Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ Divine Intervention ❯ Chapter 7 ( Chapter 7 )

Disclaimer: Fruits Basket isn?t mine. A girl can dream, though.

Warning: There's a hint of lime in this chapter.

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Chapter 7:

Arisa stubbornly flipped through the phone book that was attached to the booth. She was determined to find a listing for "Sohma" that might be this infamous Honke. After reading the list of addresses for a third time, she frowned and dropped the book, leaving the phone booth to join Saki on the sidewalk.

"Any luck?" Hana continued her sweeping, nonchalant gaze at their surroundings. "I trust that you know where we are. My sense of direction leaves much to be desired."

"Yeah yeah, I know where we are." Years in a street gang had given Uo an intimate knowledge of the city. "I don't think any of the Sohmas in the phone book are the ones we're looking for. There aren't any huge houses in those parts of town."

"Let's think logically. When I ran into them on their way to the Honke two years ago, they weren't very far from Shigure's house. If you know how to get back there, I'm sure I can find the street they were on."

Arisa looked at Hana in disbelief. "Geez, Hanajima, why didn't you say something before?" They had been wandering around for a half-hour at least now, with no luck. Uo's plan to go in the direction that Momiji and Hatsuharu's cousin drove them home from the school hadn't worked as expected.

Hana didn't appear to show any remorse at all. "You didn't ask. Besides, I thought you knew where you were going."

"What the hell am I gonna do with you? This way." Arisa led Hana in the direction of Shigure's house. They just had to find that damn Honke.

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"Excuse me, office lady?" Momiji could barely see over the top of the counter in the school office.

A large, brutish looking woman waddled over to where Momiji and Tohru were standing. "What do you want? I don't have time for any childish antics, especially from boys in girl's uniforms." She leaned over the counter and peered at Momiji like a fat hen examining an insect. Momiji's smile didn't even falter under her scrutiny. That was definitely a first for her. She depended on that look to force all the little hooligans into behaving. 'Maybe I'm losing my touch,' she thought.

"If you please, could we use the telephone? I need to call my cousin," he said with his most innocent expression.

"School phones aren't for calling your cousins. Wait until you get home." The office lady turned to leave, but Momiji continued.

"No, wait. He's my legal guardian. It says so in my records."

"Hmm. We'll see about that. Name?" Did these children really think she was such a fool?

"Sohma Momiji," the boy responded with a sweet smile. Usually, his bubbly smile melted even the coldest of hearts, but this lady wasn't falling for it. Instead, she waddled over to the filing cabinet and flipped through until she found the right folder. Finding out that the boy's cousin was indeed his legal guardian made her mood worse.

"Fine, you can call your cousin, but this girl doesn't need to be here," she added, squinting at Tohru, daring the girl to challenge her.

Momiji started to protest, but Tohru cut him off. "It's okay, Momiji-kun. I think it's almost time for class anyway."

"Okay, To-ru. I'll take care of this. Don't worry!" Momiji waved as Tohru left the office. The office lady dialed Hatori's number, just to make sure the kid didn't call someone else, and handed the receiver to Momiji. The boy realized that the woman was going to stand and listen to his phone call, so he had to think carefully before he spoke.

"Hello?" Hatori answered in his normal, serious tone.

"Hari!"

"Yes, Momiji?" Hatori said with agitation.

"Um, I just wanted you to know that there are going to be visitors at the house."

"What are you talking about?" Hatori could only imagine what types of obnoxious people Momiji would want to bring home from school.

How was he going to tell Hatori without getting Uo and Hana in trouble for skipping? "Um, you know, Tohru's friends. I think they may come over later to visit Kureno. Maybe you should meet them when they show up."

Hatori heard a muffled "That's enough, young man. Don't waste my time with your mindless drivel" and then a dial tone. It must have been that charming woman who worked in the office. She had been a true nightmare when he was registering Momiji and Hatsuharu at the school. Why had Momiji called to tell him something so bizarre? How did Tohru's friends know Kureno, anyway? He sighed as he rose to go fix everything for everyone once again.

