Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ Resolutions ❯ Chapter Two: in which the home is revisited and circumstance plays to fate ( Chapter 2 )

Disclaimer: I don't own fruits basket.

Resolutions

by:carpetfibers

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Chapter Two: in which the home is revisited and circumstance plays to fate

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The grass had lost its ample sheen, the green having faded into a color less lustrous, less deserving of the spectrum. The flowers followed suit, the reds traded for dulled rust, the yellows for burnt topaz, and the pinks for grainy coral. With such a landscape, a painter would add white to his palette and drown the rudimentary basics of his art into a lax milk of frothless liquids. He would strike his canvas with dotted strokes and split his brushes into the finest of hairs. Details would be dimmed and artistry felled.

But as it was, nature belonged to a woman's nurturing spirit, and this great mother mourned with her heaving bosom of foliage and petal. She mourned for the ember of life left within the walls of a once teaming household. She had long observed the coldness and calculated cruelty of this life, yet she had also witnessed the days of past when the life wandered through her grasses and caressed at her blossoms with soft words and grand hopes.

She let her leaves fall on the day when his youth was stolen, and responsibility and death thrown on his shoulders. His feet became rare after that late summer day, yet she often heard his heart's song of melancholy repeated by the birds in her branches. The birds sang in open abandon with a passion and vitality that she knew this life could not.

The birds refused to sing now...even as the days grew long and the sun beckoned from overhead. They wallowed and the trees drooped in even sympathy. An unnatural autumn crept over the grounds...and this great mother let it fall with her ever seeing heart weeping in the shades of sepia and burgundy. This sad life was drifting onto the sea that all life came to in their courses...and still too young.

Shigure looked into the morning horizon, his normally dancing eyes deepened by the yard's overt depression. His usual yukata hung over his body gracelessly and bridged on his nose were the glasses that he retained for reading alone. Their reason for being rested in the envelope in his hands...the first letter in nearly six weeks.

He waited until his friend returned from inside the house. Hatori shut the door with a heavy sigh, his reserve sagging off with the sight of the writer.

"Shigure?"

Shigure held out the letter and stepped to the edge of the porch. "They wrote at last."

The doctor picked at the letter eagerly and then noticed the unopened edging. "You haven't read it?"

"Couldn't bring myself to."

"Hn," but the doctor understood. To finally have news was good...but only to an extent. If the knowledge gained was but to say the worst, then the maxim of ignorance as bliss always pervades. He glanced sharply at the return address.

"So they've been in Okinawa...makes sense. It's far enough away."

"Read it aloud, Ha-san."

Hatori nodded and then started, "'Shigure, Hatori, and others, we've been in Okinawa these last few weeks. Found some promising news clippings and are checking them out. Will send word when we've found her. Yuki.' There's a post script from Kyou: 'Don't let Kagura see this address. Or Ayame. Kyou.'"

Shigure laughed lightly. "Kyou hasn't changed. Nor Yuki for that matter."

Hatori refolded the letter and gave it back to his friend. "It didn't say much."

"It said enough. They're still looking and they still believe they're going to find her." The black haired man eased from his laughter into a steady smile. "I have to admit that I do get lonely in that big empty house of mine. You might consider moving out there sometime, Ha-san."

The doctor shook his head, his stern frown in place. "Akito is not well. I can't leave him."

And then, Shigure too was all seriousness. "Tell me honestly, how is he?"

"He's worse and I can find no physical reason for it," the frown deepened, "He might be dying."

His words held the silence captive and neither felt the need to break it. They continued to stand in the late morning light, framed by the unseasonable fading of the gardens. The pattering of active foot steps drew both of their gazes as a brilliant head of blond hair bounded into view. With a wave, the much grown boy skipped to their sides, a beam on his face.

"Shigure! Ha-to-ri! Did you come for lunch?" Momiji asked animatedly.

Shigure nodded and grinned, his mood brightened by the rabbit's entrance. "If you'll make it!"

"Hatori?" the blond boy repeated, "Lunch?"

The doctor's stern gaze lightened and he too nodded. "It's already made."

"Yea!" the exuberant teen shouted and then immediately covered his mouth realizing where he was. "Sorry...forgot," he said in a sheepish whisper. "Did I wake him?"

Hatori shook his head, knowing that considering the Sohma head's current condition there was little chance that something like a shout would bother him.

