Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ A Bump in the Road ❯ Wrong Time, Wrong Place ( Chapter 3 )

Bump in the Road: Chapter Three

 

A/N: Yay for updates! We've actually been together, in person, working on the next few chapters, which has been fun and productive, shockingly. So, let's get to it. Huge, HUGE thanks and various baked goods to Aoi for being a fantastic and lovably brutal beta. Thank you, Aoi! And, of course, as always, reviews are hugely appreciated and happily squealed over. ;)

 

XxXxX

 

Chapter Three: Wrong Time, Wrong Place

 

All other doubts, by time let them be cleared;
Fortune brings in some boats that are not steered.

~Cymbeline IV iii

 

Shigure could not help but notice that Kyou's voice seemed to have a natural inclination to bounce off every wall in the house, no matter his location at the time. Such was the case today.  In fact, the Dog was rather surprised that Kyou felt up to going anywhere.  He could barely move without wincing.  But then again, once Yuki announced his intention to accompany Tohru-kun to the market, very little could have deterred the Cat from going along.  Doing so would have been acknowledging his injury and, therefore, weakness.

 

"Fine!"

 

Yuki's voice, softer, but no less clear. "Fine."

 

"I'm going!"

 

"Fine." A pause, then a muttered, "Baka neko."

 

"Screw you, kuso nezumi!"

 

"I never told you not to bother coming with us, idiot Cat."

 

Predictably, Kyou muttered and groused, and acted quite put upon, but he wasn't fooling anyone, least of all Shigure. From his study, the Dog only shook his head. There were some days when the boys seemed to hover on the threshold of... well, not friendship, necessarily, but something less full of vitriol than they were demonstrating now.

 

Rome wasn't built in a day, the Dog reminded himself, but by this point they'd at least had a foundation laid.

 

All of this, and they were only going grocery shopping.

 

It seemed an eternity before the trio left the house, and when they finally did, Shigure let out a long sigh of relief. He had been looking forward to spending the afternoon putting the finishing touches on a cluster of chapters Mit-chan was due to pick up the following week. He worked for a short while before meandering into the kitchen, intent on brewing some Keemun, which would undoubtedly help stimulate his muse.

 

Unfortunately, while he was getting a clean teacup from the cabinet, Shigure saw, on the counter, the grocery list in Tohru-kun's sweeping, feminine hand. He blinked, staring at the slip of paper for a second or three, thinking. The right thing to do would be to take the list and catch up with his young charges, like the helpful soul he was (or that he tried to be, which isn't always the same thing).

 

Although, truth be told, he didn't much feel like going for a walk. He'd been looking forward to a quiet afternoon all day, and now that he felt it in his grasp, Shigure was reluctant to give it up so easily. Surely there was nothing that important on the list. His eyes scanned the list as he reached up into another nearby cabinet, his left hand groping for the canister of his favorite Keemun. When his fingers didn't close around the familiar container, he frowned and looked up.

 

It wasn't there.

 

Shigure looked back at the list, and there, in handwriting too flowery to be anyone but Tohru-kun's, he saw "Shigure-san's tea" at the bottom.

 

The situation had suddenly become rather... dire.

 

They couldn't have gotten that far, he thought, folding the sheet and heading for the door. He paused long enough to slip on his geta and shrug into his coat, and then was off, striding down the tree-lined path as he hurried to catch up with the teenagers. However, the longer Shigure walked, the more certain he became that Kyou-kun, Yuki-kun, and Tohru-kun were further along than he'd originally thought. What had started out as a short walk turned into a much longer journey than Shigure had anticipated; soon he found himself in front of the grocery store. Damn it.

 

He'd come this far; it would be ridiculous not to go in. Though, if he waited long enough, Kyou-kun and Yuki-kun could be escorted outside for fighting anyway...

 

Unfortunately, that wasn't as likely as Shigure would've hoped it to be. The boys had gotten in trouble here before, and Tohru-kun's disappointment had been enough to guarantee that both the Cat and Rat would be on their best behavior, ever after.

 

There was nothing for it -- he had to go inside. Sighing a bit, Shigure stepped in, the automatic doors shutting behind him with a soft whoosh. He made his way carefully through the aisles, keeping eyes and ears peeled for any sight or sound of Tohru-kun and the boys. Contrary to what most people believed, it wasn't sheer laziness that made Shigure prefer ordering takeout. It was the market itself.

