The Queen of Hearts she made some tarts all on a summer's day.

School was out for summer break which made Watanuki very happy. He enjoyed being school, but things were usually very busy. It was hard for him to find time to himself during the school year. Now, he spent more time at Yuuko's everyday, but he also had the mornings all to himself. Some days he used that time to go shopping or clean up his apartment. Other days he went out for a morning coffee with Himawari and Doumeki or took Kohane-chan out for breakfast.

But his favorite thing to do was to practice cooking new recipes. This summer he had decided to work on making pastries. A new pastry shop had opened up just a few blocks away from his apartment. He and Kohane had eaten there just last week, and she had asked him to teach her how to make apple tarts.

So that's what he was doing this morning, learning to make apple tarts in order to teach her, and they smelled delicious. He had decided to make three: one for Yuuko, one for Himawari, and one for Doumeki. The recipe he had made enough dough doe one and a half tarts, so it was just easier for Watanuki to double it and make three. It wasn't like he wanted to make a tart for Doumeki, it was just easier to make three then two.

He read the newspaper while he waited for them to finish baking. Doumeki and Himawari were supposed to stop by in an hour. This wasn't the first time they had come to his apartment. Doumeki had been walking him home for months now, and Himawari had been coming by the last couple of weeks to help Watanuki carry food for Yuuko. The four of them often went out for picnics or lunch or some other such thing, and between Doumeki and Yuuko, Watanuki had to make more food then he could actually carry. By now it was simply habit for the Doumeki and Himawari to pick Watanuki up when he had been cooking, even if he could carry it.

Today they were going to have a picnic lunch just the three of them in a nearby park before Watanuki had to go into work. Himawari had volunteered to provide lunch, so Watanuki had volunteered to make the dessert.

When the timer went off twenty minutes later, Watanuki took the tarts out and placed them on the window sill to cool. The crust had turned a nice golden color and the scent of baked apples perforated the room enticingly. But Watanuki was seemingly immune to those tempting smells, because he went back to reading the newspaper. There was an interesting article about the manga artist group CLAMP and their work.

The Knave of Hearts he stole the tarts and took them clean away.

It was beautiful outside, a perfect day. Mostly because Watanuki was cooking again, and he could smell those delicious scents wafting out from the window, the delightful scent of cinnamon and sugar melting and baking into a delicious filling. Last week it had been crème brule and strawberry napoleon, the week before fresh bread and sweet rolls. The knave licked his lips at the memory. Every time Watanuki cooked, he could smell it, and every time he wanted a taste. He was practically drooling, and he reflexively wiped his mouth.

Was it really his fault that he stole the tart, what with it smelling as good as it did?

He certainly didn't rhink so. Smelling those scents day after day, week after week, really, he thought he should be up for canonization for managing to resist the temptation for so long. He was a knave after all. It was his nature.

And really, Watanuki knew about the spirit world. He should have known better tham to leave something out where any old spirit could float by and just reach out and take those delicious, juicy, amazing concoctions. Putting very nice smelling apple tarts in the window was just asking for them to get taken.

So he did it, just reached out and took all three pies. It wasn't like he didn't have enough hands to carry them all. Really, why else would a creature have four hands and live outside of Watanuki's apartment other than to steal his food. It should all be blamed on Hitsuzen, according to the Knave anyway.

The King of Hearts called for the tarts and beat the Knave full sore.

Doumeki saw the spirit dashing away from the apartment building through his shared eye. He had seen that particular spirit before, lingering around and thieving small things. The only reason Doumeki took any note of him today was because the Knave had a particualily gleeful look on his face.

Himawari knocked on Watanuki's door and smiled brightly. She was so simplistically happy to just be standing outside of Watanuki's door that Doumeki thought she might be content to wait for him for all eternity.

Personally, Douemki hated standing outside the door, waiting to see if Watanuki would ever open it. He was too impatient to be as content as Himawari. But there was no way he was going to share that bit of information with anyone, so he forced himself to not tap his toe impatiently or wiggle his fingers.

It took Watanuki a few minutes to get to the door because he had been leaning out the window shouting at the Knave for stealing his tarts, not that Himawari or Doumeki knew that. By the time he got the door open, Doumeki had lost all patience. He didn't even wait long enough to say hello. "Where are the pies?"

"They're tarts." Watanuki ground out. "And that stupid thieving spirit STOLE THEM!" The last bit he shouted at the open window and shook his fist.

Now Doumeki only hated two things, waiting to see Watanuki, and seeing spirits make his life difficult. Of the things that he loved, eating Watanuki's food ranked near the top.

So seeing Watanuki upset over a spirit who stole the food he had prepared for Doumeki, made Doumeki exceptionally angry, especially as it meant he had to go hunt down said spirit and thus lose time with Watanuki. He turned back to the door and growled, "I'll be back" before slamming the door behind him.

It didn't take long to find the Knave. He was coming out of a hidey-hole between two bushes not far from Watanuki's. Doumeki grabbed one of his four arms and punched him square on the nose. "Give them back." He hit him again, this time with less precision.

The Knave was of the non-violent variety, although he supposed he could do some damage having four arms. "Give what back?" He tried to shield himself, but then Doumeki kicked him in the shins.

"Watanuki's food."

And now the Knave was really glad he had not tried to hit back. It was said that the male friend of Watanuki's was a very good excorsist. "You mean the pies?" Doumeki pulled his arm back to punch him again. "I'll return them! I'll return them!" The Knave cried.

"They're called tarts." Doumeki let him go and crossed his arms.

The Knave of Hearts brought back the tarts and vowed he'd steal no more.

Doumeki came back to the apartment carrying one apple tart and the Knave in tow. Watanuki and Himawari stared at him in a mixture of shock and awe. Watanuki actually stood up when Doumeki came in. It was a wasted movement because Doumeki simply sat down at the kitchen table. His eyes scoured the whole room for a fork.

The Knave stepped forward into the room and held out the two tarts, still in perfect condition. "I'm sorry I stole your pies—" Doumeki glared at him, "I mean tarts." He handed them to Watanuki who still didn't know what to say. "But I must say, it is not the best of ideas to leave food in the window. It smells terribly good and wafts throughout the entire neighborhood." He stared dreamily off in the distance thinking about the food and drooling a little.

Doumeki cleared his throat loudly, and the Knave promptly wiped his lips and closed his mouth.

Watanuki glared at Doumeki. "Well, thank you for bringing them back." He held one out to the Knave. "Here."

For a moment the Knave did nothing but stare at the proffered tart. "Truly? Oh thank you good sir. Thank you truly, terribly—"

Doumeki growled.

"Uh, I do believe that I shall depart now. Thank you." And the Knave disappeared out the door.

Doumeki held out his hand expectantly. "Fork please."