Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ Everything ❯ Everything ( Chapter 1 )
[ A - All Readers ]
By: purplehairedwonder 
[One-shot] The day before his parent-teacher conference, Yuki is feeling down. Tohru does her best to cheer him up. Yuki x Tohru
Anime/Manga: Fruits Basket Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Shoujo / Romance | Type: Songfic | Uploaded On: 02.19.2006 | Updated On: 02.19.2006 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.6K | Visits: 1.1K | Status: Completed
[One-shot] The day before his parent-teacher conference, Yuki is feeling down. Tohru does her best to cheer him up. Yuki x Tohru
Anime/Manga: Fruits Basket Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Shoujo / Romance | Type: Songfic | Uploaded On: 02.19.2006 | Updated On: 02.19.2006 | Pages: 4 | Words: 3.6K | Visits: 1.1K | Status: Completed
Author's Note: This is my first attempt at a Furuba story, so I apologize for any perverse bastardizations. Any you find can be blamed on me. This also goes by the manga timeline, not the anime, so the final episode where Akito attacks Tohru does not exist here. Also, this takes place at the beginning chapter 72 of the manga, which is Yuki's parent teacher conference.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket. I also do not own the song "Everything." It belongs to the very talented and wonderful band Lifehouse.
---------
Everything
--------
Find me here
Speak to me
I want to feel you
I need to hear you
Yuki cut a pensive figure sitting on the boulder next to his 'Secret Base.' Inside the house, Shigure and Kyo had gotten into another one of their noisy squabbles and Tohru was trying bravely to break it up, though she should have learned by now that she was fighting a losing battle. The rat had just hung up with his mother and was feeling rather stifled in the house. So he had come out to visit his plants.
His plants were a source of peace and strength for him. They were living things that depended on him to continue existing. To know hat there was something that needed him made Yuki feel important - if only for the time he spent in the garden.
His whole life he had felt like nothing but a tool for his mother in attaining the social status she desired. He had spent those years at the Main House in the darkness where Akito told him over and over again about his inadequacy and how unworthy he was. Speaking with his mother on the phone had brought back all those feelings of unworthiness and by coming outside he had attempted to flee from them.
Yuki looked over at his small garden and smiled slightly. The strawberries he and Tohru had planted were beginning to peek out from under the soil. Yuki had decided on strawberries in hopes that the girl would like them, and indeed he had been right. The look of pure happiness on her face when he told her about them had warmed his entire being.
The rat pushed himself from the rock and knelt down by the small patch. He reached in and felt the new strawberry leaves between his fingers. His smile widened slightly. Those petals were a reminder of that warm person and what she had done for him.
Yuki blinked at the sound of approaching footsteps.
"Yuki-kun?" a timid voice asked from behind him.
You are the light
That's leading me
To the place where
I find peace again
Yuki jerked around to see Tohru standing in the clearing, emotion dancing in those big blue eyes of hers. The rat rose, brushing the dirt from his pants.
"Honda-san," he greeted, not sure what else to say to the girl's sudden appearance.
"You didn't look well after you got off the phone," Tohru replied, worry evident in her voice. "Are you alright?"
Yuki sighed, sitting back down on the small boulder. "I'm alright, I guess."
"Was that your mother?"
Yuki blinked before replying. "Yes."
Tohru sat down next to the rat and looked him directly in the eye. "I told you back when we were first getting to know each other that if something was bothering you, could tell me about it. That offer still stands."
Yuki felt his heart flutter slightly at Tohru's earnestness. He smiled gratefully at the girl. "Thank you, Honda-san. You don't know what that means to me."
She blinked at him.
You really don't realize what you've done for us, do you? What you've done for me? The darkness of Akito's words from then don't seem as black anymore. Not with you. He told me to never think I could be rescued. But you've thrown me a rope. You are a ray of light - of hope - in the blackness of my soul.
"Yuki-kun?"
It was Yuki's turn to blink as he realized he had been zoning out. "Sorry. I was thinking."
