Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ The Butterfly Effect ❯ Animal Instinct ( Chapter 8 )

Author's Note: The Jade God and the symbolism of the red butterfly are actual parts of Japanese mythology. The Jade God is the god that called the banquet for the animals in the legend, as far as I have been able to find. If someone knows otherwise, please let me know. I'm really sorry to inconvenience anybody but I have to take a health-related trip next week and I don't know how long I'll be gone for. I promise that I'll update again as soon as I can- I'm just not sure when that will be. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read my story!

Chapter Summary: So what do you do when your animal instincts really are... animal instincts?

Disclaimer: Fruits Basket belongs to Natsuki Takaya/HAKUSENSHA - TV TOKYO - NAS - Fruba Project.

Warning: Rated R for language, implied rape, torture, and adult situations.

/Chapter 8: Animal Instinct/

/And the thing that gets to me

Is you'll never really see

And the thing that freaks me out

Is I'll always be in doubt

It is a lovely thing,

The animal instinct./

-Cranberries, "Animal Instinct"

It is like waking up after a long sleep. Tohru has been able to pull herself out of her own misery and now she can focus on the boys again. She can start noticing the little things that make them more comfortable- like preparing salmon onigiri for when Kyou reads over the college calendars or drawing a hot bath for him on the days when the late summer rains start. For Yuki, it is things like putting an extra blanket on the bed on the nights he shares it with her or picking the strawberries before he wakes up so that he can have them for breakfast.

*You do realize that there is more to life than focusing on the needs of two intelligent, gorgeous... er... never mind. Let's hope that their 'needs' involve lots of naked back rubs and chocolate...Hmmm....Chocolate...*

Strangely, whatever the butterfly is thinking about seems to prevent it from making any more comments. This is just as well, because Tohru doesn't need any more confusing thoughts in her head.

Something has changed between Yuki and Tohru after Tohru's flashback. Yuki had always kept Tohru slightly at arms-length. Even though he no longer called her "Honda-san", he had never initiated any of their games or physical contact. Now, it is like a dam has been let loose. He tickles her as he passes her in the hallway and places light kisses on the palm of her hand when he greets her in the morning. Tohru is grateful that he doesn't seem to do anything in front of Kyou, but even then Yuki seems to be watching her every time she looks towards him. And then there was the morning in the garden.

###

Yuki is still little better than a zombie when he wakes up in the morning, but that morning he managed to come down relatively awake. Tohru was about to go get some strawberries for breakfast when he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"May I come with you?"

*'Any time, sweetheart.'*

'Knowing you, that was somehow dirty.... You know what? I really don't want to know.'

Tohru could feel the smile spreading over her face. "I'd be very happy if you helped."

They sat outside in companionable silence for a while, picking strawberries and pulling weeds. Then Yuki started to talk. "When you first came to stay with us, I was very jealous of you. Even though your mother was dead, it was obvious that you had a close, loving relationship with her."

'I haven't thought about Mom in weeks except to say 'good morning' to her picture!'

*'And believe me, that makes her very happy- besides I don't like sharing the status of 'inner voice' with a picture.'*

Tohru was so stunned by this realization that she nearly missed Yuki's next words.

"I have never had a close relationship with my parents or brother and after Akito.... When I first started to get to know you, it was like having a real family. I used to imagine what it would have been like to have someone like you as my mother or sister."

Tohru felt sick to her stomach. She knew that she should be honored but-

*'But this is even worse than the 'let's just be friends' speech.'*

Before she could make an excuse to leave and find somewhere to cry, Yuki put his hand on her arm and continued speaking. "I couldn't imagine wanting anyone after what happened with Akito. I was so sure that what I felt for you was what normal family members should feel for one another, that I got scared when it started to change. By the time you told Kyou and I about your plan, I was already trying to fight what I felt. But after your nightmare- I can't pretend anymore. Tohru, I-"

He was so close; Tohru could feel his breath on his cheek. Her eyes were starting to close as he leaned in and-

"Oi! Kuso nezumi- I need your help setting up this stupid swing!"

Tohru was left sitting, pale and shaken, while Yuki left to help Kyou.

'What was he going to say to me?'

