AN: Did some revisions on this chapter, nothing major.
Had this structured according to the Japanese school systems where the school year starts in April (and ends in March) and consists of three terms which are separated by short breaks in spring and winter with a one month long summer break.
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CHAPTER 1: Away From Home
"Ah," she gasped, "Hatori-san. Not there." Tohru's body jerked as she twisted the sheets in her hands.
"Relax," Hatori said soothingly, trying to calm her into releasing the tension from her tightened muscles. This wasn't going to work unless he could keep her body from fighting him, from resisting.
"I'm sorry," Tohru said, tears brimming in her eyes, feeling as if she were disappointing him somehow.
"It's alright," came Hatori's gentle reply. "I know it hurts but it will only be for a little while. I promise that the pain will go away and you'll feel much better." He gently massaged her thigh to get her used to the contact. "Please, just trust me."
"Of course I do," Tohru said reassuringly, anxious not to offend, as she willed herself to relax. It wasn't easy as she wasn't used to having someone else's hands placed in such intimate contact with her body. She was already sweating and the embarrassment she felt over being so inept in this situation wasn't helping her soaring nervousness.
Hatori sighed inwardly when he saw how she was biting her lip and the tears threatening to overflow. At this rate, it would be nightfall before he was able to rid her of the cramp in her leg that she'd developed from trying to do too much, too soon. The long hours of inactivity spent cooped up in the car ride over had not been conducive to immediately diving into the process of airing out the house and preparing it for occupation. It had been tantamount to doing rigorous exercise like jogging without first warming up properly. Part of this was his fault for not realizing how much effort it would take and letting her shoo him away, saying it was her task to housekeep and that he should relax from the stress of driving. He should have ignored her urging and helped her despite any protests she might have made. He cursed silently to himself when he remembered how he'd been maneuvered into this situation in the first place.
Last week, just as he had been about to close up his office in the Souma complex for the night, he'd gotten a phone call from Shigure telling him to come over to take a look at an injury that Tohru had received while working in the kitchen. Upon arriving at the Shigure's house, Hatori had been surprised when he'd found the living room in shambles. Pieces of debris littered the floor as the living room table and the doors were all broken, including the one leading into the kitchen. He didn't need to ask to know that Kyou and Yuki had undoubtedly been fighting and that the violent bickering had something to do with whatever accident Tohru had had while making dinner. But what he didn't understand was what could have caused such a destructive fight to break out in the first place. He had thought that the interaction between the two had been getting better until this had happened.
"You two," he'd said, addressing Kyou and Yuki who were looking shamefaced and apologetic at his stern tone while he finished applying ointment to the small burn on Tohru's arm and bandaged it for protection. "Tell me what happened." He shook his head in exasperation when the two teens began talking at once, then began arguing because of it as they tried to make his version of the events heard over the other's. "Stop," he said commandingly, causing the arguing pair to immediately fall silent while a grinning Shigure and wide-eyed Tohru looked on. He looked to Yuki because he was the one who could usually relate things with the least amount of fuss. "You tell me what happened."
Yuki shot a brief triumphant glance at Kyou, who was gnashing his teeth in anger, before turning to Hatori. "Well, you know that spring break begins for us next week, right?"
Hatori nodded. "Momiji and Hatsuharu said something about that."
Yuki sighed. "It seems all of us have plans to be out of town for that time period. I have to attend a special camp set up for the student council members to make final preparations for the coming school term." He shot a withering glare at Kyou. "And the stupid cat has plans for a mountain getaway with Kagura."
"Who does?!" Kyou yelled, face red. "She invited herself! I'm just going there for training with Shishio. Don't you be making stuff up, you damn mouse!"
"As if more training will do any good, stupid cat!"
"Stop it!" Hatori's command sliced through the air. He waited until they subsided. "So I assume this about leaving Honda-kun here?" At their nods, he continued, "But Shigure will be here so-"
Shigure was shaking his head. "I'll be away at a writing conference that Mit-chan set up. Since I skipped the others, seems she's made it so I have to attend this one to make up for it."
