Fruits Basket

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Vice was happy to have made a friend like him, well kind of. He ate his food while he talked to Al. He told him about all the video game he had and about his favorite tv shows. It was nice to talk to someone, his mother was really protective of him. So he rarely talked to people, but now he had a friend to talk to! "Wanna come over today after school?"
 
Alvan beamed at his friends inquiry "Sure Vice! I'd love to come over" he then grimaced "I'd have to go home first, but I'll definitely come by later." he grinned excitedly "You live on the Sohma estate too, right? I think I passed your house before!" he polished off the rest of his sandwich.
 
The annoying ring of a bell was heard throughout the school yard, telling the children hat it was time to get back to class. Kimika put her lunch box back into her school bag before getting off the ground. She smoothed out her blue skirt and straightened her shirt. Once she was satisfied, she went back inside and walked to her classroom. Sitting down in her seat, she listened as the teachers continued where they left off. A bored expression etched onto her face.

The last hours of school went as quickly as the first, and it was soon the end of the day. The bell tolled one last time, signaling the completon of the school day. Kimika stood up from her seat and grabbed her bag. Navigating her way through the sea of excited children, she finally arrived outside. Most of the other kids were getting ready for their after school activities. She, however, had no interest in staying at school any longer that she had to and was already heading home. She walked slowly, not having anywhere that she had to be. As she neared the Sohma estate she sighed. 'Here we go again,' she told herself. Though she wanted to get past it quickly, she didn't walk any faster. She would have to get used to it. This was going to happen everyday.
 
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Metro-Kon Market
Time: 3:30 PM

Mouija decided to get off her lazy butt to put on some clothes. The Sohma house was bare of homemade sushi. sometimes, Makoto made some remarkably exotic sushi. Makoto added fragments of fruit into her sushi, which was why they had a redolent aroma. As she had a taste for her sushi, Mouija tried to count how much yen she had.

She pulled on a brown long-sleeved shirt under red overalls before taking a three minute walk to the market. Before Mouija walked out of the house, she felt a dull tickle in the back of her nose. She didn't think much of it until she remembered a box of tissue packs stashed in the bathroom. Mouija twitched her nose at the strong sent of air freshener. Mouija looked at herself at the mirror to see her eyes running. As she got out two tissue packs, she accidentally sneezed on the top. "Ha-HAKESHOOO!" Her sneeze was so loud, it reverberated along the walls of the clean room.

Mouija found her size-29 shoes* and she promptly tied them once she got out the door. Mouija's nose was on fire as soon as she walked along the path. Just looking at the flourishing flowers made Mouija apprehensive to walk any further. She quickly pulled out a tissue to suppress her loud sneezing fit. "HAH-SHOO! KUURSHOO! HUURKSHOO! RAISSHOO! No, no why dih... HUH! HAISSHHOOO! Fuh-HASSHOO!... Damn it... Nuuh, hah-HAH-ISSHOO!" Since she was out in the open, it wasn't too much of a big deal--aside from the children seeing her.

After ten minutes and sixteen "HASHOO"'s later, Mouija snifled woefully as she made her way to the market. "Ah.... Hah.... HAAAAAAAEEEESSSSSSSSHHHHHHOOOOOOO!!!!!!" Mouija let out a huge sneeze as soon as she pulled the beads that bombarded the entrance. Mouija blew her nose harmoniously when she took a step forward.

The shop was unusually slow for this time of day, but Totemo's trademark grin almost blinded the sneezing woman. "Ah~ Welcome, my dear~ Must allergies bother you so quick~?" He diverted his attention cleaning the tea cups. "Ma I be of your assistance?"

Mouija sneezed again with a disgruntled countenance plastered on her face. "KASSH, KASHH, Hhu-NEGHT'-huuh! I am so sorry for my sneezing... Allergies are kicking me in the rear..."

And then came a girl with short, black hair wearing a blue apron. "Mui~! Nice to meet you~!" She politely greeted the sneezing vixen as she dished up some blueberry cupcakes.

*A size 29 in Japan is equivalent to a woman's size 11 in America. When you think about it, that is quite huge.
 
