Well, this chapter is actually a better version of the one I had up here originally. I knew I had written it, but I only found it today! Whoops! So here's a special treat for those of you who are new to the story or who happen to be rereading it!
Disclaimer: Wish I owned Furuba, but I don't. Also wish I owned Matchbox 20 but I don't (even though I borrowed their song "All I Need" for this chapter)!
GONE…?
Chapter 10- Tearful Farewell
In the early hours of morning, Kyo Sohma, always alert, heard the soft click of a door sliding shut. He froze in his crouched position, wondering whom on earth, other than himself of course, was up at the crack of dawn. The rustle of silk on dewy grass, and the nimble footsteps coming closer to him gave him an idea who it may be and his heart leapt in joy as he sprang to his feet. There, on the other side of his barred window, stood a young girl, her soft brown hair was slightly mussed from a restless night, and she held herself rigid as though she might break. "Hey!" he called softly through the bars.
"Kyo-kun! I'm sorry, did I wake you?" she asked politely.
"As if I could sleep in a cage like this," he snarled, albeit quietly.
"I'm so sorry Kyo-kun! This is all my fault. Now I'll never be able to see you again! I'm scared… I-I don't know what to do anymore. Where am I supposed to go? I can't leave you like this! What will you do?" Once again the tears sprang up from the infinite pool inside her, cascading down her porcelain cheeks.
Everywhere someone's getting over
Everybody cries and sometimes
You can still lose even if you really try
"Shh. Don't worry about me. I'll be okay. Just worry about yourself for once. No, listen to me," he said quickly, as she opened her mouth to protest. "You need to get yourself out of here and then go to a friend's house. I don't care whose, that yankee thug's or the psychic freak's, whatever you need to do. Act normal. Don't tell them about Akito or me or anyone else. Make up something, I don't care. Just lay low for awhile, just in case. Take care of yourself." His hand reached through the bars to caress her cheek. "Please, do it for me. For everyone. Just go and don't look back."
"Kyo-kun…" she grabbed his hand and held it to her cheek. "I'll miss you so much!"
"Listen," he said quietly averting his eyes, his face reddening even as he thought about it. "If… If I ever get out of here, I'll find you. I'll come look for you, so… So wait for me, okay?"
"All right," she answered after a moment, attempting a small smile. "You won't forget?"
"No. Now get going before someone sees you!" he hissed, withdrawing his hand back into the dark confines of his prison.
Tohru took a step back and stared at him in the dim light of the coming sun, her mind capturing the moment so she would never forget. Then with a last glance, she turned away, and ran back to Hatori's house as fast as her kimono would allow her.
(Scene change)
The sun was high in the sky when Tohru Honda took a last look around the Sohma estate. Nearly all of the Sohmas had shown up, gathering in twos and threes all along the perimeter of the grounds. Momiji and Kisa were crying into Hatsuharu's shoulders. Ritsu was spazzing out and ranting about how he should have been punished instead of Tohru. Ayame was silent for once, standing beside the stony faced Hatori. Hiro was nowhere in sight. Kagura had not made an appearance at all, the others guessed it may have to do with Kyo being locked away.
Talking 'bout the dream like the dream is over
Talk like that won't get you nowhere
Slowly, Tohru made her way up to the gate. There before the wooden doors stood her guardian and the prince charming of Kaibara High School, to show her out of the life they had so willingly led her into. She reached Shigure first and looked at him expectantly. He merely smiled a very sad smile and said, "Thank you for everything little Tohru-chan. I hope you can brighten someone else's life with that beautiful smile of yours as much as you brightened ours." He then leaned down and whispered, "We'll sort this out, don't you worry." Then he patted her on the head, and stood aside to let her pass.
Everybody's trusting in their heart like the heart don't lie
Now all there was between her and the door to the outside world was Yuki Sohma, the last person Tohru had ever expected to meet and the last person she ever wished to leave in a way as shameful as this. For it was through Yuki that she had come to know the Sohma family and now through him she must pass, leaving him and all his secrets behind her. "Yuki-kun… Yuki, I… I don't know what to say… I… Thank you, so much… for everything! If I had never met you, if I had never met any of you… I can't even think of how my life would be. You fill me with so much happiness, Yuki-kun. I will miss you so much!" Again the tears threatened to fall, quivering at the edges of her vision.
"I should thank you Honda-san," he replied. "You've done so much for us. Akito has no right… It just isn't fair that it has to end this way…" He looked at her helplessly.
