-/ Chapter 7 \-

Kohane nervously tugs Doumeki's sleeve as they get closer to the wishing shop. Doumeki nods to her gravely. Kohane looks up with a shy smile, and takes a deep breath, lifting the bag of groceries as she does before letting them hang again.

"I see. You're nervous too," she says. "Every time, is it intimidating like this?"

Doumeki nods, and puts his hand on the wrought-iron gate, and pushes—the gate resists—and he pushes again. The gate eases open. They step into the quiet garden. This afternoon, the plants are wet from rain shower. The green scent of ozone and young growing things lingers.

"Ame-warashi," Kohane whispers to him. The spirit has just left.

"Ah," says Doumeki, and he becomes perceptibly less tense. Probably nothing to worry about today, then.

Watanuki comes to the door, and leans in the way. With the cloak draped around his shoulders and dramatically covering his arms, he looks—oddly regal. "Ah, hello, come in. Kohane-chan too?"

Kohane smiles at him and greets him with a good afternoon.

"I'm glad you've come," he says, and glances at Doumeki, who shrugs slightly. "I've been wanting to see you, Kohane, and ask how you're doing in person. The phone isn't enough, but I know you've been busy. Do come see me whenever you wish."

Kohane bows slightly. "Thank you."

"The rain spirit just left, so you have good timing," Watanuki continued. "Would you mind doing me a favor?" He holds the door open a little wider with his left hand. "I'll explain as we visit."

"Of course not, Kimihiro-kun," Kohane says softly, stepping up to the porch. Doumeki ducks his head and follows.

"I'll make tea," Watanuki says quickly, shaking out his sleeves, and rushes off. "Make yourself at home!"

They obediently file into the dining room and seat themselves at the low table. Kohane glances at Doumeki's face, and freezes. He is staring hard at the wall, gazing beyond it with a fixed, stricken look on his face. Dread mixed with psychic pain washes over Kohane's senses. It's a little frightening.

Kohane nudges him to get his attention. He turns to her in surprise. "He's hiding something?" she asks, as quietly as she can.

"Maybe," says Doumeki, between clenched teeth. It's a lie so as not to frighten Kohane, but she knows instantly that he is convinced of the opposite. He is very sure.

"I'll be watching," she murmurs, and Doumeki frowns. "Do you want me to catch him at it?" she asks.

Doumeki's eyebrows press together. He glances at her, then around, and the look of him is uneasy. He's not sure.

"I won't be hasty," Kohane promises. "But maybe there is a better way to solve this than the one you have found?"

Doumeki swallows his pride, shakes his head, and tells her, "I haven't solved anything at all."

Kohane nods. "Will you let me try?"

"Please."

And then they have to stop talking, because Watanuki is back, carrying a pot of tea rather awkwardly: his left hand holds the handle, the weak pinky sticking out, and his right supports from the side, using a pot holder, with his sleeve fully extended. "Hot!" he hisses, puts it down between them, and dashes off, tucking one arm under the other.

"That didn't look right," Doumeki murmurs, deeply troubled, at the same time as Kohane says, "It's his right hand."

They stare at each other.

"I could sense it," says Kohane, gesturing to her wrist. "It feels...too warm. And he's right-handed."

"Awkward grip," Doumeki mutters to himself. "He never forgets things like that. He doesn't like it when people see his pinky. I'm sorry this is happening on your first visit, Kohane..." He begins to brood.

Kohane pats his upper arm. "Shizuka-kun."

"Yes." He gives her his attention.

"He really does this every time?"

"Yes," Doumeki replies, exhausted. "If there's something to hide, that is, and he thinks he can get away with it. Which he has. I once didn't notice an injury of his for two weeks. It wasn't major, but he hadn't treated it properly."

"Did you yell at him?"

Doumeki goes quiet. "I tried." He's not very good at yelling, either. Just glaring. And at the time, making a fuss just didn't feel worth it. He felt defeated and disappointed, but he hadn't felt angry. Now he thought that perhaps that had been a mistake.

It is hard to imagine Doumeki shouting, even if he had reason to. Kohane nods. "But at least you taught him not to make that mistake again."

"If he remembers how." Surprised, Doumeki turns to her. "How did you know?"

"Because it's just like you, Shizuka-kun," says Kohane, smiling. "And it is well that you did so."

"Well, he can't live by himself this foolishly forever," Doumeki says gruffly. "I'm not omnipotent."

Kohane smiles. "Of course not. You want what's best for him."

Doumeki's cheeks heat just a little. "I may be selfish, but not that selfish," he says, barely audible. "That would be self-defeating. What would I have done if he could have saved himself if he had been properly taught how and I couldn't get there in time?"

Kohane turns sad. "You always have to think about those things, don't you."

Doumeki glances at her, and says nothing.

So she knows what it means to have these thoughts, too. Probably about her mother.