The bell rang signaling the end of school, Alvan waved his new friend farewell "See you later today, Vice-kun!" He shouted, excited about the days turnout. He looked to the direction of the Sohma estate, whispering to himself "I have to do something else first".

Al burst through the door of his house, "Hi everyone!" he shouted. The house was silent, as well as empty. He sighed to himself and dumped his schoolbag on the floor by the front door. Naturally, he knew no one was here, but it was fun to pretend. He walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge, the cool air rushed at him as he grabbed a juicebox. He slurped it up as he went upstairs to his room. Luckily he didn't have homework, but he did have to sign a bunch of papers, and have a parent signature. Unfortunately, Durran wasn't home like he usually was. Alvan rifled through a box of old papers, finding one that had Durran's signature, he remembered when he got the signature Durran was ornery and had scribbled it rather quickly. It was one of the few times he'd done anything for Al.

Alvan ran back downstairs, going through his backpack and taking the papers that needed to be signed, sitting cross legged on the polished wooden floor, he carefully copied the signature of his guardian. In past years he had gotten in trouble for forgery, and when he had to get both detention slips and the original papers signed Durran was pissed. But as time went by he'd learned to do it better and was a master at phony signatures. Once done, he hastily shoved the papers into his bag and went to grab a piece of paper. He wrote on it very carefully

Durran,

I'm going out. Don't worry I'll be with a friend he lives on the Sohma estate, he's a Sohma too.

He didn't bother to write anything sentimental, his relationship with Durran wasn't an emotional one. Durran was usually anywhere but at the house, usually out at a bar, Alvan suspected he didn't even live here and had another place of residence. However, Durran would occasionally return later, and if he didn't know where he was would be angry. Al knew he wouldn't care where he was as long as the curse was safe.

Al went and crashed on the couch, looking up at the ceiling and stretching his arms, he'd go over to Vice's house a little later.
 
Akihito flinched when she called him Kami-sama. He didn't really like that, like at all. But, it wasn't really something he could ask her to stop doing. He was older, and of higher standing an she was only being polite. She just seemed to act to old for her age. It was sad to see her like that. He walked up to the girls and smiled, kneeling at the side of the bed. "I worry about every on of my Zodiac Ame, but you seem to refuse the idea of going to school, and I wanted to at least make sure you were doing okay here in my home. I'm sorry about not being here as often as I should be." He looked honestly sorry about it. He really hated not having enough time for everyone. He may be the only one that thinks the way he does. But he most definitely liked his way of thinking about the zodiac members. They were his family, and he would always think of them as such.

Lucky looked at this reaction.... She was one of the few who actually tried to understand where Aki was coming from. She had realized one day that Aki was more alone than anyone else. So she had changed the way she would address him. She still remembered the look on his face when she first called him Aki-chan. It had been a mix of confusion and happiness. The weirdest thing was when he'd pulled her into a hug. That was completely a surprise to her, but she had hugged him back none the less. She smiled at Akihito, he had some of the same concerns she'd had about Ame. She was so small, acted so much older and hated the idea of going to school. Both the adults were here just to make sure she didn't end up like them, lonely and scared of the world.

(sorry about the long time it took me to reply. I didn't have internet access for the last few days, haven't been home.)
 
Vice waved at Al as he headed to his own house, he took his time knowing his mom would be asking tons of questions about his day. As he gets home, he puts on a smile, "Mom, I'll home!" He yells seeing his mom poke her head out of the kitchen door, "Hello, honey! How are you? How was school? Meet any friends?" She starts bombarding him with questions. Avice was one of the lucky cursed kids to have a parent that accepted him. He smiles and walks into the kitchen sitting up on a counter, "Yeah! I met another curse kid! He's my age, named Alvan. He's really cool! I invited him to come over, if that's okay?" His mom nods with a smile happy to have her son meet someone like him, "What animal is he?" "He's the cow, mom." "The cow? How cute!" They stayed and talked like this for awhile. Vice got her to sign the papers before going to his room to clean it up a bit.
 
