Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ Like Sand Through an Hour Glass ❯ In Days ( Chapter 8 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

LIKE SAND THROUGH AN HOUR GLASS
A Fruits Basket Fanfic

Written by Miyu, Vampire Princess


AUTHOR'S NOTES:
You can blame Mona-chan for this one. *gives hugs* If you have an insatiable appetite for Akito, then this is the story for you. And I'm going along with the revelations made in regards to Akito in Chapters 97 and 98 of the manga.

In this chapter, we see what happens in the wake of Akito's death. Will life go on as Akito planned? There's also a major assumption regarding the curse. I'm sure you'll pick up on it.

WARNING: spoilers for later chapters in the manga. No lemon here. Sorry. Comments are encouraged and welcome. A standard disclaimer follows the end of the chapter.


Chapter 8 - In Days



It was pouring down rain. Like mother nature had known that today was an especially sad day. Gray clouds lined the sky, sending down tears to greet the mourners gathered below.

Figures dressed in black stood huddled around a freshly dug grave. Some were covered with umbrellas. Others braved the weather with little a care in the world. They were gathered for one reason, and one reason only.

The death of a Sohma member.

Tohru would never forget that morning. She awoke with a start, surprised to be covered by a blanket. She quickly checked for the others. Hatori was still sleeping behind her. His even breathing didn't change, even as she placed a quick kiss on his cheek. Behind him lay Shigure. The inu was curled close to the dragon, feeding off his body heat. They, too, had been covered in blankets, even if she could see white flesh peaking out from beneath the cloth.

Sitting up fully, she stretched her arms over her head, yawning silently. The blanket dropped from her shoulders to her stomach, but she hardly cared. She was warm and the coolness of the room was a welcome change. Sleepily she continued to look around the room. Her eyes settled on a lump on the floor. Kureno and Akito? No, the lump didn't seem big enough. As her eyes adjusted it only turned out to be a mass of cloth. More blankets.

'Where?' A sillhouette drew her attention to one of the windows across the room. It had been opened allowing light from the rising sun to enter. Sitting there on the pillows was Kureno, his open, staring off at something outside. In his lap, dressed in a beautiful kimono was Akito. She still looked to be asleep, the morning light brushing her calm, subtle features.

"Ohayo, Tohru-kun."

Startled, she gasped as she realized Kureno had addressed her. She offered him a small smile. Pulling the blanket around her she bowed slightly.

"Ohayo, Kureno-san."

"Are you feeling well this morning?"

Now that tohru thought about it, her arms did ache. As did her knees and legs. One spot in particular ached, but not in a bad way. She blushed, keeping her head bowed. "I'm fine. Thank you."

"It was quite a night," Kureno replied, offering her a small smile in return.

"Yes," Tohru admitted, her blush turning a deeper shade of red. "It was."

Kureno returned his attention to a mysterious something outside. "It will be a beautiful morning." He looked down at the young woman in his lap. "Akito was never a morning person, but I always loved to watch the sunrise with her."

"Akito-san is quite serene when she sleeps," Tohru mused.

"And now...she'll sleep forever."

Tohru blinked, confused. "Sleep forever?"

Kureno simply nodded, hugging the prone form closer to his body. "When I awoke this morning, Akito...wasn't breathing."

"Ah." There was something in his voice that said something was wrong. What? "But...she's okay now." Tohru hugged the blanket closer to her. "Right?"

The bird shook his head, a single sliding down his cheek for the girl to see. "No."

"No?"

"She's...dead."

One hand raised to her mouth as she gasped. Akito was dead? How? Overexertion? Illness? She appeared to be fine the day before. Hatori had said nothing about her dying. And as her doctor, wouldn't he know? She wanted to say something, but there was really nothing to be said. "I'm sorry" just didn't seem appropriate. Instead, she slowly made her way over Kureno.

He was oblivious to her movement, tears falling freely as he buried his face in the safety of Akito's neck. He didn't even feel her arms wrap around him, hugging him, holding him. And Akito. Not even when her tears mixed with his did he acknoweldge her presence. He simply cried, holding onto the one thing he wanted to let go of the most.

It was a beautiful morning indeed.

