Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ Seven Days ❯ Day the First ( Chapter 1 )

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.

December 30, 2002

Seven Days

Day the First

By Ina-chan

"…and did you know? That even just 3 whole days without sleep can make a person hallucinate?" Momiji stated a matter-of-factly, the afternoon light streaming through the hall's glass windows casting a dignified halo around the golden ringlets of his hair.

"UAAAAAH! That's amazing Momiji-kun!" Tooru exclaimed excitedly as she clutched her bag over her chest

"There's nothing amazing about reading something out of a book," Kyou huffed from beside her, his hands lazily cradling the crook of his neck

"Heeeeh! But I worked hard on this report! And Tanaka-sensei thought it was a very good independent research report," Momiji protested as he waved his folder in front of his cousin's face, "See? A perfect mark!"

"Saa, saa!" Uo-chan interrupted before the orange-haired boy could think of a response, "You don't have a part-time job today, ne Tooru? Hanajima and I are going downtown today. Do you want to come along?"

"It's been a while since I went out with Uo-chan and Hana-chan, isn't it?" Tooru commented thoughtfully

"We've all been busy, and with the semestral exams just around the corner, it would be nice to spend time together," Hana-chan added

"Of course I'll come! It'll be a lot of fun!" Tooru replied animatedly

"I'm going too!" Momiji raised his hand up enthusiastically

Kyou automatically gave his cousin a bop on the top of the head, "Don't impose on other people's plans when you're not invited!"

The younger boy's lips trembled and a river of tears trickled down his face, "Waaaaaaaah! Kyou is picking on me again!"

"NA!?!" Kyou blurted in alarm, "Stop causing a scene!"

"But I want to go out with To-ru, too!" The rabbit whined pathetically, giving the three girls his patented, uber-cute 'I'm going to be so broken-hearted if you don't take me along with you' look shimmering in his clear light chocolate eyes

Despite of themselves, beads of sweat appeared on all three girls' heads. An angry vein popped on the cat's forehead as he clenched his fists in controlled anger.

"You can't" A calm monotone interjected before anybody can make any further reaction to the younger boy's attempts, "You promised Kisa that you'll help her with her school project today."

"Hatsuharu-san! Yuki-kun!" Tooru called out to the two boys approaching their group

Momiji stopped on his tracks, "AH! That's right…" He immediately made a defeated sighed gave Tooru a mournful look, "I'm sorry To-ru, it seems that I can't go downtown with you today."

"But Yuki doesn't have a student council meeting today, he can go in Momiji's place," Haru offered helpfully

"Oi…" Kyou interjected, another angry vein popping on his head

"Haru, don't impose on other people's plans…" Yuki began on the same tone

"I heard that a group of girls shopping downtown were attacked by a pervert in broad daylight the other day," Haru continued, ignoring his cousins, "Now, three beautiful girls walking around downtown unescorted will definitely attract a pervert's attention like sugar attracts ants."

"Haaaa…" was the only word To-ru could make, as her eyes started to swirl in confusion as her mind started to make a silent internal ethical struggle. She didn't like the idea of imposing on Yuki to accompany them to protect them from a potential pervert attack. After all, he must have had plans to do on his own today, since it was rare recently for him to have free time after school since attaining his position as president in the student council. She was also just invited by Uo-chan and Hana-chan into their plan, and she didn't want to impose on them and hurt their feelings by inviting Yuki. But still… she wouldn't really know how to protect Uo-chan and Hana-chan from a pervert attack since she doesn't know any martial arts like Yuki-kun…

"Oi…" This time, it was Uo-chan who interrupted with an angry vein popping on her forehead. She didn't appreciate being treated like a helpless damsel in distress. But she didn't like to see her best friend getting distressed over nothing even more. Hana-chan, in the other hand, stayed silent, a small denpa wave crackling in the air above her head.

"It's fine," Yuki stated, glaring at the cow for creating a rise, "If all of you doesn't mind me tagging along. I'll come along."

"Really?" Tooru's eyes immediately shimmered in gratitude

"Kyo should go too!" Momiji declared

"OI!" A third vein popped on the cat's head

"Why not?" Uo-chan sighed, "The more the merrier?"

***@@@***

"… and that was how it all started."

Hatori blinked blankly as the young woman sitting across the table from him finished her tale. He only wanted to know how Yuki hurt his wrist, but okaaaaay…

"Is Yuki-kun going to be alright?" Tooru asked for the hundreth and fiftieth time, still wringing her hands anxiously

"I'm fine," Yuki sighed automatically for the hundreth and fifty-first time.

