Disclaimer: I
don't own Fruits Basket, or the wondrous Mabudachi Trio, or, for that
matter, littlefiction's challenge idea.
Pairing: Slight
Hatori x Ayame x Shigure, mainly slight Ayame x Shigure. As well as
some Hatori x Shigure.
Summary: Ayame convinces Shigure and
Hatori to set aside a day for a fun-filled time at his shop—during
which they make calendars for one another. Hatori winds up in a
dress, Shigure's all over the place, and the lofty snake that planned
it all feels some unexpected emotion.
Note: I apologise for the lack of updates. But it's two days after my birthday, so review!
C-day:
Shigure
chapter
two
With no more delays, Hatori and Ayame put out their hands to pick one of the two straws Mine had just brought out and displayed before them. Of course, Ayame went first, and tore his out with a flourish.
Hatori saw Aaya's face fall a little when he saw that the straw he had picked had not been cut. But that was gone in an instant, and Ayame suddenly whirled around to face the doctor, beaming. "Tori-san," he bubbled, sweeping his silvery hair back out of his face and tossing it behind his shoulders most elegantly, "you shall be making Gure-san's calendar today!"
Ha'ri stopped himself from groaning at the last minute, and sulkily picked up the camera. "Fine," he grumbled, and flicked a hand at his two friends. "Now—pose, or something…"
Shigure frowned deeply, and wagged a finger in front of the camera's lens. "No, no," he insisted, "Haa-san, you must instruct us on which poses to make!"
"I don't care," Hatori admitted, but then began to admire the situation from an artist's point of view. Kana had been very creative, and thinking back on their time together, Ha'ri guessed that she had rubbed off on him a little. "All right, then," he sighed, defeated, and pointed at the cushy yellow armchair. "Shigure, go sit in the chair. Ayame, I want you to…"
"Sit on his lap? Wrap my arms around his neck?"
"…stay out of the picture."
Aaya sighed in disappointment. "Fine, then," he said, faking annoyance, and walked over to the other side of the room. He watched as Shigure walked over to the chair and draped himself into it dramatically, and as Hatori clucked in annoyance and told the dog to sit up straight and act businesslike. Then, Ayame laughed, causing his two friends to glance over with raised eyebrows. In response, he gushed, "Tori-san's taking this so seriously!"
A hint of pink was sprinkled across Hatori's cheeks as he looked away and grumbled, "That's what you wanted, isn't it?"
"Yes, of course!" chimed in his two friends as the doctor desperately tried to rub the embarrassed flush off his cheeks as if it were a stain.
Moments later, they had returned to their picture taking.
"No, Shigure," Hatori insisted as the dog yet again slumped down in the yellow chair in an attempt to looked suave. "Sit up straight! Try to look businesslike for once, why can't you?" Shigure frowned slightly, but sat up all the same. Hatori nodded and snatched a book off Ayame's shelf. Without pausing to examine it, the dragon tossed it at the dog and said, "Now, pretend to be reading this book."
Shigure caught the paperback deftly and brought it close to see what it was. He recognised it, and tried to stifle his laughter. "All right," he said despite the odd looks his friends were giving him, "go on and take the picture, Haa-san."
Shrugging in confusion, Hatori peered through the viewfinder and snapped the shot when he thought Shigure looked right. The doctor then examined the picture on the little screen that Aaya's digital camera offered, only to have his face go suddenly white, then progress to a lovely shade of pink, then dark red, and finally a curious shade of green.
"Shigure!" he shouted, embarrassed and angry.
The dog had moved in the instant Hatori took the picture, so that suddenly he was beaming like the lewd idiot that he was and offering a thumbs-up to the camera as he displayed the magazine that Ha'ri had tossed him for the camera. Oh, if only Hatori had stopped to examine the subject matter of what he had thrown to Shigure, the picture might have turned out quite differently indeed.
"It's your own fault!" Shigure argued, though he was laughing. He tossed the book at Aaya, who studied it for a moment before chuckling heartily.
"Well done, Tori-san," murmured Ayame as he tossed the porno doujinshi into the back of the shop, "you have captured Shigure's true essence on camera. I applaud you."
Hatori's face had gone red again. "Why do you have something like that?" he demanded, but Aaya simply laughed again in response.An hour soon went by, and Hatori only managed to take three pictures.
One was the one of Shigure in the armchair with the doujinshi in hand.
The second was him blatantly laughing at the camera—something his doctor friend had said had made him laugh, so Hatori snapped a picture. As expected, the dog wasn't too fond of this shot and kept demanding that Hatori delete it. The dragon refused to, saying that it would make the perfect cover picture.
The third was the best of the three—at least in Hatori's opinion.
He had caught Shigure looking out the window, clutching a small blossom in his hand that had blown in through the open window. He had looked pensive—finally an expression Hatori wanted to catch on film. The doctor had quickly snapped the shot, surprising Shigure and unfortunately jerking him out of the mood and causing him to whirl around to face his friend and smile.
But it was the saddest smile Hatori had ever seen Shigure wear, and for some reason he was glad Aaya was out of the room. It made Ha'ri feel awfully sad. There was something behind that smile, Hatori knew—something connected to the flower. He didn't have the slightest idea what it was, though.
