Tohru's Demons
Chapter Nineteen: The Meeting Of Millie
Momiji closed his door with a sigh after wishing Tohru goodnight, grateful to hear Kyo and Yuki's squabbling recede down the hall. Today had been a long and tiring day, not to mention that he was sore from head to toe from riding all morning and the majority of the afternoon. All he wanted now was fall into his bed and go to sleep. Momiji opened the dresser Tohru had informed him was in the room, and after rooting around, he found suitable nightclothes: an overlarge shirt that draped past his kneecaps. Slowly he undressed, pulled on the shirt, and turned around to come face to face with the biggest pair of green eyes he had ever seen.
He leapt back with a yelp and fell over the edge of the rug to land flat on his bum.
"Hello," said the face that belonged to those eyes. The person, a girl, was staring at him curiously over the back of a recliner that had been facing the fireplace, so when he had entered he had not even known she was there as she would have been completely concealed if she had been sitting.
Her eyes seemed to dominate her face, and were the most striking shade of green, but it was not her eyes that drew his attention. It was her ears. Nestled within her short locks the lightest shade of blonde; her ears were covered in light brown fur with pink insides. They extended from the sides of her head, wider at the base and tapering down at the tips, and resembled something close to lamb ears.
She's a demon... Momiji thought with an uneasy jolt, but for some reason, he did not see her as a demon. He saw her as a girl, perhaps a year or two younger than he was.
"What are you doing on the floor?" asked the girl in amusement. Momiji could only stare at her in shock for a moment before he scrambled to his feet bashfully.
"Nothing, I just fell over," he replied.
"What did you fall over for?" the girl laughed.
"I didn't do it on purpose..."
"What's your name?" The girl asked, rolling over to stare at him upside down.
"Oh, I'm Momiji Sohma," he replied with another smile. Suddenly, to his surprise, the girl's face lit up ecstatically.
"Sohma?! Are you really? Millie's wanted to meet a Sohma!"
"Who's Millie?"
"Ha, ha! Millie is Millie, silly!" laughed the girl. Suddenly she turned serious. "Do you like turtles? Millie likes turtles."
"Turtles...?" Momiji said, still trying to figure out who Millie was, and who this girl was. The name sounded familiar, but he couldn't remember where he had heard it before.
"What animal are you? Are you a turtle?" Momiji stared at her blankly, wondering if she was somehow mocking him, but she was all innocence and seriousness and laughter. He stopped looking at her, for she was confusing, and opted instead to look at the rug.
"No, I'm not a turtle, I'm a human..."
"But if you're a Sohma, you turn into an animal, right?" Momiji's eyes shot up in surprise.
"You know about the Curse?" he gasped. Who is she!?
"Of course, silly! Do you really change when you're hugged?"
"Y-yeah, I do..." he stammered. The girl somersaulted backwards over the top of her chair with a wild laugh.
"What animal is Momiji, I wonder?" she said to herself. "Come to me, and reveal your secrets!" She cried, her voice deep and dramatic, and she threw her arms around his neck. When the smoke cleared, Momiji was in Rabbit form, and was on the floor with the girl sitting next to him beaming gleefully.
"You're the Rabbit!" She grinned in delight. "Millie wanted to meet the bunny! Millie is a bunny, too!"
"Huh...?" Momiji sputtered, and then blinked when the girl faded away to leave a rabbit about his size, with brown spotted fur and a little silver chain around her neck, staring back at him. "Huh?!" the Rabbit repeated. The other rabbit leapt on him and pinned him down playfully.
"See? Millie is a rabbit, too!" Momiji was too shocked for words.
"So... so you're Millie?" he said finally.
"Yeah! Can Millie call you Miji? Momiji is too many syllables."
"Yeah, sure, Mitchi's fine..." Momiji answered dazedly.
"Mitchi? Miji?"
"Huh? Oh. Sometimes people called me Momitchi, instead of Momiji. There isn't much of a difference, though, is there?"