"And the stupid dog didn't tell us about it until today." Kyou glared at the writer.
Yuki, also shooting an angry glance at Shigure, said, "Honda-san will be left alone in the house."
"Ah! Please don't worry about me!" Tohru exclaimed as she tried to reassure them but ended up babbling on, the words rushing together. "Everyone has already been put through enough trouble because of me even though I tried not to be a bother. But it's my fault that Kyou-kun and Yuki-kun worried and fought, and now the house is a mess even though it's my responsibility as housekeeper to look after it. I even caused problems for Hatori-san because I was clumsy and got hurt and Shigure-san called to come here to look after me." A shamefaced expression crossed her face.
"That's not true, Honda-san!" Yuki exclaimed, no doubt horrified that she was placing all the burden of the situation on herself.
"Hey!" shouted Kyou with similar sentiments. "Stop thinking such stupid stuff! It's not like that at all!"
"Now, now, everyone calm down," Shigure broke in. He gave Tohru a reassuring smile. "Tohru-kun is not to blame in any of this."
"Of course not," Hatori was quick to say.
"That's right," said Yuki.
"Yeah," Kyou echoed.
"See?" Shigure continued. "None of us thinks Tohru-kun is at fault."
She gave a trembling little smile in response, the sight causing all the males in the room to relax as it signaled her acceptance of their support that she wasn't to blame. But it still didn't solve the reason for all the chaos in the first place.
Stroking his chin, Shigure mused, "We still have to decide what to do about leaving Tohru-kun by herself."
"Oh! I'll be perfectly fine by myself," she asserted, visibly anxious not to cause any more worries. Then she froze, eyes going wide before she shot to her feet and rushed for the kitchen crying, "Oh, no! I forgot to turn off the stove when Hatori-san came!" The faint smell of burnt food wafted through the air.
After a moment of silence, Yuki turned to Hatori. "You see why we're worried?"
Hatori sighed. He could see all too clearly. "It's the reason for all of this, isn't it?" He gestured to the surrounding mess as Yuki and Kyou turned red in embarrassment.
Shigure chuckled. "They were so upset at the thought of leaving our little flower alone that they couldn't contain their emotions." He slid the two boys a sly glance. "Like anxious mothers."
"Shigure!" Kyou and Yuki cried, obviously wishing that he'd shut up.
But Shigure continued on, "They got so violent and Yuki-kun kicked Kyou-kun over there." He waved a hand to the broken shambles that had once been the sliding door connecting the living room and kitchen. "And he crashed through it and landed next to Tohru-kun. The poor thing was so startled, she dropped the ladle she'd been stirring with and got splashed when it fell into the soup she'd been making." He sighed, shaking his head in disappointment. "Because these two were so reckless, our delicate little flower was hurt and Ha-san had to be called."
"Shigure, that's enough," Hatori said as he took in the guilt stricken features of the boys.
"Ha-san's so mean." Shigure pouted. "I was only explaining what happened."
"That innocent act doesn't suit you," Hatori said, ignoring the dog, as he busied himself with returning the supplies he'd used on Tohru's arms to his black bag.
"I'm so hurt!" Shigure cried, clutching at his heart.
"Shigure," Yuki said in exasperation while Kyou glared in disgust.
"I'm sorry for taking so long!" Tohru's voice broke in as she returned. "Dinner is ready but," she looked down at the broken remains of their table, "where should I put it?"
"Don't worry, Tohru-kun," Shigure replied. "We can use the table in my study."
"Then I'll excuse myself." Hatori stood up.
"Eh?!" exclaimed Tohru. "Hatori-san's not staying for dinner?"
"That's right! Ha-san should stay!" Shigure spoke up. "After all, Ha-san must have been leaving his office when I called. You still haven't eaten dinner yet, right?"
That was true but Hatori protested, "I don't want to bother you."
"Hatori-san isn't a bother!" Tohru refuted the doctor's statement. "I've been helped many times and Hatori-san never accepts any payment." She looked up at him, pleading in her gaze. "Please, stay so I can at least do a little something in return."