Tohru looked taken aback. "No! Please don't apologize Yuki-kun!"
Yuki couldn't help but smile at this. Her sweet innocent was so endearing.
You are the strength
That keeps me walking
You are the hope
That keeps me trusting
Tohru sighed and calmed at Yuki's soft smile. "If there is anything on your mind, I'm here."
Yuki looked up and watched a passing cloud for a few moments before turning back to his companion. "My conference is tomorrow," he said at long last.
Tohru started, as if she too had been lost in thought. She turned back to Yuki. "So that's why you were talking with your mother."
Yuki nodded at this. "And it just became a little much. My mother and I don't quite see eye to eye." The rat nearly snorted. That was an understatement if there ever was one. Whenever he spoke with his mother - which was sparingly if he could help it - it felt as if she was sucking the color from him; from his life. She cared nothing for Yuki the person. All that mattered to her was that Akito favored him. But the combination of his mother and Akito served to take everything out of him. He lost his spirit, his heart, and his way. He lost his strength and his hope in front of them.
"Yuki-kun has had a hard life," Tohru said with an empathic nod.
Looking into those big blue eyes, Yuki realized that she understood. While her difficulties had been different, she knew what it felt like to hurt. Both of them had lost their parents, albeit in different ways. But they had gained each other.
"You shouldn't have to go to that conference if it's going to be painful for you," the girl continued.
"It's something I have to do," Yuki replied after a moment.
"Why?"
"To prove to myself that I'm not completely pathetic." A sudden thought hit the rat. "To help in becoming the person I promised Kisa I would try to become."
Tohru beamed at this. "Yuki-kun, you're strong. Mom always said that people who face their fears are the strongest people in the world. So few people ever work up the courage to do it, so those who do are really strong."
Yuki looked at Tohru's beaming face and couldn't help but smile again. Her grins were infectious.
I'm not strong... but you Honda-san, you somehow lend me some of your strength. That's how I keep going. You're the strongest person I know.
You are the life to my soul
You are my purpose
You are my everything
Tohru looked over to the garden and brightened. "The strawberries are coming up!"
"Yes."
One look at the girl's beaming face was enough to break Yuki's heart. Her smile warmed the rat to the core whenever he saw it. Whenever she looked at him he felt his stomach flutter. Her strength to go on after all she had lost gave him the courage to face his own demons. Whenever she was with him, he felt as if the darkness of his childhood might not be as oppressive as he once thought. When she told him she liked him in her 'Tohru manner,' the rat began to feel worth something. What did she see in him? Yuki didn't know, but since they had first met, the rat had begun to forgive himself little by little like he told Kisa.
Because of Akito and his mother, Yuki had always felt hollow and empty. He had felt worthless and low. He didn't feel like he had a reason to exist. He was only a tool, after all. That's all he was seen as. He was cursed and would disgust any normal human. The rat had always believed that. Until he me her...
"If my memory is erased, will you still be my friend?"
That had been the first time Yuki had felt like he was worth something. This girl - this outside who had accepted them so easily - still wanted to be his friend. It had been amazing to him at the time and, in truth, still was to him.
But it had been then that that shadow around his soul began to recede - even if only slightly. Yuki had never felt like he had felt at that moment in his life. And it had felt... good.
And how can I
Stand here with you
And not be moved by you
"I can't wait to cook some of these vegetables," Tohru said happily.
Yuki looked over at her and her beaming face.
"I love using your vegetables," she said, catching his eye. "They make me think of you, Yuki-kun." She flushed suddenly.
Yuki blinked. Had she just said what he thought she had? The rat's stomach fluttered again. That was another thing about Tohru: she had a knack for saying just what you needed to hear. He had never met anyone quite like her. She was so important to the Jyuunishi... to him. Ever since she had begun living in the same house as him, Yuki had felt something deep within him beginning to stir. It had culminated at the summer house when he had kissed her. He still wasn't sure what had possessed him to do it, except that Akito had seemed dead set against something like that happening. Maybe that was why it had felt so right.