 

No, that wasn't even entirely accurate. It wasn't the grocery; it was the people. The place was teeming with them -- throngs upon throngs of people. Waves of them. More people than he could ever possibly count in his lifetime.

 

...Well, perhaps not that many... but certainly a lot.

 

And, for reasons known only to Kami-sama, all of them seemed to be women.

 

Damn it!

 

And the true injustice was the fact that it wasn't cute high-school girls swarming the market (Tohru-kun excluded, of course), but older, perpetually unhappy-looking matronly types.

 

Behold: your readership.

 

The Dog suppressed a shudder at this thought and yanked his mind back to the situation at hand: locating Tohru-kun, Yuki-kun, or even Kyou-kun. After a few more moments, he caught sight of an orange head and, relieved grin in place, he quickened his steps to catch up with the trio. Soon he saw them in the produce section -- Yuki-kun and Tohru-kun were choosing vegetables, while Kyou stood off to the side, glowering, a shopping basket hooked at his elbow.

 

"Ah!" he cried out, closing the distance between them. "I'm so proud of you both, Kyou-kun, Yuki-kun!" When both boys looked up, identical expressions of horror etched on their features, his grin widened. "You'll both make wonderful brides for a very lucky someone!"

 

Predictably, Kyou sputtered, turning a rather impressive shade of crimson. Yuki, on the other hand, glared at him, muttering darkly.

 

"What the hell are you doing here?!" Kyou demanded, scarlet eyes flashing with impatience and embarrassment.

 

Shigure wagged a finger at them both. "You let Tohru-kun wander off without her list!" Fixing the girl with a warm smile, he withdrew the slip of paper from his sleeve and passed it to her.

 

Tohru's eyes widened as her expression lit with both relief and happiness. "Oh, Shigure-san, thank you! We were just trying to remember what I'd put on the list. Yuki-kun and Kyou-kun offered to go back and get it for me--"

 

I just bet they did, Shigure thought, keeping his expression bland and pleasant.

 

"--but I didn't want to impose on them." She paused as a thought occurred to her, and her expression shifted from one of relief to one of concern. "I'm so sorry, Shigure-san! I hope you didn't inconvenience yourself too greatly coming out all this way just to bring the list--"

 

With ease born of practice, Shigure waved off the young woman's worried prattle. "Not at all, Tohru-kun. It was a pleasant walk."

 

The Cat made no effort to mask his growl. "If the walk was so damned pleasant, then you can take it again. Now."

 

Affecting a pout and tucking his arms into his sleeves, Shigure turned to his younger cousin.

 

As is the nature of accidents, Shigure hadn't even seen the woman coming. He'd only just opened his mouth to reply when someone behind him stumbled, tumbling against him, and the last thing Sohma Shigure registered before the world faded from color into a haze of blacks, whites, and grays, was a pair of soft breasts pressed against his back. He saw Tohru-kun's eyes flicker with panic an instant before she smiled brilliantly and stooped over, scooping up the abandoned clothes, laughing uncomfortably as all eyes fell upon her.

 

He felt a tiny twinge of guilt at the girl's discomfiture. But those breasts against his back... That sensation alone almost made it worth the frantic, four-legged scramble out of the market.

 

Scenery passed in a blur, shops and sidewalks leading to more familiar, less developed areas as Shigure sprinted home. His paws pounded against the earth in a rhythm that thundered through his head, keeping time with each individual curse as he swore under his breath.

 

"Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit..." His tongue lolled out of his mouth as he ran, and it occurred to him in that tiny little part of the brain he seldom used that perhaps it might have been beneficial to him if he were to get a bit more exercise.

 

That little voice, however, was drowned out by a louder one. Had he left the market quickly enough? Had anyone seen?

 

"Baka," he muttered under his breath as he leapt over a small creek. "Baka, baka, baka, baka, baka!!"

 

XxXxX

 

The woman shifted uncomfortably in the passenger seat of the coupe. "Takashi... could you slow down a little, please?"

