Hey everybody. Most of you probably don't know me, so I'll introduce myself.
My name is Tyson FoxFlame and I am usually a Taito author. However, today I am bringing to you a new experiment.
I was sitting at my computer desk on July 4th innocently chatting with one of my fellow Taito authors and writing my most popular fic, Black Rose, when I was hit with this urge to write a story about Yamato and Sora. Why? Hell if I know.
So here we are today with this fiction.
Warnings: AU, swearing, violence, and that's all I can think of off the top of my head. I will try my absolute best to keep them IC but I'm not totally used to writing Sora.
Enough of my chatter, let us now move on to the first chapter of Hit the Floor. Enjoy.
It started out as a normal day, really it did. It was a Friday afternoon on April 16th. I was tending to Mama's floral shop, a normal routine for me. I had been a freshman for a little over a week and needless to say on a slight overload at the sudden change. The last thing I needed was this…but it came anyway. He came, I should say…and there was nothing I could do to stop him...
Takenouchi Sora hummed happily as she rearranged a bouquet of orchids in the back of her mother's shop. To think a few years ago, the young lady didn't want anything to do with the flower business, rather spending her time being a tomboy and running around with her friends. But here she stood at the age of 14, thoroughly enjoying her work.
It even caught her by surprise.
She worked at a steady pace, head bobbing in time with the music coming from her headphones and hands artistically weaving amongst the bright lavender blooms placed in front of her. Her mother was tending to the till up front, chatting with her customers and leaving Sora to work in the back. It had always been just the two of them working in Takenouchi's Floral Shop and although the business was on the small size, they had plenty of customers who came back on a regular basis.
'Hopefully I can finish this fast. I wanna head over to Tai and Kari's for a little while or maybe over to 'Keru's house.' The teen swept a strand of auburn red hair away from her face as she continued to clip and arrange the flowers. She thought she heard the bell chime in front, alerting them that there was a customer, but she chose to ignore it. After all, her mother could handle it.
'I just hope they're home and didn't decide to ditch me. We're supposed to be going to the movies tonight, with Tai chaperoning of course. Yagami-san needs to stop being so overprotective of Kari, poor girl. I'm glad Mama's not like that with me. Well, not anymore at any rate.' Sora finished styling the last flower in the arrangement and cheered silently. Quickly untying her apron and throwing down her shears, she shut off her CD player and slipped on her red hooded sweatshirt.
"Mama, I'm going to Tai and Kari's place, be back later!" she shouted as she ran out of the back and towards the front door.
"Hold on a moment, Sora. I need you here," Toshiko Takenouchi replied, efficiently stopping her daughter from leaving the shop.
"What do you need? I finished everything you had for me in the back," Sora protested, half-way out the door already. She was rather anxious to get going to her friends' apartment and didn't like being bothered.
"Well, something new came up," the older woman said and motioned for Sora to follow her to another part of the store, close to the door that led to their home. Dragging her feet slowly, Sora reluctantly walked after her mother, muttering about how she was now going to be late. Toshiko didn't hear any of it, and if she did, she chose to ignore it as she stopped suddenly, causing Sora to nearly bump into her.
"This is who can help you the best," Toshiko spoke.
"What? I don't need any help." Sora blinked in surprise. A small snicker came from the other side of Toshiko.
"I think she was talking to me," a rich male voice informed the redhead. Sora's eyes widened and she looked around her mother, spotting the one who had just spoken. In a folding chair just outside of the door to their home sat a boy, perhaps a few years older then her. His blonde hair was styled in an array of spikes, some falling limply and some sticking straight up from his scalp. Cobalt eyes, eyes that seemed to be examining Sora just as much as she was examining him, were framed by thick and dark lashes. His skin was slightly pale, making his features pop out even more. Pale pink lips were formed into a small smirk and a small silver ring pierced the bottom one. Upon further investigation, Sora also noticed that the cartilage of his left ear was also pierced. She continued to stare at the blonde in front of her, unsure of what to make of him.
"Who the hell are you?" she asked before she could stop herself.
"Sora! That's not a polite way to greet our newest employee," Toshiko scolded her daughter. Sora whipped her head around and looked at her mother, jaw dropping slightly as she did so.
"What do you mean our newest employee?" she exclaimed. The blonde laughed a real laugh this time, shaking his head at the spectacle Sora was making of herself.
"Ishida Yamato, at your service," he introduced himself, making no signs of moving from his chair. Sora narrowed her eyes suspiciously and licked her lips.
"Why on earth would you want to work in a floral shop?" she questioned him, curiosity sparking up inside of her.