Akito had strong feelings against Tohru because, Yuki guessed, she had done so mich to help the Jyuunishi. Each one of the cursed members of the Sohma family had somehow been impacted and given strength from meeting the girl. Akito was highly controlling and possessive of the Jyuunishi because of his status as the god - which caused Yuki to shiver whenever he thought about it - and so an outside not only knowing of the curse but helping the cursed become stronger would certainly anger him. Honestly, Yuki was surprised the god hadn't lashed out at her more harshly than he had at the summer home. The rat was very aware of how violent Akito could become in a foul temper.
But with her knowing the truth and still being willing to live and love the Sohmas like family after all that had happened to her amazed Yuki. Her constant perky disposition gave him the strength to face the day. And he loved her for it.
Would you tell me
How could it be
Any better than this
"I'm glad you can use them, Honda-san," Yuki replied with a smile. The rat treasured every moment he spent in Tohru's company. It didn't matter whether Kyo or Shigure or any of the others were present as well. Any time he was able to spend with her was dear to him.
"Yuki-kun," Tohru said suddenly, breaking the silence that had fallen between the two.
Yuki blinked. "Yes?"
"You should do whatever you want with your future." Her voice was suddenly determined. "You shouldn't have to do what anyone else wants you to but you." She flashed him a small smile. "It's your future after all."
You calm the storms
You give me rest
You hold me in your hands
You won't let me fall
"Am I a tool? Your tool?"
"So what are you saying? What if you are a tool? What on earth is your problem? Give me a break! The head of the family likes you -- what more do you need?"
Yuki put a hand to his cheek at the memory of his confrontation of his mother that night. He could almost feel the sting of his mother's slap again with the strength the memory had come forth. He closed his violet eyes as he took a moment to compose himself again. Suddenly, he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. He opened his eyes to see a concerned Tohru standing next to him.
"Honda-san?"
"Are you alright?"
One look into those big blue eyes and that sudden memory of his mother's slap faded. "Yes. I'm alright." Yuki put a hand on top of Tohru's in gratitude of her concern. "I'm just working up the strength."
Tohru nodded her understanding. "I believe in you, Yuki-kun."
When you say things like that, Honda-san, I can begin to believe in myself. I can feel a little stronger... When I know you'll be here, the color begins to return a little...
You still my heart
And you take my breath away
Would you take me in
Would you take me deeper now
Yuki slid the door open, allowing Tohru to go in ahead of him. She nodded her thanks and Yuki felt that familiar flutter in his gut. They had walked back to the house, Tohru with an armful of freshly harvested leeks.
Kyo and Shigure were sitting in the kitchen as Yuki and Tohru stepped in, their earlier fight obviously having come to an end. Considering the bump on Shigure's head, Kyo had probably bonked him for being an idiot and called it good. The cat and dog looked up at the appearance of Yuki and Tohru. Kyo glanced at what Tohru was carrying and his face turned green. Yuki grinned. That was the exact expression he had been hoping for when he suggested they harvest some of the leeks.
"What do you have there, Tohru-kun?" Shigure asked, putting down his newspaper.
"Leeks," she replied. "From Yuki-kun's garden."
"Are we having them tonight?" the dog asked playfully with a look at Kyo's green face.
"Yes," Tohru replied happily. A moment later she went pale and turned horrified to Kyo. "Oh, Kyo-kun, I know you don't like leeks. I'll make you something else."
"Don't bother," Yuki put in, doing his best to keep a straight face. It was an opportunity too good to pass up. "The stupid cat needs to learn to eat like an adult."
Kyo's greenish tint turned red as he glared at Yuki. "You damn rat!"
"You shouldn't insult Honda-san's cooking by not eating it."
"Oh, it's not an in-"
"Don't start with me, rat!"
"Yuki-kun," Shigure broke in, "was that your mother on the phone earlier?"
