A/N: ZareEraz here! Sorry this is a day late but I had, like, three essays this week for school! But I posted anyway! :3 There's not as much Doumeki in this chapter, but I tried to make them as fun and interesting as possible! (Don't worry...next week's chapter has the hydrangea episode in it so I'm going to have fun with that one! *wink wink*) Enjoy! And don't forget to RxR!

Chapter Three: The Fortune-Teller and The Full Moon

"Who knew you were such a good cook, Watanuki!" Wari complimented the girl, holding up her fork with a piece of fried egg on it. "This tamagoyaki is absolutely delicious! It's so fluffy!"

"Right back at you! You're meatballs are awesome!" Watanuki held up her chopsticks with said meatball.

"I can't take credit for those! I bought them!" Watanuki's face crumbled, her embarrassment showing through. "All I did was warm them up!" And he says it with such a straight face! Watanuki put her hand behind her head and nervously scratched her scalp.

"Oh! R-right! W-well, in that case the temperature is-" She shoved the meat ball in her mouth quickly, chewed and swallowed. "Just perfect! Yum!"

"Moron." Watanuki's face snapped as she glared at the unwanted lunch guest that was Doumeki. He was sitting a little apart from Watanuki and Wari, stuffing tamagoyaki into his mouth with his uninjured arm, the other still wrapped in a sling.

"I wasn't talking to you, Dou-and why the hell are you eating that?! It's mine!" She hissed. "What happened to that lunch I made for you?! Why don't you just go choke on it somewhere else, 'kay?!"

"Gone." Watanuki grimaced in frustration. Wari laughed at the two of them, his cute smile sending Watanuki into a fit of mental, "Wahahahahah!" as she clapped her hands together and blushed.

"You guys are so hilarious! You sound like siblings!" Wari laughed.

"This guy?! Are you serious?" Watanuki pointed at Doumeki, her face the picture of dissatisfaction at the idea of being related to him. Doumeki was still eating. "I know it might seem like that with me making his lunch for him but there's a perfectly good explanation for it-HEY! Don't eat that!" Watanuki hissed again. I know I promised to make lunch for Doumeki to thank him for helping me out the other day, saving me from those evil spirits or whatever. The girl frowned, looking back at Wari. But I can't tell Wari about that! He'd think I'm crazy! Watanuki clutched her chopsticks in her fist as she grimaced in frustration. Besides,

"It would just be giving him one more reason to ignore me and talk to him!" Watanuki hadn't even realized she'd said that last part out loud. She clutched her head and wriggled around as she argued with herself. "But if I don't say anything he's going to start ignoring me anyway! Bwah!"

"Hey, Watanuki?" Wari asked, looking up from his lunch.

"Wait-what? Who me?" The girl asked, pointing at her nose. She looked from Wari to Doumeki to Wari again and nearly bust into tears. Whee! He picked me! (For some reason, Watanuki had it in her head that Doumeki was a rival for the affections of Wari – which was completely stupid because neither boy was interested in the other in that way. Mostly it was Watanuki being a butthead.) Eat that, Doumeki! She sneered at the brunette and turned to Wari, scooting closer. "Yes, Wari!~ What can I do for you?"

"I was wondering: when's your birthday?"

"It's April first. Are you going to throw me a party?" Watanuki got excited at the mere mention of Wari throwing her a party. Wari was ignoring her happy face and reached into his school bag for a book, pulling it out and opening it.

"Ah ha! So you're a spring time baby, huh? I think that's absolutely adorable!" Wari smiled at the seer. This time, Watanuki did actually burst into tears. He thinks I'm adorable! "How about you, Doumeki?" Doumeki stopped sipping his juice box (looking so cool at the same time) and looked at Wari with his dead pan face.

"Mine's March third." Watanuki covered her mouth to laugh and pointed at the boy in contempt.

"The day of doll festival?" The seer sniggered.

"That's cute." Wari said, amused as well but still respectful. Watanuki fell backwards, her laughter dying in her throat. She rolled over in a cloud of depressed emotions and buried her face in the grass. He said it was cute. He said something about Doumeki was cute.

"It's over! I'm ruined!" She wallowed in self-pity. Doumeki just looked at her and refrained from rolling his eyes.

"Hey, Watanuki!" The girl's ear perked up at the sound of her name coming from Wari's lips. "You're and Aries, right? My birthday's November twenty-seventh. That makes me a Sagittarius. This book says that we're compatible because Aries and Sagittarius are both fire signs. Relationships between these two signs are competitive and adventurous and work really well together. " Watanuki sat up like she was rising from the dead, her hand on her heart and the other in the air like she was swearing in as a witness in a court case, surrounded by mental flames of awesomeness. Fire signs, I thank you for this day! The rest of the day was spent in a happy phase except for the moment when Wari said that Watanuki's Aries and Doumeki's Pisces sun signs were of a medium compatibility and that their relationship would grow over time into a match unlike any other. That pissed her off because she didn't even like Doumeki, never mind trying to start a relationship with him!

When Watanuki walked into work that afternoon she didn't even get pissed that Yuko and Mokona were drinking, sharing the joy of alcohol together at the table. Today, Yuko's outfit was a Chinese-style dress in purple with her customary slits up the sides and a cut out around her breasts with a pink bustier to cover up her boobs.

"This is delicious! What do you think? Should I have Watanuki go out and buy some more later?" Yuko asked her drinking companion.

"Mmhmm!~" Mokona nodded its approval.

"Heeellllooo!" Watanuki sang as she walked in, still starry-eyed over her lunch time conversation. "I'm ready for work!"

"Watanuki's here!~" Maru and Moro said together, flanking the girl on either side.

"So, drinking in the middle of the afternoon again, I see." Watanuki smiled sarcastically, had on her hip. "What about food? Did you finish off that fish I made yesterday?" Yuko put down her glass and plopped her head into her hand.

"I'm not really in the mood for fish today. I'm hungry for something with more carbohydrates."

"So, you didn't eat anything? Just skipped lunch altogether?" The seer asked.

"Yes."

"Well, my lunch was fantastic!" Watanuki blushed just thinking about it! She turned away from Yuko, her face morphing from happy to suspicious. "Wait! No, I shouldn't talk about it to her. This memory must be kept locked up inside my heart!" Watanuki generated a rainbow ball of light and shoved it back into her chest, locking the memory away. "Anyway! You've caught me in a good mood today, so I'll make you anything you want!" Watanuki threw her arms in the air and twirled around, her skirt flying up to reveal her panda panties, but she really didn't care.

"Lucky me." Yuko said, her voice dead pan. Watanuki skipped around the porch.

"La, la, la! Do you want to ask me why? I bet you do! Go ahead! Ask me!" She smiled hugely. Yuko looked away, putting her head on her knuckles.

"What happened to keeping the memory locked up inside you're heart?"

"I can't contain it!~" And so Watanuki told Yuko everything about what happened at lunch while she was making linner for Yuko (which included noodles, two bowls of rice and three plates of sandwiches…and sake, of course).

"But that was from just looking at your sun sign, right?" Yuko chopstick-ed some noodles into her mouth.

"Sun sign?" Watanuki asked, cocking her head to the side as she stood by Yuko's table.

"There's still the location of the moon and the location of Venus…unless you look at your complete horoscope, you'll never know how truly compatible the two of you are." There was a pregnant pause. "But you knew that." Yuko smiled her just-try-to-act-like-you-know-what-I-was-just-talking-about-even-if-you-don't-and-I'll-crush-you smile.

"Astrology really isn't my thing." Watanuki waved it off and Yuko was disappointed that the girl had admitted defeat. She really wanted to crush something.

"Okay…then how about fortune-telling." Yuko asked, her eyes serious.

"Definitely not my thing." Watanuki replied. Yuko stood up, picked up the flavored soup that was the remains of her noodle dish and tipped back the bowl swallowing the whole thing in five gulps and sighing in satisfaction.

"Perfect." She smiled like a cat. "Let's go."

"Yeah! Let's do it!~" Mokona cheered.

"Wha?" Watanuki asked, clearly confused. Of course, "let's go" meant that Yuko had to change her clothes before going out (like she always did). Now the witch was dressed in a grey skirt, thigh high black boots, a white and black jacket with a dragon crawling all over the sleeves, paired with black gloves and a genie pony tail on top of her head. Once she was changed, then they could go.

"Where are we going exactly?" Watanuki asked as they walked down the street.

"To a place where we can have your fortune told." Yuko smiled a devious smile. "I'm curious to see what will be revealed."

"'Kay, but like I said, I'm not really interested in that stuff." Watanuki replied, shrugging the bag with Mokona in it up her shoulder. "I mean, it's kinda stupid. Like some made up star sign is really going to reveal the course of everyone's life."

"That isn't the point, my dear girl. Other girls your age find this stuff fascinating. It's been known to snag a few boys as well. Knowledge of the arts could make your talks with Wari more engaging since he's shown an interest in this stuff." Watanuki stopped walking for a second, the possibilities opening up before her. Lunch time conversations, comparing horoscopes over homework, spending time together…the thoughts excited the girl so much she trembled in the middle of the sidewalk.

"Fortune-telling rules!" She shouted happily. Yuko's smiling face popped up behind her.

"I see success in your future!" She cheered. (The only problem was what kind of success it was. She said nothing about Wari, and that could really disappoint her employee.)

"But you still haven't told me where we're going yet." The trio was walking along again like that still outburst hadn't happened.

"We're about to pay a visit to the fortune-teller I consult."

"The one you consult-Whoa! You mean to tell me you have someone else tell your fortune?!"

"Does that surprise you?" Yuko asked as Watanuki jumped to catch up with her long gait.

"Can't you do it yourself?"

