much younger. She wondered why she hadn't been to, or even heard of this estate before. A secret kept from them, perhaps?
"It's very nice to be here Grandfather," Amaya said polity, bowing. She said this softly and casually, looking at Akemi, waiting for her to say something as well. Too scared to say anything, she simply nodded and bowed. She felt out of place and strange in this room. "I'm sure you will enjoy living here with me. You may choose any room you'd like in the main house. The other houses belong to your other relatives, and I'm afraid we would have to build another house somewhere on this estate in order for you to live alone. So your parents agreed for you all to stay in the main house. I hope you will find it suitable."
'Suitable? This is a palace! Is he insane?' Akemi thought, staring at him wide eyed. "I'm sure everything will be wonderful father," their father said, nodding. "Very well. You should go see to your things. I'm sure you have much unpacking to do." Their grandfather said. They nodded in reply and left the room. Once they were outside of it, Akemi breathed a sigh of relief. "That was really scary," she whispered to Amaya. She shrugged. "Maybe to you. But you've never been a people person, have you?" She shrugged again. "You gotta learn how to be more outgoing. How are you going to make friends tomorrow?" She asked skeptically. Akemi ignored her and asked her father, "Dad, can I look around for a room?" He nodded happily. "Go on ahead."
"Come on Amaya, lets go looking." She pulled her sister by her sleeve. They looked around, inspecting each room. They finally decided on identical rooms side by side. A fairly large bathroom jointed the two rooms together. It came completed with a bathtub/shower, two sinks, two mirrors, a toilet and lots of extra space. This was a bonus to the fact that the rooms had walk in closets and fairly large windows.
"I like it. Very conventional," Akemi said approvingly. Amaya nodded, grinning. "Sorta empty now, but wait till I get my stuff in here. It could definitely use some remodeling." Her grin grew as she said brightly, "Finally, my own room! No offense to you Akemi, but it's cool not to have to share the space. My instruments won't have to go in the closet anymore!"
"Girls, come outside and get your stuff! The moving van's here!" Their mother called from outside. Akemi went to the window and opened it. "We'll be right down," She called. Their bedrooms were on the second floor, which made it easy to look out on the grounds. "Come on, we should get down there," Amaya said, turning towards the door, then stopping. "Um, Akemi?" She asked. "Hmm? What?" Akemi said, looking at her, closing the window. "I don't remember the way to the front door. Could you lead the way?" She asked sheepishly.
Akemi rolled her eyes. Here was her sister, almost in college, and she couldn't find her way down stairs and to the front door. How would she be able to make it around an entire campus?! "I'll show you," She said sighing. Akemi had remembered every turn they took. They never once got lost. That was mostly because of Akemi's photographic memory, plus their parents' constant nagging, which led them their anyway.
"Thank god," Amaya said gratefully, grabbing some of her stuff. "Good thing you never get lost, Akemi. Otherwise, we'd be screwed." A small smirk crept over the old man's face as his family left the room. They were finally here, and at last, the legend could come true. "Soon...the Sohmas will get what they deserve." Lola: Well, that took me FOREVER to get up. I'm slow, I know.
Paris: Feh, got that right. Loser.
Lola: SHUT UP!!!!!!!! Ahem, anyway, the next chapter will have more of Tohru, Kyo, Yuki and Shigure, I promise. This is the basic intro to Akemi, Amaya and their family.
Paris: Oh, by the way, I own Amaya. Booyah.
Lola: Yea. She does. But anyway, please review. This is my first Fruits Basket Fic, and I need feedback. Thanks!
