Hello, everyone!

This is another teaser project that I'm working on.

For those who don't know, "Fruits Basket" is about an orphaned young girl who becomes homeless after her tent is destroyed in a landslide; eventually, she ends up being the housemaid of a house owned by three boys who are part of a cursed family that, when touched by the opposite gender, transform into animals.

Since this is a Seitenkan, that means almost all genders are reversed (the only exceptions are most of the parents); however, it should be noted that unlike my other MALE-centered Seintenkans, this story is a FEMALE-centered harem—the first one I've ever made—and because of that, this WON'T be a fanservice-filled series, so sorry to all horny boys, but it's just that Japan apparently doesn't like sexualizing underage boys as much as underage girls (except maybe in hentai).

And finally (as usual)...SPOILERS AHEAD if you haven't read the manga and/or watched the anime (if you're going to do the latter, I prefer the more faithful 2019 version).

Enjoy


Volume 1

"...zzzzzzzz...zzzzzzzz...zzzzzzzz...zzzz—"

*RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING*

*CLICK*

*GROAN*


"Ahh! What a beautiful day!" a boy with brown hair said as stepped out of his tent and looked at the shining sun. "Alright, I'm off to school, mom. Bye!"

Rushing off, the boy came to the edge of a cliff...where he got a big view of the city. "Man, the air feels nice!"

*RING*

Just then, he noticed ringing coming from...a house below the cliff.

"Whoa! Where the hell did that house come from? I've never seen it before," he said as he approached the house. "What are these?" He then noticed some ornaments sitting on the patio in two rows.

"Huh? Who are you?"

The boy suddenly noticed a young woman in a long-sleeved dark green kimono reading a newspaper. "Strange, we've never had a boy come into our house."

"EEK! I'm sorry! I-I didn't mean to intrude!" the boy yelled as he repeatedly bowed.

"Oh no, come on in. Although I thought someone like you would be find this place boring."

"No! Not at all! I actually kinda like...THOSE things...whatever they're called!"

"They're called Zodiacs, and they're my favorite."

"Isn't there a set without the Cat?"

"Without the Cat? Oh, you mean the old Zodiac folktale?"

"Yeah, my mother told me that story all the time when I was little."


(Flashback)

A boy laid in his futon with his mother laying right next to him.

"Once upon a time," said the mother, "God told the animals: 'I invite you to the banquet I shall hold tomorrow.' But the Rat, who loved to play pranks, lied to his neighbor, the Cat, and told him that the banquet was held the day after tomorrow. On the day of the banquet, the Rat rode on the Ox's back, then leapt easily down to arrive there first. After him came the Ox, the Tiger, and all the rest, and they all feasted until dawn. All of them...except the Cat."

"*SOB*" The boy soon began crying.

"Tohru, don't cry! It's just a story."

"The poor Cat...ALRIGHT!" The boy determinedly jumped out of bed. "From now on, I will be a Cat instead of a Dog!" (For the record, what he means is that his birth year will switch from the Dog to the Cat.)

(End of Flashback)


"I see," said the woman, "you were born the Year of the Dog. I can actually relate since I'm a—"

*BANG*

The man was suddenly hit in the head with a school briefcase by a boy with dark-grey long hair wearing a female school suit. "Knock it off with the statutory flirting," the boy said.

"WAH! G-Good morning, S-Sohma-chan!" The boy quickly bowed.

"I'm SO sorry about my cousin's behavior, Honda-kun," said the girl.

"W-Wait, you know that girl?" asked the woman.

"Yes, this is my Kaiba Munciple High School classmate Honda Tohru."

"Oh, in THAT case, I'm Yukari-chan's cousin Sohma Shizuka," the woman said to Tohru.

"So, what bring you here?" asked Yukari.

"Me? Oh, well, I-I actually live around here," explained Tohru nervously.

"You do?"

"Uh, I-I-I...gotta go! Bye!" Tohru quickly made a rush for—

"HEY, WAIT!" Yukari called out. "Why don't we go to school together since you're here?"


"Care to explain what you were doing this morning?"

Four boys cornered Tohru in the hallway.

"Uh, who are you guys?" asked the cornered girl.