"Shifting through one's own future is strictly taboo." Yuko held up her hand to lecture. "Besides, it's useless. You end up reading signs as you wish them to be. Predictions and divinations are tricky things."

"Soooo, you're saying that there's a difference between the two?"

"Regarding authenticity. Don't worry, it'll all be clear to you soon enough." The smile she wore this time was her cat-ate-the-canary smile, the one she usually wore when she was about to throw Watanuki to the dogs. Watanuki ignored it, the normalicy of getting into trouble not even shocking her anymore, and patted the bag with Mokona in it.

"So what's with the sake?" She asked, pointing at the bottle in the bag.

"It's a present."

"You drink with her?!" Watanuki flipped out while Mokona cheered. Another alcoholic?!

"Drink!~ Drink!~" The fur ball shouted.

"That's right!~" Yuko pumped her fist into the air. "Let's go!" They walked for a while longer, Watanuki shaking her head the whole time until Yuko led her to an old mansion complete with slight-creepy trees and an iron gate to boot. Yuko's eyes went wide as they crossed onto the property, she gasped softly as well.

"Is something wrong? Is this not the place?" Watanuki asked, looking at her boss.

"No."

"How did we get the wrong location?"

"The location's correct…it's what's inside." Yuko responded.

"Oh. Well, let's go home then!" Watanuki said happily, glad to be rid of this whole fortune-telling business. Yuko on the other hand, was not done and started walking up to the front porch.

"What are you doing?" Watanuki trotted to catch up to the woman who was now on the porch.

"I'm curious…as to what manner of fortune-teller calls this place home now." Yuko reached out and turned the diamond shaped door knob. There was a maid in uniform waiting on the other side of the door when the witch opened it and she smiled at the unexpected guests and led both of them into a parlor of sorts. There was a long table with teacups already set out and steaming when Watanuki and Yuko had a seat on the couch. The maid exited after that, leaving them alone. The only light in the room was from the open window and the chair across from the pair was empty. A pair of clipboards was on the table as well, along with two pens in a creepy looking heart wrapped in thorns holder.

"What's this?" Watanuki asked, pointing to the clipboard as she set her bag down.

"A personal information board." Yuko answered. "It's a general survey so they can collect data." Mokona hopped out of the bag and went over to sit next to Yuko.

"Oh, I see." Watanuki picked up a pen and started to fill out the board.

"Wow!" Mokona was twirling a spoon in its hands, its face going from right side up to wrong side down as it flipped the utensil. The fur ball quickly put down the spoon with a click as the door opened. The same made from before entered with a beautiful woman with long blonde hair held back in a head band to matched her pink and maroon dress.

"Sorry to keep you waiting." The woman said, her voice sounding a lot like Yuko's with its soft and mysterious tone. Watanuki stood up and bowed.

"No, not at all." Watanuki only sat down when their host did.

"Are you together?" The woman asked. Yuko smiled.

"I'm her chaperone." Yuko stated, quickly excluding herself from the experiment. The fortune-teller's amber eyes drifted down to Mokona, who'd going completely still and lifeless whilst sitting on the sofa.

"What a cute stuffed toy." The lady commented, reaching for Watanuki's finished information sheet. Watanuki looked at Yuko nervously, but the witched didn't look over. The fortune-teller scanned the seer's sheet and then handed it to her maid.

"There's nothing to be nervous about," she assured, smiling softly. She seems really nice, the raven thought, smiling back. Not nearly as crabby as Yuko. The witch's head snapped in her charge's direction.

"Crabby, am I?" She asked, her you're-dead-smile on her face. Watanuki jumped, startled at her employer's sudden comment.

"Was I speaking out loud!?" She asked, almost sure she had been thinking instead of speaking. "I didn't mean what I said! Honest!" Only she did mean it. The fortune-teller laughed softly, covering her mouth with her palm. Yuko gave her a hard look, studying her face. The maid walked back in with a thin booklet and the fortune-teller took it out of her hands and turned back to her guests.

"What do you say we get started?" She asked. Watanuki perked up.

"O-okay." The girl agreed, paying very close attention to the woman.

"I am sensing…your father. He has moved on, hasn't he?" The fortune-teller started, crossing her hands across the folder on her lap and closing her eyes. Watanuki's eyes widened, shocked. Yuko didn't look so impressed.

"That's right," Watanuki started. "My dad passed away when I was just a little girl." Watanuki crossed and uncrossed her legs nervously, hands twisting into the fabric of her skirt.

"And your mother…"

"She's also gone."

"Siblings?"

"Just me."

"You suffered some stout hardships at a young age."

"Yeah, you understand!" Watanuki was impressed now. This lady knew her without every knowing her! Yuko was not impressed, her face still a stone wall. No one saw it but Mokona was making a face over on its end of the couch. The fortune-teller flipped through the booklet on her lap.

"You're living on your own, right?" She asked.

"Yes, in an apartment." Watanuki answered.

"You are a loner with a strong, independent spirit, and you are full of vigor. And I imagine you are good with domestic chores."

"I don't mind them." Watanuki replied.

"You have inner strength and self-confidence. Athlete?"

"I like sports." The lady smiled.

"Active and intelligent, I see." Watanuki blushed a little at the compliment.

"I-I'm average."

"Right now, you have issues with human relations."

"Is it that obvious?" Watanuki asked, her compliment blush turning into an embarrassed one.

"So it would seem." Yuko snubbed, turning toward the girl.

"It's okay, you're just being honest. And as long as you treat people with sincerity, you'll never have any problems with them." The fortune-teller supplied.

"Sincerity?" Watanuki repeated, looking at Yuko.

"Pay attention!" The witch whipped her head around and smacked Watanuki with her long pony tail.

"Ow!" The fortune-teller ignored them.

"Have you any other worries?" She asked. Watanuki smiled nervously again.

"Well…yes…but it's sorta…" She started. Watanuki didn't know how to even being approaching the subject about spirits following and attacking her. It would sound crazy, even to a lady that could read the future and stuff like that.

"Difficult to talk about?" The lady finished.

"That's it."

"It'll be alright. As long as you keep your spirits up. Thinking gloomy thoughts will turn everyone and everything around you unpleasant. No matter the obstacle, stay positive and see the best in the world and things will get better." Even though the words were comforting, Watanuki didn't smile back at the fortune-teller. She clenched her hands together, a frown appearing on her lips as her eyebrows scrunched together. She was thinking about the spirits again, how they always seems to be right behind her all the time, tormenting her.

"Those words are easier said than followed." The fortune-teller admitted, snapping the girl out of her thoughts. "Still, if you do nothing you'll never move forward. Try to have courage."

"Right…" Watanuki whispered, still lost in her dark thoughts. She realized a few moments later that the reading was over when the fortune-teller didn't say anything else. The girl's head snapped up.

"Thank yo-" The raven started before she was interrupted.

"Can you tell me today's weather forecast?" Yuko asked out of the blue. Watanuki gave her a surprised look. Yuko's eyes were narrowed, her lips in a slight frown, like she was challenging the fortune-teller.

"Like the newspaper said: we'll have sunny skies all day." The lad smiled at the request.

"Yes." Yuko whispered, a small version of her devious smile on her face.

"Yuko?" Watanuki looked over at the woman.

"I'm sorry, your time is up." The maid stepped forward as she spoke.

"Would you like to continue?" The fortune-teller asked.

"No." Yuko stood up. "I believe we're done." They thanked the fortune-teller lady and the maid walked the pair out as Watanuki stood and grabbed Mokona and stuffed it back in her bag. Yuko was silent as they walked out into the sunshine and down the street and Watanuki didn't want to talk as she mulled over the reading in her brain. They ended up in a park with a nice little man-made pond near a train station and sat down on a bench together. People walked past the two women and Watanuki, feeling restless after her spiritual encounter, stood up and paced as Yuko thought.

"Say , Yuko," The raven started after a while. "Thanks for taking me there. Sorry I was so skeptical at first." Watanuki put her hand behind her head and scratched nervously. "I mean, she was outstanding, wasn't she?"

"What exactly did you find outstanding?" Yuko interjected, looking up at the seer.

"W-well, without so much as batting an eye, she knew about my father's passing."

"It was an ambiguous statement at best, actually." Wakanuki's eyes widened at the accusation.

"The fortune-teller didn't say your father died, you filled that one in for her. She said 'moved on' and you put it in a context meaning 'passed on.' She gave you a purposely ambiguous word that could mean dead or alive. Don't confuse a prediction with intonation. You understand the difference, don't you?"

"Yeah, but somehow she knew how difficult it was for me growing up!" Watanuki pointed out.

"A simple rationale applied to children who lose their parents. These unfortunates almost always suffer some hardship." Did she just call me an unfortunate? I don't know whether to be pissed off or depressed by that. Before Watanuki could think too much into it, Yuko went on. "As for the independent spirit, vigor and being a loner…all characteristics of the Aries star sign. Remember, astrology guides can be purchased at any bookstore."

"She knew I was great with my chores!" Watanuki defended.

"For a girl living on her own, you're remarkably together and have a well-kept appearance." Yuko looked Watanuki up and down, noting her perfectly pressed grey jacket, neat skirt, and shiny shoes. "If you couldn't handle responsibility that wouldn't be the case."

"How could she have seen that I was a wreck over personal relationships?" Watanuki asked, interested more in what Yuko had to say than about defending the fortune-teller anymore.

"Do you think there aren't any girls your age who don't fret about boys and friendships? Its universal." Watanuki didn't have anything to say, her fallen face said it all. "And that applies to her admonishment to be sincere as well, advice easily given and equally valuable to almost anyone."

The wind whipped through the park, lifting Yuko's hair and Watanuki pony tail and skirt in its passing, filling the silence between them.

"When she asked if you had any other concerns, the first thing that popped to mind were those troublesome spirits, no?" Yuko asked.