The rat's face fell as all the amusement drained out at the mention of his earlier phone conversation. "Yes."
"Your conference is tomorrow then?"
"Yes." Yuki sighed. "I suppose I should be amazed she's coming at all, even if it's on her own time." Those dark feelings were threatening to rise again. "I'll be in my room."
Yuki walked slowly to his room and sat down on his bed. He put his face in his hands.
"I just have to do it. There's nothing else for it." Besides... she's behind me.
There was a timid knock on his door. "Come in," Yuki called.
Tohru poked her head in the room. "Yuki-kun..."
"I'm alright. Just the thought of facing her tires me, though," Yuki told her. At the mention of his mother earlier he felt as if all the energy had been drained from him in anticipation of being in the same room as her.
Tohru slid the door the rest of the way open and walked over to sit next to Yuki. "What do you want to do with your future?" she asked after a moment. "I know I've already asked, but I didn't really let you answer."
What do I want to do with my future? If I wasn't cursed and bound...
"I suppose I'd like to go to college," he replied after a thoughtful moment.
"Away from the Sohma's?"
Yuki nodded. "Far away." Away from my mother; away from the Main House; away from Akito.
"Then you should. You should spread your wings," Tohru replied. "We all need room to spread our wings. That's what mom always said. Because then we can fly wherever the currents take us."
"I like that," Yuki said with a small smile.
Tohru flushed slightly. "Mom always had good advice."
The two lapsed into a silence for awhile that neither party felt the need to break. Being in each other's company was enough.
"Yuki-kun," Tohru began after awhile, "I want to help you."
"What?" Yuki asked in surprise. What did that mean?
"I want to help you spread your wings."
'Cause you're all I want
You're all I need
You are everything
Everything
"H-Honda-san..."
"I-I don't think it's right to be shackled," Tohru went on in a rush. "And I, well, I fear for you if you stay here."
"You do?" Yuki asked in surprise. What brought this on all of a sudden?
"There is so much left for you to do in your life, Yuki-kun. But if you stay here, you may not be able to do any of it. And I would hat it," Tohru said tearfully.
Yuki watched the brown-haired girl practically fall to pieces in front of him.
"Don't even think that you will be rescued."
Akito's words caused a shiver to run down the rat's spine. Was that was Tohru meant?
Yuki gathered his strength before putting a hand on Tohru's shoulder. At that moment he wished he could hug her... The tear-filled face looked up at him.
"Honda-san, I'm going to face whatever comes my way with strength. I won't let others make those decisions for me. Not my mother, not Akito, not anyone. Not anymore."
"Yuki-kun..." Tohru laughed in relief through her tears.
"You gave me the courage to feel this way, Honda-san," Yuki continued.
Tohru flushed. She seemed to be doing that a lot today. "What? Me? No, it couldn't have been me!"
"Before I met you, I never had the courage to even think like this. I've always wanted out of the Sohma cage but have never made it any farther than another Sohma house." Yuki mentally flinched. And if Rin was right, it was Haru who had gotten him out of the Main House to Shigure's. "But you, Honda-san, you were living in a tent on your own and the thought that I was too spoiled to try anything like that hurt me. I realized I really was weak." Yuki blinked. He was sure feeling talkative today.
"The curse," Tohru breathed and Yuki's eyes widened.
"What?"
"You couldn't leave because of the curse, could you?" Tohru asked sadly.
Yuki felt as if his throat had gone dry. Was she guessing? What had Akito told her that night?
"Yeah," he replied finally.
"But now," Tohru laughed tearfully, her demeanor changing completely once more, "you want to change."
Yuki smiled. "When I see you, Honda-san, I feel like I can be strong."
"Me? I do that?" Tohru asked in surprise.
"Yes." You mean everything to me.
"You know, it's amazing," Tohru whispered, looking away.
Yuki blinked. "What?"
"You do the same for me, Yuki-kun. All of you. The Jyuunishi make me feel like it's okay to be brave. Because you all are. You are so brave, Yuki-kun." Tohru looked back at Yuki, her blue eyes dancing with emotion. "And I love you for it."