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"Finally we're headed in the right direction!" Arisa and Hana walked briskly down the street where Hana had convinced Kyou and Yuki to return to Tohru two years prior. "I thought we'd be out here looking forever."

The two continued for a while longer, with buildings getting farther and farther apart until Arisa didn't think there could be anything else down the road. It was much farther away from the city than she would have expected. "Oi, Hana, I don't think we're going in the right direction anymore."

"No, I feel that the Sohma house is nearby." She gazed off through the trees as though she had X-ray vision.

"Uh, I didn't know your denpa could find houses." If Saki had been holding out on her again, she was really going to be pissed.

"It can't. There's a sign there that says 'Private property. No tresspassing.'" There was no hint of mockery in Saki's voice, but Uo felt angry all the same. Leave it to Hana to do something like that. Uo fell into a determined stride as she walked down the winding road and up to the gates of a large house. The damn thing was like the size of a village. Stupid rich Sohmas!

Before Hana could advise her against it, Uo pounded on the ornate doorway. Hana felt a foreboding about this place that told her they didn't appreciate uninvited guests. The door slowly opened to the face of Momiji and Hatsuharu's cousin, the one who drove them to school.

"So Momiji was right. I hear you have come to visit Kureno?" Hatori had seen the girls many times, but had never directly spoken to them. "I'm Sohma Hatori, Momiji's older cousin."

"Oh, yeah. You're that doctor guy, right?" Uo was a little surprised to meet him at the gates. "So is Kureno here? I really need to talk to him."

"I'm afraid that isn't possible. Kureno doesn't accept visitors. Maybe we could arrange a meeting some other time. Now, I'm on my way to pick up Momiji and Hatsuharu from school, and I insist that you let me drive you back there. I'm sorry you went to all this trouble." Hatori had already pulled his car up to the entrance so the girls wouldn't have to go into the heart of the Honke. Perhaps he should erase their memories, but that involved telling Akito. If Akito knew that Tohru's friends had found the Honke then likely all three of them would have their memories erased. No, better just to nip this in the bud before there was a problem.

The girls had no choice but to get in the car with Hatori. They couldn't exactly run around the Honke looking for Kureno

When they got back to school, Uo led Hana down the street towards her house for a few minutes until she saw Hatori's car drive off toward the Sohma residence again. "C'mon Hanajima," she said, turning to follow the car.

"Where are we going?" Hana assumed they were going to go back home. She was getting a bit hungry.

"We're going back to that damn house."

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Momo skipped on the hopscotch board she had made outside the Honke walls. She wasn't supposed to play out here, but inside was so boring. This way she could sneak over to her secret entrance and visit Momiji in a little while after he finished his homework, too. She always visited him on Mondays after he got home from school. Mama would be very angry if she found out, but Momo didn't care. Momiji was just like a big brother to her, even if Mama didn't like him. She turned on the space where the stone had landed and started hopping the other way. Suddenly, she noticed two girls approaching the Honke gate. "Hi! Who are you?" Momo had never been shy.

"Uh, hey munchkin. Do you live here?" The blonde girl looked kind of mad.

"Yep. Do you know people who live here?" Momo tried to look intimidating.

Saki considered what the safest answer would be. "We're classmates of Sohma Momiji and Sohma Hatsuharu."

The little girl could hardly contain herself. "You know Momiji-kun? Are you friends with Tohru-chan, too?"

'Bingo!' thought Arisa. "Yeah, we're good friends of hers. Look, we're trying to find Sohma Kureno. D'you know him?"

Momo shook her head rapidly, making all of her blonde hair fly about her face. "Nope. I'm going to visit Momiji-kun right now. Wanna come?"

"You mean you'll take us inside?" Uo smiled at the ease of getting in this time.

"One time I took Tohru-chan inside. It's a secret path. Follow me!" Momo ran around the side of the wall without waiting. Arisa jogged after her and Saki walked regally behind them. Physical exertion was simply not her thing.

