Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ Pure Disco ❯ Flashdance... What A Feeling ( Chapter 5 )

Pure Disco

Fowlet.Press est.2001 (feat. Kay Spring)

(((Disclaimer))) We own nothing

ATTENZIONE/WARNING: There will be a spoiler in this chapter. It may be so small that if you blink you may miss it. And it has to do with Akito's genitalia. Pre-existing warnings apply.

I really don't have any excuse for why this is an entire year late. But if it's any consolation I've put learning to drive on hold in order to finish this chapter. ^^;

This chapter is dedicated to Lupin666/WhiteAshes. If it hadn't been for the completely underserved kindness she gave me OR the gifty-type fanart she made me I might have lost Pure Disco to the abyss that is my mind once and for all.

Lupin666's DA gallery may be found at: www.Lupin666.deviantart.com
Her sister account may be found at: www.whiteashes.deviantart.com
T3h gifty-art type deal can be found: http:// www. deviantart.com / deviation / 35954644/

Thank you very, very much ^^

Also I extend an enormous thank you, hugs and/or kisses to my hero, Kay Spring for her work on this chapter. I'm a lost person without you. Thanks for being the best editor slash co-writer in the entire universe.

~F*p

Pure Disco

Chapter Five: Flashdance… What A Feeling

(Flashdance)

First when there's nothing
But a slow glowing dream
That your fear seems to hide
Deep inside your mind

All alone I have cried
Silent tears full of pride
In a world made of steel
Made of stone

Well, I hear the music
Close my eyes, feel the rhythm
Wrap around, take a hold
Of my heart

What a feeling
Bein's believin'
I can have it all, now I'm dancing for my life
Take your passion
And make it happen
Pictures come alive, you can dance right through your life… Irene Cara

(Flashdance)

The first thing that struck Yuki as his eyes fluttered open was that his heartbeat wasn't as fast as it should have been considering his thoroughly panicked state. He sat straight up in his bed but fell down again due to the various tubes and wires connected to his arms and chest.

 

He was in some sort of small room. There were large windows that were letting intolerable amounts of sunlight wash in and reflect off his white sheets. The walls were white too—a completely bleached kind of white that blinded him and gave him a migraine.

 

He knew he had been in this—place once before… Thinking was starting to hurt as well. His chest felt constricted as if he'd had an… oh, yes, an asthma attack.

 

(Flashdance)

 

“Good morning, little grasshopper,” a familiar voice broke into his thoughts. It was a woman wearing white as well; a white maid's outfit such as the ones worn by maids of the main house. Her cheery round face rested on her hands propped up on his bedside, traditionally Japanese onyx hair falling in ringlets around her face. Yuki knew this woman well; she had cared for him many times as a child. Her name was Rumiko.

 

He tried to greet her and ask a million questions all at the same time, but he couldn't and recognized with a wave a revulsion that a plastic tube was down his throat. He wrinkled his nose and closed his eyes in disgust.

 

“It's about three in the afternoon. You had an attack last night, a pretty crappy one,” Rumiko told him in her most optimistic voice, entwining her fingers with his pale ones. “Kyo just left.”

 

Yuki's eyes shot open in alarm. How could he have forgotten? There had been a monster in Kyo's room! Although now that he thought about it, in his more awake and slightly more coherent state, the thing in Kyo's room probably had not been a monster.

 

God, it could have been Shigure or Tohru, Yuki thought in embarrassment and horror. And what had happened to Kyo? Everything after seeing the mon- er, person, was foggy until Yuki had blacked out. He did distinctly remember pushing something… Had it all been a hallucination brought on by having an asthma attack? But he was sure he'd seen that thing trying to do something to Kyo before his bronchial tubes decided to close up after a good day's work. He could have sworn…

 

“He was here most of the night actually,” Rumiko continued. “We couldn't get him to leave. Hatori just sent him home to get changed a few minutes ago. It's a pity because he wanted to be here when you woke up. Because he wanted to know what the hell you were doing in his room, oh and just so you're prepared, so does the rest of the main house and their mothers.”

 

Yuki decided to focus on one thing at a time and ignore her. He looked at her hopefully, breathing into the cold plastic cup around his mouth even though he knew she couldn't remove it.

