Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ Jyuunishi no Enkei Monogatari ❯ 5th Zodiac: Ryuu ( Chapter 3 )

Disclaimer: Fruits Basket and all its characters are properties of Takaya Natsuki-sensei and Hana to Yume comics. Everything else in this fanfic are figments of my imagination. Any similarities to name, places, yada yada yada are simply examples of the world's many coincidental mysteries.

Jyuunishi no Enkei Monogatari

Chapter 3: Ryuu

by Ina-chan

The room was silent, except for the occasional rustling of clothes or a container scraping against the wooden shelf that housed them. Mizugawa Tatsu has spent more than three-quarters of his life within the confines of this room. The first quarter, as a child, watching his father weaving almost magical medicinal herbs that can cure anything that ails the human body. The second quarter as his father's young and eager apprentice, absorbing the medicinal secrets that even the most common plant holds. And then finally, as the wise and respected Kampo-meishu that he is now.

"Sensei…I'm sorry to disturb you."

The tall, authoritative, handsome man lifted his head to face the young hesitant voice that called out to him, "What is it?"

"Kenju-san is here to see you," His young apprentice stated in one breath, before making an involuntary cringe

The older man felt that involuntary tick on his left eyebrow as he tried to suppress the annoyance that usually came along with it. He took a deep breath before replying to prevent what he's feeling from being reflected in his voice. The poor boy looked frightened enough as it is, "Did he say what he wanted?"

"No, he just asked to see you."

With that reply, the man simply let out another exasperated sigh, "Very well. I'll come and see him. Go prepare some tea." Might as well indulge the annoying dog. Otherwise, he'll simply barge into this sanctuary and make a bigger mess of things.

"Yes, sensei," the boy replied, relief evident in his voice

"After you're done, start double-counting the inventory," The man instructed as he tiredly rubbed his eyes, "For some strange reason, we seem to be short of some items that I was sure we stocked last week."

"Y-yes… sensei," the boy stammered nervously before disappearing out of the room

He shook the exhaustion clouding his head and got on his feet to meet his unwelcome visitor. What was that man thinking! He couldn't help but grimace in disgust. Despite being one of the Mizugawa Clan's respected advisors and strategists, Mizugawa Kenju continues to act like an irresponsible puppy. They were leaving for the Souma territory the next morning and there were still a lot of preparations to be done.

"Yaaa, Ta-chan!" His visitor greeted playfully upon his entrance, "Ah, preparing for tomorrow already? That's so much like you,"

The healer simply gave his visitor a stony expression as he took his seat opposite the scholar.

Kenju sweat-dropped at his reception, but the cheerful smile plastered on his face didn't falter, "Haaa… what's with the cold treatment. Tomorrow is such an important event, I just wanted to make sure that you're not nervous or anything."

"What gave you the idea that I will be?"

Before the scholar could reply, Setsuta appeared with a tray at hand and took his place on the side.

"Ah, Seta-chan has arrived to make his infamous tea! Come and lighten up now, Ta-chan. There are very few idyllic pleasures such as this at present. You should take advantage of it and enjoy it to the fullest! Am I not right, Seta-chan?"

"Just state your business and leave, unlike some people, we still have a lot of work to do."

Kenju sighed, "This is all your fault, you know. Why don't you just suck in your pride and beg Yuki-chan to come back. You would be finished three times earlier with her around."

"Yukino made her decision," Tatsu replied simply

"Did she, really?"

"……"

"Did you hear about what happened this morning? She caught the rabbit and the tiger returning home. Kouyou-kun's tongue slipped so she forced poor Izumi-kun to tell her everything. I told you that you there's no way to keep something like this a secret from her. She's Nagisa-chan's daughter after all."

"That's exactly the reason why we have to make sure she stays out of this."

"Taking Yuki-chan along may actually be an asset, you know. Between Kaji and Yuki-chan, Yuki-chan is the better speaker and negotiator."

"Even the more reason why she has to stay behind. If something should ever happen to all of us, I have the utmost confidence in her ability to replace Kaji."

"Oi, oi! Don't say such unlucky things," Kenju winced, "Besides, don't you think its rather cruel to talk about Yuki-chan like she's merely a spare tool? You practically raised her like she's your own daughter."

"I'm merely stating an undeniable fact. My feelings with the matter have nothing to do with it."

"Nevertheless, she's becoming more and more like her mother each day, it's rather frightening," The scholar commented, "I wouldn't be surprised if she already schemed something to sabotage the whole thing."

A loud clatter suddenly grabbed both men's attention as the yunomi in Setsuta's hand slipped and the porcelain shattered on the floor. A deep embarrassed flush appeared on the boy's face as he bowed and mumbled his apologies, then hurriedly tried to pick up the broken pieces on the floor. Before either men could utter another word, the boy disappeared from the room to fetch a new cup.

Kenju blinked, "Is it just me, or is Seta-chan not acting like himself?"