"Then it's time to eat!" and with once again loud laughter, he carted both older men in the direction of the kitchens.

Over his head, the old friends exchanged looks. Some things would never change...thank the gods.

* * * *

"Tohru-chan! Your windows need decorating!" Saori's cheerful voice called out as her hands worked industriously over the counters. The morning rush was over, and thankfully, there were still two hours before the lunch stampede began. The only customers were the few regulars who knew the times to avoid if one wanted quiet and peace.

One of these regulars, a middle aged man with coal black hair piped up from over his steaming cup of coffee. "Hai, hai...Hanomi-san, your café needs some of your creative touches."

Tohru shook her head from behind the coffee machine, her brow knitted in thought. "I know, Fumori-san, but I can never seem to settle on an idea."

Another of the regulars, a young day care worker laughed and pointed to her newspaper, "You could make monthly displays, Hanomi-san and then you can change them monthly. You can create your own 'zodiac' of decorations."

Tohru released her hold of the frother absently. There was something very familiar about the idea of a...what was the word she used?...zodiac.

"Or," the young blond woman continued, her blue eyes dancing, "You could do the zodiac it self! Oh just think of it! You could have cute little roosters and sheep...although, the horse has always been my favorite."

"I'm the dog, myself, so I'm biased," Fumori interjected.

Saori nodded, her mind puzzling over the idea which was growing more attractive with each suggestion. It wouldn't be difficult to do: little cut out figures for the windows, perhaps as a border. 'Ni-san could probably get one of the company's artists to make a few standard models for them to use. The tall girl smiled widely and turned to her roommate with excitement.

"Tohru-chan! Oh, let's do it! It would be too cute!" she gushed.

"Zodiac?" Tohru repeated, her hand pressed to her forehead. One of her all too familiar headaches was pressing forward, the increased throbbing meaning that some memory was being triggered.

"Eh? Tohru-chan, are you okay?" Saori rushed to her friend's side and guided her to one of the booths. "Sit here...there you go. I'll fix you a fruppie; maybe you need something to eat?"

The brown eyed girl shook her head and then grimaced from the motion. Bad idea there...

The day care worker looked on worriedly and then whispered to Saori who was hurriedly working the fruit press. "Atsumo-san, is she alright?"

The harried girl nodded, her teeth biting down on her lower lip. "It's the usual thing, I'm afraid."

The blond woman glanced back toward the booth and at Tohru's pale face, "Hanomi-san's amnesia?"

"Yes," Saori added milk to the chopped strawberries and bananas in the blender. "Lately they've only been worse."

"Maybe it's because she's stressed from the wedding?" the day care worker suggested.

"Ah," she topped the smoothly frothed fruppie with a touch of freshly whipped cream, "maybe..."

Saori watched her friend as she sipped at the fruit drink. The sudden frequentness of these headaches and blackouts had her more than a little worried. She only mentioned half of the spells to her brother, and he was in fits over it! Maybe it was only due to the added stress from the wedding...

"Tohru-chan, don't worry about the lunch deliveries today. I'll take care of them."

Tohru nodded gratefully and closed her eyes. "Thank you, Saori-chan. I'll be fine once I've rested a bit. It's like you said, I keep on forgetting to eat!" She knocked the side of her head with her fist, "I'm such a dummy!"

Saori laughed, but her eyes remained doubtful. It's not from lack of food, is it Tohru-chan? You've been dreaming again...dreaming of those you can't remember.

* * * *

It wasn't much of a job, but it was fine as jobs went. He worked in nine hour shifts, with a half hour lunch break. The crew boss didn't care about experience, didn't ask too many questions, and was only looking for seasonal hands. In Kyou's mind, those attributes were more than enough to qualify no complaints. And it's not like construction actually used too much brain power, so his thoughts were free to be on whatever he wished.

His co-workers ignored him for the most part; he didn't know any of them by name. Whenever he was called, he was generally referred to as 'Red.' It aggravated him at first, but now, it only minorly piqued at his nerves. There were worse things to be called than 'Red,' things like, say...

"You're a monster! A vile demon!"

He slammed down the load of nuts and bolts, angry at his mind for turning traitor. Those memories were behind him...he refused to allow words from the past to bother him anymore. The crew boss eyed him warily.

