Yuuko smiled to herself and folded the paper away again, storing it away in a special box in her storeroom, locking and concealing it again. When Watanuki was strong enough to see this box then she knew it would be time for… well, some things were better to not even think…
Hearing the front door open and close she brightened up, Watanuki was here! "Hey Yuuko!" He called threw the house as he looked for his employer pausing at the porch to remove his shoes, she smiled again and left the storeroom with its piles of dust and objects.
"There you are," cussed the young boy as she moved into the room and over to her usual seat, he chatted away, to and at her while he began to tidy up around her. "You know, I guess I should be grateful that you've not started drinking yet, but then again, its only midday, if I hadn't had to help that jerk clean up his temple grounds as a favour then I would have been here earlier-"
"You know you really shouldn't hate Doumeki so much," she said dryly as she repacked her pipe and lit it, pulling on it leisurely, blowing the smoke in Watanuki' direction. She knew it annoyed him.
"Yeah well, you don't see him nearly as much as I have to!" He snapped, then continued to grumble as he left the room to move into the kitchen. Yuuko knew it was summer holidays, she hated this time of year for the heat, and she also knew that Watanuki had no real reason to see Doumeki if he didn't want to. It was nice to know that through all the changes, he would in some ways stay the same; going round to help Doumeki with his chores was very much a Watanuki trait… just like complaining about it loudly while doing it was a Watanuki trait.
Rolling on to her back and blowing smoke up at the ceiling she held in the little giggle that wanted to break out, she knew it was wrong but she loved to know everything about the boy, and it had only taken a brief peek to know that he was hating Doumeki less and less, that he was trying to find reasons to be annoyed with him but coming up short with each attempt. Closing her eyes as she drew on the pipe again she could hear the boy banging pots and pans in the kitchen, it was quiet from here but the fact she could hear his 'muttering' meant that it was really starting to bother him.
Chuckling and rolling back onto her side she relaxed and waited for dinner, "Maru, Moro," she said and the two girls opened the doors to the room, "yes Mistress?" The asked in there same high pitched tones, matching smiles on there faces. "It will be happening tonight I think, you two will need to be asleep before it happens."
Two pairs of small arms encircled her and she looked down to see the girls hugging her, one front one back, "its okay Mistress," said Maru warmly.
"We understand," chimed in Moro after her.
Yuuko smiled and reached to touch them both, sharing a quiet moment.
"Food is ready!" Called Watanuki as he set it on the table. The sound of a door opening and the pattering of small feet told him that Maru and Moro had come in even before they started to dance and sing around the table. "Food is done! Food is done!"
"Yeah, yeah, were' Yuuko?" He grumbled, but turning to look at the girls with a smile.
"In the storeroom! In the storeroom!" They chorused together.
"What's she doing in there? Her food in ready." He grumbled and left it on the table to go look for his mysterious employer. "Yuuko," he called, "if you leave your food, it'll get cold."
Yuuko was standing facing one of the many shelves seeming to ignore him as he moved closer, "yeah, I've been meaning to ask, you wanted more food than usual, and some really old dishes, I had to do some research just to find the recipe for-" He stopped talking as he drew level with her and saw the little box for the first time.
"Y… Yuuko…" he breathed, "what is that?"
Turning her gaze to him at last, she smiled sadly, "its nothing Watanuki. Nothing you need to know about right now," she said and put the box back on the shelf before sweeping past him in one smooth movement, leaving the boy gaping at thin air.
"What was that all about?" He muttered turning to follow her but pausing for a moment to look over his shoulder at the small, simply decorated box. It held no aura but his growing senses told him there was something magical about the box but he still had no idea what.
Moving into the dining room he smiled to see Yuuko sitting at the table but not eating yet, "Watanuki, before I start eating I have two requests." She said sternly, her hands folded in her lap with material of her long beautiful dress in folds around her; with the light of the sun, already beginning to set and slant threw the leaves of the cherry trees, she looked a picture of eloquent and refined beauty.
"Err, sure Yuuko." Replied the young boy, unsure about her current mood as he stood to her side. "What would you like?"