Staring down into those wide, eager eyes, Hatori didn't have the type of cold heart it took to refuse such a request, even though he tried. But in the end, he gave his consent with a brief nod and watched as such a trivial action made that feminine face light up with happy pleasure. It had been a long time, he thought, since anyone had seemed to care so much about what he did.
"I see!" Shigure's voice had them all staring at him. Tilting his head, he smiled at Hatori. "We can leave Tohru-kun with Ha-san!"
"Eh?!" came stunned cries from everyone else in the room.
Shigure's head bobbed up and down, pleased at his solution. "That's right! Ha-san can take good care of our little flower."
"Shigure," replied Hatori, shaking his head. "That's impossible. I'll be out of town as well."
"Really?" said Shigure in surprise. "Where are you going?"
"To the villa."
Shigure raised an eyebrow. "Which one? The Soumas have several."
"The one we went to last time."
"Ah!" exclaimed Shigure. "When Aya showed up!" Then he looked puzzled. "But why is Ha-san going back there?"
Hatori sighed. "Apparently, I left some medical files up there that I took from the office with me to look over. Since things have been slow for me lately at the office, I thought I'd take the time off to head back up there and search for them before it starts getting busier."
"Oh? How odd for the usually responsible Ha-san to do something like that!"
Hatori gave Shigure a hard stare. "It's because it was so noisy."
Shigure gasped. "Noisy?" He shot a chiding glance at Yuki and Kyou. "You two should be more respectful of other people."
Kyou and Yuki turned to the dog with dark looks written on their faces. "Shigure," said Yuki. "Do you really think he's talking about us?"
"Well, of course. Who else would it be?" Shigure looked horrified. "Surely you don't mean to imply that it's Tohru-kun?!"
"Eh?! Me?!" cried Tohru in distress.
"Stop it! He means you, you stupid dog!" Kyou burst out angrily.
"Don't try to place your faults on Honda-san, Shigure," said Yuki in irritation.
Shigure smiled and shrugged in unconcern at the little ruckus he'd caused. "A joke, a joke, Tohru-kun," he said jovially. "Don't worry about it." Then he turned to Hatori. "Ha-san, can't you take Tohru-kun with you to the villa, too?"
"I can't do that!" exclaimed Tohru. "It would be too much trouble for Hatori-san. And someone should look after the house. Also, my part-time job-"
"Tohru-kun, Tohru-kun," Shigure broke into her protests. "The house will be fine on its own. And your job is with one of the Souma companies, isn't it? Then it's easy to rearrange. As for Ha-san, it won't be any trouble at all. No one goes up there this early in the year so Tohru-kun can help with the cleaning and cooking since Ha-san will be kept busy looking for his files. So you see, Tohru-kun can be of more help there than staying here." He gave Tohru his best convincing smile.
"It's a good idea," said Yuki. "If Honda-san is with Hatori, then the rest of us won't worry while we're gone."
"That's right," agreed Kyou.
Hatori didn't appreciate how they were all deciding things for him and tried to interject his own opinions on the faults of this plan. "Now, wait a minute-"
"I really won't be a bother to Hatori-san?" Tohru broke in, giving him that hopeful puppy dog expression of hers. "I'd like to repay Hatori-san somehow for taking care of me all the time. Please let me know if there's anything I can do in return."
Once again, with that soulful gaze of hers trained upon him, Hatori couldn't bring himself to refuse. And so, under the several pairs of interested eyes, Hatori had consented, agreeing to pick her up a week later when school had ended and spring break had begun. When he had come to collect her, Yuki and Kyou had already left earlier so only Shigure was there to see them off before he departed for his writing conference. Remembering back, Hatori grew irritated again as he recalled Shigure's last parting words.
"Ha-san, don't do anything I wouldn't do." The sing-songing voice had been accompanied by a wink.
As if he would.