"Why?"
"Momitchi is the German version of my name. I'm half German, half Japanese."
"Artemis is German, too! Millie likes Mitchi. Mitchi, Mitchi, Mitchi!" Millie said and laughed. "Let's be friends, okay?"
"Uh... Okay!"
"If you're here, does that mean Ren is here, too?" Millie asked hopefully, changing the subject and throwing Momiji off a little.
"You mean Tohru...?"
"Tohru...? Millie does not know anyone named Tohru. She knows Ren, and Ren must be here if you are."
"Yeah, she is... why...?" Suddenly something clicked into place. "Oh! Are you the Millie that was in charge of translating all the Angelic stuff?"
"Millie can translate anything! She is good with languages, she is a language god!" She got up off Momiji and suddenly she was human Millie again, fully clothed. A second later Momiji changed back, not so clothed. He looked at her with mock envy.
"I wish I could do that," he said with a smile.
"This is not Millie's true form. Millie is really a rabbit... this form is an illusion Millie puts in Mitchi's head."
"Why? I thought you were a cute bunny!" Momiji said teasingly.
"Mitchi is nice. Millie uses this illusion to make people more comfortable. People do not like to talk with talking bunnies..." she said, looking sad for a second before a happy grin overtook her features again. It was not a fake smile to cover up sorrow, but a genuine smile. Her moods seemed to change like the moon.
"Millie is going now," she said. "She wants to see Ren before she goes to bed. Nighty-night, dream sweet, don't let the beddy bugs sink their teeth in you!" And she was gone.
"Good night..." Momiji said to the empty room and, his head spinning, he slipped beneath his bed covers, fell asleep, and dreamed of little brown bunnies jumping over the moon.
When the Rabbit woke up, the first thing he noticed was that he was very warm. A few minutes later he realized that the source of his warmth was the small brown rabbit he was curled around. Momiji stared for a moment at Millie, currently tucked under his chin, before shrugging and wrapping his arms around her, his lips curling into a smile. If he had been Kyo or Yuki he would have leapt out of his skin, but right now he was much too comfortable.
Ten minutes later, when Millie began to stir, Momiji released her and sat up sleepily. Millie hopped out of his bed and suddenly she was human again. She stretched tiredly, her eyes puffy and her very short hair, which always looked a bit disheveled, was even more tousled. Her clothes, unwrinkled, were different today, except for the little silver necklace.
"Where'd you get that necklace?' asked Momiji curiously.
"Millie found it!" Millie replied, an overly cheerful smile on her face, her head cocked, and her eyes closed. She looked almost too innocent.
"Breakfast time!" she announced in a singsong voice before he could question her further. "Mitchi, let's go!"
"Okay, let me get dressed first!" he replied happily, bouncing up. She skipped out the room and urged him to hurry up every five seconds through the door. Then they both slid down the banister, several times, before she led him into the kitchen. Tohru, Kyo, Artemis, Kagura, Isuzu, Shigure, Hatori, Kisa, and Hiro were already there. They all stared at her ears, but they had seen things far more unusual and were beginning to get used to it. Besides, Artemis had ears and a tail.
"Good morning, Momiji!" Tohru greeted. He smiled back at her.
"Morning, Tohru-chan!"
"See you've met Millie," Artemis said gruffly. To Momiji's surprise, Millie beamed, ran to the demon, and crawled into his lap. Artemis glared around at them all, daring them to comment, but let her stay there. Tohru smiled and reached over to ruffle Millie's hair affectionately.
"You want anything for breakfast?" she asked.
"Potatoes!"
"Potatoes for breakfast...?" Kyo snorted.
"Why not? I'll have potato pancakes," said Momiji and climbed into the stool next to Artemis.
"Potato pancakes!" Millie cried, punching her fist in the air. Then she slid down from Artemis's lap and scrambled into the stool on Momiji's other side.
"Where's everyone else, Tohru-kun?" the Rabbit asked.