"It's a long story," Yamato replied casually and slipped his hands into his pockets, pushing his body up from the chair. His dark blue hoodie, similar to Sora's, was quite a few sizes too large for his frame and hung off of him loosely. "Anyway, your mom says that you can teach me everything I need to know about the flowers." Sora nodded in response.
"Well yeah, but can we do it later? I sort of promised some of my friends I'd meet up with them for a movie," she explained hastily, looking at the clock above Yamato's head. The blue-eyed male shrugged and shook his head.
"It doesn't matter to me, I can come back tomorrow? Maybe then I can get in some hands-on experience?" he suggested.
"Sounds good to me. Is that all right, Mama?" Sora looked up at her mother who was frowning at the idea.
"I would have really liked to have him trained today, but I suppose it can wait until tomorrow," Toshiko responded with a sigh. Sora gave her a wide smile and quick hug around the shoulders.
"Thanks, Mama, see you later!" she bid her goodbye and ran out the door, not bothering to look back at Yamato.
'Since when does Mama hire employees? I don't remember her ever doing so in the past. I just know there's something those two aren't telling me.' Sora's thoughts raced in her head just as fast as her legs raced down the street. The building the Yagami's lived in was only a few blocks away from her own. She bounded up the stairs to the third level where her friends lived and skidded to a halt at their door. Leaning on the doorframe to catch her breath, she gave three sharp knocks.
"Coming!" A female voice rang from inside. The door flew open and revealed another teenage girl just about Sora's age. Her light brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail and her red-brown eyes sparkled cheerfully.
"Hey, Sora! Tai and I were making bets on what time you'd get here," she said as her way of a greeting, stepping aside so her friend could enter the apartment.
"Who won?" Sora stepped in and slipped off her shoes, leaving them by the front door.
"She did," a deeper voice responded angrily. Sora grinned and walked into Yagami's living room.
"So now you're sulking?" she teased the older boy on the couch and rested her chin in the nest of wild brown locks.
"Maybe," Taichi said childishly and folded his arms over his chest. "If you had just come 15 minutes earlier, I would've won."
"Well, sorry! Blame my mother for that one," Sora retorted and flopped down next to Taichi, making herself at home.
"Why, what happened?" Hikari asked as she leaned on the back of the couch, hovering over her brother and her friend.
"Well, apparently, we have a new guy working for us," Sora launched into her story.
"I thought your mom didn't like hiring new people," Taichi interrupted.
"That's what I thought too, but obviously we were all wrong because he starts tomorrow. She wanted me to stay and teach him everything, but I reminded her that I was coming over here." Sora fluffed the pillow on her end of the couch, leaning on it with her elbow.
"Well, we wouldn't have minded waiting for you," Hikari pointed out. "Besides, Takeru's running a bit late as it is and we're not even sure if Daisuke's coming." Just as the words left her mouth, the telephone rang. Taichi reached out in front of his lazily, picking the cordless phone up off of the table and pressing 'Talk'.
"Hello?" he answered. The two girls watched his facial expression for any clue as to who it could be.
"Aw man, are you serious?" Taichi groaned. "Your sister's crazy! Okay, I'll tell them. Maybe we'll hang out later, huh? Next weekend, we'll all go do something. Kay, later." Taichi turned off the phone and threw it back onto the table.
"Who was it?" Hikari prodded her brother for knowledge.
"That was Dais. He can't go because Jun got him grounded for something, I don't know, he was talking too fast because he's not suppose to be on the phone." Taichi frowned and looked at the ceiling.
"So basically it's us four," Sora summed up.
"Exactly."
"It might be just us three if Takeru doesn't hurry up," Hikari mumbled.
"What was holding him up?" Brown eyes flickered over to the female Yagami.
"I'm not sure. He called right before you showed up, saying he had to take care of some family business." Hikari shrugged and sighed.
"Don't worry about it, Kari. He'll be here soon," Taichi reassured his younger sister.
'He better be here soon or we might have a few problems.' The 16 year old bit his tongue in irritation. Another loud knock was heard at the door.
"He's here!" Hikari announced and made a beeline for the door, Sora and Taichi on her heels. She unlocked and threw open the door once more, blinking in shock at the sight of two figures versus one.
"Uh, hi?" she said in a questioning tone, hoping somebody would explain to her why there were two boys at the door.
"Hey Kari, sorry I'm late," the younger boy apologized and readjusted the white bucket hat on his head. Golden blonde hair peeked out from under the hat's brim and bright blue eyes looked on sheepishly. "Somebody decided to drop in suddenly," he added, throwing a mock-glare up to the boy behind him.