The food—at least that is what Doumeki assumes is taking Watanuki so long—seems to be taking longer in coming. He half rises. "Should we check on him?" he wonders. Kohane listens intently, and shakes her head. Doumeki sinks back down.

Watanuki comes out with a plate of something-or-other and snack drinks. "The food is still cooking," he says airily, and shakes out his sleeves. "I'll get it somehow."

Doumeki fixes Watanuki with an angry look.

"What?" says Watanuki, defensively.

"I'll get it," Doumeki snaps, and stomps off. Kohane doesn't stop him. Watanuki seems dismayed, and is almost about to call after him, but he bites it back and stops himself.

With an effort, he turns himself back to the table to fully focus on Kohane. "How are you, Kohane-chan?" he asks, stretching a weak smile to begin with.

"Very well lately, Watanuki-kun." Kohane smiles back. She's been doing it more and more lately.

This time, Watanuki loses his preoccupation and returns the smile more genuinely. "I'm glad to hear it. What is living with obaachan like?"

"I love her. She spoils me." Kohane speaks rapturously. "She teaches me all kinds of things. She chatters about the neighbors, and the birds outside, and she notices the things in nature. She knows so much. I just started school again. She made me study at home, you know, all last year, until the media forgot about me. It was fun."

"Ahahaha... How is school?" Watanuki asks, his expression falling a little as if he'd rather avoid the topic altogether.

"Not bad. Nobody remembers me," Kohane says shyly.

"Probably a good thing," he predicts.

"Yes, a very good thing!" she exclaims, leaning forward, laughing.

Watanuki smiles again. "That's good to hear. Have you made any friends?"

"Not yet," she says, her enthusiasm waning. "But I think soon," she adds. "We've only just begun."

"I'm sure you will. Nobody who truly knows you could hate you. I'm so glad for you." And he is.

It is worth it to come, just for this. Watanuki's words make her glow inside, and she knows her news does the same for him. The rest of the visit may not be so pleasant, but she doesn't want to let go of this precious feeling entirely.

Doumeki comes back with a glass plate of something—a casserole?—and sets it on the table, muttering under his breath. He sits down and his eyes narrow. "Why are we eating with forks?"

"It's a Western dish."

Doumeki rolls his eyes.

"The nice chopsticks are all being washed."

That's obviously a lie.

"Could you just stop being difficult?" Watanuki snaps entirely preemptively. "Do you have to question everything I do?"

Doumeki shakes his head.

"Typical," Watanuki huffs. "Don't learn from his rudeness, Kohane!"

Kohane just sighs. "Let's eat, Shizuka-kun, Watanuki-kun. Itadakimasu."

Their eyes meet. "Itadakimasu," the boys intone, grudgingly, but a period of truce is commenced. The recipe is strange to them all, but it is delicious as ever. That never changes.

"How's work, Watanuki? Weren't you going to tell us?" Kohane asks.

Watanuki darts a quick glance at Doumeki that he's probably hoping she won't see. "Like I said, the Ame-Warashi wants a favor. She's looking for an old artifact. But I don't recognize it at all."

"I studied some esoteric objects before, with my mother," Kohane says. "Maybe I'd recognize it."

He describes it. She doesn't know it. Stumped, she turns to Doumeki. "Shizuka-kun, do you know?"

Doumeki shakes his head. "No."

"What are you taking at university, Doumeki?"

Doumeki considers. "Mostly sciences. General requirements...Folklore," he divulges reluctantly.

Watanuki raises his eyebrows. "Would you be willing to run the description by your folklore professor if I wrote it down?"

"If I can get his attention," says Doumeki, promising nothing, although he knows he will still do it. He had half suspected that something like this would happen.

"Thanks," Watanuki says swiftly. "I'm sure you will."

Doumeki isn't as confident. He has some presentiments about the task. There seems to be the distinct possibility that his future could change unexpectedly if he pursues the matter, and it makes him uneasy. Not that he has a clear picture of his future, anyway.

Suddenly he isn't hungry anymore. He finishes lunch and sets his chopsticks across his bowl.

Watanuki is too pleased to notice. "Good, that takes a load off my mind! I can tell the Ame-Warashi I will be looking into the matter soon." He stacks Doumeki's plate on top of his own and Kochoushu's.

"Did you have some other matter left to clear up first?" Doumeki asks the table.

Watanuki looks up, and his expression breaks up and quickly changes. "Oh, yes. Of course. There was."

"What happened?" asks Kohane, leaning forward, chin on her hands.

"Ahhh..." Watanuki looks between them both, and scratches his head. "I can't talk about that one."

"Is that how you hurt your wrist?" Kohane asks, pointing.

Watanuki flushes and looks away. "Yes. So you knew..."

"Yes, I do," she says.

"Ha. Hahahaha. Of course you do. I'm an idiot aren't I..." Watanuki laughs without humor.

"Break or sprain?"

Watanuki flushes again and fidgets. "Not sure. Either way, it will heal, won't it?"