The doctor turned his attention to back to mouse sitting, in front of him, as he finished re-bandaging the younger man's right wrist, "It's just some soft tissue damage. There's still a bit of swelling so just keep on icing it with a cold compress. Make sure you keep from moving that wrist as much as possible."

"Hai…" Yuki let out yet another sigh

"An over the counter analgesic should be enough, but if the pain becomes too unbearable, call me and I'll bring a mild narcotic tomorrow," Hatori continued

"It's fine, I don't need it," The mouse stressed as he purposely looked at the young woman across the table in the eye

"Tooru-san, how exactly did Yuki hurt himself?"

"Well… we went into this antique shop that newly opened…" Tooru continued her tale…

***@@@***

"UAAAAAAH" Tooru looked at her surroundings in great awe, "This is so amazing! There are so many pretty things inside this store, ne Yuki-kun?"

Yuki gave her a silent smile in agreement. But the truth was, the place was giving him the creeps. The lighting was dim, it was silent save for their footsteps, and the air had an old and dusty smell. The atmosphere of the place reminded him too much of some of the rooms in the Main House, much to his discomfort. He wasn't surprised that the cat opted to wait outside. It was true that there were many beautiful old looking items in the shop, but there were also rickety looking furniture that looked like accidents waiting to happen.

"There are a lot of interesting denpa residues here," Hana-chan commented off-hand, "Many of these items have some… remarkable… histories."

"Is that so?" Uo-chan murmured

"Yes. People leave essences of themselves in objects that they treasured long after they have moved on to the next plane of existence," A high nasal voice commented from the small wrinkled gnomish figure that suddenly appeared beside the ex-yankee. Out of the blue, a river of tears started flowing generously from his eyes, "To see young people interested with these, brings great pleasure to this heart of mine."

"GYAAAAAAAAH!" Uo-chan reacted in surprise, taking several involuntary steps backwards

"Uo-chan!" Tooru cried out in alarm

The old shopkeeper shrank back from the blonde woman, obviously offended by her reaction, "That wasn't very nice."

"You shouldn't be sneaking up on people like that in the first place, Jiji-san," Hana-chan's monotone countered

"Jiji-san? With this face of mine?" The old man said with disbelief as he his leathery fingers over his wrinkled chin, "Why, my great-grandaughter told me that I could still pass as Gackt's older brother…"

Collective beads of sweat appeared on the four teen-ager's heads.

"Ano… we're sorry if we sounded a bit rude, Jiji-san," Tooru stepped forward as she made an apologetic bow

"Ah, such a sweet young girl you are, Little Miss," The shopkeeper remarked, as he stepped forward, "This poor old man will forgive you in one condition."

"Eh?" Tooru looked up in surprise

"I'll forgive you if…" The old man took the girl's hands into his own, "…you call me Oniichan instead."

Yuki immediately stepped forward, snatched the young woman, and silently pulled her away to a safe distance. He didn't want to act rude, especially to his elders. But the storeowner was just too strange. The store may have been creepy, but the old man was even creepier.

"It's best that we get going," Hana-chan announced, obviously feeling the same weird vibes

"Wait! You haven't seen the best part of the store yet! I have some rare trinkets at the front," The old man called out, before turning to Yuki with a knowing look, "Perhaps the Young Master would like to buy a locket or a ring for his girlfriend."

"Eh?" Yuki gaped at the old man in surprise, an embarrassed flush rising on his cheeks

"Eh!? EEEEHHH!!!?!?!? Ah! Iyaaa! No! It's nothing like that! eto…"" Of course Tooru's reaction was even more volatile, as she immediately went on super-shocked mode, her hair standing on end, inching backwards nervously with her arms waving frantically in the air

"Tooru!"

"Tooru-kun!"

"Honda-san! Watch out!"

Her agitated movements caused her to back into the bookshelf behind her. The bookshelf toppled precariously over her as her friends rushed over to steady the unsteady furniture, not before a lone book loosened from the top shelf and made an accurate trajectory on her head. The young woman cringed and closed her eyes in anticipation of the impact only to open them and see the book over her, centimeters from her nose.

"Nice catch, Ouji-sama!" Uo-chan called out with a whistle of relief

"Are you alright, Honda-san?" Yuki asked worriedly

"Y-y-yes!" Tooru replied, still a little rattled as Hana-chan took her by the shoulders and led her away in a safe distance

Yuki let out a breath of relief as he looked at the book in his hand and idly leafed through the pages out of habit.

"Ah, yes… that is a very special book. According to legend, this book had a curse that claimed the lives of many beautiful young virgins," The old man stated as he folded his hands solemnly, "It was said that the first beautiful virgin to hold it and open its pages every hundred years will be its chosen victim."