She threw her arms around Yuki. Yuki's eyes widened and for an instant, he felt the warmness of Tohru's arms wrapped around him. It was a loving caress. An instant later Yuki felt himself about to transform.
After the smoke cleared, Yuki looked up rom his now much lower position at Tohru.
"Honda-san..."
"I love you, Yuki-kun."
---------
Author's Note: I just had to write a little fluffy something of the pairing I've come to love. Leave me a review and let me know what you thought. I like reviews.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket. I also do not own the song "Everything." It belongs to the very talented and wonderful band Lifehouse.
---------
Everything
--------
Find me here
Speak to me
I want to feel you
I need to hear you
Yuki cut a pensive figure sitting on the boulder next to his 'Secret Base.' Inside the house, Shigure and Kyo had gotten into another one of their noisy squabbles and Tohru was trying bravely to break it up, though she should have learned by now that she was fighting a losing battle. The rat had just hung up with his mother and was feeling rather stifled in the house. So he had come out to visit his plants.
His plants were a source of peace and strength for him. They were living things that depended on him to continue existing. To know hat there was something that needed him made Yuki feel important - if only for the time he spent in the garden.
His whole life he had felt like nothing but a tool for his mother in attaining the social status she desired. He had spent those years at the Main House in the darkness where Akito told him over and over again about his inadequacy and how unworthy he was. Speaking with his mother on the phone had brought back all those feelings of unworthiness and by coming outside he had attempted to flee from them.
Yuki looked over at his small garden and smiled slightly. The strawberries he and Tohru had planted were beginning to peek out from under the soil. Yuki had decided on strawberries in hopes that the girl would like them, and indeed he had been right. The look of pure happiness on her face when he told her about them had warmed his entire being.
The rat pushed himself from the rock and knelt down by the small patch. He reached in and felt the new strawberry leaves between his fingers. His smile widened slightly. Those petals were a reminder of that warm person and what she had done for him.
Yuki blinked at the sound of approaching footsteps.
"Yuki-kun?" a timid voice asked from behind him.
You are the light
That's leading me
To the place where
I find peace again
Yuki jerked around to see Tohru standing in the clearing, emotion dancing in those big blue eyes of hers. The rat rose, brushing the dirt from his pants.
"Honda-san," he greeted, not sure what else to say to the girl's sudden appearance.
"You didn't look well after you got off the phone," Tohru replied, worry evident in her voice. "Are you alright?"
Yuki sighed, sitting back down on the small boulder. "I'm alright, I guess."
"Was that your mother?"
Yuki blinked before replying. "Yes."
Tohru sat down next to the rat and looked him directly in the eye. "I told you back when we were first getting to know each other that if something was bothering you, could tell me about it. That offer still stands."
Yuki felt his heart flutter slightly at Tohru's earnestness. He smiled gratefully at the girl. "Thank you, Honda-san. You don't know what that means to me."
She blinked at him.
You really don't realize what you've done for us, do you? What you've done for me? The darkness of Akito's words from then don't seem as black anymore. Not with you. He told me to never think I could be rescued. But you've thrown me a rope. You are a ray of light - of hope - in the blackness of my soul.
"Yuki-kun?"
It was Yuki's turn to blink as he realized he had been zoning out. "Sorry. I was thinking."
Tohru looked taken aback. "No! Please don't apologize Yuki-kun!"
Yuki couldn't help but smile at this. Her sweet innocent was so endearing.
You are the strength
That keeps me walking
You are the hope
That keeps me trusting
Tohru sighed and calmed at Yuki's soft smile. "If there is anything on your mind, I'm here."
Yuki looked up and watched a passing cloud for a few moments before turning back to his companion. "My conference is tomorrow," he said at long last.
Tohru started, as if she too had been lost in thought. She turned back to Yuki. "So that's why you were talking with your mother."