 

The driver gave her an amused smile. "Akemi-chan -- there's nothing on these back roads. Don't worry about it."

 

Her eyes went to the green blur beyond the car window. "Even still... I think you might be driving a little too fast."

 

A shadow of annoyance passed over the driver's brow as he let up on the accelerator, but the smile stayed in place. "I do know how to drive, Akemi," he said lightly.

 

XxXxX

 

Shigure was nearly home -- nearly there. No, it would not do to transform back to normal while he was running back to the house. He winced. No, it wouldn't do in the least.

 

Because running meant... bouncing.

 

He winced again.

 

Shigure was quickly nearing the edge of woodland. He was thick in Sohma land at present, and so close to home he could taste it. Or, at least, smell it.

 

And, because he was on Sohma land, it never occurred to him to pause before crossing the barely paved road that ran along the perimeter of the property. It never occurred to him to look both ways before crossing the street.

 

Because, really, cars weren't usually an issue.

 

But it occurred to Sohma Shigure, as he darted out into the road, and particularly when something slammed into his left side, knocking the air out of his lungs, killing his momentum and sending him sailing to his right, that perhaps looking both ways before crossing the street was a very good habit to adopt.

 

He landed hard on the grass alongside the road, his right foreleg twisting painfully beneath him as his head thumped solidly against the semi-frozen ground, evening up the damage to include his entire body. He lay still for a moment, staving off unconsciousness, his mind racing to catalogue his injuries. His ribs hurt like a bitch, and he ached all over. The pain ricocheting through his skull was particularly exquisite.

 

But he was alive, and that was something, certainly.

 

As he succumbed to the blackness teasing at the edges of his vision, one thought slid through his mind.

 

He really didn't want to have to explain this to Hatori.

 

XxXxX

 

"For god's sake, look out!"

 

The thump was sickeningly loud, second only to the deafening screeching of brakes as the car came to an immediate stop.

 

"You hit a dog!" Akemi cried, shouldering the passenger door open. "I told you that you were driving too fast!" Her feet hit the ground running and she hurried to the fallen animal, dropping to her knees. Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god. Damn, damn, damn, damn, DAMN! The big black dog lay motionless along the side of the road. Akemi felt ill suddenly as she stared at it -- had they killed it? She narrowed her eyes and leaned forward. The cold, wet ground slicked her hands and soaked through her pants as she knelt, focusing on the animal's side for several seconds.

 

It's breathing. Okay, it's breathing. That's a good sign.

 

She was vaguely aware of the other door opening; the driver approached the dog, looking down at it with an impassive gaze. "It came out of nowhere, Akemi." Takashi folded his arms and shot the beast an annoyed glance. "Get back in the car -- the dog will be all right."

 

The woman looked over her shoulder, giving her fiancé a cool blue glare. While it was true that the animal had darted out of the woods as if the devil himself had been on its heels, she'd already warned Takashi several times that driving back roads required one to be just a little more careful than driving city streets. "You're suggesting we just... leave? You hit it, Takashi."

 

He gestured uselessly. "So? I hit a stray. Look -- no collar," he added pointedly, jerking his chin at the canine.

 

She shook her head, making a soft annoyed sound in the back of her throat. Guilt twisted in her gut at the notion of driving off, leaving the animal here by the side of the road. "Fine. Go. I've got my phone -- I'll call Sho-kun."

 

Rolling his eyes heavenward, Takashi took a step backwards. "You're kidding. You want me... to leave you here? What if the dog wakes up? What if it's rabid?"

 

"He's too well taken care of to be a stray." It was someone's pet -- someone's family. "So he won't be rabid." Mean as hell, possibly -- even the best-tempered animals had the potential to be mean when they were in pain. Dammit. "Takashi, if you don't want to leave me here, then take me to Sho's." She looked down at the canine again and tentatively reached out with a slightly shaking hand, stroking the dog's smooth black head. The touch drew no reaction from the animal, not even a twitching behind the eyelids.

 

"Sho's got enough to worry about without you dragging some charity case mutt into the clinic." After a moment, he sighed, and the irritation was gone from his tone; he was suddenly at once both wheedling and placating. "Akemi-chan, come on. Let's call animal control, okay? They'll come and pick him up, and--."