There was a moment when she seemed to not hear him before she turned and smiled at him warmly, "I would like my best bottle of Sake, the one I've been saving for a while now, you know…" She giggled as he turned and muttered under his breath about how he should have known while he stamped away. It was as he was gone that Mokona sleepily waddled into the room, yawning and rubbing his eyes, completely oblivious until he caught sight of Yuuko and the beautiful dress she was wearing. Silence bloomed between them for a few moments and instead of a sarcastic comment or joke, he nodded to her and said simply, "I'll watch over Maru and Moro." Before turning to leave.
Yuuko looked down at the food on the table before her, still piping hot and smelling wonderful, the list of people who really knew her heart was short, to say the least Mokona and her fortune teller were amongst there number. What everyone else knew was what they were allowed to know, although Watanuki was becoming more… perceptive… "Do you have a wish I can grant?"
The cursing boy returned , covered in a thin layer of dust, "what the hell is going on with your storeroom? I swear it wasn't that dusty last time I was in there!"
"Thank you Watanuki," she said gravely, taking the bottle and placing to the side of the table on a small stand with some ceremony.
"I-is something going to happen Yuuko?" Asked Watanuki hesitantly moving to see her face as she looked down at the table still.
Then, like a bolt of icy lightening down his spine, Watanuki tensed up and looked around him quickly without moving his head, eyes rolling in his sockets like trapped animals. He could feel… things… something about the air around him… it felt like it was being charged up with… energies…
"The second request, is relax Kimihiro or else it will hurt…" murmured Yuuko, lifting her head at last to look into his eyes, crimson into blue/gold.
The young boy was trying to control himself as the energies in the room began to condense and focus on his body. His muscles began to tighten and he began to panic more as his lungs cramped, restricting his breath! The energies were crawling up his body like the worst of spirits, but even as he found he could no longer move his eyes, part of his mind pointed out that, unlike other negative powers he had encountered in his life, this one, was warm. It was comforting and smelling of sun warmed grasses, like being smothered in soft blankets.
"Shh," whispered Yuuko soothingly as the power finally enveloped him.
Silence.
It grew. Broken only by the gentle summer breeze threw the trees in her garden, causing a shower of pink petals to fall in the silence; the only movement as Yuuko counted her heart beats, not even breathing, waiting.
Closing her eyes, starting to bite her lip as her cool demeanour wobbled a hand gently took her chin and lifted her face up. "Now now," crooned a smooth voice in her ears. A voice she had not heard in… oh, too many eons. "The Witch of Dimensions doesn't cry, especially in front of her rival."
Opening her eyes at last she saw that it was Watanuki still, but… different… he carried himself with power and confidence, which was more than the Watanuki she knew could manage even at his most serious of moments.
He pulled back and stretched, examining his body as he moved over the empty seat, "as strange as it feels to wear a mortal form once more, it feel even stranger to not have my long ponytail." One hand rubbing the back of his neck, fingers in the hair as he smiled.
Yuuko laughed and relaxed at last, it had worked, sitting before her chatting as if nothing had not changed and the last few centuries hadn't just passed was Clow Reed; wearing the body of his descendent, cover name Kimihiro Watanuki.
"Now, lets enjoy this amazing evening, we have each other, good food and of course, wonderful drink…" he paused to hug the fine and expensive bottle of alcohol, "and then you can update me on the things that have been happening over a pipe of your best stuff…"
Watanuki woke up with a pounding head, but before he could address this fact he had to endure a coughing fit as his mouth felt like it had been used as an ashtray. Opening his bleary eyes he realised that he was in a bed. That it was not his.
Panic filled him as he turned his head.
He had to know.
Yes.
There was Yuuko. Sleeping next to him, on top of the sheets he noted, even as he realised he was fully dressed still and worried about the large hole in his memory from last night.
He wandered about waking her up to ask, but… she had been so worried the last few days with one thing and another, even if she didn't know he'd noticed. Let her sleep.
Laying down again he rolled on to his side and snuggled close to her, enjoying the contact as she fidgeted and pulled him close with a sleepy sigh.
He drifted asleep quickly, his hung-over mind falling willingly into healing sleep.
Yuuko cracked an eye open sleepily and smiled, planting a kiss on top of his head before she too fell asleep.