"I am Minoru Kinoshita, vice president of the Princess Yukari Fan Club," said the boy with light brown hair tied into high a pigtail.

"The WHAT?"

"Gentleman, please give this boy the first three core principals of Sohma Yukari-chan," demanded the fan club vice president.

"#1: Do not steal the Princess' private property!" said member Chan.

"#2: Do not enter the Princess' house!" said another member.

"#3: While talking to the Princess, you must be accompanied by at least two other members!" said member Mei Iwata.

"You see, this fan club is dedicated to praising, loving, and protecting the beautiful princess wherever she goes in this school!" explained Minoru. "And YOU, Honda-san," he said as he pointed his finger at Tohru, "have publicly signaled your revolt against our club! Why did you arrive at school with Sohma Yukari-chan today?"

"Oh, well, uh, we just met by coincidence," explained Tohru. "Oh yeah: I forgot that Sohma Yukari was considered the 'princess of the school' since freshmen year."

"'Coincidence'? BULLSHIT!" yelled Minoru.

"YEAH!"

"WHAT HE SAID!"

"THAT'S A STUPID EXCUSE!"

The other members soon began yelling at him.

"You know what I think?" Minoru added. "I think you get into Sohma Yukari-chan's pants because of how nice she was to—"

"You should know better than to pick fights by using lame excuses."

Minoru's face turned blue upon hearing a familiar voice. Turning around, he and the rest of the club jumped back at the sight of two boys standing right behind them; one of them was gothic. "Hey, what the hell's wrong with you delinquents? You can't keep threatening us?"

"You have no idea what threats are..." said the goth boy with some electric waves sprouting from his head.

"SHIT! RUN!" The boys quickly fled down the hallway.

"Uo-kun, Hana-kun, thanks for saving me," said Minoru.

"Anytime, man," said Ayumu Uotani, the boy with long blonde hair. "And YOU gotta stop showing the electric waves," he said to Sato Hanajima, the goth boy.


Later, Tohru was in the Home Economics Room with Ayumu and Sato.

"So, you actually came to school with the princess?" asked Ayumu.

"Yeah, I was kinda nervous," said Minoru. "I mean...Sohma-chan is SO beautiful..."

"I find her waves...very strange," Sato whispered as she stared at his knife.

"*SIGH* Hanajima's Wave Report!" exclaimed the blonde-haired boy.

"What do you mean 'strange'?" Minoru asked the goth boy.

"...No idea..."

"Well, he does look a little mysterious." Ayumu and the other boys turned their attention to Yukari. "A second-year confessed his love to her a while back and tried to hug her as well, but she pushed him away and called him a pervert. Anyways, Hanajima and I are got some...'plans'...after school. Wanna join, Tohru?"

"Oh, sorry, guys, got work after school," said Tohru.

"You mean paying for your own tuition?"

"You work almost every day," said the goth. ""Isn't that a bit of a drag?"

"I just wanna make enough money to live on my own after graduation," said the brown-haired girl. "If they found out I was living in a tent with my grandfather, Uo-kun might charge in on his motorcycle."


Later that evening, Tohru rushed to her locker when she noticed someone just closing up his locker at getting his belongings. "Ah, Sohma-chan!" he called out. "Thank for walking with me this morning."

"Oh, no need," said Yukari. "I'm sorry about Shizuka's behavior earlier this morning."


"Oh? No, she seems like a nice woman," Tohru said as she and Yukari walked home from school. "She even showed me those Zodiac ornaments."

"Heh heh heh heh, I'm surprised you're into that kind of stuff," laughed Yukari. "You also said something about the Cat, right?"

"Yeah, that was kinda odd."

"The Cat...is an idiot...and ornery. The Zodiac animals started off as part of the sexagenary cycle; they were used as numerals and clock divisions, then yin-yang and elemental relationships were folded in with them. Eventually, they became fortune-telling tools. The math never left room for the Cat to begin with. But...maybe that's for the best. What good is there joining the Zodiac anyways? The Cat is such an idiot."

"Sohma-chan, do you...hate cats?"

*BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP* *BEEP*

"OH NO! I'M LATE! SORRY, BUT I GOTTA GO!" Tohru quickly ran past—

"Honda-kun! Wait!" All of a sudden, Yukari pulled a leaf off a Tohru's forehead. "You seem a bit under the weather. And it's pretty hot. So...be careful about your health..."