But for some reason, those words had continued to annoy him so much that he was afraid that he hadn't been a very good companion to the passenger with him on the long car ride to the villa. The uncomfortable silence in the vehicle had stretched on and on until Tohru had fallen into a deep slumber. It had been a scary moment for him when he had turned onto a roughly paved road, the shaking of the car as it had gone over the bumpy path causing the girl to slide sideways on the seat towards him. With terrifying images of what could happen if he transformed while the female beside him remained unawares in the moving car, Hatori had divided his attention between traversing the road and carefully using one hand to slide her over across the seat until she was resting against the opposite door. Only then had he succumbed to relief and once again focused his full attention on reaching their destination with his passenger none the wiser about anything that had occurred since she slipped off into sleep.
Which led to his current situation as he tried to help the one who had come along on his file finding mission in order to help him. Another muffled feminine groan had him stifling a sigh as he looked into the distressed features of the figure before him. The way her fingers held tight onto the material of the sheet which covered and protected the couch she was sitting on and the trembling of her lower lip as she kept as quiet as she could about the pain she was experiencing, all of it were little things that caused that indefinable something within him to soften as he tried to be as gentle as he could while he continued massaging.
"Do you feel better now?" he asked quietly as he noted that the muscles beneath his hands were much less bunched than they had been a while ago.
Tohru nodded. "I'm sorry for causing Hatori-san so much trouble."
"There's no need to apologize. After all, you've already done most of the work cleaning up the house without any of my help." He gave he area he'd finished working with a gentle pat. "You should stay here and rest for a bit while I'll go make some tea for us."
"I can't do that!" Tohru vigorously shook her head. "I came here so Hatori-san wouldn't have to worry about doing such things. It's not right that Hatori-san has to serve me after already helping me!"
"Honda-kun," he said, "I was going to make tea for myself in any case. It's no effort to make some for one more person. And it's the doctor's order for you to rest for now."
"But-"
"You have to take proper care of your body. You don't want to make it worse do you?" When she shook her head he continued, "Then please stay here and rest for a little while. You'll be able to finish cleaning the house later. Okay?"
At her nod, Hatori smiled and left the room, heading for the kitchen as he left a befuddled Tohru staring after him.
Had this structured according to the Japanese school systems where the school year starts in April (and ends in March) and consists of three terms which are separated by short breaks in spring and winter with a one month long summer break.
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CHAPTER 1: Away From Home
"Ah," she gasped, "Hatori-san. Not there." Tohru's body jerked as she twisted the sheets in her hands.
"Relax," Hatori said soothingly, trying to calm her into releasing the tension from her tightened muscles. This wasn't going to work unless he could keep her body from fighting him, from resisting.
"I'm sorry," Tohru said, tears brimming in her eyes, feeling as if she were disappointing him somehow.
"It's alright," came Hatori's gentle reply. "I know it hurts but it will only be for a little while. I promise that the pain will go away and you'll feel much better." He gently massaged her thigh to get her used to the contact. "Please, just trust me."
"Of course I do," Tohru said reassuringly, anxious not to offend, as she willed herself to relax. It wasn't easy as she wasn't used to having someone else's hands placed in such intimate contact with her body. She was already sweating and the embarrassment she felt over being so inept in this situation wasn't helping her soaring nervousness.
Hatori sighed inwardly when he saw how she was biting her lip and the tears threatening to overflow. At this rate, it would be nightfall before he was able to rid her of the cramp in her leg that she'd developed from trying to do too much, too soon. The long hours of inactivity spent cooped up in the car ride over had not been conducive to immediately diving into the process of airing out the house and preparing it for occupation. It had been tantamount to doing rigorous exercise like jogging without first warming up properly. Part of this was his fault for not realizing how much effort it would take and letting her shoo him away, saying it was her task to housekeep and that he should relax from the stress of driving. He should have ignored her urging and helped her despite any protests she might have made. He cursed silently to himself when he remembered how he'd been maneuvered into this situation in the first place.