 

Yuki had liked to believe that Tohru had—that he had—changed. He had convinced himself that he was more true to himself and others than he had ever been and yet here he was being completely selfish. Now something had attacked Kyo and all he could think about was himself. Yuki wanted to rip out those tubes… and have a good cry while he was at it.

 

“Anyway, like I said, the attack was a pretty bad one and Hatori was saying something I didn't really listen to, you know some doctor mumbo jumbo crap,” Rumiko replied easily, “but he'll be back soon too, just stepped out to make a phone call.”

 

The door opened in Yuki's blind spot, but he didn't need to look to know who had entered the room.

 

“Yuki,” he greeted. The simple two-syllable name struck more fear within Yuki than anything else. Hatori was the one that was solid when all hope was gone and there was a shake in his voice. It was subtle—but it was there. Something had gone very, very wrong.

 

“How are you feeling?” Hatori asked when the tube was safely in the garbage bin.

 

“Like shit,” Yuki answered, fumbling with the tubes taped to his arms.

 

“Well, I'm afraid I have some bad news,” Hatori said sitting down on the stool to the right of Yuki and putting on his stethoscope. “We can't classify your condition of asthma as acute anymore. It's gotten worse.”

 

Yuki looked up. He didn't understand.

 

“How much… worse?”

 

Hatori moved the cold metal stethoscope over Yuki's pale chest. Yuki shivered at the contact over his sensitive skin.

 

“You should know that medicine has evolved since when you were first diagnosed and new treatments are being experimented with. And you're older now so we'll-”

 

“But you said it would just… go away…” Yuki argued softly, his eyes filled with disbelief.

 

Hatori refused to make eye contact. “Nothing…” he murmured, “is ever for certain…

 

“Right,” Hatori murmured with an air of defeat. He stood up warily, like an old man. “I'm going back to the hospital. Stay here until I get back. I'll prescribe new medication for you then. Rumiko,” he nodded tiredly at the maid and walked out the clinic.

 

“Rumiko, what the hell happened? What, er, who did I push out the window?” Yuki whispered, afraid of the answer. Rumiko frowned.

 

“Hell if I know,” she muttered, “You had an attack in Kyo's room and when Shigure finally got his lazy ass up to see what was wrong you were blue on the floor and Akito was collapsed at the side of Sensei's house—unconscious, no less…” she shook her head in disbelief.

 

“And Akito is-!”

 

“In the real hospital, yeah. I guess they couldn't treat him with leeches or whatever it is Hatori does here. This room is like a third-world insane asylum.”

 

Yuki slumped into himself, his lips falling into a pout.

 

“Have you been chewing on your hair, again?” Rumiko interrupted his thoughts before they could give him a headache again. Yuki glared at her as she stroked his damp silver locks.

 

“Do you want me to cut off these little bits at the sides you were so keen on keeping as well?” she huffed.

 

Yuki persisted in his attempt to glower at Rumiko even though he found her ministrations to be quite soothing.

 

“No,” he tried to say forcefully, blushing when it came out more as a moan.

 

“Then stop chewing!” Rumiko chastised lightly, flicking him in the nose.

 

Yuki gazed at the phenomenon that was Rumiko. “Amazing. You can even yell at a dying man in his deathbed.”

 

Rumiko laughed and rolled her eyes. “Oh, you stop that silliness,” she reassured him waving her hand. “You're not a man… and you're not dying either.”

 

“It makes me feel better,” Yuki muttered.

 

“What—dying?”

 

“Chewing my hair.”

 

Rumiko brushed a few strands of moist hair out of Yuki's eyes and laid the cool back of her hand over his feverish forehead. “Is that some kind of girly version of cutting yourself? Why can't you chew on… gum?”

 

Yuki closed his eyes, letting Rumiko's callused hands soothe him. “It doesn't taste the same,” he admitted.

 

“God, you're depressing,” Rumiko snorted.

 

“Shut up, I have a head-splitting… headache.”

 

“Sticks and Akito(1),” Rumiko replied in a sing-song voice. Yuki groaned at her pitiful attempt at a joke and the mention of Akito.

 

Rumiko gave an exasperated sigh. “Have I taught you nothing, Yuki? Fear of a name only increases fear of a thing itself!”

 

“You're killing me…” Yuki moaned. “I'm half-dead and you're quoting Harry Potter…”

 

“Look,” Rumiko started, her tone taking a rarely heard seriousness. “This… sucks. Akito is an asshole and life itself is a bitch sometimes. And in those times you just need to walk through all the shit and get through it.”