Despite his happy and carefree personality, Tohru Honda was a boy who had lived in sadness his entire life...

At the age of three, Tohru's father, Katsuya, passed of an unknown illness.

As a widow, Kyoko was a very proud and cheerful woman who worked very hard to help support herself and her son Tohru...until a tragic accident claimed her life, leaving Tohru as an orphan.

Tohru's many relatives argued over claiming ownership of the young orphan...and ultimately, the rights went to Tohru's grandfather.

Tohru felt like being a burden and decided to pay his own tuition and living expenses.

When Tohru's grandfather left to take care of some family business, Tohru moved into a tent in the hope of saving and raising enough money for himself. He received work as a janitor of an office building.


Later that night, Shizuka and Yukari were walking home through the woods.

"*SIGH* Eating out or getting delivery every night never gets old," said Shizuka.

"Why don't YOU make dinner for once?" asked Yukari.

"You always complain whenever I do that."

"EVERYONE would complain about pickled radishes in their curry."

"You might be smart, but you suck at household jobs. Two young woman who live alone need a man's help."

"Huh? Honda-kun?" Just then Yukari noticed Tohru down a hill. "I heard his mother died some time ago, but what's SHE doing here?"

"Hmm...I mean...we've seen her this morning," said Shizuka. "Maybe she lives around here."

"Well, I heard his mother died some time ago, but HIM? Moving out HERE?"


*ZIP*

"I'm home!" Tohru called to his mother's picture as he entered the tent. "*YAWN* I know I should get some rest, but I got a lot of worksheets due tomorrow." After flicking on her headlights, he crawled back outside. "I'll be right back. I gotta wash my face and—huh?!" Just then, he saw two familiar females, one a teenager and the other a young adult, looking down at him.


"This has got to be the strangest thing I've even seen in my life," said Yukari back at her house. "The Sohma family practically owns this entire land. And yet YOU, Honda-kun...you live in a TENT!"

"AH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH!" Shizuka burst out into an uncontrollable laughter.

"Not funny, Yukari-chan..."

"Uh, not for long. To be honest, I plan on moving out as soon as renovation is complete," explained Tohru. "I...I broke, but I pay what I can."

"Se-he-he-he-heriously?" Shizuka laughed as she tried to stop laughing. "You realize how dangerous it is, right? A kid like you can't live there for months, anyway."

"Relax! I can handle the slugs!" the brown boy yelled as he stood up. "I've got more than enough strength and willpower to sur—"

*POOF*

Suddenly, he felt dizzy and fell back onto his knees.

"Ah! Honda-kun!" The dark grey-haired girl rushed over to his side to check his forehead. "Oh, dear, you've got a fever!"

"Then I'll go get the ice."

*SLIDE*

Shizuka opened the door to the kitchen, only to find it a complete mess. "Oops, I guess we forgot to clean it up. I'll get—"

*HOWL* *HOWL*

"*GASP*" Just then, Shizuka froze as she heard something coming from within the wilderness. "It sounds like a part of the cliff just crumbled.

"Huh? How do you know that?" asked Tohru.

"...I call it...animal instincts."

"Do you know where the landslide might've happened?" asked Yukari.

"Maybe...NEAR MY TENT?!" the brown-haired boy panicked.


The trio arrived at the site of the landslide...which indeed turned out to be the site of Tohru's tent. "MOM'S PICTURE! IT'S STILL INSIDE THE TENT!" He frantically leapt onto the pile to dig out his tent.

"Honda-kun! Calm down!" said Yukari.

"NO! MOM'S UNDER THE RUBBLE! I HAVE TO GET HER OUT! NOW!"

"...Then we'll come back tomorrow to help her," Shizuka said as she placed her hand on Tohru's. "I think your mother would panic if anything bad happened to you."


Tohru laid in a futon with Shizuka looking over him. "*SIGH* I'm sorry for being such a burden...after losing my tent."

"Is it really that painful?" asked Shizuka.

