xxxHOLiC·Heikou

Disclaimer: I don't own xxxHOLiC. If I did, I would have drawn adult Himawari and her husband.

Previous Chapter Summary: Syaoran tells Watanuki they are stuck in one dimension. Mokona wants to know how Doumeki met the new Watanuki. The other Watanuki can't see spirits and can't read certain things. Doumeki tells him he's being haunted by spirits and he needs his help.

IV. Prison

I

"Good morning, Shizuka. Would you like some tea?"

"Yes. Thank you, mother."

She grabbed the teapot and poured tea into my mug. The TV was turned on the news channel.

"Kintarou Wada, aged 53 and sentenced four years ago for attempted murder and arson, was found dead with his eyes gorged out and his throat-"

"Oh my. How terrible." My mother said.

I did not care about the news. My mind was busy trying to decipher the mysterious appearance of this new Watanuki and what could I do to get near him and gather more information. Why now? Why didn't he appear as soon as Watanuki decided to stay in the shop?

"I made cookies. Miss Horiumi Kida taught me this new recipe to make them more soft and delicious."

"-the police have mounted a search for the culprit. Self-mutilation was discarded due to the wounds being-"

"Mom. We should turn the TV off." This was disgusting.

No matter how pure and kind someone tried to be, there was always darkness lurking beneath our emotions. Even if I criticized my mother for being addicted to these kind of news despite her good nature, I was more or less the same. Even if I tried to purify myself, Watanuki managed to invade my dreams, causing nightmares and weakening my spiritual power. Before meeting Watanuki I felt safe and my spiritual strength protected me from harm. As that woman told me five years ago, doubts and fears weaken your spiritual strength.

"We are talking about a sick piece of work here." A policeman said. "One eye was found inside his throat. The other one was found inside his duodenum completely intact. This is both disgusting and impos-"

I switched off the TV, finished my breakfast and headed towards the shop.

Mokona greeted me.

"Doumeki! Doumeki! Watanuki said you aren't c-"

Watanuki ran towards Mokona and stomped on him. He was mad but had a light blush at the same time.

"No more sake for you!" He told the black creature.

"Eh? Evil!" Mokona complained.

The hours went by very quickly. It was a calm and cozy Sunday. Watanuki prepared delicious treats and we drank until midnight.

"You should be going. You have to wake up early tomorrow."

"Yeah."

"Before you go… I want to ask you a question."

"Go on."

His gaze hardened. I felt tempted to avoid eye contact by the way he was staring at me.

"Is there any presence or event which you would consider strange in your world?"

Watanuki. The new Watanuki.

"Yeah." I answered. I wanted to tell him everything. Even if the other Watanuki behaved like his past self, this was the Watanuki I met and swore to protect.

"I see. Is it an object? A living thing? Perhaps a soul or a supernatural entity?"

"Not sure. The entity looks like a human being."

Watanuki exhaled smoke through Yuuko's pipe.

"That's it. You can go."

Should I tell him the new identity looks like him? Part of me wanted to tell him but the other one pestered me to keep it as a secret.

"Do you want to know more?"

"No. Perhaps another time but not now. You should be going. Besides, if you gave me more information, I would have to pay you and I don't want that." He scowled.

"Ok." I drank another cup of sake and stood up. "Take care, then."

"Good night."

"Nightie night Doumeki!" Mokona kissed me on the cheek.

I left the shop and walked towards Watanuki's old apartment. I needed to ask him some questions. It was a weird sensation to have some spirits glaring at me. No spirit dared to neither approach me nor attack me. Nonetheless, they were closer than usual. I realized my spiritual barrier might have slightly weakened. I made a mental note to take care of this later.

I found the landlady carrying shopping bags despite the late hour. She greeted me.

"Are you Doumeki-kun? Watanuki's friend?"

"Yeah. Is he here?"

She gave me a puzzled look and then shook her head.

"I'm afraid he disappeared four years ago without saying anything. I'm worried about him. He's a big boy now, all I can do is pray for his safety and now that he will be fine on his own."

Watanuki wasn't living here? Then where did the guy live?

"Sorry to bother you."

"No, not at all. Give me a call if you know something about him."

"Ok."

Maybe he lived in another apartment. At least I knew which supermarket he goes to, so he shouldn't be too far away from here.

I tried to find his window, the one which I used to climb.

The lights were on and there was someone on the room. I decided to take the risk and climb through the window. I carefully set my feet on the floor, trying to make the least noise possible. It wasn't that hard because I heard laughter coming from inside.

The Watanuki look-a-like was there, laying on his bed and reading a manga while eating cheese puff balls.

II

"I love taking baths!" Mokona giggled. He ate the soap. The stupid thing!

