[Incomplete]

[aibyoukaonigiri.livejournal.com]

When; ???
Rating; PG-13
Characters; Tohru Honda (aibyoukaonigiri) and Kyou Sohma (beware_of_kitty)
Summary; A light-hearted night of cleaning and fun turns disastrous when a button is pushed.
Log;

Giving a small sigh, Tohru wiped a hand across her forehead. Although it wasn’t really hard work, it sure could get warm working so close to the hot springs. In the quickly cooling crisp air of November, though, it felt nice, the steam from the springs refreshing as she swept along the edge, brushing away any dirt and brine that had gathered too close to the water. As a resident of the temple, it was part of her responsibility to help maintain the many corridors as well as this area, separate from their living quarters. She didn’t mind, though. In fact, she liked it.

Here, it really was earning your keep, and so Tohru had no problem doing just that. After all, even if she was still, technically, only seventeen (probably) it never did to just take. That was simply asking for it too much. It was important to know how to live on your own and take care of yourself too. The Onigiri had been working and doing that for so long now, that it was nearly just second nature. And when you had cheerful company, it really did make it all that much more enjoyable.

“You know” She giggled, speaking absently as she swept, talking to her companion on the other side of the fence; cleaning out the section specifically set aside for the boys. It was easiest this way, especially when there were two of them hard at work. These days, she was never left alone with a job. They had so many people from home living in the temple now that everyone pitched in and did their part.

And doing things together with her husband was something Tohru was more than accustomed to.

“I think that tonight I might beat Kyou. When it comes to cleaning, I’m almost positive I still hold the position of senpai” She joked. In the past around when she first met him, such a comment would have been met with such a strong current of competition that she was sure he would have challenged that title. Now though, as she waited cheerfully to hear his voice echo back to her across the fence, his reactions were so different, that she understood why, to someone like Yuki who was pulled from a point in time in the past, Kyou really must have seemed like a different person.

They’d all grown up so much. She was noticing that a lot lately. Even Hiro and grown and matured so much that when she had seen him it had been difficult not to gap. Time never stopped. Even the city seemed unable to halt it completely, because no matter from what moment they were stolen from back home, they only continued to bloom and grow here, too.

“Perhaps I should start thinking up special titles!”

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[beware-of-kitty.livejournal.com]

Dipping the strainer back into the heated depths of the water, Kyou slid it across the water in an effort to pull out the leaves that had already found their way into this side of the springs. This was one of the jobs he hated, but it was necessary in order to get things ready for the coming morning. Still, so many times in the past he ended up soaking wet after completing his turn cleaning the hot springs.

Everyone had their Kryptonite, Kyou's just happened to be water.

"You're not a senpai in this," he laughed, pulling the net out of the water. Moving a little across the ground, Kyou turned ever the net and dumped the few wet leaves he'd fished out onto a pile on the ground. "Nice try though."

Frowning at the two leaves that refused to come out of the net, he reached in and pulled them out with his hand before dumping them into the pile. "Shishou used to make me help clean up around the dojo when I was just a kid." Annoyed at the moisture that clung to his hand from the wet leaves, he wiped his hand off on his pants.

The thought of his foster father made him a little sad. He'd been used to being away from Kazuma for long periods of time, but had always heard from him occasionally. By now he'd been away from him for a year and a half. The recent curse which had brought the boxes here, it was a great temptation to take the offering and press the button. Still, the thought of cursing someone else from his actions was something he wouldn't ever be able to stomach.

"We're taking those boxes to Lockon, aren't we?"

[aibyoukaonigiri.livejournal.com]

Pausing as she thought over the current curse, she nodded, even without him being able to see. This was one she was uncertain of. As soon as she had read the directions to the button herself, she had carefully set the small object aside, deciding that she didn't want anything further to do with it. There were things Tohru definitely desired and wanted.

The idea of offering someone else up as a sacrifice for her own goals however was not something that she was willing to do. No one else needed to be punished for something they were not related to. The offer though, was something the onigiri was sure others would find very tempting. When your one wish could come true and it was as simple as pressing a button, it was a temptation that she was sure was hard for many to resist.

There were things after all, that even Tohru wanted.

"I spoke to him a little bit ago. I told him that the two of us could stop by and drop our boxes off."

Even if someone didn't have to be harmed because of this particular curse, She didn't know how much she believed the wish would come true. It wasn't that she liked doubting others. Because she didn't. Second chances and giving people the benefit of the doubt was important to her. But as someone who had made a trade with the deities in the past, outside of a curse, she understood that things were not always as they seemed. Her granted wish had come true, but not exactly how she would have liked. The time it took for the communicator she had wished for to be found had been devastating.

Especially when she hadn't possessed a voice for the person on the other side of the device to hear her.

Setting aside the broom, she scooped up the strainer, before moving back to the water. This time of year, it got so full of leaves, that several times a day the springs had to be cleaned out. It didn't bother her though, and the other temple residents all helped out so much that it was never a chore.

"What would you have wished for, Kyou?"

She asked curiously. There were only two things that Tohru could have thought of, in regards to the button. The chance to see her mother again, which she was willing to do almost anything for, short of harming another individual. And of course...the ability to break the Sohma family curse. Though the later sounded selfless it was anything but.

She just...wanted to ensure that her and the people she cared about could stay together. She wondered though, just what kind of thing Kyou would be tempted to ask for.

"Shishou-san...?" Her voice was soft and tender, as she gently inquired. His adoptive father was someone very important to Kyou, and Tohru knew that he missed him very much.