"No, but...I know of something even MORE painful: the day my mother died, I missed the chance to say, 'See you when you get back.' The day before, I stayed up almost all-night studying of a quiz. I couldn't wake up the next day. That was the only morning I didn't say it. I always said it, except that one morning...I said I was willing to work instead of going to high school. But she told me that she never got a chance to be a 'high school kid', since she only had a middle school diploma, and that I give high school a chance. She was the best mother ever, and the one time I forgot to say, 'See you when you get back'...well, I never saw her leave for work either. I'm just a complete and total idiot. Who cares if I fail a test or have my home blown away? I should've prioritized my mother more...which is why...I want to graduate from high school...and do what my mother never could. I...I CAN'T succumb to...this...fever..."

The grey-haired woman waited for him to say something else...but got no other response...

"Gotta say: I'm very surprised," said Yukari. "Honda-kun always seemed so cheerful at school, looking so happy-go-lucky. He's amazing..."

"How?" asked the elder Sohma.

"I thought I broke free of the Sohmas...but I despised than so much...that I wanted to get a tent like Honda-kun..and go somewhere that they wouldn't think to find me. I'm nothing but spoiled."

"Hmph...calling Tohru amazing is very insulting, you know."

The younger Sohma headed for the door...

"Are you really going to try and dig out that picture?" asked Shizuka. "If you'd like, I could come along. It'd be a lot of work for you to do it alone."

"...Alone? Who said I'd be alone?" Yukari opened his glowing purple eyes.

"Alright...see you when you get back."


(Tohru's Dream)

"Tohru...have you gotten a fever again?" whispered Tohru's mother. "You don't have to burn yourself out helping with the housework. Just be yourself...and live at your own pace. You'll eventually catch up."

(End of Dream)


"...Mom..." whispered Tohru. Just then, he snapped awake. "WHAT AM I DOING?! I HAVE TO GO SAVE MOM! NOW!" He jumped out of bed and threw the door...

*SLIDE*

"Mornin'." Just then, Yukari approached the panicking boy and handed him the picture frame of his mother. "Here's your photo. I also managed to collect all your other belongings. But you can tell them if I missed anything."

"Did you...DID YOU MOVE ALL THE DIRT BY YOURSELF?!" Tohru screamed.

"Move the dirt? No."

"Then how...?"

"It's top secret. I'll bring your belongings upstairs. We have an empty room on the second floor, but it's a bit of a mess. You can use it until renovations are finished."

"WHAT?! NO! I CAN'T!"

"Yukari-chan and I sleep on the first floor, so they'll be no way you could give your peeping temptations."

"NOT WHAT I MEANT!"

"I heard you like doing chores: cleaning, cooking, etc," said Shizuka all of a sudden.

"Uh...yes..."

"...THEN WELCOME TO THE SOHMA HOUSEHOLD! Better open the window to sir out your room," the elder Sohma said as she walked away while waving a fan.

"NO! PLEASE! YOU CAN'T JUST FORCE ME TO WORK FOR YOU! I DON'T EVEN WANNA BE A BURDEN!"

"Oh, no, it's OUR treat. And we'll pay handsomely. Besides, you don't have any other place to stay," said Yukari.

"B-B-B-But don't you have any Sohma rules or customs that I need to follow?"

"...Just one: Just be yourself...and live at your own pace.


"Just be yourself...and live at your own pace."


"Sohma-chan is...a really weird sometimes," And so, Tohru followed Yukari's upstairs.

"On second thought, we have ANOTHER rule here as well: no touching...under ANY circumstances," Yukari suddenly added.

"Uh...'no touching'? Do you mean 'no sexual harassment'. I mean...I'm not really one to—"

*BURST*

All of a sudden, someone fell through the ceiling into the room. "Alright, rat-bitch," said the intruder, "hope you're ready for a tail-ripping!" The intruder was a teenage girl with straight, upper-back-length, orange hair with long bangs covering her right eye and framing her face. She had on lipstick and wore a red jacket over a black bra with a brown skirt that had a chain hooked up on the right. She also had a spiked cuff bracelet on her left wrist and black boots. As she threw her jacket off and twirled her left arm in a fighting position, Tohru noticed an arm tattoo of an orange cat with a bleeding rat in its mouth. Long story short, this girl was dressed like a punk.

