Prompt #39: Dreams
Series: TCR, xxxHolic
Characters/Pairings: Syaoran/Watanuki
Summary: Mild AU. Huge spoilers. Watanuki and Syaoran meet in their dreams, but they have met before. "Don't disappear." "What relationship do you and I have, Syaoran-kun?"
Kimihiro remembered in a faint, nearly forgotten dream the image of a young boy shouting out to him. That boy was fading, being pulled back by something that Kimihiro could not see, but the child was reaching out to him with an expression he couldn't recognize at the time. He knew it now to be one of fierce protectiveness and affection, the kind of love a kid held for a cherished friend. Kimihiro did not recognize that boy but as the child called out to him he felt his heart reach out.
"Don't disappear!"
It haunted him to this very day, that dream of a beautiful child who so fervently wished for Kimihiro's existence. When life seemed too difficult, too hard to carry on any longer, he thought of that boy and warmth spread throughout his body. It was that boy and his wish that allowed Kimihiro to survive for as long as he had so far. He was grateful; although he wasn't even certain if the boy was real or just a dream.
They met in a dream as they had before, but all Kimihiro could remember were kind brown eyes and a smile that reminded him of his mother.
They shared the same birthday.
Syaoran knew the reason for it but he could not quell the feeling of joy at it. He shared his birthday with his two most precious people and that made the day special, beautiful. It was more than a passing of time; it was a connection that could not be broken.
Syaoran remembered the boy from when he was a child and he remembered him from their previous meeting. He remembered seeing him through his clone's eyes and wishing to be in the false-Syaoran's place, if only so he could reach out and touch the boy who had grown into a beautiful young man.
For now, dreams would have to be enough.
Watanuki—no, Kimihiro—might have been taller than Syaoran by about a head but he was thinner and weaker, even more so than the last time they had met. Syaoran took note of that when he grabbed the other boy's arm, feeling how slender he truly was through the fabric of his pajamas.
"Don't disappear." His voice stern but careful, fond and weary and hopeful. Kimihiro looked at him in surprise and Syaoran smiled. It was the smile of his mother and Kimihiro stepped back, startled. Syaoran held onto his sleeve and prevented the other from moving too far, his expression soft.
They truly looked nothing alike. They had different colored eyes, hair, and skin. But the stubborn set to Kimihiro's jaw was familiar and Syaoran recognized it in the face of his mother, and himself. The same way that Kimihiro could see his mother's smile in Syaoran.
"What relationship do you and I have, Syaoran-kun?"
They were the same. And yet, they were not the same. Kimihiro had been born to fill the empty space in time that Syaoran had left when he made his wish with Yuuko to disrupt the flow of time. They shared the same existence but they were not the same person.
They were interconnected by an unbreakable thread, no matter how many worlds apart they were.
And that was comforting, Syaoran realized as he pulled Kimihiro's face down to kiss him.