Author's notes: So begins my adventures in crossoverland... xxxHolic's just begging for it. This chapter crosses with the video game Okami, but I'm told by my beta reader who has never played it that it makes sense without prior knowledge. It also doesn't contain many spoilers for either fandom, except for the spider's grudge. ^_^ Enjoy!


On a cool wintery morning, Doumeki stood on the street in front of his house, calmly waiting for Watanuki to meet up with him for their walk to school. His companion wasn't running late, but Doumeki had been waiting outside for a good ten minutes already. He'd made it a habit to get outside early and to be prepared to leave late. Watanuki's travel time varied, as it was heavily impacted by Yuuko's breakfast demands and the amount of spiritual encounters he may or may not have on the way over. Doumeki had to be prepared for any time of arrival, or he risked losing his hearing altogether.

He'd waited ten minutes, and was prepared to wait another ten or so before he went looking for the bespectacled boy. He didn't really mind waiting; he enjoyed standing in the brisk morning air, listening to the quiet sounds of birds in the trees and distant cars. He leaned against the fence with his arms folded and eyes closed, keeping his ears open for any shouting, stomping, or in the worst case, screaming, that might signal his classmate's approach.

Instead, he heard a bark.

Doumeki opened his eyes to see a large, fluffy, white dog happily sitting a few yards away. It saw him look at it, and its tongue instantly rolled out of its mouth in a big doggy grin, it's fluffy tail wagging wildly behind it. All its body language seemed shout at the boy "I'm cute! I'm fluffy! Come pet me!"

Instead, he chose to ignore it. He had learned long ago that one should never pet strange dogs, especially ones with no owners in sight. He turned back in the direction Watanuki would come from.

The dog saw Doumeki turn away, and its ears drooped. It let out a soft whimper. No response. It lifted its paw in the obvious 'shake' position. Still no response. It waited for a moment, and then its ears abruptly pricked up again. It stood in excitement, and raised its tail above its head, waving it in a circle with a flourish.

Doumeki, who had not been paying attention, suddenly felt very strange. He found himself completely overwhelmed by feelings of happiness, love, and comfort. And even more than that, he had an urgent desire to run over to pet the dog.

He dropped his school bag and leaned his bow against the fence, and hurried over to the delighted dog. Its fluffy tail was wagging fanatically as Doumeki knelt down next to it and pulled its head into a hug as he scratched it behind the ears. The dog's fur was soft and thick, and his mind was filled with all his favorite memories; of his parents, of his grandfather, the satisfaction of hitting a bull's-eye, the taste of a big batch of inarizushi that had been handmade personally just for him –

"What the hell are you doing?"

The familiar voice of Watanuki Kimihiro snapped Doumeki out of his happy trance. He suddenly felt very strange, and slightly embarrassed, crouching on the ground with a stray dog clutched to his chest. Rather surprised at his actions, he released the dog, and looked up into the rather cross face of his charge.

"You shouldn't touch stray dogs," the spirit bait chided. "They're very dirty, and covered in fleas, and it's probably got some sort of disease." He paused to consider that description for a moment. "Actually, that sounds just like you." The smirk that had appeared on Watanuki's face at that comparison was quickly replaced by a look of angry superiority. "But still, you're lucky it didn't bite you! You never know when a dog might turn on you, especially a stray, no matter how friendly it acts! Don't you ever THINK before you act, you stupid Doumeki?! You could have gotten hurt, and then you'd have to go to the hospital and then where would I be?! What if a spirit attacked me this morning and you weren't THERE because you got bit by a stupid DOG! Don't you ever consider how OTHER PEOPLE might feel?! Not that I, the GREAT Watanuki, would ever actually NEED the help of a lowly Doumeki, but you're SUPPOSED to be warding off spirits for me, and instead you're over HERE, making friends with some RABID DOG, which knowing my luck is probably actually a werewolf or something, and then when YOU get bit, I'LL be the one who has to find a way to change you back, which Yuuko-san will WITHOUT A DOUBT add to my sentence, all because you are SO IRRESPONSIBLE and …!"