Yuki nodded at this. "And it just became a little much. My mother and I don't quite see eye to eye." The rat nearly snorted. That was an understatement if there ever was one. Whenever he spoke with his mother - which was sparingly if he could help it - it felt as if she was sucking the color from him; from his life. She cared nothing for Yuki the person. All that mattered to her was that Akito favored him. But the combination of his mother and Akito served to take everything out of him. He lost his spirit, his heart, and his way. He lost his strength and his hope in front of them.
"Yuki-kun has had a hard life," Tohru said with an empathic nod.
Looking into those big blue eyes, Yuki realized that she understood. While her difficulties had been different, she knew what it felt like to hurt. Both of them had lost their parents, albeit in different ways. But they had gained each other.
"You shouldn't have to go to that conference if it's going to be painful for you," the girl continued.
"It's something I have to do," Yuki replied after a moment.
"Why?"
"To prove to myself that I'm not completely pathetic." A sudden thought hit the rat. "To help in becoming the person I promised Kisa I would try to become."
Tohru beamed at this. "Yuki-kun, you're strong. Mom always said that people who face their fears are the strongest people in the world. So few people ever work up the courage to do it, so those who do are really strong."
Yuki looked at Tohru's beaming face and couldn't help but smile again. Her grins were infectious.
I'm not strong... but you Honda-san, you somehow lend me some of your strength. That's how I keep going. You're the strongest person I know.
You are the life to my soul
You are my purpose
You are my everything
Tohru looked over to the garden and brightened. "The strawberries are coming up!"
"Yes."
One look at the girl's beaming face was enough to break Yuki's heart. Her smile warmed the rat to the core whenever he saw it. Whenever she looked at him he felt his stomach flutter. Her strength to go on after all she had lost gave him the courage to face his own demons. Whenever she was with him, he felt as if the darkness of his childhood might not be as oppressive as he once thought. When she told him she liked him in her 'Tohru manner,' the rat began to feel worth something. What did she see in him? Yuki didn't know, but since they had first met, the rat had begun to forgive himself little by little like he told Kisa.
Because of Akito and his mother, Yuki had always felt hollow and empty. He had felt worthless and low. He didn't feel like he had a reason to exist. He was only a tool, after all. That's all he was seen as. He was cursed and would disgust any normal human. The rat had always believed that. Until he me her...
"If my memory is erased, will you still be my friend?"
That had been the first time Yuki had felt like he was worth something. This girl - this outside who had accepted them so easily - still wanted to be his friend. It had been amazing to him at the time and, in truth, still was to him.
But it had been then that that shadow around his soul began to recede - even if only slightly. Yuki had never felt like he had felt at that moment in his life. And it had felt... good.
And how can I
Stand here with you
And not be moved by you
"I can't wait to cook some of these vegetables," Tohru said happily.
Yuki looked over at her and her beaming face.
"I love using your vegetables," she said, catching his eye. "They make me think of you, Yuki-kun." She flushed suddenly.
Yuki blinked. Had she just said what he thought she had? The rat's stomach fluttered again. That was another thing about Tohru: she had a knack for saying just what you needed to hear. He had never met anyone quite like her. She was so important to the Jyuunishi... to him. Ever since she had begun living in the same house as him, Yuki had felt something deep within him beginning to stir. It had culminated at the summer house when he had kissed her. He still wasn't sure what had possessed him to do it, except that Akito had seemed dead set against something like that happening. Maybe that was why it had felt so right.
Akito had strong feelings against Tohru because, Yuki guessed, she had done so mich to help the Jyuunishi. Each one of the cursed members of the Sohma family had somehow been impacted and given strength from meeting the girl. Akito was highly controlling and possessive of the Jyuunishi because of his status as the god - which caused Yuki to shiver whenever he thought about it - and so an outside not only knowing of the curse but helping the cursed become stronger would certainly anger him. Honestly, Yuki was surprised the god hadn't lashed out at her more harshly than he had at the summer home. The rat was very aware of how violent Akito could become in a foul temper.