"Don't be sad," she told him gently, even though her heart felt ready to break into a hundred pieces. "I don't want you to get upset over me. This is how it has to be… I guess." She bowed her head in defeat. Yuki's slender fingers reached beneath her chin, raising her head gently to face him again, and softly, he kissed her cheek. Then, soundlessly, he stepped away, melting with the small crowd around her.
Putting on her best smile, she turned to the Sohma family and bowed respectfully to them. "Thank you so much for everything," she said clearly. "Good bye!" With that, she opened the gate and disappeared from the Sohma estate forever. The Sohma clan watched her go. Even after the gate creaked closed on its ancient hinges, they watched, spellbound and silent. The birds had ceased to chirp, no leaves rattled in the breeze. The world seemed to be holding its breath, as though everyone and everything in nature was expecting Tohru to come back through the gate and say, "I'm just kidding!" However, deep in their hearts the Sohmas knew that was simply not Tohru's style. She was gone for good and nothing they could do or say could change it.
And that's all that I need
Someone else to cling to and
Someone I can lean on until I don't need to
From his solitary window, Kyo too watched her go. He waited with baited breath, expecting something terrible to happen. He waited even until the crowd around the gate had dispersed entirely before sitting down again and sighing with relief. "She's gone," he said. "She's safe."
Just stay all through the night
And in the morning let me down
'Cuz that's all that I need right now
(scene change)
After leaving the estate, Tohru went directly to Shigure's house. It seemed so strange to return to this place without Kyo or Yuki or even Shigure with her. Using the spare key they had made for her, she unlocked the sliding door. The house was just as they had left it. The door to Shigure's office was wide open, books and newspapers scattered across his low desk and stuffed and stacked in every corner. The kitchen was spotless, as always. If she had nothing else for them, Tohru had kept their house in decent shape. Softly she made her way up the stairs. Each step creaked underfoot, cursing her name and crying out at the intruder. The one who did not belong. Her room seemed so full when she entered. She had three times as many belongings as she had had when she had first started living on her own. Underneath the bed, Tohru had placed several bags. Now, she took them out again and began to slowly fill them, item by item, memory by memory. Here a picture, there a textbook, on the nightstand a ribbon, in the chest a dress. And try as she did to hold the pain back, it refuse to stay hidden. The silent tears, hot and wet streamed down her cheeks of their own accord and blurred her vision as she packed away everything that she owned. Near the bottom of her stack of clothes, Tohru found the swimsuit that the boys and her friends had gotten for her and it made her want to laugh, but it was hard to laugh without sobbing. So many happy memories she had had with the Sohmas. For it all to end so suddenly… it almost seemed unfair. Finally she finished packing and after one last glance around she took her leave of the bedroom that was no longer hers. She paused for one thing only as she left Shigure's house. To leave her key and to write a note to Shigure explaining that she would be all right and to tell him not to worry about her. Finally, locking the door behind her, she left the last place she had been able to call home.
Tohru wandered for a long time, drifting in and out of the crowd in the middle of town, thinking about what Kyo had said. Find someplace safe. A friend's house. Now she was back to square one. Where she had started when her mother died. She could go to her grandfather's again where she would be treated like an outcast but still have a roof over her head, she could go to Hana's who was in a family of five, or she could go to Uo's who lived in a small apartment. I don't want to impose on them… And what am I supposed to say, they went on vacation? She had reached a bench and slumped down on it, setting her bags, with all her possessions neatly at her feet. I could always go live in a tent again, she thought sadly. Although I'll need to find a new job. My old one was in a Sohma building…
Everywhere someone's getting over
Everybody's lies to someone
People still use other people with a crooked smile
Once again she felt completely alone, helpless, and forsaken. "There's no room for sadness," she whispered, feeling lump in her throat rise again. "I need to focus. There's no room for sadness right now. I have to think of a way out of this mess."
And all around the world there's a sinking feeling
Out there, right now, someone's feeling
Down on themselves and don't know why
"Tohru?" called a voice. Looking up she saw a woman in an apron waving to her from across the street. "Hey!"
"U-Uo!" she called back. Without thinking, she got up and grabbing her bags, she dashed across the street.
And that's all that I need
Someone else to cling to and
Someone I can lean on until I don't need to…
"Tohru! Look out!" cried Arisa Uotani. A car was speeding right towards her. Tohru hadn't thought to look before she stepped out onto the main road, and now there wouldn't be enough time for the car to stop. It was going to hit her and it didn't matter what happened any more. She closed her eyes tightly, waiting for the end.
Dun dun dun! Oh the drama! Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Now go write me fun reviews!