IT BLOSSOMS, hatori sohma [Fruits Basket]

Chapter One

For Ryu, the notion of an easy life was an unattainable illusion. From the moment she decided to leave everything behind and embark on this solo journey, she understood it would be a constant battle filled with insurmountable challenges. She packed a single piece of luggage and the bare essentials necessary to find a place she could call home, taking care to leave no trace and reveal nothing to those who cared for her.

However, Ryu was determined, and there was a sense of cold indifference in her demeanor—an illusion she maintained to portray an air of indifference.

Beneath her facade of indifference, Ryu's true feelings were a maelstrom of pain and anguish. The minute she boarded the train, she felt a suffocating sensation consuming her soul, but in the depths of her denial, she dismissed it as a product of her own creation.

To Ryu, the feeling of suffocation held no rational explanation, and she desperately tried to convince herself it was merely a figment of her imagination.

With unwavering conviction, she thought, 'I am Ryu Shimizu—I am not a Sohma. If I were, there's no way the family head would have let me leave that cursed town.'

No matter how much Kazuma believed otherwise, she was certain that if she truly belonged to the Sohma family, she wouldn't have been able to leave. Instead, she would have been forcibly brought back the moment she became aware of the truth.

But she had not been forced to forget nor been kept prisoner, and this cemented her denial.

It was something that made no sense to a few of the members, specifically Shigure—who enjoyed inserting himself in anything that'd suggested possible answers to his ongoing journey to freedom.

The situation baffled several members of the Sohma family, particularly Shigure, who had a penchant for inserting himself into situations and was always on the lookout for clues that might provide insights into their ongoing quest for liberation.

Ryu jolted out of her thoughts when she heard a tiny voice calling out, "Mama." Letting go of the torn envelope in her hand, she felt a shiver run down her spine, particularly because of its mysterious arrival.

She had made sure not to share her location with anyone, including Kazuma, so receiving an envelope signed by none other than the person she dreaded the most, Akito Sohma, sent a wave of terror through her.

"Ye—Yes, sweetie," Ryu managed to say, her voice faltering as her throat suddenly closed up and her head began to spin. A heavy sensation washed over her, causing her body to collapse onto the ground with a loud thud.

She heard the frantic cries of her daughter, but in her weakened state, Ryu was powerless to offer any comfort, and the darkness slowly enveloped her, leaving her consciousness fading into blackness.

A voice filled the silence of her mind, echoing loudly in her head.

"The pain will never end, not until I choose to allow it."

Confusion and uncertainty swirled within her, and she found herself ensnared by a deep, empty darkness.

The words cut through her like a dagger, stabbing straight into her heart. She had convinced herself that Akito had shown no interest in her, but now she was faced with the hard truth that contradicted her beliefs.

The fact that it had taken seven years for Akito to finally find her did little to alleviate her distress. In fact, it only heightened her sense of terror even further.

As Ryu opened her eyes, she was aware that she was not truly awake, but rather in a deeply subconscious realm. There was a notable absence of the oppressive pressures she had been enduring, confirming her belief that she wasn't in reality.

A stern yet measured voice echoed through the air, seemingly originating from both within her mind and in front of her. "You must find your other," it asserted, "otherwise, the pain will soon reach them, and at one point, you'll both suffer from the distance."

As she turned her attention to the lone withered tree standing before her in the vast emptiness, she couldn't help but be struck by the profound sense of loneliness it radiated.

"What do you mean?" she eventually inquired, prying her gaze away from the withered tree.

"It's your soulbound mate, the one you were meant to meet" Ryu nearly exclaimed with amusement, finding the concept utterly absurd. For her, the idea of a soulmate and predestined fate was nothing but nonsense; she refused to let anyone dictate her future.

"Your logical mind may resist, but your soul yearns for it."

"I'm growing tired of these supposed absolutes," Ryu retorted, her anger flaring up. "I dictate my own path, my own destiny. I am Ryu Shimizu, and nobody else shall define me – not you, not that man, and certainly not some abstract concept of my 'soulbound half.' My existence is solely my own."

"Will you persist in your refusal to acknowledge the truth?" The voice grew sharper, taking on a stern tone.

"There's nothing to refuse," Ryu asserted firmly, her conviction unwavering.

"Indeed, you're indeed stubborn," the voice continued, its tone now laced with a hint of disapproval. "But your stubbornness can only carry you so far. And what would become of your child if you continued to weaken?"

Ryu's body froze as the words struck her like a dagger to her pride. Despite her fierce determination, she couldn't ignore the truth of her own bodily limitations. If she stubbornly persisted on this path, she risked losing the very thing she had fought so ardently to protect. The weight of that realization sank in like a leaden weight in the pit of her stomach.

"You have only one choice, Ryu Shimizu, and that is to return. Returning does not mean defeat; it means seeking answers."

"And I suppose I can't simply ask you for the answers?" Ryu retorted, but was met with an enigmatic silence. Before she could press further, her vision suddenly grew hazy, and she found herself awakening once more. This time, she was greeted by the familiar face of Kazuma Sohma, his presence anchoring her to reality.

"How did...?" Ryu began, her question interrupted by Himawari's chiming in.

"I called Sensei, Mama," the young child revealed, her head peeking up from the other side of the futon. "I've been talking to Sensei for a good while now..."

Defeated, Ryu found herself now laying quietly, her eyes meeting each of the individuals in the room.