Last week, just as he had been about to close up his office in the Souma complex for the night, he'd gotten a phone call from Shigure telling him to come over to take a look at an injury that Tohru had received while working in the kitchen. Upon arriving at the Shigure's house, Hatori had been surprised when he'd found the living room in shambles. Pieces of debris littered the floor as the living room table and the doors were all broken, including the one leading into the kitchen. He didn't need to ask to know that Kyou and Yuki had undoubtedly been fighting and that the violent bickering had something to do with whatever accident Tohru had had while making dinner. But what he didn't understand was what could have caused such a destructive fight to break out in the first place. He had thought that the interaction between the two had been getting better until this had happened.
"You two," he'd said, addressing Kyou and Yuki who were looking shamefaced and apologetic at his stern tone while he finished applying ointment to the small burn on Tohru's arm and bandaged it for protection. "Tell me what happened." He shook his head in exasperation when the two teens began talking at once, then began arguing because of it as they tried to make his version of the events heard over the other's. "Stop," he said commandingly, causing the arguing pair to immediately fall silent while a grinning Shigure and wide-eyed Tohru looked on. He looked to Yuki because he was the one who could usually relate things with the least amount of fuss. "You tell me what happened."
Yuki shot a brief triumphant glance at Kyou, who was gnashing his teeth in anger, before turning to Hatori. "Well, you know that spring break begins for us next week, right?"
Hatori nodded. "Momiji and Hatsuharu said something about that."
Yuki sighed. "It seems all of us have plans to be out of town for that time period. I have to attend a special camp set up for the student council members to make final preparations for the coming school term." He shot a withering glare at Kyou. "And the stupid cat has plans for a mountain getaway with Kagura."
"Who does?!" Kyou yelled, face red. "She invited herself! I'm just going there for training with Shishio. Don't you be making stuff up, you damn mouse!"
"As if more training will do any good, stupid cat!"
"Stop it!" Hatori's command sliced through the air. He waited until they subsided. "So I assume this about leaving Honda-kun here?" At their nods, he continued, "But Shigure will be here so-"
Shigure was shaking his head. "I'll be away at a writing conference that Mit-chan set up. Since I skipped the others, seems she's made it so I have to attend this one to make up for it."
"And the stupid dog didn't tell us about it until today." Kyou glared at the writer.
Yuki, also shooting an angry glance at Shigure, said, "Honda-san will be left alone in the house."
"Ah! Please don't worry about me!" Tohru exclaimed as she tried to reassure them but ended up babbling on, the words rushing together. "Everyone has already been put through enough trouble because of me even though I tried not to be a bother. But it's my fault that Kyou-kun and Yuki-kun worried and fought, and now the house is a mess even though it's my responsibility as housekeeper to look after it. I even caused problems for Hatori-san because I was clumsy and got hurt and Shigure-san called to come here to look after me." A shamefaced expression crossed her face.
"That's not true, Honda-san!" Yuki exclaimed, no doubt horrified that she was placing all the burden of the situation on herself.
"Hey!" shouted Kyou with similar sentiments. "Stop thinking such stupid stuff! It's not like that at all!"
"Now, now, everyone calm down," Shigure broke in. He gave Tohru a reassuring smile. "Tohru-kun is not to blame in any of this."
"Of course not," Hatori was quick to say.
"That's right," said Yuki.
"Yeah," Kyou echoed.
"See?" Shigure continued. "None of us thinks Tohru-kun is at fault."
She gave a trembling little smile in response, the sight causing all the males in the room to relax as it signaled her acceptance of their support that she wasn't to blame. But it still didn't solve the reason for all the chaos in the first place.
Stroking his chin, Shigure mused, "We still have to decide what to do about leaving Tohru-kun by herself."
"Oh! I'll be perfectly fine by myself," she asserted, visibly anxious not to cause any more worries. Then she froze, eyes going wide before she shot to her feet and rushed for the kitchen crying, "Oh, no! I forgot to turn off the stove when Hatori-san came!" The faint smell of burnt food wafted through the air.
After a moment of silence, Yuki turned to Hatori. "You see why we're worried?"
Hatori sighed. He could see all too clearly. "It's the reason for all of this, isn't it?" He gestured to the surrounding mess as Yuki and Kyou turned red in embarrassment.