 

Yuki let this process in his brain for a moment and then slowly opened his eyes looking at her. “Wow…” he murmured thoughtfully. “It's like… Kyo and Tohru had a crack baby and that monstrosity grew into a saucy house maid who was you…”

 

Rumiko wrinkled her brow. “Tohru… isn't that the girl who has the whole juunishi up-ons? What, does she have beer flavored nipples or something?”

 

Yuki let himself smile a little. “Nah, she's just a great person…”

 

 

(Flashdance)

 

Hatori pulled into the Magic Bus Hospital (2) parking lot and drove up and down the many lines of cars parked there. He became increasingly annoyed as he was unable to find a parking space.

 

“What, is this hospital rush hour?” he muttered under his breath.

 

Finally after several minutes he saw an open space and sighed with relief. He was about to pull into the space when a white Porsche zoomed into the opening before him.

 

“Damnit!” Hatori shouted hitting his hands against the steering wheel. He leaned his head out of his window and called out to the driver who was now exiting his vehicle and prancing haughtily by. “Excuse me, ma'am, that was my spot!”

 

The person glared at Hatori. “I am not a woman!” he hissed, tossing long red hair over his shoulder and flipping him off. “Besides, honey, let's face it, I'm younger and faster!”

 

Hatori stared open mouthed as the man stalked off to the Magic Bus Hospital entrance. He revved his engine and smashed his car into the offending white Porsche—eight times.

 

The red-haired femmy boy came running out to see what the ruckus was about and shouted, “Shi-ne! What the hell are you doing?!”

 

“Face it, honey, I'm older and I have more insurance.”

 

(Flashdance)

 

Hatori lit a cigarette and paced up and down the corridor outside the room where Akito's surgery was currently taking place. Was there something more he could have done?

 

Hatori sank onto an uncomfortable green bench taking a long drag on his cigarette. He sensed Ayame's presence like a misty silver glow on an early summer morning before the snake sat down beside him. He was… unusually quiet.

 

“In your… professional… opinion,” Ayame murmured, “Is it a blessing or a curse?”

 

Hatori blew smoke through his nose. “What is?”

 

“Everything,” Ayame shrugged.

 

Usually the moments with Ayame were… full, bursting with life—with passion. Instead, there was only pregnant silence, an empty space in time which Ayame had neglected. Hatori could feel the emptiness and it scared him. Today was a day of emptied spaces (3).

 

“I didn't expect you to come. Shouldn't you be attending to costumers at your shop?” he offered.

 

“Now isn't the time to hide,” Ayame answered, gazing about the whitewashed walls of the hospital.

 

Hatori put his cigarette in a nearby ashtray, the smoke drifting up tainting the sterility of the atmosphere.

 

“I'm… angry,” Ayame said, furrowing his eyebrows as if in disbelief.

 

Hatori tilted his head toward his friend. “At what?”

 

Ayame looked away from Hatori's penetrating eyes. “Shi-chan.”

 

“Why?”

 

“Because…” Ayame started, something indescribable burning in his eyes. The words came tumbling out, “Because he knew, Tori-san, he knew that Akito was going to—to try to kill Kyou and he didn't try to stop him!”

 

“Can we make these assumptions this early in the-”

 

Ayame interrupted him with a fierceness quite unlike his usual demeanor, “We could have—should have—made them years ago! Yuki could have been-” He broke off with a choking sob in his voice.

 

It was hard to explain, now that Hatori thought about it, but with all the strength he could muster he tried, “Shigure-kun has a theory involving fate and pain that he truly believes is the way to the… end, per se. He isn't on anyone's side but his own-”

 

“Stop,” Ayame cut in. “Shigure is my friend and nothing will change that.”

 

A pause.

 

“That,” Hatori said gravely, “is what I admire about you.”

 

Ayame blinked, turning toward Hatori for the first time. “What?”

 

“That innocent confidence and trust in people, in humanity, in this family… it's an admirable quality, one I wish I could possess.”

 

Ayame could not find words to express his feelings, but his eyes told Hatori all he needed to know.

 

(Flashdance)

 

The door crashed open revealing a disheveled and pajama clad Kyo (4).