 

"What?" Akemi stood suddenly, closing the distance between the two of them in several short-legged strides. Her eyes glared ice as she stabbed her index finger in the center of Takashi's chest. "You hit the dog," she said, her voice low. "And even if you're not willing to take some fucking responsibility for your actions, I am. We're taking the dog to Sho's. Are we clear?"

 

Takashi held his fiancée's glare for several seconds before looking away. "Fine," he muttered. "But we're leaving him with Sho. I don't have time to take care of a dog."

 

Akemi turned back to the animal, rolling her eyes. "Fine. Let's get him into the car." She stalked back to the coupe, watching as Takashi gathered the black dog into his arms and brought it back to the car, settling it in the back seat.

 

The couple drove to the veterinary clinic in silence, but when Takashi made a move to get out of the car, Akemi placed a hand on his arm, stilling him. She was still angry, certainly, but it was pointless to hold on to that anger. He'd talked her into taking a half day at work, and they'd had a pleasant afternoon, despite the sharp pang of guilt that came with leaving early. Sending him a small smile, she gave his forearm a gentle squeeze. "Thank you, but you don't need to stay. You've got too much to do tonight. It's not far -- I'll walk home."

 

He looked at her, to the clinic, and back again. "Walk?" he asked dubiously. "Are you sure you can carry him in? He's pretty big."

 

"Sure I'm sure. I'll get the dog settled with Sho, and go home." She shrugged. "It's a nice day."

 

Several seconds passed before Takashi nodded once. "All right, then." He got out of the car and eased the dog out of the back seat before carefully transferring it to Akemi. "Too heavy?"

 

Akemi grunted as the dog's full weight settled in her arms, but she shook her head, sending the short dark strands swinging. The dog was heavy, but at least it was a short walk into the clinic. "Nah. I'm stronger than I look," she added with a wink.

 

"And don't I know it." Leaning over, he cupped her face in his hand and brushed a kiss across her lips.

 

Akemi broke the kiss with a grin. "Now get out of here. Drive safely." Holding his gaze for a moment, her grin widened. "I love you."

 

"I love you too," he replied, reaching out and running his fingers through her hair. "I'll call you when I get to the hotel."

 

"You'd better." She turned and started walking towards the clinic, pausing only to shoulder the door open as she brought the black dog inside.

 

XxXxX

 

"I can't believe that stupid Dog," Kyou muttered, shoving the door open.

 

"It wasn't his fault, Kyou-kun," Tohru said, reasonably, as she followed the Cat inside. "If I hadn't forgotten the list--"

 

"Feh," was all he said as he strode into the kitchen to deposit their purchases on the counter. "Don't blame yourself. The kuso nezumi should've--"

 

"Should have what?" Yuki interjected, pausing in the kitchen doorway. "It's no one's fault -- not even Shigure's." He paused. "No matter how hard that is to believe." After a moment, the Rat shrugged a little. "I don't think anyone actually saw anything."

 

"Will Shigure-san have to get Hatori-san?" Tohru asked, slowly emptying one of the grocery bags.

 

Yuki shook his head. "I... I don't think so." Frowning slightly, the Rat glanced down the hallway toward Shigure's office. Tilting his head, he made his way closer to the door, left partway open, as if Shigure had left in a hurry.

 

He had, of course, but that was hours ago. He should have been back by now.

 

"Shigure?" Yuki peered in his cousin's study. It was empty. The boy's features pulled into a deeper frown -- surely they wouldn't have beaten Shigure back from the market. He turned and headed back to the kitchen. "He's not here."

 

Tohru's brows drew together; she was still carrying Shigure's abandoned clothes folded over one arm. "That's strange," she replied. "Do you think maybe he went out?"

 

Kyou leaned against the kitchen counter. "He probably just..." He shrugged. "I dunno, went out for a walk or something. It ain't worth worrying about." His dark eyes watched Tohru carefully. He saw her frown and swore silently at Shigure. Damn dog. The idiot's probably off just chasing his tail, he thought, glowering.

 

"Well," Tohru suggested brightly, turning to the groceries on the counter, "I'm sure he'll be back in time for dinner."

 

Yuki gave a small smile. "I don't think he's missed one of your meals yet, Honda-san."