But with her knowing the truth and still being willing to live and love the Sohmas like family after all that had happened to her amazed Yuki. Her constant perky disposition gave him the strength to face the day. And he loved her for it.
Would you tell me
How could it be
Any better than this
"I'm glad you can use them, Honda-san," Yuki replied with a smile. The rat treasured every moment he spent in Tohru's company. It didn't matter whether Kyo or Shigure or any of the others were present as well. Any time he was able to spend with her was dear to him.
"Yuki-kun," Tohru said suddenly, breaking the silence that had fallen between the two.
Yuki blinked. "Yes?"
"You should do whatever you want with your future." Her voice was suddenly determined. "You shouldn't have to do what anyone else wants you to but you." She flashed him a small smile. "It's your future after all."
You calm the storms
You give me rest
You hold me in your hands
You won't let me fall
"Am I a tool? Your tool?"
"So what are you saying? What if you are a tool? What on earth is your problem? Give me a break! The head of the family likes you -- what more do you need?"
Yuki put a hand to his cheek at the memory of his confrontation of his mother that night. He could almost feel the sting of his mother's slap again with the strength the memory had come forth. He closed his violet eyes as he took a moment to compose himself again. Suddenly, he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. He opened his eyes to see a concerned Tohru standing next to him.
"Honda-san?"
"Are you alright?"
One look into those big blue eyes and that sudden memory of his mother's slap faded. "Yes. I'm alright." Yuki put a hand on top of Tohru's in gratitude of her concern. "I'm just working up the strength."
Tohru nodded her understanding. "I believe in you, Yuki-kun."
When you say things like that, Honda-san, I can begin to believe in myself. I can feel a little stronger... When I know you'll be here, the color begins to return a little...
You still my heart
And you take my breath away
Would you take me in
Would you take me deeper now
Yuki slid the door open, allowing Tohru to go in ahead of him. She nodded her thanks and Yuki felt that familiar flutter in his gut. They had walked back to the house, Tohru with an armful of freshly harvested leeks.
Kyo and Shigure were sitting in the kitchen as Yuki and Tohru stepped in, their earlier fight obviously having come to an end. Considering the bump on Shigure's head, Kyo had probably bonked him for being an idiot and called it good. The cat and dog looked up at the appearance of Yuki and Tohru. Kyo glanced at what Tohru was carrying and his face turned green. Yuki grinned. That was the exact expression he had been hoping for when he suggested they harvest some of the leeks.
"What do you have there, Tohru-kun?" Shigure asked, putting down his newspaper.
"Leeks," she replied. "From Yuki-kun's garden."
"Are we having them tonight?" the dog asked playfully with a look at Kyo's green face.
"Yes," Tohru replied happily. A moment later she went pale and turned horrified to Kyo. "Oh, Kyo-kun, I know you don't like leeks. I'll make you something else."
"Don't bother," Yuki put in, doing his best to keep a straight face. It was an opportunity too good to pass up. "The stupid cat needs to learn to eat like an adult."
Kyo's greenish tint turned red as he glared at Yuki. "You damn rat!"
"You shouldn't insult Honda-san's cooking by not eating it."
"Oh, it's not an in-"
"Don't start with me, rat!"
"Yuki-kun," Shigure broke in, "was that your mother on the phone earlier?"
The rat's face fell as all the amusement drained out at the mention of his earlier phone conversation. "Yes."
"Your conference is tomorrow then?"
"Yes." Yuki sighed. "I suppose I should be amazed she's coming at all, even if it's on her own time." Those dark feelings were threatening to rise again. "I'll be in my room."
Yuki walked slowly to his room and sat down on his bed. He put his face in his hands.
"I just have to do it. There's nothing else for it." Besides... she's behind me.
There was a timid knock on his door. "Come in," Yuki called.
Tohru poked her head in the room. "Yuki-kun..."