"Listen, 'Red,' why doncha take your break now? The café down the street's delivers for me on occasion. Call'em up, getcha some of'em riceballs and fish they make." The large man slapped Kyou on the back and pushed him off in the direction of the trailer. "Order me some saki while you're at it."

Kyou shrugged the hand off and nodded. Being alive included having to eat, and even if his mind rebelled against that sort of stigma, there were routines to life that he had to follow. Like eating, sleeping...

"Being happy, too, right, Kyou-kun?"

He smiled inspite of himself as he tugged the phone to his mouth. The number to the café was taped to the wall, its designation being lettered: that café with the cute girls and food. On the second ring, the line was answered. A distracted voice said,

"Atsumo-san...I mean, Chiyo's! How can I help you?"

He heard the sounds of voices from the background and a wave of sympathy came over him. Quickly, he told the girl the order. He meant to offer to pick it up himself, but she thanked him and hung up before he could. He stared at the receiver for nearly a minute before returning the handle.

She said the place was called 'Chiyo's.' What a small world...of course though, he knew the name itself was fairly popular. He knew of more than one girl who was named such. 'Land of a thousand years' was what it meant.

It was one of those details that he wanted to tell Tohru of. She'd like the idea, he knew. She'd probably smile and say something sappy and ridiculous like,

"It's not forever, but a thousand years is long enough to seem so. Long enough to seem like our memories last forever..."

The smile faded from his lips and he slumped into the couch. Memories were as weak a constancy as leaves in autumn. They could be stolen and stripped away. Even though his cousins had been optimistic, he saw enough in Hatori's face to know that the chances of Tohru ever remembering him were slim; microscopic even.

Still though, with each place he had visited, each town he had seen, he catalogued the small things and stories that he knew would make her smile, would make her laugh. He rewrote the anecdotes in his head often, imagining the way her brown eyes would light up, her lips widen, and her laughter echo. Her face never dimmed in his memory, and daily, as he made it part of his routine, he would run over the details of her smile, of her hair, of her hands and the fingernails she so rarely painted. He'd paint over the long sweaters and skirts she loved, and then replay her voice and its resonance. Her words...at times, he thought he might give anything to hear her speak his name.

That first time she said his name without the formal touches of honorifics and distance...

The phone rang, and his thoughts left him. Kyou picked it up and the still hassled voice of the girl from the café called over.

"This is Atsumo-san...from Chiyo's. I'm outside with your delivery; if someone could collect it?"

"I'll be right there," he said shortly.

He opened the trailer door and squinted into the sunlight. A tall girl, nearly as tall as himself stood at the edge of the construction site. Her cropped black hair swung in the wind, and as she turned to face him, he felt his blood quicken. It was the strongest sensation of deja vu...or as an author once put it: presque vu. The sense of not having seen, but nearly seeing- this girl gave him that feeling. Hesitantly, he took the bags from her.

Smiling, she straightened her shoulders. "Hi! Thanks for being so patient; we were really hit up during the lunch hour today." The girl sighed dramatically and then gestured upwards, as if the gods were to blame. "If you like, I can add this lunch to your company's tab."

Kyou didn't reply, but nodded. The girl seemed disappointed, but smiled on all the same.

"I better get back, my poor roommate never knows how to ask people to wait. She wants everyone to be happy and with a business, you never get that."

The girl turned to leave with a slight wave. An overwhelming compulsion to grab her arm and hold her back struck out at the red haired boy. It was as if he was missing something terribly crucial, something so important that-

"Wait," he called out suddenly.

She turned back, her face questioning. "Yes? Did I forget something?"

"No, I wanted to ask you something," Kyou said slowly, his mind stumbling over the words as they came. "Your cafe...why did you call it Chiyo's?"

The girl laughed suddenly and then with a mischevious wink, she grinned. "'A thousand years' right? Let's just say, it was inspired from a dream."

Before Kyou could respond to that, the girl marched off. He stood in the brilliant sunlight, his amber eyes lost in sudden youth, and his arms full of freshly made food. His hand trembling slightly, he reached into the first bag and lifted out the tightly made ball of rice. He lifted it to his mouth, and familiarity filled his mind.

It was just a riceball...a compact roll of rice and fish! But it tasted as if...

"Red! Eat up and then bring me that bottle of saki! Still have work to do, boy!" The crew boss yelled out, his thick voice bellowing.

