The Forgotten Zodiac (Fruits Basket Fan-Fiction)

The Forgotten Zodiac: Chapter 2

So this is their school, Lyra sighed, she was getting really sick of the constant pounding of her heart against her chest. We're family... why am I so nervous? She shook her head, a few snow white strands of hair finding their way down from her ponytail and into her face.

"Pthhh," Her desperate attempts to blow the hair out of her face failed, forcing her to put down her backpack and move it with her hand. She decided readjusting her ponytail would be the best solution, pulling her knee-length hair out of its ribbon and letting it fall around her.

"Agh, watch it!" A voice beside her shocked her out of her self-induced daze, the sound of her pack popping open beside her and her belongings scattering all over the sidewalk.

"R-really? How hard is it to avoid the one pack on the ground, nimrod?" Lyra snapped, pulling her hair up into a sloppy bun and turning to face the voice.

"It's a backpack; it shouldn't be on the ground to begin with!" He shouted, glancing down at his watch angrily, "I really don't have time for this, and if you go to this school too, you don't either." With that, he simply walked past her, stepping on anything from her pack that was in his way.

"Hmph," Lyra watched him walk away, his bright orange hair sticking out like a sore thumb among the regular black and brown haired students. I'm one to talk... she sighed, seeing another strand of white hair slide its way back into her face.

"Oh my, did he do that?" Another voice asked from behind her. Just what I needed, a scene with one idiot and a white knight...

"Yes, he did," Lyra snapped. Her already thin patience with this school running even thinner, the curt tone of her voice causing the man to chuckle. "Something funny?" She snapped, turning her head to face him.

"No, nothing is funny," he smiled. The clouds seemed to part just to brighten his smile with the sun itself, "perhaps that stupid cat needs to be taught how to act to a lady."

"Yeah, he really... cat?" Lyra inquired, returning her attention to her scattered belongings and sighing. "I think dog describes him better," the man let out a graceful laugh, placing his hand in front of his mouth as he did.

"Would you like a hand?" He asked, preparing to pick up her bright green comb, the dirt lodged deep in the bristles.

"That would be great, thanks," he bent down, picking up the comb and placing it in her pack. The bristles scraped against the leather siding loudly, "I'm Lyra." She announced, though she quickly realized that he had not even asked for her name, "err, I'm sorry I-"

"My name is Yuki; it's a pleasure to meet you, Lyra," Yuki interrupted. He set his cloud-parting smile into play once more.

"Same," Lyra replied, mentally cringing for such an awful response. "Thank you for helping," she stuffed the last piece of paper in her pack, seeing Yuki offer his hand to help her up.

"We're late," he looked up towards the school bell as it began ringing, signaling that the first class had already begun.

 -

Lyra spent her time in class being stared at, the whole 'white hair' thing not mulling over well with the other students. Her one saving grace was Yuki, the boy that had helped her pick up her scattered belongings earlier that day.

"How are you holding up, Lyra?" He stood a fair distance away from her with a lunch pail in his hand, the distance just now registering.

"Fine, I guess. I'm still angry at that dog, though," she sighed. Her hand traveled toward her pack, withdrawing a metal lunch box with a large dent in it, "my Mom gave me this..."

"He will pay for it, I assure you," Yuki smiled, stepping to the side and waving his arm towards the door. "Would you like to eat lunch with us?"

"Us?" Lyra rubbed at her eyes. She figured that the dumb dog would be there, but was unsure if anyone else would be joining them. "Why not?" She muttered quietly.

"Wonderful," he replied. The soft, friendly tone in his voice giving way to one that made her skin crawl. Despite the sudden change, she followed him through the halls, ignoring the curious stares of boys and angry stares of girls while they walked.

"Jeesh, why can't they just not stare..." The rhetorical question seemed to put Yuki back into a good mood, a soft chuckle coming from just ahead of Lyra.

"It's human nature," Yuki pushed the metal door open, the sunlight blaring up against the two bodies pushing their way through.

"The roof...?" Lyra squeezed her eyes shut, oh god is he going to push me off? What did I do? Yuki cleared his throat, watching in amusement as Lyra opened one eye and peered through at him.

"It's quiet up here," he smiled. "We could both use that right now."

"Ah," Lyra fought the blush creeping across her face. Thinking someone she had just met would throw her off a roof for no reason may have been a little dramatic.