"So I thought Tohru could come inside if she wanted." Arisa was trying to make conversation with the little girl.

"She was visiting someone secret. I took her to see Momiji and then she walked really far and talked to a man who lives way over there," she said, pointing into the distance. "Tohru doesn't know but I followed her and saw her talk to the secret man."

"'Secret man'? Who was he?" Uo got an image of some enigmatic lover and laughed. No way Tohru would do that!

"I dunno. He was tall and kind of mean-looking. I don't think he has any friends." Momo looked sad at the prospect of being lonely. Arisa had to admit that she was a cute kid. She thought about whom Tohru might visit that she wouldn't tell anyone about. Tall, mean looking, a loner?. Could that really be??

"Hey, munchkin, do you think you could show me how to get to that house?" She had a good feeling about this.

"Okay, but then I have to hurry and see Momiji-kun."

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Uo finally stood on the doorstep of Kureno's house, or at least what she suspected was his house. She had imagined this moment many times, and always in her visions she was brave and firm and reprimanding, telling off that ass for ignoring her like that. Now that she was there, her anger turned to a nauseating nervousness that tormented her stomach. Those embarrassing dreams that she didn't want to admit that she had came to mind. Dreams where Kureno swept her off of her feet in passionate kisses were all remembered, making her flush. She was interrupted from her dizzy revelry when Hana reached out and knocked on the door for her. "What the hell, Hana?"

"I have a strange feeling about standing out here like this. I feel like someone's watching us." Saki's voice was uncharacteristically shaken. Uo's eyebrows drew together as she viewed the Honke behind them.

"I don't see anything but if-" Uo's words failed her as she heard the door open. She turned and locked eyes with a man she had only met twice, a man more handsome than she had remembered. Why did all the Sohmas have to be so freaking hot?

"A-Arisa?"

Hanajima noticed that Kureno's original austerity at opening the door had faded to shy confusion when he laid eyes on Uo. He hadn't even noticed Saki standing there. "Might we go inside? It's a bit cold out here," she said. She couldn't help but feel frightened at the idea of being watched by whatever force it was she felt.

"Yes, um, come inside. I'm Sohma Kureno." The man walked into the house, letting them follow.

"Hanajima Saki. I'm going to stay here. This cushion looks far too comfortable to pass up." Hana plopped herself down on a soft, black velvet cushion in the small living room area. The house was small, perhaps two or three rooms, but she wanted to allow Arisa as much privacy as possible. Hana picked up a book about predatory animals from the table and began reading intently. Well, at least the man had good taste in furniture and books.

"Hanajima?" Uo asked, but her friend was already absorbed in her reading. Uo was now left alone with Kureno. He silently led her to the porch at the back of his house and sat down. Uo sat beside him and began fidgeting with her skirt. This wasn't going as smoothly as she had planned.

"If I may ask, how is it that you came here today?" Kureno was trying his best to sound composed. The shock of finding Arisa at his house was still awing, though.

"It was a coincidence. I go to school with your cousins. Yuki and Kyou are in my grade and Momiji and Haru are a year younger. You know Honda Tohru?" Arisa waited for his nod. "Yeah, she's my best friend, so I guess it was just a matter of time before it all got figured out. Actually, I found out because Momiji said you helped Tohru when she got drunk and dislocated her shoulder running into a wall on New Years. Thanks for that."

Kureno stopped for a minute to ponder what she was talking about. He supposed that they used that excuse to explain what Akito-sama had done. "Yes, but did you come all this way to thank me?"

"N-No. What happened? Why didn't you ever come to see me again? You really pissed me off!" Uo's temper was getting back into full swing.

"It's not that I didn't want to. I've never interacted with people before, really. You might say I'm a recluse." Kureno hoped she would accept that excuse and leave him forever. This pain was too great.

"What the hell does that have to do with anything? You can't toy with someone's emotions like that. First you ask me out to eat, then you insult me, then you almost kiss me, then I never see you again. Is that how you act all the time?" Uo was raising her voice now. "And what's this I hear about not being allowed to have visitors? That's pretty weird!"