"That' right." Watanuki voice was small and sad.

"Do you remember the advice she offered?"

"She told me to keep my spirits up."

"In addition to being a poor choice of words, if that was all you needed you would have solved your problem long ago." Yuko sighed when Watanuki didn't say anything, and tipped her head back over the end of the bench. "Truth be told, what you're going thought I doubt that woman could even imagine. Now, if you were having some troubles at school, concerns about love or anything along those lines then her advice would've seemed perfectly reasonable. Wouldn't it?"

"So you're saying that fortune-teller was just a fake?" Watanuki asked, her voice still small and sad.

"No matter the endeavor, if profit can be gleaned somebody will try. I'm afraid that's just human nature." Something shifted in Watanuki's bag. She looked down to see Mokona poking its head out of the zipper and letting its ears flap in the wind. That sparked another hole in the fortune teller's visit.

"Now that you mention it, she did think Mokona was a stuffed toy."

"Mokona's a Mokona!" The fur ball shouted angrily, it's tiny arms in the air. It crossed them in a huff. "Dumb girl!"

"Then I was right before: all this horoscope divination is a complete load of-" Watanuki started before she was interrupted for the third or fourth time that day.

"Don't give up on me just yet." Yuko interjected, standing up. "Now that you can spot the pretenders…" A smile formed on her face. "I'll introduce you to a real fortune-teller." Yuko started walking out of the park and Watanuki followed quickly behind her. They wandered into the streets of a nearby neighborhood, coming to a stop at the crossroads when Yuko decided they had gone far enough. The witch rummaged around in her pockets until she pulled out a yellow handkerchief and held it up unfolded in the palm of her hand.

"Fold it in half," she requested. Watanuki did as she was told with a, "'Kay."

"Once more." Watanuki did so again, the cloth now a long strip in Yuko's hand. The woman knelt down and pulled out her magic circle emblem, resting that on her knees with her hand and the handkerchief on top of that with her other hand face down on top of that. Watanuki heard that strange ringing again from whenever Yuko did her magicy stuff and ribbons of smoke appeared out of nowhere and surrounded her hands. "Those possessing sight beyond sight there we seek. That which can find them, rise up now and search. Being your journey, fly swift and true!" The folded handkerchief rose up all by itself and twisted around until it resembled a yellow butterfly and flapped its wings to get flying. Yuko stood up, her magic circle disappearing into her clothes. Watanuki watched the cloth butterfly drift past her in amazement, Mokona leaned out f the bag to watch in wonder too.

"Is that a…?" Watanuki asked, not even finishing her sentence because she was so mesmerized.

"A butterfly? Yes. Which means they're close by." Yuko informed her.

"Fly high, butterfly!~" Mokona sang. Yuko walked after the butterfly and Watanuki followed her, eyes on the sky and hoping she didn't trip while she was distracted by Yuko's magic.

"That handkerchief just turned into a butterfly?" Watanuki asked, still in shock as she followed Yuko down the street. They were tailing the butterfly as it drifted higher and higher in the sky. Man, if someone looks outside they're going to be in for quite a shock! And we're going to look like idiots too.

"It would have turned into a bird had its goal been farther away." Yuko stated nonchalantly.

"Wow!" Watanuki breathed. They walked past dozens of houses as the butterfly floated by, turning this was and that way everyone once in a while until the handkerchief was so far ahead of them that once it turned a corner, Yuko and Watanuki both ran to catch up. When they turned the corner, the butterfly was resting on the entryway to a Japanese style house with a little courtyard and garden, much like Yuko's own garden but a lot smaller and more normal-looking. Yuko walked up to the gate and the butterfly unfolded into a regular handkerchief and floated down right into Yuko's hand.

"Well, we found it."

"Um…wait. Here?" Watanuki asked, skeptically looking into the ordinary house.

"Yes."

"There's nothing special about this place. It looks so ordinary." A door suddenly slipped open and a lady walked out in old fashioned zori, almost as if she had been expecting visitors.

"Yuko! I see you've returned!" The lady said. Watanuki leaned over and fixed her glasses, making sure she was seeing this right. It was an old lady dressed in a purple kimono (a normal one, not like Yuko's fancy ones at all) with a green obi and a brown haori over that. She had a huge, gray bun secured behind her head (and it was almost as big as her face). "Welcome back, dear."

"So good to see you, Oba-san!" Yuko bent down to hug the considerably shorter woman with a huge, genuine smile on her face. (1)

"My goodness! You haven't changed a bit! Still as sweet as ever." They stopped hugging each other and the old woman noticed Mokona, walking over. With Watanuki being taller than her, the old woman and the pork bun were at the same height to look each other in the eye. "Well, aren't you a wonder! What's your name?"

"Mokona!" The fur ball replied happily, holding out one of its tiny arms. "Handshake?"

"Mokona, huh?" The old lady mused, shaking hands with Mokona. "Pleased to meet you." She looked up at Watanuki next, her old eyes closed. "My, look at you. So young and living alone."

"But…how?" Watanuki said softly. How did she know I lived alone when I haven't even said a word to her?

"This is no place to be standing around gabbing! Let's go inside, have a civilized chat." The old lady led her guests inside her house, all of them taking off their shoes in the entryway.

"Yuko," Watanuki asked once the lady was down the hall and the three of them were alone. "Are you sure you didn't tell her anything about me before we met?" She asked, still skeptical of the whole fortune-telling thing after the last visit they had.

"Wouldn't I have known that she had moved?" The woman replied pointedly.

"I see your point."

"Believe me, she's a real fortune-teller. She'll force you to redefine your limits of what's possible." Yuko said as she started walking down the hall after the lady she called "oba-san." The old lady was waiting for them; still smiling her sweet smile and led the trio into a nice open room with the doors letting in fresh air. They all sat down at the table on blue cushions and had some tea after Yuko took off her jacket and fixe her black tank top. Mokona got a rice cracker as a snack and munched on it noisily as they all got settled.

"Now, why don't you introduce yourself, sweetie?" Oba-san asked, holding her tea so she'd be ready to take a sip. The girl and the fortune-teller were sitting across the table from one another and Yuko was in between them. Mokona just sat wherever the hell it wanted on the table.

"Sure, I'm Kimihiro Watanuki."

"Isn't that a nice name?" The old lady replied happily.

"So is that how you do it?" Watanuki brought both of her fists up triumphantly to her shoulders. "Can you somehow gather divinatory data just by hearing a person's name!?" Now, in retrospect, Watanuki would come to realize that she'd been too eager at the time and just kind of made a fool of herself. But instead of waiting for her to realize this, Oba-san pointed it out right away.

"No, it's just easier to hold a conversation if I know what to call you." She replied with that same sweet smile. Watanuki felt so stupid that she flopped on the table, nearly knocking her tea over and bouncing Mokona in the air.

"Right. I knew that." Watanuki grumbled.

"No need to be hard on yourself. You should be proud of the name your mother gave you." Watanuki sat up in shock. How…did she know that too? My mother did pick out my name for me! A bird chirped loudly outside, drawing Oba-san's attention to it.

"Now would you listen to that? Who knows what's gotten into that bird! It's been singing for hours. He was a tad rusty at first but now it's a soothing sound." They finished their tea while listening to the singing bird, the calm atmosphere relaxing and unhurried. Watanuki almost forgot why they were there, she was just so peaceful, but that was until Oba-san got up and left the room, bringing back strange golden basin with sand in it and a pendulum hanging in the center. There was also a scale-like fixture on top of it with a huge purple/blue jewel on top. She set the instrument on top of the table, right in the center and walked over to Watanuki.

"Now, you place your hand here." She lifted up the girl's arm and placed her hand on one end of the scale. She stood up and walked over to the other end of the table to sit in her spot and place her old, wrinkly hand on the other end. Mokona hopped off the table so it wasn't in the way and bounced right over to Yuko's shoulder. The fortune-teller smiled and then closed her eyes, as if she was concentrating and the strange ringing sounded in Watanuki's ears again, smoke floating up from the basin just like before with the handkerchief butterfly. The red pendulum started moving on its own, the pointed tip drawing in the sand as it swung back and forth. That didn't startle Watanuki. Stuff in Yuko's shop always seemed to move around on its own, the spoons getting mixed up with the forks when everyone swore they didn't touch them when Watanuki exploded at their carelessness and clothes would mysteriously appear in other drawers or closets without anyone moving them. A pendulum starting to swing on its own? It was nothing to her.

"Pendulum! Pendulum! Heh, heh!" Mokona sang as it bounced, its ears flapping up and down. Yuko smiled mysteriously.

"I'm sorry, I don't understand the procedure." Watanuki asked, confused at what they were doing. "But shouldn't you ask if I have any questions or need anything predicted?" Oba-san was quiet, not answering the girl's questions.

"She already knows you came here to experience your first divination and that's really all she needs to know." Yuko replied instead, drawing Watanuki's gaze to her. "She'll take an initial reading to find the deepest desires of your heart and then tell you the results that speak to those particular queries. No unnecessary information will be received or given." Watanuki wasn't paying attention, but the pendulum in the basin was drawing an intricate picture in the sand, moving around more like a hand drawing than a pendulum now. Shivers ran up Watanuki's spine, the power in the room affecting her much like Yuko's did. She's looking into the deepest desires of my heart? What will she find there? I don't even know what I really want, so how can Oba-san see it? "The whole process might sound simple to you but I can tell you it's a rare gift indeed."

"I'm sure it is, but I'm a little creeped out." The seer replied, her statement holding a lot of weight because she dealt with creepy spirits every day. Yuko gave her an amused smile and then Oba-san opened her deep, lavender eyes.