Uo-chan rushed forward and grabbed the little gnome by the collar, several angry veins popping on her head, "How can you keep such a dangerous book out in the open like that? What if Tooru picked it up and opened it? And curse or no curse, the damned thing almost fell on Tooru's head! What do you have to say about that, you withered old bag."

"I'll let you have it for half price," The shopkeeper replied weakly, tears starting to stream down his face again

"Setting that aside," Hana-chan interrupted before Uo-chan can muster another violent reaction, "Is it really alright for Souma Yuki to handle the book like that?"

With those words, only then did the girls noticed their sole male companion, his face hidden under his bangs, frozen in the spot where they left him, with the open aforementioned cursed book at hand.

"Y-yuki-kun…" Tooru said, still in shock mode

"Well, I'm sure it doesn't count if it's a man who opens it," The old man stated nervously, beads of sweat the size of tennis balls running down his face, "And surely with the Young Master couldn't possibly be…"

As if on cue, the shelf behind him decided it was the perfect moment to continue its earlier descent.

"YUKI-KUN!!!"

"NA!? You're still talking about that?" Kyou exclaimed in annoyance as he entered the room, fresh from his evening run

"Welcome back, Kyou-kun!" Tooru welcomed the cat home

"So that's how Yuki-kun hurt his wrist?" Hatori asked

Kyou snorted, "No way. The clumsy mouse got his hand caught on the door as it slammed shut on the way out."

"But what do we do now? We only have seven days to break the curse… or Yuki-kun will…" Tooru blubbered helplessly before Yuki could think of a response to the cat

"Honda-san, I'm sure its just a stupid hoax," Yuki let out a reassuring sigh, "And that's exactly what Hanajima-san will say."

"B-b-but… how do you explain the bookshelf at the shop?" Tooru insisted

"It was already rickety as it is."

"You hurt your wrist on the door."

"I was careless."

"The delivery truck?"

"Didn't the driver apologize for that?"

"What about an hour ago, when I accidentally bumped into you and Kyou-kun almost stepped on you after you transformed?" Tooru stated with a determined look on her face

The mouse bowed his head as a dark shadow eclipsed on his face, "I don't think that was an accident."

"OI!" Kyou bristled at his rival's accusation

"That's enough," Hatori ordered blandly, desperately trying to keep a stoic expression after silently witnessing the exchange before him, "Whether this curse is true or not… This whole incident has definitely left Tooru-san upset. Yuki, trying to belittle this whole situation is not going to help."

"What do you want me to do?" Yuki finally relented in defeat

"Just watch what you're doing, and try not to bicker about this any further," Hatori replied before turning to his orange-haired cousin, "And that's the same with you."

"Alright, alright! Geez…" Kyou muttered as he opened his sports drink to take a swig

"Or we could just simply break the curse within seven days," A deep and familiar voice suddenly spoke from beside Tooru

A wave of uncomfortable silence fell into the room.

"HA! HA! HA! HA! Good evening gentlemen and lady," Ayame announced gaily, "Don't hold back the pure tears of joy accumulating in your eyes for my glorious presence has finally come for you to behold and wonder!"

"A-Ayame-san… G-good…" Tooru cried out, once again, in surprise.

"You didn't need to come," Yuki muttered angrily

"The hell! Why do you always slink around like that? Why can't you come in a house like a normal person?" Kyou exclaimed

"How rude!" Ayame scoffed, offended, "And here I came to aid and to be at my sweet little brother's side during his time of need, as soon as I sensed his distress…"

"Ayame, what are you doing here?" Hatori interjected bluntly before the snake could continue on with his babble

"Ah! Gure-san called the shop (around 45 minutes ago). Of course I was busy with a customer at that time (that's why I wasn't here much earlier). It was Mine who got the phone call and she told me exactly what happened this afternoon (ne, Yuki if you were in the neighborhood why didn't you pass by the store), so I came as soon as I can. So here I am."

"Why can't you just answer questions like a normal person?" Yuki grumbled

"But that's not interesting!" Ayame protested, flipping strands of his silvery hair dramatically, "Not interesting at all!"

"WHO CARES ABOUT WHAT'S INTERESTING OR NOT!?" Kyou yelled, finally loosing his patience

"Ara? Kyonkichi? Since when have you been standing there?" Ayame turned to the cat in surprise

"WHY YOU---" Kyou began as he raised a fist

"Niisan," Yuki sighed, "You came to see me and saw me. Now go home."

"How rude! I just got here," Ayame frowned as he crossed his arms over his chest, "That's not the way to treat your beloved older brother, especially since I've figured out how to break this so-called curse."

"EH!?" Tooru gasped in surprise, "Is that true, Ayame-san?"