"Don't eat the soap! I still haven't used it!" I hit his head and made him throw out the soap.

"Watanuki is so evil!"

Doumeki was going to arrive here in ten minutes but who cares if he arrives too soon, I wanted to take a bath. He would have to wait a bit.

"Watanuki's nipples are so pink!"

"Hey!" I covered my chest and blushed.

"Everyone has pink nipples! Yuuko's nipples were pink as well! I bet Himawari-chan and Kohane-chan have pink nipples."

"Oi. Oi. You should be careful with the things you say." Even if Mokona was innocent, the way he said it sounded completely wrong and very perverted. Very.

"Watanuki uki duki woouu! Doumeki will arrive soon! Hurry! Hurry!"

"Yeah, yeah. He can wait. Besides, he hasn't come that much during this week. He's not on his exam week, so why did he take so long to bring me a lettuce and a book? And to be late for dinner? Gee, I'll never get along with that guy."

"Is Watanuki sad because Doumeki isn't coming to often? Is he sad because he fears Doumeki will get bored of him?"

Mokona was right. But I wasn't going to accept that, no way in hell. I decided to pinch his ear and then ignored him.

"Owie!"

"Maru. The towel. Moro. Bring me a blue yukata."

"Yes!" Both girls answered.

Doumeki arrived on time. I swear the jerk has a freaking Swiss clock in this stomach.

"Doumeki! Doumeki! Watanuki said you aren't c-"

MOKONA! I stomped on him, furiously. Why would I care if Doumeki took so long or didn't come? I have other friends and many things to do. Him being here is just a nuisance, instead of making him breakfast I could do something useful.

Speaking of said idiot, he looked troubled today. He had been acting slightly weird one week ago. Not exactly bizarre but I could feel he had been looking at me differently. Honestly, I didn't like that at all.

I spent most Sundays with Doumeki. It had become a routine. No matter how I hated to accept it, he kept me company and somehow I felt glad he was here.

"Is there inari sushi?"

"If you want some, go fetch me the ingredients."

"Ok. But make plenty." He answered. If he wanted his sushi, he would have to buy the ingredients with his own money and help me prepare them.

Fifteen minutes had passed since he left when suddenly Mokona's eyes opened wide and I received a transmission from Syaoran and the other two.

"Watanuki."

"What is wrong?"

"We have found out more information about what could be going on. The next world where Mokona was supposed to take us was your shop. However, there is a presence blocking the entrance towards your world. The other dimensions are not affected."

"How do you know other dimensions are not affected?"

"Fay-san used his magic to travel to another random dimension. We arrived in Nihon Country."

"You are lucky." I smiled.

"Yes." He smiled widely. "Still, when the time came for us to leave Nihon Country, Mokona's wings maded and she fainted. We also heard a loud noise and felt as if our hands and feet were tied."

"Like the previous dimension you were stuck on."

"Yes. Tomoyo-san used her abilities and said the next dimension we were supposed to arrive in was your shop."

"So," I tried to order what I currently knew. "the previous dimension you were stuck on was supposed to send you to my shop but the ability to cross across dimensions was halted. And then the magician sent you to a random dimension. Said world was also supposed to send you here but there was-"

"A barrier."

"A barrier, you say."

"Yes. A powerful one." Syaoran looked worried. "I don't know how long should I stay in a dimension before affecting it. I don't want to alter Nihon's country."

"I understand. You want me to find the barrier here or in Nihon Country?"

"Princess Tomoyo said you would not be able to see it if it was in your world since you don't belong to your own dimension."

"I know. Be sure to tell me your choice. I will be waiting."

"Thank you."

Doumeki arrived with the ingredients and two bottles of sake, which we drank until the moonlight.

I wondered if he had sensed a weird entity. As expected, he had noticed it and was looking troubled. He told me it looked like a human being but, to be honest, my trust in his supernatural abilities had slightly decreased due to Doumeki's power having weakened during the last week for reasons I am not yet able to precisely detect. The ring I gave him was not only for my protection but for his as well. I felt the information he gave me was not enough for solving the mystery yet I restrained myself from asking for more. In the shop there are different rules from those in the real world. Exchanging information without proper payment, even if it is obtained in a subtle, casual way, could be dangerous. I needed to think carefully of a price and how to involve Doumeki's payment for further information in the quest Syaoran gave me. I have only 4 years of experience in the shop and I don't want to make any more mistakes.

This was more stressful than what I thought. Syaoran has just arrived in Nihon Country and there is a limited amount of time before he starts altering it.

A/N: Thanks for the reviews, if it weren't for them, I would have thought the xxxHOLiC fandom was dead, or at least in ffnet.