As Kimika was walking past the entrance to the estate, she paused. Peering in through the gate, she watched as the excited children ran home to tell their parents about the first day of school. She leaned against one of the posts, contemplating what she should do. She needed to get the papers signed for school and their wasn't much of a chance that her father was going to visit her today. She really didn't want to go to his house, though. What if her mother saw her? Faced with this dilemma, she sighed and bumped her head against the post. Why did this have to be so complicated? As she was trying to come up with a solution, another thought came into her mind. 'What am I going to eat tonight?' she wondered. 'I don't think I have much food left at my apartment... Maybe I should stop by Metro-Kon,' she thought, glancing down the street at the large marketplace. 'I should probably get the papers signed first, though, that way I won't have to lug the groceries all over the place,' she decided. Reluctantly, she stepped through the gate. 'Now, I just have to remember where my dad lives,' she thought, looking around the huge estate. Shrugging, she started to wander around, convinced that she would find it eventually.
 
Makoto poked out of the market to get some fresh air. She smiled at Shizuka, one of the giros at her school. "Hey, there! How are you?" Makoto took her broom and gave it a quick twirl with the pole. According to Totemo, she was not allowed to do that.

One day, Makoto was caught eating food meant for sale. As a punishment, Totemo indirectly forced her to pay for the food she ate. Sometimes, Totemo scolded her for being a second late. Her older brother (Tamaki) and younger sister (Seija) were forced to work one time, but when one volunteers, it's not easy to escape.

Makoto knew that today was a bright day with patchy clouds. Makoto knew this would be the best day at Metro-Kon.... "HAAAAAEEEESH!!" But she hoped that Mouija's cocky behavior kept Totemo [almost] in high spirits.

The keen girl looked back and forth as she swept the grainy earth as to make sure Totemo wasn't looking. Makoto's endearing smile faded away s soon as it appeared; her boss was giving her a dirty look.
 
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Ame shook her head, and shrugged up at the man, sleep still evidently resting in her eyes. She was tired, and not at all used to being up as early as she was. Nonetheless, the girl waved her hand at him dismissively, and shook her head, raven colored tresses falling over her shoulders as she did. "Kami-Sama, you worry too much. Same goes for Lu-chan, and Tori-Kun." She stated in a very calm voice. Looking over to Lucky she sighed, and then scooted to the edge of her bed. Climbing down from its edge, she walked up to Akihito, and peered up at him, her head tilting just like a dogs would. "You worry too much...." she murmured again before stepping around him, and walking over to her door. Ame didnt much have anymore to say, but she knew one thing. She was hungry, and breakfast time was nearing its end.

The girl's stomach grumbled as she neared the door, but she stopped just as she opened it, and allowed herself to look back at them both. "Im gonna go eat, kay?" Naturally, she would go gather two pieces of toast as she normally did, place them upon a plate, and return with her breakfast, and a glass of milk in hand. They could either wait there for her, or come with her...which she figured Lucky would do. She never really knew about what Kami-Sama would do, she wasnt around him enough to gather up what his next action may, or may not be.
 
After school Saki heads to work at Metro-Kon. She walks in, headphones in, looking at her feet. She bumps into Makoto.
 
Lucky smiled and hopped up off the bed and followed the little girl. Ame was always cute to Lucky, fun to talk to though Ame had very few words. Lucky didn't really know why she liked the girl so much, maybe because they both were really kind of loners. Lucky had known that Ame didn't like to be touched, but if there was one thing a human needed, it was touch and so, every so often, she would give Ame a hug or a pat on the head, because she knew that eventually, Ame would start to open up a bit more. At least she hoped she would. "I'll go with you, I'll grab something to drink." she chirped. She looked back at Akihito, a small question in her eyes.

Akihito gave a small smile and followed them out the door, but not going any further. Ame had spoken directly to him, telling him he worried to much, and the thought of it made him give a small chuckle. He stopped just getting past the door and spoke, "I'll wait here, I cleared my schedule for the most part for today, I've been wanting to kind of have day to myself." This statement, though only partially true, was what he felt he could say to the girls. What he really was taking the day off for was to have some 'family time', and he felt that if he went into the kitchen, someone was likely to need something from him.

Akihito smiled as the girls left, he watched them and knew that he seemed to be doing something out of character, but really he was being him. He wasn't much for being mean, and he never really was, but he knew that since he was the head of the Sohma family, it automatically made him a scary figure. He gave a small sigh and leaned against the wall.