"Don't be saddened. Your parents are resting quietly and they both are in peace." She said calmly. Watanuki gasped, the surety in the old lady's voice surprising her after her last failed fortune-telling. "There was a terrible accident that resulted in their deaths and they gave up their lives to protect yours." Watanuki stared at her in shock, she hadn't really told anyone about the accident and yet, this old lady knew about it.

Her thoughts wandered for a moment, bringing back memories of a large, grassy field with lots of flowers and a lone tree standing out in the middle of it all. There was laughter, the high, sweet notes of a woman's voice, and low, smooth tones of a man's. Her parents. Watanuki bit her lip, trying to keep the tears out of her eyes as she thought about her dead parents.

"They want you to know that they don't hurt anymore. Anguish no longer plagues them. They only experience peace and happiness, especially seeing that you've become such a wonderful young woman."

"Is that so?" Watanuki asked quietly, her lips turning up into a small smile, a tear she couldn't hold in running down her cheek. "Then, I'm glad." If Watanuki had been looking out of the corner of her eye she wouldn't seen Yuko giving her a comforting smile. And Mokona too, for once. Outside, the sky had gone cloudy and a light rain began to fall, pattering on the roof.

"But wait," Oba-san went on. Watanuki's had snapped up, waiting for bad news (because that's just the way her brain worked, always expecting the worst). "You've seen many strange things which cause turmoil in your soul. A meeting was meant to happen…" The pendulum stopped swinging and lay still. Oba-san nodded. "Yes. I see it clearly. You did not find me by chance. You were brought here." Watanuki looked down into the basin where the old lady was looking and saw that a butterfly had been drawn into the sand. "The butterfly is a powerful omen that marks a journey, one that always ends in a transformation. The metamorphosis has already begun." Oba-san paused. "I also see that there is a boy at school who you find irresistible." She smiled knowingly.

"Yes!" Watanuki answered, excited to see if she'd get some magical secret to make Wari like her!

"Be patient. The best way of deciphering your future is to let it occur."

"Let it?" Watanuki came down off her high, slightly disappointed that she didn't get any secrets of the universe to snag Wari.

"You have a friend with whom you fight a lot , but he is an important asset to you." Damn that Doumeki! Always butting into things that concern Wari…even when he's not here! "From this day forward, your relationship will deepen."

"No way!" Watanuki pulled back in disgust. "Yuck!" I can barely tolerate him as it is! I don't want that jerk getting any closer to me!

"This is all you wanted to ask, yes?" Oba-san's hand came off the scale and she smiled cheerfully. Crap! Did my deepest desires really have Doumeki in them!? How embarrassing! Watanuki scowled until Yuko yanked her out of her thoughts.

"See? I told you she was the real deal!" Yuko said, putting her hand up by her mouth coyly. "And she doesn't even ask for anything in return!" Watanuki

"Thank you, ma'am. I really do appreciate your kindness, but I really feel as it I should pay you!" Watanuki put her hands on the table and smiled at the fortune teller, nearly bowing in gratitude.

"Since you are skilled at cooking…why don't you make us something to eat?" The old lady suggested with a sly smile of her own. Mokona hopped down from Yuko's shoulder and jumped into the bag to yank out the sake and hold it up high for all to see.

"We brought sake!" Yuko clapped her hands together happily.

"Well, I'm not sure my cooking is worthy of you…" Watanuki said, biting her lip in inadequacy. She's amazing! How can my measly cooking skills match up to the peace of mind and clarity that she's given me?

"Nonsense. A meal made from the heart is a treasure anyone would welcome." She smiled wider. "And if you want to be as good of a cook as your father you need to practice!"

"Yeah, right!" Watanuki smiled back, the old woman soothing all her doubts. "I'll cook something fantastic!" She stood up and opened the door to head to the kitchen.

"Mokona's helping!~" The fur ball said from the girl's shoulder.

"You're not going to help! You're going to snack!" Watanuki teased. "The kitchen's this way, right?" She padded down the hallway and Mokona yanked on her ear. "Ow!"

"No, this way!"

"Geez! Don't yank so hard! You could've just pointed!" Watanuki snapped turning around and running into the kitchen. Back in the room, Oba-san was looking at the sand drawing.

"The butterfly…that's your signature. Isn't it, Yuko?" The old woman looked up to a wood hanging perched on the wall. It had a paper attached to it with a poem on it, the small butterfly signature resting in the corner. The old lady could hear Watanuki working in the kitchen and smiled. "Your guidance has set Watanuki on a path that will untimely transform her destiny. I look forward to the end result."

"Me too." Yuko answered sincerely. "Tell me: what's the forecast for tonight."

"Scattered showers. But don't worry, they'll be gone by the time you leave." Oba-san picked up the basin and went to put it away, giving Yuko a smile. The shop owner smiled back.

"Good! That means that we can't leave until they stop! Which means food and more sake!" The two women shared a chuckle and a short time later Watanuki had dinner all ready. The four of them ate and drank together, happily sharing each other's company with only a few outbursts when Mokona snagged food off of Watanuki's plate much like Doumeki did and the seer yelled at the pork bun. They left the fortune-teller's house late in the evening, the rain stopping just before they left. Watanuki avoided moonlit filled puddles as she walked down the street with Yuko and the witch deliberately stepped into puddles.

"I kind of wish she would've told me more!" The girl said happily, still in awe of her reading. "Especially news about Wari! That would've been awesome!"

"But that's not allowed." Yuko stopped walking, and leaned over to look back at Watanuki.

"Now allowed? But she's a fortune-teller!" The girl complained. Her hands came up to make finger glasses over her real glasses dramatically. "But she can see everything!"

"Is that so?" Yuko asked coyly. "Fortune-telling is not a conduit into some preordained biography. It's a fragile give-and-take sort of bond between a seer and that which would be seen." Yuko plopped her hand on her hip all-knowingly. "Diviners are powerful, but limited. Not every question has one true answer. That is true and must be accepted for all matter of life." Watanuki held her bag close to her as she listened; making sure Mokona didn't fall out while it was nodding off. "There are those who'd say otherwise and lie about what they can't see or pretend to have abilities that they don't. At the very least, they'd make the rest of us look bad."

Watanuki thought about the first fortune-teller, the one who faked her way through the reading and she frowned.

"Any prediction true or false should not be made lightly. It can still alter a person's path, so it's more than rude. It's dangerous." Yuko looked up at the moon, the last of the rain clouds blowing across the sky. "Just as it is dangerous for those with the true gift to alter their path by self-divination." A single drop of rain slipped off a leaf and plopped into a puddle, disturbing the seriousness of the moment. "And lesson's over…time for more sake!" Yuko turned around and clapped her hands together, a happy blush appearing on her cheeks.

"Wait just a minute!" Watanuki shouted, pointing an angry finger in the air. "You've already been drinking so let's talk more about divination, alright!?" Yuko tossed her purse around and sauntered down the street.

"How about if I predict what will happen to the person who stands in the way of me and my next drink?" She threatened teasingly.

"Do you have to be so aggressive about it?!" Watanuki asked, running after her tipsy boss. Two butterflies fluttered past her as she ran by.

"Yes, and I'm hungry. I expect dinner when I get back!~"

"DINNER?! We just ate!" Watanuki complained. "I didn't have seconds because you ate my seconds!" Yuko just laughed and ran down the street, a trailing Watanuki running to catch up.

Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ

Watanuki really, really didn't want to be here right now. She was sitting with Wari (which was never a bad thing) in the front row of the bleachers in the archery range. They were watching Doumeki compete and as much fun as it seemed at first to just hang out with Wari, Watanuki really didn't want to be hanging out with Wari while watching Doumeki impress everybody. Especially Wari.

Doumeki was standing at the far end of the range, dressed in the archery club's uniform of back hamaka and a white kimono top and white tabi on his feet. His bow was already stretched with his first arrow, left hand gripping the belly of the bow and his right, bandaged arm pulling back the bowstring with the arrow already notched in and holding his second arrow for the next use. Watanuki could hear the tension and strain on the bowstring from all the way in the stands, but Doumeki's hold puls the added grip from his glove didn't give the string a change to eject the arrow until he was ready to release. The archer aimed carefully, his deep eyes narrowing at the target and he released his arrow. It whizzed past, the whole crowd following the movement with their heads as it thunked into the first thick ring of black, missing the bullseye by a small margin. The crowd sighed in that strange pity/disappointment way and Watanuki frowned, watching Doumeki line up his next shot, unfazed by the looks of it. He just stood there, the bow tucked up onto his hip, his other hand resting on the opposite side with the arrow clutched in his hand, face more serious than usual. He's like the paragon of masculinity right now, all proud and standing tall, imposing. What a show off! Watanuki grumbled to herself as Doumeki concentrated on his next shot.

"Even with his right arm injured like that, Doumeki's still an amazing shot!" Wari said to Watanuki, leaning forward in his seat to get a better look. Watanuki looked at the wrap of bandages around Doumeki's right elbow and felt a slight guilt at have being the cause of the injury. Not that Doumeki blamed her for it, but she still felt bad. Even if it was the spirits who'd pushed her off her roof. Doumeki could've just let her fall and die instead of catching her (for which the seer was, begrudgingly, grateful for).

"You really think so? Personally, I think it was just luck." Watanuki said skeptically, trying to push Doumeki down even just a little bit in the eyes of her crush. Apparently, it didn't work.

"Oh come on, Watanuki!" The curly-haired boy started teasingly. "Weren't you the one that suggested that we come out to the competition to support Doumeki?"

"No! I mean, of course I support Doumeki," Watanuki held her hands up in her defense. "It's just that that was a one-in-a-million shot that he made!" Watanuki slumped in her seat when Wari turned back to watch Doumeki. Watanuki clutched at the fabric of her skirt in frustration. "Really, I only came because I promised to bring him lunch every day. I guess I owe him because it's my fault he hurt his arm and all but I didn't want to come alone – because the I would look like I was here for my boyfriend and Doumeki is definitely not my boyfriend! – and it seemed like a great excuse to see Wari on a weekend." She muttered to herself.

