Hey guys! Back with another chapter! Enjoy!
Tikari woke up at a fairly early time the next morning. It was her first day of school. Well, to Kaibara High at least. She had gone to school before, but since she started staying with Hatori, and that was at least a year ago. She changed into her school uniform packed all of her necessary stuff she needed for school into her bag. She left her bag in her room as she went downstairs to see if anyone was up.
Indeed, everyone in the house was awake. Shigure was reading the newspaper at the small table in the living room while Tohru was sipping at a cup of tea. They exchanged "good mornings" before Tikari entered the kitchen. Kyo was drinking milk out of the carton while Yuki was searching for something quick to eat out of the fridge. At least they weren't fighting, for once. She said her good morning and only Yuki returned it. Kyo just grumbled something before continuing to gulp down milk.
Tikari rolled her eyes slightly at Kyo before walking over and getting a bowl, spoon, and a box of cereal out. She poured the cereal into her bowl and set it on the counter. She glanced over at Kyo who had stopped to catch his breath. She quickly snatched the carton out of his hands, which thankfully wasn't empty, and began pouring some milk into her bowl.
"Hey!" Kyo protested.
"Well, instead of hogging the milk, why don't you get a cup like a normal person, and let others use it, too." Tikari finished pouring the needed amount of milk into her bowl of cereal and handed it back to him. "Here, you can have it back now."
Kyo gratefully snatched it out of her grasp and began gulping down more milk.
Tikari rolled her eyes and leaned against the counter, eating her cereal. Once she was finished, she drank the milk that was left in her bowl and rinsed it out in the sink. She put the box of cereal back up in the cupboards before exiting the kitchen and going back into the living room. She remembered that Yuki and Kyo hadn't been fighting this morning. Had Kyo taken her words into consideration? Or was he just in a particularly good mood today? Either way, she was glad for the quiet morning. She noticed Yuki, Kyo, and Tohru getting ready to leave and she quickly went up to her room to grab her bag. She took a quick glance in the mirror before grabbing a brush and running it through her long hair. She didn't really care about looks, but her hair was a mess. She couldn't believe no one noticed, or at least mentioned it to her. She then went back downstairs to meet up with them.
"We'll be back!" Tohru called to Shigure.
"Bye! Be safe!" Shigure called back, not glancing up from his newspaper. Though, he did glance up to wave back and smile when Tikari waved at him.
Tikari followed in between Tohru and Kyo with Yuki on Tohru's other side as they headed for school. She had to admit, she was kind of nervous. She didn't show it, though. Her steps were even as well as her breathing and her green eyes reflected nothing but the trees and the sky. Her long orange and black hair blew in the slight breeze behind her.
Once they got to school, Tohru showed her around the school and to two of her best friends, Saki Hanajima and Arisa Uotani. They prefer to be called Hana and Uo for short. They seem like really nice people. She learned that Hana was a psychic and that she could sense electric signals from everyone. She even said that Tikari's was the same as Kyo and Yuki's, which in turn she was answered with nervous glances from Tikari and Tohru. But naturally, the day went by quick. In between one class though, she was stopped by the student council president, Takai. Boy, was he annoying or what? He went on about how Tikari's and Kyo's hair color was unacceptable. They in turn told him that it was natural.
"And I suppose those black tips of yours are natural as well." Takai had said.
"Yes, in fact they are." Tikari had answered.
He really was annoying, to the point where Tikari wanted to snap his neck then and there, but that was agreeable with Kyo as well. She was fairly easily able to restrain herself from doing so, and his ranting was interrupted by the next class bell. Thank god. But the day went by rather quickly none the less.
When they got home, Tikari decided to go to bed early and work on her homework. It was fairly easy and she finished it early. She changed out of her school clothes and got into bed. She sneezed softly as a bit of dust entered her nose. She then fell into a deep sleep.
A few days passed with not much excitement. Kyo and Yuki fought occasionally, despite Tikari's words to Kyo a few days earlier. She didn't expect it to change much though, of course, because they were so used to arguing whenever they saw each other. Well, Kyo always started it first, but it was still the same. Sometimes, whenever Kyo would be out on the roof, Tikari would join him and just either sit quietly or make small talk with him. Now, it was a Saturday, and thick dark clouds covered the sky, making the world dark and gloomy with rain.
Tikari wondered if it was just a rainstorm as she stared out of her closed window. She sighed softly. As long as she didn't go outside she would be alright. The rain always made her weak. I suppose it was the same with all the Sohma's cursed by the cat. She turned and walked out of her room into the fairly dark house. It was early morning and she didn't expect anyone to be up. And indeed, no one was out and about in the house. No one except her. She walked into the kitchen and reached up to open the cupboard when a flashback came to her.
Tikari was five. Her parents had left her home alone to go on an errand. It was a rainy day and she was fixing herself a bowl of cereal, which she failed miserably, because she had spilled the box of cereal on the floor in the kitchen. The house was dark except for a few lamps here and there in the house.
Just then, a bright flash erupted from the windows, and soon a loud crash followed. Tikari yelped in shock and fear and threw herself under the kitchen table, huddling and clutching her body in an attempt to keep herself safe. She had never felt so scared in her life. With each flash of lightning and crack of thunder, she clutched her knees tighter to her chest and squeaked in fear. When her parents had come home, she ran to them and cried in their embrace, wanting nothing more than the company of the people she felt most safe around.
