Happy August all! YAY! MORE REVIEWS! I'm so happy! T-T (tears of happiness). Haha, anyway, thank you to all my reviewers!
Sorry this chapter took so long in getting up, things have been hectic. And now I'm trying to wrap up that disgusting thing known as a summer assignment . So I apologize if my chapters are a bit later in being posted.
Disclaimer: It's sad to say, but Fruits Basket isn't mine. I just write about it. I don't own the proverbs or German either.
Translations can be found at the bottom! Annnnnd here we go…
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Chapter 4: Old Friends
Yuki groaned as the footsteps pounded down the staircase. He could hear one set headed toward the room he was in as another, much softer pair followed the first.
The room divider was thrown open to reveal a young blonde with wide, eager eyes. "YUKI!" Momiji cried out in joy at his cousin, his heavy German accent audible. The rabbit bounced around in his typical manner.
Haru walked in, following the energetic boy, and blankly hugged the already-exhausted rat.
Yuki inwardly sighed as he gave his announcement again to his new audience.
"Tohru-kun?" Momiji became even happier at the new declaration. "Tohru-kun is coming back! Ich bin glücklich!" The boy had been uncharacteristically saddened since Tohru had left the Sohmas behind, though he often retained his bouncy nature.
"She's just coming over to study," Yuki reminded, envisioning Momiji throwing himself into Tohru's arms.
"Ich weiß, I know…" Momiji pouted slightly before grinning again. "But Tohru-kun is coming! She remembers us, ja?"
"Yes, but not about the curse. That means no hugging, Momiji."
"So lala…." The German hybrid plopped down on the couch, eager to see his friend. Their final parting before the girl's memories had been erased had been hard for both, and he hadn't seen Tohru since. He stared up at the ceiling, suddenly drowsy, and thought of the brunette he missed.
"Momiji-kun?" Tohru walked into the boy's room, where he was playing his violin. When he saw the girl, he put it aside. "Tohru-kun…" he trailed off. All he had been told was that she was to have her memories erased. He was sad to think that Tohru had turned out just like his mother in the end. Did she really want to lose her memories?
"Momiji-kun, your playing is beautiful." Tohru's voice was kind, as always, but softer than usual.
"Danke schön! I've been practicing more. Momo still comes to listen, so I try to play my best for her!" Tohru smiled sadly at the idea of Momo, the girl who didn't know about her history with Momiji…was she destined to become a sad memory, just like her?
"Don't think that means I have forgotten about your concert Tohru-kun! I'm still working on the song for you!" Momiji tried his best to pretend that Tohru would still be there, as always, that things wouldn't change.
"How are you feeling Momiji-kun? Are you over that nasty cold that you and Hatori-san had?" Tohru asked in a concerned tone. Even despite the reason the two were meeting, she still was a natural born worrier.
"Much better! The soup really helped! It was yummy!"
Tohru smiled at the comment. "I'm glad you liked it."
Even as the two spoke casually, the conversation inevitably changed to the one topic they were both trying so desperately to avoid.
"So Hatori-kun told me…you're having your memories suppressed?" Momiji had done his best to keep things normal, trying to sustain what they had for so long, but at the same time he just had to ask her.
Tohru looked to her hands, which were neatly folded in her lap. "I wish there could be another way…" She kept her watering eyes lowered to the ground. She hated upsetting Momiji, perhaps because he always seemed so happy, or maybe because he seemed so young. Either way, she never wanted to see him suffer.
Momiji stood silently from where he had been seated across from Tohru. He walked to the open rice-paper door, where he stared into the gardens of the Sohma estate.
"I was hoping you would be stronger than mutti…"
"Momiji-kun…it's not my choice…"
"Nein, it's okay Tohru-kun…I can understand. Maybe there are some memories that we just can't live with…"
"No, Momiji-kun!" Tohru desperately walked over to where he stood. "Akito-san…he…he is forcing me. I would never, ever want to forget everything…"Tohru's tears came again, and she rubbed them away desperately, not wanting the younger boy to see. When she lifted her head, however, a pair of brown eyes looked into her blue ones.
"I-I'm s-sorry f-for g-getting li-ike th-his…" she sputtered out, in-between tears.
"Nein, I'm sorry Tohru-kun. I should have known you were stronger than that."
The tears came faster yet, Tohru struggling to contain them. At the sight, Momiji's tears joined hers, as the boy embraced his friend.
After a little poof, Tohru tightened her grip on the small white rabbit in her arms. The tears eventually stopped, and with brave smiles on their faces, the pair continued to spend their last day together.
"Momiji-kun?"
"ehh?" The boy, startled, woke up from his catnap to find Tohru hovering above him. "TOHRU-KUN!" the boy called out in glee, and with a sudden burst of energy, jumped from the couch. He scurried in an attempt to give Tohru a hug, causing the panic of the surrounding Sohmas, but Kyo quickly intercepted him with a rough block, extracting a small squeal from the girl.
"WAHH! KYO HIT MEEEEE!!!!!!!" Momiji cried out.