Kohane doesn't take her eyes off of Watanuki. "Doumeki, could you ask Yuuko's storage room for Yuuko's book of medicines?"

Doumeki nods, and leaves.

"Tell me the truth," Kohane says, with eerie calm.

"I'm not lying about the confidentiality agreement. He paid for it." Watanuki rakes his fingers through his hair.

"I'm not asking about him. I'm asking about you."

"I see." Watanuki thinks for a minute. "It was an accident. I miscalculated one of the prices, and I tripped over Mokona later that day and fell on my wrist. She feels guilty. I think she and the girls are hiding in the attic right now. Anyhow, that guy has been spooling out what seem like minor transactions for a couple of days, and I haven't been able to figure out to stop him. At some point, it's going to end, but I don't know when."

"He seems dangerous. Be careful."

"In the end, he probably will be, yes. I only just figured out a way to stop him." Watanuki fidgets uncomfortably. "Although it may be too late."

Kohane says, "Shizuka says you usually end up bleeding when you miscalculate a price."

"Well. Sometimes I just bruise. This could be just that. It could be worse."

"Hmmm," she hums, darkly thoughtful.

Doumeki comes back with the book, a splint, tape, and gauze. Kohane and Watanuki read the book together before announcing that they guess it's a sprain. Doumeki doesn't look convinced, but there really isn't a way to summon a doctor to check, and none of them know enough about pressure points.

While Doumeki is still wrapping up Watanuki's arm, Kohane stands and walks over to where Watanuki is sitting, and puts one hand on top of his head. Green eyes look deep into his mismatched ones."Watanuki, Shizuka-kun and I need to leave now, but I want you to promise us something."

Watanuki looks wary. "Not a wish."

"No. A promise is another kind of exchange of feelings. Will you promise?"

"All right."

"I want you to promise that you won't hide your injuries to either of us any more, and that you'll tell us about them as soon as we come to see you. I know you don't want to worry us," Kohane continues, and bends towards his ear so she can speak softer, "but that only makes Shizuka-kun worry more. I mean it. He's frantic."

Doumeki's expression doesn't change, he doesn't look at either of them and acts as if he hasn't heard. He could hardly look less frantic; if anything, he appears even more sullen and surly than usual.

Watanuki's eyes slide sideways. "He always finds out anyway."

"He's afraid that someday he won't find out. Won't you take pity on him?"

"R-ridiculous!" Watanuki protests, eyes flashing. "If that's what he feels like, he should tell me!"

That should have been Doumeki's cue, but he doesn't glance up from the floor. He probably doesn't feel up to taking the bait. Of all times for Doumeki to be mulish and unresponsive...

It's hardly fair, putting the onus on him when you're the one hiding things from him, thinks Kohane, and grimaces. The trouble is, she understands Watanuki. Too well. "If you can't see it, then I am afraid you are both proud and stubborn," says Kohane. "I can't force you to make this promise."

"I hate being weak. I will not be seen as weak," Watanuki hisses, just under his breath. "Just because I am dependent now doesn't mean I will be this way forever!"

"I know," she says placatingly.

"I won't let him see me like this. Especially him."

Kohane guesses, "Because you think he's strong. Stronger than you."

"He is! Inordinately! Inhumanly!"

"He's not," Kohane says sadly.

Watanuki glowers. "Well, how am I supposed to know? It's not like he ever has to ask for help."

Kohane frowns a little. "Trust me on this."

"Yes, if you say so," Watanuki responds, carelessly. He doesn't meet her eyes.

Kohane shakes her head. "That's not enough." She folds her arms and pushes up the sleeves, thinking. "I won't force you." She pauses. "What if you only swore to me, instead?" she wonders.

"I'd do that." The quick reply is instantaneous. When Kohane looks into Watanuki's eyes, he means it. And he's ready. The is no doubt at all. He never wants to have this conversation again.

Kohane steps back and glances at Doumeki. He nods at her, looking tired but satisfied, and keeps winding the gauze around Watanuki's arm. Kohane turns her gaze back to Watanuki, and straightens. "All right. Now promise me."

"I promise that I will never hide any injury that befalls me, whether it has healed or not, whether she asks or not, from Kohane Tsuyuri," Watanuki promises swiftly. "And whatever she asks me, I will reply truthfully."

He didn't have to add that.

"Thank you." Kohane embraces him briefly. "I know what your pride means to you. I won't misuse the privilege."

Watanuki sticks the heel of his left hand in his face, partly disgusted with himself and partly on edge from the pressure of the gauze wrapping his hand. No one says anything. Doumeki throws Kohane a look of pure, unadulterated relief, and Kohane takes comfort in that. This compromise seems to be enough. At least they will never have to do this again.

Once Watanuki's wrist is taken care of, Doumeki and Kohane take care of the plates in the kitchen. The rest of the evening passes pleasantly enough, relatively speaking, until both Doumeki and Kohane have to return home to complete their homework.

Watanuki is alone again.