Grimm Fairy Tales

Chapter 5: Trails in the Forest

As the harsh cold of winter gave way to the cool burst of spring, Yuki spent more time in his secret base, his garden. One day, as cherry blossoms painted the landscape pink, Yuki found it difficult to contain the enthusiasm that bubbled up inside him as he set out on what had become an annual ritual, small cartons of budding strawberry plants cradled in his hands and a sack of fertilizer draped incongruously over his elegant shoulders.

It was strange, he should be petrified, terrified from Akito\'s visit a few weeks ago. But it seemed so surreal, like a nightmare that dissolves with the morning. Their happy household routine had continued uninterrupted, and Akito\'s visit hadn\'t really changed anything at all. Although he still worried at it in his mind, trying to find some meaning in it, old habits were hard to give up.

But that thread of thought was difficult to hold onto as he knelt to plant the strawberry seedlings, ignoring the morning dew that coated his sturdy gardening trousers. He\'d prepared a small patch of ground for them yesterday. He\'d thought about asking Tohru to help him plant them, but the idea of surprising her with fresh strawberries won out. Or, to be more truthful, it was still difficult to approach people. Especially Tohru. Especially lately. He couldn\'t help but feel that Akito\'s interest in her was his fault, caused by his association with her. It seemed best, for her sake, to avoid her as much as he could.

He was interrupted in his musings by the soft sound of grass rustling, someone was approaching. He stood up in a sharp, angry motion, his face set in mirroring lines. This was *his* special place, anyone from the Sohma household should know better than to disturb him here, nor should there be outsiders wandering on Sohma lands. He gripped his gardening trowel angrily, waiting.

“Ah, Yuki-kun, good morning!”

Yuki relaxed at hearing Tohru\'s voice, he\'d thought she was busy making breakfast. He set the trowel down carefully next to the strawberry plants, turning his puzzled gaze on Tohru. Who, for her part, had crawled into the clearing, eyes focused studiously on the ground as every now and then she picked something up with her right hand, adding it to a dark pile of material she cradled in her left hand.

“Tohru-kun?” Yuki wasn\'t sure where to start asking questions as he stepped towards her. Was that dirt she was picking up? His lips twitched. She did the strangest things. And she was so cute, with her nose wrinkled in concentration. It was so tempting to pounce on her and hug her, like she did to to Kisa. His hands twitched and he folded them carefully across his chest, just in case his urges over-rode common sense. Somehow what came so effortlessly to Momiji, didn\'t seem possible for him. Pouncing on Tohru and squeezing her like a stuffed animal was not appropriate.

“Yuki-kun” she pushed herself awkwardly off the ground and stumbled towards him, face beaming, hands outstretched towards him, as if giving him a present.

Automatically he cupped his hands around hers, steadying her, then looked down in surprise as he realized what she, they, were holding. A pristine pile of dirt. Potting soil.

“You dropped it,” Tohru explained, “I was finishing up breakfast when I looked out the window and saw you leaving and noticed, there was a small hole in the bag. I called out but you didn\'t hear me. And then there was a small trail of dirt, I was worried that you wouldn\'t have enough for your gardening, so I picked it up. Will it be alright?”

She looked up at him anxiously.

Yuki twitched, fighting the urge to laugh and the urge to hug her at the same time. This was getting to be a serious problem.

The former urge won and the potting soil slipped through his fingers as sobs of laughter wracked his body.

“T-Tohru-kun, you\'re so cute” he managed to gasp out, as she stared in dismay down at the fallen soil.

Her face started to turn a bright red, then her eyes widened as she looked around her.

“Oh no! I\'m sorry Yuki-kun, I didn\'t even think. I\'m disturbing you in your secret base. I didn\'t mean to, I was just worried and,”

Yuki broke in before she could work herself up further. She took being considerate to extremes sometimes. Not that he minded, it was a rare trait in his family.

“Don\'t worry about it Tohru-kun, I wanted to ask you out here anyway. But I was worried about inconveniencing you, since you already have so many chores.” it was only partially a lie. It really was ridiculous how much work she did around the house, Yuki thought guiltily. He tried to help, but somehow he turned into a klutz whenever it came to household chores and it just made more work for Tohru. Every time he saw Kyou discretely doing things around the house before Tohru noticed them, it made him hate the cat a little more. But those thoughts were far away as he took Tohru\'s hands between his and brushed them free of any last clinging particles of soil, a strange, bubbling happiness fizzing inside him. Tohru was here and this time was his, an unexpected present.

“Yuki-kun?”

Tohru was looking up at him earnestly.

“Yes Tohru-kun?”

“I-it\'s on your shirt too.” she whispered awkwardly, darting around him to brush at the back of his shirt, where the bag of soil had leaked.

“Oh” it was his turn to blush, as he felt the feather light motions of her hands against his back. He shouldn\'t, it was completely innocent. But his body had switched from happiness to a much more intense emotion, and it suddenly seemed prudent to kneel down, holding the strawberry plants in a strategic location as he frantically tried to recall just what it was he was supposed to be doing anyway. But all he could seem to focus on was the sensation of Tohru\'s hands on his back.

His eyes drifted shut and he buried his hands in the dirt he had overturned earlier, clamping his lips tightly together. He wouldn\'t moan, because then she might stop. Although his clothing suddenly seemed constricting and unbearably scratchy. Although everything felt tight, as if he could burst. He simply clenched his fingers tighter in the dirt and his lips closer together, uncertain whether this was heaven or hell, but praying it would never end.

It did. Tohru stood up, brushed the dirt from her knees, then went to weed among the leeks.

Yuki simply sat there, concentrating on his breathing, letting his hair fall forward to screen his face. Waiting for his body to relax, praying she hadn\'t noticed anything. Feeling dirtier than the earth he had been clutching as she studiously pulled weeds, humming one of the child\'s songs she loved so much. Completely oblivious.

The strawberries. He put all his concentration into planting them, not even looking at her. At the dew dripping onto her bare legs as she knelt in the grass. At the hem of her skirt pulling up as she leaned over to pull at a weed. At how deftly her hands skimmed through the plants of his garden.

He was doing a very good job of ignoring her. He didn\'t even register her presence now. Then he realized that he didn\'t register her presence because she was gone. Somewhere between planting the sixth strawberry plant and the last.

The rows of leeks were pristine, the dirt packed neatly around them. She had probably gone back to the main house. Probably. He shouldn\'t worry about it, bud he did. Not bothering to straighten up his gardening supplies, he sprinted back towards the house, scanning the forest for Tohru\'s figure.


A/N: I\'m sorry, I realize how long its been since I last updated this. I\'m amazed at the number of reviews that I\'ve gotten. They\'ve definitely been a strong motivator. I think my guilt level went up with each one. Of course I also obsessively re-read all of the reviews, they produce this kind of rosy haze, not unlike chocolate. The next three chapters are already written and will be posted over the course of the next week.