"I know. I don't live by my own decisions. I am indentured to another, and there's nothing I can do to stop that. Please, accept my apology for leading you to believe something else. It would be best if you forgot meeting me, and also how to get to the Honke. If I were seen with people around, I would be punished severely. You might be, also." Kureno tried to plead with his eyes. How could this young girl cause him so much pain? She was brash and rude, and beautiful and honest.

"If you're being held prisoner or something, isn't that against the law? What kinda wimp are you, anyway? I mean, you're 26 years old." Arisa was getting tired of this line of talk. "Look, I like you a lot. Would it be so bad if we went on a couple dates every once in a while? Whoever this person is has to give you nights off, right?"

"No, Arisa, it won't happen. You're only making this harder for me, and for you, as well. Maybe someday, but not now." Kureno moved his gaze from Arisa's dejected eyes to the mountains in the distance.

"I see how it is." Arisa didn't think that it would be a problem. "The age thing, it's too much for you. Hey, I'll be 18 in a few months and then I'm legal. You know, most guys your age would kill for a girl who's still in high school. Even that cousin of yours, Shigure."

Kureno looked back at Arisa with a sad expression. "No, that isn't it. I hope that someday I can come for you. Accept that if you care for me at all."

Arisa put her head in her hands to hide that fact that she was wiping away tears. 'Uotani Arisa does not cry!' she told herself. "Fine, I'll leave you alone. But since I came all the way here, will you give me one thing?" Uo thought that being forward would come easily to her, but she was having trouble getting the words out.

"Anything I can give you." Kureno meant that. This girl would never realize the importance that she had on his life, the hope she had given him, the brightness her smile granted his heart. Kureno found himself bewildered, though, when Arisa's face advanced towards his own. Only at the last instant did he manage to remember the curse and grab her arms so she couldn't embrace him. He found that his head moved on its own account, tilting slightly to join their lips together. Kureno read romantic stories as a boy, which usually depressed him because he knew he would never kiss a girl. This moment was a lifelong fantasy and it made him come alive for the first time.

Arisa felt like she was consumed in Kureno's kiss. She had kissed men before, but never had she felt it in her whole body, because it had never meant anything to her before. She didn't want this to end, ever. The reasons Kureno gave her for not being able to date her didn't make much sense, but she knew that this was probably the only time she would experience this moment, and she wasn't going to waste it on thought. Letting herself get swept away by the kiss, only her raw senses were registering in her brain. His tongue's naive exploration of her mouth was electrifying, sending chills up her spine and eliciting quiet moans. Arisa broke herself away from his mouth, panting. "Please, this is torture. I can't do this."

Kureno let his grip on Arisa's arms loosen as she stood to leave. He couldn't end this now. If he didn't ask, he would regret it for the rest of his life. "Arisa, I love you. Let me show you that I'm not false. Please."

Arisa nodded wordlessly. Did he know how those words had affected her? Without realizing what she was doing she found herself in Kureno's bedroom. They must have come in from the porch. Arisa reached for him to kiss him again, but again he held her arms to her sides. "What's wrong? Why won't you let me touch you?"

Kureno's mind worked frantically, thinking of a decent excuse. "It's a medical problem. I cannot be embraced. Please, you might forget, so let me hold your arms like this." Arisa nodded again and Kureno kissed her in a gentle fashion. He wanted this to be special, memorable.

"I love you, too. I'm not sure why, I mean I barely even know you, but I do." Arisa's words were breathless and pure, making Kureno's heart clench. Kissing her again, he thanked himself for reading those romance novels.

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Saki was getting bored with the books in Kureno's living room. They had been there quite a while, and it was getting late. Not that she minded, though. Saki was happy that Arisa could find somebody to share affections with, and by the occasional sound from the other room, she guessed they were doing a good job of it. Saki smiled slyly. Romance was so wickedly delightful. But her happiness was short-lived. Hearing a sound at the front door, Saki realized that the force she felt while they were outside was much stronger. The vibes were intoxicating.

