Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ The Butterfly Effect ❯ What I Did For Love ( Chapter 17 )

Author's Note: For those who are curious, "puff-puff" is a perverted Japanese term for the act of placing someone's head in between two breasts. Yeah. That's what I thought too.

 

Chapter Summary: Tohru needs a bigger bed. Or maybe not.

 

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

 

Warning: Rated R for language, implied rape, torture, and adult situations. This chapter: non-graphic descriptions of torture.

 

-Chapter 17: What I Did For Love-

 

-Kiss today good-bye,

-the sweetness and the sorrow.

-We did what we had to do,

-and I can't regret what I did for love.

-Edward Kleban, "What I Did for Love" from 'A Chorus Line'

 

 

There is screaming. Then Tohru wakes up. There is still screaming.

 

Tohru turns to Kyou- the dark circles under his eyes are getting larger.

 

"Again?"

 

"I'm sorry love, but you seem to be the only one who can do anything. We were hoping not to wake you up but..." He trails off.

 

Tohru wonders how they were planning on not waking her up when Hatori's screams could probably wake a dead man. Fortunately for everyone involved, Shinta seems to be capable of sleeping through nearly anything until it is time for his feeding.

 

Five days since Hatori arrived and five days since anyone except Shinta has gotten more than two hours of sleep together. Yuki is already in the guest bedroom, staring helplessly at the frantically rolling and moaning Hatori. He has tossed most of his covers off and is tangled in what remains of his blankets.

 

Tohru places a light kiss on Yuki's lips before walking over to the bed. She puts a hand on Hatori's forehead and he almost instantly stills. "Yuki, Kyou can you untangle these sheets and put his covers back on?" With the practiced efficiency of five nights of multiple interventions, the boys get the sheets together in record time. Keeping her hand on Hatori's forehead, Tohru lies down on top of the covers, peeling them back enough that she can reach Hatori's bare, sweat-covered back. She moves one hand down to his back, while stroking his head with the other.

 

Tohru gently rubs back and forth over the tense muscles while humming nonsense words. "Easy does it. Nothing can hurt you. Sleep. Everything's all right." Even asleep, Hatori responds to her voice, his breathing evening out and calming while the tension in his face slowly disappears. He whimpers softly before curling up against her.

 

Tohru is amazed that someone so much taller than her can form such a small ball against her stomach and chest. She rests her head on top of his and continues rubbing circles over his lower back. "Shhhh... Shhh... Just sleep. No more dreams. Shhh...."

 

Is he making... snuffling noises? Oh dear. Hatori seems to be nuzzling her collarbone in his sleep.

 

"Well that's a new development." Yuki's voice is heavily tinged with exhaustion.

 

Tohru turns slightly to look up at the boys and Kyou weakly grins. "I was starting to wonder if he ever had any normal dreams."

 

Tohru manages a half-hearted pout. "You're not the one that he's nuzzling."

 

Kyou groaned. "Normally love, I'd be the first one to defend your honor, but if it keeps him quiet I'm afraid that I can live with a little nuzzling. I thought that I was ready for parenthood, but I didn't realize that my child was going to start out at thirty-five years old."

 

Tohru can't keep up the joking. The boys are starting to look like raccoons- no wonder Hatori had looked so tired when he had first arrived. "Look- I'm really the only one who needs to be here. Why don't you two go to bed and get some real sleep?"

 

Yuki turns to her, his eyes blurred with exhaustion but his aura vibrant with gold and red. "Because I can't sleep without you either."

 

Tohru is far too tired to fight. "Oh, come here."

 

Yuki and Kyou both kneel beside the bed, their heads resting against Tohru's back. Tohru wants to tell them that that position will be very uncomfortable but she is falling into a nice, warm dark place and is far too comfortable to speak.

 

-###-

 

Tohru blinks her eyes. She is fairly sure that it is time to feed Shinta but one of the boys is wrapped so tightly around her that she doesn't think that she can move. She raises her head to his face and freezes. Hatori sleepily blinks back at her before tensing and scuttling backwards across the bed. Tohru instinctively moves backwards herself, but almost instantly bumps into two large lumps.