"Did you say something?" Wari asked, turning his curly head in the girl's direction.

"Oh! It was nothing! Really!" Watanuki flashed a smile. Though I really and starting to wish that I hadn't asked him to come. Doumeki's archery skills are impressing him a little too much. (Watanuki was still under the impression that Wari like Doumeki in that way. Dumb girl.) Doumeki was finally ready to shoot and notched his last arrow, pulling the bow up and then out, the string protesting as it was yanked back. His eyes narrowed in concentration, the only movement on his face that changed from its normal stone wall. Doumeki let go, the arrow flying right into the bullseye as the crowd erupted into cheers. Wari was yelling pretty loudly for his friend and Watanuki pretended like she was yelling but was really just stewing that Doumeki had mostly likely, probably won. And he did.

"Wow! Congratulations, Doumeki!" Wari praised the archer once they were all outside in their school uniforms with Doumeki holding his trophy. It even said, "20th Mayoral Archery Competition Championship, 1st Place" on it or something like that. It's probably going to end up in his room next to all his other, perfect trophies of his accomplishments, Watanuki complained in her head.

"Thanks." The boy accepted the compliment.

"Maybe you should be thanking me because I'm the one who brought your fan club with me,-who apparently can't stop gushing over you –and your lunch, big stupid jerk!" Watanuki grumbled lowly.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" Doumeki turned to a fuming Watanuki.

"Oh, just forget about it!" She snapped and turned away in a huff. Doumeki reached into his bag and pulled out a broken fletching. Its feathers were striped black and white and Doumeki decided to put it in Watanuki's bag.

"Hey, why don't you keep this as a memento." He held it up before dropping it in Watanuki's stuff. "Here."

"What was that for?!" The girl freaked out, rummaging around the bag for the fletching.

"It's just a little present." Doumeki said calmly.

"Thanks but I don't have any use for a broken arrow!" Watanuki snagged the fletching and angrily placed in on Doumeki's head. Wari laughed at their antics.

"You guys are really adorable when you pretend to fight like this! It's almost like you're a couple!" Wari's girlish speech hit a nerve in Watanuki and she immediately jumped to squash the notion of her and Doumeki being a couple.

"Ug, this was a mistake." The seer grumbled after she'd smacked Wari's comment down. She glared at Doumeki, who somehow made wearing an arrow on his head look cool. Stupid, dumbass, jerk!

"Oi, Watanuki." Doumeki poked the girl.

"What?!" She growled, not even turning to look.

"You're skirt's been folded up sit we walked out. The pink and white stripes are cute." Doumeki teased, his face still emotionless. But there was a twinkle in his eye. Watanuki flipped out, yanking down her skirt. While she wasn't looking, Doumeki slipped the fletching back into the girl's bag, genuinely wanting her to have it.

"Why didn't you say something sooner, you pervert!" She hissed, holding down her skirt.

"Because it was funny."

"It is not funny!"

"You guys are priceless!" Wari laughed again and Watanuki sighed.

"This was a huge mistake." Watanuki left soon after being teased by Doumeki and walked to Yuko's shop as the sun began to set. It got dark really fast, darkening the girl's mood just as much as she walked alone. "And now I'm running late for work and it wasn't even worth it!" She started thinking about dinner because Yuko was bound to be hungry. "Now what can I make for dinner that's quick? I could do pasta, but we just had that last night and Yuko's probably going to want something fancy and complicated. Shit! What am I going to do?" Watanuki stopped dead in her tracks as the most delicious smell wafted across her way. She sniffed for a long time, trying to savor the smell in all its glory, her mouth curving up into a cat's mouth. "What am I smelling? Whatever it is, it smells fantastic!"

The raven walked down the street with her nose leading, her butt and legs following behind the rest of her. She looked like a dork. The girl didn't even notice when the street faded away, replaced by an in-between world made up of purple-pink smoke and a brightly lit yatai just sitting in the middle of it all.(3 & 4) Watanuki rubbed her glasses and looked again. The food cart had a cheerful red lantern hanging in the front and a bench with purple curtains for customers to sit behind. Watanuki sighed as her nose was assaulted with the delicious smell of food again.

"I think I'll just give it a little taste test. And if it's good enough, it can be tonight's dinner! Now that's an idea!" Just was Watanuki was pulling back the curtain to sit down, she spotted a movement from the corner of her eye and looked down. There was an anthropomorphic fox looking up at her, dressed in a blue striped kimono and apron with little sandals and it was carrying dishes. Its fur was golden colored and its ears took up at least half of its head area and the girl and fox just stared at each other for a moment, the snapping and boiling food in the cart filling the silence. Then all hell broke loose.

"AHHHHHHHHHH!" Both girl and fox jumped away from each other, bags and dishes flying everywhere as they freaked out. The fox tripped, throwing its dishes in the air and gasped as they began to fall. Watanuki leapt into action, her pride as a cook on the line where dishes were concerned and skid on the ground to catch the first dish in her outstretched hand, the caught the other too with her feet that were in the air. Maybe I should join the circus, that would be a good profession or someone with a weird talent like this. Watanuki smiled triumphantly and then notice the little fox again, this time hiding behind the cart and looking at her.

"There's really no denying it…that's a fox!" She said, blinking her eyes again and again. "But it's standing on two legs and wearing clothes!

"Well, well. What do we have here? Is it a human customer? Very unusual indeed." Watanuki nearly dropped the dishes as a larger, glasses wearing fox peek its head out of the food cart and started talking to her. She did however, clutch the dishes to her chest for dear life and nearly screamed again.

"Oh my god! There's another one! And this one's bigger and talks!" She whimpered.

"My dear girl," The larger fox started. "A talking fox is no more special than a talking human. Now please, so come in." Watanuki picked herself up off the ground and sat down on the bench. She kept looking at the chief fox, mulling over the fact it could talk and wore clothes and cooked as it prepared her a meal.

"I'm sorry," She apologized beforehand just so that her pointed questions wouldn't seem so rude. "But you are a real fox, aren't you? You're not wearing a mask or anything like that, right?" Just glasses-wearing, chef fox just laughed.

"No, I assure you. What you see is what you get. I am a genuine fox." Watanuki laughed.

"Of course you are!" She agreed nervously. The fox poked at the food to move it around and then straightened its blue scarf.

"Our little shop has been here for a long time and we almost never get human customers, especially ones that are as young as you are."

"As young as me?" Watanuki asked curiously.

"Your youth makes your presence here surprising. You must possess a considerable power for a girl your age." Watanuki kept watching the fox mouth move (and by extension the whiskers) while human words came out.

"You can tell something like that just from looking at me?"

"I can tell just because you came here. If there wasn't something special about you, you wouldn't be able to even see our shop." The fox set a dish of oden in front of her. "Here you go. Now please, enjoy. Hope you like it!" Watanuki smiled, broke her chopsticks apart and took a bite. Paradise exploded on her tongue and she moaned in satisfaction.

"Oh wow!" Watanuki shoved another two bites into her mouth in quick succession. "This oden is really delicious!"

"Oh, so you liked it? That's really good to hear!" The big fox said as it cleaned up some other dishes.

"I've never had a stew like this! You really need to give me your recipe!" Watanuki took another bite.

"I don't know what that would do, really. It's a fox-made dish. It isn't the same prepared by humans no matter how do the chef." The little fox peeked around the counter, its little paws gripping the wood.

"I'm sorry about before, you startled me." Watanuki apologized to the little fox. It shook its head shyly.

"Me too." The little fox peeked into Watanuki's bag and locked its eyes on something.

"Sorry, it seems my little one has found something interesting in your bag." The big oden fox apologized. The little fox sprang back in embarrassment, his tail poofing up as he gasped.

"I can't think of anything that would be of interest to him in there," Watanuki said, thinking about what she had in the bag. "Let me see…we already finished all the snacks I packed…" Watanuki looked inside and saw Doumeki's fletching nestled next to the bento boxes. "Uh! When did he put this in here!?" She scoffed at the archer's instance and annoying gestures and pulled out the feathers. "I told him not to treat my bag as some kind of trash bag!" The girl shouted, her teeth pointed in anger. She looked down and saw the little fox's tail wagging as it looked at the fletching in her hand. "Is this the thing?" She asked.

"Uh huh." The little fox blushed and twiddled its paws.

"You can have it." Watanuki held out her palm with the fletching to the little fox. The fox smiled.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course! Here, take it." Watanuki placed it in the little fox's paws and he held it close to him.

"Oh wow! Thank you so much!" The little fox rubbed his face against the fletching, liking his new toy. Watanuki smiled, happy to have made the little fox happy and happy that she'd gotten rid of Doumeki's "gift."

"It's no big deal." The little fox giggled and ran off with his prize, kneeling down at a small chest that appeared out of nowhere.

"Please, excuse him for the intrusion." The big oden fox asked.

"Don't worry about it! I didn't think of it as an intrusion at all!" Watanuki smiled wider. "Besides, I think he'll get more enjoyment out of it than I would." The big oden fox looked at his child.

"My little one takes great pride in his collection of unusual objects." The little fox was holding the fletching up to the light and then placed it in the chest with some other objects, like blue marbles, a cloth bag filled with something and a butterfly and flower case.

"Well then," The big oden fox drew the raven's attention again. "How about we let the feathers serve as payment for your oden tonight."

"Oh no!" Watanuki shoved her hands into her pockets, looking for her wallet. "I've got some cash in here."