Doumeki lost interest as Watanuki's words started to veer off on a nonsensical but equally loud tangent. He gave the dog one last pat on the head and stood up, brushing the long white hairs off the front of his uniform.

The dog in question was gazing up at Watanuki in all his raving and wildly flailing glory with a sort of bemused awe, obviously enraptured by the strange behavior.

After a bit more of this, Doumeki's ears were nearing the bursting point, even with his fingers stuffed in them, so he decided to change the subject.

"Is there inarizushi today?" he asked, taking the bento Watanuki carried from his hands. Something about that happy feeling had given him a craving for some.

Watanuki cut off in mid-rant, turning to glare at him, pushing his slipped glasses back up over his mismatched eyes. "NOOOO," he drew out angrily. "It's tonkatsu. Himawari-chan asked for it yesterday."

Actually, the way Doumeki recalled it, he had been the one to ask for tonkatsu yesterday, and Kunogi-san had nodded slightly in agreement. But he knew Watanuki didn't concern himself with details like the truth when it came to his crush. Whatever. Tonkatsu was good, and he had succeeded in lowering his companion's volume.

"Shall we go?" Doumeki inquired as he walked back to the fence to fetch his belongings. "We're going to be late."

"We're going to be late because you were wasting time with your stupid doggy friend," Watanuki huffed, pointing at the offending creature itself, and sparing it a glare as well.

His coming rant caught in his throat as he did, and he stared at it for a long moment.

Doumeki was surprised by the unwarranted silence, but when he turned back to ask what was wrong, Watanuki was already stalking over to him. The boy grabbed his arm forcefully and began dragging him off towards the school.

"Come on, you moron, we're late."

They left quickly, and only the most skilled of observers would notice how Watanuki stayed ever so slightly closer to Doumeki's side than usual, his arms tense at his sides, and how he very deliberately did not look at the dog again.

The dog in question watched them go silently, its tail still wagging as though highly entertained by the pair. Once they had turned a corner out of sight, it stood and shook itself happily, then trotted off in the direction Watanuki had just come from: towards Yuuko's shop.


Yuuko was in a pretty good mood that morning herself. She had a very nice breakfast of leftovers, courtesy of Watanuki, and was currently settled back on her couch with a nice, steaming cup of tea and some manga. It was in this pleasant state of being that she sensed something with a whole lot of spiritual energy approaching her shop.

The witch looked up from her magazine, surprised. She hadn't been expecting any customers today, and her prophetic senses usually caught on to even the must unexpected customer at least an hour in advance.

This customer would be here in a little under a minute.

Yuuko quickly stood and straightened out her kimono. Best to at least try and look as though she had been expecting the customer. To have evaded her senses despite such a powerful presence, this one was obviously important.

She heard soft footfalls in the garden, and they came to a stop at the screen door. There was no knock or call, nor did the door open by the customer's hand.

Somewhat wary at the customer's inaction, Yuuko put on her best airs of mystery and indifference, and opened the door herself.

Her grandeur was lost on the canine that sat on the other side of the screen. It wagged its tail happily at the welcome.

Yuuko blinked at it for a moment in surprise, and her face split into an honest smile. No wonder she hadn't expected this visitor! The witch could recognize her customer now, and she bent into a deep bow.

"Great Mother Amaterasu," she greeted. "To what do I owe the honor of your visit?"

What Yuuko saw in her patron was quite different from what Doumeki had seen not twenty minutes before, although the two creatures were one and the same. She saw more than just a fluffy white wolf (for it was a wolf, and not a dog, but Doumeki and Watanuki could hardly be expected to know that, having never seen one in real life, and considering that this particular wolf hardly acted like its fairy tale stereotype). Yuuko could see the great wing like sprouts of fur on its shoulders, the brilliant scarlet markings along its body and face, the fiery disc spinning over its back, the flowers that bloomed and faded continuously at its feet, the brilliant light its body emitted, and the black ink stains on the tip of its tail. This customer was not just a dog, but a god.

Smiling, she stepped aside and welcomed the wolf into the house. Amaterasu, the great sun goddess, protector, and creator of a whole other world, bounded in happily, and began sniffing every object in her path, tail wagging high above her head.