 

"Ow."

 

"Was that really necessary, darling?"

 

"Would somebody please tell me what on earth is going on?"

 

This is enough to snap Kyou. "You aren't sleeping Hatori. Not only are you not sleeping, but you scream all night unless Tohru calms you down. Since you weren't mentioning it during the day, we assumed that you might not know about it and have tried to leave before you wake up, even if we have to come back five or six times a night. But we've had five days without any real sleep and it finally caught up to us."

 

Hatori's aura has gone from blue to a deep purple. "I'm very sorry but... that's the best sleep I've had in years. Please forgive me for causing so much trouble to you, Tohru. Maybe I should start taking sleeping pills again- they've just never worked very well for me."

 

"It's alright, Hatori, but I think- Oh Yuki, I almost forgot. Do you think that you could bring Shinta here? It's time to feed him. Then maybe you should tell Hatori that idea you brought up to Kyou and me yesterday."

 

Yuki brings Shinta back from his crib in the master bedroom and Tohru leans back against the wall to nurse. Yuki gets right to the point.

 

"Hatori- this can't go on. I don't think pumping you full of drugs is a solution either. I never thought that I would have to say this, but we've decided that you need to sleep with us, at least until you can get these nightmares under control."

 

*That's a priceless expression.*

 

Yuki massages the knot forming between his temples. "Not like that, Hatori. The reality is that you are not sleeping unless you are in physical contact with Tohru. None of us like it, but we can't keep going on like this either. Maybe we can figure out another solution, but in the meantime we can all get some much needed sleep."

 

"Even if I were to agree to this- how were you planning on fitting four adults into one bed?"

 

The boys look at each other and Tohru can see the defeat in their eyes.

 

"Maybe Yuki could transform? He could sleep in between my... um.... breasts."

 

Yuki's head snaps up.

 

"I know it's a stupid idea-"

 

"Are you kidding? I get nightly puff-puffs and everyone gets to sleep. It's perfect!"

 

Hatori looks like he very much wants to disagree, but Tohru catches something in his face that might be longing before he returns to his stony expression.

 

"What choice do I have?"

 

Kyou and Yuki speak together. "Absolutely none."

 

-###-

 

Hatori's aura vibrates with pink and purple as he stands in the master bedroom in his boxer shorts. "I suppose I knew that you all slept together but it's another thing to actually see it."

 

Yuki stops in the middle of stripping down and sighs. "It's just sleeping Hatori. We all sleep better next to Tohru. We're not going to force you into some kind of orgy."

 

*Damn.*

 

"Are you ready Yuki?"

 

"Think so, darling."

 

"Are you sure I'm not going to squash you?"

 

"I think I'll be okay."

 

*If that lecherous grin is any indication, he'll be way better than okay.*

 

Tohru picks up the transformed Yuki and puts him down her pajama top. It feels a little strange to have something moving in between her breasts, but it's not necessarily a bad feeling.

 

Kyou comes up in front of her and plants a rather hard, open mouth kiss. "That's for the disruption to our morning routine."

 

'I didn't even think of that.'

 

*When it comes to sex, we always figure something out anyways. I wouldn't worry about it. Besides, you needed some post-birth recovery time anyways.*

 

Tohru lies down on the bed and Kyou faces her, draping a loose arm over her waist. "Come on Hatori, you're holding up bedtime."

 

Hatori moves stiffly to the bed and places a very rigid arm just under Tohru's breasts. Tohru puts her hand over top of his, and the arm almost immediately goes slack while Hatori moves in closer to her back. Tohru drifts to sleep with a final warning from Butterfly in her head.

 

*He calls us "Kana" and we 'accidentally' knee him.*

 

Fortunately for everyone, it seems that even in his sleep Hatori is a perfect gentleman. Aside from occasionally nuzzling the back of her neck and clutching her like a stuffed toy, Hatori does nothing inappropriate. Best of all, there are absolutely no nightmares. Kyou and Yuki exchange glances with Tohru in the morning. That evening, Hatori's things are moved into the master bedroom.