Tikari hesitated at the handle of the cupboard and retracted her hand slowly. A soft flash of light brought her out of her flashback memory and she immediately clutched her face with her hands, flinching as the soft, distant thunder followed half a minute later. She peeked through her fingers before removing her hands from her face and took a deep breath, letting it out in a shaky sigh, trying to calm herself down. Once she succeeded, she exited the kitchen and walked back upstairs to her room. Halfway up the stairs, a large, unexpected flash filled the staircase and a loud crack of thunder followed not a second later. She yelped and scrambled up the stairs loudly, surely waking everyone in the house, and entered her room, slamming her door unintentionally behind her. She then leapt onto her bed and threw her covers over her, huddling and trembling from fear in her bed.
From the room next to her, Tikari could hear Kyo grumble about something. Another bright flash of lightning shown through the blankets and she yelped as the thunder rolled overhead, clutching her ears tightly as if her life depended on it.
Soon after, a soft knock was heard on her door. "Tikari? Are you alright?" Even though the voice was muffled through the door, she could tell it was Yuki.
Tikari swallowed and tried as best as she could to make her voice sound confident. "Yeah, I didn't mean to wake you up, Yuki. I'm fine!" She was surprised that she was able to keep her voice from wavering.
Yuki answered with an "okay" before leaving her alone. He probably went back to his bedroom.
After that, the thunderstorm slowly started getting worse and the time between the flash of lightning and the thunder and back again had diminished until they were only seconds apart.
Tikari tried to keep her shouts of fright down to a low squeak so no one would worry. But it was beginning to grow harder with each loud crack of thunder. Somehow, she managed to kick off her protective covers and she opened her eyes once to see an orange glow in the distance from her window. A lightning bolt must have struck a tree in the forest and set it ablaze. The loudest crack of thunder she had heard from this thunderstorm rolled, seeming to shake the house down to its core. Tikari screamed, unable to hold her voice in any longer. By now, tears had streamed down her face and stained her shirt. She soon transformed with a poof. When the smoke cleared, she was now replaced by an orange cat with black ears, paws, nose, and tail-tip. She had her paws over her head, flattening her ears, her green eyes squeezed tight, tears still rolling down her cheeks, and she shook violently from tremendous fear. She just lay huddled up in the middle of her bed.
Loud thumping sounded outside her room and her door slid open. "Hey! Are you alright?!" It was Kyo.
Tikari opened her eyes halfway to see Kyo standing in her doorway with Yuki and Tohru standing behind him with worried or concerned faces. She opened her mouth to say something when another crack of thunder interrupted her, making her squeeze her eyes shut and mewl pathetically instead. She really did feel pathetic right then and there. Hatori had only seen her once like this, but not a whole bunch of people. They all seemed tough and nothing could ever scare them – well, minus Tohru - and here she was, transformed from too much stress and mewling fearfully about a stupid thunderstorm.
Tikari could hear the shuffle of feet in her room and then her bed creaking softly from weight suddenly sitting on it. She then felt a set of hands pick her up and set her down on their lap, placing a comforting hand on her back. She flinched when another crack of thunder rolled over head and only allowed herself to let out a small squeak before opening her eyes.
Tohru and Yuki sat on her bed in front of her, staring at her in concern and possibly sympathy. She then lifted her head to glance up to her comforter. Kyo stared down at her, a flash of worry shown in the back of his crimson eyes. She held his gaze for a moment before glancing back at Yuki and Tohru.
"Tikari, are you afraid of thunderstorms?" Tohru asked softly.
Tikari nodded slightly, her green eyes were still glazed over with fear and her cheek fur was stained with tears that still flowed. "Ye-Yes…" Her voice wavered and seemed almost hoarse. Another loud crack of thunder. She mewled in fright and clutched the top of her head with her paws, claws included. She could feel Kyo's hand gently stroke her back in a soothing, rhythmic motion. She scooted closer to his shirt and snuggled into him, enjoying his comfort. She slowly opened her eyes and glanced at the trio on her bed. She opened her mouth as she began to speak. "Why… y-you worry… about m-me?" She flinched and dug her claws deeper into her head when the thunder rolled once more.
A hand touched her paws and, with a bit of effort despite her silent protests, removed them from her head. Tikari had drawn a bit of blood from the top of her head from where her claws had dug into her skin. But she didn't care, anything was better to keep her mind off the things that brought fear to her mind. She now felt a hand stroking the top of her head, and she only guessed it was Kyo.
"Because, we're your friends," Yuki told her softly. "We can't let you suffer with something like this alone."
"Yes." Tohru agreed. "We're here for you now."
Tikari opened her green eyes and stared at them. She swallowed before opening her mouth once more. "Thanks guys…" She whispered. A softer crack of thunder rolled overhead and she flinched, closing her eyes. She then nestled her face into Kyo's shirt, flattening her ears and rubbing away her tears. She kept her head there as the thunderstorm quieted over time and seemed to have moved on. Soon, she fell asleep in his lap, finally feeling safe and just tired from bawling her eyes out. She didn't know where everyone went after that, but she was sure they left her room.
AAWWW! Kyo's so gentle and caring :3 its a bit of a fluffy moment between the two X3 I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter as much as i did! Plz Review!