The elder man frowned. His apprentice did seem to be acting rather strangely today. Mizugawa Setsuta may be young and eager to please, but his youthful naiveté has not hindered his natural gift for the healing arts. There may be a five-year-difference between his age and Yukino, but it didn't stop him from catching up to his senpai's level in a very short time. Normally, the boy was an unstoppable, unpredictable, and not to mention vain chatterbox that always manages to bring the worst out of the Ice Princess and even test Tatsu's patience to the limit. Then again, this was the first time the boy was accompanying him to a trip. It was also the first time the boy is going outside the boundaries of the Mizugawa Terrritory, "He's probably just nervous. It's his first trip, and Yukino is not coming to guide him."

"Despite of yourself, it seems that you've become dependent on her as well," A small smile touched the scholar's lips, "Seeing Yukino now, are you sure you're not regretting it?"

"Regretting what?"

"Letting her go."

"Yukino made her decision."

"That's not what I meant."

The healer gave the scholar a long silent look before giving quiet reply, "She made her decision."

"Like mother, like daughter," Kenju made a small laugh, "Two women in one lifetime… things aren't looking good for you, Ta-chan."

"Idiot."

" Saaa, I better leave before I use up my welcome," Kenju replied as he got on his feet

"You were never welcome in the first place."

"Aaah, Ta-chan, that's so cruel," The scholar cried in mock injury before turning into a more serious tone, "But all kidding aside, I know how seriously worried you are. Otherwise, you wouldn't push so hard on convincing Kaji to leave Yuki-chan behind."

"You really are on your nosy streak today, aren't you?" The healer frowned in annoyance

"You know that… She really did love you," Kenju stated, ignoring his friend's quip

"I know," Tatsu replied unexpectedly, "It's just too bad that she loved him more."

"Then suck in that damn pride and don't repeat the same mistake with her daughter," The scholar stated, anger evident in his voice

Tatsu looked at his friend in surprise, only to be met by the other man's uncharacteristic, unsmiling, steely gaze.

"I loved her too, you know," Kenju stated unabashedly, "That's why I can't forgive anyone who hurts even a single strand of hair on what's most precious to her. Even if it's you."

With those parting words, the scholar turned on his heels and left, leaving the healer to close his eyes to ponder on his own thoughts in silence.

"Sensei… are you alright?"

The older man brushed his weariness aside before looking up to face his worried apprentice watching a short distance away, "I'm fine. There's still a lot to do. Let's get started on recounting the inventory."

The boy remained silent as clutched the yunomi in his hands tightly. It was only then that the healer noticed the almost unnoticeable tremor on the boy's hands. New lines of worry etched on the older man's forehead. "Setsuta, what's wrong?"

With that, the boy burst into tears, "I'm sorry Sensei… you trusted me… but I think I did something very bad."

***

The door silently opened, and the Fire Prince automatically raised his defences upon seeing who was re-entering his domain. The Ice Princess stood by his door, meeting his gaze with a bland unreadable expression, before wordlessly stepping inside. She nudged the sliding door behind her with her foot before wordlessly settling the tray she was carrying on the now empty table before her brother, and then settled herself on the floor across from him.

His weary gaze followed her sister's hands as she meticulously arranged the contents of her tray. She poured the steaming tea in the yunomi she placed in front of him, before pouring one for herself. With the action done, she settled back on her heels and continued to give her brother her trademarked icy glare. The Fire Prince simply met her gaze with silent suspicion, bracing himself for round two.

She finally closed her eyes and let out a long sigh, "A silk parasol."

"Eh?" Kaji blinked, slightly confused at the direction she was heading

"Kouyou-kun told me that traders from Chuuka frequent the Souma territory. So I want a silk parasol," Yukino replied patiently, as if trying to explain something to a 4-year-old child

"Kouyou?" Kaji echoed, still confused

"You sent him and Kaisen-san off to give your reply to Souma-kou, remember? He just came back a few minutes ago. He said there were silk parasols in the market square all the way from Chuuka, with different flower prints in every colour imaginable. He was going to get me one but Kaisen-san wanted to get home right away. So I want a silk parasol. Depending on what kind you bring back, I just might forgive you," The Ice Princess explained in a deadpan voice

"Very well then," The Fire Prince softened at his sister's olive branch, "I'll even buy you a matching furisode, geta and zori sandals, and fan."

"They'll have to be the expensive kind," Yukino intoned

"I'll get the best and most expensive one," he laughed as he gave a big smile before bringing his yunomi to his lips and drained half its contents, the sweetened liquid flowing smoothly into his throat, "Aaaah! Did you put honey in the tea again?"

Yukino automatically refilled her brother's half-filled cup, "That's how mother used to make it."

"But not with this much honey," Kaji teased in mock annoyance, "You really are hopeless with these things. How can you expect to find a husband if you can't even make a proper pot of tea."

The young woman bit her lip and lowered her eyes, her hands automatically clenching into tight fists on her lap.

"Aaaah! She's itching for a fight," Kaji grinned at his sister's predictable reaction, as he lifted his arms to cover his face in self-defense "Here it comes!"