 

“You BASTARD!” he roared. For once Yuki was grateful to hear his cousin's loud noises. It almost brought a smile to his lips.

 

“Kyo,” Rumiko greeted, collecting her things and moving to the other side of the room.

 

“You said you'd tell me when he woke up, you human filly!” Kyo yelled as he stomped over to Yuki's bedside and sat down huffily on the stool.

 

Rumiko grinned at the chance to make fun of someone. “What of it, pipsqueak?” she replied tartly.

 

Kyo made his voice a couple octaves higher, “Oh, just go home, darling, he hasn't woken up yet, this and that! is what you said and I believed you! And then half way home Momiji told me he woke up so I had to run all the way back here!”

 

“Serves you right!” Rumiko retorted, “What good would it have done if he woke up to your screeching and yapping and squawking?”

 

“NANI?!” Kyo screamed. Okay, Yuki thought, that one hurt.

 

“Damnit, Kyo,” he said, pressing his girly hands to his ears.

 

“And YOU!” Kyo growled, “Masquerading about in the middle of the night practically getting yourself killed-!”

 

“Wait, so what happened to Akito?” Yuki frantically demanded.

 

“Akito broke into the house last night-” Kyo started.

 

“Really?” Rumiko interrupted.

 

“Shut up, woman! Shigure probably forgot to lock the door again and Akito decided to come over for a chat, and by a chat I mean a stabbing!”

 

“Oh my, well aren't you the dramatic one!” Rumiko giggled.

 

“WON'T YOU BE QUIET, YOU-!”

 

“I have to go now, Yuki. They'll need someone at the main house right now, you know for questions and this and that. I'll see you both soon,” Rumiko bowed slightly as she left the room, giving Yuki a wink on the sly.

 

There was suddenly an extremely awkward silence deafening the room. Yuki shifted restlessly in his sheets.

 

“Akito's in critical condition,” Kyo started after a few minutes of uncomfortable tension.

 

“What?!” Yuki squeaked, violet eyes flitting to red ones.

 

“Everyone was freaking out over you because you had an asthma attack, so they didn't find him until later. We didn't even notice my window was broken…” Kyo continued solemnly. “He fell out. Second story. Head hit the pavement, I guess…”

 

“But… but…” Yuki spluttered.

 

“He's in the regular hospital because they didn't have the stuff here to treat him with or something. And we didn't get to him in time I think…” Kyo kept his eyes on the floor.

 

“But why was he…”

 

“…They found a knife on him. Not the kind that you cut cake with, either. Everyone's being real quiet about it but, honestly, why else would Akito be in my room at night, with or without a knife?”

 

Yuki felt sick.

 

“And of course everybody wants to know what you were doing, having an asthma attack in my room at the same time Akito was… there.”

 

Yuki remembered his hands had touched something. He remembered pushing Kyo's offender and most of all he remembered the shattering right before he'd blacked out.

 

“I think I pushed Akito out your window,” Yuki whispered in horror.

 

Kyo swallowed hard. “…Yeah… well, that is one of the mentioned theories…”

 

“Who else thinks so?”

 

“… I don't know. Shigure might've figured. Hatori. Honestly, I wouldn't worry about it. It's about time someone pushed him out a window for a change, anyhow…”

 

Yuki couldn't find words to answer him.

 

“But… uh…” Kyo shifted uncomfortably, “Thanks… for not letting Akito… knife me…” his eyes darted elsewhere.

 

Yuki smiled slightly as Kyo cleared his throat and pointed at a set of needles in Yuki's arm.

 

“Uh, what's this do?” he asked quickly.

 

“It's the Intracutaneous needles that inject allergen extract.”

 

“The Intalalatracoteaneaus whatta-what?”

 

(Flashdance)

 

Dr. Koyasu Takehito approached Hatori and Ayame. “Excuse me, are you the family of Sohma Akito-san?”

 

The pair stood up together. “Yes,” Hatori answered.

 

“I think it would be best if you received this news in my office.”

 

Hatori looked at the doctor oddly. “Have we met before?”

 

“I don't believe so, why?”

 

“Your voice sounds familiar—it's nothing, never mind. Continue. (5)”

 

They entered the doctor's office and sat down.

 

“Well,” Doctor Koyasu Takehito started. “This is terrible, just terrible.”

 

“What is?” Ayame and Hatori asked anxiously.