"Momiji-kun! I-um-your head…"
The two instantly launched into a conversation, which lasted several minutes, until Yuki finally intervened.
"Um, Honda-san? Don't you think we should start working on studying?"
"Oh! I almost forgot!" Tohru ran through a quick apology before running off to the nearby table to set up her things. As Yuki followed her, Momiji could hear a soft grunt from Kyo.
"Ah!" The boy exclaimed brightly. "Kyo-kun is jealous, ja?"
"Shut up! I am not!" The cat yelled as he hit the boy, once again, squarely on his head. With that sentiment he retreated moodily to the roof.
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"So Honda-san," Yuki opened the textbook in front of him, "it seems that you're still having problems with proverbs?"
"Well yes…I…um, well, just can't seem to…"
"It's alright Honda-san. We'll start with those then."
Tohru smiled with a slight blush.
He flipped through the pages before finally coming to an example. "Alright, Honda-san, try this one. 'The nail that sticks out gets hammered down.'"
"Umm…hrm…well…don't get hurt?"
Yuki sighed. "Not exactly…more like, do not cause a disturbance, or you will be hurt."
"Oh…okay…" Tohru looked to her book, but then looked up with a determined gleam in her eye. "I'll do better on the next one!"
Yuki smiled and glanced down to the text in his hands. "Then, how about, 'If you do not enter the tiger's cave, you will not catch it's cub'?"
"Um…animals should not be harmed?"
"Well…not quite…" Yuki grimaced at the entirely off-base response as he read the answer from the book. "Nothing ventured, nothing gained."
"Oh, but that was such an easy one! Well, let me try another one!"
Yuki could not help but smirk again at Tohru's innocent face, set unwavering, staring ahead at the boy in front of her. "Here's an easier one. 'There are even bugs that eat knotweed.'"
With a knowing smile, Tohru confidently shouted out the answer. "Knotweed is incredibly useful!"
"Um…I'm sorry Honda-san…but that's not it…"
"Oh no!" Tohru slouched down sadly. "I was so sure I had it right too…" Yuki stood from where he was seated across the table and walked towards the saddened brunette. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"It's fine Honda-san. Even monkeys fall from trees."
"Eh?"
Yuki laughed. "Everyone makes mistakes. No one is perfect. With time, you'll get better." Yuki brushed a piece of hair from her forehead, producing another shade of crimson to cross her cheeks.
"I suppose I better start dinner, then," Yuki noted as he headed toward the kitchen. Tohru remained where she was, for a moment, waiting for her normal shade to return to her features. Prince Charming seemed to be having more of an effect on her that usual…but why?
Tohru looked to the door where Yuki had disappeared through. "Sohma-kun…" she whispered softly, gazing after him. He was so mysterious…she had lived with him for so long, yet she felt as if she hardly knew him. Through her thoughts, she heard a large crash from the kitchen. Panicking, she ran in.
"Is everything o-o-ohh…" Tohru lost her train of thought as she entered the once-clean kitchen. Used pots and pans were piled high upon the spotted tile floor. The cabinets, nearly indistinguishable underneath the grime that had collected upon them, seemed to tremble from the weight of the massive amount of trash left upon them. The sink could only be noticed for the lofty pile of dirty dishes that it held. As she gazed at the mess from the trash pile she stood on, Tohru squealed in fear as a few rats scurried across the floor in front of her, only to disappear within another heap.
Yuki turned around calmly. "I'm sorry, Honda-san? What did you say?"
"I-well-um-ah you have-wow…big trash pile…"
"Oh yes…well things have gotten a bit…unkept since you left. Now, where did I put that rice cooker…?" Yuki continued to rummage around, throwing all sorts of things to the floor, resulting in several more crashes. Tohru stared blankly in disbelief.
Finally, Yuki unearthed the rice cooker from a pile of dirty dishtowels. "Now then…" he continued, setting the cooker on a cleared (he threw the trash which occupied it to the floor) space on the counter, "rice…rice…where would I have put the rice…?"
"Umm…Sohma-kun? Perhaps I could help you out with dinner?"
"Honda-san, I couldn't ask you to do that. I invited you in the first place," Yuki responded while he opened the stuffed cabinets, attempting to find the rice.
"Really, it would be no problem! I could even, well, help neaten up a bit. I really don't have any problem with it! I love to cook, and to clean too!"
"Well…"
"Please Sohma-kun, you've done so much for me already. Let me take care of this part!" Her beaming face was hard to turn away. With a soft smile, Yuki nodded.
"Alright then Honda-san. But only if you're certain."
Determined, Tohru nodded vigorously and gently pushed Yuki out of the kitchen. With a smile, she donned a pair of rubber gloves and began her cleaning spree.
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Kyo sat up on the roof, the glare of the sun setting behind him. He glowered up at the appearing stars, thinking bitterly of the happenings going on below him.
'Stupid rat…why does he always have to teach her everything?' He rolled on to his side as the night grew steadily darker. 'I'm here to help her too.' He let his arm cover his head. "I knew her better than he did anyway…" Kyo spoke bitterly to the sky.