*'If you can't figure that one out then you don't deserve my expert help and we certainly don't need you to spread your clueless genes through the population.'*

Now Yuki seems to be avoiding being alone with her and Tohru is more than a little confused.

*And that doesn't even begin to cover what happened with Kyou.*

Ah yes, Kyou....

###

Tohru has continued her martial arts lessons with Kyou, even after she learned enough to go out in public. They are helping her overcome her life-long clumsiness while at the same time allowing her to spend time with Kyou.

The morning that things changed, she had decided to ask Kyou some questions about his cat spirit. Somehow, after having seen his second form, Tohru felt that he might be more understanding of her own fears than the privileged Yuki. She had woken from another Akito nightmare and decided that she needed to know more about the curse. Her memory of Akito kept playing in front of her eyes, and she kept trying to understand what Akito was saying.

()I have no animal. I am the only Jyuunishi that has no other form because I hold the Jade God within my body. But when they made the curse, they represented the god with a red butterfly. Do you know why, Tohru? They chose a red butterfly because it represents the spirits of the dead. I am a dead woman walking. No human body can hold a god and not be destroyed. And I will show you, Tohru, what it feels like to pay the price of the gods.()

'I need to find out more about how this animal spirit thing works. I need to find out if you are anything like the other Jyuunishi.'

*'At least if Kyou thinks you're crazy, he's such a pushover for you he'll probably hesitate long enough for us to make a break for it.'*

She approached Kyou on his practice field and waited until he stopped performing his kata.

"Um...Kyou?"

"Yes?" Kyou looked a little bit concerned. Tohru decided that the only way that she was going to get through this was if she talked very, very quickly. "Does-your-animal-ever-talk-to-you?"

Kyou almost immediately smiled and relaxed. "Oh, poor Tohru. I remember how confused I was the first time I heard a voice in my head. It's always a little unnerving to hear from your spirit once or twice a year."

'Once or twice a YEAR!?!'

*'Hey- it's not my fault that butterflies have short attention spans!'*

Tohru decided that this discussion could wait until later. She still had some questions and Kyou seemed like he was willing to help her. "What do you call your spirit?"

Kyou blushed and muttered something.

"Pardon me?"

His next reply was hardly any louder, but this time Tohru was focusing a lot harder. "I said that I just call him 'Cat'."

'Then I'd call you... Butterfly?'

*'Works for me. Hell of a lot better than 'the evil voice in my head'.'*

'Um... Sorry?'

*'What did I tell you about apologies, onigiri?'*

"Tohru, are you all right?"

"I'm fine Kyou- I just had one more question for you. Does your animal influence your er... emotions or how you think?"

Kyou was suddenly the color of a particularly ripe strawberry.

*'Oh... this is way too funny. See honey, you've got it easy.'*

"Um...er...Sometimes the animal has you know... demands... that... oh hell."

*'And he's articulate! God, where's a camera when you need one?'*

'I'm confused.'

*'Don't worry your pretty little head about it. I'll explain it to you when you're older.'*

And then Tohru understood. Apparently Butterfly had infected her mind so that she thought like Shigure automatically. 'Oh... OH!'

"So you sometimes have the same responses that a real cat would?"

Kyou's smile was full of relief and gratitude. "Yes, that's about right. Come to think of it- what kind of drives would a butterfly have?"

'You really don't want to know.'

"Well I think that they have very short attention spans and I noticed that I get cold more easily."

Kyou shuddered. "Yah, I know something about that. I hate that I get so sick when the weather's bad. You know Tohru... I had been meaning to thank you... about the baths I mean."

He turned towards her and his expression was far more serious than Tohru was used to seeing on Kyou's face. "You've always looked out for me, no matter what anyone else has said. When I first met you, I thought you were just another dumb girl and that I was reacting to you the way I'd react to any pretty female. After my Mom and then Kagura... Well I wasn't really looking for another woman in my life."

Tohru was stunned once again. She sank to her knees on the grass and wondered if she should just make a break for it before she started bawling.