 

“This drawing my nephew gave me,” the doctor replied holding up a piece of paper. “I mean, look at this! It doesn't look like a dog at all!”

 

Hatori stared at him incredulously. “But what about Akito?!”

 

“What? Oh yeah, she's dead,” he replied.

 

Hatori and Ayame gasped in horror.

 

“Well, come on now, she fell out of a second story window. Did you think she was going to be walking around, participating in the Ironman? I certainly didn't think so, no sir.”

 

Ayame squeezed Hatori's hand.

 

“Get out!” Hatori shouted.

 

“But this is my office,” Dr. Koyasu Takehito whined.

 

“JUST GET OUT!”

 

“Okay, JEEZ,” the doctor said, miffed and exited his office in a hurry.

 

(Flashdance)

 

“Kyo… it really means a lot to me that you're here…” Yuki smiled woozily, obviously due to the affects of some kind of IV drug that causes wooziness.

 

“It means a lot to me too,” replied Kyo, who didn't have an excuse.

 

Thankfully, this moment of inexcusable fluff was broken when a white-haired woman donning a white Chinese dress thing (much like the one worn by Wufei from Gundam Wing) and a cheery expression burst into the door of the clinic.

 

“Children of juunishi, kneel before Shomei!”

 

Yuki and Kyo stared at her. A large sweatdrop appeared over her head.

 

“Er, I mean, I have come to explain everything to you and to make ALL YOUR HOPES AND DREAMS COME TRUE!” She struck a pose and flashed the peace sign in the hand not holding a magical oar.

 

“…Fuck,” Kyo said.

 

(Flashdance)

 

“Sticks and Akito” This is just silly. What Rumiko does here is a play on the well known phrase “Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.” She replaces “stones” with “Akito” as she tells Yuki that sticks and Akito may break her bones but Yuki's words cannot hurt her. Ah, well. You win some, you lose some.

“Magic Bus Hospital” A bit of flavor inserted by Kay-chan. You may remember this hospital as the one from Weiss Kreuz that Aya frequents in order to visit his sister. Aya, as you may have guessed, is the red-haired man who takes Hatori's parking space.

“Today was a day of empty space” HA! This sentence, originally meaning the Ayame's quietness can also be in reference to the empty space Akito created by being, well, dead. HOWEVER, as my lovely Kay-chan pointed out it also can be about the entire parking space scenario. Did you pick out all these miniscule details? Or did you only ponder as to why a “3” came within a parenthesis at this point during the story?

I have but one thing to say about this: Kyo is the cat's pajamas.

“Dr. Koyasu Takehito” Koyasu Takehito is the Japanese (obviously) voice actor of Aya from Weiss Kreuz who you remember was the one who took Hatori's parking space. Or at least his voice did.

 

Reviews:

 

Pocky-Pocky-chan: O_o;;; no need to get violent, now. Here it is ^^

 

DerangedandLovinIt: Go for it. MPREG RULES THE WORLD. Except it's Yuki who's got the bun in the oven in this fic ^^

 

Johanna Gen: Ho Ho Ho… I updated. Lolz

 

Jenn120: I did! Thanks ^^

 

Ranma Higurashi: Why thank you! *huggle*

 

BlackCat686: I finally did and thank you!

 

Mabudachigirl: Thanks a bunch <3

 

NovelistPup: Ah yes… well I finally did it didn't I? heheh… *sweadrop* Thank you so much!

 

Skye Asuki: Sorry about that. Hopefully most of it is explained in this chapter ^^;

 

Mistress of Bakura: Thank you, Thank you, Thank you again! ^^

 

NotYourStar: Yep. But let's pretend that's not the case.

 

Hakudoshi-chan: Thanks so much! ^^

 

Akuma-chan-69: Wow! Thank you so much *_* I weep from your kindness ^^

 

AshesOfTheSage: Thank you so much for EVERYTHING *_* “loves you”

 

Omnimalevolent: XD Thanks! Glad you liked it ^^

 

Rinoki Rio: Thank you so so so much! *hearts you*

 

Shuffle Queen: You're the most awesome ^^ Thanks

 

Sugargirl: Thank you ^^

 

Rebellion2fate: Thank yoooouuuu ^^

 

And anyone else I may have forgotten- THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! YOU'RE A STAAAAAARRRRR!!