"Yuki-kun's still sleeping..." Tohru said while she made the potato pancakes. "Ritsu-san's in his room. I tried to get him to come out, but he said he'd be down later. I think Ayame-san's also in his room—"
"Primping," added Hatori, sipping his tea.
"I haven't seen Akito-san..."
"Like we care where he is," muttered Kyo.
"I don't know where Haru-kun is, he wasn't in his room..."
"He's lost. Again." Kyo snorted.
"And Malacoda and Lucifer are still in bed with the worst hangover of their lives," Tohru finished, a hint of smug satisfaction in her voice.
"What's this I hear?" Shigure cried in mock surprise. "Do I hear our little Tohru gloating over other people's pain?"
"Poor things," Tohru added with mock-sympathy and wide eyes, and Shigure began laughing. When he had regained himself he turned to look at Millie.
"And who is this?" he said kindly.
"Millie," said Millie, eyeing him curiously. "Who are you?"
"Shigure Sohma, pleased to make your acquaintance," said Shigure with an overly dramatic bow. Hatori resisted the urge to roll his eyes and continued to quietly sip his tea.
"What animal are you?" Millie asked, spinning on her stool. Shigure froze.
"Artemis mentioned her before, she's in charge of translating the old manuscripts, and is one of the few here that knows about your curse, remember?" said Tohru. Shigure shook himself, smiling widely.
"Ah, yes, I remember now! I just assumed that she would be... older."
"But Mille is older, silly!" Millie laughed. "She will be three hundred and twenty seven exactly this year!" This announcement was met with stunned silence as the Sohmas gaped at the girl. Tohru handed her the potato pancakes and she tucked in, oblivious to their stares.
"Three hundred and twenty seven...?" Shigure repeated after five minutes. Millie pushed her empty plate towards Tohru in a silent plea for more and nodded at the Dog.
"What animal are you?" she asked Shigure again, not to be deterred.
"The Dog..." Shigure replied dazedly. Millie's face broke out into a large smile and she nodded her obvious approval.
"How can you be three hundred and twenty seven?" Hiro demanded.
"What animal are you?" Millie asked him, avoiding the question.
"Nuh-uh, I asked you first." In answer Millie hugged him.
"Oh, you're the Ram!" she giggled, while Hiro stared agape at her. "Baaa-aaad boy, should have answered Millie's questions!" she sang, setting Hiro on the counter and spun around in her stool again. When she stopped, she tried to look straight back at Hatori, who was sitting directly behind her at the table.
"What's your name?" she asked him seriously, trying to mimic his stoic expression while practically hanging upside down.
"Hatori Sohma." The Dragon answered calmly, faintly curious about this strange demon girl, and slightly amused by her antics.
"What are you?" The present Sohmas (Hiro had fled with his clothes) snickered into their hands. When Hatori hesitated, Shigure said, "You might as well tell, Ha'ri, or she'll find out herself."
"I'm the Dragon..." Hatori said grudgingly. Millie's eyes lit up.
"Dragon? I know some dragons!"
"...You know some dragons?" Hatori said, looking directly at her for the first time. She nodded, smiling.
"Uh-huh. Ren can open doors, right? There is a door to a world with dragons. Millie met them."
"Really?" Hatori said nonchalantly, perfectly hiding the fact that Millie now held his rapt attention, and sounding as if he was used to hearing that there were real dragons somewhere in another universe all the time.
"Oh, yes! Maybe you can meet them sometime..." she looked at Tohru, who looked thoughtful.
"That's doubtful," Artemis said. "Last time I heard, Faeror was just readying her troops for a war. I doubt it's over." At the Sohma's confused faces, Tohru said, "Faeror is the reigning Queen of the Dragons, along side King Sirius."
"What's you're name?" Millie asked Kisa, having spun her stool and come to a stop facing the Tiger.
"Kisa..." Kisa said shyly. "I'm... the Tiger." Millie stopped her spinning and stared at her seriously.