*'Well, this one is a little reversed. Boy, you really know how to pick them.'*

Kyou was suddenly kneeling in front of her, his hands on her knees. As he spoke, his face got closer and closer to hers. "But you, you're so much more than that. You're actually pretty smart and funny and fun to be around and I love every minute I spend with you. I hate what's happened to you and if I could go back in time and tear Akito into little pieces I would. But I'm so happy that I can be with you now. And for the first time in my life, I'm not afraid that someone is going to leave just because I-"

"There you are baka neko! We need to get those forms filled out for the fall college semester."

Kyou practically growled at Yuki as he rose and stalked off towards the house. Once again, Tohru was left on the ground, trying to figure out what was going on.

###

Tohru has decided that there is nothing like college applications to take your mind off romance.

"How the hell do you fill out this form if you want to declare a minor in a non-related field?"

The boys have been spending the past week trying to sort out majors and minors and various other course issues. It appears to be doubly complicated by the fact that the normal academic year starts in April and the boys are trying to enroll in the fall semester. Tohru's glad that if she is accepted to cooking school, most of her courses will be chosen for her for at least the first year. The coursework has the added bonus that the boys can't avoid her while they are weighed down by college calendars and registration forms.

*Ah yes, attack them while they are weak. You learn quickly.*

So far she has proven her usefulness by neatly taking notes on their possible schedules and providing comfort food and blankets. Now she is about to see if there is anything that she can do to help Kyou, since somehow she seems to be a lot better at paperwork than he is. But it seems that this time Yuki is actually going to try to answer Kyou's question. Yuki has already picked his double major with the goal of opening a landscape and garden design firm when he graduates. As he puts it, 'There are thousands of rich visitors and residents who want their yards looking beautiful for the twenty days a year that they actually live there. Not to mention all the parks and business green spaces to attract tourists.' Having made his decision, he is now in a good position to 'help' Kyou.

"What exactly are you trying to do neko?"

"Well, I'm going to take an accounting major which should complement your business management/ landscape architecture double major. And then I'm going to take-" The rest of the sentence is an indistinct mumble.

"Could you speak a little louder?"

Kyou speaks just enough louder that Tohru can figure out what is going on. Apparently Kyou has decided to take some human anatomy/pharmacy courses along with his accounting major. He also plans on taking some extracurricular emergency response courses to get what amounts to a minor in nursing.

Yuki bursts into laughter. "You're going to look great in one of those little nurse uniforms neko."

Butterfly smirks in Tohru's head.

*He's just pissed off about that 'dress incident' in high school.*

Kyou almost immediately shuts Yuki up. "We don't have Hatori here, nezumi. What were you planning on doing if one of us gets sick or injured? This way, at least I can help with minor illnesses."

There is no more arguing and instead the boys seem to be working co-operatively to co-ordinate their schedules. Tohru is amazed and a little scared by how well they seem to have thought everything through, how seriously they are taking their joint futures. What she isn't sure of is what place she will have in this future plan.

'What if they decide to leave?'

*I'm not going to begin to comment on how stupid that question is, but even if they did we would survive.*

'It's not just making a living- I love them, Butterfly. I really don't know what I would do without them.'

*Breathe. Eat. Sleep. Live. One way or another, life goes on.*

Despite Butterfly's 'reassurances', Tohru alternates between a terror that the boys will never really love her and a frustration that they can't even see her feelings. Not to mention the fact that she burns up inside every time she gets with arms-length of either of them. The worst part is she's no longer sure how many of the images in her mind are her own and how many are planted by Butterfly.

'How much of this is me? How much of this is you?'

*Does it really matter? We're stuck with each other now- might as well get used to admitting all of your repressed fantasies.*

'I don't think I like the sound of that.'

*This is going to be fun.*

###

/Reviewer Responses/

Quick Note: The 'dress incident' referred to in the chapter is the time where Yuki was forced to dress as a girl by his fan club for a special event and Tohru referred to him as 'cute'.

Hinoki_Mizuno: I'm very happy that you enjoy the story! I hope that you like the rest of the story as well.

NikeShuu: Actually the chapter was really hard to write and I wasn't sure whether the scene was going to work or not. I'm glad that you think that it did. Poor Tohru- but I do think that things are getting better for her :) And yes, she and Yuki do have a common bond in regards to Akito.