The Puppet Master's Last Testament (Fruits Basket FanFiction)

Chapter 11: Vision in Red

Disclaimer: I don't own anything associated with Fruits Basket.

What does it take to set the Sohmas free after Akito's death?

The Puppet Master's Last Testament

Chapter Eleven:

Vision in Red

He ran out without a second thought. He ran to the rental booth and knocked on the window. A scrawny old man looked up from the newspaper he was reading inside.

"Do you have a first aid kit? Bandages?"

"Yes," the man responded pulling out a white box from under the table. Shigure said thank you and ran back to the bathroom, still wet.

He crouched next to the stiff Tohru and touched the sensitive skin around the cut again. Her foot jumped back. Shigure opened the box and took out the antiseptic spray. He disinfected the area before putting a butterfly bandage over the wound. He stood up and looked at Tohru, who appeared to be in a daze, her eyes glossy, her stance limp and wilted, her arms coiled around her middle. She looked child-like, before a fitful shudder ran through her thin frame.

Shigure put a hand on her shoulder and asked softly, "Are you okay?" hoping that it wasn't hypothermia (not that he knew the symptoms) and wishing that Hatori was here.

"Hai, it's just—" she broke off.

"What?"

She mumbled (something she rarely did), "Well, um—no one's ever done that for me before. You know fixed up my wound. It's nothing really, just my silly self—"

Shigure knew Tohru has an orphan, but when her parents were still with her, hadn't she ever fallen, got a papercut? Before his mind could delve deeper into her words, Tohru shivered again, as though a tornado was traversing through her system, her skin goose-fleshed and stark white. Forgetting around his personal well-being for long enough, he tended to his little flower first. He took out the crimson red yukata from the bag, and said firmly, "Put this on."

She shook her head, murmuring, "It's Shigure-san's. I can't," through her purple lips.

"If Tohru-san doesn't stop worrying about others, she may have to pay a very big price: getting sick, and having her favorite Shigure-san cook all her meals, help her in the shower, help her get dressed, feed her breakfast. She wouldn't want that now, would she?" He said, swinging the cloak over her, and tying the sash loosely around her waist.

Tohru nodded eagerly. There was no way she was letting Shigure work alone in the kitchen. That was a recipe for disaster.

A wistful smile graced her face when she said, "Thank you Shigure-san."

Shigure smiled to himself. Hatori would be very proud.

Tohru waved her hand in front of his field of vision, "Gure-san? You should really change into something. I don't want you to get sick either." All he could think about was how he was going to stop himself from kissing the seductress in red senseless. Her scarlet red lips begged for his lips, the drying tears at the corner of her eyes yearned to be brushed away; her soft hair pined for his touch, his caress.

But he stopped himself. He couldn't let things get out of hand. He hasn't supposed to fall for the pawn. Shigure loved her, but not in a romantic light. Right?

"Tohru? Would you like to go somewhere with me? I want to see if it's still there?"

"Sure, let's get out of here so your yukata can dry," she responded, delighted, her hands clasped together in front of her chest. He noticed over the past few days this cute trait. She had many quirks that he had never noticed before, like wiggling her nose when she was apprehensive/unsure about something, flaring her nostrils when she was mad (which wasn't too often), and her animated hand gestures when she was excited.