"Are you going to eat me?" she asked solemnly, or at least attempting to be solemn. She kept fidgeting, fighting the urge to laugh or smile. Kisa looked confused and shook her head.
"Why would I...?" she started, and then stopped with a gasp when Millie suddenly became a rabbit. There was an instant outcry of questions at this.
"How did you do that?"
"Are you a demon like Artemis?"
"What are you?!"
"What are you?" Millie countered, turning to Kyo, who had spoken last.
"...The Cat." Kyo answered impatiently after some thought. He didn't really feel like turning into a cat so early in the morning, much less being hugged by such a strange person.
"Ooooo, the outcast," Millie chanted dramatically. Kyo bristled. "Artemis is an outcast, too, isn't that right?" She continued, looking at the demon, who glanced up at her over the rip of his teacup and nodded slowly.
"Outcast from what?" Kyo asked despite himself.
"From Hell. I can only come here with Tohru." Artemis replied.
"Who is Tohru?" Millie queried.
"Ren," said Artemis simply.
"Ren isn't Tohru, silly!" Millie scoffed brightly. Artemis shook his head and didn't comment further on the matter, giving it up for a lost cause. He hadn't expected Millie to think of Tohru as anyone else but Ren, anyway. Meanwhile, Millie had turned back to Kyo.
"What's your name?"
"...Kyo."
"Kyo? Millie likes that name," Millie said approvingly and turned to Kagura to ask the same questions, leaving Kyo to blink at her in bemusement.
"I'm Kagura, and I'm the Boar!" Kagura said cheerfully before Millie could even ask anything. Millie blinked and smiled gleefully at her and turned finally to look at Isuzu, who ignored her.
"What's your name?"
"...What's it to you?"
"What's your na-ame?" Millie sang.
"Leave me alone, brat."
"I command you to teeeelll meeeee." Millie intoned.
"Stop asking me!"
"Pretty please?"
"If I tell you, will you leave me alone?"
"Uh-huh!"
"Isuzu."
Silence.
"What's your animal?"
"I thought you said you were going to leave me alone!!!"
"I did...?" Isuzu looked incredulously at the girl and then let out an annoyed sigh of defeat.
"I'm the Horse, now will you quit bothering me?" Isuzu demanded. For answer Millie hopped off her stool, held out her arms like airplane wings and ran out the room, crying, "VROOOOM!!!!!" all the way up the stairs and out of sight.
To be continued...
Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket. I am not a thief. I am not a thief.
Wow, that was a lot longer than I'd intended. But I couldn't find a suitable place to stop, so I kept just kept going for a while. But what am I explaining myself for? You're probably glad it was longer, ne? Excuse me I'm being presumptuous. But you are, right? I knew it.
How do you like Millie? I think she turned out wonderfully, I really like her. Before this, I hadn't really fleshed out her character too much, and wasn't even sure of how she would turn out. But I really like her. At first I was going to make her sort of shy, like Kisa, but a lot more jumpy and a bit paranoid. But I decided in the end to model her after Edward in Cowboy Bebop. I think she's much better like that. Momiji-Millie romance-ness later!
In response to FruitsBasketcase, yes. If Lucifer gets drunk, it will cause a chain reaction in all the other demons, making them inebriated as well. He's the King of all hell, and all the demons are at the mercy of his will, except Artemis and Malacoda. I just thought it would be funny to have demons hitting on Artemis. Heh, heh.
Also, contrary to some beliefs, no I do not speak any language other than English. I'm sorry to say it, but no, I'm not that smart, and I apologize for not mentioning that little tidbit of information earlier, but I hate admitting it. I do fancy myself pretty intelligent, but I'm only human... SIGH... Anyway, sorry if I might have misled anyone. If you're wondering how I've got all these languages suddenly, I might direct you to a very helpful little website called... Hmmmm. It won't let me type it.... Let's see, type triple W, dot freetranslations, dot com. There, that should do it!
Später! (Later in German)
-Raha-