"Please, don't." The oden fox held up his paw. Watanuki looked up at his curious request. "The object you just gave him has a power of its own. It conceals a spiritual energy that drives away evil."

"Hm. You mean that arrow?" Watanuki asked, confused. The big fox nodded.

"It may just look like a broken arrow, but it's actually a powerful tool to ward off spirits, I don't know how you came to possess it but there is no doubt that it is a very special object. When you think about it that way, it's really we who owe you for this gift."

"Hm." Watanuki sat down again.

"You know, your skirt has been flipped up this whole time. I like the pink stripes." The little oden fox said, pulling on Watanuki sleeve. Watanuki looked back in horror, seeing her skirt tucked up and her underwear on display for the second time that day.

"Why didn't you say something sooner!?" The seer panicked, yanking down her skirt…again. The little oden fox ran away from the squealing girl laughing cheerfully.

"Besides, having such a rare human guest today has been a treat. It's been exceedingly enjoyable for me!" The big fox laughed at the girl and put a set of wrapped containers in front of the girl. "Please take this a gift of my gratitude."

"Oh no!" The sight of wrapped food reminded Watanuki of her job and of a grumpy Yuko she was bound to find in the shop when she got there. "I almost forgot that I was supposed to cook dinner tonight!" The girl grabbed her hair with both hands and freaked out. "I am so late already!"

"Please tell Yuko I enjoyed our meeting." The little fox ran up to his father and they both bowed towards a surprised Watanuki, who was just reminded about how far reaching Yuko's name actually went. Watanuki blinked and found herself back out of the street, standing under a lamp with her bag and the food in her arms. She looked left and right to see if she could spot the shop, but it was gone now.

"Huh. Could that have been some kind of dream?" She asked as a dog howled in the night. She looked down and say the food containers in her hand, the purple cloth embroidered with a single, red crescent moon. "I guess not." Watanuki shrugged and started walking to work again, her mood getting more and more guilt ridden as she approached the shop. She stepped into the courtyard, took off her shoes before making her way down the hall. Yuko was in her receiving room, lazing about on her couch in a red kimono with Maru and Moro lying all over one armrest watching her. Of course, the witch's pipe was in her hand, its smoke drifting into the air with each puff.

"Hey! Watanuki's here!" Mokona popped up, its sharp ears picking up the girl's quiet footsteps. Yuko glanced back, her face unreadable.

"I'm so sorry, Yuko!" Watanuki began as she slid the door open, but she was cut off by Yuko's cry for food.

"Sooooooo huuuuunnngggrrryyy!" The witch flopped over onto the armrest of the couch in the most dramatic fashion and wailed. "Need to eat!"

"I know I'm late! Forgive me!" Watanuki held up the oden fox's wrapped containers, half as and offering and half as wall of same to cover her face. Yuko's eyes widened as she saw the wrapping cloth, her body instantly becoming alert.

"I recognize the design on that bag!" She squealed, and clasped her hands together. "You brought fox oden!" She cooed, a happy blush on her cheeks.

"Uh, yeah." Watanuki replied, a little confused. "So…you remember meeting the foxes?"

"Of course I do!" Yuko said, leaning back on her couch. "Once you taste their oden nothing is ever quite as good again." Watanuki didn't know whether to be offended by that remark with her pride as a chef on the line, but she had tasted how good the fox's stew was and couldn't deny that Yuko's statement had some truth to it. Thankfully, she didn't have time to respond.

"Fox oden! Fox oden!~" Maru and Moro sang. Something tapped Watanuki's ankle.

"Hey!" The seer looked down and Mokona waved its tiny arm at her. "We need dishes!" It commanded.

"I'm not taking orders from you! You-you…cream puff thing!" Watanuki growled, her teeth pointed and eyes furious. Yuko snatched the food out of Watanuki's hands and stood up.

"We'll need you warm up some sake as well!" She blushed again and nuzzled the wrapped bento boxes as she pointed at her slave. "And just for good measure: let's open a nice fat bottle of plum wine!" Maru, Moro, Mokona and Yuko all danced away from the girl, the witch holding up the good like it was an offering from the gods.

"Stew and sake!~ Stew and sake!~ Stew and sake!~" Maru and Moro sang as Yuko and Mokona laughed. Watanuki grabbed her smoke that always seemed to be near Yuko and thrust her hands through the sleeves. She knew when she was beaten.

"I'm going already!" She snapped. An hour of two later after most of the oden was eaten; Yuko was looking up at the nearly full moon from the porch, smiling with a fat Mokona next to her. She looked down at the pile of sake bottles littered around her and picked one up, shaking it. When she didn't hear any sloshing, she frowned and yelled out to Watanuki.

"Watanuki! What's taking so long!?" She asked, grumpy that her sake wasn't here yet.

"I'm coming! I'm coming! Geez!" Watanuki ran up in her little smock and set down a tray with three new bottles of warmed sake and Yuko clapped her hands delightedly.

"Oh yay! At last!" She snagged a new bottle and tipped it into her cup, downing the portion in one gulp. Watanuki's shoulders slumped, a frown appearing on her face now.

"That's just great." She said, kneeling down. "You've nearly drank your weight in sake! Which means you're probably going to have a hangover in the morning again. Please take some aspirin and drink water." As she talked, Watanuki had the suspicion that she was being ignored.

"Ooo! Look at that!" I was being ignored! "We certainly have a beautiful moon tonight! And tomorrow is going to be a full, isn't it?" She asked out loud, looking down at her drinking companion.

"Moon viewing party!~" Mokona answered, holding up its sake cup.

"Yes, that's right!" Yuko smiled her Watanuki's-going-to-have-a-lot-of-work smile. "And to properly prepare for that…we'll need a pre-celebration tonight!" Yuko hoisted her glass into the air, dashing the hopes of her employee's smile of a party. "Let's get some coffee going! The night isn't nearly over yet!"

"Yay!~" Mokon jumped into the air. Watanuki's face fell, the prospect of more work causing her to turn blue.

"Noooooooo!" The seer wailed.

"Now! Let's watch the sun come up!" Yuko suggested.

"Some of us have to get up early tomorrow!" Watanuki retorted.

"Come on!~ Don't be such a wuss!" Mokona teased.

"I'm just responsible, okay?!"

"Watanuki, dear! We're running out of snacks. Why don't you go into the kitchen and see what you can whip up?" Yuko suggested sweetly.

"Mokona's hungry! Feed me!" The fur ball agreed.

"Ug." Watanuki groaned in defeat. "This is going to be the longest night ever."

When the morning finally rolled around, Yuko was still sitting on the porch, only having left to go to the bathroom once and change her clothes. She was now dressed in a Japanese influenced white, ruffled robe with an outside corset in purple laced up across her belly and under her boobs, with matching wrist sheaves. Her long, glorious hair was mostly left down, only a portion of it pulled into a bun on top of her head with a long, gold tassel hair piece hanging down her back. She picked up her tea cup, sipping green tea in the morning light as the birds chirped and munched on some snack Watanuki had left as the sun rose higher in the sky. The only sound out of place that morning was the loud, obnoxious snoring of Mokona (who was passed out on the porch next to its mistress), but Yuko didn't mind.

"My favorite day of the month, the night of the full moon." Her voice woke up Mokona, who hiccupped in a drunk fashioned and tottled over to the witch. "And we know what that means, right?"

"Moon viewing party?" It asked happily, jumping up and down.

"Of course!" The woman smiled deviously. "Watanuki's going to have to get started early because we only want the best snacks, right?"

"Moon viewing party!~ Moon viewing party!~ Time to party! Mokona's ready! Moon viewing party!~" The pork bun tipped from one foot to another cheerfully, its ears flapping this way and that before it ran off. Yuko set down her steaming cup, and enjoyed the morning.

"One other thing first though…." But she really didn't around to finishing her thought because at that moment, Mokona jumped on a sleeping Watanuki (who had some of her longish hair caught in her mouth, drooling all over her pillow and completely a mess after having stayed up most of the night – very attractive) and woke the exhausted girl up.

"WHO DISTURBS MY SLUMBER!?" She yelled, the perfect imitation of a grumpy dragon sleeping on nails and having been kept up most of the night. The whole shop shook with the force of her yelled and Maru and Moro started from their own sleep with a squeal and then started giggling as Watanuki chased Mokona around in her underwear and bra (still pink and white striped, a matching set and the girl hadn't known she would end up staying the night). Yuko laughed at the loud morning, the birds all scattering as Watanuki went on her path of destruction (with Maru and Moro prancing behind her) trying to stomp on the slippery fur ball that had woken her up. After twenty minutes of that Watanuki suddenly collapsed, her exhausting causing her to fall to the floor and slid right into a bookcase, topping over shelves of tomes. When they fell on her, she didn't even react, her sleep uninterrupted again for another hour before Yuko sicced Mokona on her again so the girl to make breakfast, lunches and get to school on time.

The day was long and sleepy, and Watanuki barely had any retorts for Doumeki when he teased her sleepy ass and she only had a slightly more energetic appearance for Wari, who tried to keep the girl awake in class and at lunch. Unfortunately, Watanuki dozed off in all her classes, got called for it on multiple occasions and fell asleep during lunch. (Doumeki ended up eating all of Watanuki's bento as well as his and the girl was too discombobulated to even notice). By the time she got back to Yuko's shop, the seer was wide awake (having caught up on her sleep in school) and ready for Yuko to order her around. Which she did. While the girl was making snacks, Yuko was in the dining room tying up a package with the wrapping cloth Watanuki had gotten from the foxes. Watanuki left the kitchen from where she had been preparing dinner and snacks for the moon viewing party and swished in with her smock and a tray of appetizers.

"I outdid myself!" She walked into the dining room and set the tray on the table. "Are you ready for the first course?"

"Yes, thank you." Yuko replied, finishing up tying her package.

