Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ The Cousin of Death... ❯ Chapter 5 ( Chapter 5 )

Chapter 5:

 

Hatori turned from the light box that held the x-ray of Tohru's abdomen. He could see that the blade had lacerated her large intestine, nearly shearing her appendix off completely. Luckily, there was no other major damage to and other structures within. The blade came pretty close to running her completely through and he couldn't help but to wonder where that dying man had found the strength to inflict so much damage on her.

 

From the level where she had been stabbed, he could tell that the man didn't have the strength to lift his arm any higher. It was another blessing. If she had been wounded higher or more towards the center of the abdomen, he could have pieced her liver, kidney or if he had aimed towards her midline, he could have even hit her aorta, which would most likely killed her.

 

“Prep her quickly and start her on another unit of blood. Have one on standby as well. Make sure we have plenty bottles of sterile water on hand as well.” He ordered and got a round of `Hai doctor's' in reply. He quickly moved into the scrub room where some of his staff were already changing and stripped off the bloody clothing.

 

Dark blue scrubs were donned and a hat of the same color was tied on his head, holding his dark brown hair out of his face. He slipped a white mask over his nose and mouth and glasses were slipped on before made his way over to the sink and began scrubbing his hands and forearms thoroughly. His mind never once left the beautiful young woman whom he was about to operate on.

 

He remembered having a conversation with her about her mother on one snowy day this past winter, and after hearing how Tohru had been raised by a single mother, he had nothing but respect for Kyoko. No doubt the woman had faced many hardships after Tohru's father passed, but still she had managed to raise such a wonderful daughter.

 

A smile graced his lips beneath the mask and his eyes closed. `Kyoko-sama…please watch over and protect her during this operation. Keep her company and remind her that she's loved by many and we all need her to be apart of our lives…Keep her fighting…don't let her give in to Akito…' He said within his mind as the last bit of soap was washed from his skin.

 

His foot was taken off the water controls beneath the sink, and with his arms held before him, he bumped the swinging door with his hips. A female nurse dried his skin with sterile towels and quickly helped him slip into a gown and gloves. Once everyone was ready and the heart monitor beeped steadily, though a bit weakly, the procedure began.

 

“Hiro, I need you to hold the blade steady.” He said as Remiko, another female nurse, handed him a scalpel.

 

Once the blade was secured by Hiro's steady hands, Hatori made a two centimeter incision on both sides of the blades. As her skin was retracted, gasps were heard at what was seen. The tip of the blade had a two-inch long area where there was a gap in the blade. The gap in the blade was razor sharp and they could only imagine the damage that would have been caused if Tohru or Akito had pulled the blade out.

 

If it had been removed, a secondary wound would have been caused, which would have increased her chance of dying. Flesh would have been hooked between the gap in the blade, shredding delicate tissue. He had no clue as to where Akito had gotten this weapon, but once the operation was over, he would make sure that the weapon was destroyed.

 

Slowly and carefully the blade was removed and no further damage was created. The dagger was rinsed and placed into a bag as Hatori continued his work, cursing Akito for the harm that he had done to the little onigri.

 

o-o-o

 

Four hours later, the last suture was finally in place and the surgery was complete. Her appendix was completely removed to prevent infection during her healing, and the small knick in her small intestine that wasn't visible on the x-ray, was also repaired. The area had be thoroughly rinsed with the sterile water and suctioned clean of the blood and intestinal contents and as the x-ray showed, there had been no damage to any other structures within her body.

 

As long as there were no complications, the scar from the surgery would be barely noticeable, appearing only as a thin line that would more than likely mistaken for an appendectomy scar.

 

Hatori removed the bloody gown and gloves, tossing them in the biohazard bin before retreating to the sink. A sigh of relief escaped his lips as he looked over his shoulder to see that his staff had finished dressing Tohru in a hospital gown and the endotracheal tube had been removed from her throat and replaced with an oxygen mask. She had regained some of her color, and after this final unit of blood was finished, she would be switched to normal fluids along with the antibiotics and painkillers they were giving her.

 

He helped them wheel her into a recovery room where she would stay until she was up and about once more. Once all that was done, he ventured out to the waiting area where seven worried and distraught juunishi were waiting for news on the girl they all cared for so deeply.

 

o-o-o-o

 

Hatori moved to the waiting room and immediately held up his hand to stop their words before they started. In his hand, he held something wrapped in blue cloth, but the worried teens and the two adults couldn't see what was concealed within it.

 

“First of all, the surgery was a success, there were no complications and right now she is sleeping from the anesthesia. We could give her something that would wake her, but I want her to rest for as long as her body needs it.”

