Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ Custody ❯ Going home ( Chapter 14 )

Brigitta knew that in order to have an opportunity to talk to Momiji, she needed to make him move into the house with them. He had refused to do it when Tohru was around, saying that they didn't want to inconvenience them and that they were fine.

 

Brigitta wouldn't hear any of it this time.

 

The day after Tohru left, the woman drove under the falling snow to the hotel where he was staying at. It was very early in the morning. Momo was still sleeping when she left the house.

 

She decided to call him from the lobby rather than just knock on his door and surprise him. The phone rang about ten times before he finally picked it up.

 

-“Moshi moshi.” -he answered mechanically. She had to resist the urge to giggle. His voice was sluggish; she guessed that the phone had interrupted his sleep.

 

Brigitta recognized the greeting. Momo's father also had slips like this once in a while. Now that she recalled those episodes, she thought that Momiji's voice sounded very much like that of her son-in-law's on the phone. Right now, Momiji's voice was deeper, older. Another coincidence; a rather unsettling one. She decided to play along with the sleepy man.

 

-“Momiji-kun?” -She remembered that one. Another thing she owed to her son-in-law.

 

-“Obaa-san?” -another automatic, thoughtless answer.

 

Brigitta froze when she heard him. Of course she knew that word! Momo used to call her that when she was little. It stirred a million feelings in her heart, and a jumble of thoughts in her brain.

 

`Does he call me `grandmother' in his mind?' -The fact that it had been said in his native tongue while being practically unconscious made it all the more meaningful for her. It meant that it had been an instinctive response, given while he was in a condition when he couldn't remember how he was supposed to react. Tears threatened to blur her vision.

 

Unfortunately, she ran out of Japanese words to say.

 

-“Can I go up?” -she asked shyly.

 

-“Huh?” -came the unintelligent reply.

 

-“I'm at the lobby. I came to pick you up.” -She explained patiently. A few seconds passed before he answered:

 

-“Mrs. Hass.?” -Brigitta felt disappointed. Apparently he was awake now. “Sure! Come up!” -his voice had taken its characteristic cheerfulness again.

 

-“I'll be there in a minute.” -she finished.

 

His room was white. That was the first impression she got when he opened the door. It was a nice room, with expensive furniture and a plush carpet on the floor, but everything in it was white. It reminded her of a hospital room. So cold, like snow. Hotel rooms lacked the warmth of a home, despite all the work decorators put into trying to imitate it.

 

Momiji was still in his pajamas, trying unsuccessfully to tame his blonde locks with his hand. Even then, he looked extremely handsome. She wondered how Tohru could resist falling in love with him.

 

Against the screaming voice of reason inside her head, her heart filled with pride. Momiji had to be him.

 

-“I'm sorry Mrs. Haas for meeting you dressed like this. I just woke up. If you would sit down for a minute, I'll go and change.” -he rushed the words, clearly embarrassed.

 

-“No. Don't go yet. I want to talk with you. Please.” -She didn't want to talk to him dressed in some formal dress shirt and pants. It was too formal clothing for someone so young and apparently happy. She liked this more relaxed Momiji still in pajamas and with messy hair.

 

Momiji nodded and sat down on the bed, in front of her chair. He finally managed to comb his hair into the right position with his fingers. He was intrigued now. Brigitta had the same look in her eyes that she had that day in her kitchen for a moment, and then she composed herself and took on a more formal attitude.

 

-“Momiji, we need to talk about Momo. If I remember correctly, you said that you were here representing the Soumas, and that you would see that she was well and taken care of. Is that right?” -Her voice and body language radiated self-confidence.

 

Momiji took a couple of seconds to process the question in his brain (he had just gotten out of bed, after all). Shifting his stance, he sat straight and gazed into the woman's eyes. His eyes were suddenly cold, unrelenting. A polite smile on his lips contrasted with them. She thought that this is how he must look like when making a business deal. Whatever he had already decided, it was clear to her that he was not giving in.