"Hey, Yuko…what are you doing with that?" The raven asked, looking at the package.

"I have a little errand I need you to take care of for me right now."

"Errrrand!~ Errand!~" The twins sang.

"That's alright with me, I guess. Where do you need me to go?" The girl asked curiously.

"Where you were last night – the foxes' shop." Yuko packed the package in the girl's arms and she held it carefully.

"Oh, I understand. You want me to take back the containers they gave us for the stew last night, right?"

"And also…take this." Yuko pointed to a small purple/grey backpack with little white wings on it. It was a little girl's backpack.

"Huh? A backpack?" The girl observed. "What possible use could they have for something like that?" Yuko chuckled, patting the backpack a few times.

"Actually, this is for your protection."

"Why would I need any protection?" Yuko's smiled disappeared.

"Because tonight is the night of the full moon." She said ominously. Isn't that why we're having a party? What's wrong this time?

"Alright…so is that going to be a problem?" Watanuki asked, apprehensive about her task now.

"I can't say for certain if you're going to have trouble, but you're going to want to be careful. You know how easy it is for you to attract spirits on a normal night." Watanuki frowned at her words. "Well, tonight is anything but normal. Not only is it a full moon, but it's a full moon on Friday the thirteenth. With the combining of the two events, not even I can know for sure what events will unfold around you." Watanuki's face dropped into her worried/panicked mode, her eyebrows pinched together and her frown deepening. And then she got it.

"Oh I get it! You're just trying to scare me!" Watanuki held up her hand and waved Yuko's warning off. "Well, very funny."

"You can think that, but just remember to keep the backpack with you at all times tonight." Yuko stood up, her robes cascading into place. "It's contents will help you a lot."

"R-right." Watanuki really didn't know now if Yuko was joking or not but she took the backpack and containers with her as she took off her smock and hair wrap and put on her shoes. Once outside, Yuko's strange warning echoed in her head and Watanuki jumped at every little sound, scared that something might actually pop out at her.

"It's really not nice for her to mess with me like that." Watanuki said confidently, trying to shake off her fear as her footsteps clicked into the quiet night. The full moon lit her path, the shadows looking even deeper and more foreboding than before. "Besides, if it was really that dangerous, she could've had me run this little errand on another night!" Watanuki shrugged her shoulders to disperse the weight of the winged backpack strapped to her. It was heavier than in looked. Watanuki looked up and stopped in her tracks.

The air got heavy, presences around her shifting and moving, getting darker and more sinister. She watched the shadows, the long reach of the telephone pole's darkness reaching out to her. The moonlight made everything brighter in than instant, but it also made the darkness even blacker. The shadows were pointing towards her, lying on the street like hands. Watanuki gasped, her voice rising in pitch as she almost stopped breathing. She nearly whimpered but held it in, trying to convince herself that nothing was wrong. But something was.

"I'm just seeing things," She whispered, her voice wavering. She looked down again. The telephone poles' shadows were stewing, their outlines undulating and rippling. That's not good…not good! The shadows were getting longer, reaching, crawling towards her own. The shadow erupted, the spirit concealed inside leaping out over Watanuki's head. She ducked. "Or maybe not!"

She ran. Turning a corner and dashing down another street, Watanuki could feel the spirit wheel around and follow her, its rotten fish and dead animal smell coming after her. She kept running, her fear pushing her faster and faster. She really didn't want to get eaten or possessed or any other number of unpleasant things, so she sprinted, not really knowing where she was supposed to go.

"I'm starting to understand what Yuko was talking about!" The seer admitted running even faster as more and more spirits joined the parade behind her. The girl glanced back at the spirits and noticed a small white wing. "Oh yeah! The backpack! She told me to use it!" Watanuki slung it off her shoulders, careful not to damage the containers she was carrying in the process and unzipped the bag. The girl got her hopes up that she would be protected when a familiar, annoying face popped out of the bag and waved.

"Hey!~ Hope you're ready, Watanuki, because we're going to play the alphabet game!" Mokona cheered. (5)

"Why are you here?!" She growled, getting right in the fur ball's face. It ignored her.

"Alright! I'm starting!"

"Huh?!" Watanuki kept running the spirits behind her getting just a little bit closer as she was distracted.

"Category: fruits and vegetables!" The creature picked. "First word: apple!"

"What?!" Watanuki was still confused.

"That means you, Watanuki!" Mokona's eyes got huge, the almost shapes revealing black eyes to match its soul. "Would you hurry up!?" The spirits got closer and both of them nearly lost it. Watanuki screamed as she looked back. "Come on! An E!"

"Uh…E, okay! Uh…eggplant!" She answered. A bright light flashed behind Watanuki as the first spirit lit up and disappeared.

"Good! Turnip!" Mokona went on.

"P…uh, plum!" Another flash. Watanuki was breathing heavy from running for so long.

"Mango!"

"So that's an O?" She asked.

"Yes, an O! Hurry!" The spirits were getting closer again.

"Er…okra!"

"Avacado!"

"Another O already?! I just did one of those!" Watanuki growled, wracking her brain for another O food.

"Quit whining!" Mokona ordered in its usual annoying tone.

"That's it! I'm changing the category! Animals!" Another flash.

"Camel!"

"Uh…" Watanuki felt a spirit brush her flying pony tail. "Lemur!"

"Rat!" Mokona shouted.

"Tiger!" Watanuki passed back.

"Rattlesnake!"

"E-eagle!"

"Elephant!"

"Trout!"

"Tortoise!"

"Ah! There are no more!" Watanuki shouted, her brain tired from running, dodging spirits, navigating the streets and trying to play a game at the same time.

"You have to hurry, Watanuki! There's a really mean-looking spirit behind you!" Mokona warned.

"Ug! I'm not good at this game!" The huge spirit flew closer, nearly overtaking the girl as she ran. "Eeeee!" Watanuki jumped at the spirit made a grab for her and then slid into the splits to about it, dropping the package she was carrying. The spirit brushed the wrapping and a light blue flash emanated from the package. "What the hell?! Why did it go after the package?"

"You have to think fast! It's coming for us!" Mokona shouted from its backpack. The spirit snaked closer, its three red eyes glaring at Watanuki.

"Uh…eel!"

"Llama!" Mokona shouted, getting the game back on track as Watanuki scooped up the package and started running again.

"Anteater!" Another flash.

"Raven!"

"Nematode!"

"Ooo! Points for creativity! Dolphin!"

"Not another N!" Watanuki complained.

"Concentrate!" Mokona ordered.

"I know! I'm trying! Nightingale!" Another flash.

"Earthworm!"

"Walrus!" (6)

"Sasquatch!"

"Sasquatch?! That's not a real animal!" Watanuki hissed.

"Just keep going!" Mokona encouraged.

"So – and H then? Uh…hedgehog!"

"Platypus?! What are you talking about?! We were on G's not S's!" Watanuki's head shot up, thinking about what she'd just said. "Oh, I guess that's not right either – now see what you've done?! You've gone and made me lose my train of thought! Now I don't even remember what letter I'm on!"

"Quit whining! Just hurry and pick an animal already!" Mokona wasn't even keeping score now and that was saying a lot. How much trouble they were in, that's what it was saying.

"I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know, I don't know!" Watanuki chanted, trying to get her head back in the game but she couldn't, she was to scattered brained. The spirit got closer, surrounding the girl's body, shadowing her face and almost swallowing her as she ran. "SALAMADER!" She shouted in a last ditch effort not to get eaten. The spirit vanished into light and Watanuki whooped in triumph. "I knew I could think of one!" She gloated to the fur ball in the bag. "And now you have another R to do!" Mokona folded its arms triumphantly as the girl smiled.

"No! Look!" Watanuki skidded to a halt and looked forward. The oden stand was right in front of her, surrounded by its bluish/purplish barrier, the night calm and peaceful now that the spirits were gone. The father fox was fixing the blue curtains of his stand and turned to see Watanuki walking towards him.

"Well, look at that! Our customer from yesterday has come to visit us." The big oden fox smiled, brushing off his blue apron.

"Hey!" The little oden fox ran up to his father and smiled at Watanuki as well. "It's Ms. Feather!"

"I'm sorry," Watanuki apologized. "We were delayed by some angry spirits."

"Not surprising," The big oden fox nodded. "It's dangerous out tonight."

"Yo! It's been a while!" Mokona waved at the foxes, lounging from the backpack Watanuki was holding.

"Oh, Mokona! It's always good to see you." Both foxes bowed in greeting to the fur ball.

"You seem pleased with yourself!" Watanuki hissed, getting into Mokona's face again, teeth pointed and ready to snap.

"We made it here all because of me!" Mokona smiled smugly.

"It was just a dumb game!" Watanuki retorted.

"The game of letters?" The big fox asked. "That ancient game is a good defense on a night like tonight." He crossed his arms. "Well done. Good thinking."

"What?" Watanuki asked, her eyes going wide that the fox agreed with Mokona. "You mean that game saved us?"

"Of course. It's used by travelers when journeying at night or dangerous places. It creates a barrier of fun to keep certain evils from interfering. So that's what was going on! Watanuki felt a little guilty now.

"I didn't realize that." She said to Mokona. The rabbit-creature just hopped in its bag.

"Maybe next time when we're in trouble you'll just shut up and trust me, Watanuki!" It huffed.

"Well, maybe next time you could stop and explain what's going on!" Watanuki got all riled up again and was about to smack Mokona when she realized that the hand she was going to use was already occupied. "Oh! The containers! I forgot about them!" The raven's anger disappeared as she handed the package over to the oden fox. "Would you mind checking to see if the containers were broken on our way here?" The fox took the wrap and set it down on the counter, untying the cloth to reveal an empty birdcage with a perch in it. Watanuki gasped in surprise.