"And who might you be?" A cold voice came from the doorway. Saki couldn't make out the form in the evening shadows, but the voice was enough to earn her undivided attention.

"I am Hanajima Saki. Who might you be?" This was definitely the force that she had felt. The man stepped into the light, giving her the means to examine him. His electrical waves were mismatched to his appearance, as they seemed old and wise. The power of the vibes was equal to the light in his dark eyes, though. Saki was impressed by his stare. Here was a worthy adversary. This man was devilishly handsome, as well, resembling the Prince. Yes, Saki was very impressed.

"I am Sohma Akito. I've seen you somewhere before. Yes, at my cousins's entrance ceremony. Are you familiar with any of the Sohmas at your school?" Akito asked with a slick smile.

"Yes, I am acquainted with Sohmas Yuki, Kyou, Hatsuharu, and Momiji," Saki said, standing. Something warned her not to mention Tohru.

"I see. Yes, it's coming back now. You were sitting with Yuki and Kyou during the ceremony. I noticed your penetrating eyes. I could be hypnotized by them." Hana froze as Akito slid his hand up to her cheek. This man was strange, almost wonderfully peculiar. She felt herself drawn to him like a moth to a flame, like her denpa was in overdrive at his presence. "May I ask you a question?" He didn't even wait for her response. "It seems that you are blessed with some sort of foresight. Am I correct?"

Hana blinked and regained her composure. She never wavered like this. "Yes, I have a type of psychic ability, called denpa. I can sense the electrical signals that a person emits, allowing me to feel certain qualities or emotions from them."

Akito smiled again, but his eyes remained cold. "How fascinating. Maybe you can visit me sometime and demonstrate. But for now, I must leave. I fear it is quite late. Do you have a ride home?"

"Yes, I can get home by myself. There's no need to go out of your way." Hana made her eyes as cold as his were.

"Then until next time, Hanajima-san. Good night." Akito bowed to Saki and smoothly lifted her hand to his mouth, tenderly kissing it while his icy gaze never left hers. At that, he turned and walked out the door, leaving Hana to let out the breath she was holding. Yes, an equal match.

Hana knocked on Kureno's bedroom door and was soon making her way with her friend back home. Uo was pensive for once in her life, not saying a word as she turned down her street towards her apartment. Hana continued to the train station. Sitting on the late-night train, staring at the subway tunnel flying by, Hana realized what it was that had been bugging her since her meeting with Akito. He hadn't mentioned Kureno once, even though she was found sitting alone in his living room.

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A/N: Well that was a longer chapter than I had anticipated. Um, yeah, so it was all Hana and Uo, but now that I have that out of the way I can go back to the real main characters of the story! Sorry about the lime. I didn't intend to put that in, but when I wrote it, it just kinda fit, seeing as it's their only time to be together and all. And I wanted Hana to have some time to meet Akito, also. I'm not opposed to having them interact more, but it's not integral to my plot, so if I get responses either way, I'll take them into consideration. I'll also try to update sooner.

Keep on reading and reviewing, my super awesome fans!

Thanks to:

Shiroi Yuyen: I have to say you're not the first person I've gotten threats from to update. I'm not a machine! ^_^

yingaling: I'm not promising ultra frequent updates forever. Just until the end of September when school starts again. I like Kisa and Hiro, too. Expect little scenes like that from all of the Jyuunishi. I want them all in my story.

Zapenstap: Did you call me Jamers??? You know I hate that, Stew! Hehehe ^_~ I hope you liked my Saki and Akito action. (Is that like "smells like peanut action"?)

Lady Kara: No, I haven't heard "Woof" before from you. Does that mean you want more Shigure? Seriously, though, every review is priceless to me, even if you've already said everything important!

Sakura Avalon or Kinomoto: I'm happy you like my story so much. Now you have to continue yours soon!

bookitty: I always dreamed of supplying crack over the internet?uh, yeah, or good chapters I mean. Cool! My characters have life!

Merei-chan: Sorry, I guess you're probably frightened now. ^_^