"HA! HA! HA! HA! Of course! What did you expect with this brilliant mind of mine?" Ayame replied smugly before reaching across the table and grabbing one of Yuki's hands into his own, "Today is the day when Yuki and I will finally see eye to eye and strengthen the foundation of our brotherly love."

Yuki simply winced and ground his teeth.

"Ara? No sarcastic quip? No violent reaction? No attempts to pull away?" Ayame stared at his younger brother in genuine surprise, "Can it be that Yuki has finally accepted me?"

"Ayame, he's in pain," Hatori commented, "You just grabbed his sore wrist."

"Y-y-yuki-kun… Are you alright?" Tooru turned to the mouse worriedly

"Geez! What exactly is your solution to this curse?" Kyou asked

Ayame closed his eyes and made a solemn nod as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "It's quite simple. But we'll need everyone's cooperation for it to work."

"I'll do everything I can to help Ayame-san!" Tooru immediately responded, with a very determined look on her face

Ayame's face immediately brightened at her response, "You have no idea how ecstatic my heart is upon hearing you say that, Tooru-kun!"

"Cut the chase and just tell us already!" Kyou interrupted in exasperation before bringing his bottle to his lips for a swig

"Well… the curse states that the beautiful virgin is going to die in seven days, right?" Ayame stated pensively, before smiling warmly at the young woman beside her, "Then… Yuki will simply have to loose 'it' as soon as possible."

Grapefruit flavoured ionized water spurted out of Kyou's nose, while Tooru and Yuki froze in their seats, gaping at the older man in pure mortification. Hatori's hand automatically went up to cover his mouth to suppress a strange sound… something that sounded like a cross between a snort and a cough from escaping his throat.

"Now, isn't that a good idea?" Ayame stated, his hands clasped together solemnly, with a satisfied grin

"THE <COUGH><COUGH> HE--<COUGH>--ELL!!" Kyou hollered indignantly… or at least he tried to

"Haaa…" was all Tooru could say weakly, as she brought her hands to her burning cheeks while staring at an indefinite spot on the table. Yuki could only bury his own blazing face in his good hand, speechless beyond embarrassment.

"THERE'S NO WAY WE'LL LET TOORU TO DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT!!!" Kyou roared furiously, as he grabbed the belligerent snake by the collar

"Ara?" The snake gawked at the cat in shock, "Does that mean Kyonkichi is volunteering to take her place?"

"WHA-THA--- YOU---!!!" The cat sputtered incoherently, immediately let go of his older cousin's collar, as if scalded

"Well… no one did say that a girl had to do it…" Ayame continued thoughtfully

"HAAAAAA!?"

"………!!!"

"HATORI SAY SOMETHING!!!"

"… i… diot…" was all Hatori could manage to utter before bowing his head to hide his face, his shoulders shaking uncontrollably in silent laughter…

To be continued…

Author's squawk:

MAN! It's so much harder to write a comedy over good old angst! I hope this piece doesn't turn into serious. ^_^. Anywayz… When I wrote this chapter, I was thinking of you, Mona-chan. ^_^. Unfortunately, this will be the closest attempt I will ever go towards yaoi. I simply neither have the imagination nor the desire to write explicit "boy love". ^_^. I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far…

Anywayz… some Japanese pop culture notes.

Gackt is a very famous and very hot looking J-Rock singer. If you don't know who he is… <points finger accusingly> you are not a true Anime Otaku!!! ^_^. Just kidding! ^_^. If you don't know what he looks like… well… he's actually the inspiration for the character design of Squall Lionheart from FFVII. Search for his many fan-shrines to see this eye-candy, hear-pounding goodness. If you're lucky, you'll find a site that houses mp3's so you can hear his angelic voice as well! ^_^. He's one of the few J-Rock singers who actually has REAL talent in the trade, not just another pretty face that will fade away after the fans are tired of him.

Kyou's sports drink is my personal tribute to "Pocari Sweat". It's something like "Gatorade", but I like it better. It's a salty-sweet isotone ion replacement drink, which also has a hint of grapefruit. ^_^. Ironically, I had a bad introduction to it. My sister made me drink it lukewarm, and it was DISGUSTING! "No wonder they call is Pocari Sweat, it tastes just like sweat!!!" But it's a good thing I gave it another chance, 'cause it actually tastes pretty good ice cold. What I do is put it in the freezer overnight and then put it in my gym bag in the morning. So when I hit the gym after work, it's a nice refreshing slush, perfect after a sprinting a couple of laps. ^_^.

Comments, criticisms and flame throwers at ina_chan@yahoo.com

Ja!
Ina-chan