"Sorry Takes, I didn't know they were going to let me go today," another male said with sarcasm dripping from his every word. Sora felt her heart stop momentarily as that voice replayed in her head.
'That better not be who I think it is.' She gathered her nerve and looked around the corner.
"Oh hey guys, this is my brother, Yamato," Takeru said, mostly for the benefit of Taichi and Hikari. Yamato nodded politely to the two siblings before his eyes landed on Sora.
"I thought I wasn't supposed to see you until tomorrow," he joked. Sora rewarded him with a fake smile.
"Well, it's not my fault you want me," she responded automatically before it processed through her mind. It was almost like a playful banter between her and Taichi…only not.
"You two already know each other?" Takeru pointed between Sora and Yamato.
"Yeah, we met about half an hour ago," Sora answered warily, subconsciously stepping closer to Taichi.
"Remember how I said that I had a job? Well, I work in Sora's mom's floral shop now," Yamato joined in, ignoring the awkward feeling of the moment.
"Wow, talk about a small world." Taichi whistled lowly.
"But we don't want to talk about a small world; we want to talk about Dark Water. You know, the movie we're suppose to go watch now?" Hikari reminded everybody of their original plans.
"Oh right. I hope you guys don't mind me bringing Yamato along." Takeru moved out of the way so that the other three could come out of the apartment.
"Nah, the more, the merry! That's what I always say!" Taichi ushered his sister and Sora out of the apartment and into the hall.
"Tai, you've never said that before in your life," Hikari said flatly.
"Have so!"
"Nu-uh!"
"Uh-huh!" Thus began the verbal brawl of the Yagamis. Takeru merely chuckled at the siblings' antics and led the way down the stairs. Yamato smirked again and shook his head.
"Are they always like this?" he questioned no one in particular.
"Oh yeah," Sora replied. "They get along perfectly fine for the most part, but bring up something trivial and bam! Fight of the century."
"Wow…"
"Yeah…"
"Stop stalling, let's go!" Takeru yelled from the bottom of the stairs, tapping his foot against the pavement impatiently.
"Hey, wait up!" Hikari yelled and left her 'fight' with Taichi, racing past Yamato and Sora to meet the blonde at the bottom.
"Anybody else think she likes him?" Taichi said in a low whisper as he caught up to the other two's pace.
"Wouldn't know," Yamato voiced his opinion, shoving his hands in his pockets once again.
"Sora?"
"Not allowed to say a thing."
"What!"
"That wasn't as good as I expected it to be," Hikari commented as the group of five made their way out of the theater.
"Yeah but I'd still go to see it again," Taichi replied, moving up beside Yamato. Despite how different they appeared, the two boys seemed to get along perfectly fine.
"I wouldn't," Yamato snorted and fiddled with his lip ring.
"Didn't you already see it though?" Takeru asked his brother.
"Well, yeah. But still, I wouldn't see it for a third time."
"Wait, I have a question," Sora perked up suddenly.
"What would that be?" Yamato's cool gaze flickered onto the young girl.
"How are you two brothers when you have two different last names?" This was true, as Takeru's last name was Takaishi rather then Ishida.
"Yamato's Mom's kid from her first marriage," Takeru began to explain.
"And they divorced right after I was born and TK's dad married my mom right before TK was born, hence why I have my dad's last name and he has his," Yamato finished off.
"Makes sense," Taichi said with a nod. The group continued walking down the street, mostly asking Yamato about himself. The blonde answered most of their questions, questions that came mostly from the Yagami siblings. Takeru knew everything already and Sora…well, Sora just didn't seem to want to know.
"So where did you come from before you came here?" Taichi asked his newfound friend as they crossed the street downtown.
"Kyoto. I was living with my uncle for a while and attending the high school there." Yamato tucked some of his hair behind his ear.
"So why'd you come here?" Hikari took her turn in asking a question.
"Just, decided to come back to the family." Yamato shrugged. Sora turned her head and stared at the newcomer. She continued walking without turning her line of vision away from the blonde boy, suspicions growing higher and higher.
'There's something not right about this guy. I don't care if he's Takes's brother, it just seems a little odd.' The redhead cleared her thoughts and realized that they were standing in front of Taichi and Hikari's building.
"Guess we'll see you guys later," Takeru said and waved goodbye to the other three.
"Some of you sooner then others," Yamato added, looking straight at Sora with a smirk.
"Yeah, see ya guys." Taichi waved back and ushered both girls up the stairs to the Yagami household. He unlocked the front door and kicked it open, allowing the two girls to walk inside and following after them.