"A birdcage? There's not even anything in it!" She leaned over to look closer.

"Oh yes! This is a pair of Moonlight Birds," The father fox explained. "They're a special species who's silhouette can only be seen during the full moon." Watanuki heard chirping and looked down at the counter, the shadow of the cage now holding two small birds while the actual cage still seemed to be empty. "Some people call them Phantom Birds. We were able to see them the last time we were at Yuko's home and I was fascinated. They're very rare and I've never seen a pair before." Watanuki looked the fox and he looked at her through his slitted eyes. "Yuko must've remember that I asked if I could care for them someday. That's very kind of her." They both looked down at the remarkable birds. One of the birds flapped its wings, the feathers oddly separated instead of layered over each other like normal birds.

"I believe that these birds inhabit a world other than ours and can only be seen here under the light of the full moon." The birds chirped, the same one flapping its wings and the other just peeped sadly. "Huh? Oh no! This one looks like it's been hurt!" The oden fox noticed, his voice laced with concern for the poor creature. Part of its tail feathers were missing. Watanuki gasped, remembering the spirit hitting the bag when she dropped it. She turned to the fox sadly and admitted her carelessness.

"On our way here, I was having trouble keeping the game going and our protection was weakened." Watanuki dropped her head, ashamed for her foolishness. "That's when the spirit knocked in out of my hand."

"That's why I was trying to get you to hurry! You could've come up with 'eel' sooner!" Mokona chastised softly.

"The poor thing." Watanuki looked at the bird again. "He can't fly like this."

"Little One," The big oden fox placed his paw on his son's shoulder. "Go and find the broken arrow from yesterday."

"Huh? Okay!" The little fox nodded and ran to his treasures, fishing out the fletching Doumeki had dumped in Watanuki's bag. He ran back over and handed it to his father.

"What are you going to do with it?" He asked curiously.

"Don't worry, it'll be alright." The big fox replied. "Now watch this." The fox held up the fletching to the light of the moon and it flashed once. Then the light hit the feathers, creating a curtain of white-blue moonlight that cascaded down onto the shadow of the birdcage.

"That's amazing!" Watanuki said as the moonlight hit the injured bird and regenerated it's missing feathers. The bird flapped its wings happily and fluttered in the air.

"Wow!" The little fox gasped.

"Looks like his tail is as good as new." The big fox said, handing the child back his toy. The birds chirped happily and flew out of the cage without anyone opening the door, gliding up into the sky as the moon lit their shadows up.

"They're so beautiful!" Watanuki gushed, watching the birds disappear.

"Please be sure to come back before the full moon sets!" The big oden fox called to the birds, his little child waving after the pair of Moonlight Birds. "Well, I think it's about time to close up the shop for the night." The big fox said as it turned to Watanuki. "Why don't we all sit down and have some dinner and an old fashioned moon viewing party?"

"Moon viewing party!~ Moon viewing party!~" Mokona shouted, jumping up and down.

"Quiet you!" Watanuki took a sumo stance to yell at the obnoxious fuzz ball.

"Heh heh!"

"If you drink we won't be able to play the game of letter and get home safely!"

"Why don't you let my little one escort you back after dinner?" The big oden fox offered. "I'm sure he'd be happy too." The foxes looked at each other, the little one smiling. "As long as he as the feather, you can make it safely without the game of letters."

"Yeah!" The little fox nodded, then nuzzled his feathers.

"That's very brave," Watanuki said. "Okay! Thanks for your help. We really appreciate it." The girl smiled. They all went inside the stand to have some dinner, Watanuki and Mokona both cooing and humming at the delicious oden as they stuffed their faces.

"What's the matter?" The big fox asked his child when he saw his droopy ears after looking at Watanuki's content face. "You know, little one, I can always tell when something bothering you." The little fox's tail bushed out again, his fur sticking every which way as he was caught.

"Well, it's just that…" He started softly. Watanuki looked down, pushing her glasses into place. "I wanted to play the game of letters too!"

"Alright! We will." Watanuki smiled softly, endeared with the little fox's request.

"Mokona will play too! Mokona is really good at that game!" The fur ball hopped into the picture with triumphant arms.

"You can play but no cheating this time!" Watanuki growled, glaring down at Mokona.

"I don't cheat! I just play by slightly different rules that's all!" The mokona hummed.

"That's cheating!" Watanuki

"You're just whining 'cuz you're no good at it!" Mokona teased. "You're such a loser!~"

"You take that back, you little-!" Watanuki threatened, fisting her hands. Then she saw the little fox smiling and her anger evaporated. "Okay! Would you like to start?" She asked the little fox. "Anything's alright, so you can start with whatever category you like!"

"Anything I want?" The little fox's face scrunched up in thought. "Well...okay…let's see…hmmm…I'm thinking…" The fox tipped his head to the left and then to the right as he thought, acting so cute. "How 'bout animals?" Watanuki flopped onto the counter, rattling dishes as her worst category popped up again. Mokona laughed at her along with the big fox and the little fox just looked at her funny.

Back at the shop, Yuko was outside enjoying her moon viewing party of one (Maru and Moro were taking a nap). She sipped her sake and looked up at the moon, listening to the Moonlight Birds' joyful singing as they stood on the shadows in her garden.

"Well, it looks like Watanuki has successfully completed her errand." She said, smiling at the two birds. "I always enjoy a full moon. To you!" The witch raised her cup to the moon, toasting its beauty.

Then she wondered when Watanuki was coming back. She was almost out of snacks and was definitely going to need more sake. "Hurry back, Watanuki."

Somewhere in the streets of Tokyo, Watanuki sneezed during the game of letters, effectively losing her train of thought and losing the game for a record seventh time as the little oden fox and Mokona laughed at her.

To be continued…

A/N: There you go!

Note 1: Oba-san is not the fortune-tellers actual name. It's just an honorific that can mean "aunt" or "middle-aged lady" when used without the accent over the first a, or it can mean "grandmother" or "female senior citizen" when the accent it present. The fortune-teller is never given an official name so the only name I can to go off of was Yuko's honorific that she was addressed by and that's why it's capitalized, even if it's incorrect. I prefer to think of Oba-san in terms of "aunt" instead of "grandmother" because even though Yuko has a close relationship with the fortune-teller, with Yuko's timeless age, they'd be relativity (in an abstract way) closer to the age of old friends than the age of a younger woman seeking advice older woman.

Note 2: Basics of Japanese traditional clothing. For women's kimonos (especially ones like Yuko's) are made up of many undergarments and robes that are placed close to the body and then are covered by the intricately detailed embroidered over robe. Yukata, for both men and women, are light fabric, summer kimonos that are commonly worn at festivals in the hot months. An obi for women is the sash that is tied around the kimono and bunched at the back, kind of like a turtle's shell in my opinion. For men's kimonos, they can wear them without pants like the women do, or they can wear hamaka (pleated pants that are tied outside of the kimono) and tuck the kimono inside the pants. Hamaka can be divided into pants or kept in one piece to resemble a skirt. Tabi are two-toed socks (one toe for the big toe and a second toe for the last four) that are wore with a variety of sandals such as straw zori (which are like modern flip flops), the geta (which have one or two "teeth" on the bottom to hold up the base) or okobo which are a type of geta that are like platform shoes but without the "teeth" or normal geta. The Japanese wear geta so that when they wore expensive kimonos, the fabric wouldn't drag in mud or dirt. Haori are hip or thigh length jackets that look like kimono tops. They were traditionally worn by men but came into fashion for women during the Meiji period. Men's haori are shorter than women's.

Note 3: Oden is a winter dish consisting of several ingredients including boiled eggs, daikon, konjac and fishcakes stewed in a light, soy-flavored broth. Ingredients may vary between regions and the oden itself can be made up in different combinations of ingredients.

Note 4: a yatai (literally shop stand) is a mobile food cart with limited menus and are set up late and night and do business until the early morning before commuters fill the streets. Yatai are also set up during festivals to sell foods to spectators.

Note 5: Shiritori, or the Game of Letters (the Alphabet Game in English) is a game that's played between two or more people and each player has to name a thing that starts with the ending kana sign (or letter) of the other players words. For example: toad would then be followed by dog, because toad ended in a D and dog starts with a D. It's the same in the Japanese game; and commonly, the game starts with "ri" the last sound in "shiritori" and then goes on from there. Shiritori literally means "taking the buttocks" or "taking the end" relating to taking the last kana of the previous word to make the next word in the game. In the Japanese version, if a player uses a word ending with N, the next player loses the game as no Japanese words starts with the character for N. (This happens to Watanuki in the sub when the little oden fox chooses "oden" for the first word in their game, causing Watanuki to lose by default.)

Note 6: Yeah, I listened to the audio like a million times, and Mokona says earthworm and Watanuki replies with walrus, when he should've said something with an M. I don't know what the dubbers were doing with that. X/ I guess they just wanted to use the word "sasquatch!" XD

Sorry if you already knew this stuff but I find doing these little lessons fascinating and informative so I can integrate information into my stories without losing anyone along the way.

And last note: I don't know if any of you noticed this but when Watanuki and Himawari go to watch Doumeki's competition it's the weekend (in the sub Watanuki says that it's Sunday) and then he visits the oden shop and takes dinner home (it's still the weekend or Sunday). But then Yuko comments that its nearly the full moon at dinner and that they need to have a party the next night (which according to Yuko the next day is Friday the 13th) And then Watanuki mentions that he thinks the errand that he's running is to take the bento boxes back to the foxes' for "last night's dinner." So I can't tell if this discrepancy is me being very confused or is the archery competition actually happens on Thursday instead of Sunday or if an entire week has passed in the course of the episode. Food for thought!

That's all for now! See you next time! ;3