 

-“Yes. I am taking Momo back with me after the holidays.” -He said casually. Brigitta squirmed slightly in her seat, but she was not giving up.

 

-“I can't let you do that.” -she said simply.

 

-“I can and I will. I'm in charge of the administration of Mr. Souma's businesses and properties in Japan, and I represent his interests in all legal matters. It will be easy to gain the custody of Momo.” - He said in a clear, crisp voice. It was not open to discussion. If possible, his eyes were colder now, hard and distant. He had clearly planned this long ago.

 

-“Is it about the money? Is that what you want?” -Brigitta was hurt, and didn't want to believe it. Momiji could see that clearly, but he was not letting his own emotions get in the way this time, or he would end up giving in to this woman. He kept on smiling.

 

-“I don't need her money. I have my work, my own money, and I have my own inheritance too. Momo isn't the only heir of the family.” -Brigitta had the impression that he wasn't talking about the Soumas in general, but about a branch of the family in particular.

 

She had to ask him. She needed to find out somehow.

 

-“Are your parents dead, too?”

 

-“Yes.” -was the short reply. He didn't feel like telling her anything else on the subject. However, she was not letting go of it so easily.

 

-“Both of them? How old were you?” -he could tell that she was really curious.

 

-“My mother died when I was four, and my father when I was sixteen.” -The answer came a little too fast, like he had explained this too many times in the past already. This time, however, his voice held a finality that would've made most people quit the subject. The smile disappeared from his face.

 

Brigitta was shocked. So he was not him after all. She felt like she had lost someone very dear to her. He was a stranger after all. `But how…?' She brought herself out of those thoughts. She would take the time to think this over later. Right now, her priority was to keep Momo with her.

 

-“I won't let you take her away. I am her grandmother and you are her cousin. I'm her closest living relative, and I want her with me.” -Her voice regained all of its strength and resolution.

 

Momiji didn't even flinch. He knew that this would come up; after all, she didn't know who he really was. He smiled inwardly despite himself at seeing her so determined. `So this is where I got it from. I'll have to tell Tohru.'

 

-“I am a close relative too, and trust me when I say that that is not going to be a problem.” -Momiji declared with certainty. He smiled at her.

 

`That smile again! How can he be so much like her and not be her child?' -Brigitta couldn't understand this.

 

-“You want me to give her to you…” -she began after a moment.

 

-“She is not yours to give. She is a Souma. She belongs to us.” -he interrupted. Then, he corrected himself. “No, she belongs to no one. We just want her back home.”

 

-“Who wants her to go back there? Is this an order from the Souma family?”

 

-“I want her back. She will be living with me and I will personally take care of her.”

 

-“You want me to let go of my grandchild,” she corrected herself, “a girl of fifteen so that she can live in another country with a single young man in his house?”

 

-“What are you implying?” -he seethed. He managed to erase any emotion from his face, turning it into a blank mask.

 

-“I think that you know well what I'm talking about. What will people think? If you want to protect her, you have to guard her good name too.”

 

Momiji smirked.

 

-“I can assure you that nobody at home will have the same doubts as you. Her reputation is safe with me.” -His voice betrayed some amusement.

 

-“Home? How do you know that she wants to go back, or if she even thinks of your country as `home'? She is well adjusted to this country, to the people, the culture, even the language! Haven't you noticed that she can't even speak Japanese well anymore? Besides, how do you know that your family will accept Momo? My daughter, her mother, never really felt like she belonged there. The Soumas never accepted her because she was a foreigner. She told me about all the glares she received whenever she visited the Main House, as you call it. How do you know that they won't do the same to Momo? That's one of the reasons why her husband agreed to move. They made new friends here, and they met their real family. This is where they made their home.”

 

-“They brought her here as a child. It's only natural that she adapted well. But I remember her crying when she said goodbye to me because she didn't want to leave. I am like Momo. My mother was a foreigner too, and they have never treated me different from the rest. The real reason why the Soumas never liked your daughter was because they could never accept something she did.”

