An Epilogue (Of Sorts)

For some reason, Watanuki wanted to say that everything worked out funny. But it really didn't- things kind of…went back to the way they had been before two weeks ago. Except, now, Watanuki shared his bedroom with a grabby roommate(-slash-boyfriend?) and Yuuko had a second employee.

Not to insinuate that Watanuki's workload in any way diminished. New tasks seemed to appear overnight for Doumeki, and the young man was still called upon to cook and clean. Mokona didn't seem to have quite as much fun bothering Doumeki, so the pleasure of batting the little robot away also remained Watanuki's.

Everything just kind of…leveled out. Clow Reed dropped in to visit occasionally, for Friday night mahjong and drinks. Sometimes they were joined by Ame-warashi and, as before, sometimes she and Yuuko stumbled drunkenly into the garage in the early hours of the morning, screaming dirty songs about honey pots and bananas at the top of their lungs.

Four days after the Yuuko's bet was completed, Kurogane called the garage to demand 'what the fuck did Yuuko do,' because apparently, it had rained everyday since Fai reported his findings. Six months after that herb season was around the corner, and Wintervale imploded into itself, Lawmen versus Loreds in a bloody crescendo to the season when it became undeniable that the Mocuzz Valyum would not grow in waterlogged soil. Yuuko lent help when it was asked for, and Ame-warashi was most likely behind a few continently timed storms and the miniature civil war had run its course in little over three months. The city began to struggle, like a child taking its first steps, to learn to function without the Mocuzz plants' poison rotting its population. The economy, society- all of it was tied up in the drugs and drink. Some of the citizens were appalled to find exactly how heavily their city depended on the plants. Remaking Wintervale from the ground up, on top of repairing the damage done to the city in the upheaval and setting straight the remaining Loreds- whether this meant the rehabilitation program from Hell, or running them out in groups- was tiring work, but Watanuki never heard a word of complaint from the citizens, and neither did Doumeki.

In a blink, a year had passed since Yuuko and Ame-warashi's bet, and closely following Mokona's long-ago promised play-date with white Mokona, Reed began to stop in more often. For two weeks Watanuki and Doumeki caught fleeting glimpses of him and Yuuko, but not much more. The night before the post office promised the package containing Mokona would show up on their step, Yuuko and Clow invited Ame-warashi to a friendly get-together which Watanuki, of course, catered for. At the sum of the evening, they presented her with a wrapped box.

After a moment of childish glee upon receiving a gift, Ame-warashi tore into the present and lifted out a…pink Mokona.

Yuuko explained the next day, when their own black Mokona was tucked away in a corner with a pillow, that if Ame-warashi had won the bet she would have taken black Mokona away. As Yuuko had never intended to lose, she and Clow Reed had planned since the beginning to give the rain-spirit one of her own.

"That means that there are, officially, in this universe, six Mokonas!"

To this Watanuki replied, pale faced, with, "…six?"

The day Watanuki turned twenty-one, Doumeki gave him a kiss and a promise, and Yuuko ordered out. The mechanic's single cot was replaced, sometime during the day, with a proper bed, and Watanuki was very careful to not notice her lavish wink the next morning.

FIN!

Okay...now...for my mushygushy thanks to...all of you wonderful people! This is HUGE for me- because this is the only story or piece of writing that I've finished that was longer than two chapters. BIG DEAL, GUYS. And I'm convinced that it is thanks, in no small part, to everyone who has reviewed and taken from me the option to procrastinate for months on end. You've all been so wonderful, and so encouraging, and I'm convinced I don't deserve you, but thank yoooooooou! I had a million things to say, but I can't...just, thank you so much. Thank you for reading my story, and telling me your opinions, and what you liked and didn't like, and pointing out things and helping and....shutting up now.

Summarized: *GLOMP* THANKYOUALLILOVEYOUVERYMUCHLY!!

...and now for my shameless self-advertising episode. Off and on I've been working on another xxxHolic 104 story, and I'm really about 80 percent finished now. The summary I'm thinking of going with is this: A mysterious warlock offers to trade with Hero Doumeki Shizuka: the color of his eye for five, unconditional favors. AU 104 DouWata, set in Fable: The Lost Chapters universe :D This one I'm having sooooo much fun with, I hope you all like it as well as I do if you read. Dunno when I'll be finished, but I just wanted to give a heads up.

Lovelovelovelove!

-Oceans