Disclaimer: I do not own La Corda d'Oro...If I did, Hinoki and Miyuki would be canon...I also do not own Anastasia the Movie either.
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The Orange From the Apple Tree
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Miyabi had been walking home innocently when she noticed a group of boys gathered in front of the Yunoki Estates.
"Shall we go in?" The blond one asked sleepily.
They were all hesitating, and Miyabi felt it was time to make her presence known. "Erm, who are you and why are you in front of my house?"
"Eh?" One of the green-haired ones asked, turning around quickly.
"I remember you, Kazuki-kun!" Miyabi choked back a laugh.
"Really?" Kazuki scratched his head in a confused manner. "I don't…"
"You're the boy that thought oranges came from apple trees, ne?" Miyabi giggled.
The blonde and the other green-haired boy chuckled, but the blue-haired one shook his head as if he expected it to be the very thing Kazuki would do.
"Ah, Miyabe-chan!" Kazuki smiled brightly. "Wasn't it?"
"Miyabi." She corrected.
"I had forgotten what happened that day!" Kazuki admitted sheepishly. "Could you remind me?"
"Of course." Miyabi said patiently. "It started like this…"
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Seven Years Earlier…
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Hihara Kazuki, age ten, was incredibly bored.
His elder brother was at the library, and everyone else was either at work or at summer school. Sometimes it irritated him that he was the youngest in his family. His friends were either on vacations or at summer school.
"It's not fair." He complained. "Why am I the only one not having fun?"
He was taking a walk, and found himself in front of a large, traditional-styled house with a large gate. He could hear faint piano music. It sounded familiar…Wasn't that song a piano version of a song in that animated movie from America or something…?
"Ooh, this must be the Yunoki place." He murmured to himself. He had heard of the Yunoki family. Wealthy, with five children. He had heard the grandmother was like the devil incarnate though. He wouldn't give up his family for all the riches in the world if it meant having a grandmother like that and not his beloved Obaa-san, who baked him cookies and spoiled him with praise…
All of a sudden, an orange fell from above and hit him on the head.
"Eh?"
He looked up and noticed an apple tree that wasn't in full bloom. Which was rather odd considering that is was apple season. (Maybe the tree was old…) He didn't see an orange tree in sight, which was odd…
Oh. My. God.
"THE ORANGE FELL FROM THE APPLE TREE!!"
Hihara Kazuki, age ten, was never the most sensible child.
---
Yunoki Miyabi, age six, kicked a stone morbidly. "I hate you, Obaa-sama…"
Her grandmother had finally left on the long-awaited trip (by the youngest Yunoki siblings) to visit the grave of her husband in Hokkaido. The woman was so controlling and mean and…and evil to Miyabi and Azuma-nii!
Everyone else was out of the house, and Azuma-nii had decided to go against house rules for once and play the piano that was forbidden to him. Miyabi sat down on the large stone in the garden and closed her eyes, enjoying the music that flowed around her. Azuma-nii was in the room were their brothers' piano was, but his emotion made the piano sound so loud that she heard it even in the garden. She was the guard to make sure that their brothers, sister, and parents didn't return from their trips to their various locations early.
But she was so bored…
Miyabi smoothed her summer kimono. Too bad she couldn't have a yukata. Obaa-sama had declared women's yukata to be a cheap imitation of the kimono, and banned them from the house. Her summer kimono was just like any other kimono for a young girl: heavy. The material was beautiful; a light orange with a green and yellow leaf pattern that shone in the proper light. Her long brown hair was twisted expertly into a bun by her mother before she and Father left for the weekend.
Azuma-nii was lucky. He didn't have to wear such a heavy kimono. All he had to wear was a men's yukata…It was at times like these that Miyabi hated Obaa-sama more than anyone in the world, even Satoshi-nii and Shoutaro-nii.
They were so mean to Azuma-nii, because he had to give up the piano because he was surpassing their skills. They made fun of Azuma-nii's purple hair, while they themselves had purple hair too…Stupid brothers…
She picked an orange from the orange tree in the garden and peeled it as Azuma-nii played a piano version of a song from this animated American movie they had seen just an hour before. What was it called again…? (1) At the Beginning or something…
She finished the orange, and reached for another one as Azuma-nii continued playing the song over and over…How did he do that anyways? He had certainly never seen the sheet music, never heard the song before that movie…Azuma-nii was probably a musical prodigy, but that seemed too far-fetched. The only logical explanation was that he was magic! Yes, that was it.
Azuma-nii was magic.
Satisfied, Miyabi smiled happily at her intelligence. She suddenly frowned at the unpeeled orange in her hands. She wasn't hungry anymore, but what if Obaa-sama returned and saw the orange lying on the ground? She would assume that Miyabi had picked it and Miyabi would be scolded…
In a panic, Miyabi tossed the orange over the garden wall. She closed her eyes again and listened to Azuma-nii toss out chords on the piano, when she heard someone yell.
"THE ORANGE FELL FROM THE APPLE TREE!!"
Miyabi leapt up and ran outside the gate, where she collided with a green-haired boy about Azuma-nii's age.