 

-###-

 

After two weeks of real sleep, Hatori is starting to look much better. After returning the rental car, he has not left the house and has become Tohru's silent shadow. Whenever she needs an extra hand to change Shinta or help with the meals, he appears by her shoulder and quietly starts to work. Tohru always makes a point of thanking him for his help. He never responds directly, but his shoulders lose some of their tension when she pats his hand or smiles at him. He's even started to tell her little stories about some of the adventures of the Blossom Trio in high school. He's never brought up Akito or going back to the compound and Tohru has begun to hope that maybe he will just stay quiet. Unfortunately, it seems that their silent truce has to come to an end.

 

Tohru is coming down the stairs after putting Shinta down for a nap, when she hears the voices in the living room.

 

"...and no one's seen either of you for five years! The family may not have done much for you, but Akito is our head. You owe it to her and the rest of your cousins to pay the proper final respects. I've already delayed here too long- there is probably very little time left before she passes. If not for Akito, think of what you owe the rest of us. We need your support."

 

Tohru can see the boys wavering; see them weighing the iron bonds of family that they can never entirely forget. She knows that she will have to use her last option to protect them. The knowledge leaves her strangely calm. Maybe she has always known that it would come down to this, that in the end she would be forced to make this choice.

 

She walks into the living room, back straight, head held high.

 

"Before you two make a decision, I need to tell you what happened that night with Akito."

 

In five years they have never once pressured her to tell what happened. Now is the time to put all of her pieces together. She faces away from the boys and takes a deep breath.

 

Tohru! Think about what you are doing!

 

'I owe this much to Yuki and Kyou. I can't let this happen, Butterfly.'.

 

*Aw hell. I hate that you're such a fucking white knight. I really, really hate that you've corrupted me so badly that I agree with you.*

 

Silence.

 

*Oh, screw it all! It's been fun, sweetheart.*

 

"Kureno took me to the compound. He had been watching the house and when Shigure left to see Mit-chan, he decided that it would be the best time to bring me to the Honke without interference. I didn't want to make Akito suspicious and I still hoped then that she would change your mind and let you two live your own lives. I thought that maybe she was planning to erase my memories, but when I met her in the house there was no one there except her and Kureno."

 

"I thought that this was a good thing. Then she pulled out a knife."

 

Tohru hears a low growl behind her and decides to cut the description short. After all, this information isn't what is really important.

 

"It doesn't really matter what happened then- parts of it are very blurry because I kept fainting and being forced back to consciousness over and over. Akito kept telling me I was worthless and stupid and that the Jyuunishi were fools to value someone like me, to love someone like me over their god. She nearly killed me- I think that she completely lost control. Kureno tried to stop her and she ordered him to rape me."

 

There is a moan from one of the boys. Tohru doesn't dare turn around.

 

"He tried to avoid it, but Akito threatened to control him if he didn't do it voluntarily. I understood afterwards that Akito had mental bonds with you Jyuunishi that were affected by distance. From across the room she could make Kureno uncurl himself. When she touched him she could make him speak and move any way she wanted. She told me that it was her gift. She could call and control people- get inside their minds. The cursed had permanent bonds to her, but she could create temporary bonds with others. That was what she did to me to show me the responsibility that the Sohma god had to bear. She knew about my mother's name and thought that it would be funny if we both got to be butterflies. Even though her god power didn't have an animal, she was able to make it into a butterfly shape that she pushed in and out of my body. It was only supposed to be a temporary thing to hurt me and after all the injuries I had, she didn't expect me to survive it.”

 

"I fell apart faster than she thought that I would- maybe because my lung was punctured. Before I passed out, Akito made me swear not to tell anyone what had happened or she would immediately collect you two. She backed up the promise with a mental bond between us that would let her know if I broke my promise and allow her to mentally find me and crush my mind. I guess I blacked out then, because I only remember hearing Akito as she was about to leave the room. She thought that I was still unconscious and she told one of the servants that I was to be collected in the morning and dropped off in a bad part of town. She thought that it would be amusing, if I was found, that I wouldn't be able to explain what happened before I died."