Lucky smiled when Akihito had said he'd wait for them to come back. She just nodded and walked with Ame. "You know, Ame, when people worry it means they care." she started when they were just out of hearing of Akihito. "Do you not like the idea of someone caring for you? Or can you just not believe it?" Lucky looked sideways. Listen to herself, she should think about her words herself.
 
Al rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, looking up at the clock. He gasped at how long he'd slept, not expecting to have fallen asleep. He got up and ran out the door.

He ran down the street giddy and excited, stopping when he found an old tennis baseball. He picked it up, grinning and laughing when he remembered this was the same one he had lost. He bounced it on the street as he walked, it soared high, and he would catch it when it came back down. He bounced the ball higher again and again. When he bounced the ball as hard as he could against the pavement it rockaeted through the air and slammed through a window.

Alvan gasped, running over to the cracked kitchen window "Oh no!Oh no!! Oh no!" He panicked. Not bothering to look inside. He ran away quickly.

That was the second worst house to damage, if Durran or the head of the Sohma's himself found out he would be furious. The house he just damaged was the one the head of the Sohma's visited frequently.

Al hid behind a tree near the house, looking back at the house and hoping no one would run out and find him.
 
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As soon as the crowds started to pack up outide the restaurant Niki went straight to the back of the restaurant and took off her apron. She hastily grabbed her bag from her locker and shoved her apron inside. She put it on and started out when an annoying dark haired guy popped up right in front of the door. Niki nearly slapped him, but caught herself, knowing full well the consequences for such actions. She took a few steps back with a hand over her chest. "What's our problem?!" she shrieked. Hideki only smiled then stepped aside and held the door open for her. "I just wanted to say goodbye to my favorite co-worker," he said. Niki glared venomously at him. "I don't need you to hold the door open for me." He move so she inched by him to the outside, giving him another glare once on the other side. Hideki smiled and waved to her before going back to the front to sit a new group of customers.

Niki pressed her hands over her chest and closed her eyes. She took deep breaths to calm herself before walking back toward her apartment."That was close..." She tried to focus on other things as she made her way back to her only safe haven. The concrete, the birds, the trees- but then there were men everywhere. She had to be careful or else she could turn in the middle of town. There was no true safety anywhere. Niki kept her arms folded tightly against her as she walked. She didn't hate men; not really anyhow. They had plenty of disgusting habits and flaws but so did women. She was afraid, really. They weren't necessarily something to fear, but, what they could do to her was scary enough. They made her weak.

I wonder what it would have been like if I had been born without this curse... She stopped in front of her apartment complex. There was a moment of contemplation as she stood there. Niki sighed then continued past her dwelling. Maybe a visit to the family would be good for her. that morning had been quite stressful and that also caused the unwanted change. "I wonder how everyone's been," she though aloud. "It's been almost a month since my the last time i'd been to the estate." She walked quickly and purposefully with her eyes down. The walk felt like almost an hour before she saw the estate. "It looks the same... Not that I was expecting it to look any different. I wonder who's here. Well, let's see." Niki walked onto the estate's land, instantly feeling just a little better.
 
"Well, I'm lost," Kimika announced, scanning the unfamiliar surroundings in an effort to find something that she recognized. 'All these houses look exactly the same,' she thought as she continued to walk aimlessly about. 'I swear I've seen that tree before. Am I going in circles?' She sighed and decided that it was a good time to take a break. Leaning against a tall tree at the side of the path, she tried to figure out where she was by mentally retracing her steps. Just as she was about to give up and start walking again, she heard a loud crash come from somewhere nearby. She jumped slightly at the noise and her head whipped around to look in the direction that it came from. "What was that?" she said, speaking to herself. She quickly grabbed her bag and ran towards the sound, worried that someone may have gotten hurt. She reached the source within a couple of minutes and, once she realized that it was only a window, let out a sigh of relief. She walked closer to it to get a better look, being careful to avoid any shards of glass that were on the ground. After a few seconds of examining the the shattered window, she frowned. It didn't look like it could be fixed; they would have to replace it. She glanced through the window, trying to find the culprit and her eyes settled on an old tennis ball that was on the floor. 'I wonder who's that is,' she thought as she looked around for the person responsible. She didn't see anyone and figured that whoever it was must have ran off to avoid getting into trouble. Of course, that was what she expected to happen, so she didn't look very hard. She turned back to the house. She couldn't just leave, even if she would be the one who gets blamed for it. "Hello? I there anyone here?" she called out. Besides, most of the people here didn't like her anyway.
 