But instead of the usual strong verbal rebuke that followed, the Ice Princess stayed silent and unmoving from her position. The Fire Prince frowned and looked at her with growing concern. He couldn't help but feel a strong sense of dismay as he saw the silent streams of clear liquid flowing down his sister's face from her hidden eyes.

"Ara! I was just joking," Kaji began as panic started to from his chest, upon the realization of how serious the situation really was. "It's not bad at all. Look, I'll drink the rest of it…" With those words, he took the cup drank its contents empty in one long continuous swig.

For some strange reason, in only caused the young woman to cover her face with her hands and burst into hysterical sobs.

"Achaaaa…. I don't understand you at all…" The young man scratched the back of his head in bewilderment, "If this is still about the trip, I told you not to worry. Everyone will come along to protect me. And before the new moon rises, we'll have a treaty with Souma-kou done, we'll all be back home safe and sound, and everything will go back to the way things were, just like Father was still alive. Then you can go back to your hobby of breaking unsuspecting men's hearts."

"I'm… sorry… Onnichan…" Yukino managed to choke in between sobs

Not even an annoyed look, or forced smile. With that, Kaji began to really get worried. He knew how much his sister hated to cry. He also knew that she hated crying in front of another person even more. Even in if that person was him. He hadn't seen his sister cry so inconsolably since their mother died. He rose to his feet to go to her only to fall back in surprise as his legs collapsed under him.

He looked back at his sister, only to see her image starting to blur and dance before his eyes. His eyes widened as it fell upon the empty yunomi in front of him as well as the full untouched one in front of his sister. It finally made sense. It was only then he noticed it. Disguised underneath the tea's sugary sweetness, was a strange foreign aftertaste. He desperately fought against an unseen force as felt his entire body quickly started to feel like lead.

"Yu…ki…no…" was all he could manage to utter, as he gave his sister a wounded look of betrayal

"I'm sorry Oniichan," The Ice princess whispered again.

Those were the last words he would hear from her, as his eyes lost its battle and the rest of his body followed its descent into the darkened pool of dreamless sleep…

End of 5th Zodiac

Author's squawk:

After 6 months hiatus and this story basically not getting anywhere because I was stuck… I came to the major decision of jumping zodiacs in the Jyuunishi and sticking to the zodiacs connected to the main storyline. It was a hard decision to make, but I had to. Because this story is begging to be finished, and it was a shame not to finish it just because I can't insert storylines for the zodiacs in-between the main characters directly involved in the main plot. Nonetheless, if inspiration hits me, I'll probably re-visit them again as side stories. Haaaa… its kinda disappointing not to pull this off as I originally planned though. Ah well… I hope you guys still find this fic interesting, even though it's an alternate reality and stuff.

First off… the earlier chapters are available in FF.NET, please C&C if you have time.

And how do you like the bomb I dropped with Tetsu's storyline? Actually, I wasn't planning on doing that originally either… but I needed a more concrete reason to Yukino's reluctance with her suitors, ne? And it ties up better in the later chapters as well. ^_^. Heh-heh… I'm tempted to write a side story to that too… but what the hey! ^_^.

Anywayz… articles found in the fic…

Kampo-meishu - <sweatdrops> I can't find the proper title for a "botanist" in the ancient times, so I made one up (it literally means "Kampo expert"). If anyone knows, let me know. ^_^. Kampo (or Kanpo is the newer reference to it) is an ancient Japanese traditional medicine that mainly uses medicinal plants. In the past, they actually used other stuff like animal parts, along with prayer. It's a medicinal system that originated and developed from Ancient Chinese Medicine in the Han Dynasty (around the 3rd Century or so). These Chinese texts came to Japan around the 7th - 9th Century, and Kampo was developed from there. It's still practiced in Japan (and some parts of the world) as a form of "alternative medicine".

Yunomi - is the porcelain cup used for tea

Chuuka - is another word for Mainland China (a.k.a. Middle Kingdom).

Furisode - is a long-sleeved kimono worn by single women

Geta sandal - any sandal with a separate heel, usually used for formal occasions.

Zori sandal - no heels, usually used for informal occasions

PUN W/ KANJI SECTION (this part is where I make them fun puns with the character's names based from the characters of the original FURUBA storyline… ^_^.)

Setsuta - Ahhh… the kanji I chose for this name is pretty lame and obvious. It means "eager snake" ^_^.

Kouyou - is word which means "fall colours", another pronunciation for the kanji for "momiji" which means "maple" or "autumn foliage"

Kaisen - "Kai" means flowing water, "sen" is another word for "river". The name sorta evolved from Kisa's name which means "ethereal/delicate river". Originally, I was trying to find a nice sounding kanji combination that meant "unstoppable river" or "unstoppable force", since that's what the Tiger zodiac's personality is supposed to be. But this one sounded fine… ^_^.

Well then, comments, criticisms, bricks… you know where to send them! ina_chan@yahoo.com

Ja!

Ina-chan