Shigure chuckled. "They were so upset at the thought of leaving our little flower alone that they couldn't contain their emotions." He slid the two boys a sly glance. "Like anxious mothers."
"Shigure!" Kyou and Yuki cried, obviously wishing that he'd shut up.
But Shigure continued on, "They got so violent and Yuki-kun kicked Kyou-kun over there." He waved a hand to the broken shambles that had once been the sliding door connecting the living room and kitchen. "And he crashed through it and landed next to Tohru-kun. The poor thing was so startled, she dropped the ladle she'd been stirring with and got splashed when it fell into the soup she'd been making." He sighed, shaking his head in disappointment. "Because these two were so reckless, our delicate little flower was hurt and Ha-san had to be called."
"Shigure, that's enough," Hatori said as he took in the guilt stricken features of the boys.
"Ha-san's so mean." Shigure pouted. "I was only explaining what happened."
"That innocent act doesn't suit you," Hatori said, ignoring the dog, as he busied himself with returning the supplies he'd used on Tohru's arms to his black bag.
"I'm so hurt!" Shigure cried, clutching at his heart.
"Shigure," Yuki said in exasperation while Kyou glared in disgust.
"I'm sorry for taking so long!" Tohru's voice broke in as she returned. "Dinner is ready but," she looked down at the broken remains of their table, "where should I put it?"
"Don't worry, Tohru-kun," Shigure replied. "We can use the table in my study."
"Then I'll excuse myself." Hatori stood up.
"Eh?!" exclaimed Tohru. "Hatori-san's not staying for dinner?"
"That's right! Ha-san should stay!" Shigure spoke up. "After all, Ha-san must have been leaving his office when I called. You still haven't eaten dinner yet, right?"
That was true but Hatori protested, "I don't want to bother you."
"Hatori-san isn't a bother!" Tohru refuted the doctor's statement. "I've been helped many times and Hatori-san never accepts any payment." She looked up at him, pleading in her gaze. "Please, stay so I can at least do a little something in return."
Staring down into those wide, eager eyes, Hatori didn't have the type of cold heart it took to refuse such a request, even though he tried. But in the end, he gave his consent with a brief nod and watched as such a trivial action made that feminine face light up with happy pleasure. It had been a long time, he thought, since anyone had seemed to care so much about what he did.
"I see!" Shigure's voice had them all staring at him. Tilting his head, he smiled at Hatori. "We can leave Tohru-kun with Ha-san!"
"Eh?!" came stunned cries from everyone else in the room.
Shigure's head bobbed up and down, pleased at his solution. "That's right! Ha-san can take good care of our little flower."
"Shigure," replied Hatori, shaking his head. "That's impossible. I'll be out of town as well."
"Really?" said Shigure in surprise. "Where are you going?"
"To the villa."
Shigure raised an eyebrow. "Which one? The Soumas have several."
"The one we went to last time."
"Ah!" exclaimed Shigure. "When Aya showed up!" Then he looked puzzled. "But why is Ha-san going back there?"
Hatori sighed. "Apparently, I left some medical files up there that I took from the office with me to look over. Since things have been slow for me lately at the office, I thought I'd take the time off to head back up there and search for them before it starts getting busier."
"Oh? How odd for the usually responsible Ha-san to do something like that!"
Hatori gave Shigure a hard stare. "It's because it was so noisy."
Shigure gasped. "Noisy?" He shot a chiding glance at Yuki and Kyou. "You two should be more respectful of other people."
Kyou and Yuki turned to the dog with dark looks written on their faces. "Shigure," said Yuki. "Do you really think he's talking about us?"
"Well, of course. Who else would it be?" Shigure looked horrified. "Surely you don't mean to imply that it's Tohru-kun?!"
"Eh?! Me?!" cried Tohru in distress.
"Stop it! He means you, you stupid dog!" Kyou burst out angrily.
"Don't try to place your faults on Honda-san, Shigure," said Yuki in irritation.