Didn't have the slightest idea that it had everything to do with Akito.Several more pictures were taken, but then Hatori insisted that the three stopped for lunch. Aaya had packed enough lunch for the Mabudachi Trio—but after looking in the box, Hatori preferred his own lunch instead.
They dined with Mine in the back of the shop. Ha'ri took the camera with him just in case.
"Yum," munched Shigure about halfway into the meal. He glanced over at Hatori and smiled, his earlier mood forgotten. "You don't know what you're missing, Haa-san, this is delicious."
"Mine cooked it!" burbled Aaya, smiling and patting Mine on the head.
"This is so good, Kuramae-san!" chirped Shigure, and was immediately blinded by a flash. "Hey!" he exclaimed, nearly spitting out all of his food.
Behind the camera, Hatori was practically grinning, but his face was blank by the time he lowered it. "It's a good picture," he said softly, suppressing his smile. "An interesting picture."
Half an hour later, they were back out in the main room of the shop and Hatori had given up on getting Shigure to pose in a businesslike manner. Instead, an evil idea had formed in his head, and his good eye was sparkling as he said, "Shigure, since you enjoyed so much the sight of me in one of Ayame's gowns, I want you to wear one in this next picture."
Shigure paled a little, but smiled. "Fine!" he agreed, just as Aaya exclaimed eagerly, "Can I choose it?"
"No!"
"Yes," Hatori insisted at the same time as Shigure's desperate cry. "Go ahead, Ayame."Ten minutes later, Shigure shuffled out of Aaya's dressing room clothed in a fantastic robe of bright purple—much more exciting than the usual grey things he wore—that had little white roses embroidered on the sleeves and at the hem.
"Lovely," choked Hatori upon seeing him. He had not been this amused in a long time.
Ayame clapped his hands happily. "Spin around, Gure-san!" he instructed, and Shigure did as told, slowly brightening as he looked around. "You look wonderful," gushed Aaya, and Shigure grinned and mock-bowed.
"Yes, I know," he agreed, and looked down at himself. "This isn't so bad," he commented. "Very comfortable. What's it made of, Aaya? I might buy one to sleep in. Or surprise Kyo with. I can't decide."
As Ayame blabbered about how Mine had sewn that particular robe, Hatori began to feel a little put out. The plan he had so deviously formed had backfired completely—he had been completely ready to snap several pictures of Shigure in humiliation, but the dog seemed quite happy! "Ridiculous," grumbled the doctor under his breath. Nevertheless, he raised the camera.
"Shigure," he called out, and the dog whirled around with a beam on his face, completely ready to be photographed.
Hatori snapped away, until finally Aaya pleaded, "Can't I join in, please?" Reluctantly, Ha'ri agreed, knowing that as soon as Ayame stepped into the picture—no pun intended—the dog and the snake would get silly and Hatori wouldn't have any more professional-looking photos. Oh, well, thought Hatori, what do I care? It's not my calendar.
Aaya practically threw himself into the photo and slung his arms around Shigure, who grinned and echoed the movement. Hatori took the photo, and examined the outcome. They had such open grins on their faces that it made the stony doctor want to smile.
And yet, it also filled him with a sort of sadness, and something else. That something else felt suspiciously like a twinge of jealousy.
Hatori hated it, and he grew suddenly grew very sour and pushed the camera towards Shigure. "Here," he said. "Why don't you take pictures for a while."
Shigure frowned. "No, that's not how it works, Haa-san," he insisted, but Hatori was already halfway out the door. The dog released the puzzled Ayame, and called out, "Where are you going?"
"Outside."
"I knew that much."
Hatori turned at the shred of annoyance in Shigure's tone. He raised an eyebrow and motioned to the unlit cigarette in his hands. "I need a cigarette," he said slowly and left the room.
The dog stared after his friend for a moment before turning to Aaya and holding up the camera. "Say cheese," said Shigure, and snapped the picture.Outside, Hatori took a long drag of his now lit cigarette and leaned against the wall tiredly, closing his eyes. Never before had he realised just how exhausting behind surrounded by his two closest friends was.
"Hatori-san?"
The doctor's eyes snapped open. Standing before him was Shiraki Mayuko. A smile twisted her lips, and she brushed light hair out of her eyes. "What are you doing here?" she asked him.
"Well, uh, Mayuko-san…"
"Mayu."
Ha'ri ignored her, and continued, "Ayame invited me to his shop for the day. I'm just taking a break."
"Taking a break, huh?" Mayu said suspiciously, peering through the tinted glass panes of the shop's door with her hands on her hips. Seeing nothing, she pulled back and said, with a wry grin, "Does that mean Shigure's here too?"
"Haa-san!" exclaimed Shigure, bursting through the door at that very moment. The purple robe blew around him in the wind, and the roses on the sleeves nearly blinded Mayu, who was shocked into silence. "Haa-san," continued Shigure, "I've come to tell you…" Just then, he noticed Mayuko's presence and grinned widely. "Mayu-chan!" he bubbled, and twirled around. "Do you like my outfit?"
"Very much," answered Mayu mechanically. She turned back to Hatori, jabbed a finger towards Shigure, and asked calmly, "Why is he wearing a dress?"
"Because it looks good on me," Shigure declared before the doctor could say anything.
And had they not been in a public place, Hatori would have strangled him.Author's Notes: I thought sticking Mayuko in for a bit would be good fun. Review!