 

-“What are you talking about? What did my daughter do?” -This was something she had never heard of before.

 

Momiji continued as if he didn't hear her. -“I asked Momo to consider going back with me. She promised to think about it.”

 

-“What if she doesn't want to go with you? What will you do then?”

 

-“I will not drag Momo away against her will. That is her decision to make, not yours, not even mine.” -He shrugged, but for the first time she could see some uncertainty in his eyes, even fear. She pressed on the subject.

 

-“I'm not letting her go so easily, even if she wants to. I think that as her grandmother, I know what is best for her better than she knows herself. I don't want her to make a decision now that she will regret in the future. So, if you want me to give her to you, you'll have to prove to me that you have more right than I to claim the custody of her.”

 

-“How?” -He was really interested now. `Is she willing to compromise?'

 

-“That's something for you to figure out on your own. And don't think that you've already won. This is my country after all. The law will be on my side.”

 

-“I am willing to fight for her against anything and anyone. If she wants to go with me, that is…” `I am not letting you take her from me this time. Not again.'

 

-“I think that a fight over her is the last thing she needs now. It will hurt her deeply.” -Brigitta told him.

 

-“I agree with you.” Momiji dropped all his defenses and offered in a calm voice. “Please, let's not talk about this again until after the holidays. Then we will reach an agreement depending on Momo's decision. Is that okay with you?”

 

-“Momo loves Christmas. It's going to be hard for her to celebrate the holidays just a few days after the death of her parents.” -Brigitta explained. “I agree to wait until after Christmas to talk with Momo about this.”

 

`Obaa-san, you really care about Momo, don't you? Am I really doing the right thing taking her away from you?'

 

Momiji looked at her with an unreadable emotion in his eyes. Brigitta softened her voice more to state her offer.

 

-“Momo loves you like an older brother, and I am her grandmother. We are her family. I came to pick you up this morning because I want you to check out of the hotel and stay at home with us.”

 

-“Stay at your home with you for Christmas?” His eyes were so hopeful now that he looked like the lonely child he had once been, craving love and acceptance. Brigitta had no way of knowing what her offer meant to him, but she recognized the emotions behind his bright eyes and slightly quivering voice.

 

-“But…” -he hesitated. He didn't know if he should accept her offer. It was his parent's house after all, and they never wanted him there. It was hard enough for him to visit, how was he going to manage to sleep under that roof, in a house so full of memories that didn't include him? He would feel like an intruder…

 

-“Please, Momiji.” -Brigitta asked once more.

 

Momiji looked at her. Her voice was kind, as well as her eyes. He really wanted to know her better. He wondered how it would be like to be hugged and spoiled by his grandmother. Maybe he could get an opportunity to find out if he stayed with them. He smiled shyly a sweet, calm smile and nodded his consent.

 

Brigitta let go of the breath she had been holding in anticipation. She was not giving up. It didn't matter to her that what he said didn't match with the story she knew. This young man, this child, had to be him. Her grandson. She smiled tenderly at him.

 

-“I'll help you pack. We can have breakfast with Momo at home, okay?”

 

Momiji nodded once again and silently began to hand her the clothes that she then folded and put in the suitcase carefully. As he watched her, he kept thinking:

 

`I'm going home with my family for Christmas.'

 

Brigitta watched him walk around the room carrying things and handing them to her silently. The cold, distant business man from a few minutes ago was gone and replaced by a shy boy with a wistful smile. When he left her alone while he changed, Brigitta dropped something that fell out of a black box. She bent down to pick it up only to discover that it was a photo album. Curiosity got the better of her and she leafed through the pages from where a little four year-old boy smiled sadly at her. Then she came across a picture of her son-in-law hugging the boy (who she had by now recognized as Momiji), both smiling. The last picture made tears blur her vision once more.

 

It was a picture of her daughter.