"*SIGH* Again? How many times do we have to do this before you give up...you little pussy?" Yukari asked the punk intruder as she leaned against the window. "And for the record, we happen to have a—"

"Pussy? Now THAT is what I call a 'very valid insult'! But if you think I'm still the same fighter I was back then, you got another thing comin'! TAKE THIS!" The punk girl charged at Yukari, ready to hit her.

"SOHMA-CHAN! LOOK OUT!" Tohru quickly rushed in to—

*SLIP*

*GROPE*

"AHH..." The intruder suddenly stopped dead in her tracks as she felt something touching her chest.

"*SIGH* Now you've done it, you idiot..." Pressing her fingers against her forehead, the alleged attack target made her way to the door.

With her face growing red, the punk girl looked down and saw two masculine-looking hands holding her breasts; she then turned her head slowly back and saw his groper standing in shock and nervously thinking about what he was touching; on closer inspection, the punk also noticed that he was a boy. "Oh, F—"

*POOF*

"I heard screaming! What's wrong?" Shizuka screamed as she rushed into the room. She looked down and saw Tohru laying on the floor...and on the intruder's clothing. "Hmm? Oh, I see you've met Kyomi."

"YIKES! I'M SORRY, SIR! I DIDN'T MEAN TO—"

Tohru quickly knelt up, only to discover that she was holding...

"D-Did she...turn into a cat?!"

The Cat herself was glaring at him with a cruciform popping vein on her right side.

"*SIGH* She's such an idiot," sighed Yukari.

"W-W-W-W-WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?! HOW-HOW DID SHE TURN INTO A CAT?! W-WAS IT BECAUSE I ACCIDENTALLY GROPED HER?! WAIT! WHY AM I EVEN ANSWERING THESE QUESTIONS! GIRLS! WE GOTTA DO SOMETHING! HELP! PLEASE!" The brown-haired boy quickly got up and rushed over to the other—

*BUMP*

Tohru accidentally jumped into the other female residences.

*POOF*

Just then, Tohru noticed something odd: a dog in Shizuka's clothing...and a rat in Yukari's clothing...


Alright, before we end this chapter, I think it's best I explain the FULL story of the Chinese Zodiac...as well as the aftermath of the Cat:

In the beginning, God invited thirteen animals to a banquet that he was holding tomorrow; however, it was MORE than just a banquet—it was an induction ceremony...where God inducted all the animals into the Chinese Zodiac; each animal would be given a year that would be reinstated once every twelve years (for example: the current year of the Rat is 2020, and the NEXT year will be 2032). Unfortunately, only twelve of these animals attended the banquet; one of them, the Cat, was told by the Rat that it would be held the day AFTER tomorrow. Thus, the day after the banquet, the Cat showed at the temple...only to discover that the banquet had already ended. The Cat was saddened and confused, and then...he remembered: the Rat had a habit of constantly playing pranks of him...and was the reason why he missed out on joining the Chinese Zodiac. But there is MORE to the story, dear readers, as after that specific prank...the Cat finally had enough of the Rat's pranks...and would constantly chase him in revenge...

Yeah, sound familiar? Like how all cats would chase after rats in real life? Or how Kyomi (the Cat) is constantly chasing after Yukari (the Rat)?

End


Cast:

Ayumu Uotani: Rikiya Koyama (Japanese); Anthony Bowling (English)

Chan: Ryohei Kimura (Japanese); Aaron Dismuke (English)

Mei Iwata: Daisuke Ono (Japanese); Ricco Fajardo (English)

Kyoko Honda: Miyuki Sawashiro (Japanese); Lydia Mackay (English)

Kyomi Sohma: Maaya Uchida (Japanese); Erica Lindbeck (English)

Minoru Kinoshita: Takehito Koyasu (Japanese); Ian Sinclair (English)

Sato Hanajima: Ryotaro Okiayu (Japanese); J. Michael Tatum (English)

Shizuka Sohma: Atsuko Tanaka (Japanese); Bridget Hoffman (English)

Tohru Honda: Mamoru Miyano (Japanese); Josh Grelle (English)

Yukari Sohma: Yoko Hikasa (Japanese); Xanthe Huynh (English)


By the way, I'm VERY sorry for that it took half a month to release the first chapter; I promise not to be AS lazy for the next five.

Later