Second Chapter

It's been a month now since the fled soul came to Yûko to ask for her wish. No-one in the shop has thought about her anymore: life's just as normal, if you can call a life around Yûko's shop normal. "Watanuki! Pour us in just one more drink, please!" When Watanuki wants to yell something as his answer, he suddenly sees someone at the gate.

"You've got a guest," he calls instead of an insult. Yûko stands up immediately.

"WHAT! Why haven't you said that before! I'm coming!" Watanuki gives the man a close look. It's one of the first times a man has come to visit Yûko's shop: they're mostly women or girls. This man, who has blonde hair and dark eyes, looks like he can use some help: it seems like he hasn't slept for weeks and his look is gloomy. "How can I help you?" Yûko has appeared behind Watanuki, in a different, more decent outfit. "In other words, what is your wish?" The man looks up at her.

"I want to be with the girl in my heart," he says. Yûko looks at him again.

"But she's not among the living anymore, is she?"

"No. The only thing I've got left from her is this." He holds up a broken medallion, and Watanuki can only gaze at it.

"That's her medallion!"

"You think I didn't notice?" Yûko sighs. The man looks at her with a surprised face.

"You know her!"

"Yes. She came here before, and I think you know why," says Yûko. "Actually… I think you know a lot more about her than you pretend to know. You know she was a fled soul, right? And that she came to you in her cousin's body as her last wish?"

"I didn't know it was you who helped her out," the man says. "But it's true… I already know that. When she handed me the medallion, I realized immediately what was going on… That it wasn't her cousin speaking to me, but she herself." He sighs deeply. "And yet she doesn't know the thing I've wanted to tell her… That I want to be with her, forever. So I was looking for help when I ended up here."

"I hope you know what you're asking," says Yûko thoughtfully, "being with her forever is the same as dying, y'know. Her soul has flown away – if you want to be with her, your soul has to leave too. The only decent way to do that is by dying."

"I'm ready," the man says, "there's no-one left who'll care for me. My father died earlier, my mother recently passed away. The girl I love is dead… I've got no other family left." Yûko nods, then looks at Watanuki.

"Go and get a knife from the treasure room, Watanuki."

"You're not saying you're…"

"He'll have to do it himself," says Yûko, "I can not kill him. You know I don't take lives – not as a price, but not as a favour either. Now, go while this man and I are gonna make an agreement about his price." Watanuki looks at her angrily.

"You want him to pay a price for this! Isn't his life the highest price he can afford?"

"That's not up to you to decide," says Yûko, pushing him back into the shop. "Now go and get that thing! And as for you…" She looks at the man again. "We've got a conversation to hold. You mustn't rush into this, y'know. To take the decision to die… it's a tough one. You must think this over and over again until you make your final decision."

"I've thought about it a whole month," he says, "and I'm sure about this. Knowing that I won't be able to see her anymore… it's too hard to deal with. I've made up my mind – I want to be with her, no matter what it takes."

"Well, your feelings for this girl are real," Yûko sighs, "that's a sure thing. But, if you're sure… Then we'll have to start talking about a price. I can only give you the knife, the rest is up to you. But I'm giving you a tool to death. Your death is something valuable, so you'll have to pay a fair price for it." She reaches out her hands to him, lays her fingertip on the medallion he's still holding. "I was thinking about this."

"Her medallion…" He sighs deeply. "It sure is valuable to me, that's true… But, if I'm dead, I won't need it anymore. I accept your price."

"Very well. Then we're bound by hitsuzen." At that moment, Watanuki's returned with a knife.

"I still can't believe you're serious about this," he says to no-one in particular. "Here's the knife, Yûko-san."

"Thank you. You can go if you don't want to see this, Watanuki." He nods and runs off immediately. Yûko looks at the man now. "I've already told you, this is something you have to do yourself. I'm just handing you a tool to your ultimate wish."

"What if I'd have taken my own knife instead?"

"It'd hurt a lot more," says Yûko. "This knife cuts what it needs to cut. It'll leave blood behind, but no pain. The opposite of what you'd experience with your own knife. And besides…" She looks in his eyes deeply. "You came to me because you were scared to try it yourself with your own knife, weren't you? You wanted to be comforted about this, to have someone who'd tell you it's not wrong what you're doing. You probably thought I was the one." She hands him the knife. "I'm not telling you this is wrong – I'm not telling you it's right, either. It's your own decision. If you're satisfied with the result of your choice, then that's it."

"You've dealt with this situation before, haven't you?"

"When you own a shop that sells wishes, you get into a lot of situations," says Yûko simply. The man smiles a bit, then takes the knife from Yûko's hand. "You have to pay your price now."

"Here it is." He hands the medallion over to her; it's visibly hurting him to give it away. "Is it OK to keep the other medallion? The medallion with her picture in it?"

"It is," Yûko nods. "It would be asking too much from you if I'd ask that as well. Your payment must be fair." She looks at him. "I suppose this is the last time we'll talk, then?"

"I guess so too. Do you mind if I'm going now? I'd like to do this in private."

"Of course you would," Yûko says. "This choice is a very personal one – it can't get more personal than this, actually. I hope you'll reach the girl you love."

Watanuki peeps through the window. "It's done, Watanuki, you can come outside again," Yûko says, looking at the sky together with Mokona. "In fact, he went away five hours ago. You really think he'll come back?"

"M-Maybe he's changed his mind," Watanuki mutters, gently opening the door. "Or maybe something went wrong…"

"You don't have to be afraid he's a fled soul now, too," says Yûko. "After all, there's nothing left that's binding him on earth – he was desperate to separate his body and soul from each other. No, I've got the feeling he is where he belongs now." Above them, the moon's shining clearer than ever.

It's shining like a medallion, carrying the portrait of someone very precious.

A medallion that's laying on one of Yûko's cupboards now, opened, but showing another portrait than last time someone's opened it. The glass isn't broken anymore – and the portrait is showing a man and a young woman, smiling happily as if death never happened to them.

The End