 

A collective sigh of relief was heard throughout the room but they remained quiet as Hatori explained the extent of her injuries. “She had lost quite a bit of blood and the damage to her intestines was severe, but she will recover. We all know that Tohru-kun is strong enough to get through this.”

 

“Yeah…knowing her, she'd probably be up right now trying to make everyone dinner if you didn't have her sedated.” Kyo grumbled fondly, earning light chuckles at the very true statement the neko had just made.

 

Hatori sat on the coffee table that was in front of the juunishi and began unwrapping the object in the blue towel, exposing the razor sharp blade with the hook-like blade tip. “Have any of you ever seen this before.”

 

Many shook their heads, but surprisingly a growl was heard from the ox as he leapt to his feet, sending the chair he had be sitting in flying. Black Haru made its appearance know, causing both Yuki and Kyo to tackle the ebony and ivory haired teen to the ground. With the neko and the nezumi physically restraining him, eventually black Haru disappeared and all of his muscles relaxed. Slowly Yuki and Kyo released him.

 

Hatsuharu picked up the chair with a sigh, seemingly tired from the sudden change and outburst and plopped into the chair. Carefully he rolled up the sleeve on his right arm, exposing the white line of the scar on his lightly tanned skin. “He used that blade on me…he tried to stab me in the arm.”

 

The dragon looked shocked. He had never seen that wound on his young cousin. It had to have been only before New years that he had examined the teen and that scar wasn't there then. “Haru, when did you get that scar and why didn't you come to me?”

 

The boy shrugged. “It was a few months after the New Years celebration for this year. I don't know why…but Akito was trying to get my black side to come out. He was provoking me but I controlled that side of me. Suddenly I saw a gleam of silver and my arm began to bleed.”

 

He put his hand to the mark on his arm as if he was reliving the memory. “He had a fit of coughing and I was able to get out of there. After that, I hadn't been summoned back to him…” He said, remembering the fear that ran through him as he remembered thinking that Akito was trying to kill him.

 

“Even if he had summoned me again, I wouldn't have gone back. I wouldn't have been able to control black Haru…especially after what Akito did…” His eyes glazed over and Kagura moved to sit on the arm of his chair, wrapping her arm around him as he leaned into the welcomed embrace.

 

Hatori's shoulders slumped and his eyes closed. `I couldn't protect them from Akito…Haru was injured and Tohru could have died…' He said to himself.

 

“You know Hatori,” Yuki started. “None of this is your fault. You didn't know what Akito had planned and no would have ever thought that he would try to…hurt her so badly.” He said quietly, unable to say the word `killed' as murmurs of agreement were heard.

 

Momiji moved from his spot between Shigure and Ayame and walked over to the dragon. The usagi wrapped his arms around him. “Haa-san, Yuki is right. There was nothing you could have done to prevent it, but you DID save Tohru's life!” He said, smiling happily. Hatori nodded slowly and hugged the blond with one arm, but remained quiet.

 

o-o

 

Ayame looked from Momiji and Hatori to his side and met the eyes of Shigure and Yuki giving a slight nod. Shortly after the New Year's Celebration, the nezumi had approached the inu and the hibe. He had asked his brother and cousin if they had noticed the looks that the young doctor cast in Tohru's direction throughout the night. He had told the older men that he believed that Hatori might have feelings for the girl that had changed all of their lives.

 

So in the months that followed the celebration, they watched the pair and noticed the subtle changes in the normally stoic doctor and they didn't even know if he realized he noticed it himself. He paid more visits to Shigure's and he always accepted Tohru's invitations to dinner, dropping whatever he was doing at the moment for one of her home cooked meals.

 

Hatori had even gone on vacation with them on more than one occasion. On the last trip to the lakeside villa, he had even showed the little onigri how to make his famous chicken fettuccini.

 

Yuki had also noticed the shy smiles and blushes that frequented Tohru's cheeks when the doctor was around. He was truly happy that she cared for his cousin so much. Sure, Yuki had loved Tohru, and at first, it was a romantic type love, but over time, his love for her changed into a more brotherly love. And besides…he had his eye on someone else…

 

They had all seen it. Hatori cared for the girl, maybe even more than he did for Kana. It was only a matter of time before he let his feelings for her be known. Hopefully Tohru will be able to push away her shyness and tell Hatori how she felt as well. They would both be happier once their feelings were out in the open.

 

o-o-o-o

 

Hatori gave Momiji's shoulder a little pat before looking up and meeting the eyes of the rest of juunishi. Even though they didn't blame him, which he took comfort in, he blamed himself. A sigh escaped his lips and a quiet thank you was heard before he stood.

 

“I'll take you all back to see her, but only for a few minutes. More than likely, she's still sleeping.”

 

They all nodded and stood as well before following him deeper into the small clinic.

AN: As promised ^___^