Yuuko calmly made her way back to the couch, letting the goddess finish her investigation. She calmly reached for her tea set, refilling her own cup and pouring the rest into a bowl for her customer. The wolf loped over happily at the sound, and seated herself across from the witch.

"Now then!" Yuuko said, passing over the bowl of tea, "To what do I owe this honor? It's not often I receive the patronage of a god."

Amaterasu said nothing. She cocked her head happily and wagged her tail.

Yuuko nodded. "Yes, I heard about your conquest over the demons in your country. A fine tale! Your world is lucky to have a protector like you."

The wolf still remained silent, but her ears drooped slightly.

"I see…" Yuuko stroked her chin thoughtfully. "I think I may be able to help you there."

Her ears pricked up.

"Yes…I think I have just the thing!" Yuuko looked down at the goddess seriously. "It will cost you, though."

Amaterasu leapt happily to her feet with a bark, her tail once again wagging wildly.

Yuuko smiled and clapped her hands. "Yes, I think that will do very well indeed!" She got to her feet as well, excited with the price she was about to be paid. "Watanuki! Oh, he's at school, isn't he? Mokona! Bring me some scrolls from the storeroom! We've got painting to do!"


Watanuki and Doumeki walked away from their school as usual: Watanuki a few steps ahead, his head in the clouds, and Doumeki lagging behind, stoically carrying his bow and the empty bento boxes.

Watanuki was pretty much walking on autopilot, his mind on what he was planning to make for dinner. With Doumeki behind him, he didn't need to worry about spirits, so he let his mind wander, and didn't really notice when something walked by him about a block from Yuuko's shop.

However, his senses were finely attuned to the familiar pattern of walking home, so he snapped out of his thoughts when he heard the footsteps behind him stop.

Wondering what the problem was, he turned back to yell at his self-proclaimed-but-remarkably-irresponsible-about-it bodyguard, only to see Doumeki in the same position he'd found him in that morning. He was kneeling on the ground, his stuff scattered on the cement around him, and his hands around the neck of a big white dog, scratching its ears enthusiastically.

"Not again!" he complained. "What the hell's with you today?! I never took you to be so much of a dog lover."

"I'm not," Doumeki replied, and released the dog, once again confused by the motivations for his own actions. Why did he keep petting this dog? "I prefer cats, really."

Doumeki's sidewise glance gave Watanuki the vague impression that he was being teased somehow, but he was currently more concerned with the large creature that had now turned its attention towards himself. It took a step forward: he took one back. It stopped, sat, and cocked its head, tail wagging uncertainly. It looked him firmly in the eyes, and when it was sure it had Watanuki's attention, it bent its head in what was obviously a polite bow.

Watanuki was surprised, but he'd had politeness drilled into him since long before he could remember (and who knew how long that actually was?), and he bowed back. The dog raised its paw, and he cautiously shook it. Its tail wagged hopefully, and he finally reached out an uncertain hand and patted its head. Its tongue lolled out joyously.

Doumeki watched the whole exchange with curiosity. The dog had certainly not acted that way with him. When it had had enough of being petted, it stood, and the two exchanged bows again. It turned, and continued its way in the direction the boys had just come from, pausing to sniff at whatever caught its interest. Watanuki turned the other way, towards Yuuko's shop, and Doumeki gathered up their stuff and followed.

As the seer went inside, Doumeki paused at the gate, turning to look back at the strange dog. It was sniffing the side of the fence. Suddenly curious, he covered his left eye with his hand. As the dog walked away, he saw ink drip from its tail and a trail of flowers at its feet.

He smiled slightly to himself and headed inside just as a loud voice bellowed from within, "WHY IS THERE INK ALL OVER THE PLACE?!"

Personally, Doumeki thought the scrolls with the brush-stroked symbols were quite lovely, and was fairly impressed when Yuuko made a flower appear with a flick of her paintbrush, but then again, he wasn't the one who had to scrub away all of the black paw prints.


End Notes: There you have it. If you're confused about Ammy's interaction with Doumeki, it's because in the game, if you draw a circle around someone, they'll run over and hug you. ^_^

Feel free to ask any questions in reviews... I love reviews. I'm also open to ideas for other crossovers!

See you next time...