Kyou shuffled back into the trailer and bit into another of the rice balls. Nearly seen, almost seen, just missed...if it was so, then coincidence would hit again, and coincidence twice is not longer chance but fate.

* * * *

She was never one for bright lights and loud music, but Genji had a wild side to him, and he liked his club outings once a week more than anything. He said it brought him back to his youth when he used to sneak into them with his friends and pull pranks on the couples. He had laughed as he described how he once scoffed at the idea of ever liking a girl, let alone loving one. His hazel eyes had grown serious and as he often tried, but rarely succeeded, brought his lips to hers.

Tohru fought back the frown that crossed her mouth. She joined in with the laughter of her friends as she refocused on the table and the conversation. She could save her worries over Genji and her feelings for some later time, when she was alone and without distraction. Saori was animatedly describing something to her date.

"...cutest idea! Of course though, I can't draw for my life! So it's going to be all up to Tohru-chan to make the figures. People were so enthusiastic over the idea, too...ne, Tohru-chan?"

Tohru could feel Genji's eyes on her as she replied, so she struggled up a wide smile and nodded. "Very enthusiastic, but Saori-chan! You shouldn't depend on my artistic skills- I can't draw at all either!"

The girl laughed, took a knock at her drink, and then stood up. She grabbed her slightly bewildered date's hand and dragged him out onto the dance floor. Saori winked on her way out and carefully mouth:

'Cheer him up!'

Tohru blushed. She was well aware what Saori's 'cheer him up' euphemism meant....seriously, sometimes that girl was too much!

She laughed at her thoughts and turned to her fiancé. He smiled and took her hand.

"I'm glad you came tonight, Tohru. I know you don't like these things..."

"If it makes you happy, then I'm fine," she interrupted and squeezed his hand back.

His light eyes brightened and his smile grew tender. He edged around the booth until he was at her side and wrapped his arm around her slim waist. "Eh, Tohru, I feel as if we're rarely together like this. I'm busy with my new contract and you're busy with your café. We only see each other when planning for the wedding, and then it's always in public." Genji broke off and brushed his lips over her brow.

Feeling her stiffen, he laughed softly. "You're going to be my wife soon, Tohru, you needn't act so startled when I kiss you."

"I know...I guess I'm not used to it, Genji-kun."

He laughed again. "And still so formal. Ah, hime-sama, it would warm my heart to hear you say just 'Genji' once in a while."

Tohru reddened and then nervously played with the edge of her braided hair. Oblivious to her discomfort, her fiancé continued.

"'Nee-chan told me that you had another spell today. What brought it on?"

She didn't answer at first, the question surprising her. But the worry in his voice was enough to cause some stammer of reassurance. "No, it wasn't a spell. I forgot to eat and I was a little weak...that's all."

He nodded, relieved. Releasing his hold around her waist, he stood up. "Would you like another water, Tohru?"

"Hai."

She sagged in her seat once she was alone. Already, her head was pounding from the music and wine. Genji's question didn't help either. Her thoughts retraced the morning's conversation. What had triggered her sudden weakness? Saori was talking about decorating, a customer mentioned the zodiac...

"We can make cut outs...the jyuunishi...cute mouse...just like him!...thank you...and here's a cat...he acts angry but inside he's very gentle..."

Tohru jerked up from the booth, her mind throbbing with the sudden onslaught of memories. Who was this girl that she could see so clearly? Was she a friend? A sister? Was she a school mate, this...

She felt like screaming. Why couldn't she remember a single name? Just one name...to have one person to cling to and think of and perhaps remember. It wasn't much in the grand scheme of things, but for her it would mean the world. She could see the image perfectly in her mind. There was herself, kneeling beside a papered door and beside her- the girl with large blue eyes and short brown hair. They were laughing...it was late. And they were...

The pain increased and she stumbled in the club's crowded entrance. Someone laughed at her, thinking she was drunk. She tried calling out, but her mind struck out in sudden lightning, the pain flashing as intensely as did the final image of the memory.

Her head struck the floor as she saw at last what she and this girl were holding in their hands. Tiny figurines, two animals: a cat and a mouse.

The zodiac...

* * * *

Author's notes:

Chapters tend to be somewhat shorter than I'm normally used to writing, but that's mostly because I have each chapter somewhat stemmed in by my outlines. Hope this doesn't bother anyone; it is supposed to be quality,not quantity, right?