"I'm gonna go take a shower," Hikari proclaimed and marched into the bathroom, locking the door behind her. Sora sighed and sank down into the couch, leaning her head back against the top of the couch.
"So I take it you don't like Yamato very much," Taichi's voice stated from the kitchen, which was directly behind the living room.
"What gave you that idea?"
"Simply because I know you too well," he replied and returned with two cans of soda. Tossing one at Sora, he popped open his and took a drink. "So you wanna tell me why?"
"Well, think about it Tai. Don't you find it a little strange that after all of these years, TK's brother decides to drop by for a visit? I've known TK since we were nine and he never mentioned having a brother. Ever. Knowing him for five years and never knowing he had a brother of any kind? Yeah, I qualify that as weird," Sora told the older brunet, toying with the pull tab on the soda in her hand.
"Well maybe it slipped his mind." Taichi threw the idea into the air.
"Would you forget to mention Kari?"
"…okay so maybe it is kinda funny that Takeru never mentioned him. But he's still cool. We were talking through the movie and from what I could tell he seemed like a great guy." Tai stretched out and turned on the TV, leaving the volume on low so that they could continue the conversation.
"Still…there's something about him," Sora trailed off. Taichi shrugged and took another drink from his can.
"Whatever you say, kid," he said and focused back on the TV. "Are you spending the night?"
"Nah, I should probably go home if I have to train Yamato tomorrow," Sora sighed reluctantly and pushed herself off of the couch, leaving the unopened soda on the table.
"Want me to walk with you?" Taichi offered, standing up without waiting for her to answer.
"Tai, I only live a few blocks away," the redhead protested as she made her way out into the front hall.
"Yeah but it's already dark outside. I'm going with you," Taichi continued to argue, already stuffing his feet into his shoes. Sora sighed loudly and rolled her eyes.
"There's no getting rid of you is there?"
"Nope. Somebody's gotta take care of ya," Taichi reasoned with a grin and the two friends walked out of the apartment.
"I suppose," Sora agreed and they ran down the stairs. No conversation filled the air as the pair walked down the sidewalk. It wasn't before long that they had reached the Takenouchi's shop.
"Well m'lady, this is where I leave you," Taichi said and bowed dramatically.
"Thank you, kind sir," Sora laughed and mock-curtsied in return. "But all seriousness aside, thanks Tai. You didn't have to walk me back."
"Sure I did. You're my little sister who's not related by blood! It's my job to protect ya, right?" Taichi leaned against the building.
"Yeah, I guess." Sora nodded. Tai grinned and opened his arms.
"C'mere you little brat," he said and Sora moved into his arms, quickly returning the hug. "Just give Yamato a chance all right?" he whispered into her ear as he let go of her.
"But-" she began to object.
"No buts. Just do it, okay?" Taichi cut her off, giving her a stern look.
"Fine…"
"Promise me?"
"…" Sora shifted uncomfortably under Taichi's intense stare.
"Sora, promise me. Yamato's really not a bad guy. I think if you gave him a chance, you'd really like him. He's like me!" Taichi beamed widely.
"Only blonde, mellow, and quiet?" Sora pointed out the vast difference between the two boys.
"…all right so he's not like me. But I'm sure you'd like him like you like me if you gave him a chance!"
"Tai! If I promise to give him a chance, will you let me go to bed?" she cut into his inane babbling and produced a key from her pocket, jamming it into the lock. Taichi nodded at the prospect she was offering. "Okay then, I promise to give him a chance. Starting tomorrow." She gave him a cheesy smile and ripped the door open, darting inside and closing it before Taichi could say any more. She quietly made her way through the shop and to the door that led to the house.
'I don't care what Tai says, there's definitely something different about Yamato…and I'm not sure if it's the good kind of different.' Sora walked through the door and into her bedroom, flopping down on the bed without changing. Sleeping in jeans wasn't that uncomfortable anyway.
"Sora, wake up. Yamato's waiting for you," Toshiko called out to her daughter. Sora rolled over in her bed, blearily opening her eyes to look at the clock.
8:04am.
AM! On a Saturday no less. The young girl groaned and shoved her head under her pillow.
"Sora, didn't you hear me? Yamato's here," Toshiko repeated and opened the door.
"Mama, it's too early. Tell him to come back some other time," Sora replied but opened her eyes anyway.
"Well, if you had taught him everything yesterday, you wouldn't have to wake up early. Now come on," Toshiko said and walked away, leaving the door wide open. Sora let out a small yawn and sat up. She was wide awake by now and had no problem getting out of bed and bouncing out to the shop. The first thing that met her eyes was the sight of Yamato wearing the same sweatshirt as yesterday and smiling.