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Al winced when someone came over to the house to check the scene, he peeked around the tree to see a girl had come and inspected the damage he had done. Is she crazy? She'd be the one blamed for it if no one else was around. Al pressed his back against the tree and sighed, he would've went to Vice's house by now if it wasn't for his stupidity. As if breaking a window wasn't bad enough, letting that girl take the fall for his mistake would be even worse.

He ran over to the damaged window, and apologized profusely to everyone present "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! It's not her fault it's my fault!" Alvan freaked out "I was just playing and then the ball flew over and...Please don't tell the head of the Sohma family, or my guardian Durran for that matter!" He began to tear up and shake, afraid that he would be in big trouble.
 

"…Master's from Waseda University… One year at Kahoku Shimpo as a freelance journalist…"
A young woman sat close to a neat, cleanly polished desk, her back rigid and well postured. A straw sunhat with a thin plaid ribbon and sheer train had been flung across her bed; her russet hair lay messily and unadorned across her shoulders.
"One year… Didn't even get published."
A frown spoiled her features. She was pretty enough, with a simple blue dress and worn out boots. The budget was tight, so she only wore make-up for special occasions.

The woman nibbled her pencil absentmindedly; there had to be something else she'd done, something that made her even marginally qualified to work at one of the local shops. She didn't know of any local papers, but had she really looked? Best to stay out of the business until Kichirou grew up.
She sighed, set the document aside, and picked up a new one. In practiced strokes, she wrote her name at the top – Moriko Sohma – and continued the skull-numbing chore.




"Bet you can't even climb to the top of that tree without getting caught!"
"Bet you I can!"
A group of boys, ages ranging from ten to almost twenty, hid in a ditch on the outskirts of the Sohma estate. The child in question, 13 year old Kichirou, had a lot to prove to the group; he couldn't not do it. Nearby, an aged gardener was tending to the bushes, unaware of his fate.
"Watch and learn, girls - you're about to see a pro in action!"

Kichirou zigzagged from flower patch to shrubbery until he was only a few feet from his target. The man was humming some tune the lad was too young to have heard of, happily snipping away bits of unruly twig.
"Old coot."
The boy was at home in trees and easily scooted his way to the top, but now came the tricky part. He picked an overripe apple, overlooked during the harvest, and heaved.

It landed just shy of its mark, behind and to the left. He could hear the faintest ripple of laughter.
"Damn."
The next apple wasn't so ripe and flew much better – right to the crown of his bald, speckled head. The man didn't even gasp; the only sound was a faint rustle as he landed in the bushes. A cheer erupted behind Kichirou as he beamed down at the motionless figure. Now that was a good'un!

 
Makoto's brown eyes snapped open as if out of a daze. She still decided to slap on her signature smile. "Welcome to Metro-Kon, one of our traditional markets in the city! How may I assist you?" Makoto eased herself into the shop, knowing full well that her break could have ended prematurely.

Mouija waved at Saki and Makoto as she fumbled in her constricting pockets. "Yo..."

Totemo's wife, Kaguya sighed with a slight musical tone to her voice. She politely placed the bag of flour on Totemo's table. The sparks in her brown eyes intensified from the warmth of the family market. "Despair destroys oneself when one drowns their reasoning." Kaguya's slender fingernails twiddled against the box of tissues. Without hesitation, she pried it open to swipe a tissue for her boggy customer.
 
Ooc: Sion isn't there. Saki is.

Saki nods at Mouija. "Hi."
 
Mouija thankfully took the tissues and sneezed thrice. "KAYESHOO! HESHH! HETCHOO!" Mu h unbeknownst to the sneezing girl, she was gaining some attention. But Mouija is the only one who was causing these outbursts. Mouija shook her head akin to a wet dog as she met Saki.

Makoto sighed as she cleaned the market. "Ah... Allergy season returns..." Totemo's inhaler sounded like that of a sizzling gun. That meant that he needed to speak.
 
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