Too bad Akito couldn't see it.

"Tohru?"

Blinking rapidly, the young woman's head jerked upward. Her eyes, filled with fresh tears, met with a pair of concerned dark ones. She tried to smile for the man beside her, her thoughts moving into the present.

"I'm all right, Hatori," she told him. "I'm just...sad."

"We all are." The new voice didn't belong to her beloved, but to the man standing on her other side. Shigure. She watched as he stepped forward, leaving the cover of umbrellas to place a small bouquet of flowers on the grave before them. He remained by the grave for a moment, then stood. He turned away from the group, walking back towards the main house.

He was followed by several other members of the jyuunishi. Kisa. Hiro. Haru. Momiji. Kagura. Kyo. Rin. Yuki. They each respectfully placed a flower on the grave. Some of them looked sad, others contemplative. The future was an open book now, and no one knew what to make of it.

Ayame followed his brother up to the grave. He knelt as Shigure did, whispering something to the fresh mound of dirt. Carefully he placed his bouquet of flowers on Akito's grave. Standing, he blew a kiss, then followed behind the others towards the main house. Ritsu followed on his heels.

Kureno replaced Shigure in the spot beside Tohru. Next to him was a young woman Tohru had known for years. She had been surprised only when she saw the girl walk through the gate the day before. Kureno, too, had been surprised, not realizing that the two were best friends. He relinquished her hand, now, moving to pay tribute to the person he loved...and loathed. She moved to stand beside her friend, the two of them clasping hands out of habit.

As Kureno returned and they prepared to leave, Tohru said, "Take care of him, Uo-chan."

The blonde woman smiled, nodding. To say good-bye, she leaned forward, placing a kiss to the other girl's forehead. With a smile, she turned, walking beside Kureno into the distance.

"Tohru," Hatori called to her. "It's our turn."

Together they approached the grave. Hatori knelt first, placing a red rose in the dirt. It was not her favorite flower, but a symbol. Of his love and devotion. He reamined there for several moments, in reflection, before standing.

Tohru crouched in the grass, placing her flower on the grave. It was nothing special, save for the yellow ribbon used as decoration. She felt the need to give Akito something special, since she had already done the same for her. Several tears fell before she wiped them away. She stood as Hatori reached for her, clasping her hand to lead her away.

She sighed. "What now?"

"I suppose we'll head over to Shigure's for a bit," Hatori replied. "Unless you're not feeling up to it."

"I'm okay. Really," Tohru replied. "You act as if I'm eight months pregnant."

"You will be in another seven months."

Tohru's hand instinctively lifted, covering her still flat stomach. "Do you think it will be a boy or a girl?"

Hatori shrugged. "I'm not particular."

"What kind of parents will we make?"

"Good ones, I hope."

Tohru suddenly frowned. "Will it...I mean, will it become...what Akito was?"

"Not if I can help it," was Hatori's immediate response. He squeezed her hand tightly. "We'll do our best, Tohru-kun. Our child deserves it."

"You're right," she said, a shadow of her smile returning. It lit up the moment she felt his hand leave hers, his arm snaking around her shoulders to pull her close. It was something he could not do up until yesterday. Until Akito had died. Her body grew warm, thoughts of love and safety entering her mind.

'You will not be forgotten, Akito,' Tohru thought as they continued towards the main house. 'Thank you for your gift.' She sighed. 'I only wish I'd gotten the chance to say it in person.'

As the pair disappeared in the distance, a cold wind kicked up near the grave. The flowers were scattered in the dirt and grass, leaving only one to lie in its center. A single white flower wrapped in a yellow ribbon. The rain came to a halt and a single ray of light shown through the gray clouds. Unnoticed in the breeze was a phrase, spoken in a ghostly voice.

'You're welcome.'


~FIN~


DISCLAIMER:
Fruits Basket is owned by Natsuki Takaya/HAKUSENSHA - TV TOKYO - NAS - Fruba Project and licensed by FUNimation Productions, Ltd (for distribution in the USA). All copyrights go to them and not me. All characters are used here without permission. Please don't sue. No money is being made from the production of this story therefore I have no money to give you.