Well, it took a while, but my muse finally gave me an idea for a new Yami no Matsuei fic. ^_^
Summary: Watari completes a special project.
Legal disclaimer: Yami no Matsuei and its characters are property of Matsushita-sensei and whoever else owns them. However, this story is mine. It was not written for profit, so please don't sue.
The Garden in the Clouds
by Literary Eagle
Cherry blossoms drifted past the laboratory window, and Watari smiled appreciatively at the familiar sight. The delicate airborne petals were always there for him: they were fragrant confetti to accompany his moments of great joy, and soothingly gentle snowflakes during times of seriousness. They were precious gifts sent along the breeze, like messages from a secret friend.
Watari had chosen them to be the next component in his special project. He had collected some of the soft floral treasures and placed them in a neat pile on his desk, then singled out one of the petals and tenderly wrote a name on it with a very fine paintbrush. When he was satisfied, he selected another petal and marked it with his brush again, only this time the dainty black strokes formed a different name. Watari continued in this fashion, painting a name onto each petal. He worked slowly and with great care, making sure that he wrote flawlessly.
Once he was done and the paint had dried, Watari took out a bottle of adhesive and glued all the petals onto a clean sheet of paper. The eccentric scientist was notorious for his lack of artistic ability, but even still the shape in which he had pasted them formed a vaguely recognizable image: a pair of wings attached to a small crescent-shaped body. For the sake of clarity, Watari took up his paintbrush again and wrote the word "dove" below his creation. Yes, it was a dove, with feathers made out of flower petals, and each "feather" bearing a unique name.
Not wanting the precious petals to shrivel, the blond Shinigami sprayed his handiwork with a potion that would keep them preserved. The dove was ready at last. Cradling the flowery bird in his hands, Watari rose from his seat and walked to the far end of his lab, approaching a door marked "Hazardous Chemical Storage! Please Keep Out". He suppressed a smile and opened the door. The warning sign was merely a ruse, to make sure that visitors would not accidentally disturb his secret project.
In this room was a garden.
The floor was covered by a thick green carpet to represent grass, but was otherwise bare, because the main part of the garden was on the walls of the chamber. Most prominent were the flowers, which were actually seashells that had been glued into figures slightly resembling daisies and tulips. There were a few roses as well, but due to Watari's weak art skills they more closely resembled red pinwheels.
Next were the butterflies, rather crookedly carved from pieces of driftwood. And just so those insects wouldn't get lonely, there were also fireflies flitting amongst them, although in truth they were merely yellow beads that had been pasted haphazardly all over the room. Many birds and fish also populated the place, made from an odd variety of materials. Finally, several colored streamers were stretched across the ceiling in imitation of a rainbow, although orange was missing and the purple looked a lot more like pink.
It wasn't a garden in the traditional sense, and at first glance it certainly wasn't exceptionally good-looking either. But there was a reason why Watari had painstakingly added to it during his years as a Shinigami, and it was the detail that set this garden apart from all others: the names. They were everywhere... written on all the shells, carved into every sliver of driftwood, even meticulously painted onto each tiny bead. Every single flower and creature was covered with them. Even the banners that formed the rainbow were actually long lists of names.
The only area that was bereft of names was the carpet, because Watari did not like the idea of accidentally stepping on any. This procession of words deserved the utmost respect. After all, these names represented human beings who had lived and worked, laughed and cried, hoped and dreamed. Watari had met every single one of them, because of his job.
It had been his duty to take their souls away.
Now, in his trembling hands, was the newest addition for this garden of names. Gazing solemnly around the room, the Shinigami looked for an ideal spot where he could put the dove. He searched and his eyes came to rest upon certain names at random, causing his memory to conjure up images of the people's faces, their interests, their tears... and sometimes, just sometimes, their smiles too.
Watari was startled to find that the walls all seemed to be completely full. He frowned worriedly. Had he miscalculated? He had been so sure that there was still room for at least one more... Ah, there! Right above the peacock made of weeping willow branches, several paper fish flew in a formation that conveniently left room for a newcomer. Yes, fish... for Watari had long ago decided that this should be a magical garden, where aquatic animals could fly, and where doves could be as rosy as the cherry blossoms.
A little more adhesive, and the dove was firmly in place. The garden was finished. After years of work and planning, the big day had arrived. Watari swallowed with nervous anticipation. Perhaps now, he would finally be able to give a fitting tribute to those who had died. Not this disorganized mock garden that his poor artistic talent had wrought, but what it was about to become... With a wish in his heart, Watari tapped into his inner power, then unleashed it upon the whole room.
Nothing seemed to happen at first, but eventually the swan made from birch bark began to flex its wings. Then several of the fish wriggled experimentally. The velvet hummingbird twitched, the butterflies fluttered, the flowers swayed to an imaginary breeze, and the rainbow above started to glow. Soon after, the entire garden was alive and dancing, as all the flowers and creatures detached themselves from the walls and sailed through the air.
Watari's eyes misted with joy, for the results were better than he had hoped. Surely, he thought, it could not possibly be any more beautiful. However, he was proven wrong when the garden began to sing. First were the birds with their lovely flutelike sounds, then the butterflies and fireflies chiming like glass bells. Not to be outdone, the fish joined in with surprisingly rich voices, the flowers let out a magnificent fanfare like the trumpets of angels, and the rainbow thrummed as if it were a giant harp.
Not only was the music glorious, but so were the lyrics: everything in the garden sang out the people's names that had been painted onto them. The entire performance was a soulful memorial to the dead and a celebration of new life all at the same time. And that new life needed to be set free. With a bittersweet smile, Watari pressed a button by the doorway, and watched as a panel in the ceiling slid aside to reveal the bright sky.
In a crescendo of sound and color, the flowers, animals, and rainbow burst out through the opening, rising into the clouds like prayers. The last one to leave was the little cherry blossom dove, and Watari whispered a fond farewell as it departed. Then the Shinigami was alone, with nothing but the green carpet to serve as a reminder.
He stayed there for a while, staring up at the clouds where his garden had vanished from sight, until a sudden gust of wind startled him by blowing several cherry blossoms into the room. Picking up the tiny flowers, he turned around and stepped back into the lab, where he found his loyal friend 003 waiting for him. Petting the small owl on the head, Watari sat down at his desk and began sketching ideas for his next garden.
Author's notes: I thought it would be interesting to explore a somewhat more serious side of Watari. Besides, the world needs more Watari fics. Heh. Special thanks go to Firebird for prereading, and to Anabella for the wonderful illustrations she drew for some of my previous Yami no Matsuei fics. The illustrations are on my website (you can find the address to the site in my author profile).
Anyway, thanks for reading, and feedback would be greatly appreciated!
-Literary Eagle, 2003