"Hey," he greeted her.
"Hey," she returned the greeting. "Ready to get started?" she asked in an attempt to be friendly, remembering her promise to Taichi.
"Sure." Yamato shrugged and the pair of teens headed for the back room. Once they were out of Toshiko's hearing distance, Sora shut the door and pinned herself against it, leaving Yamato no escape route.
"Okay pal, listen here. If you're going to be working here, you need to tell me the truth!" she spoke in a low and stern tone, glancing behind her every now and then to make sure her mother wouldn't disturb them.
"What's that suppose to mean?" Yamato asked and quirked an eyebrow. Sora squinted at his face and blinked.
"Is your eyebrow pierced?" she asked and succeeded in changing the subject.
"Used to be. But what do you mean I need to tell you the truth? The truth about what?"
"You honestly expect me to believe that after all of these years living with your 'uncle' in Kyoto you decide to show up? Try again." Sora folded her arms over her chest, boring her brown eyes into Yamato's blue ones. The blonde bit his lip and looked over Sora's shoulder.
"Okay look, you have to promise not to say anything to anybody else, especially your mother, got it?" he too spoke in a low voice.
"Sure. You make it sound like you ran away from the cops," she joked. The look on Yamato's face told her that she had said the wrong thing.
"Oh my gosh, did you?" she gasped.
"Not exactly…here's the thing," he started off and hopped onto the workbench, sitting down and getting comfortable. "While I was away, I was at this school called Kurokawa Academy. It was for troubled children, delinquents, whatever you want to call us and well, the only way I could get out was if I agreed to do 400 hours of community service when I got out. I walked into town and spotted your flower shop and well…you know the rest, I suppose."
"…what exactly did you tell my mother?" Sora questioned curiously, resisting the urge to tilt her head to the side.
"That I wanted to get in some community service hours for college applications."
"So lemme get this straight. You were sent to some wacko school, got out under certain conditions after being there for five years,"
"Six."
"Whatever, six, and then you lied to my mother and my friends?"
"Yeah, basically," Yamato answered with a smug grin.
"Why should I help you now? I'm not very fond of helping dishonest people who probably deserve to be in a school for delinquents. What did you do anyway?"
"That's…something we'll discuss later. And you should help me because, well…you looked like somebody with a good heart." Yamato looked at his hands. Sora looked at the ceiling and shifted her weight onto her other foot.
'Okay…so maybe Taichi's right. Yamato's not that bad, but really, he must have done something to get sent to a school like that. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to help him out though…oh man, somebody owes me big time.' Sora sighed and looked back down.
"Fine." Yamato looked up once she had spoken.
"What?"
"I said fine. I'll help you out. But on two conditions," she warned him.
"What would those be?" Yamato inquired, leaning on his knees with his elbows. Sora's gaze moved downward and she scuffed the ground with the toe of her sneaker.
"You can't hurt my friends and family…and you can't hurt me," she spoke softly, peeking back up at him through her bangs. "Can I trust you with that?"
"Yes," Yamato replied without hesitation. Sora nodded and moved away from the door cautiously, holding out her hand.
"Welcome to Takenouchi Floral. We have a lot of work to do today," she said with a warm smile. Yamato jumped from the counter and shook her hand firmly.
"Show me what ya got."
...I know I shouldn't have trusted him so easy, but there was something in his eyes that convinced me. Over time, those eyes convinced me of many things, things that should have been avoided, and things that could have been avoided. Besides, I had made a promise to Taichi that I would try to give him a chance. Of course, Taichi and he fought many times and there was that long period of time Taichi didn't trust him anymore. But that's all in the past now. All I can say is this; getting to where we are today was a rocky journey and it all started when our lives hit the floor.
Yes I am quite aware that this was uberly-boring and quite possibly utter crap. But I tried right? It's just a prologue anyway. I hope the next few chapters will make up for this drawl. It's just introducing the way things were before Yamato showed up. Notes, right.
Dark Water does not belong to me and I have not seen it yet (totally plan on it).
Sora calls her mother Mama in this fic because she did in the show. It's really weird to type it though.
Taichi and Sora have and never will be romantically involved in this fiction. He's just like her surrogate big brother.
I know in the show Natsuko Takaishi and Hiroaki Ishida parented both Takeru and Yamato before they divorced but for the sake of this fiction, they didn't.
Kurokawa-Dark River.
I do believe that's all. Thanks for taking the time to read this and I promise it will get better now that this boring thing is out of the way. Feedback anybody?