"I'm alright. Just the thought of facing her tires me, though," Yuki told her. At the mention of his mother earlier he felt as if all the energy had been drained from him in anticipation of being in the same room as her.
Tohru slid the door the rest of the way open and walked over to sit next to Yuki. "What do you want to do with your future?" she asked after a moment. "I know I've already asked, but I didn't really let you answer."
What do I want to do with my future? If I wasn't cursed and bound...
"I suppose I'd like to go to college," he replied after a thoughtful moment.
"Away from the Sohma's?"
Yuki nodded. "Far away." Away from my mother; away from the Main House; away from Akito.
"Then you should. You should spread your wings," Tohru replied. "We all need room to spread our wings. That's what mom always said. Because then we can fly wherever the currents take us."
"I like that," Yuki said with a small smile.
Tohru flushed slightly. "Mom always had good advice."
The two lapsed into a silence for awhile that neither party felt the need to break. Being in each other's company was enough.
"Yuki-kun," Tohru began after awhile, "I want to help you."
"What?" Yuki asked in surprise. What did that mean?
"I want to help you spread your wings."
'Cause you're all I want
You're all I need
You are everything
Everything
"H-Honda-san..."
"I-I don't think it's right to be shackled," Tohru went on in a rush. "And I, well, I fear for you if you stay here."
"You do?" Yuki asked in surprise. What brought this on all of a sudden?
"There is so much left for you to do in your life, Yuki-kun. But if you stay here, you may not be able to do any of it. And I would hat it," Tohru said tearfully.
Yuki watched the brown-haired girl practically fall to pieces in front of him.
"Don't even think that you will be rescued."
Akito's words caused a shiver to run down the rat's spine. Was that was Tohru meant?
Yuki gathered his strength before putting a hand on Tohru's shoulder. At that moment he wished he could hug her... The tear-filled face looked up at him.
"Honda-san, I'm going to face whatever comes my way with strength. I won't let others make those decisions for me. Not my mother, not Akito, not anyone. Not anymore."
"Yuki-kun..." Tohru laughed in relief through her tears.
"You gave me the courage to feel this way, Honda-san," Yuki continued.
Tohru flushed. She seemed to be doing that a lot today. "What? Me? No, it couldn't have been me!"
"Before I met you, I never had the courage to even think like this. I've always wanted out of the Sohma cage but have never made it any farther than another Sohma house." Yuki mentally flinched. And if Rin was right, it was Haru who had gotten him out of the Main House to Shigure's. "But you, Honda-san, you were living in a tent on your own and the thought that I was too spoiled to try anything like that hurt me. I realized I really was weak." Yuki blinked. He was sure feeling talkative today.
"The curse," Tohru breathed and Yuki's eyes widened.
"What?"
"You couldn't leave because of the curse, could you?" Tohru asked sadly.
Yuki felt as if his throat had gone dry. Was she guessing? What had Akito told her that night?
"Yeah," he replied finally.
"But now," Tohru laughed tearfully, her demeanor changing completely once more, "you want to change."
Yuki smiled. "When I see you, Honda-san, I feel like I can be strong."
"Me? I do that?" Tohru asked in surprise.
"Yes." You mean everything to me.
"You know, it's amazing," Tohru whispered, looking away.
Yuki blinked. "What?"
"You do the same for me, Yuki-kun. All of you. The Jyuunishi make me feel like it's okay to be brave. Because you all are. You are so brave, Yuki-kun." Tohru looked back at Yuki, her blue eyes dancing with emotion. "And I love you for it."
She threw her arms around Yuki. Yuki's eyes widened and for an instant, he felt the warmness of Tohru's arms wrapped around him. It was a loving caress. An instant later Yuki felt himself about to transform.
After the smoke cleared, Yuki looked up rom his now much lower position at Tohru.
"Honda-san..."
"I love you, Yuki-kun."
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Author's Note: I just had to write a little fluffy something of the pairing I've come to love. Leave me a review and let me know what you thought. I like reviews.