Shigure smiled and shrugged in unconcern at the little ruckus he'd caused. "A joke, a joke, Tohru-kun," he said jovially. "Don't worry about it." Then he turned to Hatori. "Ha-san, can't you take Tohru-kun with you to the villa, too?"
"I can't do that!" exclaimed Tohru. "It would be too much trouble for Hatori-san. And someone should look after the house. Also, my part-time job-"
"Tohru-kun, Tohru-kun," Shigure broke into her protests. "The house will be fine on its own. And your job is with one of the Souma companies, isn't it? Then it's easy to rearrange. As for Ha-san, it won't be any trouble at all. No one goes up there this early in the year so Tohru-kun can help with the cleaning and cooking since Ha-san will be kept busy looking for his files. So you see, Tohru-kun can be of more help there than staying here." He gave Tohru his best convincing smile.
"It's a good idea," said Yuki. "If Honda-san is with Hatori, then the rest of us won't worry while we're gone."
"That's right," agreed Kyou.
Hatori didn't appreciate how they were all deciding things for him and tried to interject his own opinions on the faults of this plan. "Now, wait a minute-"
"I really won't be a bother to Hatori-san?" Tohru broke in, giving him that hopeful puppy dog expression of hers. "I'd like to repay Hatori-san somehow for taking care of me all the time. Please let me know if there's anything I can do in return."
Once again, with that soulful gaze of hers trained upon him, Hatori couldn't bring himself to refuse. And so, under the several pairs of interested eyes, Hatori had consented, agreeing to pick her up a week later when school had ended and spring break had begun. When he had come to collect her, Yuki and Kyou had already left earlier so only Shigure was there to see them off before he departed for his writing conference. Remembering back, Hatori grew irritated again as he recalled Shigure's last parting words.
"Ha-san, don't do anything I wouldn't do." The sing-songing voice had been accompanied by a wink.
As if he would.
But for some reason, those words had continued to annoy him so much that he was afraid that he hadn't been a very good companion to the passenger with him on the long car ride to the villa. The uncomfortable silence in the vehicle had stretched on and on until Tohru had fallen into a deep slumber. It had been a scary moment for him when he had turned onto a roughly paved road, the shaking of the car as it had gone over the bumpy path causing the girl to slide sideways on the seat towards him. With terrifying images of what could happen if he transformed while the female beside him remained unawares in the moving car, Hatori had divided his attention between traversing the road and carefully using one hand to slide her over across the seat until she was resting against the opposite door. Only then had he succumbed to relief and once again focused his full attention on reaching their destination with his passenger none the wiser about anything that had occurred since she slipped off into sleep.
Which led to his current situation as he tried to help the one who had come along on his file finding mission in order to help him. Another muffled feminine groan had him stifling a sigh as he looked into the distressed features of the figure before him. The way her fingers held tight onto the material of the sheet which covered and protected the couch she was sitting on and the trembling of her lower lip as she kept as quiet as she could about the pain she was experiencing, all of it were little things that caused that indefinable something within him to soften as he tried to be as gentle as he could while he continued massaging.
"Do you feel better now?" he asked quietly as he noted that the muscles beneath his hands were much less bunched than they had been a while ago.
Tohru nodded. "I'm sorry for causing Hatori-san so much trouble."
"There's no need to apologize. After all, you've already done most of the work cleaning up the house without any of my help." He gave he area he'd finished working with a gentle pat. "You should stay here and rest for a bit while I'll go make some tea for us."
"I can't do that!" Tohru vigorously shook her head. "I came here so Hatori-san wouldn't have to worry about doing such things. It's not right that Hatori-san has to serve me after already helping me!"
"Honda-kun," he said, "I was going to make tea for myself in any case. It's no effort to make some for one more person. And it's the doctor's order for you to rest for now."
"But-"
"You have to take proper care of your body. You don't want to make it worse do you?" When she shook her head he continued, "Then please stay here and rest for a little while. You'll be able to finish cleaning the house later. Okay?"
At her nod, Hatori smiled and left the room, heading for the kitchen as he left a befuddled Tohru staring after him.