"Kyo-kun? Are you up here again?" It was the night before Tohru was to have her memories erased.
"Huh? Oh, yeah."
He tried not to look at the girl, but as she came up to sit directly next to him, it was a difficult task. As she made small talk, he stared directly away and refused to offer any other answer besides "uh-huh" or the occasional "yeah."
"Kyo-kun?" Tohru stared directly at the cat this time.
"Uh-huh?" Kyo offered up his usual reply.
"Why won't you look at me?"
"Whaa-?" The question caught him off guard. When had Tohru become so perceptive?
"Something is wrong and I-well I don't want to pry but-well, it's my last night here…and…and…" she searched for the words for a moment, and soon found them, though her voice was so soft Kyo had to strain his ears to hear what they were. "I don't want to leave without things being settled…I don't want to leave with you being angry at me…"
Kyo looked over at Tohru, who sat with her head resting upon her knees, staring into the twilight.
"Look," Kyo sighed, and smacked his own palm to his forehead, soon allowing his own head to rest. "I'm not angry at you. I…I never could be angry at you." He looked at her sadly. He wasn't going to make her suffer any longer. No more worrying about the Sohma secret, no more caring for all of the Sohmas…no more worrying about him. When people got too close to him, they got hurt. His mother, her own mother, and now Tohru herself…
"It's just, well I…I'm just in a bad mood."
Tohru looked at him and stated sympathetically, "I don't want to leave…"
"I never said that was the reason!"
Kyo looked at Tohru, realizing the words he had said only after he had said them. He had hurt her. Again. Why did he do that?
"Look, I didn't mean anything like…"
"No, it's fine. I shouldn't be so self-centered as to think I have such an influence on everyone…"
"Just, let me talk a second!" Kyo interrupted her harshly, drawing a small, startled gasp from Tohru. He knew he was running the risk of upsetting her, but his piece had to be said. She was right- it wouldn't do for her to leave things unsettled.
"I'm sorry. I just… I say the first thing that pops into my head, and it usually comes out all wrong. Cause the fact is…you're right. I am pissed off that you're leaving. And…well…I don't want you to go."
Kyo turned to her. Now was the time, if ever. Tomorrow, half of her memories would be wiped from her mind, and he'd regret not telling her the things he had to say. But…would she remember the conversation? If so, maybe it was better to left things unsaid. After all, he didn't want an awkward moment to be the only memory she would have of him. With his luck, that would be the case.
The sun had disappeared entirely, but even through the starry night Kyo could see Tohru looking curiously into his eyes.
"I'm going to miss you, Kyo-kun."
"Don't make it sound like you're leaving the freaking country!"
"Oh-I-um-I'm sorry…"
"No, it's fine- I mean, argh!"
"…Kyo-kun?"
There was a pause. Kyo twitched nervously as he tried to find the right words to say. "I wish I could let you know…how much I really will miss you too…"
Tohru looked at Kyo, astonished at the display of feelings. Kyo had never spoken like that to her before.
"I…won't be able to go with you tomorrow. It'll be done at Akito's, in front of the other members of the zodiac…" Tohru looked confused at the unusual ceremony, until Kyo explained further. "…at Akito's request.
"Ah…I see…"
"You'll have everyone else there though…"
"But I wanted you to be there!"
Now it was Kyo's turn to look astonished. "What?"
"I-I know it's selfish…" she began slowly, carefully choosing her words, "but I wanted to have you there Kyo-kun. I…" she looked to the stars. "I would feel so much better. You've been such a huge part of my life. Living here with you and Yuki-kun and Shigure-san…" she looked to Kyo, tearing up again. She'd been doing that quite a bit lately. "…it's meant so much to me."
The two sat in silence, soaking in her words, which seemed to hang in the air, dangling between them.
"I wish I could be there too." Awkwardly, Kyo inched closer to her, and placed a hand on one of hers. With a heaving sob, she collapsed into his lap, weak and tired. The cat uneasily rubbed the girl's back, in his best attempt to comfort her without an embrace. Soon she was quiet, and he looked down to find her asleep, looking deceivingly peaceful. He smiled at her, and brushed her face softly with his hand.
'One day,' Kyo thought to himself, as he watched the night appear from his position on the roof, as he had done so many times, 'One day I'll be strong enough to tell you.'
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Ich bin glücklich: I am happyIch weiß: I know
Ja: yes
So lala: Ok
Danke schön: Thank you very much
Mutti: mother
Nein: No
I'm sorry if I'm off on my German, but I don't really know much, so I've been doing my best with phrases.
And just in case anyone was wondering what the meaning of that one proverb about knotweed was, it was 'to each his own'.
So yay! Another chapter done! And I'm thinking of changing the genre to part romance, cause I think this is developing into a sort of triangle. So there we go. D Hope you all like! I'll try and get the next one up as soon as I can, but like I said, that assignment won't do itself…unfortunately. But the more reviews I get, the more motivated I am to write! Hehe. Please review! Till next time!