 

"I thought I was going to die. I was lying in the corner of the room, bleeding to death, when suddenly I could breathe again. There was a voice in my head that made me leave the room and told me that I was cursed, that I was a butterfly. Somehow, even though Akito didn't have an animal, something she did created an animal spirit in me. Akito has healing abilities that help her body tolerate the god and Butterfly got enough of those abilities to save my life and get me back to Shigure's house before I passed out. Because Akito didn't know about the butterfly, I could tell you about it without breaking my promise.”

 

"But none of that really matters. What is important is the last thing that Akito said to me before I blacked out in her house. She told me that if either of you did anything to help me she would destroy your minds and bodies in the same way. She would take your help as a sign that you had chosen me over her. I didn't remember this until after we got here and then it was too late to do anything about it. You're out of her range here, but if you go back she will destroy you. I can feel her in my mind, Yuki, Kyou- she won't show any mercy. Please, please don't go back."

 

Tohru can feel the bond flooding open. She knows that she has a few minutes at most.

 

" Please take care of Shinta. I love you all more than anything but I couldn't let you be hurt."

 

Then the pain starts.

 

-Reviewer Responses-

 

Neonlite17: Don't worry- you will always be God of the Clue List of Doom! I'm just far more disorganized than I should be, but I hope that you continue to enjoy the story anyways :)

 

Kuramas gurl: I'm a sucker for romance too, as this story proves very, very frequently. I wouldn't worry about being self-conscious about stories over a PG-13 rating- some of them are relatively mild (f'r'instance, “Butterfly Effect” has to fit in FFNet's very tough rating system) but others are a lot more graphic. If you're specifically trying to avoid graphic sex scenes, the “hentai” category is often one of the best clues on MediaMiner :) I'm glad that you are enjoying the story and I hope that you get the chance to check out some of the other Furuba fics out there!

 

Runic: Yeah- he's cute isn't he ;)? I had someone on the other site comment that he'd probably have “large eyes, insane charm and a crazy temper” when he grew up. So why do I immediately get this impression of the ultimate bishi? Always great to hear from you!

 

NikeShuu: Well, as you can see this chapter, there was unfortunately a fairly good reason for ending on an ominous tone :) And in this story, pretty much everything is a tempered kind of joy I think- I really make the characters work for their share of happiness, fair or not. Good call on the bad things happening! As always, a pleasure to read your thoughtful review and I hope that you continue to enjoy the new chapter.

 

AnimeFan: I actually have read Anita Blake, but strangely I don't think that Butterfly has all that much in common with her. Anita always struck me as a bit of a prude who was unhappy about how odd her sex life was. Butterfly never strikes me as the guilt type- I think that Butterfly is a lot more happily er… `amoral' than Anita seems to be. I am flattered however that you thought that the two had something in common! As for the present tense… I'm sorry that you found it distracting- I'd been afraid that that might be the case when I started writing it. However, for a variety of plot reasons (including some of the ones that happen this chapter) it was absolutely necessary to write using present. And as a slightly worse reason, for some reason I've always thought of Tohru “seeing” the world in present tense. I tried to re-write the first few chapters in past tense and somehow it just didn't have the right feel. But that's all completely wishy-washy and I appreciate your constructive criticism. Thank-you for taking the time to write such an involved review- I hope that you enjoy the new chapter!

 

other_hitomi: I was actually surprised when I first started reading FB fanfiction by how few stories seemed to have this kind of solution (I can think of maybe two off the top of my head and neither of them actually resolve it directly). Other fandoms (Harry Potter) have fairly popular threesome relationships with nowhere near the canon support that the Fruits Basket one has…. Sorry, -shuffles sheepishly- didn't mean to rant, more just that I was puzzled by it :) I'm very glad that you enjoyed the story and I really enjoyed reading your review :) I hope that you continue to enjoy the new chapter!

 

-Updated 02-03-05-