Miyabi noticed, with a blush, that the boy was rather handsome. His hair was the color of kelp, and he had eyes that looked like amber mixed with honey. He wore a plain white t-shirt and blue shorts, a sweatband on his wrist. He wore sneakers, something Miyabi wished she could wear. Stupid Obaa-sama…
The green-haired boy looked at Miyabi in panic, gripping her shoulders and shaking her roughly. "Be careful, little girl! The Yunoki estates are defying nature by creating apple trees that grow oranges too!"
Miyabi would've been terrified if the situation wasn't so hilarious. "Baka!"
---
Kazuki was astonished when the little brunette started laughing. "Nani?! I'm not an idiot!"
She laughed. "My family isn't growing oranges in apple trees! You're crazy!"
Kazuki stared at her, eyes wide. "You mean, you're a Yunoki?"
"Hai!" The little brunette giggled as she pried his fingers from her shoulders and extended a hand to him. "Yunoki Miyabi."
"Hihara Kazuki." Kazuki extended his own hand nervously, slightly embarrassed that he had insulted her family to her face.
---
"Hihara?" Miyabi repeated. "Don't you have a big brother?"
"Huh?" Kazuki asked in confusion. "Oh, yeah. Him."
"My biggest brother goes to school with him!" Miyabi said importantly.
"Yunoki Satoshi?" Kazuki asked.
"Mm-hm." Miyabi smiled.
"So, are you sure that you don't grow apple trees that have oranges?" Kazuki asked.
"Mm-hm." Miyabi nodded. "I'm sorry for throwing the orange over the garden wall; It must have hit you on the head, Kazuki-kun…"
"Ooh…" Kazuki whistled slowly. "That makes so much sense."
"My brother says your brother is a—" Kazuki paused.
"A brat?" Miyabi asked, laughing a little when Kazuki nodded hesitantly. "Funny, Azuma-nii says the same thing about him too."
Kazuki laughed. "I guess that's something my brother and yours have in common."
Miyabi growled. "I don't like Satoshi-nii or Shoutaro-nii, but Miyako-onee is alright. Azuma-nii is my favorite though."
"Why don't you like Satoshi and Shoutaro?" Kazuki asked.
"They always pull my hair and annoy me." Miyabi pouted. "And they make fun of Azuma-nii for being told to quit the piano because he's better than them."
"Really?" Kazuki asked in interest. "Which of them's playing the piano right now? Satoshi or Shoutaro?"
"Neither." Miyabi shrugged.
"Is it Miyako?"
"No, it's Azuma-nii." Miyabi said. "He's a magical brother; He can play music without ever seeing the sheet music!"
"Whoa, your brother's magic?!" Kazuki asked in astonishment. "Cool!"
"I know!" Miyabi smiled happily; Finally someone understood the awesomeness of her Azuma-nii!
"I wish my brothers were magic." Kazuki said mournfully.
"Maybe they are!" Miyabi said suddenly. "You can go home and ask them!"
They noticed suddenly that the faint sound of piano had halted suddenly.
"Miyabi!" Someone called.
"I'll be right there, Nii-san!" Miyabi called back, and the piano resumed.
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"And that's what happened." Miyabi finished.
"Ah…" Kazuki nodded. "I understand now…"
"Hey, does anyone hear the piano?" The blond one asked sleepily.
"Anastasia's 'At the Beginning', piano-version." Miyabi and Kazuki said in unison. They glanced at each other and began to laugh.
"I think Nii-san's showing off for Hino-san." Miyabi laughed.
A flicker of pain flashed across Kazuki's face. "Oh, yeah."
Miyabi's heart ached. "You guys can come in and make yourselves comfortable, okay?"
They all went in.
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Seven years earlier…
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"Bye Kazuki-kun!" Miyabi waved, turning to go back inside.
"W-Wait!" Kazuki unconsciously gripped the sleeve of her kimono. "I…uh…"
"Kazuki-kun?" Miyabi asked in confusion.
"Y-You look pretty in that kimono!" Kazuki blurted for lack of something better to say.
Miyabi flushed with pleasure. "A-Arigato, Kazuki-kun."
Kazuki let go of the sleeve, and Miyabi started to walk back to the estates.
Suddenly, Miyabi turned and ran back to Kazuki. She stood on tiptoe and kissed Kazuki on the cheek shyly. "Goodbye, Kazuki-kun!"
Kazuki stared after her in slight shock. He whispered faintly. "Bye."
"And Life is a road and I want to keep going
Love is a river; I want to keep flowing
Life is a road now and forever
A Wonderful journey
I'll be there when the world stops turning
I'll be there when the storm is through
In the end I wanna be standing
At the beginning with you…"
He heard Miyabi singing, and somehow, the song matched the tune the piano was playing.
The final notes of the piano faded as Miyabi closed the gate behind her.
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(1) The song is from Anastasia, and it's entitled "At the Beginning". I don't own this. :D
I decided to write some Miyuki fluff after my Hinoki fluffs. The ending part is the part that she didn't tell Kazuki. Poor Kazuki's so gullible…
LOL, does this count as humor? Because I'm just calling this a romance fic… ;D
I heard this song on youtube that was the piano version of At the Beginning. It's really good, I advise you to listen to it.
~Alyssu