Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ A Caged Heart ❯ The Look of Disapproval ( Chapter 22 )

Chapter 21 - The Look of Disapproval:

 

Author's Note:

 

Here's a long-ish chapter for keeping everyone waiting for so long. That, and I haven't written this in a while and I've forgotten how.

 

I like making up words.

 

Also: With a gobsmackingly astounding 2 to 0 in favour of changing the name of the last chapter, I've decided that I simply cannot be bothered re-editing it. Well, it's changed in spirit anyway.

 

Chapter 21 - The Look of Disapproval:

 

Tohru exhaled, not realising that she had been holding her breath throughout the flood of curses that had mercilessly drowned the innocence of her vocabulary. But when that wisp of a breath seemed to thunder out like the bass lines of that damn rock music that those young punks from down the road are always listening to, she realised that it still seemed to be one of those times when everyone was especially quiet and somewhat uncomfortable.

 

It was in this quietness, which was growing ever more uncomfortable, that Tohru heard Nature calling. And it refused to be put on hold.

 

A wince slapped itself across her face. Foolish girl! She should have gone before they went looking for Yuki! Yes, she may have gotten crushed under the house if she had, but at least then she wouldn't have been in such a pickle now, would she? But no, she didn't think ahead! And now? Now, she was trapped in this... this pickle-y wax museum! Which was full of waxy pickles!

 

Still, though, it would be nothing compared to what would happen if she did make any sort of fuss. Because then... Oh, then they would - Tohru flinched at the very thought - they would give her... a... look. No, that wasn't quite right. It was more than that - much more than that.

 

It was... the Look of Disapproval.

 

It was one of the most dreaded things in Tohru's life. It was when you weren't behaving. It was when you weren't being quiet. It was a big X in red pen. It was the second you realised that your scoop of ice-cream was falling out of your cone, which was always the second after you would be able to save it, which was also the second before it would land on something that belonged to someone else and would thereafter be stained and utterly ruined forever. It was heart-crushingly horrible, and almost physically wounding, and bad, and sad, and saddening, and not gladdening, and, and, and-

 

Tohru's bladder shrieked at her to shut up and focus on the more important matter at hand.

 

With newfound resolve, but still trying to stay as posthumously still as pre-humously possible, her eyes peered around the corners of their sockets. There was nothing particularly helpful around, not that she even knew what she was looking for. And it didn't help that the trees seemed to be laughing at her distress. Nor did it help that the stupid trees were everywhere, waving their toilet-paper-like-leaves around mockingly.

 

But wait.

 

There was Kyo.

 

Kyo could help.

 

Couldn't he?

 

She didn't know what she expected him to do, really. All she needed was something to break the awkwardness. Actually, a sudden distraction would probably be better. In that case, she supposed that Kyo could point in one direction, and shout, “Look! What's that over there?” - and then she could just run in the other direction and find a huddle of trees that looked like they needed watering. Or maybe if he screamed and waved his head around really fast, Shigure and Hatori might think that his head was on fire, and would rush to his aid.

 

Unfortunately, none of this mattered, because he wasn't even looking in her direction. And of course, this meant that any means of attracting his attention would have to involve some sort of aural action (not to be confused with some sort of oral action, though that would probably have attracted his attention just as effectively) - which would definitely lead to the others giving her... the Look.

 

But Tohru was a bright girl, and opted for the well-trodden path that bright girls seem to take: hoping quite idiotically that he might notice her if she never said a single word and just stared and stared at him instead.

 

So, she stared. She wasn't sure if it was working properly, so she frowned a bit as well - and oddly enough, the result looked quite similar to the Look that she so feared. But after a while, the annoyingness of the situation forced her into the sort of look a wannabe-Jedi would have. The force did not appear to be with her at all, and at any rate it had all started to be rather tiring, so she shortly lapsed into a slightly twitchy and unhappy gaze instead.

 

This could have gone on for hours and hours, but once again Fate decided to intervene - or perhaps it was just because Kyo was somewhat impatient and bored too. Either way, she soon found that her gaze had been met with ... a silent and concerned wolf-howl?

 

“A-woo?” mouthed Kyo. “A-woo?? A-woo?!”

 

“What?? I don't know what you're trying to say!”

 

“I said, a-woo, are you okay?”

 

“I'm sorry, what?”

 

“TOHRU!”

 

“Oh! Haha, right! Yes, I'm fine. Actually, wait, no I'm not. Not really. Um. I don't know how to say how to say this or anything but um I guess I have to, `cause there isn't really anything else to do and I shouldn't have to be embarrassed or anything anyway, right? Okay, well, do you think there's a toilet around here?”

 

Kyo blinked blankly, trying to figure out Tohru could possibly mean by “Oh! Haha, waaii-heebedy-heebedy-heebedy-heebedy...” His facial muscles were almost as oddly strained as hers were, as he had automatically tilted his head in confusion - without actually tilting his head. He wasn't fond of the Look of Disapproval either, but that was because, in his experience, it was often followed by the Words of Mockery and/or the Laughter of Tauntingness. So, once again having failed in understanding the opposite sex, Kyo shrugged - without actually shrugging.

 

So, Tohru tried again.

 

“I... HAVE... TO...”

 

“Yeah...?”

 

“GO...TO...THE...TOILET...”

 

“What?”

 

“TOI-LET. TOI-LET. TOII-LLETT.”

 

“Haha!!! Seriously?”

 

Shigure turned.

 

Tohru squirmed, grateful not to be the direct target of this gruesome new Look.

 

Shigure's expression could only possibly be described as that of a lonely little orphan boy whose even-littler orphan sister had just choked and cried to death because the two had just been exposed to toxic nuclear radiation, which had horribly poisoned the girl but transformed the now-even-lonelier little orphan boy into a superhuman and super-angry orphan boy with the flames of all the furnaces in Hell for eyes.

 

This. Was. SPARTA.

 

“WHAT DID YOU SAY?”

 

“Whatcha on about?” said Kyo, looking affronted. “I didn't say nothing.”

 

“OH REALLY?”

 

“Yah really. I mean, no, didn't say a word.”

 

“Well then, I'm sorry. That must have just been the sound of ME NOT HAVING A HOUSE ANYMORE!”

 

“Hey! That wasn't my fault!!” Kyo held up his hands defensively. Scary-Shigure was... scary, and there was no knowing what he'd do next.

 

“OH WASN'T IT? WASN'T IT?!?”

 

“No, I don't think it was actually!”

 

“OH YEAH?? WELL YOU KNOW WHAT? YOU MIGHT BE RIGHT FOR ONCE, BUT THAT DOESN'T FIX MY HOUSE NOW, DOES IT?!??”

 

Shigure froze mid-smite.

 

“Oh... my... god...”

 

“... Uh, Shigure? You okay?” Kyo wavered, not knowing whether to step forward or back.

 

Trembling like too much Jell-O on a spoon, Shigure fell onto his knees.

 

Hatori was swift to his side. Tohru ran forward as Hatori and Kyo tried to pull Shigure up.

 

“Shigure?”

 

He looked up at her. The fire was long gone, and all that was left were wobbly puddles in his puppy-dog eyes.

 

“Tohru... I'm homeless...”

 

POOF!